Halo 3: ODST is out on PC and Game Pass next week

Halo 3: ODST will be out next week on 22nd September for PC, checking off the penultimate game in the Halo: The Master Chief Collection’s long journey from console to computer.

The game will also, of course, be a part of Xbox Game Pass, which is bringing full xCloud streaming to Android smartphones from tomorrow on 15th September. So you’ll be able to play Halo 3: ODST and (almost all of) the rest of Halo: The Master Chief Collection across Xbox One consoles, PC and mobile.

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ODST was a curious spin-off after the conclusion of the original Halo trilogy by Bungie, stepping away from the character of Master Chief and putting you in the shoes of an Orbital Drop Shock Trooper, an ODST. Nowhere near as heavily armoured as John-117, you’d have to adjust your tactics in order to overcome the Covenant forces.

The game took place in an open world with missions coming as flashbacks as you pieced together just what happened to you and your squad. It was somewhat divisive, with some loving the new structure, but others not being so hot on the change of pace and storytelling.

Our own Halo 3: ODST review was a little down on Bungie’s effort:

ODST is very much still Halo, but overall it’s only a passable experience. Whilst I had a lot of fun in the missions during the campaign, the open world parts completely spoil the pacing. At the end of an epic tank battle or sniper dual the game should continue to build and flow from it. Instead you’re slammed back into the open world, with very little going on. The story feels lazy, and the ending is – frankly – bizare given the rest of the Halo mythos. However the individual missions, along with Firefight, saved me from being completely underwhelmed and boost it up enough that I can call it “OK”.

What was more universally praised, though, was the ODST Firefight horde mode. This has been revived for The Master Chief Collection for the first time, and comes with online matchmaking, dedicated servers and even som enew custom game modes. 10 legacy maps are included to battle waves of Covenant on.

Even with Halo 4 the final piece of the MCC puzzle on PC and 343 Industries and their partners having full steam ahead on the delayed Halo: Infinite, this isn’t the end for MCC on PC and console. The small team working on MCC have stated that the following features are still planned for the game over the next few months before the end of the year:

• Crossplay
• Input Based MM
• Sever Region Selection
• Custom Game Browser
• Per Game Graphics Options
• Per Game Audio Options
• M&K Support for Xbox
• PC Fileshare
• Double Keybinds for all games
• Viewmodel adjustments for all games
• In game FPS Cap/Adjustments
• Steam Account Linking

Crossplay is by far the most exciting element here, letting people team up for co-op or competitive, regardless of their platform. It’ll be great for catching up on the series before Infinite finally releases in 2021.

Source: Xbox

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