Yes, as the blog title suggests, I am going to do a blog dedicated to Halo. Now you probably thinking one of two things:

1) Oh yeah, Halo is awesome, it owns!!!!

or alternatively

2) Halo!? Doesn't that series get enough praise already!

Both of these responses, are correct, the series is overrated and praised way too much. However this blog isn't for Halo as a franchise, this is dedicated to the game that started it all, Halo Combat Evolved. Halo is one of my top favourite games of all time, and I am here to explain why, and how it differs from the rest of the games.



Please be warned though this blog does contain spoilers, so:
***READ AT YOUR OWN RISK***
[spoiler] Final [/spoiler]
[spoiler] Warning [/spoiler]
[spoiler] Spoilers Ahead :P [/spoiler]

Despite how generic Halo is these days, Halo back then was pretty original and really amazed me. Well maybe not exactly original, but it did amaze me. Shield generation was new to me, it had massive levels and loads of enemies. The gameplay is pretty simple, and not too difficult to figure out, in which shoot as many enemies as possible and move on. Although it may seem dull, it is pretty fun with someone else, which is what I did.

The music is amazing, it really worked well with the atmosphere of the game and I have to hand it to the Halo games for keeping up with this great soundtrack. The halo theme is one of the most epic themes I have ever heard.

Now the storyline, this is where it differs from the other Halo's. From the moment you wake up, you engage right into the storyline, you discover that the humans are at war against an alien civilization (the convenant) and smack in the middle of an attack. Throughout the game, you discover many plotlines and really engage in what is happening in the Halo universe. The build up to the flood and the halo being a super weapon are my personal favourites. In the midst of all of this, you have the humans fighting a war, but appear to be losing as well and even kill the captain. This makes the role of Master Chief more valuable, and really feels as though you (the Spartan) are changing the tides of the battle one step at the time, and stand in the hopes of all of humanity.

But is he really? In the Halo campaign, the flood is released, and the humans are introduced to an even powerful enemy despite losing the war to the convenant. They learn what the true nature of a halo is, and Keys (the leader you are introduced to at the start of the game) dies right in front of you. But, as dark as that may be, this is just the build up to the most epic endings of a video game I have ever witnessed. You are in the warthog, you have stopped the halo from being activated, your main goal is simple, escape. While escaping, you have the convenant and the flood at war with each other. To make things worse, the ship (your ride) gets blown down midway through the level, when you thought it was all over.

The humans didn't get their way, but neither did the convenant or the flood. It was a stale mate. A twist, which was a bit depressing, but really epic, if you look back. The humans were losing, the flood acted as a catalyst and this Spartan, only one Spartan changed the odds and single handedly defeated the convenant and the flood but at a loss of many lives.

Halo 2 and 3 didn't do this. Halo 2 felt as though the humans seemed more powerful, and felt as though Master Chiefs power wasn't as meaningful as it was in the first, and mainly just another soldier in the fight. Halo 2 didn't really have many twists. It was basically the humans slowly, but surely gaining power. Halo 3 felt really distant. Halo 3 did try to reenact the final scene in the original Halo, but failed to have the same effect. Halo ODST was very distant, and actually was pretty mediocre. It had a lot of interesting concepts, but it wasn't Halo. I have yet to play Halo Wars and still waiting for what Halo Reach has to offer.

If you really want to know where I put the Halo games on the scale, here it is:

Halo >>>>>>>>>>>>>> Halo 3 >>>> Halo 2 >>>>>> >Halo ODST

Now, what do I think of the Halo series overall? Actually I am quite impressed. I liked how they ended the series and I enjoyed a lot of the concepts and ideas provoked in the series. I may think the first Halo had a better story than Halo 2 and 3 but they are, by no means, bad. Halo CE, I guess, just pulled me in more and I was emotionally more sucked into the story. I have already explained (well tried to explain) why that is. :)

Well there you have it, that is my take on Halo, and the Halo series. Some will agree with me, most will not, and even more probably won't even read it considering the comment/no of friends ratio :P

For those who did though, thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed my little tribute :)