I admit I'm not yet surfing the same frothy wave of besottedness as others in anticipation of Bungie's practically laurel-wreathed Halo 3. On the other hand, I love surprises, like when a prequel to a pretty silly film turns out to be one of the better plays of the year. Also: ones where I can time travel half a dozen months ahead for a Halo 3 taste test.
Turns out Bungie's offering just the dish come mid-May. That is, if you're one of the anointed. According to a note on Bungie's news site, the Halo 3 Multiplayer Beta that's already packed to brimming goes live May 16 through June 6th, but you'll need more than your best Anne Wilkes ("biggest fan!") impression to get in. What to do? Says Bungie:
If you?ve been sitting on the fence, and are interested, you can still enter the Beta by picking up a specially marked copy of Crackdown, which would ordinarily be a chore, but thankfully Crackdown is an awesome action game which might ironically distract you from the Beta I?m pimping here. Bungie is also giving out a few Friends and Family spots to valued community members, but those are few and far between, so it?s safer to assume you?re not getting in that way.
"Awesome" is of course PR-speak for "not too shabby," and the consensus in the mainstream press on Crackdown is "good" but not quite "great." So if you're allergic to Grand Theft Auto-derivative games, we're talking a $60 ticket to ride what'll be, as Bungie's Frankie puts it, "a peek-a-boo fraction of what's to come [this fall]."
