Originally this game was developed as an add-on to
the Halo franchise, however a decision was made to make this a
standalone game. Using the powerful Halo 3 engine, HALO ODST is set
during Halo 2 and 3 and revolves around the Orbital Drop Shock
Troopers that while the Chief was running around saving the world,
these “grunts” so to speak were fighting their own battles.
Unlike Master Chief, the ODST are more like the
mortar in the war, however without them, the battle would have been
lost. Interestingly enough, they are also considerably weaker than
Master Chief, however considering the story of this current game, it
actually works quite well.
The story of Halo ODST revolves around the grunts of
this military force and begins with five of these soldiers
jettisoning into the city of New Mombasa, led a commander named
Dare.
Unfortunately during your entry into the city, a
Covenant ship causes your pods to go off course which causes your
team to separate and this is where the gamer begins, with the
character known as “The Rookie”.
Cleverly done by the developers, Halo ODST uses
flashbacks to assist with the story and thankfully you will not just
play as Rookie during your adventures which does assist in the story
telling. In relation to the story which seems a little forced and
contrived is your team mates which have some really bad voice acting
moments at times. Can someone say CAPCOM?
The soul of the game is the shooter aspect that has
the player exploring a variety of environments in order to defeat
the enemy and engage in a variety of missions. With a variety of
weapons at your disposal, your characters also have stamina which
works like a shield and if you manage to hide while in battle, your
stamina will slowly recuperate.
As opposed to Master Chief, your headgear is also
different and is more of a light source in the game that is perfect
for those dark areas which basically highlights the objects and is
an impressive looking effect. There is also a map to assist you with
your mission (waypoints) and to inform the player of where the
enemies are located.
Apart from fighting the Covenant and progressing
through your “missions”, Halo ODST have some Easter eggs hidden
throughout the gaming environment with audio clips. These audio
clips help the gamer get an understanding about the invasion of the
Covenant and the computer known as the Superintendent which assists
you in progressing through the city, thanks to its clever
manipulation of the cities video screens.
For most gamers, the campaign mode will easily be
finished by most in around 8 hours or so hours, give or take. There
are some difficulty options and by increasing the difficulty to
“Legendary”, it really makes the combat quite difficult. As per
other Halo games, Halo ODST allows for up to four players to play
via XBox Live in cooperative mode which is fun, especially because
you have someone else along for the ride.
Of course, where the multiplayer aspect comes into
its own is through the new multiplayer mode called firefight that
pits the humans again an unending wave of Covenant soldiers. Very
similar to Gears of War 2.
Graphically, the title is quite reminiscent of Halo 3
and is pretty much a clone. There are some new areas, however the
Halo 3 engine has always been quite decent from the gaming
environment to the characters themselves and the special effects.
The soundtrack suits the game perfectly, especially the science
fiction war story, however the voice acting is really bad which is a
shame.
In conclusion, Halo ODST is
definitely a must have game for fans of the series or the genre and
although the campaign mode is rather short, the game does come with
a bonus disc which contains all the online map downloads and this
goes back to when Halo 3 was first released. Even though you’re not
playing the boss man himself, Master Chief, the game does have some
“wow” moments that is matched with the traditional sturdy Halo 3
gameplay.
