Video Games : Halo 3 (Xbox 360)

Rating: - why! bungie why!
to start off with, i HAVE played all of the halo games, and trust me i loved the first and liked the second. when halo 3 came out i saved my pennys to buy the halo 3 console and the legendary edition and both the controlers AND the head-set. when i sat down to play i was annoyed when i stood back up 5 hours later (while playing on heroic and collecting all skulls) to find that the story was rushed the maps filled with invisible walls and an empty felling inside (mainly because of all the items id bought in celebration of halo 3)

now for a game that so many people have claimed is 'perfect' it should have nothing to excuse itself for. the campaign is short,badly written and rushed i honestly dont know if they killed off certain charicters for laughs or to just annoy people but to kill one of the most developed charicters in the game is a low blow.

the multiplayer is a shadow of it's former self in my opinion the games are now soley controlled by who owns the biggest and powerfullest weapon they can get thier hands on. and most of the community i built up of ignorent fools most are about the age of 10 or 11 and even when you do find a person old enough to play the game they still act like a moron towards everyone.(but hay, the internet has been like this for awhile)

overall this game isnt what next gen should be there are many more BETTER games out there. personally i think bungie got over thier heads with this and ruined it. they focused to much on the multiplayer and shunned the main aspect of a game IT'S CAMPAIGN i dedent pay £80 for the legenday to just be slapped around the face and told "it's muliplayer is good though" if i wanted a game thats built for mulitiplayer id play unreal not a game thats got such a brillient and compelling story behind it. it's like if bioshock went multiplayer! that would completly ruin everything that makes that game good....

good for live
bad for campaign
not worth the money
rent first if you want my advise.

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Rating: - Dissapointing end to a great series of games
Unfortunately, this game was cruelly murdered by its media hype. Dissapointed at the short campaign and I don't often play mulitplayer so it makes no difference how good co-op or multiplayer is. Shame really, I loved the other 2 games. I regret buying it and looking back would rather have rented it to finish the story as opposed to buying it.

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Rating: - Stunning end to a excellent trilogy.
Halo 3, without doubt was one of the most anticipated games of 2007 and I think most people can see why. The Campaign is excellently balanced with superb enemy AI, which make every time you play one of the 9 missions exciting. The Online funtionality is immensely good with brilliant maps and well placed weapons. When you finally do get bored of these maps you can create your own maps, working from the original ones, in Forge. And as if this isn't enough there is a map pack containing 3 new maps, Standoff, Rats nest and Foundry. This game is so splendid that the only negetives I can see are the stupid friendly AI and that the graphics arn't that good, though good enough. In all the best game that you can buy for the Xbox 360!!

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Rating: - "Perfection" has a new meaning...
So here it is at last. This review may be late, (and if you can't be bothered to read an in-depth review stop reading RIGHT NOW), but it's given me time to assess any complaints from disappointed fans or psychotic Halo Haters and conclude that they are all, completely, wrong. Halo 3 is, easily, the best game I have ever played.

Where to start? Halo 3 is possibly the most heavily hyped game in history, as well as being the biggest entertainment launch of all time. So, like many Xbox 360 owners I was eagerly awaiting my copy of Halo 3 Legendary Edition.

After launch Halo 3 dominated the charts for weeks and pleased critics everywhere, while at the same time knocking Gears of War from its perch at the top of my favourite game list. For me, Halo 3 couldn't have got any better, so why did I start hearing complaints about it left, right and centre? Even now, I don't know.

When I received my copy of Halo 3 naturally the first thing I wanted to do was play through the campaign. It blew me away.

Story

Firstly, and most importantly, the story. Where would Halo be if it hadn't been for this? Yet again however, I've heard loads of disappointed groans from many that the story just didn't live up. What planet these people live on I have now idea. Basically, Halo 3 is the final chapter of Halo 2, stretched over around a 10 hour playing time, so I simply cannot comprehend those who feel the plot is rushed. No, the plot is not perfect, but the vast majority of all the loose ends generated by the prequels are neatly tied up, with dozens of twists and surprises leading to the most thrilling conclusion anyone could possibly have hoped for. In comparison with the first two, the storyline of Halo 3 is much deeper and more emotional by far. The campaign itself is longer than that of Halo 2, about the same as Halo: Combat Evolved, and the amount of thrills, twists and turns in that time is truly phenomenal. Any claims that this game can be done in 5 hours are completely ridiculous. I'm no rookie when it comes to Halo and it took me around 11 hours to complete the campaign on normal for the first time. I won't give away the story to those who haven't played it yet, but it blows Halo 2 out of the water and surpasses even the original in quality. What astounded me most was how they managed to create such a dynamic ending whilst keeping a surprising level of maturity to the plot on a scale which I don't think either of its predecessors achieved.

Gameplay

I am happy to say that, not only were there very few a complaint in this field, but also that it's right that there shouldn't be. Halo 3 keeps the essence of its outstanding prequels, eliminating EVERYTHING bad and adding in loads of great new features like 4 player co-op, Metascore, Forge, Save Film, and equipment. These features are all extremely impressive, the Save Film and Forge sections in particular, allowing you access to plenty of superb community features and customisation to the max. The campaign gameplay flows smoothly with extremely few bugs or glitches, but what amazed me most was how well Bungie evolved the gameplay from Halo 2 (since you no longer fight Elites, but Brutes instead). The brutes are WAY more fun to tackle than in Halo 2. Most importantly however, the enemies have evolved intellectually. Halo 3 requires you to think in order to survive, as your enemies will pull off aggressive tactics to flank you and confuse you, which makes it all the more satisfying when you leave the area without a scratch on you. The AI cleanly surpasses the likes of Gears of War and even Ninja Gaiden, delivering the most challenging action game I've ever played. Not to say that Halo 3 is too hard. The difficulty on Halo 3 is like Baby Bear's bed, not too hard, not too soft, but just right. However, one complaint about Halo 3 which I cannot deny is that the friendly AI is truly terrible in comparison with the enemy AI, rendering your marine allies practically useless. Halo 3 goes mainly by the formula: "If it ain't broke, don't fix it", keeping the same old outstanding first person action pioneered by its prequels, but there are areas where Bungie has clearly taken advantage of the power of the Xbox 360. In Halo 3 you will find that the majority of your encounters take place, not in confined corridors, but on full-scale battlefields. Vehicle use is much more important in this game than its prequels, but it never overdoes anything. Just when you think for a second the combat is losing its appeal, it promptly switches to an entirely new form.
The multiplayer in Halo 2 was undisputedly superb, but Bungie has, once again, improved on perfection. The Maps, weapons, objects and features are all mind-bendingly well balanced (I don't even want to contemplate how long these people spent making these maps!), producing by far the best online gameplay I've ever played. There's plenty of new content, with just one of the nine (now 15) new maps from the earlier titles and nearly double the number of weapons as well as the introduction of "equipment" to the multiplayer. Ranked matches are where the action lies, with loads of game types to choose from and jump into. I really like the new feature of being able to "veto" maps and game types that you don't like so that you don't always have to sit through a game type you hate or quit and annoy everyone. The new weapons are nothing short of superb, in particular the Spartan Laser and third-person, heavy guns. Some weapons are very powerful but none make you invincible. It just feels right. Team play is a strong feature in the multiplayer and it truly delivers. While Halo still doesn't have that tactical feel to it like Gears of War or Call of Duty, that is by no means a reason to dismiss it as a no-brain, hectic riot; outsmarting your opponent is just as crucial as out-gunning them. The multiplayer gameplay is, quite literally, perfection.

Graphics

The graphics are as superb as I could have expected (this is Halo after all). Pin-sharp and vibrantly colourful, don't even get me started on that drawback distance. While still not on a level with the graphical prowess of Gears of War it was nowhere near disappointing. However, while Halo 3 doesn't immediately jump at you as a graphical monster, it's only when you look more carefully that you realise where Bungie has really delivered the goods. The lighting effects are the best I have ever seen, they look practically real. The drawback distance also happens to be the biggest ever in a video game (14 miles!). Funnily enough though, the view on the game's graphical power has been somewhat mixed, but I can honestly concur that the game is up there in the best looking games so far on next generation.

Sound

This generation has introduced the Sound category to a level of much higher importance, and Halo 3 is no exception. The sound quality easily surpasses anything I've ever seen (or should I say, heard). With a full 5.1 speaker setup the explosions make the ground tremble, the "Rat-a-tat" of the battle rifle pounds the air, and the Spartan Laser is like hearing a re-enactment of the Big Bang. The voice acting is 5 star too, bettering any of its prequels and, indeed, any other game (except perhaps the likes of Half-Life or Oblivion). All the Cast members from the prequels are there, with incredible in-sight into the story which enhances the drama further still. Speaking of Drama, the music in Halo 3 is also absolutely phenomenal. A mixture of older remixed music from the prequels and brand new music, all played by a fantastic 80 piece orchestra. The score is definitely, once again, the best I have ever experienced. Surprisingly, Halo 3 excels more in this category than in its graphical prowess.

Overall, Halo 3 is not only a mind-blowing ending to the Halo trilogy, but also sets a new benchmark for Perfection in gaming.

Summary:

Pros:

A brilliant ending to the Halo trilogy.
Gameplay is as outstanding as ever, with online play in particular disturbingly close to perfection.
Superb Graphics polish Halo's gameplay for the next generation.
Incredible sound truly immerses you in the game, with a 5 star score.
Cunning AI provides a much greater and more enjoyable challenge.

Cons:

Marine AI is pathetic, given that enemy AI is so challenging, don't know what happened here.

Gameplay: 10
Graphics: 9
Sound: 10
Story: 10
Music: 10
Speed: 9
Appeals to: Pretty much everyone, but people around the same age as the certificate in particular.

Overall: 9.9/10

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Rating: - What a Hoot
This is a great game - lives up to all the hype. single player is very fun and rounds of the story well. multiplayer split screen is soo much fun, havent got online yet but im expecting more laughs when i do

a must buy!!!!