Finishing the Fight... a little late (Newspaper posts: part one)

For the next few posts, I'll be putting up some reviews I've done for my local newspaper. There is no particular order, but I thought I'd just start off the the "end" of a series. Enjoi

Time to Finish the Fight

It’s been a long time since we last saw John-117. Many of his kind have come and gone, yet Master Chief and the Halo trilogy have stayed at the top of, not only the first-person shooter genre, but the action genre as a whole. While other action titles may focus on their strategic elements (Gears of War) and their thought-provoking stories (Half-Life 2), the Halo trilogy has always had one very strong thing in its arsenal: it’s just plain fun. This (supposedly) final installment in the Halo trilogy really is a testament to how much work has gone into making Halo 3 on the Xbox360 a true masterpiece that pretty much anyone can pick up and play.

It starts with the story. For those of you who have never finished the Halo 2 campaign, shame on you. The basic rundown is that the Covenant alien invasion has moved onto trying to conquer Earth in an attempt to find an ancient artifact known only as The Ark. The only thing in their way is you—well, really the elite Marine Spartan-class soldier Master Chief, but you’re the one controlling him, so good job on your part. Your job is to travel through South Africa and stop the Covenant Prophet of Truth from burning the entire planet in his quest to find the Ark, and you must do this at all costs.

Now, the Halo trilogy isn’t exactly held in the highest of praises when it comes to intricate storylines, but that’s because most of the story lies beneath all the pretty explosions and destructive weapons. For a deeper understanding of why the events in the game are taking place, you’d need to look to the novels and the comic book, but what you do get from the games are fun stories and moments that are both interesting and really pivotal to the overall saga that is Halo. Surprisingly enough, the campaign [story] mode of Halo 3 is really satisfying to play through, either by yourself or with a few—up to three on campaign—friends. What I’m trying to say is that the story and certain moments are epic, and somewhat re-inventive (sort of a religious spin on the aliens invade Earth cliché), but most of it is overshadowed by the frantic action that goes on if you aren’t paying close enough attention.

A lot of what makes all of the non-stop, frenzied, over-the-top, explosion-heavy, action so satisfying is the extremely comfortable control system. If anybody reading this has ever played an FPS [First-Person Shooter], or even a normal action game, you should be able to pick up the Xbox360 controller and jump right into the action. If you have never played an action game this intense before, it should take a little bit of practice and a quick look-over of the control scheme to be able to play as if you had been doing so for years…give or take a few. For those returning to the series, there have only been a handful of changes to the controller’s layout. The right and left bumpers at the top are now used to switch grenades and dual-wield weapons, while the X button is used to deploy equipment (Auto-Turrets, Deployable cover, the now-famous Bubble Shield, etc.). This control layout works like a dream and the only thing I can think of that can top it is the classic keyboard-mouse combination of the PC shooters.

While everything else is very important, the heart of the game—and the reason most people will buy it—is the multiplayer. Whether you’re playing online with people halfway around the world or in your living room with people halfway across the couch, Halo 3 multiplayer is the most fun you’ll be having with a videogame for the rest of the year, at the least. In addition to the familiar modes (Slayer, King of the Hill, Oddball, etc.), developer Bungie Studios has added a new game type called Forge. Forge is something completely different from what you’d expect from Halo 3 and more from PC games. This new mode is essentially a map editor in which you can move around, change, and add different objects, vehicles, and weapons while simultaneously playing a live match. It’s pretty unique for a console shooter, and can lead to some really fun matches. What’s even better is that you can share said fun matches with the world through Bungie’s new online File Share option, in which you can upload (or download) screenshots, movies, maps, and even game types that you or anybody else playing this game has created from the comfort of your TV screen. It’s almost like a highlight reel that you have saved on your Xbox.

When you aren’t blasting your way through enemy opposition, you’re almost definitely taking in the beautiful, colorful vistas that you don’t normally see in mature-rated games such as this. There are moments that are purely epic and larger-than-life that will make your jaw drop. Yes, the game is M-rated, but it doesn’t go anywhere past a little bloodshed and flying bullets. What I’m about to say, you should have figured out from the rest of this review: Halo 3 is pure, adrenaline-rush fun. Bungie truly has gotten the “science of fun” down (30 seconds of heart-racing fun at a time), and that spreads throughout every single moment of this stellar game. From the campaign to the addictive multiplayer, this is a fitting end to the fantastic Halo trilogy, and it deserves every bit of a 5 out of 5. Halo 3 is pretty much perfect, converting even a non-believer such as myself into a contributing member of the addicted masses. Now get out there and “finish the fight.” Oh, and one more thing: you may want to stick around after the credits roll.