What was I thinking???

Today, I completed the Halo 3: ODST Campaign. It was decent... That's all I have to say about it. I didn't dislike it, but on the other hand, I didn't especially like it either. Apart from the very beginning when my character dropped into combat... there was nothing about ODST worth remembering. In addition, firefight already feels old to me. It's nothing new and just feels thrown in. I played for 2 hours, got to the last stage of the third set until my party finally died. Today a friend wanted to play firefight, and I just couldn't bring myself to enjoy it. It's just so damn boring already. The whole hoard gametype has been done before - and much better I might add, by games like Call of Duty: World at War and (to a point) Resistance 2. ODST's just feels uninspired and Bungie choosing to not include matchmaking shows just how much effort was put into it. If it was a gametype they had confidence in there would have been Matchmaking for sure, but it seems as though it's just going to be a footnote in the 'legacy' of this game because after the initial novelty wears off, it's just really not much fun.

So I quit my boring game of firefight before and popped in the multiplayer disk. Sure the menus are a bit different, a bit darker, and there's one new ranked game mode, but other than that, there's nothing! I had already purchased the map packs soon after their respective release dates so they were nothing new to me.

While playing, I became utterly disgusted and decided to see if my fellow gamers felt the same way. I asked "Who here thinks ODST is worth $60?" My first response was a resounding "No one" from a teammate. Soon, everyone else joined in. There were no objections, no fanboy rants as one would see in the N4G comment pages, just a unanimous NO.

Why couldn't they have given the game a facelift? I recently downloaded a visual/sound mod for Day of Defeat that changes the graphics slightly to make them a bit more crisp and the sounds completely. Why couldn't they have done this with the multiplayer disk? It wouldn't affect individual gameplay between one version or the other - so what gives?

So my question is, What was I thinking, what were we all thinking? I feel so ashamed that I paid $60 for half a game when I have a free multiplayer demo at home that's way more fun, and I find myself playing it twice as much. I won't mention the name - If I did there would be a hoard of accusations calling me bias - but by all means I'm not. I hold the games I play to a high standard regardless of platform. In my opinion, that's a standard ODST does not meet.

So again, I'll ask - "What were we thinking when we bought this game?

If you come in here with sales figures or metacritic averages or other crap like that, I won't even respond and I hope no one else will either.

The Halo Reach demo is its only redeeming quality to me... And who knows when that will be available.

[RAM MAGNUMS]

Blame yourself for falling for the hype.
what you need is a nice healthy glass of denial juice.
denial is a defence mechanism.
its not totally your fault. most game sites have halo odst as a must buy for everyone. if you could read between the lines you might of waited for mixrosoft to make odst downloadable.

also, you shouldnt be happy about a beta oppurtunity.
beta testers are paid to test the game but here you are saying you will pay for xbox live and a game you wont play again to help beta test. you will be writing another write up if the beta doesnt work right and they pull down the server for a while. after all. thats what betas are for.

To those reading. This is what happens when "popularity" & "sales" are more important than "Innovation" & "Quality".

[HolyOrangeCows]

I did my research. Rented ODST. Had a great weekend.
You can't always trust the reviews.

[kwicksandz]

As some one who was kinda getting into halo 3 MP in the weeks before ODST, the map pack alone made it worth while to me.

Also in Australia at least the game is not "full price" as the RRP for most games here is $120. I bought my new copy of ODST for $68 which in US dollars is basically the same price you paid when the currency is converted but half of what most games sell for here.

so horde mode + maps + campaign make it a decent purchase at least for me. ODST beta i just hope isnt a massive download cause our crappy internet caps (30gb a month for me) make demos and betas difficult.

If you didnt like halo 3 MP previously and only thought the campaign was "decent" then maybe it isnt the game for you. i thought the campaign was pretty fresh as far as halo games go and sneaking round the town finding the audio logs was where the fun was.

[gamesR4fun]

and no regrets actually got old b4 the week was up but i did get my ten bucks worth n then some..
this shoulda been 40 bucks tops n all the guys who got burnt on this r gonna hate ms n bungie imo.

[mastiffchild]

Did the same as Holyorangecows myself and would have felt so cheated had I bought the full priced package.

I have said before that MS and Bungie could possibly hve made more cash in the long term if they'd priced this lower and given two pakage choices to accomogate older players like most of us who already payed for the maops once and newcomers who hadn't. I'd say a price point of $45 for the full package and $25-30 just for the SP campaign and new stuff for MP. I reckon it would have scored higher on Meta and sold way, way more copies making up for the lower prive in spades-I believe it might even have approached the Halo3 dales themselves and not began stalling at around 1.75-2million. Would have sold quicker as well, imo, as a lot of /Halo fans are in my boat here and found this the first Halo FPS that they only rented.

Obviously the prices are hjust off the top of my head but jst l;ook at how well Valve managed selling L4D at cut price on Steam after free trial weekends and such. MS and Bunhie were too greedy, imo, and lost out and never shook the "premium DLC" accusations and at $60 they were always risking some bad value reviews.

I( nderstand exactly how you feel, though, and would be the exact same had I bought the game at around $60. It's NO value and for the record, even with some normally god actors it had the worst voicing I've heard this year.

[dachiefsman]

For me it has been a solid purchase, I have played probably 20 hours of firefight and 10 hours or so of the campaign. Most games at the 60 dollar mark don't even touch this for me.

"The whole hoard gametype has been done before - and much better I might add, by games like Call of Duty: World at War and (to a point) Resistance 2"

Yea it has been done before, but not in the fashion Bungie did it. In Gear 2 the enemies get tougher, which is the same with Cod: WaW. The skulls in ODST change the whole horde dynamic cause the whole strategy to stay alive changes.

To each there own...take it back and put money down on UC:2.

^^^To Ram: You haven't nor probably won't play ODST or Reach, but I am sure you are having a blast playing the UC: 2 Beta?? AMIRITE?
You need a glass of gamer juice and put down the sony kool-aid.

[paul0388]

PLEASE DON'T HATE. That unnamed exclusive demo I mentioned is Uncharted 2. The demo has almost more content than Battlefield 1943 did. Trust me, it's mp is not like KZ2 or R2 (I thought their setup's were very weak, ESPECIALLY KZ2), it's more like Halo 3, Gears, and CoD. It's that damn good...

If you played it you wouldn't hate it, I guarantee that. I just can't get enough of it and every time I put in ODST (actually the mp disc because I'm finished with the campaign and firefight) I get sick and ridiculously pissed with myself that I allowed myself to be ripped off.

That's just my opinion though, I'm sure tons of people had a blast with it but I just feel taken advantage of by Microsoft... Yet again.

[NineteenSeventyNine]

@ Paul

You enjoyed the Uncharted beta more than ODST? I'm shocked!

Now, I do agree that ODST is probably not worth 60$. I am a big fan of Halo, but there are other games that I would rather spend my money on like Demon's Souls. Fair enough. But, come on. We both know you didn't really buy the game. We both know how much hate you have for the Xbox and Microsoft. You probably only rented it. If I added you on XBL in one week, you probably wouldn't have the game and would give me some convenient excuse like you sold it. Certainly it's fine for you to have enjoyed Uncharted more than Halo, but it's not because you think one is better than the other. It's because one game is on the Xbox and the other is on the PS3. We both know that you can't enjoy games on the Xbox. I'm not even just assuming you're a PS3 fanboy either. One would only have to check your post history and submissions to see how biased you really are.

". . . a hoard of accusations calling me bias - but by all means I'm not."

Lol

Here's a sample of Paul's submissions:
"PS3 Sales to Overtake Xbox Sales by 2011?"
"Killzone 2 Lives Up to the Hype"
"Is inFamous the next big Suckerpunch franchise?"
"Microsoft, Is My Distaste Not Reasonable?"

"I just feel taken advantage of by Microsoft... Yet again."

Yeah, COMPLETELY unbiased.

[paul0388]

Yes, troll of the century, I do dislike Microsoft. But my liking for games are much greater than my distaste for that horrid company. 3 of my best friends bought it, so I sent it back to gamefly and purchased it myself to play the Halo Reach beta and the 3 new maps with them.

You don't know me, so continue to make half assed assumptions, I even said in an earlier comment that I was going to send it back and buy it, and the day I posted that, I went straight from work to Gamestop to get it.

So don't tell me wtf I did and did not do. If I only rented it I wouldn't be upset because I would have sent it back. But instead, I waited to play the campaign in its entirety until after I bought it... And became bored with firefight after I bought it.

So there...

Go back to your hole troll.

[paul0388]

And I actually am selling it because it's trash. I work for the Times Leader Newspaper in Wilkes-Barre Pennsylvania. See the link below, I made the ad myself...

http://www.tleader.net/clas...

Third ad from the top as of right now. It's a bunch of BS but I hate it and want to get my money back as soon as possible.

Because I wasted it on a piece of garbage rehashed game...

[paul0388]

And that Killzone 2 review was written by me too btw.

nineteenseventynine = N4G's biggest troll

[NineteenSeventyNine]

Obviously @ Paul even though he wasted his bubbles just so he wouldn't say anything else completely stupid

First of all, I don't have to know you to know you're completely biased. Even Saaking would agree. :)

"So don't tell me wtf I did and did not do."

Oh, look at that. I've struck a nerve. What? You're mad now just because someone called you out on your BS? Grow a pair plz.

"And I actually am selling it because it's trash."

So, you go from saying the game is average to trash in a matter of hours? Clearly there is some cut-off of oxygen to your brain because the reviews say otherwise.

Let me get this straight: YOU write a flaimbait blog but I'M the troll for calling you out on your fanboyism? Learn to think before you speak. I don't think I've trolled one time on N4G. You obviously can't say the same about yourself after this blog.

@ Another One

Why do you only have four bubbles yet Jinxstar has ten? Read Jinxstar's comments in this blog and tell me he deserves ten bubbles.

[Saaking]

NinteenSeventySeven likes trolling blogs. Just ignore him. btw, great piece of writing. Totally agree. The most I'd pay for this game is $29.99

[Another One]

I have 4 bubbles because I confronted some anti-360 trolls in an ODST story. Dumb mistake. they far outnumber any amount of sane people around here. I knew I'd lose bubbles. And as far as Jinxstar's bubble count; it doesn't concern me. I can't control that stuff. I just use my four to say what I think. I don't need 10 bubbles to make my point.

Back to the topic at hand, I'll be honest with you all and say that this game is probably not worth 60 bucks to someone who isn't a Halo fan in the first place. So, if you're not a Halo fan in the first place, why the hell did you buy it? Now Paul, I see that you may have played Halo 3, but what about the rest? Did you even like Halo 3? I imagine you didn't since ODST disappointed you (ODST is a far better campaign that Halo 3). Assuming you didn't like Halo 3, or Halo in general (I know you hate MS), what was the point in buying ODST? Was it just to complain about it? I sure hope not.

And about your 5 hour campaign, you must have really tried hard to push through the game with little to no exploration what-so-ever. I see no way of finishing this campaign in that amount of time if you play on a difficulty to match your skill. Firefight I wont really comment on much, but it is far more exciting that Horde mode in Gears. Gears was like playing whack-a-mole, with the one not popping and shooting just running straight at you. From what I've played, FF is way better (Halo's enemy AI really is good. You have to give it that). And the mythic disc cleared a good amount of space from my small HDD. I had purchased the maps so I could play them early and I'm glad this disc allows me to delete them. Also, the three new maps are probably the best maps released for Halo 3.

Really all this boils down to is expectation and what you wanted from this game. ODST has a lot of content attached to it and I know the amount of time I'll spend with it more than justifies my purchase at full price.

[Jinxstar]

I said this to MANY people and all I got was "Jinxstar is a stupid sony droid" responses....

I don't feel bad for you but just remember now MS knows they can take you for a ride. I can't wait for reach where they have the game and announce prior to release that they will be having downloadable map packs for the next 5 months(The first 2 or 3 will be unlocks on the disc).... And you will buy it all I am sure... Now MS knows they can take you and everyone else who bought ODST for a ride and they WILL.

Edit: Here is the big thing you need to realize about reviewers. They don't need to buy the game if they work for big sites. They don't know it's true value if they aren't paying out of pocket for it. They are being sent big freaking schwag bags of Halo stuff and getting asked to review it... Is it a fun 5 hours game? Probably. Is it a fun new MP mode? Probably not bad but I doubt it will last too long.... is it worth 65$? heck NO! These reviewers don't have longevity with this game. Sometimes I play a game and think "this is a game I'll be coming back to for years".... And 99% of the time I don't... but you knew what you were getting. A 5 hour game with an extra mode... When you could have spent that money on something like Borderlands or Dragon age or something better...

[NineteenSeventyNine]

"Is it a fun 5 hours game? Probably."
".... is it worth 65$? heck NO!"

First statement leads me to believe you haven't played the game, yet you can judge whether or not the game is worth its price? Yeah, that sounds fair. I haven't played the game myself, so I'm not going to say if it's worth it's price or not like you shamelessly did. But, I can tell you that games with any multiplayer mode gives the game more longevity than those that don't. For instance, ODST has more longevity than:

Bioshock
Heavenly Sword
Mass Effect
Half Life 2
Dead Space
Assassin's Creed
Uncharted: DF
Metroid Prime 3
Ratchet and Clank: Future
Batman: AA
Viva Pinata

The list goes on. So, where are the articles and blogs and reviews that say those games aren't worth the price of admission? Yeah, that's what I thought. I find it extremely sad that when a game series is so good and popular, some people just try and find any excuse to drag it down. I'm pretty sure the Halo series is the most hated series on the planet. Funny how it's also one of the best.

[Jinxstar]

Just because a game has MP doesn't make it's longevity any more. Anyone who owns halo 3 got most of the MP already on the disc(like the author). Now An RPG like Final Fantasy 7 has a million times more longevity then a game with MP like bionic commando or dark sector. if you truly feel that a game like Bionic commando is better then Bioshock simply because it has MP then you my friend are one of the big problems witht he gaming industry. If you would by Dark sector over a truly unique, innovative and quality game like Dead Space then you are whats causing this shoehorn reaction of developers to put junk into their games just to have it on their box "Play on XBL/PSN"

There are games in that list that did get the "don't buy it" reviews.

Are you saying I need to play every single game out there before I can pass any form of judgement? Because seeing the acting on a youtube or gametrailers vid is going to be different on my TV. or having played halo 3 multiplayer is going to completely change in ODST... You don't need to play every single game in order to get a general idea of if you may like it or not... Tell me you have never been turned onto or off of a game based on a video of it... Or even a slew of videos.

I have my opinion on why it is bad. If you don't agree thats fine. I think that the halo franchise is the most milked franchise in recent memory. I think MS took many of it's customers (like the guy who wrote this and a number of friends of mine I warned not to buy it) for a ride. I think the PS3 community demands more from sony. Hence why we get games like Uncharted 2, Ratchet and clank and Last guardian while 360 fans get ODST and... Well thats about it for the next 6 months or so. Minus splinter cell... But thats still slated for PC...

So feel how you want but your now on ignore.

[NineteenSeventyNine]

@ Jinxstar

You obviously need to work on your comprehension skills because you don't seem to understand anything I write.

"if you truly feel that a game like Bionic commando is better then Bioshock simply because it has MP then you my friend are one of the big problems witht he gaming industry"

Are you seriously this dumb? When did I say a game with MP was instantly better than a game without? Oh, I that's right, I didn't. I said it has more longevity. I never said ODST was better than any of the games I listed. I did say that it would probably last you longer than any of them, though. But, I guess that's too grand of a concept for you to understand.

"I think that the halo franchise is the most milked franchise in recent memory."

Okay, here's why people should never listen to you ever again. There have been five Halo games since 2001. There have been EIGHT Socom games since then. How many Gran Turismos have there been in that time span? What about the NINE Metal Gear Solid games released in the same time span? How many Mario games have come out since 2001?! Oops! Sorry, Jinxstar! That was reality, wasn't it?

So now you have me on ignore? Does that mean you wont be able to see any of my posts anymore? I guess some people can't handle being exposed for the fanboys that they truely are. Another day, another droid.

[RockmanII7]

Campaign = $20
Reason - The lost and the Damned was $20, this would be too

Firefight - $15
Reason - Whether you like it or not, Firefight is a great game mode worthy of a $15 price tag.

Mythic Map Pack part 2 = $10
Reason - every map pack costs $10, this is no exception

Halo Reach beta - $5
Reason - Beta for one of the biggest games of 2010

Total = $50
http://www.amazon.com/Halo-...

If you paid $60 for it, you can either add $10 to the fact that it's a Halo game or to the fact that you didn't do your research.

[callahan09]

Where do you come up with 15 dollars for Firefight? It doesn't even have a matchmaking component. Sounds to me like you just picked numbers that would add up to justify what you paid for it, but those numbers aren't entirely meaningful. I can agree with 20 dollars for the ODST campaign. But Firefight for 15 dollars? Resident Evil 5's brand new versus mode DLC cost only 5 dollars, and it was a more complete mode that had matchmaking. 5 dollars for the Reach beta? I'm sorry, bud, but beta's are free, you shouldn't count that as some portion of value. 10 dollars for 3 new maps, I guess I can tell you that's a decent value because that's what they always charge, but there are plenty of other games out there that offer that many or more maps for cheaper.

[kissmeimgreek]

id also include the other old map packs at 5 bucks each
=$60

anyway i got the game, loved it, and never had a doubt in my mind that it wasnt worth the money. people just have different opinions. Like i personally love firefight and how the (short) campign is designed for replay. i do wish they had matchmaking in firefight though.. i think that has more to due with ODST MP designed around halo 3s campaign and just used matchmaking t recreate the halo 3 MP.

[Tony P]

@Baseball: Two things--

Firefight is not worth $15. If it were DLC it would probably be $5 like RE5's versus mode. And considering that Halo Wars gave you three modes for about $10, to suggest that Firefight is worth so much on it's own is laughable at best.

Also, to give Reach an actual price...? That's just wrong. You're supposed to be paying for the game, not the beta attached to it. If you're forced to factor the beta into the purchase price, it sounds like you're saying the game can't stand on its own.

[RockmanII7]

@4.1 - I think matchmaking for firefight could be a bad thing. I say that because you don't want to be playing with some little kid that cusses you out every 5 seconds, do you? I can understand the whole "I have no friends online" thing, but I personally prefer to firefight by myself, so I probably wouldn't understand. Also, I put down $15 because it's MS. If firefight was DLC, it would be $15 because MS + Halo = Pay Day. Halo wars was cheaper because it was an RTS.

@4.3 - http://www.n4g.com/industry...

[Tony P]

I remember that article. And it's still sad to see people actually think it's a "great" thing that a beta should be worth a dollar sum. Adding value is fine, but betas should NEVER factor into your purchase price because you cannot buy betas. By their very nature, you would only rent them.

And...it ain't such a great thing that you factor in MS overcharging on the Halo name to bump Firefight up to $15. You're basically proving everyone's point that MS did exactly that with ODST as a whole.

[RockmanII7]

ODST will be seen by many as a rip-off. I enjoy it and I'm just trying to share my point of view. People say it should of been a DLC, I'm saying that even if it was a DLC, it would be so expensive that people would still call it a rip-off.

[mastiffchild]

You only say that because you're used to MS pricing tactics I'm afraid. MS would always rather have 1 person paying a million bucks than a million paying $1 each and in this case that bit them, imo.

Sure, offer the full package for those who haven't already bought the old maps(but don't for a second say that demanding something to be considered some kind of value by selling me something twice is ok-it really isn't)but make it a little cheaper as most is still OLD content and the campaign is short and Firfight is incomplete without MM. Also had they offered a cheaper package again for us who have the maps already it would have sold and sold-I'd have liked to keep my Halo collection complete but won't be used and abused by MS anymore.

I firmly feel all the "it's no value" reviews wuld have disappeared if they did as I suggest AND they could have sold a shedload more sopies meaning more Live subs and the easy possibility of ocertaking the figure made at the higher price point by volume of sales at less.

Noone would have said it was bad value, more would have bought it rather than renting, MS and Bungie would have been applauded and we might have seen more mutually beneficial arrangements(like PC gamers get on Steam often)from then on in, no? Fact is even MS knew it wasnt much value and that's why they tried to bolster the pakage with ancient content we'd already payed for once. I've bought ALL the maps available so tell me why ODST was a fair price for me? Why should I pay for things twice just because MS know the package is light? It's something that surprises me to see it being defended by gamers-it's just a little bit of a con. Sure, you enjoyed it-so did I(some of it)but even so did you honestly get a full games enjoyment? Did you get as much from it as you did Halo3,2 or CE? It was prived the dame afterall.

[callahan09]

Well, I harbored concerns similar to yours leading up to the launch of the game. I just couldn't seem to figure out how to justify spending 60 dollars on that particular package of content. Which is why I haven't bought it yet. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't curious. I actually think on it pretty frequently, wondering whether the new campaign is as good as the reviews say it is. But I'm just simply not ready to spend 60 dollars on it to find out. I resent Microsoft for refusing to offer the new content in a stand-alone package, and it's ridiculous that Bungie didn't develop a matchmaking component for Firefight. I'll try out the new stuff in a few months to a year when I can get it much cheaper.

[kissmeimgreek]

all i can say is that the new campaign is the series best. it has a much more smaller scoped plot with wel lthought out action scenes and witty dialogue. Every mission is also designed for coop and replayability. im in love with it and the change in pace focusing on a more character driven story. The lack pf firefight matchmaking is a serious downer though... but it still fun.

[Tony P]

I suggest you find reasons to enjoy it or trade it in.

If your comments say anything about you, you've been reading the reviews good and bad. So you knew what you were getting. You rented it, I think, and probably should have just left it at that. I don't agree with Ram's sentiment that the game just isn't worth it at all. But it isn't worth it to some players. Hype and excitement never changes that.

Edit: [Moved to another comment]

[artsaber]

But when doing the math, it did not compute into a purchase. The same thing that you and your XBL friends expressed openly and honestly on Live is great and all, but you won't do that in PUBLIC. You often show SUPPORT for Microsoft's backhanded tactics, when in fact you should be CONDEMNING them. 2 million plus people showed support for a $60 expansion pack. At least you were honest enough to come forward and admit the truth, I bubble you one for that.

But open defense for this kind of garbage has the means to ruin the gaming industry... allowing Microsoft to sell you anything for any price as long as it has Halo attached to it is VERY VERY bad.

Why innovate and work hard on the next Halo title when I know I could stamp out a TURD in dvd shape and sell it to you. All the while you will defend that $60 stinker against ANYONE, gamer or reviewer who speaks anything against it, even if it was Bible grade truth.

This is why many people have zero remorse... many of us actually READ the reviews and not just looked at scores. Hell, even MANY of the positively 9.5 reviews quoted huge FLAWS in the games that 7.5 reviews pointed out as well. One site fairly deducted those points, while other sites purposely ignored their own write ups and scored it based on whatever reasons.

My guess is the goodie bags, etc... reviewing sites get FREE COPIES, usually enough to go around the studio. This can create a subconscious bias, and definately removes the sense of VALUE that the game should possess. Since none of them has to buy it, they could give a shyt less if YOU got burned for $60 plus tax.

Here is my advice: Stop giving Microsoft a free pass. Stop giving Halo a free pass... until the 360 community changes, Microsoft will happily sell you overpriced accessories, shoddy hardware, and subpar games at a premium price. Let Sony try the same shyt, the user community would be in civil unrest! We are part of the reason Uncharted 2 is the quality product it is... we don't defend shyt, but demand excellence... and for this I am glad. Sony cannot sell us Snake Oil, we won't let them, too bad 360 fans cannot and will not demand the same excellence from Microsoft.

You sir, are this:
Achievement Unlocked: Victim of the Hype

[Another One]

It was worth it to me. I've been having a good time. Firefight is different every time and pretty challenging alone. Have not finished playing campaign. I play with my gf and we haven't had time to finish.

Great fun so far for us, so to me, it's worth it. I couldn't care less about someone elses opinion. Something that is always lost with people on this site. Just because you didn't like it, doesn't mean the game sucks and isn't worth the money.

[kaya]

Agree!

The worth of a game is really all relative. I'm sorry that you didn't get what you wanted out of it. :\ For me on the other hand, I'd buy it again if I had to.

The underlying problem here is that this game evolved into a full game from just an expansion, so many people (before the game was ever released) armed themselves to pick out the reasons why this game still could just be an expansion. It's really just physiological... everyone that fell into the trap and let greed for a overtake them (more bang for your buck) pretty much had no chance of finding satisfaction from the game they paid 60.00 for. In other words, if you had gone into this experience with a different mind-set you'd still be enjoying it like some of us.

[pacosanchez88]

Value is very subjective, some of you may have found Halo to be worth $60 but I certainly didn’t. I rented it (did my research first) the campaign took about 5 hours for me and my brother to beat, and that included the 20 minutes we wandered around before we figured out the map and the other 20 minutes we spent killing each other for the hell of it. Don’t get me wrong, it was fun at times, but other times it was repetitive and/or the same Halo 3 experience that I was already tired of 1 year ago. Ah, but some might argue, “Don’t forget, it has multiplayer too.” That is true, but it’s the exact same Halo 3 multiplayer that you’ve already paid for once. Halo fans will reply “Ya, but it has 3 new maps and Firefight mode.” Activision charges $10 for its CoDWaW map packs and those have 3 new MP maps and a new zombie map. And Rock star makes DLC for GTA that is $20 and you basically get a 5-6 hour story extension, or Fallout DLC also costs $20 and you get even more game play. Keeping those figures in mind, ODST sounds more like a $30 game to me, but instead they charge 2 times that amount.

But of course, millions of people are buying this game because it has Halo on the cover. Trust me, I know. I work nearly full time at Gamestop (not just a temporary hire) and I see it every day. When Crackdown came out, tons of people bought and sold it immediately just to get the Halo 3 beta. When Halo Wars came out, i answered countless phone calls from people wanting to buy the Halo Wars Collectors Edition just to get the Halo 3 Multiplayer maps early (but of course, we were already sold out of the collector’s edition). And now, this Halo is no different. Kids walk in the door and immediately start drooling on anything that says Halo on the cover. Hell, I even have co-workers (stupid seasonal help) complain about the price of ODST, but when I ask them why they bought it, they lovingly say "Cuz its Halo." I have customers that ignore great games because they don’t want to pay $30 (they always say "oh I’ll just wait for the price to go down more") but then they turn around and say, "Oh sweet, I didn’t know the new halo game was out, I’ll get that!"

I guess it just frustrates me that people line up to buy this game that is rather overpriced and requires minimal effort for Bungie and Microsoft to make and yet awesome games like Okami and Ico, or more recently Valkyria Chronicles and Dead Space barely sell (or don’t sell as much as they deserve) because people are too afraid to try something new and would instead, just wait for the next Halo, Call of Duty, or Mario game. I can’t predict the future, but I’m pretty sure Demon Souls won’t sell very well even though every review I have read for it says it’s innovative and great. Original and unique games like Scriblenauts get eclipsed by franchise giants like Kingdom Hearts 358/ 2 Days (which only got its start because it used characters from other franchise giants) The list goes on and on, but do consumers ever change their sheep-like mentality and their impulsive habits... no. But, chances are you didnt make it to the end of this post because your too busy planning your next overpriced "could-of-been-a-DLC" ; purchase, Left 4 Dead 2.

[m23]

It was totally worth it for me. I enjoyed the campaign more than 2 and 3, firefight is a blast, and I never bought any of the halo 3 maps, so i got them as well. I don't know why people complain about every little thing in games, no game will ever be perfect.