Halo 3 (Legendary Edition) (Xbox 360, 2007)

After stowing away on a Forerunner spacecraft, the now iconic figure of the early 21st century pop culture, Master Chief, must make his way back to our neck of the woods - planet Earth. He must stop the army of alien zealots, known as the Covenant, who converge around their spiritual leader, the Prophet of Truth.

Let's play a little game called "Lob A Grenade!"

"We go left." Right. "Left." Right.

This chapter in the Halo history reaches its climax as Cortana, Spartan's ethereal female companion, is held captive by the Flood's intelligent embodiment, Gravemind. The Arbiter, leading the "freed" aliens alongside Master Chief must stop the Prophet from firing the Halo rings. Together, they must also eradicate the Flood infection once and for all.

After finishing the single-player campaign in Halo 3, one cannot help but feel as if we've come to the end of a trilogy. Was this the plan after the first Halo came out? I am not sure about that. Has this been the plan since the conception of Halo 2? One can be absolutely sure of this.

And so, with the cliffhanger ending in Halo 2, Bungie deliberately left a lot of things unsaid. They left the players guessing for three years almost. In Halo 3, you can sense that the team had a strong desire to complete this chapter, to let it come full circle.

In that sense, even though the campaign starts in medias res so to speak, the tag-line "Finish the Fight," truly becomes the main theme of the third installment in the series. In fact, once you've completed the story, "Finish the Fight," changes into "Finished the Fight," on your Halo 3 menu screen. As if to accentuate even further that things will come to a climactic resolution.

Additionally, there are a few notable signs that have happened "behind the scenes" that serve as further proof of this. Many of you have surely heard Halo 3 being referenced as Halo 2.5. When we look at the player models and even the AI, technically, it's clear that Bungie hasn't built a new engine from scratch. Halo 3 quite certainly uses a modified version of the Halo 2(1?) code, and although it carries many technological improvements, one cannot escape the feeling that the programmers have just about squeezed the last drop out of a code that's getting a little long in the tooth.

Don't get me wrong though, we are talking solely about the technical side of things, and even on this front, Bungie has done a lot to make this game feel next-gen. To start with, the levels with dense jungle vegetation show off just how far they've pushed the tech. Fancy soft body physics are at work here, coupled with a clever use of advanced pixel shader effects. On the other hand, the character models look dated, with rigid facial animation that offsets the advancements made in the rendering of the environment, and especially in the lighting.

Speaking of which, the HDR lighting is put to amazing use in Halo 3. Bungie does the most spectacular job of leading the player through dimly lit and narrow indoor areas and then overwhelming us with sprawling, sun-lit landscapes since Valve's Half-Life 2.

Furthermore, the physics calculations and all they entail become an integral part of the gameplay; as you would expect in any next-gen shooter.
Overall Rating- 13/10 (Oh Yeah!)

Graphics: Breathtaking 9.5/10
The graphics great. The rumors of an upgraded Halo 2, or Halo 2 like graphics is not true. With smooth framerates and stunning effects, you will be taken aback. Take some time to watch the backgrounds and environments and the detail of that went into these levels. This is after you clear everything that moves.

Sound: Amazing – 10/10
The sounds, music, effects, and voices take you immediately into the game. Surround sound is a must so you can hear the shots, shouts, and footsteps of the your opponents in this game. The score for this game heightens you senses, and truly brings you into the game.

Gameplay: Spectacular – 9/10
Smooth animations, large levels, smart enemies and A.I., big battles, and 4-player co-op = awesome. Without giving anything away, this is some great storytelling that gives way to some genuine wow moments.

Replay Value – Amazing 10/10
Multiplayer. That is all I have to say. This game has high replay value. Choose which way you would like to play online, but with the achievements, future downloadable content, 4-player co-op, and with over 1 million copies pre-ordered, and 4 million copies on retailers shelves in the first week, there will always be someone to play with.

Overall – Perfect 9.5/10
I am a fan of First-Person-Shooters (FPS) and all that is associated with them. I enjoy the emersion, and critique them heavily. This game allows you to “finish the fight”, but this game is so much more. The campaign brings closure, but it is the multiplayer aspect that will revolutionize XBOX Live and online gaming as we know it.

Halo 3 is Bungie’s 3-year project and baby, with unlimited resources from Microsoft, that was made to send Microsoft’s XBOX 360 to the next level, and it was worth the wait and money. With over 1 million pre-orders, this epic tale concludes with the highest pre-orders of a game to date. This game in campaign feels, and plays near perfect, and allows veterans and newcomers alike to enjoy and truly experience this game. The story line finishes up the previous two games, and is just long enough to make it feel right, and not dragged out. It took approximately 8.5 hours to beat it on legendary difficulty. It may be a bit shorter, though this was played immediately after a midnight sale of this game. The co-op was well done, and creates a new feel for campaign FPS games. I look forward to the future where this will be the standard in playing games.

The online is well done. Halo 3 has once again set the standard of what an online matchmaking/playing system should be. Putting together fun maps, objectives, and customizable Advatars, this game will appeal to the “newbie”, as well as the everyday online Halo player. With the Halo 2 system being overhauled, and the Bungie stat-tracker updated, this game will quickly become the number one game on XBOX Live.

I could write a five page review on this game, the battles, the enemies, weapons, and AI, but it still would not do it justice. If you have an XBOX 360, you should buy this, and buy it now. If you have thought about getting an XBOX 360, this would be the reason to get one. Does it live up to the hype? I don’t think anything could have lived up to the hype that is game received. This game was praised as the second coming, but what it is one of the best games of 2007, and is beautiful and fun to play.

I think its worth it just for the helmet alone. Its limited edition and it also holds your tilogy of the halo games. One of the best shooters for the 360. Its right up there with Gears of War. Very fun online and also co-op with a friend. Adding to Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2, the epic saga continues with Halo 3, the amazingly anticipated sequel to the highly successful and critically acclaimed Halo franchise. In this third chapter of the Halo trilogy, Master Chief returns to finish the fight, bringing the epic conflict between the Covenant, the Flood, and the entire human race to a dramatic, pulse-pounding climax.Game developer Bungie announced that Halo 3 will be released for Microsoft's Xbox 360 sometime in 2007. The game was revealed to the world at the Microsoft press conference held at Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood, CA in May 2006. To gamer's delight, the announcement was a complete surprise. The rumors have been abound for the past year, as everyone wondered when the next installment would be ready. Bungie and Microsoft did a stellar job keeping their lips sealed, and fans benefited from their first glimpse of the hallowed third and final installment.

The short presentation was delivered in real-time on the Xbox 360 using the current version of the Halo 3 game engine. That's right, no studio production video, Bungie and Microsoft delivered the real deal: what they showed at the announcement is what gamers will see when they play Halo 3 in 2007. The HDR lighting, self-shadowing, GPU-run particle system and many other effects are rumored to show up in full effect in the final game. Needless to say, the gaming community is salivating.

CJ Cowan, Bungie's director of cinematics discussed one of the most startling moments of the presentation: the return of Cortana. "Given the variety of character and story arcs at the end of Halo 2, we wanted to boil down our announcement to a few key threads. Cortana and the Chief being a galaxy apart is a situation we haven't seen before, and is something that is a powerful component to Halo 3. We are using her transmissions in the demo to give the viewer a few subtle clues to her situation and state of mind, without revealing any specifics we want to save for the game itself."

As most people say, Halo is what makes XBOX Popular. I disagree with this statement, but thats a whole different topic. Halo 3 is the most anticipated game for the XBOX 360. Many people held off to get an XBOX 360 until this November to get their hands on a copy of Halo 3. With this in mind, there is HUGE pressure on these authors, game designers, game engineers, managers, and Microsoft. With all this pressure on them to build not just a good game but a 'Freakingly Amazing FPS Game that will blow your socks off game of the year' these individuals are going to make the best freaking game you've ever played. Plus it has the Halo name on it too, so you know somewhat to expect, but there are going to be many additional features that is going to be put into this game.

Lets remember back to before Halo 2 was going to be released, this game was one of the best selling games to date. On its launch it sold MILLIONS of copies. Thats how big the anticipation was, and the only real difference between Halo 1 and Halo 2 is: new guns, new levels, new campaign, and XBOX Live. Thats 4 things, thats nothing. When making Halo 2 they knew that they would be making not just Halo 2, but they could forsee the launch of Halo 3 too. With this in mind, they didn't go overboard on making Halo 2, they only added in the necessary features to make Halo 2 a success, and have customers coming back to buy Halo 3, three years later.

Halo 2 was mainly used to get XBOX Live really going smoothly. Honestly, how many people actually played XBOX on the internet before Halo 2 came out? Not many people, there are tons more people playing xbox live now and thats soley because of Halo 2.

Additionally since Halo 3 is going to be the final chapter in the Halo trilligy its going to finish strong, and its going to finish on a great note. I guarantee that this game will be the Game of the Year, and people will be playing this game long after the life of the XBOX 360.


Only people who have never experienced the action of Halo say this guide is not helpful.

Check out our week of Halo Features and
Read the full review on our blog at: http://blog.graduategames.com

Halo 3 has its flaws, but delivers on so much more than the average game. Let's answer the major questions up front. Does Halo 3 live up to the hype? Yes. Does Halo 3 wrap up the Story of Master Chief? Yes. Is multiplayer better than Halo 2? Yes. Is Halo 3 a totally revolutionary and unique experience? Nope. Halo 3 is still Halo, both in look and style. It's a natural evolution of what was built in Halo 1 and 2. It adds plenty of new wrinkles, but the fan faithful will be instantly more familiar and skilled than newbies. Halo 3 is undoubtedly one of the biggest games ever and rightfully so since it's probably the best game of the year and will continue to be played and enjoyed for years to come.

Gameplay: 10/10
Pros: The same great gameplay we had from the first two Halos continues with great new additions such as independent reload, equipment, 2 new grenades, video recordings, the forge, 4 player co-op, shield doors, and more. Controls are great once you transition from X to RB for reloading and the AI is as smart and dynamic as ever. The trilogy definitely wraps up with a bang (literally) and while the ride itself is superb, the ending leaves a somewhat bitter aftertaste.
Cons: You rarely have enough grenades in both Campaign and Multiplayer. Shotty Snipes should not be in Team Slayer playlist. Campaign ending seems a little forced. Campaign is Gears of War Short.

Graphics: 10/10
Pros: One thing that cannot be emphasized enough about Halo is that the animation is absolutely phenomenal. Nothing beats being able to visually see that an enemy is mere shots away from death, or wielding a sword, plus there's the great addition of also being able to see an opponents holstered weapon on their back/side/etc. This all adds to the depth of Halo multi player and is also an example of the subtleties of Halo 3's graphics. The game has been polished with fine tooth comb. The HDR lighting is the best I've seen in a game, there's subtle motion blur when you whizz up an elevator, and the levels are gargantuan when compared to other great looking multi player games. Halo 3's graphics are a technical achievement. This becomes immediately apparent when you first watch a game film and zoom in/rotate/rewind a colossal explosion or snipe to the head. Breathtaking.
Cons: Screenshots don't do the game justice, but in pure screenshot comparison, Halo 3 lacks that WOW factor.

Sound/Music: 10/10
Pros: Amazing Orchestral Soundtrack that is both familiar and perfectly captures the essence and theme of the game. Great Voice actors are all back and the AI voices during campaign are as funny as ever. "Tank beats Everything!" is one of my favorites. Proximity Voice is back and the sound effects are all spot on. However, Halo 3 again surpasses other games in its attention to detail. If you don't believe me, stand near the water behind the base on Valhalla and listen to the serene moving water for yourself. When I heard it, I was shocked they took the time to put such a thing in. Fantastic!
Cons: Absolutely None

Check out our week of Halo features and
Read the full review on our blog at: http://blog.graduategames.com