1 - The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.69960#676220]
2 - Harvie Krumpet [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.70751#701645]
3 - The White Chamber [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.71432#723554]
4 - WALL-E [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.71895]
5 ? The Life of D. Duck [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.72595]
6 ? JetSet Radio Future [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.73006]
7 - Star Wars: Battlefront (1 and 2) [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/jump/326.73287.790938]
8 - Bioshock [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.80646]
2 - Harvie Krumpet [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.70751#701645]
3 - The White Chamber [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.71432#723554]
4 - WALL-E [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.71895]
5 ? The Life of D. Duck [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.72595]
6 ? JetSet Radio Future [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.73006]
7 - Star Wars: Battlefront (1 and 2) [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/jump/326.73287.790938]
8 - Bioshock [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.80646]
I am, of course, talking about Halo.
I was hoping to review the entire trilogy in one go, but I figured every reply would be ?tl;dr?. Therefore, I will release separate reviews, hopefully in its own successive trilogy.
Now, advice given to me in my last review states that I should shut up with the epic (in the true definition of the word) intro, so without further ado:
Lord Krunk Reviews: Halo ? Combat Evolved
It is some time in the future, where a large offscreen battle has taken place between two warring factions: the Humans (us) and the Covenant ? an army of religious warmongers from beyond the stars.
The last remaining humans in that battle, aboard a ship called the Pillar of Autumn, have blindly hyperspace jumped in a random direction, with the hopes of losing their attackers.
Knowing that the Covenant is in hot pursuit, and with little hope remaining for their survival, the Captain of the ship orders the awakening of the Master Chief, an experimental gravity-defying supersoldier, in order to aid them in their upcoming battle. However, the Captain seems to be more interested in the ring-like construct that floats nearby?
Halo: Combat Evolved is a rather engaging game in that it solidly refuses to hold back on the action and classic shock-tactics to maintain a generally fast pace and enemies that, while repetitively appearing, continue to be obscenely good fun to fight time and time again. The gameplay is handled quite well; I have had no issues with the controls, and they can be used with precision and ease. Anyone can assume the role of the Master Chief and feel like an awesome and powerful supersoldier (take, for example, my grandma), and I think that deserves kudos for that in particular. Not only is the one-man-run-and-gun bullet pumping a fun and worthwhile experience, but so are the driving segments. I must say, from an experienced gamers? point of view, that the Halo franchise are one of the only games that have made driving segments fun, and even its counterpart, Half-Life, never quite seemed to match up.
Which leads me to the scenery. You would think that being an FPS, you would be solely focused on killing things, but I rather enjoy stopping in an open space and viewing the gigantic planet hovering kilometers above my head, the eponymous ring that towers around me and the interesting architecture of Halo, The Covenant or the Humans of the future. While the graphics of Halo: Combat Evolved are certainly nowhere near that of today?s games (and rightly so, considering its age), the art and scenery are beautiful.
Another interesting aspect of this game would have to be its simplicity. While other FPS?s in the genre, such as Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and Counter-Strike have similar looking weapons with names that are hard to remember or distinguish, Halo leans toward extremely distinguishable and simply named weapons and vehicles that are quite memorable. Weapons/vehicles/enemies are even colour-coded, decreasing the in-game confusion that so many games struggle to remove.
The music of Halo: Combat Evolved helps to place you in the shoes of the Master Chief quite significantly, and oozes atmosphere and a feeling of foreboding in many instances. A particular moment that sticks out musically is the end of the game, which involves you driving in a time limit, the world collapsing around you and the theme blaring in the background, quickening the pace and turning what could have easily been a disaster of a finale into a rather memorable, hectic and fun race against time. For best results, play through this scene on the Legendary difficulty.
This leads me to Halo?s four difficulty settings: Easy, Normal, Heroic and Legendary. These difficulties are nicely and evenly distributed on the Scale of Hardness[sup]TM[/sup], and one can easily work out what difficulty is for them. Easy is for FPS beginners, or the type of person that enjoys charging into battle with security. Normal is still relatively simple, as you can still charge into battle, but you might want to watch your back and keep an eye out on your health/shield meters if you want to survive. Heroic is complex; you do not want to charge in without noting your surroundings and being prepared for any situation. Practice with your headshots; because they are the key to your survival. Legendary is frustrating, especially in particular levels, but do-able with patience, quick movements and a good game plan.
And finally, the multiplayer component of the game is amazingly good fun. It is also quite possibly the highlight of Halo: Combat Evolved, if not the highlight of the whole trilogy, and is excellent for parties, get-togethers and the like, provided that you have a lot of controllers, and possibly able to System Link. Fast paced and hectic, you will find yourself sweating when the going gets tough. Definitely worth a try, if you have a friend or two around (and if you can stand splitscreen for that matter).
As brief as it was, the tank part was awesome.
And yet, while Halo: Combat Evolved has many excellent aspects, there are also many aspects which drops the fun of the game, and thus are rather disappointing.
Firstly, while lacking in plot holes (so far), Halo has been done before. While creative and innovative (to an extent) in its features and design, you just can?t help but have pangs of déjà vu at many intervals in the game. Zombies? Check. Evil aliens? Check. At least one kind of super-weapon or super-device? Check. One of the main flaws of Halo are the clichés, which are unfortunately prominent throughout the game. Also in the field of creativity (or therein lack of) is the issue regarding copy-paste environments. The first six levels are quite diverse and distinguishable (Assault on the Control Room being rather repetitive, however), the final four are pretty much repetitive backtracking through some of the previous levels, and can get quite annoying. The final level subverts this somewhat, but is still pretty similar to the first.
Halo also disappoints in regard to characters and voice acting. While some characters are fun to listen to (Sgt. Johnson, Foehammer), there are some badly voiced characters with unintentionally humorous dialogue. And then there are some characters that are downright annoying (Cortana), which doesn?t help.
The game has its issues regarding glitches and technical flaws (some scenes can make a 360 lag. A 360!), but the AI stands out as a big issue that really needs to be fixed. I have had problems with my allies chucking grenades at me, shooting me when I am standing in front of an enemy constantly, and some not quite getting the hint that they should stick with me if they want to survive. While fixable, a game so renowned should not need fixing this much.
The final issue I have with the game (and with the entire trilogy, in fact), is the problem with Bungie?s persistence to port the game to the PC way too late. By the time it came out it was too late, and Halo found itself vastly outshone by similar games of the genre.
They never included the Flamethrower in the Xbox version. I hate that with a vengeance.
Halo is, essentially, something that has been done many times before, but the way it is executed is with style. I must say that nothing quite matches the feeling of taking down two Covenant Hunters with an Assault Rifle on Legendary.
All in all, Halo: Combat Evolved, while having many harsh issues, is still a game worth playing. Looking around the shops the other day, I found a few copies for AUS$5, which makes me strongly suggest that you Buy It. Some may dislike this game, but being at that price, does it really make a difference?
Please take note that I played the game through every difficulty (yes, Legendary included) in order to write this review. *sigh*
Now to start doing the same with Halo 2...
Now to start doing the same with Halo 2...