Following last month’s alpha test, where a small number of players helped stress-test Destiny (out 9 Sep), the new game from the creators of Halo, this month it was the larger, more fully featured beta test. The game that’s gradually being revealed brings together Halo’s near-perfect shooting mechanics and cautious, cunning enemy AI with the trappings of a massively multiplayer game. That means when you’re on a mission you can co-operate with other players nearby or if you prefer, ignore them completely. Areas in the beta test varied between wide-open spaces and claustrophobic tunnels, all with the sense of post-apocalyptic decay that is video game designers’ flavour of the month. There’s also a central hub area, the Tower, where you can re-equip, acquire new missions and perform awkward dances in front of players whose avatars suggest they might be girls.