Halo 2 Reviews

• Brilliant sequel with only a few flaws

  
  By A3V6Z4RCDGRC44 on 2004-11-15
  I just finished the full walkthrough for Halo 2, as well as played a number of multiplayer games. I'm finally ready with the review of this awesome game!
  
  First off, this is obviously the sequel to the hugely popular initial Halo game. You are Master Chief, a space marine who is sent out to battle the enemies. You are fighting the Covenant, who are your main foes, but you also run into the Flood, who are a space parasite that wants to eat all life. In addition, there are mechanical creatures on Halo who want to kill pretty much anything including the Flood. So each location and creature type has its own look, feel, attitudes and reactions.
  
  The graphics are simply gorgeous, from the rippling water to the clouds in the sky and reflections off of surfaces. I love taking screenshots of this game. The music is also extremely well done, in that the quality is always very high. But it's a little bizarre to be going from new age lilting softness in one heated battle to high intensity rock music in another and so on. It doesn't necessary track to the location you're in, either. It's just whatever the designers felt like putting in.
  
  The gameplay and plot is where this game really shines. Your characters that interact with you are simply BRILLIANT in how they each do what a real live creature would do. Grunts are my favorite - these little Covenant front-liners are brave and talkative when they're in groups, but when you whittle them down they suddenly turn and flee, shrieking at the top of their lungs. Your teammates leap into vehicles with you, either driving or shooting depending on your preference. They'll come alongside you to give you support, and duck for cover when appropriate.
  
  The quips the characters come out with mid-battle still make me laugh out loud. In one sequence you are the covenant Arbitor and are working your way through a room. You come across a pair of grunts and a jackal under attack, and take out the enemies. The grunt comes running to you in glee, shouting, "Arbitor! My savior!" Then he pauses and adds, "Jackal, say thank you to the Arbitor!" :)
  
  The cut scenes are equally as brilliant and are truly movie quality in the interactions. The timing, dialogue, everything is great. The little touches are everywhere. In one sequence, the Sergeant is preparing his troops to get ejected in pods down to the surface of Halo. He walks past the Master Chief's pod and thumps twice on it, as if to say "All OK in there, ready to go?" Right on beat, you see Master Chief inside his pod, thumping once back in response. You really forget that these are just computer generated characters.
  
  Multiplayer is the stellar addition to this release and there are reasons to be thrilled. You can play on a large variety of maps, in a number of styles, and there is even going to be downloadable content in the future.
  
  That all being said, there are of course a few non-stellar aspects to this release. First, the ending SUCKS. The first one was bad enough with its "Oh I bet there is another Halo out there" so you don't even feel like you really saved the world. In this one, not only is it not a "you're done but it's not over" ending - it's pretty much cut off mid-battle! That is INCREDIBLY frustrating for a gameplayer. Obviously they want you to buy Halo 3, but that's going to be a year or two away. Can't we have some satisfaction in the meantime?
  
  Next, the game is really short, even on normal mode. We had a friend start the game up Sunday morning at about 12:30 and he was done with the entire game by around 8. You can have fun replaying it on the harder levels, but that's a rather quick game.
  
  Finally, the multiplayer, while brilliant in concept, is lacking in implementation right now. There are two general ways to play - either you set up a game yourself for friends ONLY, or you launch into the ether to play a quick match. If you get up your own game you can control all the settings, but you can only invites people on your friends list. That limits the chances of having a full game unless you are VERY proactive in seeking friends. The quick match game only lets you make a few choices, and then in essence you are auto-connected with other people who are also actively seeking those game types. You can't browse or look. You just say "I want to play X type of game" and then you wait - literally for 5 minutes or more sometimes - as the servers gather together other people who are also actively seeking that game type. Then the game auto launches without you even knowing who is on your team or if you want to play with them. It's very frustrating to people who are used to the more customizeable lobby situations.
  
  Still, the online experience can always be tweaked going forward, and the base gameplay is amazingly good. I highly recommend the game to anyone who enjoys shooting / strategy games - but you might want to rent it for a week first, to see if what it offers to you after that point is going to keep you playing.
  
  

• Doesn't Match the First

  
  By A2WELXI7RO4R2D on 2004-11-27
  (SOME SPOILERS FOLLOW)
  "Halo 2" is a solid game in almost every respect and certainly stands head and shoulders above most other FPSs out there. That said, I couldn't help but feel nostalgic for the original throughout the game.
  Bungie has made a few changes to the game in this outing and, unfortunately, most of them were changes that shouldn't have been made.
  For starters, the dual-wielding capability doesn't add much to the game. With two guns in hand the player, understandably, can't throw grenades. But more frustrating is the fact that using the melee attack with two weapons causes you to toss the left one for no good reason. Furthermore, as other reviewers have posted, the guns really clutter up the screen. Even with only one, it seems to take up far more space than in "Halo: Combat Evolved".
  When the first game came out, one of the only consistent complaints was that the second half of the game reused level maps a lot. That didn't bother me too much, since the enemies, power-ups and available vehicles changed. In "Halo 2" the player doesn't do nearly so much backtracking, but they might as well have since every level looks just about the same, and most are quite boring. The only exception were the couple of Earth-city levels near the beginning. I was very, VERY disappointed to see the story leaving Earth for alien bases and other such linear environments so early on, especially since each level was so short. (After I'd finished the first three levels, I thought I was still on the first). The game took place in confined spaces and suffered a severe shortage of large-scale battles, open areas, and vehicles. But what made the first game so great was the free, open spaces where the player could tool around in a Warthog with allies or fly over everything and carpet-bomb them in a Banshee. (Also, the ability to hover in the Banshee, probably the most important move it could make, by holding back while pointing your nose to the ground seems to have been omitted in "Halo 2"). Frankly, there was too much of an emphasis on adding lots of new (unnecessary) weapons and vehicles. The first game was perfectly balanced, which is what made it such a phenomenal success. Here there's too much clutter.
  Much has been written about the multiplayer portion of this game. It must be said that it's a very strong selling point, offering a dizzying variety of options for play. However, the original also boosted most of the same capabilities. The one important addition has been the cooperative mode, which I think should be implemented in absolutely all FPSs developed on a console.
  Of course, a whole new engine has been developed for the sequel, and it shows. Textures are much more beautiful and character animation is slightly improved.
  The original game had a bare-bones story, which is appropriate for an FPS of this type, and what it had it told well. "Halo 2" puts perhaps slightly less emphasis on the story, but it's still at an appropriate level.
  Perhaps the biggest mistake the developers made though was pulling a "Metal Gear Solid 2" in the middle of the game. For multiple long stretches the player takes control of a Covenant Elite. I found that I couldn't wait to get past this part and return to what I considered the 'real' game with the Master Chief. It's not that this portion was poorly implemented- it wasn't. The Elite controls exactly the same and sports a 10-second optic camoflauge ability in lieu of a flashlight. The problem is that I just didn't care about him, his mission, or his part of the story. I wanted to follow the main character's story throughout.
  "Halo 2" is still a solid gameplay experience. Enemies are much tougher (as in, take more bullets to kill) on Normal Mode here than they were in "Halo: Combat Evolved", which felt a little unbalanced given your weapons' relatively low ammo capacity. However, one thing to be thankful for is the omission of any exceedingly annoying individual levels such as "The Library" from the original game. While the Flood does make an appearance, it's generally in the kind of moderation that allows it to be fun to play against and not the kind of highly-annoying patience-drainer it was the first time around.
  In truth, there's not a lot wrong with this game. It just seems that there was so much that could have been done in a sequel with the available engine and hardware that wasn't. How the development team chose to use their resources this time around was way off the mark, in my opinion, and I can only hope they re-evaluate the direction of their innovation in the succeeding game(s).
  "Halo 2" is the way to go if you're looking to buy an FPS for your Xbox and you already own "Halo: Combat Evolved" (at least until "Doom 3" comes out). However, in almost every way I recommend the original game over this one.
  
  

• First Impression? A little better than mediocre....

  
  By A31XNCNDCMX2H7 on 2004-11-10
  Bungie/Microsoft, I hope you are listening...
  
  I have played some multiplayer and some of the mission. But, already I can tell you that this game is not the huge leap we were looking for. I keep asking myself, "it took 3 years to come up with this"? Issues:
  - During the cut-scenes, things (usually characters) just pop into the picture after a short delay. I know they are using the gaming engine for this, but it obviously works so poorly that Bungie must have seen this in their testing. Why use the game engine? Just put a movie clip in there!
  - Dual Wielding is cool, but takes too much of the screen to show both guns. The perspective should have been better.
  - Graphics in multiplayer are not that great. At a distance, things look distorted (this is on a brand new Sony 57" HD Widescreen TV running my Xbox in HD Widescreen mode)
  - Can anyone else not understand the "creatures" when they talk?
  - The manual does not address basic issues like what the buttons do. For example, they say the white button is for "active camo", but never tell us what this is. My white button has always been used for a flashlight.....
  
  I will admit that I like the new weapons and I do like that the AI can drive the Warthog, even though the AI sometimes gets stuck. I also like that we can handicap a person in multiplayer. One of our team members is just naturally better than the rest of us so we can hold him back a little bit to make things fair.
  
  I hope that what is going on here is that Bungie is limited by the Xbox hardware and had to compromise. I am sure they will never admit this since they are owned by Microsoft, but it's gotta be true. Or, all of their talent left after the first Halo and they could not reproduce the results. Finally, maybe nothing could have lived up to the hype....
  
  Consider this game Halo 1.5 with Xbox Live capabilities and some new maps. We should have had this 18 months ago. Bungie, try again with Halo 3 on Xbox 2!!!!
  
  
  For your reference, I am not a diehard gamer. I am a 32 year old guy who likes to play video games with his buddies once a week. Eight of us usually play Halo via systemlink with two TV's. We have been playing Halo for a couple years now and have always had a great time. Since it came out, I have also played the Halo mission all the way through several times. Your mileage and preferences may vary....
  
  

• Pretty damn good

  
  By AFDLXGFVBUO4 on 2004-11-10
  I loved the original Halo. It had everything I wanted in a game. Good graphics, excellent story, and lots of action.
  Halo 2 is essentially its predecessor, except better. I know that sounds unlikely, but the few things that I didn't like about the original game such as bad Marine AI and monotonous maps are gone in this version.
  For example, I was playing last night, and I was on the second level where you and a team of Marines are going through an African city killing everything. A Marine in front of me gets killed as soon as he rounds a corner. Instead of charging ahead, the rest of the squad hugs the wall. So, I swap my sniper rifle for Sarge's auto rifle (another kickass feature, you can swap guns with marines). Since the Marines are better shots, Sarge charges ahead and takes out the Covenant sniper. The marines and I then charge ahead and waste the covenant.
  Here is a summary of cons and pros about the game.
  PROS: Marines are much, much more intelligent.
  You can swap guns with marines.
  marines can drive vehicles on their own now.
  the flood return
  AH TOO MANY TO LIST CANT LIST THEM ALL
  
  Cons: The only bad things I noticed so far were some minor graphial glitches, such as guns and vehicles sticking through walls. Also, every time it loads a charecter in a cutscene, a milisecond later the game seems to "draw" the person. It is kind of wierd looking, but in no way hurts the game.
  
  If you are into a good sci-fi story or lots of action get this game. Also, Halo 1 fans wont be dissapointed, all changes were for the better.
  
  

• AWESOME! Hey, pay attention (for Deaf)

  
  By A1XGO3KQYL9YI5 on 2004-11-09
  I got this game last night after the midnight from Gamestop (have to wait in long line!). This morning, I open the game and started play Halo 2 and I am very awe of it. The graphic is awesome. It has more activie and shooting against aliens (kinda like Halo 1 in some way, only better).
  
  Now, for deaf people out there (I am deaf too) that I would like to let you know that Halo 2 has SUBTITLE! You can go to "Set" mode and turn on subtitle on just like DVD movie. That part impressive me mostly and make me enjoyed Halo 2 more than Halo (I play Halo once and cannot find to turn subtitle on but Halo 2 has).
  
  Thank for reading
  
  
• Great game, but short of excellent
  By A38RC0VHK52LLA on 2004-11-14
  Ok, I bought this game with high expectations. For the most part, it met or even exceeded my expectations. But sadly, it misses some key components as well.
  
  GRAPHICS: 9/10. Mostly excellent. However, frame rates can slow down and som blurry seens can appear around otherwise beautiful graphics and textures.
  MUSIC: 10/10 I wish you could add custom tracks, but that wouldn't seem very Halo like. The music they do have though is the best ever in a video game to date that I've played.
  SOUND: 10/10 Also superior to any other game's sound to date. Especially if you have surround sound, it will feel as if you're actually there. I have no complaints about sound.
  GAMEPLAY(OFFLINE):8/10 Sadly, I was disappointed on the shortness of the campaign, although fun while it lasted. The ending was terrible, and makes you wonder if there will be a Halo 3. However, new guns and vehicles are great and options for multiplayer are much improved over the last.
  GAMEPLAY(LIVE): 10/10 The best online experience I've ever had, be it console or PC. There's always someone to play with, and the statistics, medals, clans, and message system are superior to any game ever made. If you have Live and don't have this game, you NEED to get it. And if you have this game and don't have Live you NEED to get Live.
  CONTROLS: 10/10 Just like the first Halo, flawless in controls
  
  
  
  OVERALL: 9/10. The campaign was a let-down to me after 4 years of waiting for this game. Even an above average single player game (which this is) is nothing compared to how excellent I thought it would be. However, LAN Parties and Xbox Live make this game gain back some of its excellence, in my opinion the superiority on Live and Graphics and Gameplay make this game worth buying, but give it realistic standards.
  
  
• First there was Halo then there was Halo 2
  By A1R6B2XC6GNQLI on 2004-11-10
  First of all I love the first Halo, I have beaten it on every level of difficulty. Halo 2 is great!! I just got it today and i allready love it. It is a bit different than Halo but basic ideas are the same, shoot shoot and shoot some more. The graphics are a bit of a dissapointment, in some of the cut scenes the detail takes a second to fully come up.
  
  Weapons:
  
  Dual weilding isnt what its all craked up to be, with human weapons theres no grenade throw, reloading is slow and to melee you drop one gun, some times its hard enough to remember to reload one gun and with two its even harder. Covenant its a bit different the plasma pistols are only as fast as your fingers are over heating is a big problem, plasma rifles are better and worse they over heat easier but its easier to fire you only have to pull the trigger,needlers are much like human weapons. My favorite human weapon the pistol now does not have a scope and it has dual wielding. There is no assault rifle but a battle rifle, it is a hybrid of a pistol and assault rifle it has a 2X scope very accurate holds 36 rounds per mag but lacks auto fire but 3 round bursts. The submachine guns are very cool fast fire dual weilding. Sniper rifle, Shotgun, Rocket launcher,and grenade have all stayed the same. There are many new covenant weapons and old ones needlers now hold 30 rounds. Vehicles have mostly stayed the same. I hear multy player is great and xbox live games to. Great game overall.
  
  
  
• Best Game on XBox So Far
  By A2ZPLPM5TMGM0D on 2004-12-06
  I do think this is the best game for the xbox so far. Some People may argue with that, but whatever. Its my opinion. Halo 2 has evolved greatly from Halo 1 (which was also an excellent game).
  
  The most obviouse and noticeable is the graphics. The lighting effects are incredible. When the Master Chief comes out of the shadows you notice the light reflection off his armor. It's amazing. Another graphic change that isn't a big deal, but it's something truely incredible is when characters talk, their mouths don't just bob up and down, it looks like they are actually speaking.
  
  The gameplay in Halo 2 is pretty much the same as Halo 1. The only acception is the ablity to dual wield two weapons at once. This can make a major difference while playing multiplayer. The only drawback to this new ability is you can no longer use grenades because your "free hand" is no longer free.
  
  The single player campain is great, but i can see why some people think it isn't up to par. In the first Halo, I enjoyed playing the missions over and over again. In Halo 2, it's fun to play them a lot, but i got sick of them, and, as in all FPS games, once the single player is over, its over. After defeating the game on legendary, they replay value is very low.
  
  At about that time, multiplayer becomes the greatest aspect in the game. It's blast to play with friends on split screen and system link. I could do that four hours on end. The real beauty of Halo 2's multiplayer is in its online play. I haven't had much experience with this, though, because I have a terrible internet connection and don't have XBox Live. I have played online at a friends house, and I could hardly leave it alone! There is really no gaming experience equal to getting an "un-freakin-believable" (25 kills without dieing) and then getting to rub it in while you view the stats screen.
  
  Bottom line: if you haven't already, buy this game!
  
  Graphics: 5/5
  
  Gameplay: 5/5
  
  SP story: 4/5
  
  Multiplayer: 5/5
  
  New features: 5/5
  
  
• Look out crack dealers, there's a new sheriff in town ...
  By A3NLIGPZH9AGAI on 2004-11-09
  
  
  Look out crack dealers, there's a new sheriff in town ... and its name is Halo 2.
  
  OK, so I got this game a little early and have played a lot of the Campaign, which is pretty much the same as last time with one significant twist, which I won't ruin for you. The real kicker with this game is the Live Multiplayer function. Once I started, I could not stop for eight hours. The Live Multiplayer is so good that my fiance will most likely leave me and I will probably lose my job beacuse it is so incredibly addictive. If you have ever had/been to a Halo I Party where you and up to 16 of your friends could blast the S**T out of each other, you know that having that capability "on tap" will threaten life as you now know it. Through the ranking system, they constantly challenge you with equal to better competitors. I am personally happy when I don't finish dead last in a Rumble Match -- whereas I used to be in the top 2 or 3 among my other Halo geek friends!
  
  I really cannot say enough good things about this game. If you want the most thrilling, addictive game EVER, buy Halo 2 and plug it in to XBOX LIVE ... I'll be waiting there to put a buckshot in your face.
  
  
• Good Stuff
  By A396AGNTCW1HX5 on 2004-11-22
  GREAT GAME.
  GRAPHICS: The Graphics have greatly improved since the original Halo. The bump-mapping has done a great deal for the game. Throw a plasma grenade on the ground and watch the lighting effects.
  10/10
  SOUND: I love the sound in this game, great music, and great sound effects. My only complaint is that the warthog sounds less "scary" and the smgs sound more like fully-auto cap guns instead of real guns. but other than that the sound is great.
  9.7/10
  GAMEPLAY: FUN! I love the new addition of dual weilding. I also like the way that you can board and enemy vehicle. These are just a couple of the many things that have greatly added to the already fun gameplay of HALO.
  10/10
  STORY (no spoilers): Good story. There have been many complaints about the ending...but I thought the story was very immersive. I loved it. Although the ending was SLIGHTLY dissapointing.
  9.8/10
  MULTIPLAYER: In Halo this was one of the main attractions. In Halo 2 multiplayer could have made a game. Its incredibly fun and addicting. Now with the new addition of LIVE you can play with new or old friends while on completely different continents. Multiplayer is what helped make this game what it is...a great game.
  10/10
  VALUE: Definatly a game that will keep you occupied for years.
  10/10
  OVERALL: Halo 2 leaves me completely breathless...well, it leaves me with enough breath to say "DAMN!"
  SCORE:9.9
  
  
• Want an HONEST review for a change?
  By A31RNA84IZABHK on 2005-03-29
  I'm a huge fan of the first Halo which I bought over a year ago for my computer and I STILL play online on a weekly basis. Sure, the story and structure of the campaign itself are lifted from the original Half Life, but as Picasso once said, "Good artists borrow, great artists steal." And while Halo's Campaign was great, the Multiplayer was even better.
  
  So when Halo 2 came out, I willingly fell into Microsoft's monopoly trap and bought an Xbox figuring the year it would take for it to come out on my computer would be unbearable. Boy what a disappointment. Here's why...
  
  REASON #1: THE CURSE OF THE VAPID SEQUEL
  
  Halo 2 campaign offers nothing new in terms of plot. Just a rehash of the same battles with the Covenant Aliens and some Flood zombies who seem a bit superfluous to the convoluted story-line. Sure you can now hold two weapons instead of just one, and you spend half the game as a covenant alien. But these are really superficial gimmicks. There was nothing substantially different or new to this game.
  
  REASON # 2: MICRO$HAFT
  
  First off, I had no idea Microsoft would actually have the nerve to charge me 10 dollars a month in order to play online. There isn't one PC game that charges me to play online. Why? Because I already pay my cable company for that! So why would Microsoft charge me for a service they don't even provide? Have you read the papers? That's what Microsoft is best at. Charging you for whatever they want because if you don't like it, and want to go somewhere else, you can't. Because they have so much capitol from previous monopolies, they can buy out an entire company for just one single game and only release that game for their own consoles. Which leads to my third disappointment with Halo 2...
  
  Reason #3: MICROSOFT MEDIOCRITY
  
  Bungie designed the interface of the first Halo and it's simple and intuitive. Wanna play online? Hit MULTIPLAYER and then hit SEARCH. Boom! A list of games going on all over the world appear on your screen, listed by server name, game map, game type (capture the flag, slayer, etc), number of players allowed, number of player slots available and server ping speed.
  
  In Halo 2, designed by the counter-intuitive geniuses at Microsoft this time rather than Bungie, you can't choose your map, you can't choose your server, or even your specific game type. They choose for you. Sound familiar?
  
  And the final reason I am disappointed by Halo 2, it's trite, but I'm passionate about it. Whether I have a head set or not, I am forced to listen to all the stupid, racist, sexist, childish, moronic comments the rest of the world decides to blurt from their ADD-inflicted mouths through my speaker system.
  
  At least in Halo 1, all the neo-nazi crap came in the form of text messaging which was easy to ignore as it was fast flying in the corner of your screen. But you can't block out voices without losing all your sound.
  
  Sorry guys, some of you might love this new version of Halo, but I'm going back to play Half Life 2 again, a sequel equal to the original. Let's just hope Microsoft doesn't buy out Sierra anytime soon.
  
  
• Spectacular Game...from one to 16 players!
  By AY0JK9Y31SO7M on 2004-11-12
  Okay first things first. This game is better than the original Halo by far, and being a huge PS2 gamer, I must admit this game blows away any FPS game for the PS2; the only game that will give this a challenge is TimeSplitters: Future Perfect.
  
  The graphics are a 9.7/10. The reason it's not a full 10 is because of some minor glitches were you sometimes walk up to a wall and the gun goes into the wall, but it doesn't have any effect on the actual gameplay.
  
  As for sound, that is a 10/10 hands down. The explosions, gun fires, even walking through water or on rocks is crystal clear and sounds like you're actually there, especially with surround sound.
  
  Now for what most of you probably will read this for...the gameplay. Okay, for the first person mode, the game doesn't last too long (about 10 hours should get it done), but that doesn't mean it's not a good game. There are several difficulty levels to make the game more challenging than the time before. The gun selection is decent, however new to Halo 2 is the ability to hold 2 guns at the same time (one in each hand unless it's a sniper, assault rifle, or missle launcher that requires both hands to hold) and with the L and R buttons, respectively, you can shoot either gun when you want. There's also a few twists in the story line that make the game a little more interesting, yet it seems to end a little prematurely.
  
  As for multiplayer (multiplayer as in with friends either on one X Box or with system link--I've yet to try X Box Live), it is, handsdown, the best I've seen (beating out Counter Strike for PC). You can customize your character in several aspects, making you unique from anyone else. There are, if I can remember, about 20 multiplayer maps each with their own cool feel. Vehicles are back and there's more!! About half of the levels are capable of having tanks and other vehicles, which make this game blow by the rest. You can customize what vehicles you want to be in a certain level. There are two types, basically the smaller vehicles and the bigger ones. You can have a Scorpion Tank in the level, and at the same time have 2 smaller vehicles like a Banshee (which flies) and a Ghost (which is IMO the best small vehicle). The only downside is that there are only 2 big vehicles to use, but the way you customize the levels with each one makes the game never get boring! The gun selection is pretty good, and most of the guns return from the original Halo but have been modified (either they look a little different or have heat-seeking ammunition).
  
  Multiplayer is easily the best mode (they have the jeep-like vehicle back-Warhog-which one person can be in the back shooting the machine gun while the other is driving). The game modes are pretty much the same, except they are named differently, but they did add a few more. Team matches (capture the flag, slayer-kill the other team-) are back and are probably the best way to play multiplayer. There really isn't anything I can say to put the game down, being such a huge PS2 fan. I was really impressed with this game, and as much as I hate to say it (it feels like being a Red Sox fan then becoming a Yankee fan) I think I'm going to buy an X Box just for Halo 2...it's really THAT amazing. (I'm a Sox fan btw-2004!!)
  
  If you want my honest opinion, aka you don't want to read all of what I've written above, you really don't need to rent this game. Go ahead and reserve it while you can and buy it - you definitely won't regret it even if you only remotely like FPS games. Graphics were overall astounding, sound was incredibly clear, and the gameplay is easily a 10/10 whether it's single player action or multiplayer. If you want a really good (actually the BEST FPS game) multiplayer game to play with friends on the weekends or during parties, this is easily a must have. No question.
  
  
• I am truly disappointed
  By A3OFCL2MRMASZM on 2004-11-09
  
  We played the first Halo as often as possible-- easily logging thousands of hours since the first release. Every weekend, at night during the week through system link-- I know everyone gets the picture. We were so amped up about Halo 2 because of the thought of new maps, some new guns, vehicles. We so eagerly anticipated the game, we pre-ordered it through a gaming company in Austin and waited in line at Midnight to get it.
  My best friend is an engineer and I am a builder- we dont play any other games on XBox, nintendo, PS2-- nothing- We would NEVER consider ourselves gamers excpet for this game. we decided to take off work on Tuesday (Nov 9) and play it late and the next day. we got home and popped it in and to be honest, it didn't take long to realize that Microsoft Kiddie-ized the game. The guns took a huge dive for the worse. You can't hit your opponent in the back of the head to kill him like you could in the first, the maps are cluttered. The new game engine takes away from the what Made Halo 1 so awesome.
  
  To put it in nutshell-- it is not any different than the other shooter games. Halo was technical, and required strategic planning and skill-- this is more like a Star Wars video game. Way too many stupid weapons that dont kill anyone-- the pistol is still here, but its worthiness is gone. Over all, It is a huge disappointment-- we actually went and ran errands today instead of playing it all day like we planned. We even looked to see if anyone was still playing Halo 1 online. We both agree the game is neat, but it Ain't Halo-worthy. It is not a total loss-- My 8 year old will love it. I don't think I will find myself wanting to Play Halo2 like I do Halo1. It is too Hollywood for us.
  
  
• I'll be honest - I think this game SUCKS.
  By A1RYA0X758PJHC on 2005-02-04
  Maybe I just don't enjoy FPS's like I used to. Maybe I expected too much. Perhaps games of yesterday that I grew up on (Diablo 2, MGS, and Rainbow Six even) spoiled me. Or perhaps I'm the only brave soul to offer a counterpoint to the masses' blinded eyes.
  
  I really dislike Halo 2.
  
  Come on, admit it. If there was no media hype, no one to talk with it about, and you played it by yourself with an open mind, you would wonder after an hour what you're doing too. If you played good games like the old ones I mentioned or Burnout 3, MK Deception, and Return to Castle Wolfenstein even (reinventing an old school classic, feller) maybe you'd see the light. Halo is nothing more than another Quake 2, another Half-Life 1. Games that supposedly reinvented Doom 1's formula, and made games mass market items. HA. I laugh at all you for wasting your money on these games, and ask you to pity me wasting fifty bucks on what was supposed to be "the best game ever". Never will I succumb to blinded critics again. Never! You all probably watched Titanic ten times too, and drool over Desperate Housewives and Extreme Makeover Home Edition. Not me, buddy. I judge things how I see em, not how the mass voice of media does.
  
  So for all you like me, straight seers, I recommend rethinking what games you buy. I realize this review will be assaulted by Halo lovers, but I only wish to offer a different view. My view.
  
  Peace out.
  
  
• Amazon Not Shipping Pre-ordered games
  By A29BVMZ01LHZN9 on 2004-11-10
  I see others are irritated by Amazon not shipping pre-ordered copies of Halo 2, so I thought I'd just add my voice to the chorus of jeers. When you pre-order a game you expect the game to be delivered in a timely fashion, not 5 days after the release date which is what it looks like Amazon is going to do with my order of Halo 2. Worse, I could easily run down to Best Buy and pick myself up a copy right off the shelf, but Amazon has placed my order into its "order cannot be canceled" mode. Its been in "processing for being shipped" for 3 days now with a delivery estimate of November 8th. I have written an e-mail to Amazon's customer service and have not gotten a response. This is the last time I'll pre-order a game from Amazon.
  
  ***UPDATE****
  I just received an apology e-mail from Amazon saying that they received their supplies late and that they are "currently processing the order" (whatever that means). I can understand that the game is very popular and there are a lot of orders to process, but still, that's why you offer pre-orders so you can anticipate this demand.
  
  
• great but not without flaws
  By AXXIA1Z95S7UD on 2004-11-11
  i am not a gamer but found the first halo to be above and beyond anything i had previously seen. i had my order in for halo 2 when it was due out in april.
  the game is a marvel. the graphics are better than anything i have seen and the controls are much smoother and easier to handle than the grand theft games. the addition of the double wielding guns is an advance but takes a significant amount of getting used too. i do have a problem seeing the surroundings while carrying both guns which is a nuisance and has caused me many deaths from unseen sources. though it is early for me in the game, i miss the health bar and find it incredibly annoying that i have to find cover to wait for the shield strength to rise. in halo, you could lose your shield but usually have enough health not to die on the next shot. in halo 2, death comes quickly after the shield is gone.
  
  still, the game is visually remarkable and far above anything i have seen in my limited experience.
  
  
  
  
• I dont know.... Is this Halo 2 or Halo expansion pak?
  By A9GX9N52A7KTI on 2004-11-11
  Dont get me wrong, its still Halo, but its not Halo on fire going 1000 miles per hour with ninja's chasing it, Like Bungie Said. I don't really understand all the 5 stars, unless those people never played the first one. My halo 1 disc is faded and probably warped, because I played it so much. We own 2 xbox's and have the system link and everything just because of Halo. Maybe we expected to much. Well onto Halo 2. From what I can tell they didn't do a whole lot with the weapons. Yes you can hold 2 which is pretty sweet, but not as cool as some people would have you believe (although having 2 needlers actually makes the needler not complete crap, But again you have to have 2 or it is still complete crap) They added a few new weapons, and the new battle rifle is sweet, but a couple weapons like the new covent sniper rifle feels a bit corny, it should be alot cooler, and not just shoot some little white dot, but what do you expect from the convent their guns run on AA batteries. And what the heck did they do to the shotgun?!? it looks like a flare gun! I must have missed something to, because I thought there was suppose to be like 5 different types of warthogs, one with snow skies and tank tracks, there is only 2(I havent finished it yet but I have only found 2) and the second one just has some rail gun on the back, not that inventive. And I was almost positive there was suppose to be ATV's. Now I can't say they lied because Im not one of those people that looked on the Bungie Website daily for info. but how cool would those have been? And then their was the convent missions, man those just plain sucked. I wanted to be done with it way way before it was over, and it just took forever. Plus, why would I want to be an elite anyway? I hope someone got fired for that one! haha. It left me wondering if they actually had this game done like 2 years ago and just sat on it so they could hype it, because they didnt do enough to it to take all that time. We should be on Halo 3 by now. I also agree with the one guy that said it wasnt open enough, I miss those big battlefields. Remeber that feeling that you got when they dropped you on the beach and you stormed the convent with your guns blazing and grenades rolling around and bodies flying and grunts screaming, and Elites laughing. Remember that!!! ya you wont get that in Halo 2... lets see what else can I complain about??? : ) no really the graphics are great, but long are the days where good graphics could push the game from good to great. And the new convent spetre is cool, and I like how you can get into the wraiths but they should have improved more.
  I havent really played to much of the multiplayer but im not that impressed again. Good thing they left in blood gultch and battle creek, and I havent seen all of them yet but I hope longest and the big snow level are there. Why wouldn't they just leave all the old ones the anyway? Some of the new levels are kind of weird but I hope they get better as we play them. Bungie dropped the ball here again though, they didnt put the option in to have BOTS so you could practice "Multi-Player" when you dont have people over to play. And ya I know you can get Xbox live for all that but I just dont understand what people think is so great about LIVE. I love when all my friends come over to my house and we sit down with like 4 tv's going and just play with each other, and yell and taunt one another, its a blast. What is so great about sitting in your room by yourself, shooting some moron kid, in France that you dont even know yelling through a headset. Or how about the guy that sits on Halo 2 23 hours a day and knows your respawn sites and knows were every good gun is and just murders you ever 7 seconds... Man what a blast and it only cost you 50 bucks a year for live, plus 40 a month for broadband! Please Sign me up! I guess you gotta have friends to use the lan party though, and if you play Live all the time you cant go out and make any... Sorry Im just mad because I think bungie sold out to Live and left the BOTS out on purpose so people like me would have to get Live to play the multiplayer option, well guess what not gonna happen. Guess I'll go back and play Perfect Dark again. Well anyway, if you have Halo 1 go get Halo 2, you'll like it, but its no even close to the 1st one in innovation. If you haven't played Halo 1 please get it, before you go and play Halo 2, Then and only then will you get the true Halo feeling down deep in your soul.
  
  
• My child saved for a piece of junk...
  By A2NLYPKCHZ0GU7 on 2004-11-11
  This toy sucked because when i got it it burst into flames and they wouldn't give my money back so i ran around their store crushing stuff so this toy is bad so don't buy it until it is cheaper.
  
  
• Multiplayer Halo 2 is nearly UNPLAYABLE
  By A1U4X8326MSH72 on 2004-11-12
  The weapons are too big and the screen Field Of View (FOV) is too small in this version of the game.
  
  Having played many Halo Nights with friends where we connect 4 Xboxes via Ethernet to play 16 player Halo, I am REALLY DISAPOINTED with the game play in Halo 2. It is nearly UNPLAYABLE in the tiny 1/4 screen.
  
  Sure the graphics a better but the game play SUCKS if one CAN'T SEE. I'd rather have reduced polygon characters and less textures and have a fun, PLAYABLE game.
  
  The map selection screen also got rid of the map size information. This is also disappointing.
  
  
  
• I can find better stuff in the trash dump
  By A340H40KL7X4OO on 2004-11-09
  What a load of crap, I waited for a few years for this to come out, as it was supposed to be better than the first. But this was junk. I already returned it to the vendor. This was like watching the Kansas City Royals play Tampa Bay... Otherwise known as a waste of time. DOnt buy it!!!!!!!!!!! or , return it if u did!!!!!!!!!!!!
  
  
• Phenomomenal
  By A1JLF5CNRDTJ5R on 2004-11-09
  I just bought the game this morning and haven't stopped playing it since. All the graphics and energy put into this game was great. Every detail must have been carefully designed to fit the game perfectly. The first halo was so good that I just knew the second had to be the greatest. I usually don't write reviews and im still playing but I just had to tell you guys what a great job you did on this game.
  
  
• HALO 2 is like a drug
  By A2W1NVBJWZYWIC on 2004-11-10
  a week before this game came out i told my friend that on november 9th i will fail out of school. he asked why. i told him HALO 2 is coming out and im going to play it for a week straight. what i said is happening. this game has so many things better then the first halo that i just cant stop playing. its got the dual guns which i think is so awesome. and the new aliens are so cool. i like the fact that its on earth an a city block it make you feel more comfortable when im playing. i would write more but i have to go play right now. if you have xbox buy halo 2 now because it wont be in stores for another 3 months. BYE BYE and have fun playing HALO 2
  
  
• Halo Sucks
  By AB82TJ90A0O6Z on 2004-11-12
  Halo 2 is even worse than Halo 1. Halo 2 is more unrealistic than the first. The vehicles are mainly the same and the guns are a little different. If you didnt like the firt Halo dont buy this because it is even stupider. They should have changed the name because it sounds like a game for girls. The grafics havent gotten better. If you like realistic shooting games get Conflict Veitnam. It is very realistic and theres 14 missions and over 40 weapons.
  
  
• Worst Game EVER
  By A2V9WPK7H5N5DZ on 2004-11-16
  This is by far the worst game ever. I will only beat it 5 more times ... Tonight. It is short, so short i beat it in an hour and a half. I have 3 preordered copies: 1 for my game collection, 1 to play, and 1 to set on fire. If i knew that this was such a heaping pile of [crap], I would have only bought two. (...)
  
  
• WORST GAME EVER
  By A2UG2MLXYFT3D1 on 2004-11-17
  This is the worst game I have ever, EVER, played in 15 years. This is just the biggest pile of steaming crape that i have ever seen. I would rathe rip my tounge out and eat it then play this mind numbing trash.
  
  
• This game sux
  By A3G5WTH44IWN8T on 2004-11-18
  I give it an F. Absolutely horrible. Don't waste your money. This is a glorified expansion pack.
  
  
• Halo 2 was a big let down... I hated it.
  By A2QBRK0PHXTPDJ on 2004-12-07
  Halo 2 is the most overrated game of all time. Ghost Recon 2 blows it out of the water. I returned Halo 2 after a couple of nights. It offers NOTHING new for a 1st person shooter.
  
  I have no clue why so many people like it so much. The online play was weak as well.
  
  Get Ghost Recon 2, much better game, with alot less hype.
  
  
• Halo 2 a disappointment...bungie didnt complete game
  By A3HL3LOYT90F42 on 2004-12-26
  I loved Halo Combat Evolved. Great game, good story line. Halo 2 has this enormous hype, I didnt even bother getting the game until juts recently...I was disappointed. The graphics of the 1st one were sketchy in some areas like the cutscenes, but it was a little better this time.
  Environment was destructible which was a plus. More variety of weapons...duel wielding is great. It sucks that you cant throw grenades, but what do you expect.
  The thing that made this game a disappointment was leaving Earth. Since 2 Christmases ago, I've been reading up on Halo 2. First they said it was going to be on Earth primarily. Not true. It was 3 levels of Earth (which were mediocre), followed by being aliens for 2 levels, then master chief, then aliens again. I skipped through the cut scenes because they were boring. The story didnt matter to me anymore.
  I saw someone play a level on the cd you get from xbox magazine, and it looked amazing. I didnt see that level at all. I believe Bungie were making this amazing game, but all this hype and pushing the release date back made people angry, so they had to release what they had.
  I heard of all this major bump mapping, but it didnt really make much difference to me, and I'm a 3d graphics major. I heard of a little ATV supposed to make an appearance, but didnt get to see it.
  All in all, I heard so much good things about this game, and halo 2 didnt deliver on half of it.
  The first cut scene was just too rediculous...master chief and the bomb...c'mon. major disappointment.
  
  
• what a waste of money
  By A2K49SERGJ5XRN on 2005-01-14
  I guess if you like bad scifi and don't mind mindnumbing stupidity this game is for you. I was told that this was great game. What a disappointment. The scenes are so chaotic that you can not follow along as to who you are supposed to be fighting, obviously the idiotic little aliens, or where you are supposed to be headed in this game.
  I have no problem with having to reload a weapon, but please give me a realistic amount of ammo to fight with. I also realize that you can be killed, but give me a fighting chance.
  I have told the person who recommended it to me to reimburse me, because this one is a waste of the money.
  
  
• Bungie sells out True Halo Fans
  By A3C8727K6PPIN on 2005-11-23
  If you have much experience with Halo: Combat Evolved, and enjoy the vast complexities and skill needed to play it well, then don't waist your time with Halo 2. It's not the same game at all. Here are three major problems (out of many, many more):
  1. NO SKILL REQUIRED. It no longer requires targeting skill to register a kill. Whereas in Halo: CE, you had to actually target the enemy with great accuracy, Halo 2 allows someone with no experience to jump into the game, be off target, and take out opponents. The playing filed has been completely leveled so that your grandmother or four year old sister can spank you up!
  2. POOR WEAPON CREATION. Take the "Energy Sword" for an example. On most maps, if you have it (and there's only one per map), you win (PERIOD). This thing has a targeting reticle that will activate at extremely long distances. The reticle turns red, you press the trigger, and you leap half way across the map with an instant kill! How's that for skills?
  3. MECHANICAL / STIFF GAME ACTION. All game movement, including vehicles, weapon fire and reloading, walking, running, etc., is no where near as real or fluid as the first game.
  
  Conclusion: All in all, this game is designed for the purpose of attracting a younger audience where there is not a learning or skill curve required. Its marketing campaign was huge, and it sold millions and millions, all based of the success of its predecessor: Halo: CE. I would suggest waiting before purchasing any new Halo editions! Tricks are for kids and so is Halo 2!
  
  
  

• The Halo Graphic Novel
• Halo 2: The Official Game Guide
• The Official Xbox Magazine [1-year]
• Electronic Gaming Monthly
• Play

• Halo: Combat Evolved
• Halo 3
• Xbox 360 Wireless Controller
• Gears Of War
• Xbox Core Console USM