Halo 3

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Revision as of 12:14, December 17, 2006 by 67.187.0.110 (talk)
Halo 3
Box Art Not Available
Developer: Bungie Studios
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Release date: November 2007-December 2007 (Speculated)
Genre: First-person shooter
Game modes: Campaign Mode, multiplayer
ESRB rating:
Platform: Xbox 360
Media:
File:The mc jumping down on a group of brutes.jpg
The Master Chief engages a group of Brutes.
File:H3 Assault Rifle.jpg
Master Chief holding the MA5C Assault Rifle
The Ark on Earth, seen in the Halo 3 trailer.
File:New Brute armor.jpg
A new armored Brute, as seen in the Making of the Halo 3 Announcement Trailer Documentary.
The Chief's visor in the Halo 3 trailer.
Cortana in Halo 3 trailer.
A new weapon: the Spartan Laser.
Shield Grenade.
File:Halo 3 TV Ad.jpg
Master Chief's Detachable Helmet seen on the Starry Night trailer

Halo 3 is a game by Bungie and, supposedly, the final game for Bungie in the Halo saga (Another company is creating Halo Wars). Bungie is notoriously secretive and only releases a little information at a time. However, in Halo 3 Trailer - Behind the Scenes Bungie confirmed that the trailer was made using in game assets and that the final product will be very similar to the trailer.

Release Date

A public beta test will be available in Spring 2007, with the full game coming out sometime afterwards in that year.[1] The 2007 release date for Halo 3 hasn't been set yet but there has been a lot of speculation. Bungie might release Halo 3 on the 7/7/07 because of Bungie's obsession with the number 7 but other large companies like Best Buy and Gamestop.com are predicting the November mark (Gamestop states Nov 1, 07[2] and Best Buy states Nov 15, 2007[3]). There have also been a number of websites that are counting down to the date of Halo 3s release. Halo 3 Count Downis a site that is counting down to the days, hours, minutes and seconds until Halo 3 is released. The only thing bungie will say so far about Halo 3's release date is "when its finished".

  • Halo 3 will ship in 3 different versions:
    • Normal version: includes game.
    • Collector's Edition: includes game and extra DVD containing extra/bonus content.
    • Legendary Edition: includes a replica of Master Chief's helmet, and 4 discs. Disk 1=game disc 2=extra bonus content disc 3=spin-off material(Red vs. Blue, etc...) disk 4=every cutscene from Halo 1, Halo 2, and Halo 3 in high-def.

Trailer Analysis

Main article: Halo 3 Announcement Trailer

"The trailer was built to have minimum impact on the development process, and while it required long hours and hard work from many, many Bungie staffers, it utilizes real-game assets, fiction and locations from parts of the "real" game."

Cortana's line in the trailer: "This is the way the world ends," references the first of the Cortana Letters. The line itself refers to T. S. Eliot's The Hollow Men, which ends:

This is the way the world ends
Not with a bang but a whimper.

Cortana's emphasis on "this" implies she is rejecting the poem, and that the world will end with a bang.

Plot Line

The details of the plot have yet to be revealed. All Bungie has confirmed is that the Master Chief has returned to Earth. The Covenant has uncovered a massive and ancient Forerunner artifact under New Mombasa (The mountain in the background is indeed Kilimanjaro) and Cortana is still trapped in the clutches of the Gravemind.[4]

The Ark

Main article: The Ark

The Ark is mentioned in Halo 2 as a place where all the Halo rings could be fired at once. While the structure in the trailer is thought to be, but not officially confirmed as, The Ark. All evidence points to it being the Ark:

  • In the Halo Graphic Novel one Elite says "We need to clear this area before we can secure access to The Ark" -- Second Sunrise Over New Mombasa.
  • It is also seen in this small sketch from the DVD.

Also, in Bungie's FAQ, they said that although they wouldn't tell what the structure is, Halo fans may recognize it. The structure looks somewhat similar to a structure seen in the Halo 2 multiplayer map Ascension or the circular structures on the exterior of Halo which is visible in the opening menu of Halo. It also looks like the dock that the Forerunner ship at the end of Halo 2 was stationed in. Bungie may also be refering to the Jjaro station in Marathon Infinity (an artifact used to contain a being within a sun). Template:Fact

Weird Stuff in the Screenshots

There have been some screenshots released by bungie some of them have been thought to contain some weird stuff. In the Valhalla screenshot a member of the bungie forum pointed out a Spartan outlined in the huge cliff to the left. (Here) is an outlined picture of it. Another weird thing is in one of the snowbound screenshots where the text "Out of Ammo" can be seen (Here). In another screenshot, the word "Puma" can be seen on the tires of the Warthog, this is possible homage to the popular online Machinima series Red vs Blue, which uses the Halo game engine.

Weapons

These are the weapons we know to be in the game:

Vehicles

Multiplayer Levels

File:H3 map.jpg
A concept model of High Ground.


Xbox Live Features:

According to bungie in EGM, Halo 3 will be taking XBL to the next level, if you create a gametype, you can advertise it, and if it gets good ratings it will become a matchmade game, and if you have the vision camera you will be able to video chat with your friends, and the ranking system will be based on actual military ranks, instead of numbers, the highest rank you can get is Master Chief, and now you can rank up in custom games.

Characters

Confirmed facts about Halo 3

File:Spikers.jpg
Spikers, and visible secondary weapons are two of Halo 3's new features.
  • The matchmaking system from Halo 2 will be revamped. Call signs will be used instead of small HUD emblems to identify allies. Also, Halo 3's matchmaking system will be based on two different ranks, skill and experience, in order to make the system more fair and to reflect the effect of experience on players' profiles.[10]
  • A new version of the Assault Rifle (The MA5C)makes an appearance.
  • Master Chief's gloves and armor have also changed noticeably.
  • Bungie says that despite several triple wielding illustrations, that is purely fictional and was drawn with an artistic license.
  • The combat AI is said to be in testing.
  • There will be an ingame video recorder that will allow the player to send and recieve machinima videos over Xbox Live.[11]
  • Bungie has confirmed via their Weekly Update at Bungie.net that multiplayer as well as singleplayer testing are currently in progress for the title, in varying stages of completion.
  • The Bungie website also alluded to "a devastated and Covenant controlled Earth".
  • During the Bungie Weekly update of 8-11 it mentions that the testing of the combat dialog for Marines, Elites, and Brutes was underway. So it can be inferred that Brutes will be in the game. Also it alluded to Ghosts and the dialog that would be said when one was hijacked.
  • Bungie revealed that the game would have a new "materials system" so advanced that "you could see light reflect off the ground and onto his armor", which will be able to "[show] the difference between his armor and the rubber undersuit". The site also includes that "It's so detailed that if you bring the camera close to the Master Chief's visor, you see everything in front of him reflected in it, right down to the ammo counter in his rifle" [1]. In addition, there would be new advanced texturing to reflect permanent, persistent damage.
  • In the trailer, Master Chief's Mark VI armor is battle-worn and plasma-scored. Developer Marcus R. Lehto's response: "The Chief is shown as warrior who has seen horrific battle – and it shows. The Earth is dry, barren, ravaged by the Covenant."
  • Bungie has confirmed crates in the game in one of their updates.
  • The Master Chief from Halo and Halo 2 is confirmed to be the Spartan in the Halo 3 trailer.
  • Although Halo 3 was planned to end the Halo series, future Halo games haven't been entirely ruled out. On the Halo 3 FAQ from the official Bungie website it says, "Q: Is this the last ever Halo game? A: It is the conclusion to this story arc." Fans note that it is therefore possible that future games could be produced in the Halo universe, even if this particular story arc isn't continued. This was confirmed when Bungie released that the game Halo Wars will be released and is in creation.
  • Multiplayer characters have their secondary weapons on their body, visible to other players.[12]
  • On November 15, Microsoft and Bungie announced a 60 second TV spot to air on Monday Night Football, December 4th on ESPN. And will be available on Xbox Live Marketplace shortly after.
  • Bungie has confirmed that the "face" in the Halo 3 trailer was nothing more than reflections of clouds and Covenant ships.
  • In the November 11 Bungie Weekly Update, it has been stated that due to a "significant chunk" of Halo 2 players being female, there might be an option to have a female voice for the Spartan character in multiplayer.[13]
  • In the December 15 Bungie weekly update Frankie stated that Brutes would NOT be playable characters in Halo 3.[14]

Sources

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