Difficulty:

Just Right

Time Spent:

20 to 40 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Rocks"

Halo 3: ODST is a departure in the norm for Bungie. It is their attempt at an entire new tone and setting for the series, amongst the streets of New Mombasa and in the shoes of an ODST (Orbital Drop Shock Trooper). Does it work out? Let's find out.

ODST follows the story of "Rookie" and his squad of fellow human Special Forces. That's right, for the first time in Halo history you actually play as a regular human, no genetically enhanced Spartans here. After a short introduction, your team is called into live combat and you all clamber in to your own pods that will send you flying to Earth. The moment you are shot out of the ship is exhilarating and you soon notice the faces of both your superiors "Dare" and "Buck" as they talk to the team over video feed. This descent quickly goes awry however as the covenant ship from Halo 2 makes its jump right in the heart of the city. Sent off course and crash landing amongst the tall narrow buildings of New Mombasa, you must search out and reunite with your squad, all the while dodging Covenant patrols between you.

ODST is also the first game to feature an open-world for you to explore and fight in. While this city doesn't feature any side-quests or NPCs, it does add a nice spin to the standard formula. During your trek around the city, you'll find evidence of your squad's presence. At these points in time, your perspective is shifted and you play as that member, following their story as well as playing your own. This is an excellent way to mix up gameplay and it gives much variety in mission structure. One moment you might be attempting to blow up a bridge while under fire from heavy Covenant resistance, another moment you might be charging a beach geared up to take out essential Anti-Aircraft guns. All the characters in your squad are well-rounded and don't follow the stereotypical form mostly seen in shooters. Dare especially deserves praise, as a cool, kick-ass female character without being overly sexualized, similar to "The Boss" from Metal Gear Solid 3.

The gameplay is the same as usually seen in Halo games. Offhand grenade throws, strafing and quick melee hits punctuate the regular shooting and driving of the game. Unique to this, all ODS Troopers are equipped with special Night-Vision, a Silenced SMG and a Handgun. With a high rate-of-fire, short range scope and quick easy clip changes the SMG is an essential part in any soldier's arsenal. Whether close quarters combined with a shotgun or long range supporting a sniper rifle, its uses are almost limitless. The Handgun is similar to that of the first Halo, slightly less powerful but still deadly nonetheless. The Night-Vision dramatically enhances your HUD and increases your visibility in dark spaces, also providing a clear objective marker to follow.

Firefight is the new gametype of Halo 3: ODST and is a fun wave-based survival mode. Each wave stronger and stronger groups of enemies are thrown at you and new skulls are turned on to warp the gameplay, until finally you are overwhelmed. This as well as the ability to alter your character, personal colours and nickname add up to some great times with friends, all of you combining well to support each other.

There are two flaws involved however that restricts it in my eyes from near-perfection.

One is the lack of stealth. Before its release ODST was hyped up as involving a lot of sneaking around and carefully planned tactical encounters. This unfortunately is not the case, the game plays out much like any other Halo in the series. That is, to fight fully pitched battles with the Covenant that cross your path. While I can't say I'm surprised personally, I still think it would have benefited from a little extra thought on that matter.

The second flaw is the fact that saves don't seem to work properly at all times. I've played the game through three times now and twice I had troubles with saves. After progressing and then stopping for that session, I'd occasionally return to note that I'd be further back than where I left off. Even when manually forcing the game to save, this problem would still occur so I advise you to stay wary.

Halo 3: ODST is my favourite of all the Halo games in the series. My solo play through of the game's Campaign mode on Legendary difficulty was an incredibly fun experience and I definately recommend it if you're up for a challenge. It certainly goes down as one of my fondest memories in recent gaming history. One of my favourite shooters, Halo 3: ODST gets a whole lot right across the game and not much wrong. If you're not a fan of shooting games then it won't be the one to convert you, but if you don't mind the Halo setting then you can't really go wrong with ODST.

It's definately worth giving a shot.