PAX 07: The final Omegathon challenge was ... Halo 3

PAX just wrapped up in the traditional way, with the final Omegathon challenge -- and this year they broke from the tradition of old-school games by going with Halo 3 as the final game. Gabe and Tycho unveiled the title to an ecstatic crowd, who were expecting something much more along the lines of Donkey Kong. And if that wasn't enough to whip the thousands of geeks into a frothy frenzy -- they also had the Minibosses come out and blast out a quick tune before the last two contestants sat down for their final challenge.

The final Omeganauts, Accelon and MNC Dover, sat down on stage to play a brand new, never-before-seen level populated with never-before-seen weapons -- a slick move that guaranteed that neither player had an unfair advantage. Both players' screens were displayed on massive projectors so that the crowd could get into the action as well, and get into it they did. As each player explored the new level, a huge forest ruin high in the trees, the crowd oohed and aahed at each new weapon and new vista that the players discovered.

Some of the new weapons seen included a variety of new grenades (flashbangs and fire grenades) as well as the Gravity Hammer (a new melee weapon), a new type of pistol called Spikers that can be dual-wielded, and a variety of large weapons -- including the crowd favorite, the flamethrower. The new weapons looked like great fun, but since this was serious business with serious rewards on the line, the players tended to stick to one-hit classic weapons like the rocket launcher and the energy sword/camo combo.

Once players got a feel for the level, the real action started. Accelon scored the first couple kills, but MNC Dover quickly came back and kept the game tied until about 11 points (out of a 15 point game). Accelon got a nice streak going after that though and won the first round at a score of 15-11. For the next round, we saw yet another new level titled The Narrows, a smaller bridge level with a huge laser weapon and the Mongoose, a small ATV type vehicle.

This time around, the score limit was lowered to a mere 5 kills making a much tighter and more intense round than the rather lengthy match that had preceded it. In fact it only lasted a few minutes, with Accelon switching to a energy sword strategy and quickly cutting down MNC Dover to win the game, the $5000 prize money and the trip to TGS.

After the crowd's thunderous applause, Gabe and Tycho came back out and awarded both players samurai swords and then sat down to play their own round of Halo 3 as the Omeganauts walked off the stage. Amazingly, even though the game wasn't Photoshop Hero, Gabe was really rocking the Halo 3 forest map and beat down Tycho 5-2. After the match, Gabe and Tycho stood up and thanked everybody for coming as everybody started to filter out of the theater. Another PAX had wrapped up and the crowd looked happy and tired -- the sign of a darn good game convention.