HALO -- Game Review Written by Nicholas Mezza
System- XBOX
Genre-Action, First Person Shooter
Play Modes- Single Player Campaign, Multiplayer Deathmatch and Co-operative
Campaign (Split-Screen & System Link)
Rating-M
Yes, this game isn't exactly new, but even with a year under its belt and with the upcoming release of Halo 2, this title is still rather impressive. This first person shooter launched with XBox and was its star title. In the game, you are a cybernetically enhanced marine designed to be a one man infantry squad. Your ship, on patrol, was attacked by the Covenant, an alliance of alien races bent on destroying the human race. You must fight to prevent capture of your ship's construct (Basically its self aware computer) which has knowledge of all of mankind's weaknesses, and the location of Earth.
As with most XBox games, the graphics shine gloriously. From the individual particles of dirt thrown up by a grenade, to the scorch marks left by energy weapons on the wall, the attention to detail is apparent.
There are few music tracks, however, it makes up for this for fitting each situation very well and for excellent quality. The sound effects are also very well done.The artificial intelligence will have you feeling as if you are fighting a cohesive army rather than 5 people who have never seen each other. In other words, the AI is great. Friendly fire is existant, but is actively avoided by ememies, a feature absent from many games. Enemies will run in terror if outgunned, or play a hit and run game with you.
The control style of the game is good overall. The only complaint I have is with the crouch function. While it is not used often, it is a pain trying to use it while moving. Halo has one of the best difficulty controls I have seen. Easy makes the game more or less a breeze, while the highest difficulty, "Legendary", can put even the veteran gamer in his place.
The weakest point of the game is that once you finish the campaign, there isn't a whole lot to do. Multiplayer is always great fun, but if you don't have anyone to play against, you have to play the campaign. The campaign mode gets old fast, since there is no randomness in the levels.
Overall this is an excellent game, and deserves at least a rental. Also be on the lookout for re-release of Halo on the PC.
Ratings (Out of 10)