As one of the most highly anticipated video game releases of all time, Halo 3 has created a multi-billion-dollar franchise, surpassing over 1.25 million in pre-orders and predicted to compete with first week sales of the much anticipated book, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” as well as blockbuster movie “Spiderman III”. The game itself is a narrative, following Master Chief in the year 2552 as he hopes to save humanity. But why all the hype? Sure, it’s the conclusion to one of the greatest video game trilogies of all time. Everyone is eager to know…will our hero Master Chief survive? But besides the desire for closure of the six year drawn out story, does Halo 3 really offer a video game revolution?
Halo 3 is made for the XBOX 360, Microsoft’s latest console platform. The system provides for phenomenal 3D-animations and graphics and Halo 3 uses the platform to its fullest. Especially in the ideal setting using a High-Definition TV, which the 360 is designed for, the graphics easily supersede Halo 2, taking full advantage of the 360’s capabilities. But then again, so does a game like Gears of War, also on XBOX 360. Consequently, the graphics don’t necessarily make this title a groundbreaking feat in next generation games.
As a first-person shooter, gamers expect to have a good assortment of weapons that are powerful and exciting to use. Most gamers know that in video games the bigger the gun, the more powerful it is. No one wants to use a pistol when they can use a rocket launcher. Once again, Halo 3 delivers as a wider variety of weapons are available, larger, more powerful and even graphically appeared better equipped on Master Chief than in previous versions of Halo. But this is to be expected of a sequel. The most talked about new weapon in Halo 3 is the self-shooting turret. However, gamers can find this same ‘cool’ weapon in the new and also anticipated PC game, Team Fortress 2. Creators failed to implement any revolutionary weapons or gadgets unheard of in other video games, to fight off the aliens.
Also receiving much hype is the improved multiplayer portion of the game. The Halo series is no stranger to multiplayer online games, as Halo 2 was the most-played XBOX Live game for years. Halo 3 allows players more control of the online setting. The Forge allows players to customize existing maps and saving it in a manner that will allow online users to download and play on it. Furthermore, online games can be replayed, recorded or screenshotted then saved for download by other users. While XBOX Live subscriptions are sure to increase, these features are not much different from PC games offered by Valve or Blizzard which allow a vast amount of customization and recording features.
Improved graphics, new weapons, more multiplayer features and a compelling closure to the story all help to bring the Halo trilogy to an exciting end as well as make for a great game. Even though the action-packed conclusion to the Halo series has left millions of fanboys and fangirls satisfied, gamers will still have to wait for the game that will truly grasp the power of next-generation consoles. In the meantime, four college students have figured out how to utilize the power of next-gen consoles in a way other than through video games. Even without the help of Master Chief, they designed a way to map the human brain with a cluster of PlayStation 3’s.
–Heather Mumm
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1 » NGT News: Whateverlife Cashes In, Halo Breaks Records, and Dexter Stalks You » Next Great Thing // Oct 2, 2007 at 1:48 pm
[…] Halo 3 Breaks Records [MCV] Halo 3 is the fastest selling XBOX 360 game of all time. Still we’re not sure if it lives up to the hype. […]
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