Editing High Charity (cut Halo 3 level)
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Ultimately, the High Charity level was one of several levels [[Cut Halo 3 levels|cut for time]].{{Ref/Twitter|dmiller360|1113434705133625344|Dan Miller|Quote=In floodgate you went into the covenant cruiser at the end, correct? Well that was the Cortana geometry. The Floodgate mission was much, much longer. There was original High Charity geometry made for the Cortana mission that was cut due to lack of time.|D=10|M=10|Y=2021}}{{Ref/Twitter|dmiller360|533780831513624576|Dan Miller|Quote=the old original geometry for cortana was cut- that was high charity geometry.|D=10|M=10|Y=2021}} At a similar time, the level [[Floodgate]] was cut-down around 75% due to issues with pacing, and thus much of the geometry developed for that mission was repurposed for Cortana. This process of gutting and rebuilding this mission was undertaken by [[Paul Bertone]], who did the task in around three weeks.{{Ref/Site|Id=VICE|URL=https://www.vice.com/en/article/xwqjg3/the-complete-untold-history-of-halo-an-oral-history|Site=VICE|Page=The Complete, Untold History of Halo: An Oral History|D=10|M=10|Y=2021}} Cortana was expanded around 75%, as the team felt the mission needed to be longer and harder to better-reflect the narrative stakes in the story.{{Ref/Reuse|GDC1}}{{Ref/Reuse|GDC2}} These issues, combined with the lack of a dedicated designer for the level, meant that the developers at Bungie knew they were shipping what they considered to be a bad level, but were unable to do much about it. One idea pitched by [[Dan Miller]] to aid with navigation in the level was to place holographic footsteps on the ground to help show the player where to go, similar to the effect shown at the end of the level [[The Covenant (level)|The Covenant]]. | Ultimately, the High Charity level was one of several levels [[Cut Halo 3 levels|cut for time]].{{Ref/Twitter|dmiller360|1113434705133625344|Dan Miller|Quote=In floodgate you went into the covenant cruiser at the end, correct? Well that was the Cortana geometry. The Floodgate mission was much, much longer. There was original High Charity geometry made for the Cortana mission that was cut due to lack of time.|D=10|M=10|Y=2021}}{{Ref/Twitter|dmiller360|533780831513624576|Dan Miller|Quote=the old original geometry for cortana was cut- that was high charity geometry.|D=10|M=10|Y=2021}} At a similar time, the level [[Floodgate]] was cut-down around 75% due to issues with pacing, and thus much of the geometry developed for that mission was repurposed for Cortana. This process of gutting and rebuilding this mission was undertaken by [[Paul Bertone]], who did the task in around three weeks.{{Ref/Site|Id=VICE|URL=https://www.vice.com/en/article/xwqjg3/the-complete-untold-history-of-halo-an-oral-history|Site=VICE|Page=The Complete, Untold History of Halo: An Oral History|D=10|M=10|Y=2021}} Cortana was expanded around 75%, as the team felt the mission needed to be longer and harder to better-reflect the narrative stakes in the story.{{Ref/Reuse|GDC1}}{{Ref/Reuse|GDC2}} These issues, combined with the lack of a dedicated designer for the level, meant that the developers at Bungie knew they were shipping what they considered to be a bad level, but were unable to do much about it. One idea pitched by [[Dan Miller]] to aid with navigation in the level was to place holographic footsteps on the ground to help show the player where to go, similar to the effect shown at the end of the level [[The Covenant (level)|The Covenant]]. | ||
The reuse of the Floodgate geometry originally developed for the [[Indulgence of Conviction|crashed cruiser]] meant that the interior structure of High Charity contains some illogical design choices, such as the [[bridge]] of a {{ | The reuse of the Floodgate geometry originally developed for the [[Indulgence of Conviction|crashed cruiser]] meant that the interior structure of High Charity contains some illogical design choices, such as the [[bridge]] of a {{Class|CAS|assault carrier}}. The level posed numerous technical challenges for the developers, with the level's size requiring it be split into eight BSPs. Having to allow the geometry to have AI walk on it - even upside down or on walls - was also challenging, and collisions had to be faked for much of the level geometry. To help produce the feel of the city having been wrecked and crashed, the engineering team wrote a script that tilted the level geometry by fifteen degrees on export. Nonetheless, the AI pathfinding continued to be an issue, alongside questions of how to balance art vs. design needs for the level.{{Ref/Site|Id=GDC1|URL=https://www.bungie.net/en/aboutus#page=publications&publication=12662|Site=Bungie Publications|Page=Halo 3 Flood Alien Level Autopsy|D=10|M=10|Y=2021}}{{Ref/Site|Id=GDC2|URL=http://www.bungie.net//images/Inside/publications/presentations/!Halo3_Flood_Alien_Level_Autopsy.zip|Site=Bungie.net|Page=Halo 3 Flood Alien Level Autopsy|Detail=Original presentation download link|D=03|M=5|Y=2012}} | ||
[[File:H3 Alpha CampaignLevels.jpg|250px|thumb|The level select screen for the ''[[Halo 3 Alpha]]'']] | [[File:H3 Alpha CampaignLevels.jpg|250px|thumb|The level select screen for the ''[[Halo 3 Alpha]]'']] | ||
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[[File:H3 Xbox360 HighCharity Prototype 5.jpg|thumb|250px|A test environment in the early Xbox 360 era; the corridors here bear considerably more consistency with the corridors of High Charity seen in ''Halo 2''.]] | [[File:H3 Xbox360 HighCharity Prototype 5.jpg|thumb|250px|A test environment in the early Xbox 360 era; the corridors here bear considerably more consistency with the corridors of High Charity seen in ''Halo 2''.]] | ||
Bits and pieces of the original level survived into the final product. The Mausoleum of the Arbiter can be seen as an inaccessible location outside the playable area. Parts of Sergeant Johnson's dialogue at the beginning is also somewhat similar to the original version. The chapter title "Nor Hell a Fury..." is also in the retail version of the game. | Bits and pieces of the original level survived into the final product. The Mausoleum of the Arbiter can be seen as an inaccessible location outside the playable area. Parts of Sergeant Johnson's dialogue at the beginning is also somewhat similar to the original version. The chapter title "Nor Hell a Fury..." is also in the retail version of the game. | ||
==Transcript== | ==Transcript== | ||
The level was split into the chapters: '''Her Tattered Soul''' and '''Nor Hell a Fury...'''. The following dialogue and sequence of events are transcribed from remaining files in the ''Halo 3 Mod Tools''.{{Ref/Reuse|missionhsc}} | The level was split into the chapters: '''Her Tattered Soul''' and '''Nor Hell a Fury...'''. The following dialogue and sequence of events are transcribed from remaining files in the ''Halo 3 Mod Tools''.{{Ref/Reuse|missionhsc}} |