Every release in the Halo series is preceded by massive hype and met with great jubiliation by fanboys everywhere. Today’s release of Halo 3: ODST is no exception. Billed as something of an expansion to Halo 3, ODST finds the player Master Chief-less and playing the role of an Orbital Drop Shock Trooper roaming New Mombasa in search of your squadmates and clues to the Covenant invasion.

Hit the jump to learn what else is new in the occupied territory.

Beyond the campaign (which offers either single player or co-op action), ODST drops with two other very notable features. One is the new cooperative Firefight mode. Akin to Horde mode from Gears of War 2, Firefight throws wave after wave of Covenant cannon fodder at you, testing your survival skills.

The other big bonus of ODST is the inclusion every previously released Halo 3 multiplayer map, as well as the release of 3 new maps, Heretic, Longshore, and Citadel. If you haven’t already bought any of the additional map packs over Xbox Live, then ODST is an even bigger value.

It’s pretty much a given that Halo titles achieve must-play status. Even if ODST is a little skinny on the content, the quality of the experience is enough to get us (and likely you, too) to make the leap. Curious to push your buying itch even further? Check out the game’s two part intro below.

Intro Part I:

Intro Part 2:

Cost: $51