10:00 PM: If you thought Halo 3 would be a fresh start and a chance at a level playing field, think again. Here we are, playing the beta five days before it goes live to the public, and we’re already being owned every five seconds. Pwned, if you will. It’s not that we suck at the game… we’re at least average… it’s that the asshole elite have already set up camp. You know, the guys who have memorized every sweet spot and can effortlessly snipe you from across the map? Yeah, those guys have already learned the ins and outs of Halo 3. Only this time, they can snipe you with a rifle AND the Spartan Laser. If you don’t play with your friends, you may not be playing at all.
10:35 PM: Are rag doll physics ever NOT hilarious? We just got wasted, but watching our body slowly roll end over end down the steep hilltop made it totally worth it. Afterwards, we purposefully betrayed an ally (sorry!) just so we could see where and how his body fell. He ended up leaning face-first against a tree trunk with his legs splayed in completely opposite directions. Awesome.
10:55 PM: We’re drunk. Our thumbs and eyes hurt. We’ve been playing for seven hours. We’re going home. Feelings… mixed. The beta is definitely nonstop, pure action, but we’ve been enjoying that for years now with the previous Halos. And the people who made it impossible to enjoy that multiplayer are already making it hard, if not yet impossible, to enjoy this multiplayer. If you’re one of those folks, however, prepare to have a blast. We’ll be the ones cowering in the outpost.
