August 10, 2007 – 6:10 pm
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Halo 3 Beta Impressions
Today was the launch of the Halo 3 beta for everyone who was lucky enough to get into it. After about a full day of gaming we wanted to give you our thoughts on the game and give you a video of some of the gameplay if you were unable to get into the beta. You should have received an e-mail from Bungie giving you your download code. I downloaded the beta first thing this morning. It really did not take long at all. After you download is complete you can go ahead and go into your game demos and you will see the beta. Read on to see our thoughts on the beta and see our gameplay video!
When the beta loads a huge Bungie logo comes on the screen and the Halo music starts to play. From there you are brought to the main menu. This is only a multiplayer beta so that is all you can play. So you go right into match making. The match making screen looks a lot like Halo 2, you have the map information and such on the left side and all the players on the right.
Playing my first map the thing I really noticed where the graphics, definitely a step up from Halo 2. This is Xbox 360 better graphics are expected, but they are nothing like the graphics of Gears of War. Everything looks much brighter and more clear. The models and shadows really look good too. One amazing thing is the water effects, they are just awesome!
The controls of the game are different than Halo 2, most notably the X button which is now used to deploy equipment instead of reloading. The right bumper will reload and if you are dual-wielding the left bumper will reload the weapon in your left hand, otherwise it is used to cycle through grenade types. The right bumper is also used to get in and out of vehicles, it is basically your action button.
As far as gameplay goes it’s the same Halo we are used too. Why change a good thing right? One thing I did notice is that dual-wielding weapons are not used as much, at least not in the levels that I played. Bungie includes all of the favorite weapons we are used to plus they added a whole bunch more. The bubble shield is something very interesting and takes some time to learn and when to actually use it.
Finally Bungie has a Saved films feature where every match is recorded and you can either save the “film” or upload it to your shared film collection associated with your gamertag. Right now there are 6 slots in your shared film section. Other users can browse these films and download them to watch if they wish.
Here is a video of me playing a match. I’m still it bit rusty, trying to get used to the new controls! Enjoy!
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