Halo 3: ODST
by: Andrew Mauney ‘11So, it wouldn’t be college without some sort of Halo game, right? In 2007 came Halo 3, which finished the Halo story-arc, and in early 2009 came Halo Wars to add some back-story. For late 2009, however, came Halo 3: ODST to finally bridge the plot gap between Halo 2 and Halo 3.
As per the name, in Halo 3: ODST, the player plays as an Orbital Drop Shock Trooper (ODST) who is hot-dropped in just before the destruction of New Mombasa. So, that means no more being a seven-foot tall SPARTAN super-soldier, shields, equipment, or dual-wielding for the player, but it does mean a return to the pistol from Halo 1 plus a newly silenced and scoped SMG. The smaller stature and more delicate nature of being an ODST changes the entire play style from the rest of the Halo franchise in a good way. ODST is not about running and gunning, but rather careful stealth and knowing how to avoid confrontation when necessary. Avoidance is best when playing in between the larger fight sequences in the dark and rainy cityscape of war-torn New Mombasa.
The player starts the game as “The Rookie,” having been knocked out for over six hours when the player’s drop-pod is knocked off-course. The entire game is set as a film-noir detective story complete with an amazing original soundtrack that echoes Halo but also gives a very moody, dark theme that matches the theme of the game. The player’s objective is to find out what happened to the Rookie’s squad-mates while he was knocked out. This requires use of the new VISR ability, which is essentially a pimped-out night-vision mode, to find clues of the squad’s whereabouts. The flashback missions are where the game really shines; classic Halo action where the player gets to switch to one of the other squad members and replay what happened earlier in the day to be able to piece together where the squad is.
Also with the flashback missions come plenty of cut-scenes that look amazing (a la the Halo 3 engine) and have top tier actors, like Nathan Fillion (Firefly, Serenity). Another part to quickly note is the addition of “Firefight” to ODST. Now players can choose a level and play against waves and waves of Covenant with up to three players on one Xbox or three friends on Xbox LIVE. “Firefight” is a great addition for those who get tired of normal multiplayer but don’t want to play the normal campaign mission. As an added bonus, Bungie has filled the game withthirty audio logs that give more insight to the Covenant siege of New Mombasa and a few other Easter eggs that the reader will have to find on his/her own.
With all its splendor, ODST does have some shortfalls. The AI has been beefed up, but Covenant and Humans still climb on top of random objects directly in the line of fire. Also, though graphically beautiful, the nighttime sections can be hard to play, especially on a HDTV; even with adjusting the black levels, the game seemed overly dark at times which made it extremely hard to distinguish things that were far away. Also, along that same vein, the VISR system does not work outside or in medium-lit areas so attempting to see something in a poorly lit area is nigh impossible. Another problem that players run into is the overall length of the game. The game is substantially shorter than any other game in the franchise that can be a problem for people who want a game that has an involved single player.
Also, “Firefight” has the major pitfall of not being able to use matchmaking to make a party to play. The lack of matchmaking is a real problem since most people have a hard time trying to find four friends to play at once on LIVE; plus the screen can be crowded with four players playing co-op on one TV.
Overall, Halo 3: ODST is not a game Halo fans should miss, nor should anyone else be lacking in their game library. Though it may feel too short, the game more than makes up for it with a rich story that keeps players guessing and enough secrets to keep anybody busy for a long time. Also, readers should note that Halo 3: ODST comes with a second disc that contains the Halo 3 multiplayer client along with all the map packs. So ODST is a good deal just for the new maps and a new disc to play them with.
Rating: 9.5/10 Brute Skulls
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