In no particular order…and open for changes.

TOP 5 THINGS ABOUT HALO REACH

1)  Forge & Theater – These two features continue to separate Bungie’s Halo franchise from all similar games. Reach contains a massive forge map of forest, shoreline and mountains that provides players with an endless canvas. Create custom maps and games and let your imagination take control. Theater allows players to save high definition screenshots and videos of epic moments.

2)  Special Abilities – New for Halo Reach is the option to choose your special ability at the beginning of a multiplayer game and after each death. Three examples of the special abilities are sprint, armor lock and jet pack. Each ability provides a certain advantage depending on the map, game type or player’s strengths. It does seem to me that armor lock is slightly too powerful.

3)  Firefight – Basically a holdover from Halo 3 ODST, firefight allows single player or multiplayer fights against AI controlled covenant forces. Firefight can be a fun way to practice, earn medals and earn credits. Unfortunately, little to no teamwork is necessary. It’s more a competition to see who can kill the most enemies.

4)  Credits – Crazy as it may seem to make players earn credits to unlock features of a $60 game, Bungie has introduced a system that encourages loyalty. Credits are earned for finishing games, getting kills and reaching commendations (milestones). Use your credits to buy visual armor upgrades and special firefight voice quotes. Quitting is discouraged because credits are forfeited in regular multiplayer games and rank is lost in arena games.

5)  New Medals – Assist, Stick Sprees, Assist Sprees, Wheelman Sprees and Assassin. The Assassin medal is awarded for performing a special animated assassination on an opponent. This animation is risky for a player because it leaves you vulnerable, but sometimes its really hard to resist.

BOTTOM 5 THINGS ABOUT HALO REACH

1)  The Campaign – The Halo 3 campaign was very disappointing.  Halo Reach was even worse. Halo campaign game play has gotten steadily worse since Halo 2. The campaign was easy to finish with a friend on the legendary difficulty level. No bosses to fight again, no interesting storyline revelations, no scary Flood to fight.

2)  Multiplayer Maps – The multiplayer maps included with the Halo Reach game are disappointing. Other than Countdown and Reflection, I’d rather play on Forge World maps.

3)  New Weapons – I don’t like the Concussion Rifle, the Plasma Launcher, the Grenade Launcher or the Focus Rifle.

4) Invasion – While I don’t dislike the Invasion game type, there is no reason why it can’t simply be an option in Big Team Battle. And I doubt it would get many votes if that were the case.

5)  Worthless Medals – Does anybody really care about these medals? Revenge, Reload This!, Avenger, Killjoy Do they mean anything? I’d like to see a medal for blowing up a vehicle while using Armor Lock or for surviving a stick by using Armor Lock.

On May 3, 2010 those of us who purchased Halo 3 ODST will have the opportunity to play the Halo Reach Multiplayer Beta.  Bungie recently released a promotional video regarding the Beta.  I will list a few of the significant things I noticed.

• jet pack!
• new weapons similar to the sniper rifle and battle rifle
• a new type of “X weapon” bubble
• you can roll!  (think Gears of War)
• it seems you can run
• lots of new game types like Headhunter and Spartans vs Elites
• new melees and assassinations