n the new story-based campaign, players take on the role of one of the titular Orbital Drop Shock Troopers who finds himself separated from his squad after an operation in the city of New Mombasa goes awry. Dropping in at the point Master Chief and friends departed in Halo 2, it's up to this silent protagonist dubbed "The Rookie" to explore the desolate urban environment and find clues to the whereabouts of his team.
Immediately the game tries to set itself apart from traditional Halo experience, landing you in the city at night which is essentially an open-world hub. Here, your goals are to find key items that trigger flashback sequences wherein you assume the roles of your squad mates, eventually piecing together their whereabouts. While this format differs from the linear level structure of past Halo games that's really where the drastic changes begin and end for the campaign. ODST flirts with stealthier, less-run-and-gun gameplay with a night-time setting, a night vision mode and two silenced versions of existing Halo 3 weapons. But this ultimately amounts to very little with the Covenant's vision apparently unimpaired by darkness and your modified firearms calling just as much attention to yourself as their standard versions.
A classic formula, if one that fails to set the game apart.All in all, the campaign can be beaten in about six hours which is about the right length given recent trend of shorter story modes in first person shooters. However, it does lack in replay value with the only reason to revisit being the collectible audio logs scattered around the city hub. It would have been nice if the meta-game scoring system from Halo 3 had made a return to add further replayability, but at least you have the ability to play co-operative with up to four friends.
Ultimately, ODST's campaign fails to set itself apart from the other games in the series as it seems the developers were too scared of alienating returning fans. With all that said, the classic Halo formula is still fun after three games and despite a less than blockbuster story there are a few epic set pieces to enjoy during the run of its course.
The second part of the ODST package is an all-new multiplayer mode called Firefight. Essentially Halo's answer to Gears of War 2's Horde mode, it pits you and your friends against never-ending waves of Covenant forces. I think the best thing about it, and what distinguishes it from Horde, is that each map requires different tactics in order to survive. In Gears 2 the best strategy always seemed to be to hold out in a defensible position the entire time, whereas here there's a lot more variety with larger maps and differing weapon emplacements creating a wider scope of play. Halo 3's skulls also periodically activate adding different gameplay wrinkles which forces your team to switch tactics on the fly. With some great level design, the classic Halo gameplay and a never ending army of Covenant eager to be slaughtered, Firefight can be an absolute blast with friends.
Firefight can be an absolute blast with friends.That's if you manage to get any together. Unlike the last two Halo games, Firefight has no kind of matchmaking system, leaving you to either hope you have people on your Xbox Live friends list currently playing when you feel like jumping in, or having to prearrange sessions with friends well in advance of playing the game. This is an inexcusable and frankly baffling omission, given that other recent co-op shooters like Gears 2 and Left 4 Dead included it, even more so when you consider the very same developer pioneered matchmaking with Halo 2 back in 2004.
The third element you receive when you purchase ODST is a separate disc called Halo 3 Mythic. This is the entirety of Halo 3's multiplayer, including Forge and theater modes as well as every multiplayer map including three new and exclusive ones. On one hand this is perfect for Halo 3 multiplayer newcomers, but it's questionable to include this with a title that's probably the least recommendable to franchise beginners. Fans may also feel jaded that all the downloadable maps they've paid for over the last two years are now redundant, given that the Mythic disc should now be the de facto source for the multiplayer seeing as it is the only place to get the three new maps. While these will be coming as downloadable content for the original Halo 3 eventually, bundling exclusive content for your previous game in your latest title comes off as a little sleazy to me.
Halo 3 ODST originally began life as an expansion pack to Halo 3 and in many ways it still feels like one. Playing as an ODST doesn't feel drastically different from playing as Master Chief, and on the whole there isn't anything particularly revolutionary for a Halo game here. If the package was priced the same as an add-on pack I can't help feel that some of its issues would have been easier to forgive. Ultimately, whether it warrants your purchase depends on how much you care about the multiplayer experience. With a short-but-sweet campaign with little replay value it's hard to recommend anything more than a rental for solo players, but for those with a bunch of friends who enjoy co-operative games with, it's definitely a better value proposition.
As I said before, James, your review would determine whether I purchased the game early — and ODST, in fact, appears to confirm my reluctance.
Having restarted Half-Life 2 doesn't do it any favors. If I want a fresh FPS experience, I need only play one or two of the 30 hours between the sequel and its episodic content. One day, I'm sure.
I'm in complete agreement with your assessment of the game's "new" weapons and gear, James. Considering these are the things that could have set the game apart and made it the "stealth action" experience the title and marketing hoopla suggested, it's a real shame that they do little to encourage the sort of "sneaking" gameplay I was craving. And how is that in the distant future, humanity is unable to make a HUD whose intensity can compete with the brightness of daylight? I thought it was pretty ridiculous that the VISR, one of the game's key components, was only functional during the "rookie's" nighttime levels.
Still, I hold out hope for the game's firefight mode. While nothing in this package justifies its $60 asking price, I do love a well-made cooperative experience.
Thanks for the feedback guys.
I felt I had to come down hard on this one somewhat since most reviews I've seen for it seemed to gloss over its concerns, including the crucial lack of matchmaking.
I couldn't give it a free pass as many seemed to just because it is Halo.
I feel you were plenty fair, James. Bungie's done a lot to advance the FPS genre on the modern consoles: Halo 2's matchmaking completely changed the way we played online with friends and Halo 1's open environments and narrative were revolutionary.
Since then, Bungie's contributions to gaming have been more evolutionary in nature. In many ways, ODST was a step backwards for the franchise, with Bungie missing a number of opportunities for improvement. I hate to accuse them of "phoning this one in," but that's sort of what it feels like.
I don't know, a "short-but-sweet" campaign sounds pretty good to me. And I hear the collectible audio-logs are a blast to find due to the way the environment gives you hints to their whereabouts.
Maybe I'll be in-line with your points after more play, James, but I'm looking forward to popping ODST in tonight.
"While nothing in this package justifies its $60 asking price..."
You're right, nothing in it does. What does is the Halo logo on the outside of it :P
@Jessica
He must have been refering to the health system since you now have to rely on picking up health packs again. Also the pistol is actually worth using again.
You given a pretty honest and accurate review of the game. I have been enjoying it, but was really unhappy with the price of it. This was/is conisdered to be an expansion pack, so charging full price made it a little hard to swallow.
I am glad however that they bundled the bonus maps with the game. After first hearing the game would include them, I held off on purchasing any of the paid content maps because of this.