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To celebrate the upcoming release of Halo for the Xbox, developer Bungie recently threw a Halo Launch Party, inviting players to Chicago to preview the title as well as get the chance to win various prizes and play with their fellow fans.

Eager to share their experiences, fans have posted at several sites, including Halo.Bungie.Org and Invisible Dream. Their impressions of Halo, as well as of the event in general, lean heavily toward the positive. It seems that people couldn't say enough great things about Halo, raving about its gameplay, graphics, and features.

Here's a clip from a fan by the name of Locucious:

The physics in Halo are absolutely unrivaled. They have to be experienced to be believed. Players fly sky-high when hit between the feet with a grenade, and land with their mangled frames conforming to the terrain. No Unreal-esque flat player animations here, it's all dynamically handled by real physics calculations. It's quite impressive to see a player fall on steps, to say the least. Also in the physics area is the Warthog. There were few things as satisfying as watching the jeep being launched into the air by a well-placed grenade, throwing all its passengers out like G.I. Joe figurines.

The sniper rifle is surely the most amazing weapon in this game. It speaks like some sort of demon, running down a field, sniper rifle in hand, I zoom, quick, on the opposing base (CTF, it was), see a sniper, drop my crosshairs on his eyeline... KER-WHAM, and my view zooms out, to see my body on the ground, a long line of fog lanced into me. I jumped about ten feet high. Cool?

I saw one gun, a rifle, laying on the ground, get hit by a stray shot, and SPIN around.

Best multiplayer moment: A 16-player CTF game on Blood Gulch. Someone jumps in the jeep and heads for the enemy base, accidentally running over a rock and sending the jeep flying. At the same moment, I run out of the base brandishing the flag, and shouting at my LAN-mates "I've got the flag! Someone give me a jeep!" Of course the jeep LANDS ON ME.

Bungie Studios: Halo

IMG News: Halo Still Mac Bound

Invisible Dream: Halo Launch Party

Halo.Bungie.Org: Launch Party Reviews

Microsoft (add to watch list)

Bungie Studios (add to watch list)

Halo: Combat Evolved (add to watch list)

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