via Computer and Video Games


New maps for Halo 3's already legendary multiplayer mode are well underway being its typical talkative type, Bungie has come out to tease us with details.

Jodrell Bank, Purple Reign and Vandelay are the three maps discussed, which we guess will make up the first map pack hopefully released via XBL before long.

Talking first about Jodrell Bank, Bungie says: "It's a Team Slayer main course and player counts would fit swimmingly into both Social Slayer and Team Slayer hoppers and I think it might even be possible to shoehorn a few more players into the mix without overcrowding things."

Purple Reign sounds pretty cool, too. "The earliest iteration of the map actually had a completely different overall shape. If I sketched the cross section of the map's floor onto a napkin it would've looked like a small hill, but when you played it, it wasn't readily apparent," says Bungie.

"In the last month, the concavity was changed so that if you were staring the same napkin with the new version of it it'd look more like a gently sloping bowl. The difference in the way the map played then versus now is pretty remarkable. Subtle changes to the floor's geometry resulted in wider lines of sight for players staring down one half of the map and an intricate and strategic mix of floor/column/ramp gameplay on the other side and all of the sneaky jumps those mechanics entail." Sweet.

And fans of H3's Forge mode will be into Vandelay. "Vandelay is structurally the simplest map we've ever made, yet the tools that we're providing with the help of the Forge give the map tons of potential. That potential could be used for devising clever contraptions, unique playspaces and when paired with Player Traits could become a test bed for new ideas from both Bungie and the playerbase."

It goes on to explain: "Up until now, Forge has been primarily thought of as an object editor. It's been a great tool for devising tweaks and changes to maps, the net result ranging from "Oh, you put more BRs on Snowbound," to "Wow, you made a Jail that you rescue players from."

Speaking of making jails, a player-created playtype which imitates the Jailbreak mode in Quake 1 has been spotted by a keen Bungie. Inventive players have used Forge to move crates to trap players in a simulated jail in the Pit level. "The teleporter sender nodes were placed up in the nooks and when players died all spawn points took them to what we'd start to call "The Jail," explains Bungie.

Bungie revealed that it will be working on tweaks for the clever playtype with the possibility of slapping it on the Bungie's Favourites menu within Halo 3.

"Map forgers and game variant makers we are watching, playing and enjoying what you're doing and it's entirely possible that you'll get a message from us once we've tested a gametype with some feedback and a few notes and maybe a date as to when it will be showing up on Favorites," says Bungie. ...