Q&A with Brian Jarrard,
Community Lead at Bungie


What makes Ghost Town unique from all other Halo 3 maps?

BJ: Ghost Town is an asymmetrical human-themed map set in a water filtration plant deep in the jungles of Africa. Aesthetically there are no other maps that are built upon crumbling human structures. It also features a lot of nooks and crannies and multiple elevations for a variety of movement paths and vantage points.

What weapons and vehicles tend to dominate this map?

BJ: By default there's only a single vehicle on the map and that's a Mongoose. In most cases, getting onto the Mongoose is a sure fire way to get killed. Weapon-wise, you have the standard instruments of destruction like the Sniper Rifle and Rocket Launcher. The Brute Shot also seems to be particularly effective given some of the tight corridors and the ability to lay down fire on the base.

What game modes play best here?

BJ: Everything works great but my personal favorites are team slayer and then objective games such as 1-flag CTF and 1-bomb Assault.

What's your favorite strategy for Ghost Town?

BJ: Venturing out and grabbing the power-ups and power weapons is usually the key to winning when two equally skilled teams are matched up. In objective games, resist the urge to venture too far from your base. There are a variety of ways to get in and it's easy for the opposition to slip in behind you unnoticed. It's also generally better to stay in the upper levels to keep a better vantage point.

VIDEO (below): Bungie's Expert Guide to "Ghost Town"




GamesRadar's Review

Finally, something truly new. Ghost Town isn't based on any other map in Halo's history and - guess what? - you can tell. It looks different. It plays different. It just feels different.

To begin with, you can hide. Not in an obvious tunnel (Snowbound) or behind an obvious rock (Valhalla), but anywhere and everywhere. Rocks. Trees. Pipes. Debris. Shadows. Nooks. Crannies. Ghost Town's environment - an abandoned and decaying water treatment facility - is more organic and less structured than other maps. Cover is limited only by your imagination and ingenuity.

Pathways and routes are flexible as well. You'll never have to memorize a blueprint because you can usually blaze your own unique way to wherever or whatever you're trying to reach, climbing up and down the crumbling architecture as necessary. Imagine one of the Middle Eastern towns in Call of Duty 4... then add a jump button, a Needler and a Mongoose.

Visually, imagine Gears of War. Most Halo maps are painted in broad strokes, but Ghost Town's beauty is in the details. Creeping vegetation infiltrates everything, splitting rock and shattering glass. Gnarled trunks and twisting branches cast plays of light and dark. Frogs chirp in surround sound. In a strange way, this is the prettiest of all the new maps so far.

Verdict: An unusual but uniquely wonderful addition to Halo 3's multiplayer.

VIDEO (below): "Ghost Town" Gameplay Footage




For more HaloRadar - including our Skulls Video Guide and Sniper Secrets Exposed - click here.