Halo 3 is a first person sci-fi grand story-driven shooter...

And it is an exciting, empowering Halo to experience. In this game you play as The Master Chief, with a mission to end the Human-Covenant war that has been troubling the galaxy. Clear the way in east Africa to defend Earth from Covenant attackers, and stop them from activating all the Halo rings by reaching the Ark, the birthplace of the rings, before they succeed. Since Cortana was stranded from the previous game, Chief goes with the Arbiter and marines to stop the Covenant enacting their fanatic duties be it through the jungle, bases, highways, and Forerunner installations. Use abilities and big guns to your advantage, ride various vehicles, and slash through foes like butter with an energy sword.

Gameplay

The game feels well-paced and occasionally thrilling, with impressive cutscene moments and fun missions in expansive environments, there is a lot to like. With some verticality, linear corridors, and open air, the game takes you to many battlefields which are structured well throughout. There are a variety of enemies and factions to fight which keeps things fresh. Some travelling in the game can be dragged out but it's not bad, especially when compared with the earlier Halos in my opinion. There is an option to dual wield weapons which is good for increasing dps but I am not comfortable with that playstyle overall. There's also multiplayer for crazy, customised matches, and abilities like a bubble shield for camp- I mean protecting your rear. I felt that there were a couple of unnecessarily rough sections so I overprepared when facing certain enemies to wipe them on the floor with a fuel rod cannon or barrage of grenades before Chief got downed (every Halo has some of these scenarios).

Audio Visual

The soundtrack is really good in this game, it gets heroic and spirited which makes being a Spartan feel awesome. Like the other Halos, sound effects like explosions and shooting are good, and the cutscenes are quite enjoyable to watch. I don't really like the sporadic Cortana flashbacks which are distracting but there are only a few of them. There are picturesque backgrounds and interesting structures to scale while fighting. Some of the open ground sections like near the highway or desert are dull looking but the story continues straight after. Going to vastly different locations over the campaign can make following the story confusing, and I found that the graphics and textures were ok but not great.

Pros

• Thrilling campaign
• Great soundtrack
• Multiplayer mode

Cons

• Mediocre graphics
• Annoying flashbacks
• Friendly AI not good at driving

Conclusion

Halo 3 is a sci-fi shooter with a lot of cool moments and quintessential Halo vibes. I score it 8/10.

Information

• Release date: 2007
• Developer: Bungie Inc.
• Platforms: PC, Xbox