Halo 3: ODST

Template:Ratings Template:Game Info Box Halo 3: ODST, formerly known as Halo 3: Recon, is a first-person shooter video game developed by Bungie for the Xbox 360. ODST was released worldwide on September 22nd, 2009 at 12:00 midnight. ^[1]

Taking place in the Kenyan port city of New Mombasa, "ODST" follows a squad of elite Marine Orbital Drop Shock Troopers during the Covenant invasion of Earth on October 20th, 2552. Knocked off course due to the Mombasa Slipspace Incident, these five Marines and an ONI officer fight through the waste-filled and destroyed streets in order to link up with each other, evade the Covenant, and execute a top secret mission.

ODST is a prologue to Halo 3 which fills in the details of what happened in Southeastern Kenya from Halo 2 and Halo 3 ^[2]. An official five-part prequel comic, Helljumper, was released in the months leading up to and after the release of ODST, starting in July ^[3], and ending in November ^[4]. An Xbox Live invitation to the Multiplayer Beta of Halo: Reach ^[5], recently announced at E3 2009, is included with ODST, and will become available sometime during 2010.

On release, ODST became the top-selling Xbox 360 game worldwide. The title received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised the atmosphere, music, and story approach. Critics were divided on whether the relatively short campaign and included extras were enough to justify the full-game price tag.

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Features

Weapons

Vehicles

Achievements

Gameplay

File:ODST Screenshot 12.jpg

VISR Mode

File:Battle of New Mombasa.jpg

The Battle of Mombasa.

The main cast of ODST.

ODST has the main protagonist, The Rookie, searching for beacons across the city of New Mombasa.^[10] It is up to the player on how to get to any specific location, and in any order, giving a very open-world feeling to the game; something for which the main trilogy has been criticized for, due to its linear gameplay style. The "beacons" are various objects, each linked to a particular squad mate in some way. Finding one of these objects sends the player back in the game to find out what happened to one of his five squadmates (Buck, Dare, Dutch, Romeo, and Mickey).^[10] Once you go back in time for a short period, you will take control of the player for around thirty minutes, and play the situations that the particular character went through. Unlike the overall game, these flashback scenes go along the path of the linear gameplay that has been common throughout the original trilogy of Halo.

Due to the fact that you are playing as an Orbital Drop Shock Trooper, you will not be using the motion tracker or the shielding featured in the MJOLNIR Battle Armor suit, instead using the more traditional health bar/medkit system. The Rookie and his squadmates will also lose the ability to dual-wield weapons, such as the M7/Caseless Submachine Gun and the Type-25 Directed Energy Rifle. They also cannot use equipment.

On the other hand, the player receive a helmet-integrated data management system known as the Visual Intelligence System, Reconnaissance (or VISR), which includes a new low-light vision mode which identifies allies and enemies through the HUD on his helmet's visor by illuminating and classifying objects; green outline for allies, red outline for enemies, blue for scavengable weapons, vehicles, ammo and grenades, and a thick yellow outline for important objects. Outlines of scenery and objects that will block weapons-fire have a thinner yellow outline. The VISR can also be used to manage waypoints, mission objectives, and information which will help the player. The squad has two new weapons, the M7S Submachine Gun and the M6C/SOCOM, which the protagonist and most of his comrades land with in Mombasa during the initial drop. Also, the grenade limit has been increased to 3 per grenade type.

As stated by Bungie in the January 23rd Weekly Update, the Sangheili do not appear as enemies in ODST.^[11]. Although, several groups of Sangheili corpses are found throughout the campaign, apparently killed by Brutes. By December 2008, the game was "representational", meaning that players could experience the game from start to finish, albeit in an unfinished state. The entire Bungie staff was pulled from other duties to play through the game and offer feedback. Among the unfinished elements was the lack of finished dialogue delivered by voice actors; storywriter Joseph Staten filled in placeholder audio. ^[12] Bungie's audio director Martin O'Donnell contributes music for ODST, as he has done for the previous Halo games. Due to ODST's shift to a new protagonist, O'Donnell created new music that was a homage to Halo, though was taken in a new direction. ^[13]

Multiplayer

Controls for ODST gameplay.

Firefight

Main article: Firefight

Firefight, a brand new feature to the Halo franchise announced at E3 2009, is a cooperative campaign gameplay mode. Four players over Xbox LIVE or System Link play to complete a series of Human vs. Covenant matches. All features from the Campaign Scoring, as well as skulls, achievements, and leaderboards of Halo 3, are featured in ODST.

Due to a technical issue, Firefight is relegated to an invite-only game, as opposed to a matchmaking system used by previous installments in the series ^[14]. Fans who have spoken to Bungie employees on this matter have allegedly stated that the matchmaking function would have taken an additional six months to create for ODST ^[15].

Firefight Maps

Below is a list of maps for ODST's Firefight mode:

Map Packs

All map packs (Heroic, Legendary, Mythic as well as Cold Storage) are available for those who haven't already purchased them over Xbox LIVE Marketplace ^[16]. In addition to the other map packs, an additional map pack are featured in the ODST package. These maps are Citadel, Heretic, and Longshore.

While previously confirmed to only feature a Campaign element as the only gameplay mode, the second disc in the ODST box, Halo 3: Mythic, contains all of the maps, which you can play directly from there, without having to download the maps to your Hard Drive and starting Halo 3.

Marketing Promotions and Release

Viral Campaigns

Superintendent

Main article: Superintendent (Viral Campaign)

On May 29th, 2008, a viral campaign for Halo 3: ODST started which focused around the AI of the same name, New Mombasa's janitorial second generation dumb-A.I. construct that aids The Rookie and his squad in surviving the Covenant occupation of New Mombasa.

ONI Candidate Assessment Program V5.02A

Main article: ONI Candidate Assessment Program V5.02A

On September 4th, 2009, a second viral campaign was released on Xbox.com, letting fans watch interviews of the main characters of ODST ^[17]. These videos go into the background of each character, with Buck and a various teammate talking about their past, military career, their education, and about the mission ahead. Clips directed by Rupert Sanders can be seen via a marker the Marines place on their right temple.

Trailers

Announcement

Main article: Keep It Clean (Trailer)

First, different screens of areas of New and Old Mombasa come on screen, followed by HEV pods entering the atmosphere. Here you can see the Prophet of Regret's carrier on the right, then it moves behind buildings. The pods come into view as a large explosion (Caused by the Prophet of Regret's carrier entering Slipspace) appears, sending the pods off-course. Then, the Superintendent appears, and shows warning signs and then reboots. All the screens from earlier flash onto the screen, but heavily damaged from the blast. Then, a single HEV pod falls through the sky, when the Halo 3 Logo appears. The pod then crashes into the camera and goes black, followed by the words 'Prepare to Drop'.

The second part to the trailer, released on the 8th of October, followed on from this - the Superintendent reinitialized itself, attempting to assess the catastrophic devastation and tries to identify the object that survived. Later, after a Covenant Phantom dropship has passed by, the object opens to reveal a lone surviving Marine Shock Trooper to clamber out, wielding a modified M7S Caseless Submachine Gun. The Marine narrowly avoids a Jiralhanae patrol, before encountering messages from the Superintendent, presumably leading him to safety.

Elements from this trailer have dramatically altered from announcement to the present day.

E3 2009 Gameplay

Main article: Halo 3: ODST - E3 2009 Gameplay Trailer

Shown to the press at Microsoft's E3 '09 Media Briefing, the first gameplay trailer showcased the events surrounding the campaign and the new Firefight mode. It focuses mostly on the Rookie wandering around the streets of the city and looking for his lost squadmates, along with Dutch who fights during the Battle of ONI Alpha Site.

This trailer also shows the very first glimpse of Firefight, the brand new cooperative game mode designed specifically for ODST.

ViDoc: Desperate Measures

Main article: Halo 3 ODST ViDoc: Desperate Measures

The first ViDoc of Halo 3: ODST, Desperate Measures takes a look inside the squad that consists of the main characters in the game. It summarizes the skills that each Marine has, along with what equipment they'll be using in-game.

Also shown are little clips of the flashback missions, namely, featuring GySgt Buck and LCpl Agu on a landing platform at NMPD Headquarters, where a police Pelican dropship was extracting the two Marines, before getting chased off by two Type-26 Banshee fighters.

ViDoc: Bip. Bap. Bam.

Main article: Halo 3 ODST ViDoc: Bip. Bap. Bam.

The second ViDoc for ODST first shown at the 2009 Games Convention in Cologne, Germany, Bip. Bap. Bam. shows off the new Firefight mode revealed earlier at E3 2009.

SgtMaj Avery Johnson is the narrator of the ViDoc, making a stylish entrance in a SOEIV "Drop Pod" over the Security Zone map. During the video, Johnson details the gameplay of this new gametype for ODST, along with telling how they can play him by pre-ordering the game at a number of participating retailers.

ViDoc: Terra Incognita

Main article: Halo 3 ODST ViDoc: Terra Incognita

The third ViDoc for ODST released on Bungie's website, focuses on the development of Halo 3: ODST.

The game developers at Bungie were entering unfamiliar territory, making the largest enviroment they ever created as the freely-explorable level of New Mombasa. It also says the differences and similarities of the ODSTs and the SPARTAN-II soldiers, such as jumping height and the fact that no motion tracker is present in ODST.

ViDoc: Dramatis Personae

The fourth ViDoc for ODST released on Bungie's website, focuses on the cast of the characters featured in ODST.

Originally intended as an 'Extra' for people who played through the game, the ViDoc was posted on the Bungie website and on the Xbox Live Marketplace. It introduces the viewer to the cast behind ODST and Sadie's Story and explains how the voice actors helped to bring life to their characters in the game.

Other

Strategy Guide

Main article: Halo 3: ODST Official Strategy Guide

Prima Games released the 272-page strategy guide alongside Halo 3: ODST for $25 USD ^[18]^[19].

Contents include ^[18]:

Move Out Soldier - Complete coverage of the single player missions. With labeled maps for New Mombasa and tactics included for the Legendary level of difficulty.
Team Up - Intense Co-Op strategy to ensure you and your squadmates survive. With input from the actual developers and testers to give you the inside track.
Clan Wisdom - All Halo 3 multiplayer maps with breakdowns and tips from some of the best clan players out there.
Rise Through the Ranks - Detailed info on every Achievement from Halo 3: ODST and Halo 3. More than a list, instructions and tips for every one.

Special Edition

A "Halo 3: ODST Collector's Pack" is available alongside the standard version. This includes the game itself, along with a limited edition UNSC-style Xbox 360 controller, and is retail for $99 USD (£60 GBP). The Collector's Pack was available in most stores across the world.

We Are ODST

Main article: We Are ODST

A 2 minute live-action short made exclusively for the launch of Halo 3: ODST was released on September 7th, 2009 on Spike TV with a run-time of 2 minutes and 30 seconds. ^[20]. This short is directed by Rupert Sanders, who previously directed the Halo 3: Believe series.

This short showcases the 19th Shock Troops Battalion during their operations in the Human-Covenant War.

ODST Tour

A render mock-up of the tour truck.

To promote the release of the game, Bungie and Microsoft started an "ODST Tour", showcasing the game's Firefight mode to fans all across the United States ^[21]. Beginning August 22nd in Redmond, Washington, this tour lasted for nearly a month, coinciding with the release of the game.

Soundtrack

Main article: Halo 3: ODST Original Soundtrack

Like previous games in the series, Halo 3: ODST was released alongside an Original Soundtrack comprised of music heard in the game. This soundtrack features seventeen new tracks, composed by Martin O'Donnell and Michael Salvatori, on two discs.^[22] Though over three hours of music was composed for ODST, only two hours will be released on the soundtrack.^[23]

Trivia

File:RvB ODST - Training Film.png

"Umm...so where's the movie with the regular soldiers?" - Grif.

"Death Comes to All of Us".

The Collector's Pack

Halo 3: ODST is currently the only Halo Game to...

... not have Flood in it.
... not feature the Type-25 Directed Energy Rifle.
... not to have any level exclusive to multiplayer.
... lack a form of multiplayer in which players fight against each other.
... feature in-level dialogue from the character that you're playing as.
... not to have any live Elites.
... not have any SPARTAN-IIs.
... feature VISR mode, instead of the flash light.
... have stamina instead of shielding.
... have a compass instead of motion tracker.
... allow you to wield 3 grenades of all 4 types.
... befriend an Engineer as the UNSC.
... have Jackals and Brutes wield Needlers.
... show multiple forms of Hunters.
... have Drones wield Brute Plasma Rifles.
... have shielded Drones.
... have Brutes with shielding that flares up when damaged.
... have an ONI officer seen in-game.
... have a Suppressed M7 and the M6C/SOCOM.
... see recon armor during campaign.
... see an ODST without a helmet.
... feature both the Brute Plasma Rifle and the Brute Spiker.

Miscellaneous

The tagline for the game is Prepare to Drop, which references the method of Orbital Drop used by the ODSTs for quick insertion into operations.

A teaser trailer for Halo 3: ODST called Keep It Clean, was released on September 25th, 2008, at 07:07:07 am PST, which coincided with the one year anniversary of the launch of Halo 3. The trailer was viewed through the many security cameras around New Mombasa. The time at which this trailer was revealed is a reference to Bungie's long-time "obsession" with the number seven.

The "Road to Recon" challenge, as named by Bungie, gives players the chance to unlock the MJOLNIR Mk.VI "Recon" (simply referred to as "Recon Armor") for use in Halo 3 multiplayer ^[24]. This challenge requires unlocking the current Vidmaster Challenges from Halo 3, and three more Vidmaster Challenges only available through purchasing ODST ^[25].

On November 25th, 2008, Bungie LLC. renamed the in-development Halo 3: Recon to Halo 3: ODST.^[26] The reasons to why the upcoming expansion was renamed is due to the player playing the character of an ODST in the game, and to focus attention off of the fact that players will be able to receive MJOLNIR Mark VI Reconnaissance Armor.

During an interview at Gencon 2008 in Brisbane, Australia; Alan Tudyk commented on a so called Halo 3 Supplemental, in which himself and fellow Firefly actors Nathan Fillion and Adam Baldwin would lend their voices to the game.^[27] All three of the actors played the role of Marines in Halo 3.^[28] This supplemental is actually Halo 3: ODST, Tudyk and Baldwin voice members of the squad in the game. The E3 2009 Gameplay Trailer confirmed Fillion, Baldwin, and Tudyk's roles as Buck, Dutch, and Mickey, respectively ^[1].

To accompany the launch of the Xbox 360's new Avatar Marketplace, Xbox LIVE members will be able to purchase a special clothing set featuring the ODST's Battle Armor ^[29]. As of early October 2009, only a UNSC Marine Infantryman costume has been released.

McFarlane Toys released a 6-inch figurine replica of The Rookie as a part of their "Medal Edition" line of Series 6, due out in October 2009 ^[30]^[31]^[32]. Included in the package is the M7S/Caseless Submachine Gun and exclusive Medals.

In early September 2009, Rooster Teeth began a four-part Red vs Blue special debuting ODST's Firefight mode to the cast of Recreation. The first episode, entitled "Guys Like Us" (referring to both the cast of RvB and ODST being "normal" soldiers), can be viewed on Rooster Teeth's official website here.

Marketing for ODST will encompass a broad range of mediums, including print ads in magazines; with television spots taking center stage "with multiple ads prepared and sponsorship of key shows arranged" ^[33]. Advertisements will be shown up to Christmas 2009 and into early 2010. Such ads can already been seen in the American version of the Official Xbox Magazine and even here on Halopedia. GameStop has already began their advertisements, showing off both UNSC and Covenant in the Firefight mode dancing to SgtMaj Johnson, a bonus unlock item for those who pre-order the game ^[34]. Spike TV has designated September as the "Halo Month", with five programs lined up over the course of sixteen days ^[35]. One such show will mark the debut of a live-action ODST short and a preview of Halo Legends's ODST-centric film The Babysitter.

Copies of ODST were sold early in France, to which Microsoft responded by investigating and threatening to ban any players on Xbox LIVE playing ODST before its official release of September 22nd ^[36]. Microsoft France lead manager Stephen Toulouse later stated that they would not ban legitimate buyers of the game ^[37].

In an interview with Microsoft Game Studios' Ryan Crosby on Joystiq.com, a sequel to Halo 3: ODST would be considered if fan and media reception exceeds expectations, and the need arises for a follow-up ^[38]. Despite that, there are no current plans for a sequel, despite the hints of an "ODST 2" during the Epilogue cinematic.

As a bonus feature for those who pre-ordered ODST at select retailers (including such stores as GameStop and Amazon.com), a token to play as Sergeant Major Avery Johnson in Firefight was included.^[39]

Sources

^ ^a ^b Halo 3: ODST - E3 2009 Gameplay Trailer
^ Team Xbox Interview
^ Marvel.com Catalog - HALO: HELLJUMPER #1
^ Marvel.com Catalog - HALO: HELLJUMPER #5
^ Bungie.net : Invitation to the Halo: Reach Beta
^ Halo 3: ODST, level Data Hive
^ Bungie Weekly Update 10/14/08 - CJ Cowan just made a Brute Chieftain introduce the business end of his Hammer to some dudes.
^ Bungie Weekly Update 1/16/09 - At one point I found myself inquiring aloud if the Brute Shot had been powered up.
^ Halo 3: ODST, level Uplift Reserve
^ ^a ^b Game Informer: December 2008, page 3
^ Bungie Weekly Update - 1/23/09
^ Bungie Weekly Update: 12/19/08
^ Bungie Podcast: 10/31/08
^ Kotaku.com Australia - Bungie: Why Halo 3: ODST Firefight doesn't support matchmaking
^ Ethopian Review - Seven Things You May Not Know About Halo 3: ODST
^ Bungie Weekly Update - 2/06/2009
^ ONI Candidate Assessment Program V5.02A
^ ^a ^b Halo 3: ODST Official Strategy Guide on Amazon.com
^ Halo 3: ODST Official Strategy Guide on GameStop.com
^ Reuters.com - Prepare To Drop! Spike TV Gears Up For 'Halo Month'
^ Xbox Press.com - “Halo 3: ODST” Transport Vehicle embarks on a nationwide tour
^ Martin O'Donnell's Twitter "MartyTheElder"
^ Music 4 Games - Behind the Music of Halo 3: ODST - Interview with composer Marty O'Donnell
^ Bungie.net : Road to Recon
^ Game Informer: December 2008, page 4
^ Bungie.net Blog - Halo 3: ODST
^ Alan Tudyk does voice work for Halo 3 supplemental
^ Halo 3, Credits
^ Kotaku.com - Xbox 360 Avatars Getting New Outfits, Props, Marketplace
^ SPAWN.com - Product page for 'The Rookie'
^ SPAWN.com - First Look at 'The Rookie' ODST Action Figure
^ SPAWN.com - Halo Series 6 'Medal Edition' Photography Revealed
^ MCV.com Gaming Industry - Microsoft plans Halo 3: ODST marketing blitz
^ YouTube.com : Gamestop Video - Halo 3: ODST
^ Reuters.com - Prepare To Drop! Spike TV Gears Up For 'Halo Month'
^ Kotaku.com - Microsoft Taking Action Against Those Who Buy and Play Halo 3: ODST Early
^ Kotaku.com - Early Halo: ODST Players Won't Be Banned (So Long As They Bought A Copy)
^ Joystiq.com - Video Interview: Inside Halo 3: ODST
^ Bungie.net - PRE-ORDER BONUS: Brings Sgt. Johnson into the Firefight