14 DAY TRIAL // Those of you reading this piece should really take it the way it is and not be envious, because what we're about to share might take the edge off playing Halo 3 when the game launches. Don't worry, the game hasn't changed (it's already in the retailers' storage rooms). The thing is, someone playing games for a living has actually finished it! What did you think, that Bungie snags the title from gaming sites right after the review hits the Internet?
This is what I was hinting at when I said you could get envious - that you won't get the chance to be the first "finishing the fight". But rest assured, you and about 99 percent of the world's population are on the same level as far as Halo 3 is concerned. You should really focus on being the first in your group of friends to beat the game, when Halo 3 launches.
Now, you probably want to know who's the lucky guy that played, finished and reviewed Bungie's FPS, right? Well, first of all, "she" is Francesca Reyes, Editor-in-Chief of Official Xbox Magazine (if by any chance you've missed her picture in four different resolutions) and here are her thoughts after finishing not only Halo 3 but the whole trilogy, as I found via gamesradar.com:
"You know? I think I was kind of in a state of shock for most of it, especially after I finished the campaign. I was happy, yes - but it didn't really hit me until I was back in San Francisco and eating a big bowl of ramen at some neighborhood joint. I sat there at the table with my bowl of ramen and a copy of Wired (the one with Master Chief on the cover which I bought for the flight home) - and I thought to myself: Wow. I can't believe I just did something that hundreds of thousands of people have been waiting years to do. I can't believe I just did something that I'VE been waiting years to do. It was one of those epiphany moments when I got really, really happy and realized how much I loved my job. You kinda wanted to call all your friends up and blab on and on?but because I'm still under embargo, I can't exactly do that, so I have to just be happy knowing what happened, even if I can't tell anyone about it."
According to the same source, Francesca's review of Halo 3 is a 10-pager, so she's undoubtedly had a VERY good time with the game. Her whole piece will be in the next issue of Official Xbox Magazine. The mag hits newsstands the very same day retailers are allowed to pass copies of Halo 3 - namely, September 25.