Read the truth behind THE most overrated expansion ever created. Read this much-needed reality check on the Halo hype.
It was unbelievable and simply jaw-dropping to observe this game's review scores go through the roof in comparison to other expansions which clearly took more time and effort like the additions to The Elder Scrolls IV for example. The comparison made here simply comes down to value for money and there are so many reasons why Halo 3 ODST is far below the bar set by other expansion packs.
Beginning with the campaign, even critics who acknowledged that it was short and far from inspiring when it came to the story ignored all the negatives and praised the game highly simply because it was a first for the Halo series.
Well here is the reality check: How can the campaign be praised if i was even shorter the Halo 3? How can the campaign be applauded as 'engaging' for introducing some of the most poorly voice-acted and forgettable characters in the Halo Universe? How can the campaign be called 'great' if there was absolutely nothing new regarding set-piece battles? By this I mean it was the same old warthog runs and tank mash ups concluded with the worst closing vehicular sequence ever in the series which took place at the slowest pace possible across a familiar bridge. The key issue with the campaign was that it was surprisingly repetitive. Every other mission was spent gathering at a rendezvous point and defending the position – far from creative.
What caused the lack of thrills in both the campaign and firefight modes was the step backwards in gameplay to the point where it might as well be Call of Duty. How was it fun to simply play as a much weaker Spartan and justify it by giving gamers so-called 'better' guns and a visor? Frankly those guns and pieces of equipment should have been in Halo 3 anyway. Moreover, how can anyone justify the inability to dual wield weapons because the avatar is not a Spartan? Aside from being a pointless nerdy excuse, it makes no sense when you can do it with a typical soldier in Call of Duty for example. This is just one of many annoying changes that only serve to make the game less fun – like the re-introduction of health bars. Surely there was a reason for getting rid of them after Halo: Combat Evolved? Lastly, although spoiling the ending is not necessary, it is most definitely the most pointless cliff-hanger ever seen in a game. Gamers never actually learn what was ultimately gained from the final objective, making it all the more pointless. In other words – Gamers have apparently saved humanity, they just don't know how. No doubt players were also a little irritated at the fact that after all the hype at the possibility of encountering the Master Chief, a detail on which Bungie loved having player hooked, he is nowhere to be seen. Or is he? Most of the fans will have played the campaign again and again in a futile attempt to be provenwrong.
Moving from the campaign onto firefight, this marked the start of Bungie becoming lazy by taking chunks out of the campaign and calling them 'multiplayer maps.' This was done in Reach a year later despite the fact that the better and more memorable maps do tend to be the ones made specifically for the purpose of multiplayer. Having played Nazi Zombies among countless other modes similar to the uninspiring interpretation by Halo 3 ODST, all firefight did was pass the time and frustrate further. What on earth is the excuse for not allowing online matchmaking for example? All this mode made one think of is how they wished to be a Spartan again.
Finally attention turns to the second disc included with ODST – All of the Halo 3 multiplayer maps made to date plus three new ones – hardly the best three of the bunch. Other games like Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga were heavily criticized for having recycled content, yet people seemed to love the Halo 3 multiplayer so much that they didn't mind paying for it all over again. Almost everyone who bought ODST will have played Halo 3 multiplayer to death, meaning that they most likely would have paid £40 to have about 8 or so initial maps, plus 800 Microsoft points if they couldn't wait 'till after Christmas of its first year for the additional 3 Heroic maps PLUS 800 more points for the Legendary map pack – only a slightly inaccurate guess but, based on the way Microsoft sells its points, gamers will have possibly spent almost £20 on top of what they paid for Halo 3 and they have not even bought ODST yet – a rip off indeed. It is worth saying that, for anyone who for some reason had not heard of Halo before Halo ODST hit the shelves, the as a whole package, the game is worth £30 for certain. HOWEVER, that seems very rare and for those who were Halo veterans, reviewing this game with this disc in mind was pointless. There is nothing good about buying EXACTLY what you've bought before again along with some cheap additions.
To conclude, yes the visuals were much better in finally reaching the standard of Call of Duty and Battlefield. Yes is what nice to have a disc dedicated only to Halo 3 multiplayer with all the maps that would ever be made for the game. Nonetheless, fans paid a heavier price than they will admit. It is not fair to say that Bungie are the only ones to have done this. On the contrary, the Call of Duty series has proved even worse for practically charging £15 for three maps at a time and being successful with it. The lesson to learn here is to sometimes take a step back and ask yourself: "Is it really worth it" At the very least have the humility to admit that sometimes your favourite franchise doesn't always maintain the high standards that it is capable of. If there is ever to be another instalment after Halo: Reach, which quite has not had the same long-term appeal as Halo 3 for a number of reasons including tougher competition as the Call of Duty fan base continues to grow at a much faster rate than ever, let it not be the poor excuse for the Halo game that Halo 3 ODST was.