Heavy Rain is full of great techniques for getting a player to bond with characters in games and not have it happen because of the "cool factor". To get a player to bond with a character is not about telling a player a characters backstory, its giving a player the ability to experience and play through the defining moment(s) before kicking the character and games story off. watching a cutscene and hoping that a player emperthises is a technique that doesnt lend itself properly to interactive media (and on a cost point a level showing it can be cheaper than a cutscene). Tightly controlling the players first experience with a character (and the game itself) becomes a key for setting the tone of the game and the player/character bond.

a few techniques used in heavy rain without spoilers and keeping it generic (damn lack of spolier tags)

- Showing a characters bond with loved ones
- Showing a sence of loss or suffering
- Showing a characters vunerability and fears

This makes me rather curious about Hard Rain, shame I don't own a PS3 (yet).