Yep. One of the members here at Halo 3 Forum is actually playing Halo 3 Epsilon as we speak, or at least the time of this post....
That lucky member is one of my friends, Ice XP, you might have seen him post around a month or so ago.
I've talked to him and he said that he won't be giving us videos or pics anytime soon, but maybe will.... Let's hope he does...
Info from Ice:
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Yes, One of the new emblems is a Unicorn! I'm currently using it, Very cool I must say.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Well, the graphics are amazing, And I truly mean that, Not just saying it for whatever, Like It's just really nice looking, Campaign and Multi player alike, But Maybe its just me but The Campaign has an extra shininess to it.
Also, If anyone cares, the Sentinel Beam is awesome now, And Now only by looks/sound, But by power. But the Battery depletes much faster, but doesn't matter with the power it brings.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Yeah its good, I really like the campaign level-Tsavo Highway, It's just, I have so much fun playing it
and the Brute Chopper, Oh my, I think it's like the best thing ever to be in the Halo Universe, That aside from the Gravity Hammer.
Also several medals have had makeovers, for example; the Splatter medal is now Bungies Carnage Zone sign.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Sorry guys for not replying, I was studying my final time with the Epsilon.
To answer some questions asked;
About Auto-aim, Really I couldn't say since I'm not sure, I was in Forge and Campaign the whole time, But if I had o have an answer I'd say same as the beta, but I'm not to sure.
About the menu, Yes, Its flying around the Ark with Banshees flying all around and Covenant Cruisers 'digging' out the Ark and is In the Black and Blue color like Halo 2s menu was.
And about defining Halo 3's campaign, I would really compare it to either Halo 1 or Halo 2. It is its own unique thing, One thing for sure is that the battles are done well, But as Bungie has talked about before they have encounters, Which is like theres a group of guys in this one area then theres like a short distance or peace and no battle, then another encounter, And in each encounter there are like, some different spots within the encounter area that have enemies, So they aren't all like in one spot. This may sound boring, But it isn't.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Well, Forge is pretty much how it is described, You simply change into a Monitor and back to your player, Ad when a monitor you can bring up a menu, and then place scenery, weapons, vehicles, teleporters, spawn points, and etc. And Each item/weapon/vehicle/etc. has a Cost and another number which is how many of those you can spawn, Like on snowbound For Shade Turrets, The spawning limit is 2, and something like a plasma grenade has a limit of like 32 or so. And once your out of money you can buy anything else, But you can receive money from selling items on a map that are pre existing or that you placed. And to place an object You select the items on the list, Then it appears in front of you but before you actually place it you can Rotate it and such, Then you press A to drop out of your control or press Y to delete.
No New foes in the Campaign level I played.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Yes I used the piece of equipment called 'Personal Cover', And Yes you can sort of shoot through it, Like by that I mean you cant shoot anywhere through it, Just through the slit in the center of it, So yeah You cant shoot like fuel rod gun or rocket launcher through it(and few other weapons). Also, Like the shield can obviously get damaged and then destroyed, then it can and will regrow, this can happen a couple time before the actual equipment blows up.
And No, No new power up, Or not in the Epsilon anyway.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Yes, Animation for it is there, It actually causes you to drop your 2nd weapon if duel wielding when you deploy equipment,
And Also You can now switch equipment like you can switch weapons, Like example; You have a Bubble shield, And your standing over a Radar Jammer, It'll say 'Hold rb to pick up Radar Jammer', So I thought thats a nifty little feature.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Well, It;s kind of hard to tell, Your guess would pretty much be as good as mine, Or mostly, Since on this level the background is the Ark with the Cruisers finishing digging it out, And the whole time theres several banshees flying overhead, But they don't stop and try to kill you, Just fly to the Ark. So If anything else would be added, It may be a Hornet Since theres those Banshees, But I doubt it as they are just for show in this level but they are real and can be killed.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Umm, Improvements from Beta are mostly little minor things or that I saw, For example; Like the Voice Talk was different, It was just an open chat and no buttons needed to be pressed, You justed talked, And the Proximity Chat was there Openly too. I never checked the voice settings or controls So I don't know how it can be changed. There are other stuff improved for example; Mongoose had its Horn added, And a Medal like Sword Spree actually has the voice announcer guy say it, But I haven't tried to see if he says medals that are awarded at the end of a match like 'Perfection' in slayer or 'Last Man Standing' in Infection.
And the Graphics seem similar the the Beta but you can notice a difference, Kind of like an added shininess or vibrant-ness, And like theres more Shrubbery added to Valhalla, Like more flowers and tall grass instead of just flat ground grass.
Oh man, and the Campaign Graphics are just beautiful, They are just So good and shiny and smooth and perfect. And theres this one moment in the level when a Covenant Cruiser flys Directly over your head And I swear its looks like its real life as if That covenant Cruiser was flying over me like outside my house, And It sounds awesome too.
Ummm, Well, In the Epsilon Theres 2 spartans, and 2 elites, the Regular(I think it was like Mark IV or something like that) and C.Q.B., Then for elites Combat and Assault, And there was the helmet, left shoulder, right shoulder, and body for each. There were a lot of locked ones, And I never unlocked anything, And I'm not sure If I didn't because if Its just not in the Epsilon or If its because I suck at the Meta Game which I only played once(Assuming if that would be how you unlock them, Just speculation, Not fact)
Theres the same amount of colors in the Beta, Theres several more emblems and Backgrounds.
About the Hud, Well, I really Only played as An assault elite(Halo 2 like one[orange one from egm cover]), The Master Chief, and the Arbiter. So the Chiefs Hud is nearly exact from the spartans from the beta, the only thing I noticed is that feint outline of the visor looks a little different. And the elites hud is as you may have seen, Has the Shields bar Curved and there are circles for the grenades rather than squares. And the feint outline for an Elite is weird, It sort of looks like your looking out of the mouth, Since the feint outline is like in each corner, Its rather hard to describe, but yeah, I never tried out the CQB or Combat helmets, But from speculation the only difference(If there is any) would be that feint outline, But thats if theres a difference. Oh and The Hud when a Monitor in Forge, The feint outline is Obviously pretty much just a circle The shield bar is curve, And You can Zoom in Which looks like Your looking directly through the eye of the monitor. Oh yeah the Binoculars(zoomed in) for Elites looks kind of like a movie ticket, Like a rectangle with a half circle cut in the sides.
Heh, Hope all of that answers your questions.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Oh lol, Yes there isn't exactly an animation for ladder climbing, But It looks really funny when you climb a ladder, Sort of like a weird moonwalk, And Ladders were only in the campaign in the Epsilon.
The Fuel Rod gun Has somewhat of an arch to it, Its near straight shot, But you'll notice an arch, Umm, I haven't like used it in a actual game for Multiplayer, Like a serious matchmaking game or anything, But It feels right, It's like still the same weapon we know and love but it works and is fair, Or at least as far as I used it, Which I did love to use, But primarily in campaign, But I definitely see myself always wanting to use it in Multiplayer, As well as in Campaign, It's one gun I had a lot of fun with.
Just be careful with those chieftain brutes that wield them, Especially like on Legendary, They don't miss a shot with it, So try to have some kind of cover nearby.
Also Fuel Rod Gun seem to take down a Phantom Quickly, Thats how I killed my first Phantom, And Oh what a moment it was, Just a Bright beautiful Explosion of Bliss and Accomplishment.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Yeah Mongoose's horn sounds like one of those bicycle horns, Like a clown horn, Its really cool sounding, Yeah.
Yeah, Its a Free For All Game, Like at the start of the game theres one Zombie and Rest of people are Humans. And The Zombies have Swords, And thats all they can have, As they cant pick up weapons(So Yes I believe they have Unlimited Ammo for it, I never checked that when I was a Zombie). Zombies aren't Flood, They are Simply your character, but All Black, It's the Black Glow If you know that from Custom games from the Beta.
Humans are Whatever color they have there character to be(Remember its FFA). Humans can pick up any weapon(Including Sword).
Well thats Infection for you, Or thats the main Variant of it, Theres a Variant called Hide and Seek, And the Humans only defense is there Invisibility, I never played that variant, but sounds interesting.
Also, When the Announcer says 'Infection' at the start of the match It sounds cool.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Yes, It does indeed have ammo.
So not like the sword in Halo 2.
Also the Gravity Hammer, Like, isn't like the sword in Halo 3, See when You melee mid air with the sword Nothing happens to ammo, But If You swing the hammer in mid air the ammo depletes, Since with every swing its has a burst charge. But if You hit the b button while holding the hammer, You just melee with the bottom end of the handle.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Well, Hmmm, A Head shot, Is well a Head shot, And last time I checked a Head shot is instant kill, Unless you mean on a brute, Which takes one shot to get his helmet/armor off, Then another to kill him.
Auto Aim, I never really noticed it, Really though, I was most of my time either in Forge as a Monitor and stuff or in campaign, But from what I saw it's same as Beta.
I never reloaded the Sniper in the Epsilon, I only used it for a moment in Campaign to Get rid of an annoying Jet Pack Brute while I was on legendary.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Actually, The only time I used the mauler is in a game where I had instant kill on, So cant really describe its damage, But I can tell you that its really loud, Like You can hear it from across a map.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Well, Actually, It just says betrayed, Yeah I know It's weird, And thats just when a Human kills a human, I haven't tried to kill a zombie as a zombie.
Also, In Infection Humans can only communicate with other Humans, And Zombies can only communicate with other zombies.(Proximity chat exists though)
Also, All Zombies know where the humans are, Since theres a Way point over all the humans heads that is only present as a zombie.(And Thats just in the main variant of Infection)
I have only played a single match of matchmaking(Which was a Swords game), So I haven't really used any weapons in a battle.(Except the Gravity Hammer, Sentinel Beam & Flamethrower which I used in forge to kill people, but thats it.)
But in Campaign I did use the Carbine, But only against some Grunts, So its hard to say
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Yes the Mauler is loud.
The Fuel Rod Gun is kind of more Rocket like in the way that the Shots move, Which is really close to a straight line, But Like there is a very slight arch to it, Also It fires really quick. Only other thing to say about the Fuel Rod gun is that its fun to use.
Hmmm, The most wow moment, Its a tie for me, Heres the moments that tied;
-The moment when I killed a Phantom for my first time, It was such an accomplishment(Even though it only took a couple shots from my Fuel Rod Gun), As the reward was a gorgeous explosion.
-The time when the Covenant Cruiser flys right over your head, It's just so amazing to see and hear.
-This one moment that I boarded a Chopper, But the second before I killed the Brute in it from the boarding, He boosted with the Chopper right off the Edge into the large Quarry like place with the Ark, And as a Result another chopper came flying off the edge and right after I died I changed to view my co-op partners camera(The 2 of them were in one same hog) and a Wraith shot blasted them off the map, And they weren't even near the edge, So they went flying and tumbled down the hill off the edge, It was just an awesome chaotic moment.(If you recall from the e3 07 trailer, That one moment of like all those vehicles and shade turrets and the warthog flipping and bouncing and the choppers, It was right there that it happened)
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Oh, Well They are nice, Last Resort is cool, and It also just makes me comfortable, Like I'm home sweet home, Its just really nice and cool.
Sandttrap, Its a really nice map, It's not as big as people think it to be, Really, Yes technically its the largest map ever in Halo, but Its not like super huge like everyone thinks, but nonetheless a really large map, As you may know, Its an Oval Shape, And It like truely is, I mean like theres an area thats sort of dug into and its an oval around the map, and like a line through the middle as well(Which is the only area the elephant can go pretty much, Only in the dug in areas). But yeah, Its really a vehicular combat concentrated map.
Also on Sandtrap, Unlike Snowbound there are not turrets, But a Mine field like thing, Like if you go beyond the beacons like grenade or brute shot like things pop out of the ground and explode, And they do follow you, But yeah, Its fun if you drive a hog out there, Cause your hog starts flipping around, but soon followed by it blowing up and you dieing.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
I think the limit is pretty generous, But you definitely feel it, Really, Its not all that much generous, but You still have loads of fun, You just wont like be able to build a big fort, Or at least not out of like Crates, You need to use like all the things you have, Like barrels, Radio Antennas(like on from Valhalla), and Laptop Computers(Like ones on High Ground), and etc. But Thats just on the maps I played on.
lol, I'm not sure about the friend thing, I'll see, Ill wait until then to see.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Yes it has a Horn, It's on one of the Bungie Podcasts, but they referred to it as the Rapture, But thats the horn of the Elephant.
No, Driver cant shoot, Just Drive the Elephant and use its Almighty horn.
It has one Turret in the front on top(3rd level of it) in a corner which is like part of the elephant, so you can't like rip that one off, But theres also one on the 2nd level(Middle, Also where Drivers cockpit is), And This is a normal turret which you can Rip off. Thats all its weapons, Unless if You count the Mongoose That spawns on the bottom level of it in the front, But then Yeah thats it.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Well, All I can say is that the Elephant horn is exactly what was in that podcast, With it echoing and everything.
That doesn't rule out a 'Rapture', but I doubt there would be another vehicle with the exact same Horn.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Its like all other vehicles, It's 3rd Person, But the Camera is actually a bit further back than normal So you can have full view of the Elephant.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Yes, You can see any player is first person or third person(This goes for everything[Co-op, Multiplayer/Forge])
Yes, Sword still points upwards.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Well 2 days, Well, Let me put it this way, I'm sure any forum member here would have taken 2 days over none.
Yeah you can see a good amount of area when driving the elephant, So you can keep a good eye on the Elephant and see if Its getting attacked or something and You can also see anything thats happening in the elephant, Since its all open and you have a full view of it.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Errr, I'm not good at giving a speed in that form, But the best thing I can compare it to Is like the speed of walking backwards on foot.
But I mean since it's a base They kind of need it to be somewhat slower than walking speed I would think so they could get the flag or whatever the objective is.
But Its just a tad bit slower than walking forward on foot, Just know you won't have any trouble getting on/in it on foot.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Yeah pretty much any direction; Frontwards & Backwards are the simple ones though, You can go others ways, but turning with elephant is very dull.
Well well well, lol, About that, You'd be surprised what you can pull off with forcing objects into places, And one of those scenarios is putting a tank into an Elephant, Well, In this scenario there is no forcing involved, Just a simple setting down of the tank. But its not flat sitting down on the bottom level of the elephant since theres a Ramp thats leads to the 2nd level of the elephant which prevents it from sitting flat, but Yes Scorpion and Wraith alike can pretty much fit in the elephant buy are like slanted and not resting flat on the surface of it.(I can tell you something a Scorpion or Wraith does actually rest flat on, A Tree on High Ground, It's an interesting sight actually, But never mind that)
Oh yes, I played with the Fire Bomb numerous times. It is sweet, If you get a direct hit on someone with it its like as if your sticking them, But instead of waiting for that grenade to explode and them die, Its immediately bursts with flames and their whole body catches fire as they struggle to live(Since Fire Blinds you sort of like the Flare does). Maybe this is just evil, But Its so fulfilling to watch someone burn to their death just jumping in the air with that flame, Its so Beautiful Both in ways of the actual picture and the fact that I just Incinerated them and got a nifty medal.
And If you were wondering, How the Fire Bomb works is simple, Its juts like a Molotov Cocktail, And Explodes on Impact and Then Fire burns there for 3-5 seconds, And the best way to describe the size of the area that it burns is that It has fire that covers the same area that a mongoose covers on the ground.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Yes, I got my hands on the Flamethrower.
Its good, Really Good, But Really a defense Weapon, It just doesn't work as an offense tool like the 50 Cal. Turret and Plasma Turret does which are also 3rd person weapons. But if you manage to catch a vehicle on fire, Its done with, Or very most likely. But yeah Its good to keep foes away form something, Not good for invading somewhere with foes, But that doesnt mean you cant use it for that, It could still work, But good luck.
Honestly I couldn't give a true answer for the Sword question, But From what i saw Its like any battery weapon and you need to pick up another sword with more battery to get more ammo. But the one time I used a Sword in a Swords match I always died before I ran out of ammo, And in Infection I had Infinite ammo with it, So wouldn't know.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Well, Considering how like, There wasn't many people, The most I ever saw online was like 77, And probably only half of that was in matchmaking, So it did take a few minutes to get a match up, but not long at all, It felt the same as the beta, just maybe like an extra minute or two since the lack of players.
No actually, Co-op was nice and neat, I never experienced any lag, but I'm sure it will exists with people with lame connections, Just remember your Xbox didn't freeze if your screen freezes, it's actually the 'Loading...Done' I had thought my Xbox froze, Since it was still for a few seconds, but fear not it was just loading.
The radar Jammer is kind of funny, Since it strictly and only adds fake red dots moving around your radar, thats it. And like Its all calm and peaceful when you use it, It just lights up, No sound or nothing, except when its done and explodes like all equipment, but completely harmless, Physically anyway.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
No I haven't, Like Well, You start in a garage like area, And this garage thing is like inside a mountain, And So once you leave the garage, Theres a long tunnel that you have to go through to get out to the outside, I did play through once, With only using a vehicle on that part, And on the Part that you saw in e3 07 trailer when all the vehicles flipping and bouncing around, You'll die if not in a vehicle or not have a co-op partner in a vehicle for the part, Or that is if your on Legendary as I was at the time.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Still same sound as beta, Or at least very similar sounding.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Just The Default(MARK IV or something like that) spartan, CQB spartan, Assault elite, and combat Elite.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
About Last Resort;
Just mainly the scale of the level, It's just larger. Theres as you may know 2 entrance to the main base from the ground, And now an entrance from the top which you can access from Camp Froman by a long ledge that eventually reaches the base.
That destroyable bridge sound is not annoying anymore and sounds more realistic & cool.
Ummm, The whole map has a very tropical theme and feel to it, Unlike halo 2s Zanzibar which kind of felt sort of desert like.
And Theres obviously Different Weapons on the map along with the Equipment and the addition to some Mongi(Mongeese?)[Mongooses?].
And about the Hornet again;
Yes I did use it, And Its fun and cool, I'm sure everyone will be pleased with it and not disappointed with it. And it just looks awesome, Especially with both passengers on it because its just so sweet to see people not exactly in a vehicles in the air.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Err, I am not to sure what you mean by that?
If you mean like to the maps and such, You select Multiplayer in the menu and then You went to edit options and then you Changed the map and selected it.
And with Maps you saved in forge, Like for example, Lets say I saved a map from Forge on Sandtrap, Now Lets say I named it 'NewMap01', Now When i go to change the map in Custom Games, Like I'd go down and highlight Sandtrap, Then a side menu thing would come out of that and I move my selector over, And The first one thats highlighted is the default Sandtrap, Then I move my selector down and theres my "NewMap01'.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Well, It's difficult to say, I haven't played like any actual games with battles and such to see if it is the same or not.
To Everyone;
I can't really answer any balance questions, As I haven't really played any true games, Except for a swords match, So yeah, The only thing I could possibly answer is something about the Gravity Hammer and Sentinel beam.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Not exactly, But theres like a small explosion like thing every time you swing the hammer, But if you like hit the ground on Sandtrap it'll leave like a mark like foot prints do.
Yes it also makes a noise, Which sounds like between a gauss hog shot and an explosion,
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
Yes, Primary is 2 machine guns, and Secondary is 2 missiles, The Machine guns are are like in the wings, and the missiles are like under the cockpit directly under the passenger seats.
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Originally Posted by IceXP View Post
1st person, Yes In a sense in has radial damage, Like Lets say someones behind you and you swing at the ground, I don't thin it does any damage to them, Maybe just makes their controller vibrate or something, But lets say theres a vehicle sitting right behind you and you hit the ground it'll like kind of bump away a little, Or if theres a grenade around you and you hit the ground, It'll fly out in the direction away from you.
