One of my first XBOX games, and well... GO MICROSOFT!
Like in Halo 1, you play as the Master Chief, a super soilder who's better with a gun than Jack Bauer and The Terminator put together. Plus, in Halo 2, you get to see ############ side of the story, by playing as the Arbiter. His story is that he was the one who was unable to stop the Chief from destroying the first Halo. The gameplay is great, you'll fight in a variety of locations, with many weapons whether they be human weapons or ############'s weapons. Along with the vibrating controller, the sounds of the weapons is phenomenal. The graphics are insane, but during cutscenes, they are still loading, so it ruins it a little, but if you ignore it and just play, it doesn't take away from the game at all. The multiplayer is great, you can set up in a game with up to 16 people online, or you can play with up to 4 of your mates split-screen. This is great, as you have a variety of levels, all varying in size, shape, and weapon placement. The sound is awesome, and is up there with memorable themes like Star Wars, or 007, and you'll be jumping to your PC trying desperately to find how to get the song legally, or illegally.
The bad stuff is that as forementioned, the cutscenes are a little sloppy, the story is over done, and it's too short.
For any fans, if you play on Legendary, there are 7 Secret Skulls or something, each with it's own power. Be careful, I heard one makes you go blind, I think that one is in the second level.
Overall, Halo 2 is a must own title for your XBOX, or if you have a 360, get it for that. It helps to have played Halo 1 to understand what's going on.