Your ass my size 24 hoof. Betcha cant's stick it! Grenade juggling and powerblades are all new and man are they BAAD!
It's here. The long wait is finally over, as Xbox owners will be able to stroll into their local game shop on Tuesday to pick up what might be the most highly anticipated game of all time. For the last three years, speculation and rumours have been all over the Internet, every screenshot and video has been obsessively analysed, and still people want to know more about Halo 2. The game's developer, Bungie, has done a masterful job of teasing the audience, offering up just enough information to keep them clambering for more. Now that it's finally here, there's one final question: was it worth the wait? In a word, yes. In two words, hell yeah!
For those of you who have just awoken from your coma, Halo 2 is the sequel to the most popular Xbox game of all time, which launched with the system and went on to redefine what gamers should expect from a console shooter. In some ways, though, calling Halo 2 a sequel lessens the importance of the game, which will undoubtedly stand as the greatest Xbox game of all time. Like the films "The Godfather 2" and "Aliens", Halo 2 is superior to its predecessor in many ways, impressively building on the universe introduced in the first game. Although most of the talk on game forums is about dual wielding, vehicle jacking, and other additions to the gameplay, nothing is more impressive than the game's story.
From the opening cutscene, all the way through to the end of the game, the folks at Bungie have crafted a tale that grabs you by throat and never lets go. In the first game, the story took a backseat to the fantastic action sequences, and although there were some interesting elements, the tale was essentially one of survival. It was effective, but I usually felt like the cutscenes were only in place to give you a break between battles. However, in Halo 2, the storyline is the centrepiece of the game, and you'll find that your fighting will serve as a vehicle to advance the plot, which has enough twists, turns, and surprises to keep you riveted from start to finish.
The game begins shortly after the final events of Halo, and everyone's favourite Spartan is finally getting a chance to relax onboard one of the human ships. During a medal ceremony, however, the dreaded Covenant begins to attack Earth, and Master Chief springs back into action. After performing some amazing feats of daring-do, the Chief ends up on Earth, only to find that ... wait, what am I doing? I'm sorry, but I just can't tell you any more. The less you know about the plot of the game, the better your experience will be. When I played through for the first time, I was completely engrossed as the story slowly unfolded before me. There's a reason that Bungie has taken such care in keeping the plot a secret, and I'm certainly not going to be the one to ruin it for everyone. You can be sure, however, that the writing is top-notch, from the story itself to the chatter on the battlefield. There are an estimated 17,000 lines of dialogue in the game, so you're guaranteed to hear something different every time you play.
As I mentioned before, there have been a few major changes to the gameplay that we all know and love, the biggest of which is the ability to wield two weapons at the same time. Of course, you can only dual wield small firearms like the pistol or the new submachine gun, as running around with two rocket launchers would be a little silly. While this might not sound like a big deal, it alters the game in more ways than one. You've got to figure out what combinations of weapons work best, as well as how to best use them. I found that using a plasma gun to knock down shields before administering the deathblow with a projectile weapon was extremely effective, but you can be sure that everyone will have their favourite pair.
While simply picking up two weapons and blasting away with both is a lot of fun at first, you'll quickly come to realize that you must stop and think about the most effective way to utilize them. If you unload with both at once, you'll do more damage, but you'll probably have to reload them at the same time, allowing your opponent to blast away at you. Staggering between left and right works very well, as you'll be able to fire one weapon while reloading the other. Some guns are more accurate than others, too, and the recoil of the SMG will inevitably force your aim upward if you lay on the trigger. Also, you shouldn't forget that dual-wielding would take away the ability to throw grenades, so you've got to take that into account when deciding whether you should pick up that Needler.
By now, you've probably heard that the Needler is stronger than it was in the previous game, but it's not the only weapon that's gotten a makeover. You can't zoom with the pistol (it would have made dual-wielding too confusing), but the new Battle Rifle makes up for that loss, allowing you to zoom and quickly fire three shot bursts. This makes it a nice all-purpose weapon, and its far more effective than the annoyingly wimpy Assault Rifle. The Covenant soldiers have a bevy of new weapons at their disposal, including a sniper rifle and all-purpose rifle, both of which fire plasma blasts. All in all, the weapons in Halo 2 are a marked improvement over those seen in the first game, and it will take you a while to master all of them.
The coolest new weapon, however, is the plasma sword, which can be used to instantly fell just about any enemy unfortunate enough to cross your path. The sword is simple to use, as all you have to do is pull the trigger within striking distance to lay the smackdown on a foe. However, when you want to guarantee a deathblow, simply wait until your reticule turns red, then strike to perform an extremely powerful lunge attack. As is the case with dual-wielding, the addition of the plasma sword brings a brand new element to the game, and you'll be forced to make some decisions when offered the chance to pick it up.
One of the best things about the first Halo was the ability to hop in a vehicle before attacking the Covenant troops, either by yourself or with some AI team-mates riding shotgun. Halo 2 actually puts more of an emphasis on vehicular combat, and there are even a few levels that make it mandatory. All of the vehicles from the first game return, along with a few new rides that are sure to make gearheads extremely happy. Most of the older vehicles were overhauled to make them more exciting, from the addition of a boost to the Ghost to the ability to perform aerial acrobatics in the Banshee.
If you see a vehicle you want to test drive, there's a new method for getting behind the wheel: just jack it. By simply holding down the X button when a foe approaches, you can hop onboard and kick them out of the driver's seat, then grab the controls yourself. While vehicle jacking is extremely satisfying, it's also fairly difficult at first, especially when dealing with the faster ones. Perfect timing is essential, of course, unless you don't mind becoming road pizza now and then. It's a great addition to the game, and the feeling of kicking an Elite out of a speeding Ghost is truly awesome.
Taking out an Elite is never easy, though, thanks to an excellent AI system. While the game's Normal difficulty mode is slightly easier than that of its predecessor, Heroic and Legendary are harder, ensuring that you'll have a challenge if that's what you desire. On the more difficult settings, the enemies will flank you, use decoys, and even hide behind objects to get the jump on you. To make things even harder, if you play on Legendary while in the Co-Op mode, you'll restart from the previous checkpoint any time either player dies, so you can't leapfrog your way through the level.
There are also quite a few new enemies to deal with, including the Brutes, who are powerful, ape-like creatures that can do some serious damage. There are also some new flying enemies that can quickly jump from wall to wall, sticking long enough to fire their weapons at you. Even the pitiful Grunts are stronger and smarter, although they'll still make you laugh when you overhear their chatter. We don't want to give anything away, but there are a few other foes that will be crossing your path.
While the single player game is amazing, it can't hold a candle to the game's deep multiplayer mode. One of the things that kept the original Halo in people's Xboxes for the last three years was the exciting, varied multiplayer action, and I know many gamers who still have system link parties. Most of the popular game types are back, including Capture the Flag and Slayer, and each has a wide variety of custom games for both team and single player matches. There is really a ridiculous amount of options for each game type, so it's virtually guaranteed that you'll never get tired of battling with your buddies.
By far, the biggest addition to the multiplayer side of the game is the ability to take your game online via Xbox Live. Gone are the days of getting everyone together at someone's house, then spending a good chunk of time bringing in TVs and Xboxes before linking them up. Instead, all you have to do is go online, hook up with your friends, and play all night long. To ensure that you'll be able to stay together, the team has implemented an effective party system that allows your group to keep playing together even as you switch maps, game types, or opponents. There's also the ability to permanently join a clan, so you and your pals can instantly jump into games with very little effort.
All of the online multiplayer elements are perfectly implemented, and there's never been a smoother Xbox Live game. I've been playing online for the last couple of days, and I have yet to kicked or dropped, even when playing against people on the other side of the country. Occasionally there is a little lag, but it won't hurt the experience very much. Hopefully, things will continue to run smoothly after the game's release, when Xbox Live will be flooded with eager players.
To many people, Halo was one of the nicest looking games on the system, perfectly showing off what Microsoft's powerful machine was capable of. Once those people get a glimpse of Halo 2, however, their jaws will hit the floor. Thanks to the wonders of the technology du jour, bump-mapping, every object, creature, and surface has a distinct texture that reflects light differently. Simply walking around the world is a joy, and you'll marvel over the level of detail on even the smallest elements of the game. There are occasionally some graphic hiccups, such as when a far off texture doesn't fill in as you approach it, but these are few and far between. Halo 2 is hands down the best looking game I've ever played on the Xbox.
Sound plays a huge part in the game, as well, and the audio engineers at Bungie have really outdone themselves this time. If you don't have surround sound yet, now is the perfect time to run out and buy a system. You won't regret it, especially when you hear an Elite sneaking up on you from behind for the first time. The directional sound is extremely impressive, as is the musical score. Every piece of music in the game fits perfectly, from the quiet strings during the slow moments to the rocking guitar that kicks in when you enter a battle. I thought that the original game had one of the best scores ever, but this one simply blows it out of the water.
After three years of wishing, hoping, and waiting, it's hard to believe that everyone will finally get a chance to play a true masterpiece of a game on the Xbox. The campaign mode introduces a ton of new elements, not only to the game itself, but also to the Halo universe as a whole. As for the multiplayer, you won't find a better Xbox Live experience anywhere, and you can be sure that Halo 2 will be topping the Live charts for years to come. If you want to see a perfect mix of everything that makes games great, from storytelling to graphics and audio, look no further than Halo 2.
