Let me start off by saying Haze doesn't suck, Haze isn't a horrible game, and Haze IS worth checking out. Now that I got that out of the way, Haze hasn't been recieving the best reviews in the world and there are a couple reasons why. When the PS3 was brand new, Haze was supposed to be a selling point for the console. It was hyped up for such a long time, gamers were expecting "the next big thing" -- but when they recieved the end product it really wasn't close.
Another might be a personal issue, but I'm not a fan of having to download the game into your system in order to play it. I do understand it cuts down on load times later on, but when I pop a game in I want to play it right then, not have to wait 25 minutes (Remember, this has nothing to do with the actual gameplay).
You play the game as Shane Carpenter, a soldier for the company Mantel Global Industries which advances bio-medical warfare. Mantel develops a "nutritional supplement" called Nova-Keto-Thyrazine which they nicknamed Nectar, this substance enables soliders to be stronger and smarter but didn't come with out some draw backs. There is a hallucinogenic effect when taken, which causes soliders to feel as if the battlefield can cause them no pain.
The plot itself takes place over a three day time period where you as Carpenter are fighting against a group of rebels, also known as "The Promise Hand". Carpenter sees the effect Nectar is having on his fellow teammates and turns rogue -- he partners up with The Promise Hand to take down Mantel.
Your first hour or so of the game is spent teaming up with the Mantel soliders, who in actuality were designed for you to dislike (to make the side swap easier, I'm guessing?). The Promise Hand's soliders are rebels fighting to free their villiages from Mantel's power over them, so of course you're generally going to be drawn towards the victims.
Now on to actual game play, this first-person shooter is a clean smooth game. As in all shooters, weapons are a huge part and this has a large variety from the guns, flamethrowers, gernades, and knives. Each wepaon comes with it's very own nickname. Mantel equips their soilders with weapons such as the "Blacksaw" assault rifle, the "Diplomat" pistol, or my personal favorite "Donkey Puncher" shotgun. The Rebel soliders weapons have more serious nicknames such as "Mano del Dios" minigun or the "Dragon de la Gentle" flamethrower (If you get set on fire, you actually use your SixAxis to fan away the flames from poor Carpenter). Despite the cool nicknames, you'll probably find yourself using your assault rifle more than anything else, because weapons like the shotgun take quite a few shots to bring a solider down.
Now what about these soliders you have to bring down? They aren't the brightest thats for sure. The enemies in the game reminded me of the dim witted enemies in Perfect Dark: Zero. Throwing a grenade towards these soliders seemed almost cruel, as they don't even acknowledge them. Occasionally, you'd find them running right into your line of fire and even stand there motionless, not even returning fire. Even your AI-teammates aren't much better, the often get in your line of sight and just are generally in the way. But there is a fix to this! Haze actually offers a four player co-op to the campaign mode, which does make the annoying teammate AI go away (results will vary depending on how good your friends are!).
GameGirl readers: Did you pick up a copy of Haze? Or are you planning on getting a copy? Why don't we play! My PSN name is, of course, bunnyXablaze. :)
