Dark Sector - multiplayer hands-on

Hayden, equipped with full power, has many tricks at his disposal, but you really have to be practiced to make full use of them. Aside from your glaive and pistol combo, you’ve got your invisibility and shield powers, both of which have a cooldown period before they can be used again. Invisibility doesn’t appear to be perfect - you leave a Predator-esque shimmer, so you’ll still have to use cover and be sneaky. The shield will protect you from projectiles for only a brief moment, so you can use it to save your bacon when under heavy fire, or even flick it on and then rush in for the melee finisher. Beware, though - it doesn’t protect you from melee attacks, so getting in close can be dangerous.

An effective Hayden player must utilize every special ability and play conservatively, since you’re completely outnumbered in Infection, and still the main target in Epidemic, even if you have allies to help. Stealth is key, so naturally you have to make use of your invisibility. It’s particularly effective in allowing you to flank the opposition in Infection, where many players will tend to sprint through the center of the map. The maps have multiple routes that allow an invisible Hayden to circle around behind the troopers and pick them off. Of course, smart troopers will lay proximity mines in these areas to cover their flanks.

The glaive is powerful, but lacks the re-fire rate and simplicity of a rifle, so to get the most from it you’ll have to take advantage of its unique properties. You can throw the glaive with a button tap, and activating the aftertouch effect requires a second press and hold. Part of the skill with aftertouch is that you don’t have to activate it right away, which means you can launch the glaive and only use aftertouch if you see it’s necessary. Skillful Hayden players are extremely dangerous and intimidating because you can think you’re safe behind cover, and then you’ll hear that freaky sound the glaive makes before it comes around the corner and lops your head off. A truly badass Hayden player can charge the glaive up for a power throw, and then wait until the last second before the glaive turns back before activating aftertouch - this allows you to extend the glaive’s range that extra bit to catch someone.