Malik
(4/20/04)
Halo: Combat Evolved (XBox)
From Bungie
For those unfamiliar with me; I
was (and still am) a hater of Microsoft. However, due to Star
Wars: KotOR, I changed my ways. Due to that, when this
was written, I was still in a state of obsession with all things
KOTOR. Enjoy.
This review originally was
presented on lazy.GEEKS (8/11/03)
Well, this is an oldie, but I
only recently gave in to "The Power of X", so this one is
a new game to me, who have spent much of our non-KOTOR gaming time
trapped within Halo. Most of you know this game, but for those who
never actually played it, I'll keep this short and to the point,
since you already should know the basics...if you don't, you suck.
Story
An FPS with a story? Usually it
turns out to be something simple along the lines of evil demons or
aliens trying to kill you and that's it...Halo seems to start that
way, but that's only the basic building point of the innovative and
exciting story. The story contains enough plausible plot twists and
surprises that will keep even the most easily disappointed game
player (like myself...what can I say, I get bitchy easily) on the
edge of their seats. It starts with you and your ship full of allies
(humans...the space marines or something like that) trying to
destroy the Covenant. The Covenant are a race (or multiple races) of
aliens who are basically the standard requirement for a FPS. You
hate them, they hate you. However, before long, I refuse to spoil
this great story for the uninitiated, your friends start to become
enemies, and your enemies are such small threats that you almost
root for them. Since everyone is after everyone, and you'll be so
accustomed to the strategies of the Covenant (making them the
easiest to kill) you'll hope they win the fights versus your other
foes. This story seem to start off similar to a standard Doom-type
game, but soon takes on elements of 2001 and Resident Evil (not in
that order). Before long, you will start realizing one important
fact; you have no friends (unless you play co-op) and things are
getting pretty damned scary. In a word, the story is
"amazing".
Graphics
Can a console make graphics
this nice?!? This is impossible. It looks too good to be a console
game. But it is! Oh yeah! The graphics are flawless and the finer
details (like if you shoot the wall, the blast mark or bullet holes
remain) are perfect. I cannot say how impressed I am with Halo. And
to think this was a launch title...as a friend once told me, if this
is a launch title, imagine the sequel. I think I'll cry for joy when
the sequel arrives next spring. Even on a 4 player split-screen
game, the graphics still look great in each and every split-screen.
Audio
The voice overs are well done.
The voice acting is not 100% perfect, but comes pretty darned close
(the only game I think has better voice acting is KOTOR!). The other
sounds are amazing. You will freak out when you hear some alien
voices off in the distance, and you will just about crap your pants
when you hear the soft sound of feet approaching.
Best of all is the music. The
unique blend of Gregorian-style chants with some classical music
themes will leave you in tranquility when things are slow going, but
the speed up in music when a battle starts will quickly get your
adrenaline pumping. Flawless is the only other thing I can say to
describe the music.
Game Play
FPS on console means poor
aiming, right? Wrong! The controls are simply enough that when I
played with some people who have no real concept of analogue
controls (people who haven't played on consoles for a couple
generations of consoles), they picked it up in only 30 or so
minutes. The aiming is well controlled (no Medal of Honor jerky
aiming here) and you can control your movement, aiming, and still
fire your gun and throw grenades at the same time with no slow down
to your character. Plus you still have a reload/action button, a
melee attack button, a flashlight on button, and a couple of other
buttons that require almost no effort to use. The Xbox controller
was made for Halo.
Also, while you're in a
vehicle, the controls are still easy and intuitive (makes me think
of Battlefield on the PC) and will keep you moving without having to
think about, "What button do I want to push?". Best of
all, you will have plenty of vehicles to use. Everything from jeeps,
to flying craft.
The only downside with this
game is the limitation in the weapons. When it gets down to it, you
will only have 8 or so weapons (not counting vehicle mounted ones).
Most of these weapons are also pretty crappy for all but maybe one
circumstance. The needler is crap, the plasma riffle tends to lack
the coolness of the assault riffle, and the sniper riffle is usually
impossible to use in single player as you are never given the chance
to get a good vantage point. However, the rocket launcher is pretty
sweet (especially in multiplayer), the assault riffle is impressive
in it's stopping power, the plasma pistol is pretty cool, and the
shotgun is insane (if you play co-op, be cautious of the other guy
when using the shotgun...too many times have I found a friend dead
on the end of my shotgun).
The absolute best part of Halo
is the many modes of multiplayer. You can go through everything from
2-player co-op (if you can go single player or co-op, go co-op...it
is the ideal way to play Halo) to something like 25 different
multi-player games that can include up to 16 people on 4 Xboxes on a
LAN. Split screen is actually
really good, even with 4 players per screen.
Long story short; the play
modes, the controls, and the variety of actions and weapons won't
leave you wanting more.
Conclusion
Well, to be blunt; this is the
best FPS on console and on PC that I've had the pleasure of selling
out and playing. The story is actually very intriguing in single
player/co-op mode, the graphics are brilliant, the audio is amazing,
the variety of game play is great, and the controls are down-right
perfect. This game truly lives up to the legend it has gained as the
killer of all other FPS games. So, I
have no choice but to give Halo, the bane of all Xbox haters, a
9.9/10 (it would get a 10 if
only there were more weapons and more vehicles in
multiplayer...which only gets the Warthog; the jeep like vehicle,
but that's what Halo2 is for). If you haven't, play Halo, and if you
have, you know how good it is.
Malik
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