After sliding my way down the sheets of ice that were the sidewalks in downtown Toronto yesterday evening, I managed to slide into a hotel that was filled with LCD TVs, Xbox 360s and lots and lots of Halo. Microsoft hosted an event to show off the latest maps for Halo 3, and the final version of Halo Wars, to some press and Xbox community members. The Mythic Map Pack was the star of the show, already being put to the test when I arrived and getting quite a bit of buzz from the room. I did spend some time with Halo Wars, but not enough time to offer any solid impressions beyond what you can already try in the demo. The Mythic maps, however, took up most of my evening and though I’m not the most prolific player of Halo 3 I was impressed by what Bungie was offering.

The pack includes three maps, as most of their map packs are wont to do; Assembly, Orbital and Sandbox. Each of them provide not just a different visual aesthetic, but a completely different way of playing through each kind of multiplayer challenge. The first map I got a look at was Sandbox, which is exceptionally well described in the title alone since it is essentially a desert landscape with a few pillars, a small and a large pyramid in a big amount of open space. What it results in is mostly chaos, as it is fairly easy to spot your opponents anywhere on the map, and the inclusion of a Warthog just makes the challenge of not being picked off instantly that much more difficult. Matches seem to go fairly quickly, but it is frenetic and invokes a lot of great, open field battles. The textures are weak, however, as you are faced with what is essentially orange and brown grain throughout the level, resulting in one of the more ugly maps that is available for the game.

Next up was Orbital, the interior of a space freighter filled with cargo boxes, weapons and lots of bodies. It is the effective antithesis of Sandbox, focusing on close-quarters and narrow hallways where you are unlikely to see an enemy fleet rushing towards you until you’ve already rounded the corner. With multiple levels, long stair cases and a lot of diverging points it is a prime map for more tactical players, and although it feels linear throughout most of the map it has points where you can jump down or take out enemies from above, adding to the level of surprise that Orbital seems to inherently carry. The occasional Mongoose boosting through the halls invokes enough shock, that’s for sure. The visuals for this one are a big step above the Sandbox, but don’t offer anything particularly distracting. The one frustration with the map for most seemed to be a pit situated just below a second floor jump-down area that was often filled with lifeless ragdolls.

Assembly seemed to take the middle road in terms of openness of Sandbox and closed-quarters of Orbital with a veritable maze of verticality and platforms. The aesthetic is more of the enemies of the Halo universe, the Covenant, and has that alien visual charm throughout. Glowing platforms that shoot you into the air and widely open areas blocked by a single structure in the middle of the level means that you can not see many people just looking out across the map, but since all rooms are wide open and have multiple entry points no particular spot feels safe. It makes King of the Hill a fun mode, with waves of opponents able to drop in from just about anywhere without much warning and your teammates with just as little a clue as to where they are coming from as you. One of the better looking levels and feels like it has the most traditional shooter-map roots. Weaving from inside structures to the outside platforms flows well, and it is simple to move quickly throughout the level, taking down any enemies you happen to spot on your way. Because of that, however, a lot of assassination (attacks from behind) is bound to occur during any given game.

Bungie is serving up a nicely balanced set of maps with the Mythic pack. While pricing details have not been announced for Xbox Live, the maps will come included with Halo Wars‘ Limited Edition, and is a great addition for anyone looking for a fresh perspective on the popular multiplayer experience of Halo 3. The visuals are polished for the most part, though the locales aren’t exactly mind blowing, everything is consistent and clean and fits well into the context of the game perfectly. Perhaps it doesn’t warrant a purchase of a near one hundred dollar game for those that have no interest in the upcoming Real Time Strategy, but for anyone interested in Halo Wars with a ongoing love of Halo 3 it would be a good idea to consider the Limited Edition for a set of solid maps for the game. Although it doesn’t seem to be the big game changer that the Legendary Map Pack was, the Mythic set does a lot of things right and can introduce a lot of new strategy to the game that may bring a few back to finish the fight.