Master Chief back for more in 'Halo 3'
By Megan Fishel, Staff Writer
October 25, 2007 | 12:24 a.m.
"Halo 3" challenges civilization to finish the fight. As Master Chief brings the epic conflict between the Flood, the Covenant and the entire human race to a heart-pounding climax, everyone needs to bear witness to history in the making.
At the end of "Halo 2," Master Chief is left floating back into Earth’s atmosphere, but this isn’t exactly where the third installment of the game picks up. A little known fact is that the seemingly unexplainable gap in the story line is explained in the limited edition four-issue comic book “Halo: Uprising.” As many are unable to get a hold of the comic book, it is not necessary to know the intersession of the story in order to pick up “Halo 3” and fight for civilization.
As Master Chief crash lands on Earth without his ship, he is immediately thrown into battle and unites with a group of Marines that are fighting their way through Brutes and the Covenant back to an underground base. Once they reach the base, they plan an assault on the Prophet of Truth who is digging into Earth in search of The Ark.
The Prophet creates an enormous portal through which he and his followers enter. As the human ships attempt to recover from the shock wave, a Flood-controlled Covenant ship arrives. The Master Chief and his troupe decide to follow Truth through the portal. Joining them is 343 Guilty Spark, who decides to help as well.
If the Prophet of Truth is able to activate The Ark, he will undoubtedly purge the galaxy of all sentient life. It is up to the Chief and company to ensure Truth is not successful in his plan.
For the sake of preventing spoilers, the plot summary ends there, but be aware that the battle rages on much deeper and much further than ever before.
The graphics in "Halo 3" are positively mind blowing. Add in surround sound and a comfortable chair and life as we know it is halted for at least 11 hours. As anyone who dedicates themselves to this trilogy knows, "Halo 1" did an amazing job of capturing the player (otherwise "2" & "3" wouldn't exist), but "Halo 2" did a good job of losing many players. Many people felt it took things too far out of the realm of reality (as real as the Halo world could be, that is). "Halo 3" does a wonderful job of bringing things back into scope.
Something a lot of people may forget about "Halo 3" is that bubble shields can't and won't last forever. As a matter of fact, a power drain goes right through the shield. It may take an extra five seconds to crouch down and wait, but it will help in becoming victorious.
Another really obvious change is not only the physical appearance of the Brutes but also their tolerance levels. In past games a few shots at them would have Master Chief surrounded and fighting for his life, but in "Halo 3" it seems as though they lack ambition, if that's at all possible. As far as weaponry goes, fans of the Needlers will be disappointed to see one can no longer dual wield them as in "Halo 2".
A positive of the new take on weaponry is that the turrets are removable, so the player can carry them around; this includes the missile turret. This allows the player to lock onto an enemy, and the missile will seek it out. The main addition to vehicles is the new Mongoose. It is a lot easier to handle and maneuver, and it will send the Covenant running in the other direction.
Changes to the player himself include being able to jump higher and run faster. Almost canceling these things out is the fact that the levels are higher and the maps are bigger. Essentially Master Chief has evolved evenly with the evolution of the terrain.
Up to four people can participate in a multiplayer match on a single XBox 360 via a split screen layout. Up to 16 can participate in a single match over a LAN or XBox Live.
“Halo 3” was released in three separate versions. The “Standard Edition” contains the game disc and a manual. The “Limited Edition,” packaged in a metal case, contains the game disc, manual, interactive XBox 360 bonus disc with several featurettes and "Beastiarum," which is a hardcover-bound collection of information and art covering the species, cultures and civilizations of “Halo 3.” The final version was marketed as the "Legendary Edition," which contains the game disc, manual, interactive bonus disc, Beastiarum, Legendary DVD containing special content exclusive to the “Legendary Edition,” and a scale replica of the Master Chief's helmet as a case for the three discs.
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If this isn’t enough Halo action to satisfy your craving, there is always the “Red vs. Blue” series which can be found on YouTube or at the official site.
Title: Halo 3
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Genre: First Person Shooter
Consoles: XBox 360
Rating: Mature
Modes: Single player, Co-op, Online co-op, Multiplayer, Online multiplayer, Forge, and Meta-game
Score 8.5/10