Heavy Rain was a critical hit for Quantic Dreams, but with no plans for a sequel or any announcements otherwise, the studio's next move is anyone's guess. Lucky for our insatiable desire for speculation, the internet is full of guessers, and thanks to a mix of online clues and quotes from the company's founder David Cage, we now have a better idea of what's up Quantic Dreams' sleeve. Er, kind of.
Last week, Heavy Rain received three trophies at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) awards. Shortly after the event, Cage spoke briefly to the US PlayStation Blog about what he hopes to achieve with Quantic Dreams' next project, hinting, “We’re going to be exploring a different direction, which will still be very dark and still for adults, but completely different to Heavy Rain. Our challenge is to satisfy our fans, and also surprise them.”
Cage also told CVG earlier this month he's interested in exploring something akin to an 'emotional' FPS, stating, "A game about war is something I would like to do, just to see if we could get closer to the film side; not glorifying war, but talking about it from a realistic point of view."
Regarding the next project's rumored title, notorious internet sleuth Superannuation uncovered a Quantic Dreams URL registration and Sony Trademark for the name Flv5. Both were filed last April, just a few months before Cage told the Examiner, “We [are working] on two very different projects. After the success of Heavy Rain, we continue to explore how we can go further with interactive drama, working on emotion and interactive storytelling for a mature audience, but with a very different story and a different approach.”
Putting it all together, it's looking good that the studio's next will be moody, interactive drama called (or at least code named?) Flv5. That, or an open-world Flavor Flav sandbox adventure (fingers crossed). As for what that second game could be, Superannuation claims to have found references on Quantic Dreams LinkedIn profile to its previously canceled title, Infraworld, which have since been deleted. Superannuation also spotted a location in Heavy Rain where an Infraworld poster can be seen in clear view:
A cryptic title and references to a long-dead game aren't much to go on, but if there's one common thread amidst all this hearsay and speculation, it's that Quantic Dreams is committed to sticking to its focus on interactive storytelling and mature, adult themes. Also, David Cage likes to make people cry.
[Source: US PlayStation Blog via Gamespot]
Mar 22, 2011
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