Blog FeedHail to the Chief: A Halo 3 Review
The Halo franchise has been something of a lightning rod amongst first-person shooters. Some criticize the game for getting too much praise, while others enjoy it’s somewhat unique style of combat that’s especially well tuned for consoles. As a matter of full disclosure I gave the first two games high scores of 9.7 and 9.6 respectively so I fall within the fan camp. If you’re a fan, this is the definitive Halo game to get, if you haven’t enjoyed the series then you probably won’t fall in love with this game - but you’re likely to get more out of this one than any previous Halo release.
One of the biggest problems with Halo games in past is that they always had some extremely annoying parts. The Library in Halo 1, the Arbiter sections and the ending in Halo 2 both instantly come to mind. Halo 3 really has the fewest annoying parts, it does have one level that’s a bit annoying but not to the level of say the Library. Throughout its nine levels, the game does a fine job of mixing up the action to keep it fun. The backtracking is pretty minimal and there is action throughout. Interestingly the game is kind of short, which I would normally complain about, but since Halo 1 and 2 both felt like they were longer to the detriment of the product, the nine hours of Halo 3 were fun throughout.
The campaign for Halo 3 has the best campaign by far, not just because of the game’s improved levels but it also deals with the story in a better way than the previous games have. This game has a great deal more interaction with the game’s supporting cast, as the whole cast is all given expanded roles. Furthermore, much to my celebration you play as the Master Chief the whole game which was quite the relief after having to play the Arbiter previously. After the abortion of an ending of Halo 2, the ending of Halo 3 really does a good job of leaving the player with a sense of resolution and yet wanting to know what’s next. Bungie may be done with this trilogy of Halo games but the door is still open for a variety of other Halo universe products.
Of course the campaign is hardly all you get with this game. It comes with a variety of value-added packaging. First of all there is the new co-op mode which allows up to 4 players to play co-op at once either locally or via Xbox Live. This is a big addition as co-op is probably the best part about the game. To be able to play it over the net makes it that much better. In addition there is a meta-game that involves finding hidden items in campaign & co-op and scoring points based on completing the levels with extra difficulty conditions on.
Then it’s got the famous Halo multiplayer. Yeah, it’s still Halo multiplayer. It doesn’t really change that much but it’s so fun and popular that changing it much wouldn’t be too good of an idea. It uses a tweaked version of the revolutionary stats-based matchmaking system that Bungie pioneered with Halo 2. The one downside to these games is I’m not as thrilled with the maps as I was with the maps in Halo 2. They’re all very good but it just doesn’t have a touchstone map like Q3DM9, 2fort or de_Dust. Added to this is a light-map editor mode called Forge. This doesn’t allow you to make your own maps but it does allow for you to modify what’s on the maps so if you want to dump half a dozen tanks on a map or a million explosive barrels into a chain reaction you’re free to do this.
Even though the Halo multiplayer is still very fun it really feels like it could have done more. It especially annoys me how much they recycle the maps playing Halo where any map can be used in any mode so you get Slayer matches on maps that are better designed for Capture the Flag, and CTF matches on maps that were better for Slayer. Furthermore it would have been nice to have seen a dedicated server option for this game. Something that would allow me to choose the map and mode that I want to play, and just keep playing that whilst having players come and go, rather than the lobby & disparate game scenario that Halo uses to setup its Peer to Peer matches. Halo multiplayer is still fun and when you’re playing you’ll probably be having a good time, but it’s just not as awesome as it could be, and that’s a bit disappointing.
Even further still are lots of little bonus features like film saves and screenshots that interface with Bungie’s website and allow the player to maintain a whole lot of records of his favorite Halo moments. If you want to remember that awesome time where you got a rocket launcher and killed half a dozen dudes or that awesome trick you and your friend did with a Warthog, you’re free to save the film of that and upload it to Bungie.net.
Halo 3 is probably exactly what you think it is. If you liked the other Halo games and are thirsty for more you’re going to have a great time with it. If you thought the previous Halo’s were dumbed down first person shooters for console ‘tards then you probably won’t get that much out of it. As a fan I thought this was a great conclusion to the Halo trilogy.
29th September | Reply
Just a minor comment, mate, but you really do need to start adding images to your articles. It’s a well-written article that’s quite interesting but it’s still just blocks of text. Throw in a few screenshots of the game and what you’re talking about and you’ve got yourself a winner.
30th September | Reply
In Reply to #1:
Ignore Kelmon, blocks of text are the wave of the future past.
Great review, as always.
I’m glad to see Yahtzee’s “console ‘tards” quip has made it into your lexicon.
23rd November | Reply
Hm. I liked it. Halo1 2 and 3 have always so far seemed like the ultimate games in first-person shooter to me. I was always too busy trying to blast the crap out of people to pay much attention to anything else, but I have loved scouting out glitches, and the graphics, music, and interaction astound me to no end. Best of all, however, was the UNSC forces response to the Covenant Banshee. Didn’t you like the Hornet? It was awesome!