“The battles are truly amazing from close-quarter skirmishes, to air battles, to full, all-out battlefields.”

With the three year wait finally over, millions of gamers gathered in anticipation of “Halo 3’s” release last Tuesday at midnight across the world. The long wait was finally over, but was it worth it?

The short and simple answer is yes.

The campaign mode doesn’t pick up immediately where “Halo 2” left off; what happens between then and now is covered within the graphic novel “Halo: Uprising.”

Immediately when players start the first level, they are drawn in by the luscious detail and beauty they get to play around in.

The battles are truly amazing, from close-quarter skirmishes, to air battles, to full, all-out battlefields. Multi-layered areas allow you to replay different battles in different routes, making every time unique. With many different ways to enter into a battle it feels like a true battlefield experience.

The enemy AI poses a real challenge on higher difficulties; flanking and maneuvering, they will definitely try to flush you out of wherever you are hiding. The same, however, cannot be said about the players’ allies AI.

After playing through the game, it’s no wonder Master Chief is earth’s last hope. While they mean well, the only thing that they seem to be particularly good at is being cannon fodder.

A nice feature is the new four-player co-op for campaign mode. Now players and three friends can play through the game together.

The largest downfall to “Halo 3,” if there are any, would be that the campaign is far too short. Coming in at around six hours on normal, the game leaves players wanting more to explore and shoot.

Luckily, that is where the multiplayer aspect of “Halo 3” comes in. Clearly Bungie took into account the voice of their fans while crafting the final installment.

Up to 16 players can participate in online matches. The new levels that have been added feel fun to play in and explore.

A new feature, dubbed the “Mancannon,” allows a player to hurtle himself across a map. Another new featured designed to make online play more enjoyable is the “A-hole button,” designed to easily mute players who are annoying.

TrueSkill is used for matchmaking, taking into account a player’s skills and experience to keep matches evenly based. Rating Points are assigned for victories, and they can be taken away from people who ditch out of a game early.

New to “Halo 3” is the addition of new models of armor that a player can customize and characterize to change their appearance. These different types of armor can be unlocked by completing certain achievements.

The Forge is also a new feature in the game itself that allows players to edit maps as they see fit. They can add ammo, guns, vehicles, move obstacles around or change spawn points.

Players can now lay out a level how they see fit and can even do it while a match is going on. They are seen by other players as a Forerunner Monitor and can still be attacked and killed.

While there is a set limit as to how many objects can be in a given map, objects can be taken out of the default to add more space. Maps can be saved and played in a regular multiplayer match.

By far the most unique and amazing feature to come about in “Halo 3” is the Saved Films. These are replays of an entire game whether it is from campaign or multiplayer. While viewing a replay, you can follow in third-person any player, or you can zoom out and free-roam the map.

You can pause, fast-forward, rewind and even go through action frame-by-frame. This adds an entirely new page to bragging rights because now players can show how lucky a certain sticky grenade to a friend’s head was. People can now upload screenshots and their films to share with friends.

For the moment this looks to be the last chapter in the Halo series. The game plays wonderfully, and the multiplayer is going to be played for years to come. With new maps, weapons, vehicles and the ability to customize maps and review matches, “Halo 3” is a triumphant conclusion to the greatest FPS series of all time.

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