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These columns (as well as the 'releases') come from weekly content that we write for the Edmond Sun, out of Edmond, OK (though we live in Chicago). This page contains the archives for said column, many of which are in their pre-published, unedited state. Some titles and editing by Brendan Sinclair.

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'Halo 2' a great game alone, even better online
Friday, November 19, 2004

The success story of Halo is an odd one. The developer, Bungie Software, spent the majority of their existence making games solely for the Macintosh before being purchased by Microsoft in 2000 (with a few exceptions, including Oni for the Playstation 2). I was fortunate enough to play their Marathon and Myth series at the time, and can attest to their brilliance in game and art design, even back then. The audience was obviously limited though, and relatively few people got to experience and appreciate Bungie's work. It's no surprise then that even fewer people know that Halo was basically rebuilt from scratch for the Xbox launch, in about a year. Even though the game was rushed, it was easily the best launch title and was instantly loved due to it's engrossing single-player campaign and myriad multiplayer options. In fact, up until the release of Halo 2, which I will be writing about shortly, many would still consider it the best First Person Shooter of all time, as well as the best multiplayer game ever to grace a console. It's a testament to Bungie's divine skill that even their most rushed work is so widely appreciated and revered. So what of Halo 2, what of the game they've had a good three years to work on? Well, it's been consuming the last week of my life, night and day, so that should tell you something.

The single-player campaign, put bluntly, has still been rushed. It's not very long, the story isn't anything special, and the game doesn't really introduce anything new whatsoever to the genre. It does, however, refine the gameplay of the first Halo to a new level of coolness and coherence, and it makes for a very compelling, very entertaining journey nonetheless. It's not going to blow anyone's mind, and it doesn't revolutionize anything; it's just damn fun start to finish, and it's exactly what you want it to be. It's Halo 2. The hype was soul-crushing in the final weeks before release, and I think that people talked themselves into expecting something they would have never even imagined in the first place. I can't help feel a tad disappointed considering one of my favorite developers had three years to make a game and this is the result, but every time I boot up my Xbox the feeling goes away. If you stop and think about it you might get frustrated, but actually playing the game will immediately cure what ails you. It's fast and it's fun from start to finish, and that's all I really need in the end.

The design philosophy of the first game went something like this: make a fun thirty seconds of gameplay and stretch it out for an entire game. It worked there, and it works again here. You'll venture level to gorgeous level fighting small groups of bad guys in-between bits of exploration and narrative. Most battles play out similarly - melee-kill the first enemy you see before he notices you, throw a grenade at the rest, then fight off the remaining threats in hide-and-seek gun battles. It's nothing too dynamic, but the different combinations of weapons and bad guys you'll encounter guarantee that every fight is fun. Again, it doesn't stray too far from the first game, but it looks and sounds a hell of a lot better and plays just as well. You'll even hop out of Master Chief's green boots for a few levels (though I won't ruin it by saying whose you fill), pilot a couple of new vehicles (and much-improved old ones), and experience some very entertaining banter and animations from your allies. The world is still immersive, even if it is a bit myopic by design.

In the end, you'll have your fun in the single-player game in a time or two through it, maybe once more with a friend. It's great while it lasts, but arguably oddly, it's not where the meat of the game is. Though only four people out of a 50+ person team worked on it, the online multiplayer is where Halo 2 will find it's longevity, and when all is said and done, it's place in gaming history. The first Halo was VERY well-enjoyed amongst groups of friends offline, hosting LAN parties and the like, but the online experience this time around is nothing short of sublime. To be honest, I didn't even touch the single-player game until the day started creeping up to write about it - it's that addicting, and that easy to play, and stay, online. The system that they've pioneered and put in place is easily the best system ever for online gaming, and will no doubt be emulated endlessly in the years of gaming to come. In short, it eliminates having to find fun people to play with and cuts out the major step of having to scroll through lists of servers to find a good, smooth game. It keeps you playing with your friends, and gives you lots of ways to make new friends and go match-to-match with them. I could spend hours writing about all the details of it, but it's best experienced; just know that it's the most efficient and complete way of playing online yet imagined, and compliments all of the great new and old levels and modes perfectly. It will engulf your life, and it will certainly ruin relationships. As long as you pay your internet bill and Xbox Live account balance, you could probably go a good year without purchasing another game if you wanted to. It's that good.

Halo 2 is a great game, through and through. Did it live up to the hype? That's up to you, I guess. More importantly, does it matter? You'll get your money's worth and then some with this game, and if you go online with it you'll see what true addiction is about. There are many ways to create a nice story and slide a great-playing game around it, and it's been done before. This is a very well-produced, very wide-reaching take on it. The multiplayer really sets it's own standard though, and it's what we'll remember about the game a year from now. Hell, more likely than not it will still be spinning in our Xboxes.

- Nick


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