Well my fellow Escapists, we find ourselves at the end of an era. For the past decade The Halo Franchise has been a staple of many of our gaming libraries. To many of us Halo has been something special ever since the beginning, whether it was when you stepped from the life pod onto Halo's surface, or when you first really got a taste of split-screen frag fests, it did something to click with gamers the world over, it did something to set itself apart from the pack as something new and amazing.
Fast forward to now; September 2010. The Halo franchise has been kicking for a decade but the end is fast approaching with the place that it all began; Reach. For those of us unfamiliar with Halo lore, Reach is the birthplace of the Spartan IIs, and Master Chief, the greatest of, and one of the last Spartans. It was on Reach that the future Spartans were taken at the young age of 6. On reach they were trained, and grew. It is also here that a majority of them died; whether in training, augmentation, combat, or during the death of the planet when it was glassed by the Covenant. It is immediately after the glassing of Reach our first title starts with the Pillar of Autumn narrowly avoiding destruction when it jumped into Slipspace and found Halo.
Released: November 15 2001
Number Sold:6,000,000+
This game holds many fond memories for me. Unlike many of you I was not raised on the NES and SNES, I came in to far late for that. Instead my first gaming experiences were on the Gameboy and Nintendo 64. You could possibly imagine my astonishment when I made the jump from those systems to the Xbox when I first played Halo: Combat Evolved at my best friend's house in 2002; I was at the ripe young age of 8. I remember like it was yesterday to be honest. All us kids were huddled around this 40-something inch flat-screen television to play this new game called Halo on this Xbox thing.
I was instantly in love with the game. I remember when I discovered this purple hoverbike thing with lazers in the front that just killed everything in sight(Thats a ghost for those who don't get my eight year old description) and I was in heaven. I remember consistently getting top spot at the end of the game using that thing. Why yes I was a little bastard, how did you notice? ;D
Why hello there.....old friend.
I remember getting the game and the console for Christmas of 2003 and I started on the campaign immediately. It was a whole new world for me. I was having a great time until the beginning of the second level, and then I was just like "Wow". Everything about it was epic, the open landscapes, the unbelievable graphics(Remember I was coming off of Nintendo 64 and Gameboy) and especially the combat itself. It had a fluidity that I had never had before. Of course I never would have put it in these kinds of words back then. If you asked me then why I liked it, it would have been something like " I don't know, its big and fun, so I like it".
I also made some mistakes back then that I look back on and think are just silly. For one I remember constantly getting lost on later levels, and after replaying it now I just have to shake my head at myself. I also had a complete man-crush on the Assault Rifle. Maybe it was because I could mow everything down with it, or maybe because it was just cool looking, I guess I may never know.
Imma Firing my Assault Rifle!
Playing the game these days is still a great experience, from storming the beach to look for the Silent Cartographer, to the final hurrah during the final run with the Warthog, its a great experience that I still love and hold up as one of the best campaigns for a shooter ever. Except for one level.(I'm looking at YOU Library!)
Released: November 9 2004
Number Sold: 8,000,000+
To be honest Halo 2's campaign was not as memorable as the first game's by a country mile. There are a couple of memories that stick out even today, but they are few and far between compared to it's older brother.
As I play the campaign today I am still very entertained, but its just not as good as the original game's, today or six years ago. There are some memorable moments, like the Scarab battle in New Mombasa and the tank trek on Delta Halo, but much less so than many moments in Halo: Combat Evolved.
Everybody hop on!
The multiplayer on the other hand is an different beast entirely. you see, before I played Halo 2 online, I had never played any game online, so this whole Xbox Live thing was new and strange at the time, but I still remember my first game quite well seeing as it was about four years ago.
I was at my house this time, one of my brother's friends brought his wireless adapter and transferred his account to our 360 and asked me if I wanted to play online. I remember actually doing quite well my first time, getting second place if I recall correctly.
My fun was short lived though, my brother's friend left and took this mysterious Xbox Live with him. I only got short play times with it until after the release of the next title in our little franchise.....
Released: September 25 2007
Number Sold:11,000,000+
This was probably the first game I was ever really hyped up for. Before this game I did not really pay attention to games not yet out, but when I started seeing the "Believe" ads on television I knew I had to have this game. I preordered the Legendary edition, and payed for it by trading in old games, and on September 25th, it was game time.
Right after school I swung by the game store, picked up the game and went straight home. I put my tiny 13 inch screen TV on the floor, laid down in front of it and started Finishing the Fight, and was it one hell of a fight. Halo 3's campaign may not have been quite as good as the original's but it was something to remember.
The campaign was riddled with memorable moments; from the destruction of the anti-air cannon, to the death of a good sergeant it had many moments that I will remember for years to come. Though like the original game it also had that ONE level that is just torture. You all know which I am talking about.
Halo 3 was truly the first game ion which I dove head first into multiplayer. Before Halo 3, multipalyer was a rare and amazing experience for me, that all changed when I finally got a Live subscription of my own and started playing Halo 3 online. This game opened me up to the rest of the online games on the 360 like Call of Duty and Battlefield. Though three years later I am still rocking out on Halo 3's multiplayer more than any of it's competitors. The rest come and go, but the best stays for the long haul.
DRIVE! DRIVE! DRIVE!
The Expansion and The Spinoff
In addition to the three main titles in the series, two other games were released under the Halo name. Halo 3: ODST, and Halo Wars. These games according to many; were not up to par with the Halo name, and in the case of Wars; to it's PC counterparts. Though in a way these allegations are completely true if you ask me.
ODST was never intended to be the full game that Microsoft marketed it as. In the beginning it was nothing more than a large expansion. Though as the project got bigger, Microsoft intervened and raised the price to that of a full game at 59.99. This was not as Bungie intended it to be, but it was out of their hands. ODST was excellent in it's original role, but as a standalone, it left much to be desired.
Ensemble's swan song was Halo Wars. This game pushed the limits of what was to be expected of a console RTS by streamlining(or dumbing down depending on who you talk to) many processes to make it fit the controller. Ensemble performed this task grandly and made a title that could stand up well beside it's PC counterparts. Though the Halo name brings many expectations; some of which Halo Wars could not stand up to. Though Halo Wars was a great game, it never really could stand up with the giants of PC RTS gaming, unlike it's forebearer and the FPS market.
The Legacy
Halo has had an impact on the gaming industry that is arguably unmatched by any game to be released in the past decade. It popularized the first person shooter to the previously non-gaming masses and took up the torch where Goldeneye left it and not just made console shooters viable, but made them great! It also popularized many concepts that are in heavy use in Shooters across the board such as restricting the number of weapons that can be carried, to having consistent types of enemies.
This.....Is How The World Ends
As great as the Halo Franchise is, all good things must come to an end. After the release of Halo: Reach Bungie will no longer be the developers behind the Halo Franchise and it will be handed over to Microsoft. This may not be the end of Halo, but I doubt it will ever be the same. This game is the end of a dynasty in gaming, and a bitter sweet moment for many fans. Here is to Halo's swan song, and the hope that everyone will Remember Reach.
This is Shock and Awe, Signing Off!
