The Cult of Deadly Premonition

Better still, the decision to have protagonist York address an invisible companion allows the player into York's strange little world - and, by extension, Suehiro's own mindset. York's monologues about his favourite films, designed to enliven the often lengthy car journeys through Greenvale and enrich the character of York, have that unmistakeably personal touch that makes the dialogue feel believable - quite the achievement when the conversation is all one-sided. It's no surprise to learn that the references came from real-life chats between Suehiro and co-writer Kenji Goda.

"When we were coming up with the idea of York, we agreed that having some sort of perfect, hot-shot FBI agent just wouldn't be interesting enough, so we decided to give him a bit of a geek character. Since I'm a huge movie nerd, we decided to give him an obsession with movies. When it came time to actually writing, a lot of the lines were spitballs from conversations between Kenji Goda and myself, so there's a lot of his knowledge packed in there, too. Seriously, most of the conversations are taken out of ones between Kenji and I while we were drinking."

"Whatever game I end up making, I promise that it will be even better than Deadly Premonition, and something that players will never forget. "

Hitetaka Suehiro, game director, Deadly Premonition

The naturalistic dialogue would mean nothing, however, without the believability of Greenvale itself. An authentic slice of small town Americana, its comparative intimacy is at odds with the ever-widening borders of open world environments elsewhere. The decision to have every character follow a daily routine makes each one feel more significant, with even bit-part players having their own recognisable foibles. Suehiro insistence that his characters "take front and centre stage" so that "these games become a personal experience for those who play them" is laudable, but the freedom to explore and talk to anyone you encounter, returning to the story in your own good time, is equally important. It offers the opportunity to do some real detective work, interviewing people, or even spying on potential subjects.

Meanwhile, the more frivolous activities - Suehiro gently laments the loss of two chess and perfume-related asides while discussing elements he wishes he'd been able to include - add to the richness of the world, making it all the more affecting when darkness falls and bad things happen to the good people of Greenvale. It's this juxtaposition between normality and oddness that makes Deadly Premonition's world so appealing. As York so succinctly puts it: "Life is fun because of the mysteries. Right, Zach?"

Hearteningly, it seems Suehiro might not be done with Greenvale just yet. "Right now, there are a lot of possibilities," he muses. "One of which is making a sequel to Deadly Premonition, while others are making a completely different, unrelated game. What about the day before York arrives in Greenvale? Or the main character being the Raincoat Killer?"

"Really, at this stage I can only really speak in the vaguest sense, but what I can promise you is this; whatever game I end up making, I promise that it will be even better than Deadly Premonition, and something that players will never forget. Please look forward to it! I love you all!"