April 15th: the day of the HALO 3 Legendary Map Pack
Despite my lack of interest in most things Halo, the more than 7.3 million copies of Halo 3 and apparently Halo 3 Limited Edition that have miraculously flown off store shelves are increasingly difficult to ignore. Besides, it’s not such a bad game after all. Rather enjoyable, really. Anyway, surely Xbox 360 owners will be thrilled to know that Microsoft and Bungie announced that 15th April will mark the release of the next pack of Halo 3 downloadable goodies. Yours for 800 Microsoft Points, the Legendary Map Pack will add three new maps to the title’s multiplayer experience: Ghost Town, Avalanche, and one map yet to be revealed. The pack will also come with some new Forge options too.
On to the maps then. Ghost Town, the first one on offer, is a battle-scarred maze of narrow passages and appropriately ruined ruins just outside the once-prosperous city of Voi. According to Bungie, collapsed ceilings and shell-battered buildings will both provide cover and offer a selection of deadly traps, as catwalks and stairways take the fight from claustrophobic ground combat to dizzying rooftop battles. Ghost Town should turn out to be a mid-sized map ideal for Team Slayer games and smaller, objective types.
The second map, Avalanche (pictured above), on the other hand, will be quite a tribute to Sidewinder, not particularly new and quite a bit of fan service too. This massive, vehicle-oriented objective map will adds a twist to its popular predecessor though, what with all the new interiors, dramatically reshaped exteriors, graphics update and brand new vehicle variants. Oh, and the Hornet has also been updated.
The third map to be included, the same that has yet to be announced, will probably be something to keep the fans of smaller Slayer maps happy.
Posted on March 20th, 2008 by konstantinos
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I got Halo 3, and frankly, it bored me. The multiplayer is more interesting, but frankly it pales compared to Call of Duty 4 multiplayer. Halo 3 has vehicles you can ride and is pretty. It at least has different play types, but in the end, the gameplay isn’t that much different than what I played in Unreal Tournament.
While the maps can probably add a lot to Halo 3, I think they have to find a way to allow users to create more robust mods for the console games. Halo 3 allows you to tweak the rules and move things on the map, but man, the diversity and fun of those UT mods and mutators . . . Halo 3’s multiplayer hasn’t come close to that kind of fun.
March 20th, 2008 at 1:50 pmWhat really impresses me with Halo is just how utterly generic the thing is. Oh, yes, the laughable name Master Chief always breaks the ice at parties.
Oh, and always remember dear guttertalk, that modding was born and will only thrive on open platforms.
March 21st, 2008 at 5:30 amAye. I doubt that consoles will see much modding, though there are some attempts at it, as in custom maps and levels (such as Brawl and the forthcoming Blastworks and even Halo 3). It just seems that modding goes hand-in-hand with FPS, as much as multiplayer, but I know that’s because I’m a longtime PC gamer.
I’m not a 360 hater, but I didn’t understand the amazing sales of this game, except that it had so much hype from both fans and Microsoft.
Speaking of 360 shooters, my brother and I were playing Doom on Arcade Live. It was easy but it was still fun.
March 21st, 2008 at 10:55 pmI’d say that Doom is fun, mainly because of its simplicity. And it started the whole moding craze too.
Now, generally, I think that console gaming has always been a bit on the too simplistic side of things. That’s why most games don’t age that well.
March 22nd, 2008 at 4:54 am