Well, all right, “Halo” is a lot better if you can play friends from far away. Fortunately, just because that capability isn’t built into the game doesn’t mean you have to do without.

XBConnect is one of a variety of services that trick “Halo” into thinking it’s hooking up with other Xboxes via system link when it’s actually connecting over the Internet. It was suggested to me by helpful reader Brad Schroede.

You have to have a home router/gateway and a PC hooked up to your Internet connection, but most people with Xbox Live do anyway.

Here’s how it works. You go to www.xbconnect.com and download the software. You can use it free, at least until you figure out that it works. After that, please pay them their measly fee ($14.95) so we can keep getting good software products like this.

You load up “Halo” in your Xbox and set it to the “Looking for System Link game” screen. Then fire up XBConnect, pick a game from the list or host your own, and it’ll show up on your Xbox.

How good the game play is depends on where the person hosting the playing is and how fast your connections are. It’s downright quick with other Michiganders, with little noticeable lag in play. My first test run against a guy from Louisiana was another story.

Gamespy (www.gamespy.com/xbox) offers software that works nearly the same way. Click on “software” in the left column.

Game freebies at the movies

If you can’t get enough game freebies, maybe you aren’t going to the right movie theater. Acquire Inc. sticks CDs in the lids of movie fountain drinks with game demos, movie videos and the like, including stuff from Electronic Arts’ “The Sims: Superstar.”

For now, they’re only at Cinemark theaters, which are plentiful.

Just don’t expect the theater to accept liability for goo from your slushie messing up your CD drive.

PlanetSide

Sony’s online space war action game for PC is just as addictive as it’s ever been and a lot less likely to freeze or get jerky. You can try it free for 7 days with the download at www.planetside.com. Here’s how to survive as a newbie in a world where player vs. player is the best way to get ahead.

w Use the favorites slots at equipment terminals to save a variety of gear. First, save your favorite lineup of armor and weapons, which for a newbie should include an agile exosuit and whichever weapon you have certifications for. Skip the infiltration suit as a new player.

Next, save a lineup that includes a suit different from the one you usually wear, and fill the rest of your space with medkits. This way, when you come back wounded from battle, you can step up to a terminal, switch into the second lineup, use all the medkits and switch back to your usual gear, all repaired.

w Always join a squad, even if it’s not a good one. You’ll get loads of extra experience points. And try to join at your sanctuary — it’s heck finding a squad in the field. Accept all invitations, even if the group looks lame, if you’re starting out.

w Learn how to drive an ANT to refill energy at bases. It’s good way to get cheap points.

w When you’re considering a specialty later, consider being a galaxy pilot or a hacker. In the conflicts I’ve been in lately, both were in short supply, and they’re both vital.

This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page F22.