Halo 3 [X360]

These wild moments are clearly the inspiration for the new film feature, allowing you to easily save, view and share your greatest moments. As soon as playback controls are added like different camera angles and slow-motion replays, YouTube is probably going to crash.

Something that flies under the radar when we talk Halo 3 is the sound -- it's easy to forget how well done it really is. On Valhalla, the sound of a machine gun or sniper rifle or mounted turret in the distance is striking, reminding me of "Saving Private Ryan" as the squad approaches a battle that is several hundred yards away. On Snow Bound, the snow actually muffles the sound outdoors, while it echoes in the underground caverns. Very well done.

The weapon balancing is an interesting topic. The assault rifle, your starting weapon, is ineffective at long range, and decent at medium range (if you can spill an entire clip into a target). It's good to get rid of it as soon as possible. But for the most part, you never feel defenseless. The needler is strong. The battle rifle, sniper rifle and carbine are great sniping weapons for skilled players. The rocket launcher rounds move slowly, but deal great damage. I was quick to jump all over this design choice, but the more I play with it the more I think it was a nice balancing move. The rocket launcher was too strong in previous games. And to balance the strong vehicles, you have grenades, mines, jacking, and the missile battery and Spartan Laser. You'll get giddy when you blow up a Warthog that has been terrorizing the map.

And the maps are all well done, for the most part. Everyone seems to enjoy Valhalla and High Ground because of their wide-open spaces and interesting designs. Both are good maps for a variety of game types like One Flag CTF and One Bomb. Just hopping on the back of a mongoose with the flag or the bomb feels exciting, and Halo 3 definitely retains that great sense of teamwork that Halo introduced with the original Warthog in cooperative play. People are already trying to veto Snow Blind, but I've come to enjoy the wide open space contrasting with the underground cave.

Still, I think the best is yet to come from Bungie. We haven't touched on the single-player game, which everyone expects to be nothing short of epic. And Microsoft is clearly trying to make Halo 3 the flagship Xbox Live title with new film features and service records integrated right into your Gamer Profile. While the beta may have underwhelmed in terms of visuals, it is overwhelmingly fun.

Come Wednesday, dust off your copy of Crackdown. Halo fans will not be disappointed. Unless you were hoping for the pistol. Or cheerleaders.

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