- Matu Flp Krawfe
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- Exalted Mythic Member
For those of you who still have some ability to use their central nervous systems, you may remember, from "way back," the first gameplay trailer for Halo 2 at E3 2003. In it there was a considerable amount of apparently freeform gameplay with branching streets and a generally open plan somewhat like the basic freedom that Bungie seems to be alluding to with the "Hub and Spoke" design of Halo 3 ODST, assuming that open plan wasn't just for show.
So beyond the obvious aesthetic similarities on may also find that ODST mirrors "Earth City's" foundation as well as it's facade. However, does this turn ODST into something other than a Halo game, which in a lot of ways has been established as something incredibly linear (EX, Library, The Maw, Metropolis, Uprising, Crows Nest, The Covenant) Is a Halo FPS really defined by just the universe it is set within, or is it based on a general progression and design to it all, linking each and every act you take with an inevitable consiquence. You shoot someone, they die. You play Sierra 117, you fight roughly the same enemies over the same terrain in the same situations.
If so, then how will we react to an unfamiliar degree freedom (should my assumptions be correct) come September 22nd? Will we take kindly to the newfound sense of self determination, reminded of our experiences on Halo or the Silent Cartographer, or will we come here and whine about how things are different?
Only time will tell, but until then we can BS all we want about the possibilities of Halo 3 ODST.
Cheers
[Edited on 06.01.2009 12:53 PM PDT]