So last night I trecked into N.Y.C. to take a look at the game we've all been waiting for — Halo 3 . Even if you don't own an Xbox 360, I suspect just about every gamer is familiar with the Halo franchise. Needless to say, Bungie is staying true to the Halo series and keeping the same fast paced action Halo fans have come to love in Halo 3. I spent about five hours at the event, and dedicated a couple to playing the game. Unfortunately, all we were given a chance to look at was the multiplayer aspects of the game, no single player details were 'officially' revealed.
Incidentally, since the publishing of this article Bungie has confirmed the release date for Halo 3. The most anticipated first person shooter, perhaps of all time, will hit store shelves on Sept. 25th, 2007. Now let us get back to the hands on Halo 3 preview...
So How Is Halo 3?
Its often difficult to judge a game by a beta or a demo, but from the looks of things, Halo 3 is turning out to be a game that all first person shooter fans will want to own. The gameplay is fast-paced just like we're accustomed to, and the graphics ( for beta ) are astounding. We've seen better graphics in Gears of War and a few other select titles, but this is still the beta version and Bungie is still working 20 hour days on the tweaks. As for the game engine itself, we were playing against a bunch of gamers that have been playing for months, and while there was absolutely no lag, there were quite a many deaths on my side because they reset the stats. So all those gamers that were level 11 were reset to 1 ( I'm thinking they did that just so I felt like I should go study up on first person shooters again )
Halo 3 looks and plays a lot like Halo 2, but this is a good thing, when you have something that works, it is generally a good idea to stick with it. There are several new additions to the gameplay that we haven't seen in a Halo game, including new weapons and new techniques. I spoke with Harold Ryan, Studio Manager for Bungie quite extensively, and he assures me and the rest of the Halo fans that they are doing everything in their power to make Halo 3 something to remember. I have a feeling it will be very well received from the gaming community when it is released later this fall.
The one thing that really stood out in my mind while playing Halo 3 was the seamless integration with Xbox Live, the lag free gameplay, and the fast pace mixed with georgeous scenary and smart level design. When the beta goes live to the public in just under a week 3 maps will be available, and each of these maps offer gamers a chance to try different tactics based on the way the level was built. The folks at Bungie have one solid advantage when it comes to creating games for the Xbox 360 — they're creating the game for 'just' the Xbox 360. This means they can squeeze every bit of potential that the console, and Xbox Live has to offer.
There are three things I noticed while playing in regards to weapons; the laser cannon is slammin', the stick grenades are a welcomed addition for strategic kills, and it just plain rocks walking around with a turret gun in your hands. Now I'm not gonna lie, I think the best I did in a 10 minute deathmatch was place 3rd, but remember, all these other people had been playing for weeks, so I'm not too ashamed to say it.
Any Hints or Tips for the Halo 3 Beta?
Keep moving. The moment you sit still is the moment you die. If you have the laser cannon stay up as high as you can and pick people off from a distance. There was a slight game exploit I noticed while playing, it could be considered the new spawn camp type killing. There are these invisible barriers that you can see through, but not shoot through. Its a really cool effect but opens up the door for people to just stand there and wait for you to approach. Once you're near the 'portal' they can just come through and kill you with a swift melee attack. I spoke with the folks at Bungie about this and they're going to be watching and tracking just how many kills happen this way during the 3 week beta, and if adjustments are warrented, they'll be resolved before launch.
