Add HAZE to the Sub-HD Generation
by Patrick Steen on May 6, 2008
As seems to be the norm this console generation, not all games can hit that elusive 720p HD resolution. First Halo 3, then GTA4 (PS3) and now the PS3 exclusive Haze.
As previously reported, a demo of Haze can be found on the Playstation Store, supporting 4 player co-op. Graphically it’s solid, but what’s most impressive is that it runs silky smooth. It runs at a locked 30fps, and even with a host of foliage and enemies on screen - it never dips.
Though there are more impressive looking games on the PS3, it’s with Haze’s gameplay and story that show off its true colours. (More on this in our upcoming preview of both the four player co-op and multiplayer modes.) Nonetheless, for Free Radical to achieve a solid PS3 engine with no loading throughout the game, they’ve had to make some concessions.
Qua51 of Beyond3d now confirms Haze’s resolution to be 1024by576 with no anti-aliasing. That is, going by the demo, and there’s yet to be a difference in resolution from a game’s demo to its final release. At the end of the day, this is something we’re going to have to get used to. If developers find they can put the saved power into a solid framerate, or better graphics - then should we really be complaining?
When we visited Free Radical at Sony’s 3 Rooms earlier this year, script writer Rob Yescombe had this to say about the game’s graphics::
We’ve got a 12 hour streaming experience and for someone to put that next to a game where they can spend 2 minutes loading a level every half an hour. Well good for them, but it’s a totally different game. Just because it might be first person, just because it might be on the same platform, they’re totally different games, totally different things that we’ll be able to do.
So we want to give people variety of gameplay, and if that means you’ve got a texture that doesn’t look photo realistic, well guess what, you’re going to enjoy the game more than you would looking at a photo realistic texture.
And it’s hard to disagree with that. Let us know what you think about the HAZE demo in the comments section and in our forums.
- Haze Demo Now Available for Download in Europe *Update*
- Haze UK Release Date Set, Only 28 Days?
- Haze Never Coming Out on Xbox 360
- Thou Shalt Play Haze, Eventually
- Haze Demo Coming to EU PSN 11/15?
- Play Haze Free, As Long As You Like Store Credit
- US PSN Store Update - No Haze
- Haze No Longer Being Reported As PS3 Exclusive…
on May 6, 2008 8:15 pm
i was playing the game lastnight still havent finished all yet but the gameplay was good and runs smooth but i see why at 567p’ well i hope the full game does look more better for a game thats been pushed back 3 times. i have this game on pre order and if the final built of the game looks like the demo sorry radical im not gonna get it!
on May 6, 2008 9:01 pm
Good job writing an article about a game based on a demo
Is there nothing else to write about? at least wait until the actual release….
on May 7, 2008 12:22 am
As long as pixelation is kept to a minimum, the resolution really doesn’t matter that much. I’ll be happy if the game looks good and plays well.
Resolution doesn’t seem to determine how crisp and beautiful a game is anymore anyway…A fine example of a higher-res game is The Darkness. It supported 1080i resolution, but it had bad pixelation issues (on the PS3 w/ a 61″ TV, anyway). Resistance is only 720p, but it looks a hell of a lot smoother, and runs better to boot.
on May 7, 2008 4:09 am
Meresin: I’ve got some news for you - The Darkness renders natively at 576p also…
on May 7, 2008 4:18 am
Guess the 1080i claims were marketing, then. *shrug* Either way, the game looked like ass. The great story made me love it against my will, though. :)
Either way, I’ve seen videos of Haze, and it didn’t have pixelation issues…Certainly not on the same level The Darkness did, regardless of the resolution.
on May 7, 2008 6:55 am
The Darkness supported 1080i - game makers seldom let us know their rendering resolution.
Truth: “That is, going by the demo, and there’s yet to be a difference in resolution from a game’s demo to its final release.”
on May 7, 2008 5:48 pm
yeah, but tat demo was release at least a year ago (it was the one opsm used to review the game last year in june) so i assume the graphics will be better
on May 8, 2008 4:59 am
Mike: This demo is new, and will have been updated to reflect their current/final engine. Moreover, there may be improvements to the graphics in the final game, but it’s highly unlikely the resolution will change.
on May 8, 2008 9:46 am
i think it’s a shame that we won’t get a 1080p 60fps FPS game for the PS3.
there, I said it.
PS: Love your site, especially the PES articles. Keep us informed on it. Thanks.
on May 8, 2008 11:24 am
1080p 60fps games: Virtua Tennis 3, Ridge Racer 7, NBA07, 08, Street. GT5:P is close, and I’d hold out for GT5 possibly getting there. Wipeout HD might be 60fps (it’s certainly 1080p by screenshots). Other XBL/PSN games.
There’s hope yet for a 60fps 1080p FPS! Personally I’d prefer better graphics at 720p than worse graphics at 1080p :) 720p is a minimum though.
on May 8, 2008 1:06 pm
yeah… i don’t even have 1080p, only 1080i/720p… but I want the console being pushed to its limits.
we paid so much for this piece of hardware, and i feel like we’re getting 2nd rate software. that’s sad.
on May 8, 2008 4:08 pm
Well then you should agree that a console should be pushed to the limits in graphics, and not pushing extra pixels. 720p is plenty detail, and if this saved power is used to create something that looks spectacular at a solid framerate - then put 1080p in a bag and drown it like a bunch of kittens.
on May 8, 2008 8:10 pm
:)
yeah, but this haze is kinda average looking…
on May 9, 2008 4:29 am
Now that I’ve played it a bit…Not too shabby, but it doesn’t seem to be anything revolutionary. Then again, very little has changed in FPS games over the last decade. I have a feeling that the story gets a lot more interesting further down the line, but we’ll have to wait and see on that front.
The lower resolution is pretty obvious when you look closely at the demo, but it doesn’t seem to be too detrimental. There’s not a lot of obvious pixelation unless you stop to look closely for it, and generally speaking, you’re not going to be staring hard at the guy you’re shooting at to find jaggies. :P
The texture detail isn’t what it should be, however. Hopefully the final version has higher resolution textures, but I’m not going to hold my breath. A lot of the textures in the demo looked like they were pulled from a PS2 game. The environment was pretty complex, so there were more textures in play than might be the norm, but it was still a bit disappointing. Perhaps they’re scaled down in multiplayer by default to allow for a smoother experience, and given that this is a coop demo, that seems a reasonable possibility.
I did enjoy it, and I found the Nectar to be an interesting twist. I might still pick it up on release day. If nothing else, it’s something new to play, and the differences between the Mantel troops and the rebels are big enough that it might make multiplayer more interesting…Or more unbalanced. Guess we’ll see.
on May 9, 2008 4:51 am
Okay, I ran through it again for good measure to double-check my impression of the resolution. I’ve gotta be perfectly honest…It doesn’t hurt the character models too much, but the environments do suffer. There’s a lot of jaggies where there shouldn’t be. It makes the game look less like an exclusive and more like a port.