Halo 3 is a Shooting game available on the 360 OST. It can be played in Firstperson Singleplayer Cooperative Competitive modes.

Halo 3 is a Shooting game. Shooting games present a world in which the character must shoot their way out of dangerous situations. They provide the player with an array of weapons tailored to specific tasks. This unavoidably involves a combination of fisticuffs and gun based fighting that dictates the violent nature of these experiences. Beneath this harsh exterior though is often an intricate tactile game - and this is usually what drives the player.

Halo 3 can be played in a Firstperson mode. First Person games view the world from the eyes of the in-game character. You don't see the character themselves apart from their hands, gun or possibly feet as in Mirror's Edge. Because of the imediacy of the experience and sheer volume of visual information the player is offered First Person games lend themselves to the shooting genre. The FPS view enables players to immerse themselves in the experience and react quicker to events in the game. Other games have used a first person view to deliver an unusual perspective on an old genre - Mirror's Edge for example delivers a Platforming genre through a First Person view.

Halo 3 can be played in a Singleplayer mode. Single Player Campaign games focus on one player's experience. Rather than collaborate with other players either locally or online, players progress alone. The campaign style of gameplay offers a connected series of challenges to play through. These chapters work together to tell a story through which players progress. Single player games are able to focus on one experience of a scenario, so that it is usually a richer, more visceral game.

Halo 3 can be played in a Cooperative mode. Cooperative Multiplayer games provide an experience that is played symaltaneously by multiple players. Unlike the simple arena competitive multiplayer style games where players try to kill the most enemies, true co-operative games are designed to take a group of players through a campaign experience together. This will involve sections where players have to work together to proceed - either from the sheer difficulty as in Halo 3 on 360 or by the design of levels such as LittleBigPlanet on PS3.

Halo 3 can be played in a Competitive mode. Competitive Multiplayer games provide experiences where players compete against each other and the computer. Obviously lending itself to sports and team games, these competitive engagements have also dominated the shooting and fighting genres because of the direct combat and expertise involved in each. Although these games were originally played in a split screen style, more recently they are played online via services such as PlayStation Network, Xbox Live and the Nintendo Wireless Connection.

News

We have our reporters and community keeping an eye on Halo 3 for you, and we'll keep you up to date with the latest developments as they happen.

Reviews

Game People review Thu, 09 Jun 2011

Halo 3 brings together realistic enemies, tense moments of encounter and knife edge multiplayer. In this podcast, we dig into just how far Halo has come, and how well it stands the test of time.

Welcome back to the Game People podcast, my name is Paul Govan and I write the Family Gamer Section. Today I'm joined by Alex Beech, David Kenson and Jon Seddon.
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Soundtrack Gamer review Sun, 17 Oct 2010

Halo 3's CD soundtrack, although deep and moving, struggles to sustain human emotion or prolonged motifs. Instead, it's the game's chronology rather than listener that is best served.

Orchestral soundtracks, for film or games, are not listener friendly by nature. This is music designed to enhance the drama of its particular scene and not necessarily work as a complete piece.
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Eclectic Gamer review Sat, 15 May 2010

Halo 3 took more commitment to enjoy than other games I've dipped into. With a little help from a friend, and the difficulty not too high, this was a lot of fun - even for an eclectic gamer like me.

Halo 3 was one of the first games I played, and finished, on the Xbox 360. I had a great time playing it although I may have slightly missed the point of the story. I was having far too much fun to bother working out what was happening in the plot. As long as I could carry on running around demolishing baddies I was happy.
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Family Gamer review Sun, 24 May 2009

Cracking open the case to Halo 3 and slotting it into the Xbox was one of those gaming moments that stay with you forever. After reading about the game online, my son and I waited feverishly for the postman to deliver our copy. Although the wait was long and the hype around the release was nothing short of momentous, I can honestly say that the game delivered exactly what we wanted.

The pull of the franchise really worked its magic in the first few minutes. Hearing the narration by Cortana as Master Chief plunges to earth gave me goosebumps. This was made even more memorable by the fantastic and subtle musical score that came out of the speakers.
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Family Gamer review Fri, 01 May 2009

After a hugely successful first game, being tied exclusively to Microsoft's 360 console, and the solid follow up (Halo 2) that set new standards for online play, Bungie had their work cut out for the third and final instalment.

Thankfully, for both the developer and fans, they have managed to deliver an experience in Halo 3 that has largely been received as a success.
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