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Halo 3 is a shooter game where players primarily experience gameplay from a first-person perspective. Much of the gameplay takes place on foot, but also includes segments focused on vehicular combat. The balance of weapons and objects in the game was adjusted to better adhere to the "Golden Triangle of Halo": these are weapons, grenades, and melee attacks, which are available to a player in most situations. Players may dual-wield some weapons, forgoing the use of grenades and melee attacks in favor of the combined firepower of two weapons. Many weapons available in previous installments of the series return with minor cosmetic and power alterations. Unlike previous installments, the player's secondary weapon is visible on their player model, holstered or slung across the player's back.[1]

Halo 3 introduces support weapons, which are cumbersome two-handed weapons that slow the player but offer greatly increased firepower in return.[2] In addition to weapons, the game contains a new class of gear called equipment;[3] these items have various effects, ranging from defensive screens to shield regeneration and flares. Only one piece of equipment can be carried at a time.[4] The game's vehicular component has been expanded with new drivable and AI-only vehicles.[5][6]

Halo 3 contains non-gameplay additions, such as Forge, a map-editing tool. Forge enables players to insert and remove game objects, such as weapons, crates and vehicles into existing multiplayer maps.[6] Almost all weapons, vehicles, and interactive objects can be placed and moved on maps with Forge.[7] Players can enter Forge games and edit and manipulate objects in real time. A budget limits the number of objects that can be placed.[8] Players may also save up to 100 films of gameplay to their Xbox 360's hard drive,[9][10] viewing the action from any angle and at different speeds.[11] Halo 3 offers a form of file sharing, where items such as saved films, screenshots, and custom variants can all be uploaded to Bungie's official website. Anyone can browse user created content that has been uploaded to Bungie's website and tag it to automatically download to their console next time they sign into Xbox Live on Halo 3.[4][12]

Modes

Halo 3's story or campaign mode can be played through alone or cooperatively with up to three other players via Xbox Live or System Link.[13] Instead of having each player be an identical character as in previous Halo games, the first player plays as Master Chief, and the second player plays as the Arbiter. The other two players control two Covenant Elites, N'tho 'Sraom and Usze 'Taham, each with their own backstories. No matter which character is played, each player has identical abilities, though their starting weapons vary.[13] Hidden skulls found on each level cause changes to the gameplay when enabled, such as giving the enemies extra health, changing in-game dialogue, or modifying AI behavior.[14] These skulls, as well as the difficulty level and the speed at which the level is completed, provide multipliers to the total score.[4] Players are awarded gamerscore points for unlocking Achievements by reaching a certain score in each level.[15]

Local area network or Xbox Live supports up to sixteen players in multiplayer matches, with game modes including variations of deathmatch and Capture the Flag. Players must actively seek out other players through their Xbox Live Friends list, using the party invite system, or the LAN search feature to play multiplayer matches with their own custom rules and customized maps. If they are connected to Xbox Live however, a player can choose to have the game decide for them the exact rules and map to play on, as well as finding additional people to play against or with, using the "Matchmaking" system (the automated grouping of players of similar skill). A player will decide from a selection of developer designed "playlists" which each contain a certain way to experience the game.[16]

Like other multiplayer Xbox 360 titles, Halo 3 uses a customized version of TrueSkill ranking system for its matchmaking on a per-playlist basis. A linear measure of a player's experience with the matchmade portion of the game and each particular playlist is also tracked (denoted as EXP).[17] To help players have an enjoyable time online, several peace-of-mind features are implemented within easy reach, such as avoid/feedback options on a player's service record, as well as voice chat mute straight from the in-game scoreboard.[18] Like Halo 2, Halo 3 supports downloadable content and updates.

Halo 3

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