Before I get to writing about Day Three, I want to take some time out to talk Halo 3: ODST. I got the chance to partake in the multiplayer Co-Op preview called Firefight, in which waves of Covenant baddies fly in from their Carriers. This type of thing is becoming more and more common in video games, starting with Horde and Infection modes in Gears of War 2 and Resistance 2, respectively.
There will be no standard multiplayer mode in ODST, but the guys at the booth were able to give me information about the game packaging. On the first disc will be the standard Halo 3: ODST content, including Single Player Campaign and Multiplayer Co-Op “Firefight”. The second disc will have all the Halo 3 multiplayer maps and content for those who expect a full multiplayer experience from their game (and who doesn’t, really).
The gameplay itself is as solid as you would expect it to be from any game in the Halo-verse. It seems like the shock troopers move slower than Master-Chief does, which is quite a drag considering John-117 wasn’t the fastest Spartan ever. There are a bunch of new weapons, including the return of the powerful pistol from the original Halo game. I’m talking zooming, shooting, and headshots to kill. Awesome. The only truly new weapon they had to demo was a new SMG. It will probably replace the old version, but this one is absolutely killer, so I’m calling it a new weapon. It is so much more powerful than the standard-fare SMG and has a really good kick to it while you fire. And it looks a lot cooler too; elongated barrel, foregrips, and overall firearm satisfaction to boot.
I’m curious as to whether ODST will still be at a lower price point than a standard $60 title, as Bungie has said that ODST is not really a full game and its price will reflect that. However, with news of the controller bundle being $99, take away about $50 for the controller (at most), and the game ends up costing about $50. Not too much of a deal, but they do throw in all the Halo 3 online content and maps, including some Halo 2 maps as well, I’m told. Yes, Midship is included, thankfully.
When I asked how many hours of gameplay the game would have, I was told by a Bungie rep that it is “too hard to calculate” because it is more of an open world and people will play differently. I’m really interested to find out about the way it will play out, but there was no Campaign on hand to be demoed, and the discs they brought didn’t even have an option for Campaign in the menu, probably to make sure no one tried to take a peek.
I’m super excited about the new stuff coming out from Bungie, and I’m really interested to see what they come up with for Halo Reach. The new design of the logo keeps elements from the original, but the slight change lead me to think that there will be some great new stuff in store. Bungie has always said they wanted to do something drastically different, so it looks like they’re keeping true to their word. Can’t wait to see this stuff. Halo 3: ODST is out September 22nd (two year anniversary of Halo 3) and Halo Reach falls in 2010.
On a side note, I got a hint from a rep at Ubisoft that they will be making an announcement about the voice of Sam Fisher for Splinter Cell: Conviction. I asked if Michael Ironside was still doing it and was told to wait and see. The rep had a huge smile on his face and said that there would be an announcement, but we have no idea. Oh well. (What? Did you think I’d write a post without something Splinter Cell related? Pssht.)