Bungie has acknowledged, through its weekly update, that the Halo 3 beta is rather short but the developer explains why this is the case and what players can expect to get starting May 16.
I've been asked a few times why the impending Beta is only three short weeks long, says Bungie's Frank O'Connor. The Bungie employee goes on to explain, Well, obviously the number one reason is that the longer we're spending resources taking care of the Beta, the less time we're applying what we've learned from it to the final game. And statistically, three weeks is going to seem like a pretty long time when you look at the hours you log on the game.
The same complaints have been made regarding the availability of only 3 maps during the beta phase of Halo 3. It's easier to think of why you're not getting the rest of the maps. They're not done yet. All are geometry complete, but they're being polished and tuned for graphics and gameplay 'til the last minute. You could say that the maps you're playing are the best balanced and most complete so far, adds O'Connor.
Even so, beta players are warned that the maps they will be using in May are likely to change, possibly directly as a result of the beta, O'Connor sets the stage for what players can expect to see in the final version of the game, But they will change slightly, maybe noticeably when the game finally ships in fall. So by all means, learn 'em well next month, but don't get used to anything you see in there. Objects may have shifted while in flight.
Halo fans were also informed of Bungie's intent to publish a full Halo 3 FAQ on its website ...before the Beta goes live, possibly the day before,. The document will see Bungie talk you through the controls, some of the new features, how to get it and what you're going to be playing.
Bungie has also apologized for the problems that many Halo 2 players faced when attempting to download and install last week's new Halo 2 maps.
