In a Q&A with fans on the UK Playstation site, Heavy Rain director David Cage and executive producer Guillaume de Fondaumière revealed a few interesting tidbits about the game’s development process and the inspiration behind some of Heavy Rain’s scenes.
Addressing whether parts of the game were inspired by real life, Cage said: "There are two specific moments. The initial idea for the game came from when I lost my son in a crowded mall, so that was a very strong personal event. The second moment was when I was a kid I had my two fingers cut… so that’s actually happened to me and I know what it feels like."
In reply to another question about how the game emotionally impacted QA testers, Cage divulged that the finger-cutting scene in particular had been "really painful" to constantly play through, in order to make sure it was free of bugs.