why are there no Elite appearances in Halo 3: ODST?

[Brooke]

i beat the entire game and im sad that i didnt get to see my favorite characters the elites i've seen their dead bodies here and there but i have not seen them in action. is there none to fight against or along with? sad day
the game is out. it was out September 22nd. so no elites eh? LAME!

 

[Necros]

No, you can not fight alongside them, but you can melee their dead bodies for amusement if you like. Teabagging is optional.

 

[lToaster]

2 of these answers are lame. The dead elite bodies are from the conflict that erupted between the brutes and the elites, if you notice there are always signs of a firefight between the two species. The elites have left Earth and because it's set between Halo 2 and 3, I would assume they are with the Ship-master elite. **They haven't gone to destroy the other rings yet**.