So, as we all know a certain game based on a certain franchise, is released tomorrow and unless you’ve completely sworn of media for the last month, odds are you know I’m talking about Halo. While I am among the many who eagerly await the final trot of the Master Chief, I’ve tried to avoid all exposure to reviews and spoilers as possible. That being said, I have been keeping up with the general hype machine and responses to the hype machine which I’ve found fascinating.
Understandably, I think a lot of people are really annoyed by Microsoft’s… let’s say… over-elaborate advertising campaign. I mean Mountain Dew cans… REALLY? I’m afraid that all this advertisement may actually dissuade some people who were initially interested, if for no other reason than the “there’s no way I can look at this green guy’s face anymore!” factor. I can understand that, heck I can even sympathize with that. If you don’t like it, that’s fine, you can’t please all of the people all of the time… but of course I’m gonna try to convince you anyway…. because it’s fun.
So, that being said, and since I’m PERSONALLY going stir crazy for something Halo related, I thought I’d outline some clear, thought out reasons that I enjoy the series as much as I do and give some comparisons to some of the nearest competitors.
Halo, to me at least, is primarily about two things. Awe inspiring wandering interspersed with fun, creative, open combat. Make no mistake, both are necessary (and what sets it apart from other games in the same genre). The first time I played the game, I spent a half hour just driving around the 2nd level in the Warthog (re: jeep) in a hilly area. Open worlds are key to the series success, and a large part of the reason the 2nd game is generally considered inferior. Compare this to Gears of War or even Half Life (both of which are excellent games, but which I consider inferior to Halo). While all three series propel the story on linear paths through a level, Halo feels larger and grander. The typical battlefield in Halo is a field, as opposed to Gears or Half Life, which are both typically roads. Both are linear, but the field gives you more possibilities to approach the situation. Which leads me to combat.
I always thought the Combat Evolved meta title for the original game was brilliant in that it was a precise description of what I thought Halo was. The game had, what I like to call, sandbox fighting. Much like the way sandbox games give you an open world to tackle, the fights in Halo always had a free flowing spirit to them. Every battle field was a self contained playground with “you” on one side, “them” on the other, and a small smattering of vehicles for good measure. The illusion of this sandbox fighting is due in equal parts to the environment (which I’ve already spoken of) and the AI. The AI’s penchant to dive, run and retreat around the environment is really what make the battles malleable and unique. Again, compare this to a game like Gears and I motion that the difference you notice will be substantial. I can’t count the number of times that enemies in that game have simply “hid” right in front of the rock I was standing behind. Worse still is Half Life where the enemies really have barely any AI to speak of. In fact, in both those games, there only ever seems to be one or two ways to approach a battle.
In all the other areas that count (graphics, story, etc) Halo is a serviceable series. The graphics aren’t as “good” traditionally as Gears, though I maintain that Gears has a horribly sloppy framerate (especially in cinemas). Likewise the story isn’t really anything too special, but you know what? The way it’s presented makes it interesting, which is really what counts. I mean, how interesting is the story in Star Wars or Indiana Jones? The Chief is cool too, and really more of a placeholder for the player than a real character in and of himself (sort of like Gordon Freeman). Conversely, I should mention I think Marcus Fenix and his “trying too hard to be a badass” personality makes him a douche.
So now Halo 3 is coming about, and I’m convinced that the developers really understand this thing they’ve made and the reason it’s successful. Why am I so convinced? Look at what they’ve added for the new version… more open environments, a collection of tools that can be used in a variety of ways, a level editor that one can use in the middle of a GAME. All of these things tell me that the designers want to make the experience more malleable, which in turn tells me they’re focused on the right areas.
So, I guess that’s it for my little rant. In the end, I think my opinion is that the combination of things Halo does right, is what makes the game so fun, and the fact that it does it fairly traditionally is what amazes me most. The fact that it felt like I was making my own battles, as opposed to playing them out the way the developers had wanted me to, is really the epitome of my argument here. My advice is ignore the hype, but enjoy the game.
Tuesday can’t come soon enough.
