In 2007, at the height of Halo’s popularity following the release of Halo 3, it would have been simply unimaginable to think that a Halo game without the Master Chief’s involvement could be made. The story had grown so large and so expansive, that how could anyone possibly take up the mantle following the conclusion of Halo 3? The answer, in retrospect, is extremely simple, scale it back and focus the narrative on ordinary people, rather than the man who is destined to be the saviour of the galaxy.
Over the course of the Halo games, we have been accompanied by Orbital Drop Shock Troopers many times. Troopers who are among the most elite and are literally fired from orbit into hotspots as heavily armed reinforcements.
Halo 3 ODST puts you in the armour of one such ODST, a new member to a squadron that is known simply as ‘Rookie’. Set during the hours following Mission 3 of Halo 2 (Metropolis), ODST sees Rookie separated from his squad in New Mombasa as Covenant forces invade the city in search of a high value target, all whilst the city slowly crumbles following the in-orbit slipspace rupture that closed out Metropolis.
Throughout ODST you’ll search Mombasa’s streets as Rookie looking for clues as to where your squad’s location is, as well as play multiple vignette style missions as the members of the scattered ODST squad which tells their story in the hours following the drop.
Over the course of the Halo games, we have been accompanied by Orbital Drop Shock Troopers many times. Troopers who are among the most elite and are literally fired from orbit into hotspots as heavily armed reinforcements.
Halo 3 ODST puts you in the armour of one such ODST, a new member to a squadron that is known simply as ‘Rookie’. Set during the hours following Mission 3 of Halo 2 (Metropolis), ODST sees Rookie separated from his squad in New Mombasa as Covenant forces invade the city in search of a high value target, all whilst the city slowly crumbles following the in-orbit slipspace rupture that closed out Metropolis.
Throughout ODST you’ll search Mombasa’s streets as Rookie looking for clues as to where your squad’s location is, as well as play multiple vignette style missions as the members of the scattered ODST squad which tells their story in the hours following the drop.
At the time of release, it was the most character driven Halo game to date due to each member of the ODST squad having a distinct personality and some great vocal performances from their respective actors. It isn’t a story about saving the world, or even saving the city you’re in, but about saving each other in the face on insurmountable odds. It’s just as effective today as it was in 2009, and it’s one of the few examples in the Halo game series of genuinely excellent character driven stories.
It is a little on the short side though, coming in at around six hours, around two-three hours shorter than the average Halo game. But I feel like if the game had been any longer it would have overstayed its welcome. It’s a brief, but impactful Halo story that’ll stick with you long after the credits roll.
The gameplay is, for the most part, identical to Halo 3’s. This shouldn’t come as a surprise when you consider that the game was initially planned as an expansion, but that being said there are some quite significant changes which do majorly shake up the flow of the gameplay.
As previously stated, you are not a supersoldier, so it’s only right that as an ODST you do not have the same advantages that Master Chief has in combat. The first major difference you’ll notice is that you have a health bar. Now whilst you can sustain some damage and lose no health, it doesn’t take much to be overwhelmed and as a result begin to lose some of your health bar. In order to regain health, you must pick up health kits that are littered around the environment (akin to Halo: Combat Evolved, and later Halo: Reach). Therefore, as an ODST you can’t simply run into a skirmish guns blazing; in fact it’s often advised to take out enemies from as great a distance as possible. The larger scale environments are also gone in favour of claustrophobic urban locales. You’re fighting in city streets here and it does often feel reminiscent of the Outskirts and Metropolis missions from Halo 2 as a result. This linearity was something I criticised Halo 2 for, but that was mostly because it conflicts with the scale of the game. ODST being much smaller in scale does benefit from having more confined missions. That doesn’t mean there aren’t any larger scale missions, but they’re much more infrequent.
Another difference you’ll notice is that you can’t jump as high. As insignificant as it may sound, this does hamper your ability to traverse your environment for a better angle. You’re also given access to silenced weaponry for the first time in a Halo game. Due to the game mostly being set at night, visibility is greatly decreased and mixed with silenced weapons this has the ability of making Halo 3 ODST much more stealth based than any other Halo game in the franchise. Whilst stealth won’t always get you very far, some well-timed attacks and staying out of the light can certainly help out as you won’t have to engage in combat against overwhelming odds anywhere near as frequently.
It is a little on the short side though, coming in at around six hours, around two-three hours shorter than the average Halo game. But I feel like if the game had been any longer it would have overstayed its welcome. It’s a brief, but impactful Halo story that’ll stick with you long after the credits roll.
The gameplay is, for the most part, identical to Halo 3’s. This shouldn’t come as a surprise when you consider that the game was initially planned as an expansion, but that being said there are some quite significant changes which do majorly shake up the flow of the gameplay.
As previously stated, you are not a supersoldier, so it’s only right that as an ODST you do not have the same advantages that Master Chief has in combat. The first major difference you’ll notice is that you have a health bar. Now whilst you can sustain some damage and lose no health, it doesn’t take much to be overwhelmed and as a result begin to lose some of your health bar. In order to regain health, you must pick up health kits that are littered around the environment (akin to Halo: Combat Evolved, and later Halo: Reach). Therefore, as an ODST you can’t simply run into a skirmish guns blazing; in fact it’s often advised to take out enemies from as great a distance as possible. The larger scale environments are also gone in favour of claustrophobic urban locales. You’re fighting in city streets here and it does often feel reminiscent of the Outskirts and Metropolis missions from Halo 2 as a result. This linearity was something I criticised Halo 2 for, but that was mostly because it conflicts with the scale of the game. ODST being much smaller in scale does benefit from having more confined missions. That doesn’t mean there aren’t any larger scale missions, but they’re much more infrequent.
Another difference you’ll notice is that you can’t jump as high. As insignificant as it may sound, this does hamper your ability to traverse your environment for a better angle. You’re also given access to silenced weaponry for the first time in a Halo game. Due to the game mostly being set at night, visibility is greatly decreased and mixed with silenced weapons this has the ability of making Halo 3 ODST much more stealth based than any other Halo game in the franchise. Whilst stealth won’t always get you very far, some well-timed attacks and staying out of the light can certainly help out as you won’t have to engage in combat against overwhelming odds anywhere near as frequently.
ODST also introduced Firefight mode to Halo. Wave survival against increasingly difficult enemy forces in an arena. ODST’s firefight is in retrospect quite barebones. It allows you and up to three other players to defend against wave after wave on enemy but there aren’t any ways to spice the game mode up beyond that. In comparison to other wave survival modes of the time it was quite good, but when looked at now the mode can seem quaint because even in comparison to other Halo Firefight modes it’s very limited in gameplay options.
Visually nothing has changed from Halo 3 as it runs on the same engine. I do feel like the character and facial animations were improved but it could just be the lighting playing tricks on me. The score, much like the mood of the game, is much more sombre. There’s not a whole lot of epic battle music, but the jazzy tones that’ll accompany you in your journey through New Mombasa is very nice to listen to.
Halo 3 ODST is one of the best games in the series, although it is definitely a different experience to the core Halo experiences. It’s one you’re less likely to return to for multiple playthroughs, but that’s less to do with the quality and more to do with the oppressive and downbeat tone.
Visually nothing has changed from Halo 3 as it runs on the same engine. I do feel like the character and facial animations were improved but it could just be the lighting playing tricks on me. The score, much like the mood of the game, is much more sombre. There’s not a whole lot of epic battle music, but the jazzy tones that’ll accompany you in your journey through New Mombasa is very nice to listen to.
Halo 3 ODST is one of the best games in the series, although it is definitely a different experience to the core Halo experiences. It’s one you’re less likely to return to for multiple playthroughs, but that’s less to do with the quality and more to do with the oppressive and downbeat tone.
STORY: 9/10
GAMEPLAY: 9/10
PRESENTATION: 8/10
LIFESPAN: 7/10
SCORE: 9/10
If you enjoy Halo 3’s gameplay as much as I do and also like the idea of having some stealth sections, the ODST will be a game you’ll very much enjoy.