Halo was the supposed "killer app" on Microsoft's then fledgling Xbox console, redefining the console FPS and taking the crown from the reigning champ, Goldeneye. I tried out multiplayer once or twice and liked it well enough, but didn't give the game a fair shot until I picked up my own Xbox a couple of years later. And I have to say...it lives up to the hype.
For me, Halo truly shines in the single player campaign, not only making the first-person shooter genre really work on a console, but also deftly tying gameplay to a great science fiction story. You play as a genetically enhanced "super-soldier" fighting aliens known as the Covenant, and you are referred to as simply Master Chief. After escaping from a losing battle via starship, you end up crash landing on Halo—an artificial ring shaped planet. As you continue to fight the Covenant, you slowly discover Halo's purpose and why it was created in the first place.
Borrowing heavily from Aliens—particularly the depiction of Space Marines—Halo feels like an epic sci-fi action movie and compares well with the best in the genre. The music is similarly cinematic, and changes on the fly depending on what you are doing in the game.
Story aside, Halo is just a very good design for a game. From the aliens to the weapons and vehicles to the architecture of Halo itself, everything is not only ascetically pleasing but plausible. Halo is also influential in streamlining the FPS genre for consoles. Carrying only two weapons at a time, auto-saving checkpoints, health regeneration and slight auto-aiming are now standard features in modern console FPS games, but they all started here.
Limited ammo, learning to use alien weapons and the ability to drive vehicles (both human and alien) are also welcome additions to the genre. There is usually more that one way to approach a level, with ample opportunities to flank the enemy. A.I. is well done with enemies that will really make you work to clear out some of the tighter spots in the game. All of this can add up to some spectacular fire fights, even if they may take many, many tries to complete.
No game is perfect, and one complaint I've heard is that some of the stages can get repetitious, particularly the Library level. Your experiences may vary, but it really didn't bother me and I thought it made sense within the game.
All in all, I had a blast playing through Halo. The story, the setting and the gameplay come together to form a sum greater than the whole, and I highly, highly recommend this game.
2008 ben langberg, all rights reserved.