Crackerwax

Halo 3 feels much more like the original Halo did, the sense of freedom you get from being able to rip up gun emplacements and carry them or deploy shields where you want is immense. Add to that the number of different ways to progress through each level and you end up with a thoroughly convincing world.

The sheer amount of stuff you can do in this game is astonishing and rather unusually it doesn’t feel tacked on, it just adds to the atmosphere.

I know I said yesterday that the graphics weren’t really that much of a step up, well I was wrong. The further you get into the game the better they get. Not only that but the number of enemies on screen at once and the number of effects going on is fantastic, you really do get the sense that you’re in the middle of an invasion.

The Arbiter from Halo 2 is still present and thankfully from what I hear you never have to play as him. That was one of Halo 2′s major failings and Metal Gear Solid 2′s while I’m at it, I’ll never forgive Hideo Kojima for making me play as Raiden.

Fucking about with the players sense of identity is a big no-no in my book and so far I’ve felt very much that the fate of the world really is in my hands and that I am Master Chief. Little details abound to convince you of your status as the world’s saviour.

The character of Master Chief really is made to feel larger than life in every situation, marines talk about you in hushed reverential tones and the grunts shit themselves when they see you. It all adds up to a solid sense of immersion.

The Cortana part of the plot is interesting too, I’m looking forward to finding out where her part in the story is. At the minute I can only guess that 343 Guilty Spark will be involved somewhere down the line but for once I’m actually interested in a game’s plot!

I get the feeling too that once I’ve completed the campaign I’m going to get more than my money’s worth out of the online multi-player stuff. It’s a really good game, there’s no mistaking that, but only time will tell if its truly a classic.

This entry was posted on Friday, September 28th, 2007 at 2:54 am and is filed under Gaming, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.