Halo 3 recon

As I was reporting our MTVNews.com story about the announcement of Halo 3: Recon yesterday, I sent a note to Xbox public relations to clarify a few things. I asked if the game was disc-based or downloadable (I hadnt seen the box art yet) and heard back from a Microsoft spokesperson that the game is disc-based. I asked how much it would cost and was told that would be announced later. And I asked if Halo 3 Recon consumers would be required to own a copy of Halo 3? This is the response to that last question, from a Microsoft spokesperson: No. Halo 3: Recon is a standalone expansion of Halo 3′ that can be enjoyed by everyone even those who have not played or completed the original. However, there are several bonuses and surprises to be found in Halo 3: Recon for those who played and completed the original game. There are two ways to interpret that. One: the mere practice of experiencing the adventure of Halo 3″ will make the events of Recon more meaningful to players of the new game. Two: Recon could detect whether you have a Halo 3″ game save and unlock bonus content because of it. Its happened for other sequels. The Ratchet & Clank games on the PS2 could detect that youd played previous games in the series and arm you character with weapons you earned in those previous games. I asked the Microsoft spokesperson which of those interpretations would be correct. Are they talking knowing-the-story-better bonuses or actual unlocked-content bonuses? Theyre not saying. If youre a Halo fan, which way do you think it should go? Should Halo 3″ gamers get special unlocks in Halo 3: Recon?