Halo3 Beta Initial Thoughts

Unfortunately I'm not near as fortunate as Aubrey, and had to buy a 'specially marked box' of extortion, I mean Crackdown to get into the Halo 3 beta.  I waited until the evening to try and get on, hoping that the mass frantic downloads and mass server load would have diminished by then, but alas, there was an issue with Crackdown and no one had been able to download it via the game to get on.  (This issue only affected the crackdown beta participants, see link below for more information on the crackdown issues.)

http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=news&cid=12468

So, I was finally able to get in around 9:30, 10:00pm MST with my boss sitting in his corner of my theatre with his 360 hooked up to a little TV.  (I know, he likes to play on a little TV for some reason instead of the big projected screen, I don't get it either but he plays very well on it.)  So, we finally download play 1 round when the servers get overloaded and simply say 'downloading information from Xbox Live' in the matchmaking theater.'  Jeff got on at this point, joined our party, we tried but alas he had to go to bed before the servers were able to handle the load again.  We got to play for about an hour or so, server load brought them down again, etc.  So, first night was pretty buggy, but well worth the pain!

So, now that we've got the issues out of the way, how is the game itself?  One word.  Amazing.  First, I have to agree with Aubrey that the brute grenades rock!  Nothing is better than hearing the 'thud' when you stick someone with a brute grenade and laugh hysterically while you wait for him to die.  The Mongoose is a long over-due, very welcome edition to the game.  I don't think I've actually run anyone over with one yet, but I look forward to doing it, and riding a mongoose off the man cannon is something that everyone must experience.  Now, one of the most amazing things that I don't think anyone has commented on yet is the sound.  I don't know how good it is on a TV, but in a surround sound setup in a theater, it is beyond amazing.  First, the sounds are far more realistic in every way.  The gun shots actually sound much more like a real firearm, you even hear the sound of the metal of the magazine and bolt sliding closed.  Distant battles actually sound distant and vehicle engines sound like a combustion engine.  The mongoose in particular sounds like a motorcycle on steroids.  And having your corpse fall into deep water is something else everyone must experience.  It sounds too real.

Graphics is something a lot of people have complained about.  "It's looks just like Halo2."  Well, first off, that's wrong.  Again, I'm not sure how much is a standard TV vs. HD issue, but the graphics are remarkably improved.  The amazing stuff is in the details.  Character movement is remarkable.  Gun reloads are seamless.  Death and explosions better than ever, environment contrast, movement, reaction and detail are astounding.  And, as Frankie loves to point out, the water is the best I've ever seen in game engine.  One last thing to point out, Bungie is notorious for holding back the best for launch day, and I think the graphics, even in multiplayer on the Gold product are going to absolutely blow everyone away, so please don't lose heart when you hear the nay-sayers out there.

Game types are tremendously improved.  A game type I have always hated is territories.  Well, in Halo3, territories is actually pretty cool.  Now, don't get me wrong, it's still not my favorite by any means, but I actually enjoy playing it now.  Instead of holding a territory to gain time, and having the ability to lose it, it is now an offense vs. defense game type.  Defense has all 5 territories, and the offensive team must hold a territory long enough to capture it.  (This time has gone from roughly 10 seconds to a minute.  Again, this is me just guessing.)  Once the offensive team has captured a territory, they get a point.  The end for that territory that round.  There is no capturing it back, there is no 'timed' scoring.  The team that captured the most territories while on offense wins the game.  Much cooler than the original.  Another new to Halo game type is 'VIP', where one person on each team is the 'VIP', and has an overshield.  You get a point for each 'VIP' kill you get on the other team.  This was quickly one of our favorite game types to play.

Weapon balance is another major improvement in Halo3.  Something that has become increasingly annoying in Halo2 is the over-use of the battle rifle.  In a Bungie ViDoc, they described how when Halo2 launched, they spawned people with dual wieldable weapons and that it changed the game.  No one melee' d or used grenades anymore, so they have everyone spawn with the battle rifle now.  Well, Bungie, I would disagree with your solution, because spawning with the battle rifle has the same effect.  I never dual wield anymore because you can never get close enough to an enemy for it to be effective.  The battle rifle keeps opponents at a distance.  Besides, I melee all the time while dual wielding.  Sure, I drop my second weapon, but I melee to finish them off, pick my other weapon back up and I'm on my merry way.  Halo3 corrects this problem, in the exact same way that Halo 1 didn't have this problem.  The assault rifle.  It's lower accuracy at even mid range provides a perfect starting weapon balance.  The battle rifle does slightly more damage now from my perspective, but it also shoots slower.  So, if you are close to an opponent and you have the battle rifle and they have the assault rifle, your toast, but at a great distance, they're history.  It's a beautiful balance to have everyone spawn with the assault rifle, and I really hope they keep it that way.  Also, the needler is actually worth picking up for the first time.  (At least so far, during Halo2 before release they had it powerful too and then backed it off.)  Bungie, please leave the needler as it is.  It's perfect!  I noticed that the Spartan laser takes a lot more time to charge and fire now than it did in the video released by Bungie of an earlier build (http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=news&cid=12432) and this is probably wise as it might be too power to shoot as quickly as in the video, but I think it's a tad bit on the too slow side in the public beta, but that's just my opinion.  Lasering a Mongoose in the air after flying off the 'man cannon' is a near spiritual experience, one I hope to have more of.

The environments in Halo3 are beautiful, functional, and fun!  Water effects, wind effects on vegetation, climate all provide a beautiful and more drawing atmosphere to play in.  The maps feel bigger and really draw you into the action more, and best of all are the additional game play elements in the maps.  The man cannon is a great concept and I hope that concept is used in other multiplayer maps as well.  The shield 'walls' that block weapons fire, but not movement are another great addition to gameplay.  During 'VIP', the opposing team's 'VIP' would hide in a small room that has those shield walls on each side thinking it would make him safe.  It was a blast to walk through the wall just quick enough to drop a grenade and then walk back out as he fired futilely at me.  As soon as it would detonate I'd walk through and deposit my next present.  Great fun!

Matchmaking, other than the issues I mentioned in the beginning of my article is far improved.  If you enjoyed a team you just played with, it gives you like 20 seconds to hit the 'x button' to instantly form a party and continue together.  If a map/gametype comes up that you hate, you can again hit your 'x button' to veto it.  If the majority of the players veto, it skips to another map/gametype.  It only lets you do this once to prevent being stuck waiting for everyone to stop vetoing.  This is a great feature that has already come in handy in the beta, seeing as how for some reason territories is weighted very heavily in the lists.  (I think they're really wanting to see if people like the new way of playing territories vs. the original)  So, stick with the way guys, it rocks!

The control style in Halo3 is different than Halo2, slightly confusing at first, but you pick it up really quick, and it's far better!  Another great call Bungie!  The new control style give you more control, flexibility and speed in combat situations.  I'm still working on getting used to it, but it's well worth it!

The vehicles available in the beta are the chain gun Warthog, the Ghost, and the Mongoose.  The Warthog is the same solid favorite it's ever been.  The Ghost, I'm not so sure yet.  The plasma bolts it shoots are a lot small, might be moving a bit faster, and I'm not sure how effective they are.  I ran a couple of people over at full boost and it never killed them, so I'm a little unsure about the Ghost.  I haven't had much opportunity to use it yet, so I'll try to get more time on it and let you know.  Other than the Gauss Warthog, the Ghost is my all time favorite vehicle, and I hope it stays that way.  The Mongoose, again, is awesome.  It really picks up speed the long you floor it, it's considerably more unstable than the Warthog (which is should be) hard to shoot from on the back, but boy is it a blast!  You'll wanna just jump on it to drive it around.

Some additional features of the Halo3 beta are saved films.  This is going to be an awesome feature in Halo3, one I am very excited about.  It's very easy to record.  Every game is recording and in the battle aftermath screen, simply hit the 'x button' and it saves.  Easy!  Currently in the beta through, all you can do is re-watch the game with the same perspective as playing it, with no fast forward/rewind options, camera angle changes, etc.  Now, they said this would be the case going in, and I completely understand it.  In the beta though, it's almost pointless, but I really look forward to the final product.  Customizing your Spartan is easier and much cooler.  Not much to say about it, just more colors and looks cool.  Another additional thing is the 3 character 'quick reference' name.  Rather than trying to figure out everyone's gamertag (half of them you can't even figure out what it's supposed to be) you can simply call out their Letter/2 number combination.  This is a great idea, I just wish I could use 2 letters and then a number.  (I wanted to use XM8, which is the project name for the US military's replacement rifle for the M16.)  Since it requires 1 letter, then 2 numbers, I went with M08, which spoken should come out 'M8', which will be it's name when finished.  And of course, I can't forget the bubble shield, the portable grav lift, trip mine, and the energy drain.  You use these items by hitting and holding the 'x button.'  It's actually more intuative and easier than you would think, and they add a great aspect to the game.  The bubble shield has saved me on more than 1 occasion is a great tool for 'King of the Hill' battles (keeps people from just hucking grenads to the hill from a distance) among other situations.  The energy drain, basically the opposite of the bubble shield was awesome to use to protect a territory, and the trip mine is great to leave in a hall way or on a vehicle.  The grav lift can help you get a drop on the enemy or allow a more stealthy incursion into a base.  All great additions that I hope make it to the final game.

Well, that's about everything I can think of off the top of my head.  I hope this will provide a little bit of insight for those who aren't in the beta, or don't yet own a 360.  (WHY NOT?? Get out and buy one already!  Yes, I am talking to you Josh!)  For much more detailed and official information, please visit Bungie's official beta guide;

http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&link=WelcometotheBeta