Tom Clancy's HAWX - Official Thread

[Timstuff]

The flight combat sim genre is one that has been dry for a pretty long time. After arguably hitting it's apex with now defunct developer Jane's Combat Sims' masterpiece "USAF," the genre went into a decline to the point where it's almost disappeared, taking with it its sister genre, the space combat sim. The only flight combat sim I can think of that's come out this generation was Ace Combat 6, which released to mixed reviews and to a limited, Xbox 360-only audience as opposed to its predecessors, which all released to the Playstation family.

Well, Ubisoft is looking to end our woes with the March 3, 2009 release of HAWX, a hardcore air combat simulator set within the Tom Clancy universe that will be releasing on PS3, Xbox 360, and PC. The plot sees you taking control of a member of the elite High Altitude Warfare Experimental Squadron (HAWX) to take on the threat of a mercenary force that's armed itself with an array of high-tech fighter jets. In other words, you'll have plenty of fancy jets to take control of, and almost as many to blow out of the sky.

For air combat sims, planes are the equivelent to songs in a music game. Everyone's got a favorite, and so the bigger the list, the better. HAWX features a hefty roster of licensed jets to take control of, and all of them have had their cockpits meticulously re-created for the game's first person camera mode.

A-6 Intruder
A-7 Corsair II
A-10A Thunderbolt II
A-12 Avenger II
A-20 Razorback (from Tom Clancy's EndWar )
AV-8B Harrier II
Eurofighter Typhoon
FB-22
F-14 Tomcat
F-15 S/MTD
F-15E Strike Eagle
F-16 Fighting Falcon
F-18 HARV
F-20 Tigershark
F-22 Raptor
F-35 Lightning II
F-117 Nighthawk
F/A-18C Hornet
SEPECAT Jaguar
MiG-21
MiG-23
MiG-25
MiG-29
MiG-33
Mirage 2000
Mirage F1
Rafale
JAS 39 Gripen
Su-25
Su-27
Su-33
Su-37
Su-47 Berkut
YF-17 Cobra
YF-23 Black Widow II
X-29

And while I'm making Rock Band / Guitar Hero analogies, I'll also mention that flying a jet using a gamepad doesn't really do the pilot experience justice in games like this. If you own an Xbox 360 and ended up buying the $150 Ace Combat 6 bundle, your Hori flight stick will work just fine. But thankfully, for everyone else, Saitek is delivering a pair of joysticks for the PS3 and Xbox 360 dubbed "The Aviator." Both models will be compatible with PCs and are USB-based, and will retail for about $40-50 USD. The stick features an ambidextrous design and dual throttle levers.

The game will also feature some spiffy multiplayer modes, such as a 4-player co-op mode that spans the entire main game's campaign. There is also the requisite team death match mode, where up to 8 players compete for in-game cash, which can be used to purchase additional weapons and gear.

Screenshots











Official trailer:

http://www.gamespot.com/ps3/action/tomclancyshawx/video/6188736/tom-clancys-hawx-official-trailer-1?tag=videos;title;10

Gameplay footage:

http://www.gamespot.com/ps3/action/tomclancyshawx/video/6194272/tom-clancys-hawx-gameplay-movie-1?tag=videos;title;6

http://www.gamespot.com/ps3/action/tomclancyshawx/video/6194274/tom-clancys-hawx-gameplay-movie-2?tag=videos;title;5

http://www.gamespot.com/ps3/action/tomclancyshawx/video/6199760/tom-clancys-hawx-official-movie-3?tag=videos;title;2

http://www.gamespot.com/ps3/action/tomclancyshawx/video/6200367/tom-clancys-hawx-official-movie-4?tag=videos;title;1

 

[Timstuff]

Just FYI, I found an alternative to the Saitek Aviator for PS3 owners (and PC too, although PC gamers already have a larger selection). It's the T-Flight line from Thrustmaster, and it's already availible and for cheaper at most outlets than the Aviator will be. I just ordered the HOTAS version (hands on stick and throttle), and I'll hopefully be able to deliver my impressions of it once it arrives. I've heard good things about this stick, so I look forward to getting a chance to take it for a spin!

 

[ProjectPat2280]

Wow, thats damn cool. I wanted the flight stick and AC6 but i just couldnt throw down the money for it. I promised myself that i would buy a good flight combat game this year and a flight stick to go with it.i Havent read up on HAWX that much. Is it supposed to be hardcore sim or more of a mix of sim/arcade?

 

[Timstuff]

It'd fall under the category of Sim/Arcade hybrid. Supposedly, that mix changes a bit depending on difficulty, with lower settings offering a more arcadey experience, and higher settings being more realistic (i.e. less missiles, tougher opponents, etc.).

And I wouldn't lose much sleep over missing out on Hori's Ace Combat 6 stick. Although it certainly has the looks of a $100 stick, performance wise it's apparently pretty disappointing. It's has a huge dead zone in the center of the stick, so you practically have to push it all the way just for movement to register. For a high-grade flight stick that is very bad since the whole point is to give the player more precision. Another common complaint is that the buttons are cheap feeling.

Overall, it's apparently an OK peripheral, but certainly not worth $100. The Saitek Aviator will probably be enough to keep you happy. It's not a HOTAS model, but for what you pay it's probably a much better bang for your buck. Hori still has a lot to learn about making flight sticks if they want to be able to compete with Thrustmaster and Saitek.

 

[ProjectPat2280]

Ahh, got ya. Yea i like the looks of the pic u posted in ur last post, i would deff have to have a throttle. If the 360 has a good flight stick then i think ill pick up that and HAWX, if not ill go the PS3 route and get that Thrustmaster flight stick u just posted

 

[Timstuff]

My T-Flight Hotas came today, and my impressions of it so far are VERY positive. It feels very solid, the buttons have a pretty nice click to them, and the dead zone on the joystick is pretty small. Something really nice about it is that it actually has a knob on the bottom that lets you adjust the resistance, so if it feels too tight for your preference you can loosen it up. I've been testing it out with Freespace 2, and it's proving to be a total blast. I can't wait to try out HAWX with it.

 

[Timstuff]

HAWX demo drops on Xbox Live today, and Playstation Network tomorrow!

http://www.destructoid.com/playable-demo-for-tom-clancy-s-h-a-w-x-coming-very-soon-121205.phtml

It looks like my T-flight is going to get some more pre-launch exercise. t:

 

[ProjectPat2280]

Im downloading the demo now.

If its good, i plan on getting this and a good flight stick, at some point. If there are some good flight sticks for the 360 ill go with that version, if not ill go with the PS3 version.

 

[ProjectPat2280]

Just played the demo and wasnt really wowed. The visuals were good, altho iv seen better cockpit visuals. The surroundings tho were really great, which is rare for games like these. The game controls well, but i felt as tho it held my hand too much. I tried turning assitance off and the camera panned out to this distant 3rd person view. I feel the game is a solid flight game, guess i need to spend more time with it.

 

[Timstuff]

Apparently, Ubisoft contracted Mega64 to make a viral video to promote HAWX. (P.S.: If you haven't seen Top Gun, this probably isn't going to make any sense.)

[YT]FHz4I6jLGj4&e[/YT]

Also, some good quality gameplay videos are up on Kotaku. They show off the first person cockpit cam a bit.

http://kotaku.com/5148353/tom-clancys-hawx-trailers

 

[Timstuff]

Noooooo! The PS3 demo has been delayed till the 27th!

 

[Timstuff]

I finally got the demo this week. The game is definitely on the arcadier side of the air combat spectrum, but in a good way. Some of the more arcadey elements can be used at the player's discression. You've still got tons of missiles and planes that can take more than one missile blast before they blow up, but it's overall a very fun experience. This is a combat sim that should prove accessable to a pretty wide audience.

Unfortunately though, I'm at home for "Spring" break, and I couldn't bring my flight stick with me. Looks like I won't get to try HAWX the hardcore way until next week, but hey, I've got plenty of other games to amuse myself with in the meantime. I am definitely picking this game up once I have the cash though!

 

[Timstuff]

I bought the game on Tuesday, and it kicks all sorts of ass. If you buy this game looking for a hardcore sim, you'll be a bit disappointed since it's not very realistic (some planes in the game hold over 100 missiles, on the easiest difficulty setting at least), but if you want to tear up the skies and have fun, this game won't let you down. The fact of the matter is, the combat sim genre hasn't been pretty barren in recent years, and I think Ubisoft realizes that in order to make it popular again, they have to start by making it accessible. And really, I'm OK with it, because the game is a lot of fun to play, and it lets me feel like an ace pilot and fly lots of cool planes, so mission accomplished. The multiplayer modes are a lot of fun, although hopefully they add more competitive modes in the future (which is all but confimed).

If you play the game with a flight stick it does a great job of helping you forget that this is a "arcade-style flight combat game" and not a "flight combat simulator." Ubi-Soft has gone to great lengths to ensure that the game is as stick-friendly as possible, because it can actually detect what kind of joystick you have connected to the system! If you are playing with a normal controller, it will map all the buttons based around what's best for it, but when I hooked up my Thrustmaster T-Flight Hotas, it changed the button mapping to better suit the stick's layout specifically, and it even showed a picture of it in the control map screen! I imagine the same holds true if one uses a T-Flight X or Saitek Aviator, since they are listed on Ubisoft's compatibility list. I'm not sure if the Xbox 360's Hori stick has this kind of compatibility with the game, but considering most people paid well over a hundred dollars to get it, hopefull Ubi-Soft kept it in mind (however, I'm doubtful as to whether or not the PS2 Hori stick is compatible with the PS3 version). To make a long story short though-- play this game with a stick. It will make you happy.

So, did anyone else pick up this game?