Halo 3 has finally launched, so catch on Bungie’s epic 3rd installment after players ’round the world have been non-stop live the past week!
This is Halo 3, and it is indeed the game you’ve been waiting for the past three years. When last we left Master Chief, he was headed towards Earth, determined to stop the Prophet of Truth and his cadre of Brutes from destroying the universe in a blaze of zealotry. Cortana had been captured by the Gravemind, a disgusting creature intimately tied to the Flood. The Arbiter and his Elites, once bitter enemies of humankind had made an uneasy truce in order to conquer a greater evil. Frankly, things didn’t look so hot for Earth and its inhabitants. For three years fans have been waiting to find out what comes next. Most won’t be disappointed, as the story eschews some of the ambiguity of Halo 2 and tells a more straightforward narrative. Events play out like a sci-fi action blockbuster. Lost, though, is the intriguing side-story of the Arbiter and his Elites. The focus is clearly (and perhaps deservedly) on Master Chief. That means in the single-player campaign you will be Chief and Chief only. The Arbiter is just a dude with a weird mandible and a cool sword. While keeping players locked in as Master Chief is a wise decision on Bungie’s part, it’s a shame that the Arbiter’s story fades so far into the background. That’s not to say I want to spend half the adventure following the Arbiter and leaving Chief to twiddle his thumbs, but it would have been nice to see such a prominent storyline from Halo 2 have more weight in the cinematic telling of Halo 3. Clearly Bungie was listening to the criticisms of Halo 2. Not only is Chief in the driver’s seat once more, but the environments are varied enough that each level feels distinct. Though you will still need to backtrack in a few areas, it’s not as tedious as in previous iterations. The levels in Halo 3 lend to spectacular pacing that weaves from close-quarters, intense battles with Chief and a few soldiers, to more epic arenas. It does feel as if the marine presence is lighter than it should be, but there’s enough chaos in the field to at least make it appear as if Master Chief is part of something grander. Most of the nine levels are hunky-dory, but the penultimate chapter is so bad, just thinking about it puts a rotten taste in my mouth. It’s the kind of level where, if playing through Halo 3 again, I might just stop once I reached it and not bother finishing the skirmish, much less the fight. It should be noted that the difficulty level is a bit out of whack, though done purposefully. Bungie has to service an enormous casual crowd who (let’s face it) suck at games. There are millions who will play Halo 3 and only Halo 3 this year. All they want is to finish the fight and take a nap on the couch. But at the same time, there are an equal number of hardcore gamers who have become immensely skilled at Halo over the past six years. For these folks, the single-player version of Heroic and Legendary difficulties has been ratcheted up just a tad. Many will immediately jump into Normal difficulty, and never see the more aggressive AI that calls in reinforcements and makes better use of its weapons and equipment. Frankly, Normal on Halo 3 is too easy for the average gamer and that lack of challenge may actually bore some.
This is Halo 3, and it is indeed the game you’ve been waiting for the past three years. When last we left Master Chief, he was headed towards Earth, determined to stop the Prophet of Truth and his cadre of Brutes from destroying the universe in a blaze of zealotry. Cortana had been captured by the Gravemind, a disgusting creature intimately tied to the Flood. The Arbiter and his Elites, once bitter enemies of humankind had made an uneasy truce in order to conquer a greater evil. Frankly, things didn’t look so hot for Earth and its inhabitants. For three years fans have been waiting to find out what comes next. Most won’t be disappointed, as the story eschews some of the ambiguity of Halo 2 and tells a more straightforward narrative. Events play out like a sci-fi action blockbuster. Lost, though, is the intriguing side-story of the Arbiter and his Elites. The focus is clearly (and perhaps deservedly) on Master Chief. That means in the single-player campaign you will be Chief and Chief only. The Arbiter is just a dude with a weird mandible and a cool sword. While keeping players locked in as Master Chief is a wise decision on Bungie’s part, it’s a shame that the Arbiter’s story fades so far into the background. That’s not to say I want to spend half the adventure following the Arbiter and leaving Chief to twiddle his thumbs, but it would have been nice to see such a prominent storyline from Halo 2 have more weight in the cinematic telling of Halo 3. Clearly Bungie was listening to the criticisms of Halo 2.
Not only is Chief in the driver’s seat once more, but the environments are varied enough that each level feels distinct. Though you will still need to backtrack in a few areas, it’s not as tedious as in previous iterations. The levels in Halo 3 lend to spectacular pacing that weaves from close-quarters, intense battles with Chief and a few soldiers, to more epic arenas. It does feel as if the marine presence is lighter than it should be, but there’s enough chaos in the field to at least make it appear as if Master Chief is part of something grander. Most of the nine levels are hunky-dory, but the penultimate chapter is so bad, just thinking about it puts a rotten taste in my mouth. It’s the kind of level where, if playing through Halo 3 again, I might just stop once I reached it and not bother finishing the skirmish, much less the fight.
It should be noted that the difficulty level is a bit out of whack, though done purposefully. Bungie has to service an enormous casual crowd who (let’s face it) suck at games. There are millions who will play Halo 3 and only Halo 3 this year. All they want is to finish the fight and take a nap on the couch. But at the same time, there are an equal number of hardcore gamers who have become immensely skilled at Halo over the past six years. For these folks, the single-player version of Heroic and Legendary difficulties has been ratcheted up just a tad. Many will immediately jump into Normal difficulty, and never see the more aggressive AI that calls in reinforcements and makes better use of its weapons and equipment. Frankly, Normal on Halo 3 is too easy for the average gamer and that lack of challenge may actually bore some.
Read the full review at IGN!
White Plains Journal News - Ever since the first video game was created, parents have struggled to keep their kids active. And if television and the Internet weren’t enough to fill a child’s attention nowadays, they can plug away at an Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 in lieu of real …
The Money Times - The official date has been set for the launch of Halo 3 and Xbox 360 Messenger accessories in the retail market. For gaming enthusiasts in the US, the magic date is September 4, 2007. On that date, they will be able to pick up the Halo 3 Limited …
Pro-G - urbs sims in the city, finaly fantasy x-2, batman begins and tony hawks american wasteland. i am selling it with everything for £110-20 no lower or i will trade it for a xbox 360 with 1 controller and at least 2 games
Personal Computer World - Nintendo ’s Wii games console has overtaken Microsoft ’s Xbox 360 to become the best-selling games console in the world, according to figures from a sales monitoring website. The VG Chartz site claims that the Wii now controls 41.6 per cent of the …
MCV - Industry gears up for Wednesday’s MCV/Xbox 360 Pub Quiz The finest minds in the business will gather at London’s AKA bar next week for the second Xbox 360/MCV Industry Pub Quiz to see who can dethrone Konami as the Brains of Games. The event takes …
MSN MoneyCentral - MIDWAY is a registered trademark of Midway Amusement Games, LLC. “PlayStation”, “PLAYSTATION” and “PS” Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. “Xbox” and “XBOX 360″ are registered trademarks of Microsoft …
AZCentral.com - He still plays video games but limits himself to console gaming like Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii, where the games tend to be more action-oriented and have definitive conclusions. He admits the temptation is still there, especially when he talks with …
Pocket-Link.co.uk - 19 June 2007 - With all the rumours flying around for the past few weeks, Eidos and Microsoft have confirmed the news, much to the delight of Xbox 360 owners. So, not only is Lara Croft on her way to the 360 but the game will be available initially …
Home
RSS Feed
