Halo 3, the game with which Microsoft hopes to crush its competitors, will get its first beta tomorrow. The story behind the game is quite simple. With the fate of the galaxy hanging in the balance, Master Chief, a genetically altered, cybernetically enhanced Spartan supersoldier, has to save to human race.

Microsoft promised a stunning single-player action but also a redefined Xbox LIVE multiplayer. Also, taking full advantage of the power of Xbox 360, “Halo 3” will expand on everything that has made the “Halo” franchise great and will add a wealth of technical advancements. Halo franchise is seen by many analysts and gaming journalists as the main reason of the Xbox’s success.

On Friday, Microsoft staged previews in New York and San Francisco in advance of the public test. Public betas are quite unusual for a game, but let’s not forget we are talking about Halo 3, a flagship game for Microsoft and Bungie Studios.

Shane Kim, head of Microsoft Game Studios, believes that Halo 3 will be one of three main entertainment events this year. "I believe this is going to be one of the three biggest consumer entertainment events of the year, along with Spider-Man 3 and the new Harry Potter book. This is going to be a huge competitive advantage for us. Sony has nothing like it", he said.

Kim revealed that Halo 3 will be released in the autumn, just before Christmas, providing a boost to Xbox 360 sales in the festive season. "I definitely believe that Halo 3 is going to be bigger than Halo 2. Retailers know what Halo 2 did and they are not going to want to be caught out of stock", Kim added.

So far it seems that the gamers who enjoyed the public beta has mixed opinions about Halo 3. Some of them are saying that the game resembles to much with its predecessor, Halo 2, and the graphics of the game were not as they were expected to be.

"The graphics can use some work...They're not much different than the previous Halo," said Nicholas Puleo, editor of gaming news Web site Evilavatar.com. "They've got five, six months until release, so they'll add some polish...When I compare it to other things in the platform, it's not standout."