Halo 3 [X360]

But the laser is a puny toy compared to some of the bigger weapons. High Ground has a mobile Gatling gun. Sure, you move at a snail's pace, but you do so wielding a flippin' Gatling gun. No Spartan ever looked so fearsome as the one that knocks in the gates of the High Ground base and sweeps machine gun fire across the courtyard. Another lovely weapon is the missile pack, found in Valhalla. It's a rocket launcher best-suited atop a Warthog, but instead it's in your hands.

Even Halo detractors are certain to love some of the new grenades. The spike grenade can stick into the sides of walls or on ceilings. It's much like the sticky grenade of old, but it doesn't glow. In other words, it's tough to spot. Anyone who has played Splinter Cell: Pandora's Tomorrow multiplayer, already knows the joys of hiding explosives that others walk into. Now you can do it with Halo. The reactions from doomed gamers can be priceless.

Also a welcome addition is the bubble grenade. Drop it with the X button and a shield appears. You can't shoot out, but no one can shoot in. The honeycombed shield doesn't, however, prevent people from coming inside. That I found out the hard way, as a clever opponent snuck up behind me, entered my shield and clubbed me to death. I denied his request to be added to his Friends List.

There are some welcome changes to the Beta. For one thing, you start with the Assault Rifle. It's an effective weapon to begin a match with and those with skill can clean up without ever having to switch to another gun. In matchmaking, players can veto a map before it loads, so if everyone hates Valhalla, it can be nixed. But no one will hate Valhalla. It has a man cannon. Everything, at least through a few plays through, feels more balanced. And every match can be saved for replay.

The save function is pretty much perfect. A save only takes up a few megs of space, meaning its likely just a reference for video held on a server. This makes it easy to send video to a friend. It takes almost no time to receive and the playback looks identical to the actual battle. Finally, you can document your killing spree and share it with the entire Halo community. So far I have a collection of vids showing me getting slapped more times than Jon Miller at a Hooters Happy Hour.

The visuals are now in HD, though honestly, they probably will leave many unimpressed. But really, no one will care if Halo 3 doesn't look like Gears of War as long as it plays great. And, after an hour of playtime, I think Halo 3 might just deliver. I could go on for another six pages with details, but Halo 3 Beta is calling.

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