[mcullinan]

So... how is it? Has anyone played it and have they gotten any sleep? Or is it all hype?
Mike

[IronLion]

I haven't played it yet (I explained my situation in another Halo 3 thread), but this game isn't hype.  A 9.5 on IGN's rating system?

[mcrespo71]

I haven't played it yet (I explained my situation in another Halo 3 thread), but this game isn't hype.  A 9.5 on IGN's rating system?

I highly doubt it's hype.  I'm sure it's a sublime game and I agree  that a 9.5 game on IGN is nothing to sneeze at.  I've used that site quite frequently when trying to discern when to buy a game and usually it's pretty accurate, especially when the scores are over 9.2.

[sunshinedawg]

I've played it a bunch. The terrain graphics are pretty darn good. I thought the player graphics were just average. There are a couple of cool new vehicles, the Hornet(a helicopter) and the elephant(a vehicle transporter) among others. There are also some cool new weapons including the hammer from the end of Halo2. There is a really cool mode where you can spawn any weapon/vehicle/powerup and while in this mode, you can "fly" anywhere like superman.

[AdamM]

It's pretty decent.  The terrain is good, agreed sunshinedawg, they use adaptive luminance pretty well (exposure) and the textures and lighting are quite good.  Nice texture blending.

The characters aren't as good as i'd hoped, but they're not bad.

If you get the special addition version with the two discs, there's a television calibration thing on the other disc that's really interesting.   I'm going to test it to see if it makes your display 'crazy' - i think it doesn't just calibrate your monitor but it makes your screen go 'too far'...  But the results are good for Halo.  I just want to know if they're getting people to setup their screen 'beyond broadcast standard'

Worthy of all the hype?  Perhaps, barely.   The intro sucks.  It's a good game, but it doesn't raise the medium as much as i'd have hoped.  As a developer though, i'm obnoxious and biased as hell

/A

[jqp]

I have run through the solo game in Easy mode - almost finished, currently stuck trying to drive the warthog onto the frigate and can't find a solution

I love the gravity hammer - on easy mode I can make it though any situation if I have that. I am sure the harder modes will be a different story.

I have played some multiplayer - not enough to understand all the modes. It looks like you can have up to 4 people on line collaborate through the campaign mode also?

Contrary to rumors, the Chief does not die at the end of the game. It is possible he dies waiting for rescuers (while in suspended animation) after the game is over in the closing cut scene, but I'll bet he gets rescued in Halo 4.

[Woodsea]

http://kotaku.com/gaming/clip/blame-halo-3-317094.php
This is funny, no need to plug into your multi dollar stereo system, it is in mp3, 4 format.
Check it out!!

[Toka]

It is a fun game, for sure. Obviously, Halo fans will be pleased. The single-player campaign was good, but once again felt truncated...large leaps in narrative, and somewhat confusing near the end. The epic scale/sense of impending doom just wasn't there. Some levels were a blast, others were more of a slog (Flood, anyone?). The multiplayer realm has more options than most people will ever use, but I think that is a good thing.