HALO 3 BETA TEST (Xbox 360)

When first-person shooter Halo 2 made its commercial debut for the original Xbox game console in November 2004, it became an instant smash hit.
Incredibly, the game generated more than US$125 million in sales in the first 24 hours, breaking almost every gaming sales record in history.
Following the unprecedented success of Halo 2 and the release of the seventh-generation console the Xbox 360, it didn’t take long for the game’s developer, Bungie Studios, to announce it was in the development stage of Halo 3, promising it would rival anything on the market in terms of stunning high definition graphics and intense gameplay.
Earlier this year, Bungie and Microsoft Games Studios announced a worldwide launch date for Halo 3 - September 25 - and expectations are high for the final chapter in the groundbreaking Halo trilogy.
To wet the collective appetite of the gaming community, Bungie then released a beta version of the game (a work-in-progress edition), that could be played over Xbox Live in a multi-player format.
To gain access the Halo 3 Beta, players were given the opportunity to download it by purchasing a copy of the popular FPS Crackdown, which would act as a key for gamers to participate.
While not only giving gamers the opportunity to play three of the new levels, the Beta was also designed to provide valuable data and feedback that Bungie could use for the continued development of the game.
The Halo 3 Beta went live on May 16, and will run through to June 7, with more than 400,000 copies already downloaded worldwide.
While Halo 3 itself will continue where the Halo 2 storyline left off, the Halo 3 Beta features three multi-player maps, an assortment of weapons and vehicles, as well as a wide variety of differing scenarios in which to participate.
Across each map, players will be able to play a number of team-orientated multi-player games - rumble pit, team slayer, team skirmish and big team battle.
Rumble pit is all-out single player action - a last-man-standing scenario, with you pitted against everyone else.
In team slayer, you can enter alone or in a small group and you’ll be matched against another team of equal size, up to a maximum of four players per team.
Team skirmish is a team-based scenario, with a differing array of objectives - from capture the flag, through to territory capture with a maximum of four players per team.
Team battle is just what it suggests - big teams pitted against each other on big maps. Team sizes vary from five to a maximum of six players.
The weapons available in the beta are limited, about eight to 10 in total, but there is enough firepower on hand to complete any objective.
Bungie has already said that the weapons available in the Beta are just a small snippet of those that will be available in the full game.
The overall look of the Beta (and remember it’s just that - a beta) is already a marked improvement over its predecessor, with stunning backgrounds and highly detailed player visuals.
Unfortunately, there are no single-player campaigns - the Halo 3 beta is purely an online multi-player game.
That said, and despite its limited scope, the beta is a highly addictive and entertaining environment in which to test out the new game.
Overall, if you’re a Halo fan, or simply a first-person shooter fanatic, then you won’t be disappointed with the Beta release.
Far from it, in fact.
Roll on September 25.
Halo 3 Website