Less then 24 hours from now, the video game Halo 3 goes on sale (click HERE for midnight openings in OC). But Gadgetress contributor Matt Degen managed to get a copy beforehand and played the game all weekend. Check out his review…

True to Microsoft’s words, my media-review copy of Halo 3 arrived Saturday. I fetched the game from the O.C. Register headquarters, brought it back home and have been playing it for the past two days.

I’ve put in about 4 hours so far on the game, which is releasing Tuesday and is expected to be the biggest entertainment launch in history.

Considering the last version made a then record-breaking $125 million within 24 hours of launch (presales can do wonders) there is little doubt that “Halo 3″ will smash even that record.

So, first thoughts…

It looks great. While we haven’t reached photo-realism on any platform yet (we’ll probably have to wait until the next next-gen consoles for that), “Halo 3′s” environments had me remarking out loud several times. This was especially true when it came to vast environments like outer space or even the plains of Earth as you duke it out with alien forces in the year 2552 as the heroic Master Chief super soldier.

There isn’t much tutorial in “Halo 3″ — developer Bungie Studios knows its audience are the ardent fans who log countless hours online in the “Halo” universe, the type of fans expected to come out in throngs for tonight’s midnight sales.

Still, “Halo 3″ isn’t rocket science to play. Even newbies will be able to pick it up and start blasting away in this ultimate sci-fi first-person shooter. Speaking of newbies, if you are one, play on the “easy” mode and this will be a cakewalk. For the rest there is “normal,” “Heroic,” and the insanely-difficult “Legendary” settings.

The battles are truly intense. Again, I caught myself several times wowing out loud just how intense these galactic battles are, which kept Miss Wonderful, who shot the photos, coming over and saying, “What? What?”

But unlike other intense battle games, say the “Grand Theft Auto” series or “Saint’s Row,” the ones here are not so gruesome. They are even funny at times, with the enemy’s trademark jabber.

As expected, Martin O’Donnell’s score is fantastic, always lending the appropriate audio ambiance to the game, whether it’s an eerie creaking or a grand orchestra.

It’s these attention to details tied with its trademark action and fluidity that makes “Halo 3″ the successor we’ve been waiting for.

Time will tell how it holds up online and if it will have the appeal in that area of its predecessor (my bet is a resounding yes), but for the moment, “Halo” fans can know they will not be disappointed in this third helping of the franchise and the first one for the Xbox 360. ~Matt Degen

Coming later today: Matt + Halo 3 on video

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