14 DAY TRIAL // Millions of Halo fans out there are simply dying to get their hands on the soon to launch first-person-shooter from Bungie and as the Studios today confirmed, the multiplayer beta of Halo 3 will debut to audiences worldwide via Xbox Live Arcade on May 16 at 5 a.m. and run through June 6 at 11:59 p.m. Halo 3 is the third installment of the Halo series, a groundbreaking trilogy, coming exclusively to the Xbox 360 console this fall. In what is probably the most anticipated FPS title of the year, gamers experience Master Chief's greatest battle as he launches an epic mission to stop the Covenant, destroy the impending Flood threat and ultimately save mankind.
Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox Live gaming and entertainment network made this beta stage possible, providing a robust online service for more than 6 million gamers worldwide. This is your first opportunity as a gamer to get your hands on Halo 3 before it even launches. It will be your first chance to get your hands on the new levels, weapons, vehicles and game types, as well as to provide valuable data that Bungie will use in continued development. So if you discover a flaw, a glitch, a bug, Bungie will take that into consideration.
Shane Kim, corporate vice president of Microsoft Game Studios said: "Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2 changed the face of console gaming forever. Gamers from around the world have logged more than 800 million hours on Xbox Live playing Halo 2, and years after its launch it remains the No. 1 title on our Xbox Live network. Bringing an early look at the multiplayer elements of Halo 3 to our passionate fan base is tremendously exciting for us."
Starting May 16, gamers will have to secure their admission to the multiplayer beta either through the "Rule of Three" promotion or by purchasing a specially marked copy of Crackdown for Xbox 360. Only this way will they be able to don their Spartan armor, download the beta on Xbox Live, and jump in online using their Xbox Live Gold account to battle other gamers from around the world.
As soon as the game commences, there will be three richly detailed, action-oriented maps: Snowbound, High Ground and Valhalla, which represent a mixture of large- and medium-scale combat environments and are brand-new to Halo 3. Each map will test the gamers' abilities as they are placed behind the controls of new vehicles such as the agile Mongoose all-terrain vehicle, and armed with deadly weapons such as the new and improved Assault Rifle, Brute Spiker, Spartan Laser and the new Spike Grenades. Of course this is just the tip of the iceberg regarding the Halo 3 full game coming this fall.