Do choices matter in Beyond: Two Souls?

I am trying to determine if the choices you make have bearable effect on the story or if the game follows one narrative in a linear way despite of what the player decides.

Do choices only effect the episodes by themselves or are they reflected throughout the game? How close is it to Heavy Rain in terms of different possible endings?

I also have heard that the game features illusion of choices, e.g.

with not being able to kill the father even though the option is offered.

Is this often the case or merely the exception?

Yes and no.

Yes in that the choices you make, and this will sound like buying into Cagedom, really do influence what that character becomes in your mind. Even if you will see little actually change, the act of choosing (or experiencing the illusion of choice) really does have an impact.

No in that the game is pretty much a "Press a button to choose your ending" game and while you get a few alternate scenes at various points or miss content because of a failure on your part, it's all going on the same railroad tracks for the most part.

Yes.

Your choices in the game will affect your relationship with the other characters around you and it's even possible for characters to die if you fail at certain points.

The game has about six endings depending on the choices you made throughout the game.

It's all about the journey, not about the destination.

Heavy Rain had pre-determined characters, you chose how the story unveiled.

Beyond: Two Souls has a pre-determined storyline, you choose how the characters develop.