Finally Halo 2 has arrived. It took forever but I am not dissapointed with the release. Everything is fun about this game, the gameplay to the physics. But the real gem of this title is the online. I have a 2 part reveiw, off and online. Offline: Following the story from Halo, you start in an armory with a brand new suit, the Mark 6. (Wow there are 6 of these things!) There you get the basic tutorial in how to move and things. Well just as predicted the Covenent decide to attack earth and guess what, you have to save it. The game almost throws you into action within the first 10 minutes of the game, and this time you actually start out with a gun, unlike in Halo. In the story mode you will be fighting on space ships, city streets, highways, on other Halos filled with the flood. (Sorry if I spoiled anything for you, but by now if you dont have a copy of this game you either dont have an xbox or are dead.) There are so many diffrent places to fight here that it never really gets repetitive like other FPS. Also throwing in some very good enemy AI and diffrent enemies and scenarios is also something to keep the repetitvity down. Also you dont just play as Master Chief, but as a covenent Elite. Which is kind of cool, i guess. Well you never really get to kill any humans when you are the covenent so i guess it is kind of lame. The sound is perfect. Every gun sounds unique. It is very satifiying killing an enemy grunt and hearing him scream. The graphics are beautiful. Each enviroment is rich with detail and will blow your mind, unless the enemies get to your mine first. Also there are no load times in between levels. The game runs at 30 frames a second, this allows for some very far draw distances with no lag, but people who have played the first Halo are used to 30 frames a second. For all you counter-strike people who need 60 frames a second a little note, you dont. The physicis are probably the funnest part of the game. They are pefect and even a little over-the-top sometimes, but that just adds to the enjoyment of the game. It is fun to watch your enemies bodys helplessly roll down and hill after you put a sniper bullet in their brains. Another cool feature is the duel weilding of weapons. Some weapons you can hold in both hands and make for some cool stratagy and fun gameplay. When you have a weapon in each hand, each trigger fires the weapons, the left fires the left weapon the right fires the right weapon. The only thing the story is lacking is length. 10 hours, max. For most FPS fans less. A little dissapointed with the ending, we now know there will be a Halo 3 so Bungie can milk the money cow some more. And hey I dont blame them, they already have sold 6.4 million copies of the game. Online: If you dont have XBL I feal sorry for you, you are missing so much of what this game has to offer. Well sucks to be you on with the reveiw. There are many diffrent game modes, there are the standard modes like Slayer and Team Slayer. Then CTF and assult. But you people have played it all, why should I buy this one, I should just stay to counter-strike or Unreal Tourny 2004. Well I have news for you, sure these game modes are in there and they are very fun, but they do get old. Thankfuly Bugie decided to make so many versions of them that you will keep playing them over and over and over agian. There are modes like team swords, and team phantom where everybody has active camo and cant be seen very easily. Also you can modify these kind of games so that you all have nothing but rocket launcher or plasma pistols, which alone even in Halo 2 are useless. Also you can create your own kind of game, and since there are going to be content downloads of new gameplay modes, the possiblities are basicly endless. But first some content has to be available. I can just keep dreaming. COME ON BUNGIE YOU SAID 2 WEEKS, ITS BEEN 2 MONTHS!!!!! Sorry got of topic there. The matchmaking system is very nice, it pits you agiant people of your level so you dont get killed by the god right away and never learn how to play the game because he is such a jerk he just laughs in your face as he blows you away. Despite the lacking story mode, this game delivers. But it isnt the best FPS ever, it has a long way to go, an offline botmatch would be nice, and online co-op would be nice. Oh and make it for 4 players as well. Still this game is great and should not be passed by anybody on this side of the dirt, buy this game if you have an x-box, no game collection should be without it.
By Madskillz999 | Review Date: Dec 23, 2005 | XBOX
I'm finally ready with the review of this awesome game! First off, this is obviously the sequel to the hugely popular initial Halo game. You are Master Chief, a space marine who is sent out to battle the enemies. You... Read Full Review
Halo 2 is a worthy sequel to Halo. While the story does lack in some parts, overall, the game is still excellent, one of the best games ever. To get the bad points out of the way, i didn't like the single player campaig... Read Full Review
