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Dark Sector
Developer(s)	Digital Extremes
Publisher(s)	D3 Publisher of America
Engine	Evolution Engine
Platform(s)	PS3, Xbox 360
Release	March 25th, 2008 [1]
Genre(s)	Third-person Shooter
Mode(s)	Single-player Multiplayer

Dark Sector is a PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 game currently under production by Digital Extremes.

The game was released on March 25, 2008 in North America, and is set to be released on March 27, 2008 in Japan and April 4, 2008 in the UK. Set in the crumbling infrastructure of a fictional Soviet-bloc country in the near future, the game features both single and multi-player action, with players working their way through a world where biological weapons are a hellish nightmare, let loose on an unsuspecting populace.

The game's main character is a man named Hayden Tenno (voiced by Michael Rosenbaum of Smallville fame), a morally ambivalent clean-up man employed by the CIA. He suffers from a real-life disease called congenital analgia that does not allow him to feel pain. On a mission in a fictional former eastern bloc nation, he is exposed to a biological compound which mutates him, dramatically changing his right arm, and giving him the ability to spontaneously grow a three-bladed throwable weapon called a glaive. As explained in Game Informer Magazine, the glaive is a part of his body, can be used to generate light, and can be controlled remotely by the player.

During the game, Hayden encounters others that have been similarly mutated by the compound. However, the mutation process is painful to the point that its victims go mad. Hayden's congenital analgia inadvertently protects him from this aspect of the mutation.

Officially unveiled in 2004, the original demo was an in-game cinematic, giving viewers a brief look at potential storylines and environments, as well as the graphics of the game. Digital Extremes has specifically stated that the clips are not pre-rendered and are actual in-game footage. The game was originally intended to take place in a science-fiction environment, notably in outer space, with players taking the role of a character that inhabits a sleek mechanical suit with incredible powers.

In 2006, major overhauls to the game were revealed, showing the main character, and a noticeably less sci-fi setting, although Hayden will start to resemble the originally planned main character as the infection takes over his body. The developers (according to the November 2006 Game Informer issue) cited a shift in focus by other gaming companies and publishers as the reason for the change to a more modern setting and reducing its sci-fi elements. An interview with GameSpot has also revealed that the change in setting is intended to make the main character stand out more, as well as making the story more relatable which they say has been written as a superhero origin story.

Dark Sector was based on Sector Engine, later changed to the Evolution Engine, both Digital Extremes' proprietary next-gen game engines. Official statements about this being just a name change or a major shift in their technology were not released to the public yet. Speculations about this engine being an evolution of the Pariah engine, a heavily modified Unreal Engine 2.5 were posted at UnrealWiki^[2] but were not confirmed by Digital Extremes. Dark Sector's project lead, Steve Sinclair, stated that the engine was written from scratch.^[3]

In discussions with ArsTechnica, the developers were "a little surprised, that they were able to get the PS3 version looking as good the Xbox 360 title."[1]

This article's plot summary may be too long or excessively detailed. Please help improve it by removing unnecessary details and making it more concise. (February 2008) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

The game begins with Hayden, an American special forces agent, sent to a military-esque compound in the fictional Soviet nation of Lasria. He tries to back out of his mission before it has hardly begun, but his superior, communicating via radio, says that he is "past the point of no return." Hayden makes short work of all enemy resistance and finds himself face to face with his target, a fellow agent named Viktor, tied to a chair. Hayden swiftly puts a bullet right through his skull. After reporting that he has completed his mission, his superior decides to send him after Mezner, the man responsible for the infection that has been ravaging the country of Lasria. Hayden proceeds through the compound; defeating several dozen more soldiers and even a helicopter, as well as planting C4 charges throughout the compound. Hayden then finds himself face-to-face with a seven foot tall metal man of some sort. Hayden attempts to defeat the monster by way of firing an RPG at it, but the metallic figure stops the RPG mid-air and redirects it at Hayden. Hayden is forced to jump off of a cliff to avoid the missile, and upon waking up, once again finds himself face to face with his target, this time laying on the ground as Mezner lectures him. As Hayden attempts to reach for his gun, the silver-clad figure appears and stabs his right shoulder. Upon instruction from Mezner, it transfers the infection into Hayden via the wound. It appears that he was going to kill Hayden, but Hayden quickly detonates the C4 charges set earlier and manages to escape. He then arrives at a radio shack to contact his superior for further instructions. The superior is informed of the situation and tells Hayden to meet up with their sleeper agent, Yargo Mensik, to obtain boosters for the infection. Soon, he hears the footsteps of an enemy soldier and attempts to ambush him. The soldier quickly gets the upper hand and pins Hayden down. Hayden's infected arm then produces the Glaive, and slits the soldier's throat. Another soldier enters the shed and shouts that he has "found him!" over his radio, only to be brutally decapitated by the Glaive as Hayden throws it at him. Hayden continues along the coast, slowly gaining new abilities with the Glaive, encountering both soldiers, Haz-Mat soldiers, and zombies (people infected with the virus and driven mad from pain.) Eventually Hayden encounters a massive, ape-like monster with flesh covered in the same type of metal as Hayden's infected arm. After a short conflict, the monster is called back by some sort of signal.

In Dark Sector, gameplay revolves around the use of the glaive. The glaive is a three-pronged boomerang-esque weapon which zooms back to Hayden after every throw. The glaive can be used for long-distance dismemberment, solving environmental puzzles, and picking up various items. When up close to an enemy, context-sensitive actions may appear. Environmental puzzles in the game usually focus upon capturing various elements (fire, electricity, ice, etc.) with the glaive. For example, a web that is blocking your path can be bypassed by capturing fire with the glaive and then launching it at the web to burn it down. The glaive is dual-wielded with a gun in Hayden's left hand. This allows for combos like stunning an enemy at long-distance with the glaive, running up close, and then shooting them down. The glaive can also be guided through the air, being able to kill multiple enemies. This feature is controlled via the Six-axis on the Playstation 3 and by analog stick on the Xbox 360.

Gunplay in Dark Sector is very similar to the duck-and-cover gameplay implemented in "Gears of War". The player can duck-run towards cover (a wall, pillar, etc.) and attach themselves to it. Hayden will be able to fire his gun and launch the glaive from this position while also being protected from enemy-fire. The weapon upgrade system is also similar to that seen in "Resident Evil 4". Weapons may be taken from enemies, however they will only work temporarily. There is also no blind-fire capability in the game.

Dark Sector also has an online multiplayer. There are only two modes and they feature: One randomly selected Hayden character in a deathmatch against many soldier characters. Another mode involves two Hayden characters on separate teams; with one team attempting to kill the opposing teams Hayden first. In both modes, Hayden will have superior powers compared to the soldiers. Hayden will be able to become invisible, use the glaive, etc. whereas the soldiers cannot. The developer of Dark Sector, Digital Extremes, has also developed the critically acclaimed Unreal Series, well-known for their frantic and robust multiplayer.

In 2000 Digital Extremes announced a game with the name Dark Sector which was planned as a spiritual successor to Unreal Tournament and "the next step in the first person action gaming experience by blending the intense action elements of Unreal Tournament with the scope and character evolution of a persistent online universe"^[4]. It was to feature an early clan/syndicate support^[5], team battles, ladder matches and Space flight gameplay. When and why the game was canceled is not known.

Australia's Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC) has banned Dark sector due to high impact violence."The finishing moves and most violent game play includes decapitation, dismemberment of limbs accompanied by large blood spurts, neck breaking spurts, neck breaking twists and exploded bodies with post-action twitching body parts. These moves are relatively easy to accomplish and once the player has mastered the moves and is able to get close to his foes, these violent moves can be executed," the OFLC's ruling said. Digital Extremes has since announced a censored version planned for Australian release. At the moment it still remains a refused classifcation game. Many Australians, Including the Australian Official Xbox 360 magazine are complaining that the level of violence is comparable to other titles, such as Gears of War, that are not banned.

Unlike Australia, New Zealand will be getting a totally, uncut version of the game, due to the censorship system in that country. Typically, games are released in Australia and New Zealand and have the Australian rating where it is applicable, with some titles using the New Zealand classification sticker in cases where the rating notes are somewhat different. It is not known where the uncut version will originate from.

Germany's Unterhaltungssoftware Selbstkontrolle has refused to give the game a rating. Because of this, distributor Koch Media has announced that the game will not be released in Germany.^[6]

So far, the game has scored an average 71% from Metacritic on 8 reviews.^[7] Other reviews include theSan Francisco Chronicle who said "...Dark Sector is a chill thrill.." and gave it a 'Positive'.^[8] 360Sync gave the game a A-. ^[9] IGN gave it a 7.7/10, Gamer.tv gave it a 7/10 and GamesRadar gave it a 7/10. XboxFocus gave the game a 3.5/5, citing the game's combat and weapons as fun, but criticizing its poor framerate and visuals and its paper-thin plot.^[10]

• Dark Sector Wiki
• Teaser website
• Digital Extremes Website
• D3 Publisher website
• Dark Sector @ GameSpy
• Dark Sector @ IGN
• [2]
• [3]
• [4]

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