Halo 3

[Big Seany]

Got this yesterday and played for a few horas last night. Believe it or not this is the first Halo game I have ever played. I couldn't give a toss about multiplayer, as I have come to the conclusion I am too crap at games to play with other people on the internets (anyone who has witnessed my chainsaw raping n00bness on Gears will confirm this). But I have played through a good chunk of the single player mode, and I am really enjoying it. The graphics, the selection of weapons, the many different enemies (already I have seen more different nasties than in Bioshock and Gears combined) and the superb score have so far hit every button for me and I am very impressed.

Was one laugh out loud moment, when at the start you are in the base thingy and the evil alien fella comes on the big telly after the power cut. He says something about searching for "The Ark" and destroying the world and ****, just made me chuckle because my local boozer is called the Ark, and some evenings in there it feels like the end of humanity too.

Top banana.

[Simmy]

Wow that's a crazy K/D ratio...

K/D Ratio : 4.93

Crazy indeed.

One of four members of Final Boss, THE Halo 2 team, well atleast in MLG terms. It was the perfection medals that impressed me the most.

I'm not sure what point you are trying to make. The link to the guy with the great stats shows the game isn't dominated by melee.

From the map I linked to, it did seem to show that Melee is quite dominent in the game, something which quite a few have moaned about, not me I would stress, as my love for all elements of this game is bordering on the sickening. I think if you take both sources i.e. the map and the stats though it is quite interesting to see that, from the map, the masses are obviously still using the AR run and Melee play the most (just compare that to the BR heat map for instance) but at the higher level the more tactical weapons can be dominent.

I guess it's a gimme really as the AR is your starting weapon, but I have to say I quickly change that for the Battle Rifle and the more tactical style of play that allows, as I prefer it, and think a few that gave up on the game quickly would do so as well !

Wow nearly a week to reply - I really am on a forum slump atm !

[Yoshimax]

Got this yesterday and played for a few horas last night. Believe it or not this is the first Halo game I have ever played. I couldn't give a toss about multiplayer, as I have come to the conclusion I am too crap at games to play with other people on the internets (anyone who has witnessed my chainsaw raping n00bness on Gears will confirm this). But I have played through a good chunk of the single player mode, and I am really enjoying it. The graphics, the selection of weapons, the many different enemies (already I have seen more different nasties than in Bioshock and Gears combined) and the superb score have so far hit every button for me and I am very impressed..

If you don't bother with MP at least try co-op it's the aces !!!

[Big Seany]

No Gold membership at the moment on account of no money, I am afraid. Will try a bit of co-op though when I come into some dollar.

[Soi]

I guess it's a gimme really as the AR is your starting weapon, but I have to say I quickly change that for the Battle Rifle and the more tactical style of play that allows, as I prefer it, and think a few that gave up on the game quickly would do so as well !

Better players certainly use the AR + melee a lot less than beginners. With a BR it is far more effective to back off (running backwards ftw) from an AR guy and keep shooting in the head. I find it is only worth melee?ing if you know you have a lot more health that the other guy, and I?m really trying to wean myself off always going in for the melee.

On the subject of tactical play (and I?d like to start a thread about it ?but don?t have the time right now), Halo 3 is definitely the most tactical FPS I?ve played. By ?most tactical?, I mean that it has the most options and things to consider at any one time.

Take the needler. It is practically useless at close range (everything beats it as the needles don?t track if you are too close) and useless at long range (again the needles don?t track). But in middle range, it is just incredibly deadly. So with a needler in hand, you have to pick your battles very carefully and pick a complimentary second weapon (e.g. mauler for short range or BR/sniper for long range ?with the choice of these depending on where you want to be on the map). In a lot of games, the gun tactics are ?find enemy, shoot at enemy? ?and this is practically the same for each gun. BTW, I?m not saying ?all other games are bad?, just that compared to traditional FPS games, Halo is unusually complicated.

There is a very large amount of depth as to when it is best to use each weapon, and this takes a while learn. This is what can make Halo MP a bit daunting for the beginner. It is also why some people really really like it (as to them they see it as rewarding skill and tactics) and others are put off by it (they either prefer more traditional FPS mechanics, or find Halo too complicated).

[Simmy]

Better players certainly use the AR + melee a lot less than beginners. With a BR it is far more effective to back off (running backwards ftw) from an AR guy and keep shooting in the head. I find it is only worth melee’ing if you know you have a lot more health that the other guy, and I’m really trying to wean myself off always going in for the melee.

People don't seem to cotton on that a well aimed BR will take out someone with an AR everytime, as long as you say you back away from their melee charge and put atleast 1 of four shots into their head. I'm always trying to persuade new players of the game to atleast try to move away from the AR, but hey each to their own.

One question which I've been meaning to ask for a while. Do other folks feel, or has it been confirmed, that the weapon change is slower in this than 2. I feel it has, and don't have the same confidence to change weapons mid engagement than I did in two i.e. BR to a shotty when someone comes in close. I find the time to change weapons usually results in death in the end

Agree totally with your tactical comments. I'm often very surprised when people say how untactical the game is and is just point and squirt etc ! I think it takes quite a while and commitment to grasp the more tactical style of play though, a watch of a few good player videos can help speed things up though !

[Soi]

I think weapon changes are a slightly bit slower. Makes it fairer though. The Halo 2 SMG-to-sword switch for example was very harsh.

[EvilBoris]

The weapon changes are dependent on the weappon you are pulling out, pulling of the laser is very slow as is the sword.

[Shumpaloompa]

is this game worth to buy to play mainly single player?

[Dogg Thang]

Yeah, it is. I'm mostly a single player gamer and got loads out of this. Dabbled in the multiplayer for a while too and that's an added bonus but the single player is satisfying.

[bravo_johny]

is this game worth to buy to play mainly single player?

Try this game in top difficulty levels.

[Shumpaloompa]

I was asking just because i remember the Tlood ruining my game experience in Halo games...

They are just so annoying that the polished gameplay gets destroyed for me.

It is the same with this Halo 3 ?

[Dogg Thang]

Nah. There's one level that's a bit of a chore and another that's a pain until you make one huge realisation (

->Open Spoiler<-

they don't actually spawn infinitely

) but even those aren't too bad and the rest of the single player is pretty great.

[Extra Terrestrial]

I finally finished the fight.

I was watching the credits at 1am last night (headphones for the win!) and after playing CoD4, it isn't quite as good as I hoped but the first six-seven mission were fantastic and very consistent in comparison to Halo and Halo 2 where the quality would drop off at the halfway mark; Bungie have managed to do a good job in regards to the consistency and pace.

The bad points first; I?d never thought the Library level could be bettered in terms of poorness but Halo 3 managed to triumph with the anus mission where you had to find and save Cortana. I didn't have a smile on my face at any point in the mission except once it was over.

How Bungie thought it was a good level to have in their already great game (up to the point) is beyond me and the pace dropped ever so dramatically with Cortana and Gravemind talking to Master Chief every two or three minutes with the added special effect of making Mater Chief walk very slowly at the same time too.

Also the final mission made me think I was going to play an ?Assault on the Control Room? type of area once I walked out of the cave for the first time but it wasn?t to be unfortunately; you had to fight hundreds of flood on the snow plains as well as another hundred on your way up the structure then finally reach the control room to fight Guilty Spark in a rather dull one-to-one battle.

The trip of the iceberg is the driving section in which you had to take the warthog over and around these metallic tiles that sit over the unfinished Halo as well as going through some tunnel structures before making that final leap to the ship.

Now I can understand why Bungie went back to the warthog formula for the final run but at least make it believable and not to feel tacked on at the last minute, which is what I felt about it. If you ask me, this is the worse final mission in all three Halo games; it had that rush job feel about it all despite the premise being promising once you begin the mission.

I don?t want to drag on this topic, which I?m sure has been covered more than once in this thread but after such a great two thirds and a bit moments into the game, the whole experience feel flat on its face during the last two missions. After three attempts already, I think it is safe to say that Bungie have yet to master the art of making a consistent game all the way through, which is unfortunate as they are a very talented developer when they show it.

Another complaint I have is the weapon selection.

Now Halo offered less than ten different weapons; you had several human firearms and a few alien weapons to get you through the game and because of this, you had to choose your weapons wisely in different situations during the game as well as providing a thinking and strategy approach to the mix.

I really don?t know how many weapons there are in Halo 3 but I know I must have picked up around 20-30 different types of weaponry; choice - as they say - is good but too much choice can alienate the player and make certain situations slightly frustrating and not as accessible as it should be. I couldn?t honestly tell the different between some of the weapons except their appearance so I just stuck to the usual set-up such as having the battle and plasma rifle and pretty much ignored every other weapon in the game unless I ran out of ammo or was forced to use something else.

I reckon I am in a small minority regarding this issue but it is an issue nonetheless.

And finally ?as if I haven?t wrote enough already ? the story; the Arbiter?s story.

I enjoyed the story in Halo 2 despite tangling off in certain parts but my favourite part of the story is the Arbiter?s as I liked seeing the other side of the battle (the enemies at the time) as well as the prophet and conspiracy surrounding the lies they are telling. While the ending left much to be desired depending on how you like your endings, I actually wanted to know more about the Arbiter and his journey as much as Master Chiefs side of the story.

Imagine my disappointment to find out that the Arbiter was a mere speculator in Halo 3 with him tagging along side with you in some missions and to realised that not only his story was given a backseat, it was almost chucked out of the game altogether except one particular moment in the game. I know the Arbiter wasn?t the most popular aspect of Halo 2 but why create a story ? and an interest one at that ? then drop it altogether in the concluding part of the trilogy?

It is nice to get back in the action with Master Chief and follow his side of the story but to put the Arbiter out of the picture did more harm than good.

Phew.

The goodness within the game has been told countless times in this thread but my favourite is how well crafted each mission really is ? except the final two ? and makes it appear more re-playable as I expected the Covenant mission is the highlight of the game for me simply because it shares some similarity between the Halo and Silent Cartographer levels in the original; the flyby movie at the beginning with the lovely music playing really got me pumped up for that mission.

I enjoyed the cinematics although the pop-in and certain textures still leave a bitter taste in your mouth especially after Halo 2. I have to say that arriving at any location in the games at the beginning by jumping off the pelican is a great moment as it chucks you straight into the action. I have to say that the introduction is nothing short of genius, I loved the slow descent from the stars to the ground with a nice but brief piece of dialogue from Cortana; opens the game up really well.

I was told that Halo 3 doesn?t directly starts straight from Halo 2 though; did Bungie start from scratch or am I missing something quite obvious?

The set-pieces in the open areas is brilliant as ever and the scarab battles are always a joy to play ? just as long as you are driving the vehicle ? but it is the intensity and the amount of movement and action going on all the time is amazing with little or no slowdown to speak off; Bungie have created a rather stable engine to keep up with these sort of moments.

The AI is nothing short of remarkable, I was continuously being hunted and flanked whenever I was in the centre of the battle and to see what each enemy is doing to make sure you will not survive is a joy and makes the dying seem worthwhile just to marvel it all. The human AI isn?t too bad but they do tend to go all out guns blazing - kamikaze style ? at times and their driving skills makes me wonder if they have passed their driving test legally. For today?s standard, Halo still manages to deliver an exceptional AI engine even if it does bugger up a few times through the game.

To finish of my ? already too long - post I just wanted to say how much I admired the ending.

->Open Spoiler<-

Full circle indeed; from listening to Ron Pearlman?s gravely voiced speech as Lord Hood and briefly speaking to the Arbiter about their past and current relations as well as finding it hard to believe Master Chief is dead to revealing the 117 on the memorial statue ? it was an emotional ending.

After the credits, you were shown where Master Chief ends up, drifting through the ship to the cryo-tube and resting in it until found. I thought it was wonderfully done and that last fade out camera was lovely with the music heightening as the screen fades to black. I would probably go as far and say that it is the best ending I have seen since Shadow of the Colossus.

I am confused by the one extra scene at the end ? for those who played it on Legendary ? as you saw the ship that Master Chief was sleeping drifting towards this big planet that has some metallic engineering being revealed before the distance sun or light blinded the screen to return back to the menu.

I didn?t quite understand what that was telling me or is it just some sort of reference or set-up prospect for a future Halo game?

I apologise for the lengthy post but I really enjoy the Halo universe ? only the games ? and I had to show my appreciation for Halo 3 somewhere.

[Swallow]

Has anybody read the Edge Top 100 Videogames piece on Halo? It makes an interesting argument that the Flood purposely break up the game by being, well, ****. But serving a purpose. Or something.