Halo

Halo is the game that made the xbox. Had it not been for this genre defining game, the xbox would not be what it is today.

Halo comes to us from Bungie, formally a PC game making company. The story of Halo follows Master Chief, a big brick of super powered armor, who is woken up from his cryogenic nap because the ship has come under attack by an alien group that call themselves The Covenant. After fighting through a few aliens here and there, Master Chief makes it o the lost ship and lands on an enormous ring structure called Halo. Chief, along with his smarmy AI companion Cortana, make their way all over the ring and try to regroup the marines and go on a reunion tour and kick the aliens ass.

The gameplay of Halo makes the FPS for the console feasible. It’s reminiscent of the keyboard and mouse controls of a computer game. The controls are tight, and effective. While it does take a while to get used to them. Most shooters in this day and age follow the control scheme of Halo because of it’s simplicity. Halo sets itself apart from these shooters, even those that came after it, with it’s incredibly fierce AI.

Halo does allow for different difficulty levels, the most advanced called Legendary. It is indeed the stuff of Legend as it is still talked about with pride, or fear, among gamers today. Halo also makes itself known with expertly crafted levels, both in multiplayer and single player.

The single player campaign is one for the books, as it maintains some of the most memorable moments in game. Most of that comes from the imaginative and superb level design. Whether it’s storming the beach of an island, to fighting your way through a bridge while being harassed from another bridge that runs along side it all while being attacked by a Banshee. The character design is also easily recognizable, and simple. Players are immediately filled with a sense of horror as they come across an Elite, clad in golden armor as he charges toward them with energy sword drawn. This desperate struggle between player and energy sword guy is accompanied by an incredible soundtrack.

People throughout the world recognize the Halo melody as it has become that of household importance. The main Halo theme along with the rest of the score that complete the soundtrack, makes for welcome accompaniment. Like a buddy that you can play through the entire campaign with.

Speaking of….

Halo has a plethora of multiplayer options, including cooperative mode, where you can play split screen with a friend through the entire campaign mode and on any difficulty level. The multiplayer, however, does not have xbox live support, which is a bit of a let down as the game types and maps to play on with Halo are so much fun. Good thing they introduced that, along with some other features in the second game.

All in all, Halo is a fantastic game that is easy to pick up for the hardcore audience, and a good place to start for those looking to become hardcore. Halo combines all the things we really like about games like these. Action, adventure, tough AI, a host of impressive and interesting weaponry, and a sense of mystery and the unknown. If you don’t have this game, you probably don’t own an original xbox. Good news though, as at this years E3 during Microsoft’s press conference, they announced that the original Halo would be remade in HD, and with updated graphics. How about that?



Ten years? Wow!