HAZE impressions & media thread

Kobold said:
Anyone else reminded of Far Cry Instincts? Where you had the 'power' to see enemies in the same shade of yellow, like you do in this game with Nectar energy. Just has the same general feel after watching gameplay.

I have yet to see anything 'unique' about this game, but keeping eyes open.
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Very much so. Melee power up, seeing enemy heat signatures, speed boost. The foresight thing is new, though. Could be interesting.
 
Hagi23 said:
How long before Haze starts to get the shaft by the Halo crazed game media?
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Oh, they'll get compared to Halo immediately. Every console FPS does. And it doesn't help that Free Radical is inviting the comparison themselves by taking little pot shots at Bungie's title.
 
Kobold said:
Anyone else reminded of Far Cry Instincts? Where you had the 'power' to see enemies in the same shade of yellow, like you do in this game with Nectar energy. Just has the same general feel after watching gameplay.
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A little bit, yeah. Although I honestly welcome that. The feral aspect of Far Cry Instincts was, at least on a conceptual level, awesome.
 
urk said:
Oh, they'll get compared to Halo immediately. Every console FPS does. And it doesn't help that Free Radical is inviting the comparison themselves by taking little pot shots at Bungie's title.
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True but even if the Haze devs didnt say anything i think the Halo crazed media like to crap on any console fps thats not Halo without giving it a fair chance, Resistance comes to mind as a example.
 
Hagi23 said:
True but even if the Haze devs didnt say anything i think the Halo crazed media like to crap on any console fps thats not Halo without giving it a fair chance, Resistance comes to mind as a example.
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Resistance enjoyed universal acclaim from pretty much all of the major review houses.
 
urk said:
Resistance enjoyed universal acclaim from pretty much all of the major review houses.
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if you mean reviewed well i guess but the feeling i get from most of the game media is that its good but not Halo so who cares.
 
Halo has something going for it outside of being on the forefront of superior design and concept (in my eyes). It has an involving and compelling story that goes far deeper then a normal sci-fi shooter in which aliens invade earth. Hell, in Halo mankind invaded alien territory first and foremost and mysticism, symbolism, religion and all kinds of 'adult' stuff are involved in creating a more then compelling game world with superior gameplay and (mostly in the first game) unique execution and invention of game mechanics that were copied by a lot of other following console shooters.

So far, Haze is showing us absolutely nothing new, especially not in the depth or involvement of the storyline. It may look OK-ish visually, but if the gameplay is not compelling and innovative enough come releaseday this is destined to sink into mediocrity like so many games before it.

In that respect it reminds me of Pariah. Also a shooter made by a very decent developer that started out as a possibly interesting game, but ended up being so incredibly mediocre no one talked of it since. Not doing it's name much honor, I suppose.

But again, we don't know everything yet about the title. Keeping my eyes pealed, I personally feel it's due time that Free Rradical made a truly good game to deserve the credit they get (though I'm sure they are awesome dudes and do nothing but their best, no doubt!).
 
Kobold said:
So far, Haze is showing us absolutely nothing new, especially not in the depth or involvement of the storyline.
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Depends on what you compare it to. It's still way too early to tell, but to me it feels like it could be on the same level as a good sci-fi novel. And compared with other games - other FPS especially - that's not a common thing.
 
Wasp armor looks... interesting... but otherwise those are some amazing shots. First truly impressive PS3 game for me. 60FPS?
 
Found an interesting interview of David Doak on CVG

http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=164813

Some interesting quotes :

Dave said:
There are some weapons and evolution in there too and that's how we introduce different elements to the gameplay. But we've tried to keep the weapon set reasonably controllable. The industry has so often in the past got caught up with 'well, how many guns has your game got?'
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So there won't be much weapon in that game? :(


What are you thoughts on the FPS genre as a whole?

Doak: It's hard because I think the world tries to put games into a box and unfortunately the games industry also puts itself into a box. It says 'oh, not another generic first-person shooter' but that's what everyone queues up to do. We've become our own worst enemies in that respect. It's like we're taking tiny steps. Haze has to remain faithful to being a good arcade-shooter but on top of that we're trying to make the gameplay more interesting and we're trying to make you get into it more when you're playing.
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Sorry David, bu so far, Haze looks very generic, a lot more than a Timesplitter for exemple ^^


Do you see Haze getting lost in the noise of Halo 3 and GTA IV on 360?

Doak: Clearly on 360 you're going to be going up against the juggernought that is Halo. It's wise to not be standing in the middle of the road when it comes towards you because there's nothing bigger on Xbox. In many ways Halo 3 has already won that battle before it's even really started.
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Afraid of Halo, ain't you?
 
Kobold said:
Halo has something going for it outside of being on the forefront of superior design and concept (in my eyes). It has an involving and compelling story that goes far deeper then a normal sci-fi shooter in which aliens invade earth. Hell, in Halo mankind invaded alien territory first and foremost and mysticism, symbolism, religion and all kinds of 'adult' stuff are involved in creating a more then compelling game world with superior gameplay and (mostly in the first game) unique execution and invention of game mechanics that were copied by a lot of other following console shooters.

So far, Haze is showing us absolutely nothing new, especially not in the depth or involvement of the storyline. It may look OK-ish visually, but if the gameplay is not compelling and innovative enough come releaseday this is destined to sink into mediocrity like so many games before it.

In that respect it reminds me of Pariah. Also a shooter made by a very decent developer that started out as a possibly interesting game, but ended up being so incredibly mediocre no one talked of it since. Not doing it's name much honor, I suppose.

But again, we don't know everything yet about the title. Keeping my eyes pealed, I personally feel it's due time that Free Rradical made a truly good game to deserve the credit they get (though I'm sure they are awesome dudes and do nothing but their best, no doubt!).
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What Halo has going for it is a somewhat slower pace that is friendlier to console controls, period. It's a great game, but really not all that special, other than it's the first multiplayer console FPS to actually be very playable, IMO.
 
Anyone else get a Syndicate Wars vibe from the mind control aspect, and then specifically in regards to the disruption of the mind control?

Syndicate_wars-screenshot_intro_01.png
Syndicate_wars-screenshot_intro_02.png


This isn't a slight against Haze though; the mind control disruption concept wasn't exactly invented with Syndicate Wars. Besides, Syndicate Wars kicked all sorts of ass in regards to oppressive concepts, so it's good to see some of these ideas appearing in new games.
 
Gameinformer preview. has some exclusive screens as well

In single-player, three A.I. characters will play as your squadmates, and if your team gets killed off you’ll get replacements later in the game. However, if you do manage to keep them alive, throughout the game you’ll get more of an insight in squadmates’ back stories, because they’re starting to trust you. Could this unveil even more details about Mantel?
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01haze_abandonedresort_nectaron.jpg


03haze_bridge_nectaron.jpg


IGN video interview, late to the party as usual.
 
Looks good. I'd like to see a demo, but this could be something for me to finally play on my PS3. I like the armor, the visuals are fantastic. With a demo this could be a purchase for me. Any idea if they intend a demo? Idiots if they don't.
 
Haze co-op preview from IGN

When we first saw the game running at the show, a lone demo-guy was blitzing through a jungle level in singleplayer mode. We hadn't yet heard that the game was co-op, and thought that the other three PS3s in the corner were simply additional demo stations. It turns out that all four PS3s were networked, as we saw when three other players joined the fray, mid-level. Like Gears, Haze allows players to drop into and out of the game whenever they feel like it. As Derek explained, "We have a dynamic drop-in/drop-out system that allows additional co-op players to join mid-game rather than needing to return back to a menu to select a different mode. This makes the co-op game in HAZE very easy to pick up and play."

When playing in solo mode, our demo guy seemed to be doing fairly well against the AI, so when four players started blazing their way through a factory packed to the smokestacks with enemies, we expected them to encounter very little resistance. If one guy could do okay, surely four would obliterate the enemy? Apparently not, as the AI dynamically adapted to the new conditions. "The beauty of our 'Conspire' AI system is that it's completely scaleable and unscripted. Rather than being pre-programmed to always behave in a certain way, for example always using a certain bit of cover, or always staying a certain distance away from the enemy, it can alter an enemy's reactions based on the scale of the threat it's facing." The Conspire system has several tricks up its sleeve to make the bad guys even harder to hit. "Not moving between cover points as often, or making Promise Hand squads bunch closer together so they can rain down better suppressive fire". The AI was still a little rough at this early stage, occasionally acting as if it had had a Nectar overdose, but there's still plenty of time to polish up this tricky area of game development.

Speaking of Nectar overdoses (Nectar is the drug used by the player to enhance one of four key abilities - perception, foresight, focus and melee blast), Derek gleefully described the occurrence of these in the co-op game "The 'overdose' state turns the whole co-op experience on it's head - one moment you've got your best buddy next to you, the next he's a gun-crazy maniac who's shooting blind!". During testing of the co-op game, it's these overdose sequences that have seared a special spot into Derek's memory. "I was pinned down by some heavy Promise Hand fire when the guy next to me suddenly overdosed and started lobbing grenades all over the place! Cue me swearing very loudly and legging it just a split second before he blew himself to pieces!"
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AltogetherAndrews said:
Haze co-op preview from IGN
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One of the coolest features of the Gears co-op was the shared cut-scenes. We remember howling in delight when we realised our online buddy, located several hundred kilometres away, was watching the same jaw-dropping cut scene as us. We also howled in dismay when these were omitted in Rainbow Six Vegas'. Thankfully all of the narrative devices of the singleplayer Haze game remain intact in co-op. "Most of the narrative in HAZE occurs dynamically around you without affecting your control, so you're free to stay and watch or walk away if you want - and obviously, this goes for all four players in co-op too, so 'skipping' these sequences isn't really a problem. Occasionally you'll find we'll bias your view in a certain direction to see something cool, but again, anytime you or your three buddies want to look elsewhere, you're free to do so." So when your character starts hallucinating, thanks to the side-effects of the evil Nectar, you can be sure your buddies are having the same acid flashbacks as you. But how cool would it be if some of these hallucinations only affected certain co-op players? Imagine if the most Nectar-addicted of the four players suddenly started getting paranoia attacks, and saw his friends as the bad guys? It's a cool idea which we're sure the developers are all over.

Spot the hidden soldiers.

Not every PS3 owner has a nice broadband pipe at home, so how are they going to get their killing fix with friends? Enter Free Radical's expertise with split-screen, as seen in TimeSplitters. Like the online co-op mode, split-screen co-op is available at any time, without the need to back out to the menu or loading screens. Just tap that PlayStation button on the second controller and watch in amazement as your one screen is converted into two, via the magic of technology.

We were intrigued by Haze before we'd heard about the four-player co-op, but now we're positively itching to get our Nectar fix. Considering that Gears was so much fun with two players, Haze has potentially double the fun! Damn, how do we give a game twice the score of Gears… 19 out of 10 doesn't really work, does it?
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Sounds pretty badass! :D :D
 
Question about the overdose: Do you lose complete control of your character? I mean, what's to stop you from just turning around from the action and waiting for the effects to wear off?
 
shagg_187 said:
Sounds pretty badass! :D :D
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Oh yeah, I love the way they are approaching the story. More Half Life interaction than, um, every other game CG crap.

Shame I'm not going to have a PS3 this year.
 
Mirimar said:
Question about the overdose: Do you lose complete control of your character? I mean, what's to stop you from just turning around from the action and waiting for the effects to wear off?
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According to what i read, you dont completely lose control... instead you start hallucinating and all (
Ever had drugs?
:) )
 
shagg_187 said:
According to what i read, you dont completely lose control... instead you start hallucinating and all (
Ever had drugs?
:) )
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I've read that and seen the demo. I want to know if you lose motor control as well and whether or not you just fire at random instead of just firing at anyone you're pointing at.
 
deded999 posted some tidbits from the recent OPSM UK article on the Haze forum. The Promise Hand using Nectar against the Mantel troops sounds cool as hell, hopefully it's as wicked in-game as the description suggests.

deded999 said:
Okay, some juicy morsels from the OPSM #7 Haze preview:

...a cool remote-controlled grenade - simply lob it at a position then use the trigger to blow it up...
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This refers to the Mantel SK3 frag grenade. In another dev video, Dave Doak also refers to the Promise Hand troopers taking Nectar regulators from dead Mantel troopers and attaching them to a grenade to create a Nectar grenade capable of putting groups of Mantel troopers into Nectar overdose - nasty. The Nectar regulator can also be sniped or meleed, so don't turn your back on the Promise Hand...

On the ground, you'll be able to get behind the wheel of chunky APC's as well as speedy buggies.
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The APC is pictured and looks like a cross between a truck and a fire engine. Chunky, but apparently unarmed. And...

There's also a whole range of Promise Hand vehicles that Free Radical Design is yet to reveal. This is an improvisational guerilla force though, so we're fully expecting them to come at you in rusty, armour-plated Datsun Cherry's.
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On Nectar OD'ing:

overdosing teammates may end up pointing rockets at their own bases, or pulling the pins from hand grenades and just standing there laughing.
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On levels:

There are about 12 different environments ranging from some quite claustrophobic interiors to epic vistas. The level ~I was laying the other day, to walk across it - without enemies in it - took me over an hour.
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On engaging player emotions:

We didn't want to do the kind of enforced emotion through game design: protect the civilian, if they die it's game over, therefore you care about them.
Well, that doesn't enforce emotion... the only emotion you tend to get from that is frustration. It does that bizarre reverse thing where you actually end up getting p****ed off at them because they keep getting killed.
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On the dropping of squad-commands:

Haze is definetly quicker-paced than it was when we showed it at E3, although it's still a little slower, more tactical experience than Timesplitters.
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On Haze' influences:

Metal Gear Solid: "It has a similar message to Haze, although I've handled it in a different way. I've always admired Kojima for being overtly political. Politics should never interfere with gameplay, but having a theme worth thinking about gives the experience real substance," says Rob.
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There's more good stuff in there, so it's worth picking up the mag for a read.
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overdosing teammates may end up pointing rockets at their own bases, or pulling the pins from hand grenades and just standing there laughing.
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So, not only do you have to worry about enemies/whatever trying to gun you down, but, you have to keep an eye out for soldiers strung out on angel dust. Team Killers have an excuse to put people down now. :lol
 
Eurogamer interview with Doak - even more of this guy. I think he gives fairly good interview, though: a good mix of hype, deflection and stuff I do and don't agree with.

http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=77574


Eurogamer: Are you waiting to see how it does on one platform before making decisions?

David Doak: We're working on development on all platforms. It's just looking at the way to best get the return on the investment of making the game. And part of that is it's a timing thing; late 2007 will be a good time to be coming out on PlayStation 3 and saying here is Free Radical's next-gen game.
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It's a funny thing. Someone said to me earlier, 'where do you think first-person shooters will go in the future?' And I think not having a gun or not using a gun is a very interesting place to be.
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snack said:
Sony should work on securing this as an exclusive. This game has potential to be this gen's Halo.
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I think they are lucky to get 6 months or whatever it is exclusive considering its Ubisoft.
 
IGN blog by Rob Yescombe (writer)

At the end of this year, we’re delivering HAZE on PS3, and right now we’re at red alert. By ‘red alert’ I mean that we’re getting perilously close to the last leg of development, and everyone on the team is desperately trying to cram in all the ideas that less determined men would suggest we leave for another day. But the guys here really don’t seem to have homes to go to, so why not, eh.

As for me, this week I’ve been directing some of the final voice sessions. Half the game is set in South America, so we made a decision early on that we wouldn’t have any actors ‘putting on’ accents. That is to say, all the actors playing rebels parts are from the region, which lends the whole thing an air of credibility. I hope.

The biggest problem that comes from working with native speakers is that English is their second language - sometimes a very distant second. In fact, the principal challenge of the last few weeks has been extracting performances from these guys that, while remaining authentic, are actually intelligible. You see, their accents are pretty damn thick. I’m sure you folks will let me know if it worked.
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The video dev diary mentioned earlier is also available from IGN, and from gametrailers.com

http://www.gametrailers.com/player.php?id=20523&type=mov&pl=game

New gameplay footage and other goodies there
 
More people should read that blog entry. It's got a good breakdown of the team behind this game - which all Rare fans should be all over.

I can understand that some people don't like the TimeSplitters games because they were goofy, but this game is headed in the opposite direction.

There's a lot to like about this group, and I hope people will give Haze a chance.

Also - I hope they get their act together on the 360 version. I really don't want to wait X years to play this game (where X is the amount of time it takes the PS3 to drop to a reasonable price).
 
Ever since Timesplitters 2 came out it has made no sense to me why Sony didnt take steps to secure Free Radical as a 1st party developer. Given the time and resources (like they seem to be getting with HAZE) I bet they could really make something excellent. They seem to be one of the few developers besides BUNGIE(and just recently Insomniac) that really get how to make a first person shooter work on a console. The timesplitter series showed they could get the mechanics absolutley perfect but not so much the presentation. HAZE seems like them truly at their A game though.
 
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