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Halo fans will have their chance at Halo 3 next month

The time is fast approaching for the Halo 3 Multiplayer Beta. According to a post on Bungie.net, the multiplayer beta will go live on May 16 and will end on June 6.

Bungie's "Rule of Three” marketing blitz has already determined who will be able to enjoy the Halo 3 Multiplayer Beta. In December, Bungie opened up beta registration for those wanting to participate. Bungie offered a second chance to gamers who played at least three hours of Halo 2 multiplayer and then registered at the official Halo 3 website. Finally, those who purchased specially marked copies of Crackdown will also be able to join in on the fun.

Bungie's Frank O'Conner notes that as this is still beta software, some things might not quite be production ready. “Now, I will say this again and again -- the game you’re going to play one month from now is Beta software -- and while it will look somewhat close to the final game, it IS Beta -- and will contain quirks, a couple of rough edges and all that jazz. But we’re pretty confident you’ll find it a dynamic and exciting taste of what’s to come in the Fall," said O'Connor.

O'Conner also goes on to describe some of the features of the Halo 3 Multiplayer Beta. "The Beta itself consists of three maps -- Valhalla, High Ground and Snowbound... There are a number of new features you’ll get to test out -- including a new grenade type, a completely different class of weapon and some of the enhanced online functionality we plan to bring to the game... In May, when you’re firing the Spiker, sniping vehicles with the Spartan Laser and sticking fools with the Brute Spike grenade, remember that it’s just a peek-a-boo fraction of what’s to come."

Microsoft Game Studios and Bungie Studios announced last month that Halo 3 will come in three versions when it is released later this year. The Standard Edition ($59.99) will feature just the game. The Limited Edition ($69.99) will come on a metal collector’s case and will feature a bonus disc and art book. The Legendary Edition ($129.99) will come with a Spartan Helmet, two bonus discs and storyboard art.

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May 16th, huh?
By Newspapercrane on 4/10/2007 10:35:49 AM , Rating: 3
And then Crackdown flies off the shelves.




RE: May 16th, huh?
By DingieM on 4/10/2007 10:39:36 AM , Rating: 2
Yep indeed, nice sales idea.
Actually Crackdown is fun to play, I tried the demo.


RE: May 16th, huh?
By NotAok on 4/10/2007 10:52:16 AM , Rating: 2
Crackdown is a fun game. Coop has been receiving awesome reviews too, unfortunately i've yet to try it.

I'll admit I bought the game just for the Halo 3 beta but I'm glad I did for Crackdown was a pleasant surprise. Leaping and climbing across buildings is insanely fun and addictive.


RE: May 16th, huh?
By therealnickdanger on 4/10/2007 11:05:52 AM , Rating: 2
I bought Crackdown for Crackdown and thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. Supposedly they are going to release an update to allow for more than 2 players as well as lots of new multiplayer modes, possibly new weapons and vehicles. Gravity gun? Should be way cool!

Halo3, I can't say I'm excited for it since I despise Halo2 so intently, but I'm optimistic that Bungie will return to its superior Halo1 roots. Only time with the Beta will tell...


RE: May 16th, huh?
By FITCamaro on 4/10/2007 11:51:43 AM , Rating: 1
I have faith. I don't yet own a 360 but if I don't by the time Halo 3 comes out, I will shortly after. Me and my friends had so much freakin fun playing Halo on my parents 57" Widescreen HDTV when I was home from college. I forget the name of the map but the very large one with ice on the ground and rockets only at 300% health = very fun times. Many many many deaths. Nothing like looking for people while zoomed in and seeing a rocket heading straight at you. If only they let you shoot each others rockets in mid-air....Perfect Dark let you split bullets....

The Warthog is also the best vehicle ever designed in a video game. They seriously need a multiplayer mode where you're racing Warthogs around a track and over obstacles while shooting at each other.


RE: May 16th, huh?
By Assimilator87 on 4/10/2007 11:59:35 AM , Rating: 2
I don't know about the Xbox version, but the PC version has a race gameplay type. Not sure if there's any shooting involved though.


RE: May 16th, huh?
By therealnickdanger on 4/10/2007 1:05:55 PM , Rating: 2
Both the Xbox and PC version of Halo: Combat Evolved (Halo 1) feature the "Race" game mode. If you have a lot of players, it is actually very fun! The PC version excels at this since there are frequently 16 players in a game at any given point. What's nice is that it truly requires teamwork because you have to get your whole team to make a series of laps.


RE: May 16th, huh?
By BucDan on 4/10/2007 2:47:41 PM , Rating: 2
oo man lets see the pc's halo 2 in dx10 heh.... then halo3 oooo..i cant wait for halo 2 in dx10... of course itll be "bootyful"


RE: May 16th, huh?
By therealnickdanger on 4/10/2007 2:54:52 PM , Rating: 2
Then you'll be waiting for a while. Halo 2 for PC will be a DX9 game. A Vista-exclusive DX9 game. No DX10 for this one...


Great, now start building reliable hardware
By xuimod on 4/10/07, Rating: -1
RE: Great, now start building reliable hardware
By Alpha4 on 4/10/07, Rating: -1
By therealnickdanger on 4/10/2007 3:05:46 PM , Rating: 2
Wow, you guys need to relax. I was part of the "unbroken 360 club" for a while, up until last week, that is. While I think the Xbox360 is a superb product overall, I sure would love to see numbers representing the units that have failed since launch. I think it definitely goes beyond a couple isolated incidents or a "bad run".

When operational, I'll take the Xbox360 over the PS3 any day, but I miss the sturdy construction of my original Xbox. At least Microsoft has been decent enough to reimburse repair fees and improve their warranty to compensate, as well as make minor changes in their assembly and testing.

Also, I highly doubt that the Beta will negatively affect the final release. If anything, it will help expose exploits that Bungie can remove before shipping the game. I just hope that they actually listen to feedback this time rather than stroke their own e-penises for months on end about how amazing they are at making games.


RE: Great, now start building reliable hardware
By Souka on 4/10/2007 5:02:11 PM , Rating: 2
I ain't a console player, but I saw a video comparing the oblivion game betweek the x360 and ps3....Oblivion looked soo much better on the PS3.

Comments on the forum also pointed out many more visual differences between the two consoles...PS3 being better.

But hey... I don't really care.. just tossing my $.02 of food-4-thought about the two consoles..


By therealnickdanger on 4/10/2007 5:11:37 PM , Rating: 2
After an entire extra year of polishing, it better damn well look better. However, Bethesda itself has stated that technical limitations of the PS3 won't allow it to properly render the added content that Xbox360 players enjoy.

Three years from now, when both consoles have matured and the dev tools have matured, we'll see which console is truly "the best". In the mean time, we should all have a plethora of top-notch vids to play...


RE: Great, now start building reliable hardware
By NotAok on 4/10/2007 5:21:55 PM , Rating: 2
lol, ok so you replied why? You don't play consoles, your post had nothing to do with the topic, AND it was just retarded... I'm lost

But anyway, I think Halo 3 will end up fun but it'll still never meet or surpass the greatness that is Halo 1. Bungie is trying to make things too complex, like they did with halo 2. Halo 1 was great because it really came down to skill. Very little auto aim and you ALWAYS had a weapon (the pistol) that you could use in just about any situation. Just like Halo 2, Halo 3 will have tons of random items, powerups, and weapons all over the map and it'll boil down to who gets what weapon or powerup first.

If you ask me, ditch the damn powerups (shield, invisibility) and ditch the outdated and overused weapons-all-over-the-map technique.


RE: Great, now start building reliable hardware
By FITCamaro on 4/10/2007 6:03:21 PM , Rating: 1
I agree. I really didn't enjoy the dual wield feature of Halo 2. But it seemed unless you used it you were dead since you needed the extra firepower as more powerful weapons that took up less screen space weren't nearly as available.

I really hope Halo 3 takes away a lot of the autoaim that Halo 2 brought in. Did Halo 1 even have it? Maybe just a hair. I mean the Needler was auto aim a bit since it was just have the crosshair somewhat over the target and you hit it unless they went behind something.


By PepperIsBetter on 4/10/2007 6:38:21 PM , Rating: 2
I Agree with the points about the dual wielding and the "Whoever has the best weapon wins." But What I like about Halo 2 Is how you can customize your multiplayer game.

Online one of the popular modes is PRO, where everyone starts with the same weapon (Battle Rifle), which can easily beat Dual wealders. Another very popular mode is SWAT, where everyone starts with Battle Rifles and thats all that is on the map. It's all up to your skill, not your gun. You can play these offline also.

These are my Favorite Game modes because of the points you guys explained.


By therealnickdanger on 4/10/2007 9:14:43 PM , Rating: 2
The auto-aim of Halo2 was OBSCENE! It completely interfered with my aiming. I couldn't play it. Halo1 was just about perfect. I play HaloPC with my 360 controller from time to time and it's great and I can still beat lots of guys on m+k, without auto-aim. Of of the best players in my HaloPC clan plays exclusively with the original "Duke" Xbox controller.

I just watched the brand new Halo3 multiplayer video. Honestly, it looks like more of the same from Halo2. The only cool feature I saw is the replay mode where you can play back the entire game at any speed, pause, rewind, from any player or point of view. They have basically stripped away Halo's gameplay and replaced it with Unreal Tournament, but a lesser version of UT.

What made Halo1 so awesome was the perfect blend of simple weapons, great grenades, and powerful melees.


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