Here lie my thoughts and feelings about Halo 3: ODST. I have attempted to keep this as spoiler free as possible, however my comments occasionally touch upon game features that while well publicised before the games launch may still be considered minor spoilers by some.

Anyone who knows me will be able to vouch for my love of the Halo universe. Halo: Combat Evolved dragged me back into the world of console gaming and Halo 2 was the first game whose development I paid attention to. Halo 3 was the first game I took annual leave for the release day. So you can imagine I was awaiting ODST with bated breath. However I had mail ordered ODST from the website of my usual store. This resulted in a full day of fretting and worrying in the office as to whether the game would arrive, followed by when I got home a brief moment of panic where the game wasn’t on the other side of the door waiting for me. Fortunately this was immediately relieved when I closed the door to find the package caught in the letter plate, and hanging from the back of the door. In future I will stick to going into town and collecting my preorder in person.

Now if Halo can be said to have one weakness in my eyes it would be how powerful the Master Chief feels in each successive instalment of the series; while the enemy AI is still a threat quite capable of defeating a player, the presence of regenerating health and the lack of a visible health meter left me feeling that I was nigh on unstoppable. By not having that feeling of desperation evoked by having a sliver of health and only your shields between you and death that could easily and frequently occur In Halo: CE some threats just did not seem as intimidating as they were in the past, no matter how capable a foe they really where.

In ODST however the health bar is back, and for me it makes all the difference in the world, when you hit the redline and the sound of your ODST gasping for breath is ringing in your ears making even the lowliest of Grunts appear to be an almost inevitably fatal threat to you, you have to hide, use cover and fight smart as well as hard in order to survive. On Legendary a Brute armed with a Plasma Rifle will kill you in mere moment if you don’t play smart and use cover. I very quickly established after dying three times during my first visit to New Mombasa’s Streets just how vulnerable I was as an ODST, stamina is not as hardy as the shields the Chief has and on higher difficulty they provide the merest impression of protection as a city full of aliens tries to take you out.

As I played I found that the game feels like the weapon damage has been altered to balance the available sandbox, with some of the weapons from the Halo Trilogy cut from the game this does give the feeling that pretty much every weapon in the game has a defined purpose and is good at the job it designed for. Vehicle handling has definitely improved, you can still roll a Warthog or a Mongoose if you aren’t careful but they feel nicer to drive, which makes the inevitable driving levels much more of a joy to play. Ghosts especially feel fantastic, and I’m told the Chopper has been improved though I still can’t control that beast.

Overall the campaign is shorter than Halo 3, playing in the evenings after work I managed to complete the Campaign on Legendary in about 4-5 hours, and some of those missions I died a lot on as I got a feel for the game. Firefight is fun, but is crippled by its networking problem. If you don’t live geographically close to your teammates lag will happen, the further away the worse the lag. I’m in England, one of my Live Friends is in America, and the lag was so bad it was like watching stop-motion being filmed. B.net Game Link. A great game mode let down by bad decisions on networking by Bungie, it could have been an online hit, for now I will save it for solo play and LAN parties.

As for the Halo 3 Mythic disc, the new maps are pretty to look at, and the gameplay on them is fun, worth getting if you enjoy playing Matchmaking as well as Campaign. However if you are not interested in playing ODST itself, then the three maps alone are not worth the cost of the game.

Overall: Worth the wait, I am very happy with this game and fully expect to be playing it for as long as I am still playing the Halo Trilogy.

I finally got round to playing Rainbow 6 Vegas 2 this weekend. Admittedly the two sessions I spent playing only totalled up to four hours or so of gameplay.

For those of you who are unaware of what the team in Rainbow Six are all about, then I could be mean and direct you to the Novel ‘Rainbow Six’ by Tom Clancy. However that is a little mean so I will briefly explain it for you. By ‘I’ I really mean wikipedia, who have an excellent write up of the team available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainbow_6.

So RAINBOW are a NATO counter terrorist special forces unit, and in this title you are playing as the leader of a four man squad, as you infiltrate and assault terrorist held positions in the casinos of Las Vegas.

While playing this I had the good fortune to be in Co-op mode, where I was squad leader, and my friend Idle Han was playing as one of my squad. This led to my first complaint about this game. Only I could give orders to the two AI controlled squad members, more realistic maybe having a clearly defined chain of command, but when I am pinned down and stuck returning fire, Han while in a better position to direct the troops could not give orders to the AI troops to assist.

However that little problem aside for the most part this game is very, very good to play! The AI squad is easy to control, with the A button acting as a contextual button, and the back and down buttons switching between actions (hold, regroup) and behaviour (assault, infiltrate).

It is a fantastic feeling you get as you watch your troops get into position and then storm a room, watching as they drop smoke grenades to hide their positions and execute a quick clean takedown of a room full of terrorists. All as per the orders you gave them with few clicks of your controller.

However the AI were very happy to hold position everytime you ordered them up against a doorway, and then entered yourself. If you didn’t remember to order them to regroup they would stay there indefinatly. They also on one occasion glitched as they both tried to enter a doorway at the same time and got stuck running into each other, rather than one letting another through first.

The actual manner in which you play the campaign is quite different from Halo 3, my usual frame of reference when playing an FPS on the Xbox. For starters like Call of Duty 4 the game features a more realistic damage system, you can only take so much damage before you are killed. Switching between weapons is slower, again more realisticly portraying a soldier pulling out his backup weapon out from his webbing, before being able to open fire.

I never got a chance to play the online multiplayer aspect of this game myself, which is a shame considering the high quality of the single player campaign. I would have loved to take advantage of the online cooperative play to get four of us in versus the single player campaign.

If you liked Halo I would definatly say Rent this title, as I feel you might not enjoy the game-play transition. However if you are a COD4 fan and if you can put up with the few minor flaws in what is otherwise an excellent game then I would happily recommend that you Buy this title. I will be to.

Greetings and Salutations one and all. I am Rob 077, 028’s wingman and friend, a friendly and capable H3 player and a very modest fellow and I will tell you all about how I obtained a copy of Halo 4, well Halo 3 but to me recently it has seemed like a brand new game.

I had the eventual luxury of purchasing a new HD TV earlier today. Of late, I had become somewhat bored/fed-up of halo 3’s bright happy-go-lucky atmosphere and environment (obviously sans live clientèle in this respect), instead opting for the dark and gritty Gears of War (ironically, a very mature and friendly populous in the vast majority of cases). I have come to a realisation of at least one of the likely suspects responsible for this deference and it is not, in this instance, the game’s fault.

You see, I spent my 4 years of student life with an ancient 26″ CRT TV, with a maximum refresh rate of “maybe”. I believe the make/model/artefact was a “Matsui”.. whatever that is, some kind of oriental dish? anyways.. This TV has followed me through the years, from Halo 2 to Gears of War, Halo 3 etc. and I’ve always enjoyed it, even assuming it was a 32″ screen!

With all the recent games being very HD by nature, reading text and seeing the finer details on this TV would be more or less impossible. Why, only very recently I realised that the nav markers in Assassins’ Creed actually had distinguishable features and I am able finally to read the contents of my game menus. How the HELL I managed to perform to level 43 in Halo 3 is beyond me and it’s no small wonder I need to go for an eye appointment.

So now I am the proud owner of a Samsung 1080p (37″) and a brand new copy of the new halo game, Halo 4, that is, Halo 3 the way it is meant to be played!

I LOVE the sound. I LOVE the visuals. The screen size is superb.. It’s.. It’s frankly, unbelievable. Finally a worthwhile expense in the gaming world. It has truly reimbursed my faith for the franchise and invigorated me further towards my own game development goals. I shall be on halo most of this weekend I imagine and tonight once I get off work if anyone is interested, add me or page me online!

~Rob (Gamertag addy: Rob 077)

There is a debate on Bungie.net about the morality of Bungie making certain playlists on Halo 3 require Legendary DLC.

Before I begin to elaborate upon my thoughts and feelings on this practice I will try to summarise the facts as I am aware of them.

Now before I continue I want to make it very clear that this is not intended to be considered an attack on anyone. It is not my intent to insult or ridicule someone for their opinion on this matter. I am merely trying to put across my own view upon this debate, and hopefully fuel further meaningful discussion on this matter.

So let me begin.

As I type this, today is the first anniversary of Halo 3 retail release; I have owned it since day one. A quick perusal of my Service Record will show that I am not considered amongst the Hard Core, nor am I one of the Elite. I have yet to pass the thousand games mark, and my highest ranking is a 30 in Lone Wolves. (5) So it is safe to say I am an average, middle of the road, pedestrian gamer. I would like to think therefore that I have an average, middle of the road, pedestrian view of this gaming service provided by Microsoft, a pompous proclamation maybe but it is from this viewpoint that I intend to frame my remarks.

The first thing I feel I should clarify in regards to this debate is this. It doesn’t matter how much your console cost. The cost of Xbox Live isn’t an issue either. Why do I believe this, it’s simple they are not related in anyway shape or form to the cost of Halo 3.

Consider this, my Xbox cost me £225 ($418.18)(6) second hand. When it died I bought an Arcade for £160 (£297.37) and placed my old HDD in it. So the cost of my console totals £385 ($715.55). Then you add in my annual Xbox Live subscription for the last twelve months £39.99 ($74.33). Halo 3 cost me £39.99 ($74.33) plus the two sets of premium DLC which at a total 1600 Microsoft points cost me £13.33 ($24.78)(7). It all adds up to a whopping £478.31 ($888.99) to play Halo 3.

Except it doesn’t; I use my Xbox for far more than just playing Halo 3, and I am sure that many gamers are like this as well, so when talking about the cost of playing Halo 3 with DLC it is not really appropriate to consider the cost of the ancillary things aside from the purchase of the game itself if they are not used for the sole purpose of playing Halo 3.

So in actuality the cost for me to play Halo 3 is the cost of the game and the DLC, £53.32 ($99.11) and I believe that the equivalent sum is the only one relevant to this discussion.

Now onto the playlists. To this day a consumer can still play Halo 3 without any DLC. Indeed only this weekend just gone, my Brother bought his first Xbox 360 and got a copy of Halo 3. I set up my Brothers console and gamertag for him and left him playing Halo 3 as it comes from the box. He has exhibited no displeasure at any restrictions imposed upon him by the current playlist options; he will download the free maps as needed, and will purchase the Legendary DLC when he wants to enter these playlists. The fact that some playlists are restricted has not impinged upon his ability to play this game online and enjoy the experience.

However many have shown great displeasure at the double team playlist becoming Legendary DLC required, arguing that they believe it to be morally wrong for Bungie to restrict access to certain playlists to those that have paid for premium content. I respectfully disagree.

There is no moral argument to be answered. Halo 3, as with all video games, is a luxury item, we are not talking about necessary essentials here, food, clothing and shelter. Playing a video game on Xbox Live is not an inherent right or man but is instead a privilege that living in the developed western world allows us to do, therefore it is not immoral to offer premium content and restrict access to parts of the service. It can be argued that it is unfair, however as Video Games are a luxury item and not a necessity; morality really doesn’t play any part in this discussion.

It is also important to note that 66% of the playlists, representing a wide diversity of gametypes are available to play with all the free maps. Bungie are not preventing you from playing the game, they are merely offering a bonus to those who have paid for premium content. If you pay extra, you get extra.

One person in this discussion stated that they refuse to buy these maps as a point of principle. To a certain point I do agree with his statement. My father once closed all his accounts at a bank and transferred everything to a separate institution. A full day of work, and wages, were lost as a result, not to mention the inconvenience of contacting all of our utility companies to switch direct debits (I believe the US equivalent of this is the Automated Clearing House)(8). The reason for this was a £0.50 ($0.93) charge to withdraw money from over the tellers counter.

I agree wholeheartedly that you should stand up for your principles when dealing as a consumer, because if no one stands up for your consumer rights you will get walked over by big business trying to cut corners and save money. It doesn’t matter if it’s £0.50 ($0.93) or if it is the cost of the DLC, £13.33 ($24.78), with matters of principle cost doesn’t factor into it. So to the gentleman who refuses to purchase on a matter of principle, you have my admiration. It has been my experience that few people would quibble over a small sum, whether it is against their principles or not.

However I purchased the DLC as a matter of principle. That’s the problem with principles they are so personal that they can vary greatly from person to person on the same issue. So while I agree with the sentiment behind my fellow gamer’s statement, I personally disagree with the content.

Paying the £39.99 ($74.33) for the game as I did on September 24th (9) gave me access to the game, and all the maps that shipped. I was happy knowing that I was playing a game I had been looking forward to since I cried WTF as the credit screen rolled on Halo 2. I was content knowing that my money would in some way shape and form help Bungie with funding for their next project.

Then, as in Halo 2, Bungie released DLC. I happily forked over the money for the Microsoft Points to purchase the Heroic Map Pack knowing from experience with the Halo 2 map packs that it would eventually be released for free. Despite this I handed over my money with a smile on my face. Why you ask, simple. The DLC had development costs on top of the costs of developing the game that shipped in September 2007, for this reason I was happy to pay extra because I knew some part of that money would see its ways to the coffers of Bungie and help support them during the development of their next title.

I end this with a question or two to you all. If Content costs money and the revenue from DLC helps pay for new content. Is charging for extra content inherently wrong? In light of the extra costs of DLC, what right do we, the consumers, have to demand this content for free?

Thanks for reading; I look forward to your responses.

__________________
References
1-Xbox Live Marketplace page for Halo 3
2-Halo 3 Matchmaking Lobby
3-http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&cid=15519 Playlist Reminders
4-Bungie Day Podcast
5-http://www.bungie.net/Stats/Halo3/Default.aspx?player=Jim+028
6-Based on the conversion rate 1 GBP = 1.85845 USD http://www.xe.com/ucc 24/09/2008
7-£17.50 ($32.52) for a 2100 point card equals £13.33 for the 1600 points.
8-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Direct_Debit
9-I managed to get my copy a day early.

With my Xbox dead I have been turning to other games to sate my desire to play, recently however these distractions were not working as well as they used to. I was missing playing Halo.

Respite has been found though, while moving stuff into the loft for my Mother I found an old Christmas present I had forgotten about, Halo PC. I wasted no time bringing this downstairs and firing up my dads PC, my Macintosh sadly not having the video specs to run this game smoothly.

It was surprisingly cathartic that first time I head the opening to the game, and as I jumped into the single player campaign I felt a degree of enjoyment I just wasn’t getting out of my other games. Right now I am about to start Truth and Reconciliation, so if you will excuse me Captain Keyes needs rescuing and I am the seven foot Spartan II to do it.

It’s Bungie Day, go play a Bungie game or visit Bungie.net to celebrate.

Click for full size version.

Halo 3 screenshot by BigToe67
Lyrics from Here’s to the Heroes sung by Mario Frangoulis from the album Follow Your Heart

In a fit of boredom, and with little enthusiasm for playing multiplayer I hopped into theater mode again to play around with the screenshot facility to look at the environment art. This entry is nothing more than a half dozen of the screenshots I liked best out of the ones I took, enjoy/discuss/ignore it’s up to you.

My first stop was an old video of Standoff, where eschewing the normal practice of gibbering over the giant antennae I looked in the opposite direction. I love this view over the plains and the river towards the hills in the distance, and looking at it I have to wonder if that hill would be as much fun to hike up as it looks.

From Standoff I wander back to campaign and the level The Covenant, based on this image alone, you could be forgiven for thinking that this level takes place on Earth. The beautiful surroundings and weather show nothing particularly alien or exotic, the only non-human elements are the Covenant forces, and the could easily be invading.

Then you look at this island, wreathed in mist and with quite frankly magnificent cloud formations overhead. However despite this beauty your eye is drawn to the pylon of the Ark. Dominating the skyline this massive construct reminds you that no matter how familiar the environment feels you are on something massive beyond comprehension.

My last visit of the day worth sharing, was to the map Foundry. Where a custom map I was playing used a teleporter to punt me outside the warehouse, and to my immediate death. However the mortal coil uncoiling aside I was able to get these two shots that illustrate how fantastic some of the environment art is, even when there is a 99% chance you will never see it.

The first shows a view across the water to what appears to be some sort of factory complex, maybe where the boxes in the Foundry warehouse come from. The second is a close up of the clouds as they pass by above. Look how real they look, you could be forgiven for thinking that they are a photograph of a real cloud formation.

Towards the end of it all I did a bit of larking about with an old match I had saved the playback for. Behold the fearsome Jaberwocky aka Rob 077 as it attempts to devour it’s prey.

Finally I felt like posting this film clip of my favourite moments in a slayer match to date.

It’s a bit daft, but impressive(ly stupid) none the less. Well that’s my opinion anyway.

I just had an X-Box live experience which highlights exactly what I was talking about in my last post.

I just played for a hair over four hours and nineteen games on a mix of Big Team Social and Social Skirmish matches, with a group of players gathered by bs angel, and it was Fantastic! Easily one of my best experiences on X-Box live in a long while.

The people I was playing with were friendly and welcoming, and did not seem to be taking the game to seriously, they were there to have fun, and we did. The banter was good and the gameplay was frenetic. So I would like to take this opportunity to thank my fellow players for being such good sports and putting up with my middling skills at the game.

bs angel
TTL Tortacular
soreltehnub
Cunbelin
PinkBulletz14
TT L Burritoh
TTL Quikthnkr
Sup4 Nov4
BrownV
thegreatmoocow

I had a fantastic time, and I hope we can do it again soon.

About a month ago I came back from a four week hiatus from the internet, forced in part by moving home. While the move itself was rapid and problem free, the sluggardly response time for my ISP to connect me to the internet was a nuisance.

However those four weeks had left me unable to play matchmaking in Halo 3 like I would normally, so I ended up popping in a couple of other games I had not touched since before Halo 3 launched in September, and playing a lot of single player campaign.

However now I am online once more and have returned to the world of online multiplayer, and have come to a realisation about myself.

I hate playing multiplayer alone. An oxymoron if ever I saw one, what I mean is I hate going into multiplayer without at least one of my friends list either playing with me, or on a private chat with me. The majority of people I meet online in X-Box live are foul-mouthed little gobshites who more often than not I am forced to mute before the match starts. Most of the time now when I start up Halo 3 I switch on Mute All in the voice communication options.

What are you like on live. Can you tolerate the fools or like me are you fed up with the stupidity and mute them?