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Saying now that Halo 3 is the most anticipated
game of the year would be a somewhat drastic understatement. Being
the sole reason many have chosen to splash out nearly £300 on a new videogame console – or at least, the main reason – the title’s
developer, Bungie, have a lot of expectation built around their
latest offering in the franchise. 2001’s
Halo: Combat Evolved is still considered one of the finest
First-Person Shooters created, and it’s sequel, 2004’s Halo 2
– although disappointing for many – has managed to rack-up more
hours of online play within the public arena than any other console
title, ever. And now, after nearly two-and-a-half years of
sneak-peeks and trailers, Halo 3 has arrived to lead the
Xbox360’s Christmas 2007 onslaught.
Immediately, those familiar with the first offering will
find themselves at home. Although there have been slight
modifications to the Control System, the structure of the Campaign
is practically identical to the previous releases in the franchise;
with a total of nine Missions, each divided into Episodes. The title
begins with Master Chief’s return to Earth: the Covenant are in
control and have scattered the last of the human armies. Threatening
to activate the Halo rings, Master Chief must uncover a secret that
has been hidden under the sands of Africa for nearly a Millennia,
and discover whether this secret is the key to humankind’s
salvation, or destruction. And that’s before we bring the parasitic
Flood into the equation.
The Campaign is playable in both Single-Player and
Co-Operative play modes, with the Co-Operative play open for up to
four players on a single machine, as well as through a System Link
set-up or over the XboxLIVE! online network. While the fight may now
have been brought to Earth, the distinctive Halo themes
remain apparent throughout the campaign. Lush dense forests and
open-plain desert environments are contrasted by the stark sterile
aesthetics of the interior, distinctly Sci-Fi locations. The Level
design is practically flawless. Whilst many of the current-crop of
First-Person Shooters may be stuck dwelling with the archaic formula
of creating tight corridors for controlled fighting followed by a
wide-open space for an onslaught, and playing on-loop,
 Halo 3
creates diverse action-orientated set-pieces through the use of
enemy placement and weaponry and vehicle availability. Although the
game has certainly lost much of the feeling of being part of a squad
– as so expertly demonstrated in the first title – the ideology of
the Halo series and furore of the situation at-hand is never
left wanting.
The Checkpoint System remains as effective as ever – it remains
apparent throughout that a great deal of attention has been paid to
the rolling-nature of the title, placing it alongside the likes of
Metroid Prime and the perfectly-balanced
Resident Evil 4
as a testament to videogame structure and pacing – and a revision of
the Respawn rules during Co-Operative play invites new tactics to
the fray.
Halo 3 features a welcoming overhaul to it’s in-game A.I.. In
comparison to what is probably the title’s closet rival – the mighty
Half-Life 2 – this is one area in which the progression of
technology since the launch of it’s critically-acclaimed competitor
has clearly benefited Bungie’s new baby. The enemies – both Covenant
and Flood – feature incredibly distinctive fighting attributes.
While smaller groups of enemies, especially squads of Grunts, often
scatter and flee in your presence – and even larger groups after a
few choice heads have been taken-down – the larger Brutes and
Hunters are generally determined to take Master Chief out, utilising
cover and equipment with the fluidity of any human opponent. The
Flood themselves are aggressive throughout, with little room for
tactics other than overwhelming the enemy. Their brief and
infrequent appearances within the Campaign call for a drastic change
in player tactics – a formation of enemy differentials that was
desperately missing from the Xbox360’s recent First-Person
big-hitter,
BioShock. The title’s Physics Engine is also
incredibly impressive, yet doesn’t excel above the top-line of it’s
competition.
The weaponry and vehicles on offer in the title will be familiar to
those having previously played either of the titles’ precursors,
with subtle modifications alongside the limited additions. The Needler, for example, has now been improved somewhat, although can
no longer be dual-wielded – a balancing act that has been filtering
back-and-forth since Halo: Combat Evolved, and now seems to
have settled nicely within the constraints of the rest of the game’s
arsenal. The Mongoose – a two-man USNC bike – plays a big part in
the title, and brings some intense new tactical play to both the
Campaign and Multi-Player modes. Other new additions include the
Brute Chopper – a single-wheeled bike-esque craft with two mounted
Brute Cannons – and a variety of grenades and Equipment (with the
command for their use placed upon the X Button, as noted in many
articles discussing the readdress of the Control System for the
final release in the trilogy), with the much-touted Bubble Shield of
particular interest in Multi-Player matches.
Multi-Player is, of course, considered as important as the almost
flawless Campaign on offer. While the Co-Operative functions as
would be expected, the Deathmatch options have taken a sudden turn.
After the Multi-Player Beta, offered free to those who purchased
Crackdown earlier in the year, Bungie have certainly taken note.
Offering up to sixteen player matches across eleven pre-built Maps,
in one of nine gameplay modes, Halo 3 certainly has the
numbers checking the right boxes on paper, and, thankfully,
playability doesn’t suffer. Amongst all the wonderful – if a little
overdue – Character Customisation options and the ability to edit
Maps and game rules, we get onto some actual, genuinely inspiring
and tactical gameplay. The weaponry and vehicles have been balanced
so spectacularly, that any skilled player is rarely at a
disadvantage with any of the available equipment. Much like the ever
under-rated ShadowRun, it’s very clear a lot of time has been
spent fine-tuning the artillery for both the Campaign and
Multi-Player modes. The Map list is quite obviously going to rapidly
expand; not least with the remake of Halo 2’s Zanzibar, now
known as Last Resort, hinting that there may well be many more – if
not all – of the previous titles’ Maps due to arrive.
Halo 3’s graphics are, to be honest, probably not quite what
the average-gamer is expecting. While the Cut-Scenes are simply
astounding, with animation far superior to anything witnessed so far
on the Xbox360, the in-game graphics are often a little lack-lustre,
maybe even if only because the expectations were so high. While there is nothing wrong with Halo 3’s lively palette
and almost-immaculate representation of real-world objects, many
having witnessed little more than the official trailers may be
waiting in anticipation of a KillZone-esque, dark and gritty
Halo. The explosion and water effects are often simply
astounding and the on-screen Polygon Count can blow-your-mind at
times, the textures rarely surprise yet always stand-up to
pixilation-inspection, and the size of the Campaign Maps is often
incredible when coupled with the lack of Loading Screens. However,
the common flaws of Polygon Cross-Pollination and occasional
Draw-Distance issues still occur, if rarely.
The sound quality is simply superb. The thematic Halo Score
returns with plenty of polish and the sound effects, including both
human and alien speech, enhance the atmosphere no-end without
distraction. The dialogue is plentiful and rarely repeats within a
Mission, and the Cut-Scenes feature some dramatic, if occasionally
corny, interchanges that are genuinely engaging.
Halo 3 is the showboat that Microsoft, and early Xbox360
adopters, have had their hopes pinned-on. And in being that
showboat, there is no doubt that Halo 3 has succeeded.
Creating the finest release in their series is usually the main
reason a developer of such stature as that of Bungie would wish to
devote three years to a title, creating the finest title on its’
chosen system is a goal that can only be dreamt of. Creating a
pillar of the genre, as Bungie have, is something very rare indeed.
While fans of the series may be up-in-arms at the suggestion that
Halo had previously been considered the finest title of its
genus simply due to the lack of genre-defining competition, Halo
3 has rectified any doubt that it does not belong alongside
those titles considered pioneering.
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