Tiny Diggers – An iPad Construction Truck Game for Kids Age 2-5

It’s old news that Haze has been delayed. The Ubisoft presser I commented about yesterday regarding Rainbow Six Vegas 2 being announced also included the news that Haze was pushed into Q4 FY08.

Some might consider this bad news but I’ll be honest, I was thrilled to hear it. I’d be even more thrilled if it never sees the florescent light of day. It’s not that I think Haze will be a terrible game, it’s likely to be just average. The more I read about Haze, the more I hate everything it stands for.

The premise of abusing drugs to enhance your abilities is especially disgusting to my senses. In many other titles that feature drug use, you’re often negatively impacted by taking them. Yes, in many of these games (like GTA or Saints Row, for example), the act of drinking a beer or smoking weed is sensationalized more than I would want it to be. Our in-game vision will be blurred or distorted, sometimes alongside the audio, which generally impedes on our ability to play the game. We chuckle for a moment, “ha ha, [insert main character's name here] is a tool.” and continue playing.

Now we have a video game that has drug use as the main plot of the storyline, with the protagonist requiring the use of drugs, called Nectar, to improve their abilities. Does the following comment from Free Radical regarding the game’s plotline not bother you?

“Y’know, it’s great to take a lot of Nectar, but the more you actually take brings you closer to overdose and makes it easier for a rebel fighter to make you overdose and it becomes a very interesting balancing act.”

You might be wondering what I think about violence in video games as a comparison. I don’t have a serious issue with moderate violence in games and I’ll tell you why. I’ve never chased anyone with a chainsaw and chances are, many young gamers haven’t as well. I’ve never carried a plasma rifle, nor have I ever used one to blast someone’s head clean off.

Unfortunately, the teenage youth of today is not pressured from peers to try chainsaws or plasma rifles or to run strangers over with a stolen ice cream truck. They’re assaulted every day with the idea that “drugs are cool,” just translated into the slang of today. We don’t need this in our games as well, it simply isn’t groovy.

Still, that’s just me and not the masses. Some can pass the topic off as, “it’s just a game, get over it,” which could be correct. However, I know more people who have ruined their lives with drugs than with rocket launchers, chainsaws, joyrides, mopeds and pruning shears combined.