Game Reviews: Halo3 Odst

Okay guys, let’s get right to it. Halo 3 ODST, which I just got in from GameFly, is an interesting experience. Instead of playing Spartan-117(John, Master Chief,) you play “Rookie”. Who is much like Spartan-117 in many ways. This game mixes Halo with Call of Duty to create a short, but mildly enjoyable game.

My Rating: 7.4/10 (Good)

The Good:

• ODST matched Halo expectations, though my personal expectations were lowered after the release of Halo 3; but somewhat raised after Halo Wars was released. ODST was different, but the enjoyable gameplay did match expectations.
• ODST mixes Call of Duty (Fun FPS) with Halo. Using more “realistic” weapons and health measurements, this was more modern than futuristic compared to other Halo’s; which I disliked more than liked in a way. Still, mixing these games was a fun experiment, and I can’t say I didn’t enjoy the game.
• ODST had a lot of great fighting sequences, especially given the new weapons and the different visors. It made the game slightly more interactive, and who doesn’t like pushing more buttons?

The Bad:

• ODST’s campaign did not match expectations, and if you bought the game you wouldn’t want to already have Halo 3. The Campaign itself is not worth buying, and Firefight is probably 3x more fun than Campaign. In addition, the Campaign was very short, and although it was 10 “missions”, the missions were very small and involved mostly rendezvous with the rest of your ODST.
• ODST’s health gauge reverted back to Halo 1, with 2 health bars but the 2nd only went down when you were no shields. Although some may like this, I do not.

Not really a bad game, just only worth buying the whole 2-disc version if you don’t have Halo 3.

PS: ODST = Orbital Drop Ship Trooper