Haze Now Slated As A PS3 Exclusive

Haze, a first person shooter slated for release this year, has surprisingly been announced as a PlayStation 3 exclusive. This past spring Ubisoft, the game's publisher, announced that the First Radical title was going to have the PS3 as its 'lead platform' when it released. It appears that lead has now become 'only'. "Currently only the PS3 version of Free Radical's shooter is in development. The France-based publisher also noted that it was still leaving the door open in the future for 'new partnerships,' but currently the game is indeed only planned for the PS3. A spokesperson said, 'The official statement on PC and Xbox 360 is that these platforms are not confirmed.'"

Comments

PR speak

[flitty]

Doesn't that translate into "It's exclusive to PS3, until it isn't."

Re:PR speak

[QMalcolm]

Exactly. What Ubisoft is doing here is nothing but marketing.

Haze is announced multiplatform: people talk about it for a while but mostly forget about it.
Haze is announced as PS3 exclusive: fanboys suddenly care about it, talk about it much more.
Haze is released on PS3, then the 360/PC versions are announced: "OMG PS3 exclusive coming to 360/PC!" People talk about it again.

Re:PR speak

[flitty]

Ok, after looking at the actual statement again, The /. title is Misleading. Nowhere does he say that it's a PS3 Exclusive, or anything of the sort. "PC and 360 ... not confirmed" could mean, "we are in talks to make it multi-platform", definately not "oh yeah, PS3 4 Lyfe!". Are the /. editors at home already for the weekend, how did a sony fanboy sneak this through?

Re:PR speak

[toleraen]

Are the /. editors at home already for the weekend, how did a sony fanboy sneak this through? Ironically enough, the post credits no one but Zonk.

Re:PR speak

[twistedsymphony]

They did the same damn thing with Assassin's Creed.

It almost seems to me that they're hiding the 360 in hopes that Sony will see the hype and offer some cash to buy exclusivity.

I also don't understand how this is news considering pretty much NOTHING has changed.

Re:PR speak

[Kohath]

Actually, since it's not even out yet, it can't even be said to be exclusive to the PS3 yet. Not in actual reality anyway.

It has been exclusively "announced" for the PS3. As for the availability in retail stores, they have as many copies for the 360 as for the PS3: zero.

Re:PR speak

[Nazmun]

Nah, I think with the new head of SCEI (formerly head of u.s. division Kaz Hirai) ps3 will regain a lot of exclusives. According to numerous reports and developers the old head for some odd reason wouldn't return calls on exclusives for the longest time for the ps3 until he was "demoted" (I can't remember his name for the life of me, founder of SCEI and the PSX...Father of the Playstation).

Re:PR speak

[bateleur]

Ken Kutaragi.

Re:PR speak

[DrEldarion]

The thing was, it was previously confirmed Haze was multi-platform. Then the PS3 became the lead platform with the 360 and PC being pushed off to a later date. Now, they've said that they aren't even working on the 360 and PC versions but are still open to them.

So, while it's not necessarily an exclusive, I don't think it's too crazy to assume it may be one if they're not even working on porting it yet.

Re:PR speak

[donaldm]

From the Article "Ubisoft has told GameSpot that First Radical's sci-fi first-person shooter Haze is now being planned solely for Sony's PlayStation 3 platform".

Actually this is an excellent move by the companies concerned since who wants to bring out another FPS for the Xbox360 when they would be going head to head with Halo which would most likely result in poor sales until the Halo buying frenzy is over. So why not bring out an exclusive for the PS3 which by then will have well over 5 million owners and you have a very good chance of selling over one million copies or more if the game is that good. Later on you can bring out an Xbox360 and PC version (more potential profit) since many FPS games have similar engines so porting is fairly easy although the same can be said if you go the other way.

Before we get troll's saying "But the PS3 is hard to program for!", most games computer graphics artists don't program down to the metal they normally use a games development engine and it is up to the developer of that engine to optimise it for the particular hardware and operating system it is going to run on. For the PS3 the lowest level programming languages are C and C++ with a suite a libraries that talk to the hardware. Programming for the PS3 is no harder or easier than programming for the Xbox360 it is just different.

What is annoying IMHO is that we are seeing too many games that are just minor variations from each other and very little innovation, although I can understand why game and even movie companies do this but there is the saying "milking a cash cow" and conversely "flogging a dead horse" and it is up to the consumer to decide. Who knows if Haze or even Halo 3 does well we may yet see a Haze 2 or a Halo 4.

Translation

[rhizome]

"This is more difficult than we thought it would be. If we targeted more platforms the schedule would slip into the next presidential administration."

Sony

[king-manic]

Someone at Sony has just wizened up to what will move units. The apocalypse must be nigh.

I like the PS3 I own one and it seriously needs more exclusive games. Sony needs to open up the purse strings and start bribing or buying key developers like MS did. Maybe making a good developer tool suite would help too. I know Bioware swore off the PS2 platform after their PS2 efforts nearly sent the whole programming dept into mental institutes. By all accounts the PS3 is the same but harder.

Re:Sony

[bigstrat2003]

I... I can't comprehend what you're trying to say. It seems like you're trying to accuse him of being a 360 fanboy, but he has a PS3, and is happy to see the system getting something that'll help it. You could be accusing him of being a PS3 fanboy, but you bash Halo 3.

I just don't get it! /headasplode

It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[GweeDo]

Looks like it will most likely receive the PS3 exclusive kiss of death now just like Lair and Heavenly Sword...

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[Saint_Waldo]

So, you're asserting that the platform is a factor in whether or not a game is good, and that being a PS3 exclusive somehow sucks any previously percieved fun out of the game?

BTW, your ass is hanging out. I'd recommend a face mask.

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[Anonymous Coward]

"You got yourself an ass-face, boy." -Meatwad

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[Pojut]

So, you're asserting that the platform is a factor in whether or not a game is good

This was actually quite apparent on some games last-gen....case in point, Fight Night round 2 + 3 played FAR better on Xbox than they did on PS2...the Xbox (not the 360 version, just the plain ol' Xbox) had smoother graphics with a better framerate, and the controller itself seemed to be much easier to use (likely due to the "trigger style" buttons on the back).

and that being a PS3 exclusive somehow sucks any previously percieved fun out of the game?

This part I will agree with your opinion. I really really REALLY hope Haze does stay as a PS3 exclusive...Sony made it fairly easy to sell me the console, but they are making it hard to keep me happy with my purchase...in the past 6 months, my Super Nintendo has gotten more playtime than my PS3....that's just wrong.

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[bigstrat2003]

Huh? Heavenly Sword isn't out for another two weeks, has someone reviewed it already? If so, what's so bad about it? The demo is absolutely amazing, it's hard to imagine the finished game being that bad.

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[grapeape]

Its not really that Heavenly Sword is bad...its just a rather repetative beat-em-up like most are. The biggest beef has been that there isnt enough variation in the enemies and you can complete the entire game in around 6 hours.

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[Applekid]

So, you're asserting that the platform is a factor in whether or not a game is good, and that being a PS3 exclusive somehow sucks any previously percieved fun out of the game? No, I think GP is asserting that Sony bias (and bias alone) will cause sinking review scores.

Regardless of whether it's true or just marketing tactics, I think we can all agree Sony needs all the excluses it can muster in this generation in order to not go down as a joke.

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[amrust]

I've watched the demo footage. Lead character's hair/ponytail is all jittery and distracting. framerate looks bad, from what I've seen. Speaking of what I've already seen, it looks too much like a ripoff of God Of War.

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[Applekid]

I really really REALLY hope Haze does stay as a PS3 exclusive... Would you mind elaborating further? I don't know whether I'm missing insight into it or something, but, if each platform gets a nicely optimized coversion of a game, what's the harm? It can come out nice and shiny and new on the PS3 and there could be a 360 version with less sparkle released at the same time and it wouldn't diminish from your gaming experience in the slightest.

Of course, there's always the problem with bad and lazy ports, but Free Radical, AFAIK, is usually pretty tight when it comes to code.

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[Fallen Kell]

So, you're asserting that the platform is a factor in whether or not a game is good Yes, I think he is, and he has nailed it right on the head. I give you example 1:

http://www.gamespot.com/wii/action/metroidprime3/r eview.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=gssummary&tag=sum mary;review

With such CONS like:

Streamlined controls make things a little too easy and a little less adventurous What was that? BETTER controls makes the game too easy? Wait, roll that back again. They are saying that because the controls are so good and intuitive, the game is easier to play. I never knew that if you made the most convoluted controls and user interface that make the game impossible to play would result in a "PRO" as opposed to a "CON". But since they are saying that good, intuitive controls is a "CON", I guess that the contrapositive is also the case.

We also get the:

Doesn't do much different than the previous two Metroid Prime games. I wonder what they say when Halo 3 comes out...

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[bigstrat2003]

I've played the demo. I didn't really think anything of the game one way or the other before, but the demo floored me. The framerate is fine, don't worry. It is a lot like God of War... but then again, that's really the highest compliment you could pay to a game of this genre.

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[Pojut]

The main reason why I want it to stay an exclusive is so I actually have a reason to buy games for my PS3....cause right now, nearly every console game I'm buying is going to my 360...and the one's that AREN'T going to the 360 are either going to the Wii (which are few and far between as well) or to help out with my growing Dreamcast collection.

Sony sold me REALLY fast on the PS3...I love everything that it can do...I like it's multimedia capabilities, it's PSP integration, etc....I would LOVE to have a reason to play more PS3 games for it, but since I prefer the 360's controller, if a title comes out for both systems I will generally buy it for the 360...

Come on, Sony! Give me reasons to spend money on games for your console!

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[Pojut]

I would LOVE to have a reason to buy more PS3 games for it

fixed.

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[alxbtk]

GP just needs a reason to feel better about his PS3 purchase...

Haze is a good game, and a PS3 exclusive = he's finally happy he bought this console
Haze is a good game, available on PS3/PC/XBOX360 = cool, but he could have played it on another system

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[bigstrat2003]

Yeah, the "bad" in their review was pretty bogus. I normally like Gamespot's reviews, but now and then they leave me scratching my head, and this was one. Games that have good controls, and follow the successful formula set down by their predecessors? We can't have that!

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[ucblockhead]

Yes...the Heavenly Sword demo is sort of like an orgasm. It's pretty awesome, but you don't seem to have any particular control of anything and it's over in ten seconds.

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[Anonymous Coward]

The main reason why I want it to stay an exclusive is so I actually have a reason to buy games for my PS3... ...since I prefer the 360's controller, if a title comes out for both systems I will generally buy it for the 360...

So, let me get this straight: you own both consoles and prefer the 360's controls, but want them to prevent you from buying a version for the 360 so that you're forced to play on the PS3 -- which you prefer less -- just so that you can purchase a game?

Whaaa?

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[Pojut]

There are games for the PS3 that I am very excited about...for right now, I am not using it for gaming. Literally. The last PS3 game that I played through was nearly 3 months ago...I want to use the damn thing for gaming! (and not for playing PS2 titles that I have finished 5 times over)

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[Brigade]

Why is this statement modded troll? It's a valid point.

OP isn't necessarily mocking the PS3, merely stating the trend:

Resistance - Exclusive - Not so hot.
Lair - Exclusive - Reviewed Horribly.
Heavenly Sword - Exclusive - Not so hot.

Whereas the multi-platform games aren't doing too bad (I can't quote figures, but didn't Oblivion and Madden do alright?). I'd say that the "PS3 Exclusive Kiss of Death" theory so far holds water. I don't know about Ninja Gaiden Sigma, how's that been doing?

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[sholden]

Streamlined controls make things a little too easy and a little less adventurous

What was that? BETTER controls makes the game too easy? Wait, roll that back again. They are saying that because the controls are so good and intuitive, the game is easier to play. I never knew that if you made the most convoluted controls and user interface that make the game impossible to play would result in a "PRO" as opposed to a "CON". But since they are saying that good, intuitive controls is a "CON", I guess that the contrapositive is also the case.

streamlined != better

streamlined != good and intuitive

In fact the review text says: "Its core control scheme is a revelation, but the resulting tempo adjustment and streamlining is missing some of the careful pacing that made Metroid Prime and Metroid Prime 2 so superb" which is where I would expect the CON point was extracted from.

In other words the control scheme is very good but it seems to have made some other aspects of the game less good.

An aimbot in quake is an intuitive control which makes the game easier, a lot of people would say it also makes the game less fun.

Note I know nothing about the Metroid Prime games (The "6th generation" is the one I skipped (OK I missed the 1st too))

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[buffer-overflowed]

In the case of Metroid Prime 3. It really did lose points for controlling too well, being on the Wii, not being exceptionally frustrating, not having multiplayer, and being a franchise game. The exploration is there, the pacing is there, if not increased. It's harder then Bioshock, and it doesn't end in a let down. Having beaten both, I'd say MP3 is the better game(as it keeps getting better, whereas Bioshock just stops getting better at a certain point and gets *much* worse just after).

Once you get past a certain point, it's pure Metroid. The cons don't really apply. If you loved Prime, you'll love Prime 3. If you didn't much care for Prime, you may still love Prime 3. The only thing I'd subtract points for is the first bit of the game. Nothing else. That wasn't their gripe though.

This won't apply to Halo 3 though. That's Halo man! It's different! It has online play.

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[buffer-overflowed]

Yes. Someone has reviewed it.

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[Anonymous Coward]

Huh, I guess the critics and fans are wrong.

Resistance: Fall of Man
http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps3/resi stancefallofman?q=Resistance

Heavenly Sword
http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps3/heav enlysword

As for Lair, from what I heard Factor 5 tried to make it into Rogue Squadron with dragons. I like the Rogue Squadron series just as much as the next guy, but I think that Factor 5 has kinda bled that genre dry.

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[NonSequor]

No he's referring to the fact that an evil wizard cursed Sony so that all of their exclusives would turn out mediocre.

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[brkello]

Generally if you number examples, you have more than one. In any case, your example doesn't prove anything about the Wii. You are basically saying an FPS (or any game) is going to be better if it is on the Wii. Did your short little memory already forget about Red Steel? So yes, good games have nothing to do with the platform that it is on. In fact, if you actually look at the majority of the games on the Wii (that aren't put out by Nintendo) they have extremely low ratings.

You Wii fanboys really need to give it a rest. It seems you have become even worse than Sony and MS fanboys ever since the Wii actually sold well. Every article on the PS3 you have to talk about your Wii. Every article on Halo you have to bring up Metroid. You guys are worse than astroturfers because you actually believe the garbage you are spewing.

All three consoles bring something to the table. It is great that we have a choice between them. Just because you are too poor or strange to own multiple consoles doesn't mean that you have to support one so much that you stop being rational.

Re:It just slipped from a 9.0 to a 4.9

[Anonymous Coward]

That whooshing sound you hear is the content of the GP post going over your head.

The GP post never said anything about the games being better on the Wii. He merely (correctly) pointed out that some review sites seem to rate games lower based on the platform they are on...even if they have to make up some very questionable logic to do so.

Just because you have such a poor self image that you feel you need to make up for it by buying every available console, doesn't mean that everyone else out there is a rabid fanboy.

two, technically one word

[rubberbandball]

the last console exclusive FPS from UBISOFT thtat i bought? redsteel. hopefully they'll actually make an effort with this game.

Exclusive to the console nobody owns?

[Anonymous Coward]

Huh. They must not want to make a lot of money.

Re: Heavenly Sword Reviews = Rent first.

[trdrstv]

Huh? Heavenly Sword isn't out for another two weeks, has someone reviewed it already? If so, what's so bad about it? The demo is absolutely amazing, it's hard to imagine the finished game being that bad.

Yes, A number of people reviewed it, to mixed results. The 10 minute Demo (ok it's not timed, but crazy short) does make it "Feel" like this is a setup to be "Goddess of War", but according to the reviews, the best part (button mashing combat) is only about half the game, and it's a seriously short (like 6 hour) game.

The demo did pique my interest though. I think it would warrant a rent anyway, but I don't expect this being worth the $60 to put on my shelf based on the early reviews.

Warhawk

[ubikkibu]

Makes up for the last six months of PS3 doldrums. Now if we can get one great title like that a month, I won't feel bad I bought this pricey Blu-Ray player.

Re:Warhawk

[Seumas]

I'd hardly say it "makes up" for the lack of great PS3 titles. Warhawk is a great game, but it's not like it's a system-seller or anything. I can't think of the next PS3 exlusive game that I'm looking forward to. Especially now that Lair turned out to be the complete ass that I long-predicted it was going to be (as all dragon-flying games have always been, except for the Panzer Dragoon exception that proves the rule).

And when it comes down to non-exclusive games, why would you buy them on the PS3 instead of the 360? If there's a great PS3-only game, I'll buy that version. Otherwise, I'm going to buy the 360 version, because practically everyone owns a 360 and that makes the potential online player base much larger.

A little too late maybe

[alvinrod]

They've figured out what they need to do, but in some ways I wonder if they're a little late in doing so. Maybe Haze will be an astonishingly brilliant game, but I think Microsoft gobbled up some good exclusive content in Bioshock and the GTA:4 downloadable content. Bioshock is already out and I think it's one of those games that people are going to be talking about for a while and in some ways could potentially overshadow Halo 3.

Sony is still hurting for a big ticket game for this holiday season. A lot of people were banking on Lair or Heavenly Sword being some must have games, but Lair has been getting demolished by reviewers and Heavenly Sword seems to be one of those "good but not great" games that will sell copies, but isn't going to move consoles for the most part. It seems like Sony is always one step behind or waiting for what's just around the corner. The increased hardware sales are good, but unless they really pick up they're just going to be the console that gets Xbox 360 ports that don't look quite as good from the transition.

Having better developer tools is probably a good solution that can help make their games look better or easier to code, but I've never developed for the cell architecture so I can't testify to the current development tools available or how well they work. I think the best solution at this point is for Sony to do what MIcrosoft did and to throw money at some companies in order to pick up some exclusives that look like they have a good shot at moving consoles. Why they didn't take up Take Two to make GTA:4 a PS3 timed (or complete) exclusive is beyond me. However, whether or not Sony will have to settle for second-best exclusives since Microsoft has already picked some of theirs remains to be seen.

Cell's shouldn't be THAT hard to program.

[Anonymous Coward]

Saying the PS3 (Cell) is harder to program than the PS2 is a bit of an exaggeration.

Re:Cell's shouldn't be THAT hard to program.

[Grave]

I trust you're speaking from the standpoint of having actually programmed for both systems, and thus know more than the countless other developers who have said otherwise.