Halo 2. The single-most hyped, anticipated game of this generation -- perhaps any -- has drawn a lot of fire from nay-sayers, particularly from the "cows", PS2 fanboys. I figure that they're simply jealous because the closest thing that PS2 has, or will ever have to Halo 2, is the unremarkable looking Killzone. I can understand why the "hermits", PC fanboys, would be underwhelmed with Halo 2, and that's because PC shooters have made a lot of ground in recent years and in all actuality, Halo 2 is nothing they haven't already seen a thousand times. Cows however are just jealous. But I'm not here to talk about fanboys, I'm here to talk about why Halo 2 WILL be a great game.

Let's start with the most obvious: Multiplayer. Halo 2's multiplayer will be leagues above that found in the original Halo. Halo's multiplayer, while extremely fun in it's own right, felt like it was just sort of tacked on at the end. Halo 2's multiplayer is going to be an integral part of the game. Two particularly noteworthy features are Optimatch and the "party" system. With Optimatch, there's no more scrolling through lists of available game types to find one that suits you. The game will automatically pit you against players of similar skill and similar favorite game types. If you and one other player are running neck and neck for first place, the optimatch may pit you against that player in a 1 on 1 fight to the death in the next round. The party system allows you to travel from game to game with a group of friends and eliminates the hassle of arranging yourselves for another game, which is a great and welcome mechanic, especially for those in clans.

The only thing we don't know too much about is the single player portion. While some say that it's because it's too crappy to show, if history is any indication, then that is certainly not the case with Bungie behind the wheel. Halo was an excellent game that even now is surrounded by hype. Bungie was given the monumental task of making it better, and I have a feeling that's what they're doing. They want to keep the story under wraps. Fine, I understand that...I wouldn't want the story ruined for me. I do wish they'd divulge SOME details, but if they'd rather keep single player a secret, then by all means, they should do so. It will make that much more impact when it is unleased upon the world.