[QUOTE="Doctor-McNinja"] Why is it that whenever Halo is discussed, the expression 'it does nothing new!' always crops up? What did Uncharted 2 do which is new? What did MGS4 do which is new? What did Forza 3 do which is new, or practically any game released over the last few years?foxhound_fox
Yay for strawmans! I never said any of those games did anything new either.
Halo doesn't do anything new because that is what makes the formula WORK. If Halo tries to do something new, I can almost guarantee you that the fan-base will hate it.
Sometimes, innovation isn't important to success... and Halo is very well-known for not innovating anything. Which is one reason why it is so popular. Because it does everything that's been done before, all in one package. Just like Modern Warfare 1/2. Innovation doesn't necessitate invention. While Halo hasn't really 'invented' much for FPS's, it has plenty of innovation.The first one brought on the different control scheme, allowing you to melee, throw grenades, and fire your weapon without cycling through them. It also limited the amount of weapons you can carry. This dramatically changed gameplay. Whether it had been done before or not is irrelevant - Halo brought it to the consoles and made it a standard.
Halo 2 introduced dual-wielding to the franchise and brought on a Matchmaking and Party system that has yet to be topped by any other game (other than Halo 3). It also brought along regenerating health. Again, I'm not saying these things weren't around before, but you can't dis-spell them so easily.
Lastly, Halo 3 brought on the Theater and Forge modes. Which, contrary to popular belief here, the latter isn't a 'gimped' level editor. There have been extremely innovative creations done with both by the Community and you can't say that that's not innovation. So far, very few games on the consoles have had a Cinema mode, with Ninja Gaiden's poor excuse for a replay theater, and just recently Uncharted 2's Cinema mode. Still, none give you the freedom of roaming the map and choosing virtually any angle you please. Also, the game types that emerge through Halo's incredibly deep game settings is a testament to innovation. No mods needed.
The Halo franchise is pretty innovative. And if not inventors, they certainly don't play it safe. Though I do agree the core gameplay mechanics are growing a bit tired, hopefully 'Reach' will acess that.
Log in to comment