On March 25th Bungie released their latest addition to the existing multiplayer maps with two remakes and one new all original map. The first map is Ghost town which i've mentioned before, after playing the map you truly get the feeling of being in a war, and this chunk of real estate is the frontline. The map itself is a varitable maze of different levels, broken cover, and some strategically placed weapons. The only game pace i've seen thus far on this map would be frenzied. The map is small enough that you have to move immediately upon spawning for fear of being gunned down by someone happening across your path. After playing a few FFA games and Team Slayer games, I feel like the best suited would be team based games, be it Team Slayer, Team Objective, etc.
The second map of the release is Avalanche, Avalanche is a rehashed version of Sidewinder from the Halo:CE multiplayer. The map features some impressive man cannon arrays, nicely balanced bases, and a unique cut across to speed up on foot travel. Avalanche is the only multiplayer map in Halo 3 that features the Hornet, it was repainted and the weapons were scaled down a bit (missles removed, machine guns made weaker)All the UNSC vehicles recieved a cosmetic upgrade as well. Each vehicle was given a "snow camo" paint job. The map itself has a variety of situations to suit every players fighting style, and the addition of vehicles make for some "legendary" moments, or incredibly humorous game films.
The final of the three new maps is nearly an exact port from Halo 2, Lockout. The map has remained as close as possible to the original layout, but has also recieved a new setting. Rather than the Forerunner Flood facility under a rock cliff, the newly renamed "Blackout" has become a UNSC research platform in the arctic. Gone is the rock wall, and in its place a spectacular view of the glacial shelf, the moon, and the aurora borealis. The maps gameplay remains largely unchanged from the original, short of a wall or ledge being moved down,up, or back a bit. The games still hold their "no holds barred" attitude, and unlike many of the maps that have been released, players playing on Blackout for the first time, need no learning curve. Lockout was one of the most succesful Halo 2 multiplayer maps and was the single most requested map remake for Halo 3.
Forgeries Amok
Another of the pleasant surprises Bungie rolled out for players in this DLC was the inclusion of some new and unique forge objects once again. In place of some of the "just for show" elements players were able to put down, Bungie put in pieces that allow the player to change how a map plays, with ramps, towers, and other objects. Even more remarkable however is the fact that these additional pieces all fit the enviroment they're in. For example all the building elements available in Avalanche are designed like forerunner architecture (save the bridge, its still good ole UNSC material). The new objects allow players to further manipulate the maps to create anything their fevered minds can come up with. With the success of all the available forge editions of Foundry, one could speculate this is why Bungie placed these objects in the DLC. The final addition to the DLC would be the inclusion of filters. Filters can be placed on the maps in forge and will apply to everyone who plays that map variant. Pen and Ink, Old Timey, Nova, Gloomy, Juicy, and Colorblind are the available options. Surprisingly enough, these filters can really change the way a map plays. Some allow more cinematic effects to be used by budding directors making their machinima, but some can add a unique atmosphere to the game. My imagined gametype to best explain this would be an Infection game type on a map where the Gloomy filter has been placed. Gloomy leaches the color out of everything, and makes the entire world seem darker and more foreboding. My first thought was this could either be Saving Private Ryan, or Dawn of the Dead.
The most pertinent question on many peoples minds is whether or not this DLC is worth the 800 microsoft points its going to cost you. In short, YES! This DLC is worth every point you pay, not only does it give you new and interesting maps to play on in matchmaking, Bungie plans to release some playlist updates that will be Heroic and Legendary Map pack required playlists, one of them being the SWAT playlist. This DLC can add many more hours of gameplay to a game thats already worth playing alot.
