Halo 3: ODST: Yet Another Take

Bungie's Halo 3: ODST wasn't a title I was particularly close to for pre-release coverage, as resident Halo nuts Erik Brudvig and Hilary Goldstein handled that while I took care of other business. I'd played Firefight mode at Gamescom 2009 so I knew a little of what to expect there, but the structure of the single-player campaign was almost entirely new to me. It was a bit of a shock to access an overhead map without a rigid path to follow, and it was a style of campaign I grew to appreciate as I moved through.

I guess the reaction to the campaign structure depends on what kind of player you are. If you're someone who prefers charging from fight to fight with as few lulls in the action as possible, then I can understand how ODST's campaign might not feel like much. In fact, the New Mombasa hub would probably feel a lot like filler, since it's essentially a dead city with a few groups of Covenant huddled around. Then for the flashback sequences you're thrown down the oh-so-familiar action gauntlets with Wraiths lobbing deadly charges and Warthogs tearing across the terrain. Bullets, energy pulses, and explosions are everywhere, and all feels right with the world.

None of the flashbacks are very long, though, so after a short while you're planted right back in the boots of the Rookie, wondering what became of your long-lost squad of ODST compatriots. He has to turn on his low-light visor to make his way through New Mombasa's nighttime wreckage, and during and after fights he has to find health packs to get himself back to full strength. He's weak, at least relative to Master Chief, and the solemnity of the burned metropolis and sense that you're slipping between the lines of forces unconquerable – the Covenant ships buzzing overhead – reinforce the notion that this isn't a fight you're going to win. There will be no heroic push that suddenly squashes the Covenant presence and restores the city.

With that in mind, there's plenty to absorb. The atmosphere – the silent flames licking charred cars, the smoke rising in the distance, and the somber saxophones on the soundtrack –makes the whole scene seem like someone dropped a firebomb on Ridley Scott's Blade Runner with the Rookie playing the role of a Replicant. It locks in to the kind of thing I appreciate as a gamer; virtual spaces built with a strong sense of cohesion and eye for detail that all adhere strongly to a central theme. I took pleasure in being able to wander around this world and listen to the audio logs that tell another story altogether, and unlocking ammo caches, one of which gave me access to a Mongoose that greatly facilitated city travel. For a franchise that had established itself on the notion of controlling a seemingly invincible supersoldier, I thought it admirable of Bungie to change the pace and focus by delivering a tale of surprising vulnerability.

Though it's easy to see how arguments could go either way about the value of the campaign, I can't imagine any first-person shooter fan not having fun with Firefight. It's a shame the mode doesn't scale for the number of players you bring it, making it necessary to assemble four people to have any real chance of meaningful progress. And I also wish there was online matchmaking for this. Sure I have a friends list and know people who play, but what if it's a Saturday afternoon and nobody I know is available and I still want to get a game going? Those two nitpicks aside, fighting back wave after wave of Covenant forces with showers of Killtaculars and Double Kills and ever-increasing point totals lighting up the screen is satisfying like ice cream on a muggy evening. As long as I know people that will keep playing, I'll keep coming back, especially considering each map presents unique challenges.

The whole experience of Firefight – the social aspect of assembling a group, the tactics of taking down brute chieftains and hunters, the emphasis on teamplay and resource management with the turrets, health packs, and ammunition – reminded me a lot of assembling a group for a dungeon run in an MMO…except without all the mess of waiting for someone to auction off 60 items or fly travel from one end of the world to the other.

Don't forget there's also the multiplayer disc included as well, which is the exact same multiplayer suite from Halo 3. So if you're new to Halo this should be of great value, but for anyone tired of the style and flow of the online combat, this won't do much to reignite your interest. Still, for the campaign and the Firefight mode, it's a standout entertainment product. I know it'd probably be more interesting to hear a dissenting opinion considering what Erik and Hilary had to say, but so far I've been having a great time with ODST.

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