plot of haze?

[AKpress]

From the trailer it looked like you didnt like mantle corps, ya know shooting all the tvs and ditching your gear, but all the screens show you working with some mantle corps troops. so my question would be: are you rebeling against mantle like the trailer would imply or are you working for them?

[AKpress]

From the trailer it looked like you didnt like mantle corps, ya know shooting all the tvs and ditching your gear, but all the screens show you working with some mantle corps troops. so my question would be: are you rebeling against mantle like the trailer would imply or are you working for them?

[deded999]

Looks like you start out working for them and then... who knows? Maybe you get to choose which side you fight on. That would be a very interesting idea, but I would imagine it's hard to implement two story threads in one game. More likely the story changes as you play, but I wouldn't like to speculate too much on how it changes for fear of spoiling it.

It sounds intriguing anyway.

[Kade_Yuy]

well they already said you were apart of mantel corp. and mantel corp. uses nectar which is a drug that makes you fight harder or something like that so when he tears of his gear its like he uses all of the nectar or something.....

[deded999]

I think that's more a representation of the guy's anger with being lied to/manipulated by Mantel, although in what way he's been used is not clear. It's not clear either what the real purpose of the drug is, or how it links in to the title: Haze.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Main Entry: haze
Pronunciation: 'hAz
Function: noun
Etymology: probably back-formation from hazy
1 a : fine dust, smoke, or light vapor causing lack of transparency of the air b : a cloudy appearance in a transparent liquid or solid; also : a dullness of finish (as on furniture)
2 : something suggesting atmospheric haze; especially : vagueness of mind or mental perception </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Webster

[Extra_Extra_Guy]

A great FPS doesn't need a story line. FEAR, I thought, didn't have a great story but I still liked it.

[deded999]

It's not the storyline that matters in FPS, as you say, but the scenario. That can set up quite a few things but an overall plot does help in forming the scenario in the first place.

The storyline of 'splitters isn't complex or very developed, but the scenario (time-travel) sets up everything else in the game.

Haze' scenario/plot seems a little more complex than the above, but it doesn't necessarily need lots of plot and story exposition.

[AKpress]

True a story isnt important, but without a story the game just changes into a generic FPS. Like Halo, that game sold a lot and people loved it but without the story it would just be like every other FPS. Unless you create somthing really new and special then the game is kinda boring without a plot.

[TheEvilEye1919]

i agree with AKpress . . . although an FPS can be fun without a proper plot and storyline, it eventually just turns into "kill this kill that why am i doing this". i find a decent storyline helps you get into the game more, and also puts you in the right mood for the game itself.for instance, what if halflife2 didnt have a story line, it would just be a bloke with a shotgun walking around shooting guys in funny suitsofarmor and wierd zombie things. not as good as the storyline makes it in real life.

[SteamBot]

I really doubt they'd have multiple plot lines, that would be pretty hard to do. I just basically expect that the whole game will be full of anti-war messages, such as the propaganda that armies use to recruit soldiers.

I think the point of the title Haze is just that everything is unclear, like you have in your definition, "lack of transparency".

[deded999]

An interview with one of the guys who presented the Haze footage at E3. Not particularly revealing, but confirms some early conclusions for me:

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">IGN: So the presentation ends with some gameplay, which is supposed to be a live satellite feed from some Mantel soldiers currently involved in an operation. And that leads up to the audience supposedly witnessing a soldier kill someone he shouldn't and they stop the presentation, right?

Mat: Yeah, and they're not revealing too much beyond that at this point, but it has to do with the Nectar, the performance enhancing stuff that they're giving the soldiers. And beyond that I think I would get in a lot of trouble if I said anymore. (laughs) The plot device of the story is going to center around the Nectar that they're giving the soldiers. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

IGN Interview (http://uk.games.ign.com/articles/709/709016p1.html)

Anyone seen Jacob's Ladder? http://forums.ubi.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_wink.gif

[urowned]

yeh dude i loved that movie

is that the baseball movie with tim robins in it?? i dont think this game will hve baseball in it but if it has kevin costner in it tht would be weird

[deded999]

Er, it had Tim Robbins in it, but it wasn't about baseball:

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Plot Outline: A traumatized Vietnam war veteran finds out that his post-war life isn't what he believes it to be when he's attacked by horned creatures in the subway and his dead son comes to visit him. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

IMDB

Very wierd and spooky, with maybe some relevance to the Haze plot http://forums.ubi.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_wink.gif

[urowned]

yeh i thin i new tht

i think that movie shared the **** out of me!!!!!

but you wanna now the real plot for haze this sausy it all basically

http://www.eurogamer.net/tv_video.php?playlist_id=506&s=m

[deded999]

From the OPSM2 (UK) preview:

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">It's being described as a 'war road movie' in that it takes place over two days, with the story unfolding as you explore the area </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

[frd_neko]

Oh, is the new OPSM2 out now? I haven't seen it, believe it or not!

Neko.

[deded999]

Yeah, out today with Assassin's Creed on the cover http://forums.ubi.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_wink.gif

[Elixsus]

I think after watching the trailer about 20 times as its better everytime and i get to think that the game is closer than it is the storyline goes abit like this.

Your a soldier for Mantle Corps and what happends is that you actually realize that something in the organisation is wrong/corrupt. I think i can tell this from his expression when he takes of what seems to be a backpack full of nectar. When he takes it off he is i think disconnected from the control the nectar has and his emotions are no longer controlled but are let out loose. His expression seem very angry/shocked/disgusted/fed up before and after he takes it off. Then the plot goes that you become a member of the other side trying to fight for your own cause . And that cause is to get revenge or to find out and spread the truth about Mantle Corps. Either that or totally the other way around where the other dudes are the reall bad guys and your are infact part of a good organisation....... but from when he shots all the tv's in the shop it seems most likly my first version is the better one.

Thanks for reading Elixsus

[deded999]

Sounds like a decent theory Elixsus.

I don't really want to speculate too much at this point - I wouldn't want to have predicted the entire plot way before I even play the game! The print quote about the two-day timespan of the game threw me a little I must admit. That seems to suggest things will develop very quickly story-wise and that a day/night cycle will be quite important. FC had a similar time-period though, and that worked well, so I've no worries.

[frd_neko]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by deded999:
Sounds like a decent theory Elixsus.

I don't really want to speculate too much at this point - I wouldn't want to have predicted the entire plot way before I even play the game! The print quote about the two-day timespan of the game threw me a little I must admit. That seems to suggest things will develop very quickly story-wise and that a day/night cycle will be quite important. FC had a similar time-period though, and that worked well, so I've no worries. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Yeah, remember that two days played in real time would amount to 48 hours worth of gameplay, which is more than any FPS that I can recall! We're not playing strictly in real-time, time does pass more quickly than it would in real life, but don't worry, the game centres around a very specific set of events that happen in quick succession, but I don't think there's any danger of it not feeling suitably 'epic'.

Neko.

[VideoGameFan]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by deded999:
Looks like you start out working for them and then... who knows? Maybe you get to choose which side you fight on. That would be a very interesting idea, but I would imagine it's hard to implement two story threads in one game. More likely the story changes as you play, but I wouldn't like to speculate too much on how it changes for fear of spoiling it.

It sounds intriguing anyway. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>


I agree with you.

[deded999]

Well, like the apparent revelation in the plot of Assassin's Creed, I'm trying to avoid any major spoilers, (okay so far http://forums.ubi.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_wink.gif) - it's going to be pretty hard though, especially when I'm scraping around for any Haze info I can find!

As long as such plot details are only vaguely communicated outside the game, I don't think it matters that much, as long as when you're playing you can't predict exactly when, where, who and how. Having played Metal Gear Solid and Deus Ex (to name a few of the best) with very little idea of what to expect before and during play, I can attest to just how great plot (and gameplay) surprises can be.

[deded999]

From the PSM2 (UK#77) article:

Well, no worries about plot spoilers here: they haven't got a clue either, and they've played it!

Seriously, I'm more confused now than I was before, although I look on that as a good thing! It's going to take some time to digest the articles many suggestions, hints and doubtless red-herrings, and we'll probably be no closer by that point - (I sense the media's current vogue for disinformation has taken root in old Nottingham town, eh lads? http://forums.ubi.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_wink.gif).

The most 'revealing' quote, (hinted at repeatedly by Neko), may be this:

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">There is more to that trailer than first viewing provides. It's a very deliberate thing. </div></BLOCKQUOTE> (FRD)

So I was correct when I said in the Vehicle thread:

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">We just don't know enough at this point to even be able to guess as to what is going on, (despite all the preview statements about gunned-down natives, Nectar, disappearing blood and butterflies), so the shots in the trailer really don't impart much information at all - something I'm sure was part of the plan anyway... </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Sneaky, sneaky monkey-creatures...

EDIT: To FRD/Neko/Rob: You know, it's ironic I was worried about finding out too much about the plot - I know less now than I did yesterday! It does intrigue me more and more after reading the article, but there isn't a snowball in hell's chance I can figure out what you lot are doing, at the moment at least. Bravo!

I think I can see what you're driving at with the Macguffin malarkey - I actually knew what this was before reading it, (I read a novel called the Macguffin a while ago, although I don't recall much of it), and can kind of see how it can be applied to games, (almost every game has a Macguffin - it's probably the most Macguffin'd medium going come to think of it), but it doesn't really take me anywhere. That's quite a good thing for the storyline, as you can start out with your own pre-conceptions and then have them either slowly stripped away or ripped out from under you. Or not, as the case maybe. That's the plot-bit out of the way.

How it relates and impacts on the gameplay slightly worries me, but the statement about playing lots of FPS' helps, as does your past record and the things I've seen and heard of the game so far. In the end I look at it like this - you're making a game, which I have every reason to believe will be a great game for a number of reasons. The plot, although it may be completely nuts, may not matter much, (reminding myself of Rob's comments in the Eurogamer interview about people who don't care about emotion and plot not losing anything, or words to that effect), and then again it may be that it's one of the greatest plot ideas/scenarios we've yet seen in games - the general (confused and clouded though it is) premise reminds me of a novel as much as a game, (Life During Wartime?) which is quite encouraging IMO. As long as the gameplay is there, it can function superbly as a game, with the added attraction of a plot that many may not care much about - but for those that do may be a revelation.

Sorry for the confused ramblings, (especially for those who haven't read the article!), but whose fault is that eh? http://forums.ubi.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_wink.gif