 Reception of the single @-@ player aspect varied . Yin @-@ Poole wrote that while the cliffhanger ending of Halo 2 was disappointing , the campaign of Halo 3 was much more satisfying . Gerstmann , GameSpy 's Gabe Graziani , and Goldstein maintained that the campaign was too short , especially on easier difficulty levels or with three additional players in co @-@ op . Goldstein was highly critical of the eighth level , stating " the penultimate chapter is so bad , just thinking about it puts a rotten taste in my mouth . " The New York Times ' Charles Herold said the game had a " throwaway " plot and Total Video Games judged the single @-@ player aspect ultimately disappointing . Goldstein and Steve West of Cinema Blend thought a part of the game 's story was lost by not having the Arbiter featuring as prominently as the character was in Halo 2 . 
