As a premiere franchise, Halo is one game Microsoft can't stay away from for too long as there is money to be made.  Halo: Reach won't be out till 2010 so to keep fans gleeful, Bungie is delivering a side story featuring the fabled Orbital Drop Shock Troopers that is often referenced in the franchise.

ODST takes place during the events of Halo 2 and starts off with a very cool opening sequence where the UNSC commissions a squad of ODST to drop on the mega-city of New Mombasa as a response to the Covenant's incursion on the African metropolis.  Events turn for the worst as their pods finish their atmospheric entry and are caught in the wake of a Covenant ship escaping into slipstream.   The pods are scattered off-course throughout the city and this is where Halo 3: ODST begins.

Unlike Master Chief, an ODST is more fragile.  While these highly-trained soldiers may lack Covenant shield technology and can't dual-wield weapons, they control very much like our favorite Spartan.  Health packs are also required to replenish the health bar.

In fact, the inclusion of the health bar changes the way you play the game.  Unlike Halo 3 where you can charge in with guns blazing and survive the encounter (most of the time), ODST requires the player to pre-plan combat strategies and at times even use stealth to avoid battles.  To augment the versatility of an ODST is a multifunction visor that helps the soldier seek clues, determine foe from ally, see in the dark and navigate to points of interest.

Also changed is the way the levels work.  In Halo 3, the battlefields are vast but quite linear where the player starts at point A and ends at B.  In ODST, the city of New Mombasa acts as a hub and is explored by the silent and newest member of your squad named Rookie.  From Rookie's perspective, you soon learn the fates of your fellow squad members as you dig up remnant objects that trigger a flashback event that puts you in the shoes of the ODST in which that item belongs to.  As such, the game is strongly character driven.

Rookie's objectives are mostly sleuth-based by finding these remnant items scattered across the city.  In between, he skirmishes with Covenant infantry and dig up audio recordings that lead up to Mombasa's collapse.  The recordings are worth finding as it provides a back story that ties into the end of the game.  The bread and butter, however, is your fellow ODST flashback missions.  Here, the combat is often large in enemy numbers with plenty of destruction as they attempt to fight off the Covenant and escape the city.  Master Chief would be proud.

The environments the ODSTs visit are varied from city skylines to an underground facility each with their own unique contrasts that differ from Halo 3.  Coupled with a dynamic soundtrack, the atmosphere is brought to life as there is always the feeling of urgency and despair.

After finishing the campaign, there is still plenty to enjoy.  ODST adds a new multiplayer mode called Firefight which allows up to 4 players to cooperatively battle against unlimited waves of Covenant attackers with a limited pool of lives and ammo.  The game ends when all players die.  I haven't had the chance to play many Firefight games but the ones I did play are incredibly addicting.  The game is worth every penny even if you play Firefight exclusively.

After coming off a high from Halo 3, I played ODST right after.  With a perspective this fresh, it's quite easy to notice the differences between the two games.  Originally planned as an expansion to Halo 3, Bungie instead developed a fantastic side story that could stand on its own two legs without needing Master Chief.  ODST is a worthy addition to the Halo franchise and well-deserving of GamerWok's Editor's Choice.