Fahrenheit: Indigo Prophecy (15th Anniversary edition) | PS4 Review.

Publisher: Quantic Dream (PS4)

Developer: Quantic Dream | Aspyr
PS4 Review

It's been a long time since I played Fahrenheit, it first came out in 2005 and goes by 2 different names, Fahrenheit and Fahrenheit: Indigo Prophecy which it's known as in North America, it was to avoid confusion with the movie Fahrenheit 9/11, adding Indigo Prophecy gave players a big hint that this game would center around an Indigo child which were believed to possess supernatural powers but turned out to be about a lot more than that! I have long awaited for it to come to PS4 to add to my Quantic Game collection and when they announced they would be releasing a 15th anniversary copy on PS4 I preordered it straight away, I wanted to to delve back into the weird and fascinating story that Lucas found himself in again. The graphics/flaws of the game are very much the same as when it was first released, this may put a lot of people off who wanted a remake rather than a remaster but I felt that the graphics gave it a lot of character and instantly transported me back to Playstation 2 days! The controls are clunky, they always have been so it wasn't expecting much in terms of change but this didn't deter me from wanting to play, it took me a little while to get used to them more so the QTE (quick time events) buttons. 

The game play takes place in a gloomy New York, it's starting to get cold more cold than usual and something seems afoot. A man by the name of Lucas is going to have to face something big, bigger than he ever imagined, his story is a lot more comparable to Beyond Souls due to the supernatural storyline that takes place, You're thrown into the action straight away and find yourself inside a diner toilets with blood on your hands and a man dead on the ground. Lucas has no idea what's happened or what he has done but he knows he has to get out of there and fast, as the player you will need to make a few choices before you leave, wash your hands? Leave the money behind for the meal you ate? for me it was a given to do everything I could to stop any suspicion happening especially when a police officer was sat in the diner.

Soon after leaving the story switched to another character called Carla, you can switch between both her and her partner Tyler who both have their own struggles in life which play a part in their past present and future. This was one of the main features that pulled me in, having one story is great but delving into several gives the game more character and makes the players want to play through more than once to choose different dialogue to see what happens next. They work well together and come up with a solid plan to track down who commited the murder, unfortunately it's not as simple as they first thought, they end up with a name but what followed was unexpected.

Lucas finds himself in a predicament, he has to find out what is going on in his head, with his missing memories and why he keeps seeing visions of a young girl all whilst on the run from the police but they're hot on his trail and there isn't a lot of time left before everything comes crumbling down around Lucas. He finds out he has supernatural strength which he uses to his advantage to try and get away, he has not only the police after him but a supernatural being who wants him dead. As I said earlier on that the name Indigo Prophecy gave a hint to what the game was about and when Lucas was having visions of the little girl it was clear that this was the indigo prophecy and he played a big part in what was to come with her. The lead up to all this seemed to take a while though, we don't end up seeing her until nearer the end of the game and instead it focused more on Lucas's will to survive and out run those after him.

The steps you jump through to get answers often set me back, I died a lot because of my slow reactions, I wasn't used to the buttons for the QTE and as I said before it took a while to get used to them again, they're simple to do but reaction time plays a big part in whether you live or die. Luckily when you die you're given a chance to redeem yourself and try again thanks to having a certain amount of lives, by the end of the game I was hanging on with 1 life though!

Carla and Tyler edge closer to Lucas, tipping his stress levels which spells disaster for you as a player, stress is one of the sure ways to lose a life when playing and Lucas isn't the only one who can be over stressed so can the two detectives. You are left with conflicting feelings as you're both the good and bad guy, your every choice must be made on what feels best for you as the player no matter if it means going down a different route, at the end of the game you can play back through chapters if you wish and have a sneak peak at what may or may not have happened if you made a different choice, this option is great for getting all the trophies too. Some may find a few trophies annoying due to having to play on hard mode and complete QTE sequences perfectly, as someone who struggled with them sometimes I won't even attempt to do this, another thing that rubbed me the wrong way was missing out on pressing a dialogue options, once it timed out I was given one I wasn't particularly happy with, I was trying to keep on good terms with people and replies I would give and my lack of concentration at times bit me in the back!

I would have loved to have known about Lucas' teen years, we get to play through flashbacks of his childhood but there is a gap from when he was a teen, he is a very trouble man who seems to have the weight of the world on his shoulders, so coping with committing a murder without knowing why or how it occured has only added to his stressed and agitated state. He recently broke with his girlfriend who he obviously still cares deeply for and seeks her help when things start getting worse. I never saw Lucas as the bad guy, he was just a victim of circumstance that was plunged into a dark situation no one could have avoided.

Carla was the character who interested me the most, she puts on a front and she has her own demons, the dark is not something she can cope with, in a section of the game we get to experience this first hand. I can't tell you how many times it took me to get control of Carla's breathing in this situation but what I can say was it got to the point where I gave up and came back to it and managed to do it straight away. Tyler seemed very laid back, he had to choose between his girlfriend and work which must have been a hard choice, we are left to choose how he decides personally I couldn't bare to see him and his gf apart so I chose to let him leave and be with her same as when I played it back in the day.

The cast is small but it works, you get the same vibes from Fahrenheit as the more recent Quantic Games which fits in well with the style of game. New York starts to go silent the more it snowed which makes it feel more eerie and adds to the supernatural elements that Lucas faces, playing cat and mouse makes you feel like you have more control over what is to come. The story was written and put together so well, I couldn't put it down even after so many years of not playing it, I wholeheartedly was captivated by Fahrenheit and Lucas. I'm not too sure what other people's opinions of it were when it first came out but for me, the immersive story and cinematic gameplay were the main features that appealed stood out, I do play games with no storyline big give me one that flows as well as this and I'm all over it.  

Quantic Dream is known for their storytelling abilities, some say Fahrenheit was their first game but it was actually a game called The Nomad Soul which had a very similar storyline to Fahrenheit with the supernatural concept, it's one I have never played before but it includes unarmed combat which isn't something we see in today's Quantic Games. As far as playability goes, I would say it's worth downloading/buying a physical copy, don't be put off by the visual they're just one part of the games elements the best part is the storyline and Lucas's turmoil. It took me around six hours to finish and by the end of it I was relieved I didn't have to do anymore QTE! Once I finished I had gained a set amount of points which let me unlock gallery, movies, sequences, soundtrack and credits, it's worth unlocking the movies as some give you behind the scenes content from making the game. For those who have never played and love Quantic Dream games this would be a perfect opportunity to try out Fahrenheit. these games are very in depth and take players on a rollercoaster of emotions.