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Halo is Ageless

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 13 / 13
Date: August 16, 2002
Author: Amazon User

I've read most of the reviews here and have decided the majority are written by 12-24 year olds with various levels of game insight and spelling skills.

I'm a fifty-seven year old dad and a 30 year veteran of corporate wars, so here's my take on Halo.

I don't know squat about too many other video games (note to A Gamer - MS didn't pay me off, but I would take it if they did. So should you.), I wouldn't know a pixel from a fractal whatchamacallit, and I only use the word awesome to describe sunsets or God. But one thing I do know, Halo is extraordinary. Playing it alone or with a comrade is pure enjoyment.

Those evenings when I come home from another sortie into the jungle of work, I can pop in Halo, kick back, and blow away several hours of stress build-up by blowing away hundreds of those scabby bi-pedal creatures shlumping menacingly toward me at every turn (note to self - cancel meeting tomorrow with Marketing). Dude (excuse me), trudging across that dark frozen landscape with machine gun at port arms wary of an ambush, kneeling with the rocket launcher leveled at a Covenant tank, fighting my way through the Library, the Pillar of Autumn, the Covenant starship, driving a warthog on the beach, flying a banshee in the mountains, skulking through corridors, tunnels, and over bridges,...

Bottom line: Halo is guy therapy. (note to self - try to get out more.)

HALO is a Godsend to gamers everywhere!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 12 / 12
Date: November 06, 2001
Author: Amazon User

I must admit, I was very skeptical when I hear HALO was being moved from PC to XBOX. After playing the final version for the last week I can say this is honestly the best game I have ever played!!

I am a hardcore PC shooter fan, but after getting used to the controls I thought they played just as well as a keyboard/mouse! The graphics in this game? Phenomenal. The computer AI? WOW. The music? Fantastic.

When I first got in a fire-fight, and my marines started shouting tactical information (and all with their own unique voices) my jaw hit the floor. And to see my opponents using clever squad tactics against me was Awesome! And to play through the game on Legendary difficulty took me over 80 hours of continuous action-packed gameplay! And I am a FPS Veteran! Oh, and the story is very engrossing.

Buy this game and you will not regret it. HALO is honestly the BEST game I have ever played.

Addicting, enhanced for multiplayer, with the Xbox's power!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 13 / 14
Date: November 23, 2001
Author: Amazon User

Welcome to the world of Halo, where one supreme genetically enhanced human must fight to save the fate of the universe. You and your friends can play co-operative in the fight against the Flood and the Covenant. Play with your friends in split-screen versus matches that unleashes the almighty power of the Xbox to set a limit of 16 players, which can play simultaneously through either 4 Xbox's and 4 T.V., or through the internet.

First, Halo introduces a new meaning of how FPS (first person shooters) will be played. In the past Goldeneye intrigued many with it's cache of weapons that let players battle each other with the classic Bond theme. Perfect Dark set new standards of the numerous customizable ways to play. Red Faction incorporated fast-paced action that let one pound right through walls with explosive weapons. Halo has set the standard with all of the great ideas of the past now combined with a power gaming unit- the Xbox.

Second, in multiplayer players can choose pre-made game styles or customize their own type of game play. You get to choose to play either head-to-head, free-for-all match, or teamed play (the best choice). Teamwork is the factor of Halo. Players can choose to play with vehicles that include the Warthog- a all terrain mean machine truck that has the capacity to seat one driver, a gunman operating a swivel 3 barreled machine gun, and another can take the passenger seat and still shoot the weapon in their inventory. The Scorpion tank is doomsday machine of monstrous proportions- it can seat up to 5 people, 1 driving the tank that can shoot the cannon or shoot the secondary machine gun, 4 other passengers are seated on the outside exposed and can shoot their inventory weapon. The ghost is face light vehicle equipped with dual mounted plasma guns which only seats one person.

Third, if you're short of other players or just want to pump up the fun factor then you're in for a surprise. The power of the Xbox provides Internet game play only through broadband. Simple hook the Ethernet card to your DSL or cable modem with a Ethernet cord and prepare to enter a revolutionary way a of game play action. Team up in dividends of 2s, or 4s to fight each other to the maximum of 16 players that can play simultaneously.

In conclusion, if you enjoyed Goldeneye, Perfect Dark, Red Faction, or any other addicting FPS, then consider playing/renting/ or buying Halo. Get ready you are in for the ride of your life. Take the step into the future of gaming.

The must-have launch title for Xbox

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 11 / 11
Date: November 17, 2001
Author: Amazon User

Half-Life really didn't INVENT the sci-fi first-person shooter, but it sure did succeed at doing it well and popularizing the genre. The Playstation 2 had their stab at it known as Red Faction (a first-rate game, might I add) and now XBox is boarding the gravy-train with Halo. And I can safely say, after playing more 1st-person shooters than I care to mention, that Halo is a smashing success, as well as a benchmark by which future progress will be measured.

The graphics, though not running at the desired 60 fps, are still enough to make you stop and simply scan around using the right analog stick. The worlds in this game are awe-inspiring, as well as chock full of landscape objects and detail. And some of those landscape items make all the difference in the world. THIS is really where Halo shines, because you no longer need to stand toe-to-toe with an enemy to combat it, nor do you need to play peek-a-boo around walls & corners. Success at Halo depends on using the terrain & surroundings to your advantage as you progress. Duck behind a rock, circle around the rock to the nearest tree, sprint across to an indentation in the cliff face, the plethora of objects makes fighting so much more realistic and fun.

And it isn't only the terrain that makes it interesting, the enemy AI is extremely logical and doesn't pull the typical "charge right into you at gunpoint" or the "run around without any clue or reason to where I'm going." If you duck behing a tree, the opposition fire ceases, but take a peek and expect some fire to come your way. It's so simple, but rarely has the enemy AI been done this well to the point where it looks like they are following some sort of battle plan. And that goes for your backup also. The good guys will fall in behind you, lay down cover fire, strafe from point to point, and generally act like a real combat battalion instead of like simple cannon fodder. Refreshingly accurate!

The only disappointments are a fairly limited roster of enemy unit types, some atrocious control on the jeep-type vehicle, and the fact that often you won't really be informed of exactly what needs to be done next, though the game remains linear enough that aimless roaming does not last too long.

The XBox hype machine has been in high gear for this particular game, and rightfully so. It is certainly the launch title to have for the system (like Soul Calibur was for DC, and SSX for PS2) and is so far THE killer-app for the XBox. If you are at all inclined towards the 1st-person shooter genre, then by all means this should be at the very top of your must-buy game list.

THE BEST 1ST PERSON/3RD PERSON SHOOTER

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 12 / 13
Date: November 26, 2001
Author: Amazon User

I played this at the mall and wow. This game has awesome graphics, even better gameplay and (supposedly) has 26 multiplayer modes. There is also a huge variety of weapons including the assault rifle, and the energy rocket launcher. You can even jump into tanks and covenent fliers and blow some covenent scum right off the surface of HALO (the alien ring world where the game takes place.) You dont even have to rent this game; JUST BUY IT. It will undoubtedly be the best $[] you'll probably ever spend. This game also has a compelling story line which keeps you hooked to this game for hours at a time. the enemy is actually "smarter" than they are in most games. In the higher difficulty levels, the enemy knows when thier out-gunned and they hide and ambush you. if you throw a grenade, they'll run for cover. This game is so realistic, when your done playing, you'll feel like you were just on HAlO (especially with dolby digital surround sound.) It (gasp) even has a co-op mode which lets you and a friend take on the covenent together. This game isnt worth $[], its worth A hundred! get this game with your xbox, you wont be sorry.

I had my doubts, but I was proven wrong...

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 11 / 12
Date: January 01, 2002
Author: Amazon User

Halo rules. That's about as good as I can put it. I really had my doubts about this game, since the hype behind it was enormous and since most console first-person shooters (FPSes), with the glaring exception of N64's GoldenEye, do not play well with console controllers. But I was truly surprised when I first played Halo.

The graphics are absolutely incredible. The lighting effects, especially from the Covenant troops' energy weapons, are awesome, and the outdoor environments are absolutely breathtaking. The control is quite intuitive, even for players used to playing FPSes on the computer with keyboard and mouse, and has a very short learning curve to pick up. The sound is PHENOMENAL when hooked up to a Dolby Digital-enabled home theater setup. I heard explosions and combat all around me through my speakers, and really felt immersed in the action.

And there is a lot of action in this game. Halo definitely puts the "shoot" back in first-person shooter. Intense battles with smart AI (on both the aliens that you fight against and the human marines you fight with) mark this game. The vehicles in the game are truly a highlight, as they are wickedly fun to fly and drive around. But the absolutele best feature in the game is the cooperative play mode. It is incredibly fun to play this game with a buddy, going through the missions and taking out the aliens together! Halo is definitely the best cooperative play game this year.

About the only weak point in the game is that is gets a little repetitive about three quarters of the way through. SPOILER ALERT: Fighting the constant onslaught of the Flood got a little boring after a while since they all started to look the same and you kept blasting away over and over and over again. Still, this was a short part of the game anyway, so it didn't really detract too much from this awesome game.

All in all, Halo is easily one of the top five console games of 2001, if not THE best console game of the year. A truly fun experience and a great way to blow off some steam from a hard day at work. This is the best reason right now to buy an Xbox. And if Halo is a sign of things to come, it looks like we're going to see some truly amazing games for the Xbox over the next few years...

Instant Classic...

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 11 / 12
Date: December 03, 2004
Author: Amazon User

When HALO hit stores it was an instant classic selling millions. Its the reason I bought my XBOX, and I must say that I have been playing and enjoying this game for the past 3 years. That said I will go ahead and give the VALUE of this game a 10/10.
Now on to the rest.
Graphics: The background graphics AMAZED me. When playing this game I constantly find myself getting distracted by the beautiful distant landscape. And to top that off you get greatly rendered halo aliens and the Master Chief. The time that the graphics greatly dissapoint me are during the UGLY cut scenes that are thrown into the game. The cut scenes add a great deal of fun to the game...but all the humans look as if they're made out of blocks...rather dissapointing.
9.5/10
Gameplay: Original...I would have never thought about the LEFT thumbstick moving the player and the RIGHT to look around till I played halo. You also have the ability to change the controls...perhaps they could have given you the ability to completely customize the controls, but they have so many different options that it wouldnt really matter.
10/10
Sound: Good music. Good alien sounds. Good human sounds. What else can I say?
10/10
Multiplayer: GREAT. Be careful though, hooking up 4 xboxs with 15 other friends and lots of coke and pizza might just keep you up all night. NEVER play HALOS multiplayer on a school night.
10/10
Overall:9.9
NEAR perfect if it wern't for those cutscenes. And did I mention that the game is near bug-free? You wont be finding yourself stuck inside a wall in this game. OK, enough said...
RECCOMENDED

It's a decent game... But it's not the "best game ever."

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 33 / 58
Date: January 14, 2002
Author: Amazon User

I've always been a fan of Microsoft. Let the strong survive... And let the weak work for the strong through a corporate buyout. I have nothing but praise for their foray into the console gaming world, and their eventual conquest of this planet... Oh, you know it'll happen. So don't think this review is a biased against the company itself or the X Box console. I simply just don't see this game as being "Half Life 2" or "The greatest game ever made."

Halo is nice, and maybe revolutionary in some way I don't see, but it's in no way the best FPS ever made. Perhaps the best on a console, but as a normally computer-gamer, I just like having a bit "more" to my games.

The Game -

The game itself plays wonderfully. I don't have any complaints about the gameplay, though the game is short and has a lot less replay value then some would like you to believe. The levels eventually become repetitive, and like most console FPSs, just seem like you're beating one level by killing hoards of enemies, only so you can go to another level and do the same. I kinda got tired of doing that once, and have no real intention of doing it again to "experience the `awesome' AI's tactical variations."

There are some nice features added in for variety, though. The vehicles save this game from becoming boring. Each one is incredibly fun, though all are a bit hard to control at first. Once you get it down, however, you'll love running over, vaporizing, and landing on the endless amount of Covenant and The Flood troops.

In addition, the game designers have a nice sense of humor, and they'll randomly throw in things that will give you a laugh. When you see a Covenant member running down a hill, shooting into the sky shouting "Kill them all," you'll be to busy laughing after your first shot sends them in the other direction pleading for their life to actually chase after them. Also, pay close attention to the names of the various "levels" in each stage. "Cyborgs and AI Constructs First," and "Warning: Hitchhikers May be Escaped Convicts" all have subtle, but hilarious meanings.

Story -

Story has a lot to do with an FPS these days. You can't just send a guy running through Castle Wolfenstein to murder Nazis, just because they're Nazis, anymore. Halo's story was "nice," but wasn't anything I actually got into. If you compare it to something like Deus EX... Well, it can't be compared to Deus EX. The story just isn't as good as some things that have been done.

Multiplayer -

Halo's multiplayer cooperative option is great. Definitely better then playing the game alone. Granted, if you're like my friend and I, you'll probably end up "slipping" with your trigger finger, or "accidentally" not covering your friend as he or she runs into a group of enemies. If I could mention only one good thing about Halo, this would be it.

Regular multiplayer mode isn't that great with just two to four people. They have plenty of options to choose from, but all the maps are designed for massive amounts of people. It takes several minutes to find someone, and about five seconds to take them out, or die an agonizingly well rendered death. If you have sixteen friends in one game it'd be fun, but how many of your average gamers have friends... ... ... Uh, I mean sixteen friends... Honest...

Controls -

For a gaming system, the controls are nice. X Box's controller setup has borrowed from other controllers of the past, which means it has a "tried and true" design. The layout is well done, since they've eliminated the pointless tasks of trying to climb up platforms that so many FPSs have been filled with. The two trigger buttons for shooting and launching `nades, and the two joysticks for moving and sight are all you need 95% of the time.

AI -

The artificial intelligence in Halo may be better then most games, but just because a few Covenant can jump out of the way of a grenade doesn't mean it's impressive. I still found enemies walking around as if nothing happened when I picked off their "comrade" from afar. Plus, their shouts and screams are amusing at first, but really just end up becoming annoying... Though I suppose that increases the desire to take them out.

As for your own men... No complaints here. Nice to have a competent marine backing you up for once... Though they do have about as much health as you have shields, and they aren't nearly as consistent about jumping away from grenades as the enemy is.

Graphics -

Next to Dead or Alive III, Halo has the best graphics on the X Box right now. Everything looks stunning; from the weapons to the enemies. Nice touches, like the assault rifle actually displaying your current ammunition, or the plasma burns on the walls, add to the overall visual masterpiece that is Halo.

Sound -

The sound in Halo is incredible. There's nothing bad anyone can say about it, especially if you have surround sound. From enemy speeches, to explosions, to just the normal rapid firing of your weapon, I can't find anything to complain about.

In the End... -

Pros: Graphics, sound, good controls, cooperative mode, "little things."

Cons: No real replay value, AI isn't that impressive, the story is boring.

If you have an X Box, buy this. It's the best game on the console, and one of the best games on any console. However, don't buy an X Box just to play it. It's definitely not the best game of all time, and obviously not the best FPS of all time. It's good, just not great.

Wow... That was certainly long...

Rules the school...

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 10 / 11
Date: March 16, 2002
Author: Amazon User

Pretty much the best first person shooter to date, regardless of platform, and definitely worthy of the hype. I have to admit that I was initially skeptical about all the hyperbole when I got my XBox, since I've yet to see any FPS that actually worked well without a keyboard and mouse (including GoldenEye), and very few first person shooters managing to actually involve you in the story (except for Half-Life and Deus Ex). But Halo delivers on all fronts-the storyline and scripted events are tight, the level design is phenomenal (no idiotic boss battles a la Return to Castle Wolfenstein or platform jumping sequences), and pushes the envelopes of the genre in terms of enemy AI and graphics. Perhaps more than anything, Halo innovates-you experience squad combat with ally AI that is tight and pretty helpful, you can pilot virtually any vehicle in the game, levels are massive and varied, etc. Finally, this is the first shooter I've ever seen that actually makes you feel like you're in the midst of a war--there are several sections in the game where you literally are thrown in the middle of dozens of enemies battling with each other, and can alter the outcome of the battle through your action or inaction. Adding to the mayhem is the possibility of 2-player co-operative play through the missions, which is by far the most addictive feature I've seen in any first person shooter--I've literally melted days away with friends crouched in front of the XBox in unproductive Halo bliss...

Halo: Fufilling your gaming needs!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 10 / 11
Date: August 09, 2002
Author: Amazon User

You are the Master Chief, an elite soldier and Master Buttkicker aboard the human starship Pillar of Autumn. In your missions against The Covenant, you'll fight your way deep into Halo to discover its secrets before they do. Secrets that may best be left buried...

As you might expect, graphics are fan-frickin-tastic. Huge, convincing outdoor environments. Monsters that look like they've been decomposing at the bottom of a swamp for a century. And the frame rate remains perky...only towards the end of the game when things go bananas did I detect a bit of slowdown.

Oh yessssss...vehicles. In this game you are not just on foot, you get to drive vehicles occasionally too. There's a jeep, a tank, a hover vehicle, and a flying vehicle. This is a lot of fun, because the vehicles are easy to control once you get used to them, plus if you have any marines on your side, they will climb on to the side of your vehicle, or take up the gunnery position of the vehicle and chew up enemy forces.

There are multiplayer modes where you race other players in vehicles (Rally, Race), and many, many spins on deathmatching. My favorites are Stalker, where one player is invisible, and Phantoms, were all players are invisible (you use your radar and nav points to hunt down the invisible players). There are both team and free-for-all versions of most matches. And finally, yes, yes, oh God yes, you can play the single player campaign co-op.

Pros:
Single player campaign can be played co-op

Vehicles are a riot, and they're included in multiplayer (lots of multiplayer modes too)

Best control ever in a console shooter. Exclamation point.

Lots of multiplayer modes. No, really. LOTS of multiplayer modes.

Stunning graphics and clever use of models

Cons:
Architecture obviously repeated in places

No bots for multiplayer mode

Thanks for reading my review! Please tell me if it helped you in making your decision to buy HALO! :)

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