If you're sick of playing the same Slayer games over and over again in The Pit, you're going to get your chance to try something new and improved by next week when Bungie Studios finally releases its Heroic Map Pack for Halo 3.

In an interview with Steve Cotton, Multi-player Environment Artist for the game, he talks about what makes the new maps a must-have for any Halo fan. All three maps (Standoff, Rat's Nest, and Foundry) are relatively huge compared to the in-game "playgrounds" already included, but with their own subtle differences.

Due to the huge size of both Standoff and Rat's Nest, vehicles lend a big part in dominating the map - and there's more than enough Warthogs and Mongooses (Mongeese?) to go around according to Cotton. Team battles will essentially be the main focus for both maps as each side tries to dominate the other with a series of tactical strikes to bring down the opposition.

The most interesting of three maps, however, would have to be Foundry. While the map may seem similar in size and layout with The Pit and Turf, Foundry is constructed totally from the Forge map builder. So you can expect to see a lot of "Halo Soccer" once the explosions start.

When asked what fans should expect from the Foundry map, he had this to say:

That when you remove all the objects it's actually a pretty big warehouse. The screenshots also only show one or two possible layouts. We've added so many new elements to Forge - ramps, walls, shield doors, man cannons - that this really is the ultimate canvas for Halo fans to create their own unique multiplayer experience.