Four Maps In Halo: Reach Beta

09 Apr 2010 at 10:48:01 by Tim McDonald

Bungie has revealed a little about what we can expect from the Halo: Reach beta.

Going by an interview with IGN, the beta - due on 3 May - will contain four maps: Sword Base, Powerhouse, Overlook, and Boneyard.

Each map brings something different to the table, with Bungie multiplayer design lead Chris Carney stating "All four maps were chosen in order to test a specific selection of gametypes and team sizes."

"Sword Base and Powerhouse cover the Slayer, Headhunter, end of the spectrum, Overlook is perfect for the NT 1 ("Generator Defense") game type, and Boneyard is a great landscape custom built for Invasion," elaborated Carney.

NT 1, which is the Network Test 1 gametype, is one of the gametypes available in the beta. "Network Test 1 is really our way of saying that we need to test these really stressful network conditions, let's come up with a game type that allows us to test those conditions and then put it in its own play list," said Lars Bakken. "We actually found internally that it was really fun. We hope players do, as well."

"It's a cool attack/defend scenario with Spartans vs. Elites," Bakken explained. "Each team gets one round to play their side, so you start maybe as Spartans defending these generators placed around the maps and then the Elites attack and try to destroy the generators. It's got some cool layers of depth where the Spartans can actually lockdown and protect the generators for a short amount of time."

Best of all, the jetpack will be available in all of these beta maps.

The Halo: Reach beta starts on 3 May, but note that you'll need a copy of Halo: ODST to join in as the second disc is used for the Halo: Reach beta. You can see the jetpacks in action in this video, and you can take a peek at our Halo: Reach preview to see what else awaits you when the game launches later this year.

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