Halo 3 Pre-Release Discussion

[Candyman5]

Re: Halo 3 Discussion

I laugh in the face of those who said Halo 3 graphics are not next gen. Wow, the Narrows map reminded me of that one bridge in Halo 1.

[Flawless]

Re: Halo 3 Discussion

The voice talk has been changed to open chat from impressions of people playing the Epsilon build, so no longer do you have to push to talk. Bungie says they will make Rocket Race available for download and no it won't cost you anything. Also, Bungie talked about a recent creation testers have made with Forge, which is sort of similar to Rocket Race. Everyone is driving around on indestructible mongooses with Brute shots, so you're flipping people with these Brute shots. The catch is these checkpoints, which are put throughout a map. Maybe one is inserted on top of the Elephant, which you'll have to drive up to reach. They also have these situations where they have place static gravity lifts and in order to get to a certain checkpoint, you have to take these 3 successive gravity lifts to boost up higher to hit a checkpoint. It's almost like Mouse Trap essentially. You can do something sort of like soccer, where on Snowbound you have these two covenant structures that act as goals and place one indestructible mongoose on the map and give everybody Gravity Hammers. This is just something simple, but I'm really excited at the possibilities Forge will offer up.

Map breakdowns:

Guardian and Last Resort

Guardian isn't a Lockout remake; Bungie have been very clear on this. That said, it has a purposefully similar layout and pace, with even more emphasis on nailing jumps to traverse the level efficiently. A pair of miniature man cannons can quickly jet you over to the large, flat central platform from points on the exterior, but scampering up a gnarled stump or jumping between the surrounding structures definitely gives you an advantage over more grounded opponents. It also has a noticeably tighter design than Lockout, with less instances of being clocked out of nowhere when wandering in the open, and more balanced, centralized locations for the Energy Sword and Shotgun.

Sandtrap and Epitaph

The highlight of the map, as you may have read about by now, is the new vehicle/mobile base dubbed the Elephant. An enormous, indestructible transport that comes loaded with a Mongoose and armed with a mounted gun turret, the Elephant can serve as a spawn point and a capture point during Flag games. The driving controls are tucked in a compartment near the front, and it moves very slowly. Combined with the hectic pace of the ample traditional vehicles already on the map, it allows for some interesting tug-of-war matches of bringing the flag capture points closer to one another, and finding effective ways to raid the elephant. Almost every gametype (traditional or crazily customized) that we played on Sandtrap was a blast, and it already seems to be producing some of the more ridiculous Halo moments and Saved Films that we've seen.

...

I laugh in the face of those who said Halo 3 graphics are not next gen. Wow, the Narrows map reminded me of that one bridge in Halo 1.

Next-gen is so cliche. I'm probably in the minority, but I thought the beta graphics were easily comparable to those of any other multiplayer shooter on the 360, except for maybe Gears, but even then there were things Halo 3 was doing that were superior. I would really like to see how the maps in the beta have progressed, because the video showing Sandtrap is a definite notch up from the beta. The single player looks even better, and has some of the better lighting I have seen this generation yet. Bungie is using some kind of Global Illumination hack. I do think the fact Bungie is sticking with the same art style and design as the previous games is holding them back. Ultimately, I believe what's truly going to impress the majority of people is going to be Halo 3's scope, AI, and feature set.

[Lester206]

Re: Halo 3 Discussion

im sooooo looking foward to playing CTF on sandtrap with those elephants

[ThaGenecyst]

Re: Halo 3 Discussion

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[Flawless]

Re: Halo 3 Discussion

Bungie Studios Podcast: Forgetacular

This week's (we fudged the "weekly release" a little bit) episode of the Bungie Studios Podcast has Lars Bakken and Tyson Green join Frankie and Luke in the studio for a frank discussion on Forge, Halo 3's multiplayer customization tool.

Infection variant:

Block all entrances into the High Ground base with a bunch of barricades, huge crates and boxes. On top of the wall place 3 turrets, multiple respawning shotguns and sniper rifles. Make the zombies spawn at beach and the humans spawn behind the base wall, and then let the magic happen.

[Candyman5]

Re: Halo 3 Discussion

The only thing I do not want is the super jumps. Now if the gravity is set to 0 or something that is fine but when you are playin at normal gravity and everything I hate when peeps do it. Like in halo 2 in the game type where you had to hold the ball to win. These two people took the ball in turf and super jumped on top of the roofs and then just set there for the rest of the game. We tried to do it but we couldn't do it high enough. Then they have the nerve after the game to say that we suck and shouldn't play halo. We told them to pl,ay us in a regular slayer match and they did. We one 50 to 25. They left as soon as the game ended. That just ticks me off.

[Skyboxer]

Re: Halo 3 Discussion

I laugh in the face of those who said Halo 3 graphics are not next gen.

Why? because thier opinions don't match yours?

Playing Halo online like frogger3.0. Boing---shoot - Boing-shoot... is another turn off for me.

Anyways the graphics while very nice still don't justify the extreme hype the game gets. IMO of course. It's a typical FPS from what I've seen so far. Opinion may very well change after playing it though.
I am very interested in the online co-op though.

[Flawless]

Re: Halo 3 Discussion

Halo 3 Goes Gold

Three years in the making by renowned developer Bungie Studios, “Halo 3” is now finished and will begin its journey to store shelves around the world in less than four weeks. “Halo 3,” which has already set new records as the fastest preordered game in history, has exceeded one million presales in North America alone. The title is set to shatter day-one entertainment sales records when it is released worldwide beginning Tuesday, Sept. 25.

“This is a huge milestone for us and a big cause for celebration at Bungie and Microsoft Game Studios,” said Harold Ryan, Studio Head at Bungie Studios. “This is the game we’ve always wanted to make and certainly the best game our studio has developed. We can’t wait for gamers to get their hands on it on Sept. 25.”

[DTX3]

Re: Halo 3 Discussion

Halo 3 Goes Gold

Noice. I haven't read any info or seen a single video of H3, ill prob. start reading everything from the beginning this weekend. Then ill prob. be hyped for the 25th release date.

[fistofrage]

Re: Halo 3 Discussion

I have never played Halo 1 or 2 or any of them as a matter of fact. Why is everyone saying this game is overrated?

What FPS's compare?

[DTX3]

Re: Halo 3 Discussion

I have never played Halo 1 or 2 or any of them as a matter of fact. Why is everyone saying this game is overrated?

What FPS's compare?

If you have a 360, i strongly suggest picking both of them up. Im thinking of picking up Halo 1 and playing both all over until 3 comes out.

[Flawless]

Re: Halo 3 Discussion

I though this was a interesting article by Wired.

Halo 3: How Microsoft Labs Invented a New Science of Play

"Is the game fun?" whispers Pagulayan, a compact Filipino man with a long goatee and architect-chic glasses, as we watch the player in the adjacent room. "Do people enjoy it, do they get a sense of speed and purpose?" To answer these questions, Pagulayan runs a testing lab for Bungie that looks more like a psychological research institute than a game studio. The room we're monitoring is wired with video cameras that Pagulayan can swivel around to record the player's expressions or see which buttons they're pressing on the controller. Every moment of onscreen action is being digitally recorded.

...

I have never played Halo 1 or 2 or any of them as a matter of fact. Why is everyone saying this game is overrated?

What FPS's compare?

I would say because of a few things:

1. Halo 2 being a disappointment compared to the original.

2. A large portion of the fanbase is very arrogant, and thinks the game is some kind of godsend to the FPS market and that no other FPS can come close to it's quality.

3. The ridiculous amount of hype. Honestly, no game deserves this amount of hype.

4. It comes with the territory for things that are popular.

[ThaGenecyst]

Re: Halo 3 Discussion

Pictures of what appears to be the Halo 3 special edition have been posted in the NeoGAF forums. While they look like they could be real, even Bungie’s own employees only got the final version of the game five days ago and it officially went gold two days ago, so having the discs printed and shipped on a large scale already seems unlikely. While the pictures are probably just display cases, there is a chance that stores are getting the game already - and if so, people will find ways to get it for themselves.

However, these pictures aren’t the only evidence of the game being sent out so soon. People who (as far as I know) don’t work for Bungie have been seen online playing Halo 3, so some must already have the game in their possession. Is REDDOGG733 the gamertag of a Microsoft employee, or did some lucky guy get Halo 3 almost a month early?

http://www.megatonik.com/2007/08/31/rumor-halo-3-already-arriving-at-some-retailers/

[Flawless]

Re: Halo 3 Discussion

Brian Jarrard of Bungie

We don't know who REDDOGG is... he could be MS, it may even be someone at Bungie who is out of the office and grabbed a disc.

At this point, a FEW people have legitimate copies of the game. These people are not supposed to be playing the game on Xbox LIVE.

No actual copies are available to any retailers yet. The photos that surfaced earlier were EMPTY promotional/pre-order copies of the game. Many retailers have had these for a while now. It was a hoax.

However, we are just days away from real copies starting to legitmately leave the manufacturing plant. We are doing everything we can to try and keep the game story secret and not have the game get out early but sadly this is probably inevitable. The earliest anyone will officially get a copy is some members of press which will be around 9/22. Reviewers are playing it beforehand but only at Bungie or MGS controlled events. Nobody gets a disc. And then their reviews are under an embargo until 9/23 and even then, they are agreeing to not disclose story spoilers in their articles. We're trying our best but once this baby gets momentum nobody will be able to contain it.

For now... you should seriously be careful where you go online and what you read. There are jerks out there who will stop at nothing to intentionally ruin your day. Be warned.

On the plus side... just 25 more days to go. After nearly 3 years, what's another 3 weeks.

[Beantown]

Re: Halo 3 Discussion

I know come a week or two, I won't be reading anything about this game, so as not to read any spoilers.