HBO found MSXBox's E3 HALO impressions. Overall positive, it's an honest report that doesn't avoid the downfalls.

Let's start off with the simple question: Did Halo live up to the hype? No. It would have been impossible for any title to live up to that much hype.

In single player mode, Halo was like no other game at the show. The opening sequence has you on a hover plane that's transporting you and a group of marines to the drop point to battle a band of aliens called the Covenant. The landscape is breathtaking, despite the fact that at certain points the game does lag. Although for the most part, the game seems to be running at a decent 30+ FPS clip. After the drop off, you immediately have to fight your way in first-person mode to a jeep.

Going on:

I'm not gonna lie to you-- Halo at E3 was not the revolutionary title we were all expecting. It was good and it has potential for greatness. Will Halo look and play even better when it's released? Yes. Will 4-player split screen be smoother? For Sure. Will Halo be a great game? Definitely. For those people to criticize Halo because of the 4-player and to a lesser degree single player slowdowns is not a timely decision. Bungie is a company well known for production quality titles, and Halo has been under development for quite some time now.

Spoken like a true Bungie fan! Finally, somebody has put the words of HALO's state at E3 in a coherent and honest manner.