Halo reach ending (obvious spoilers)

[ICanBreakTheseCuffs]

The ending was brilliant. It was just so dark and so hopeless and yet it perfectly encaptured the doom of the situation. No more allies, no air support, no nothing. Just you in the dark fog surrounded by a horde of Covenant all eagerly getting ready to kill you, which they do. After fighting determinedly you die, overwhelmed by the Elites.

Plus, it's all the better when you remember that this Spartan is YOU. It is YOUR identity, not just the main character of who's identity you assume, it is your Spartan with your personal identification in there. So in some ways it feels more like you the player are the one being killed and that sense of personal connection really made that scene brilliant.

that would be so cool if that game predicted my death and thats how

 

[ICanBreakTheseCuffs]

Ill just paste what I posted in a similar thread.

I was actually pretty surprised by it. I think everyone that says Reach has a crap story is missing the point. The story itself is incredibly simple, there's nothing particularly special about it, but there doesn't need to be. What Reach excels at (actually, I think Halo in general does this well) is creating an amazing atmosphere. The music and the art direction are both absolutely fantastic, they're so melancholy and they manage to bring the planet and characters to life.

This exactly, and when you do really think about it the story isn't bad or simple at all, it's just pushed to the side a bit to make way for some fun. The story is there when you look for it but lots of people just miss it I think.

Personally I thought the ending was great but I wish I had played the game in heroic rather than legendary my first time so I could have had a truly epic battle. I survived about 6 seconds on my first try partly because the way it said "survive" threw me off a bit and partly because it's on legendary. As I saw the wraiths fly by I turned to watch them thinking "am I supposed to board one of these before they glass the planet?". Unfortunately my wistful pondering was interrupted by a plasma bolt to the back and a Zealot waiting to whack me in the face.

wraiths are the tanks.I think your talking about phantoms.
speaking of phantoms,why does the Covenant need TWO types of dropships,the phantom and the other one?

 

[MarsProbe]

[edit]if the Master chief was on the pillar of Autumn why didn't he come out and assisst Noble Team?

He was already in cryostasis by that point. During the final level cutscene when the Pelican is leaving Noble 6 behind, there's an easter egg where you can flick the right thumbstick to the right and see him there.

I know but couldn't they wake him up or something?2 spartans is better than one?
(sorry if you can't wake someone up in cryostasis,I'm not an expert in that)

Granted 2 Spartans would be better than one, but even 2 Spartans wouldn't be able to hold off such a huge Covenant force. That's the point - the planet was lost and sadly, humanity just didn't have a way of defeating the Covenant at that time. Not even Master Chief could turn that around.

Anyway, I thought that was a great ending. I think it's the first time in a games ending that I've felt (as has been mentioned earlier) a true sense of hopelessness. I remember running through the ruins at that point and everything seemed quiet, then I was pounded by some fire from a dropship from behind. I took refuge in the shell of a building, which protected me from the fire from the ship and I thought I was going to be okay. Then I saw the brutes and the like closing in in front of me. I don't know if it's that point the crack in my visor appeared and I instantly knew what was happening. I fought on anyway until I could eventually only watch as the cutscene eventually took over, as Noble 6 removed his helmet and took one last stand against those elites.

In fact, there was something about most of the battles in Reach that struck me. It must have been down to the combination of frequently facing off against huge numbers of Covenant and the brilliant music playing in the background. It always gave me that feeling I was in the middle of a battle that was eventually going to be lost.

So thanks Bungie. That was a good one.

 

[OreoDoublestuff]

Plus, it's all the better when you remember that this Spartan is YOU. It is YOUR identity, not just the main character of who's identity you assume, it is your Spartan with your personal identification in there. So in some ways it feels more like you the player are the one being killed and that sense of personal connection really made that scene brilliant.

I definitely agree here. This was the first game I've played where I transposed myself onto my faceless character.

The one and only problem I have with the ending is that the that the Zealots aren't given any character. Six is killed by a pack of animals rather than a race of intelligent (and wholly insane) aliens. It seemed lacking in some way.

But, minor gripe from a Covvie lover.

 

[Sniper Team 4]

I liked it. You knew you had lost, but you felt like giving the covenant a final "Fuck you!" in the form of a pile of corpses. The little touch of your visor cracking as your health went down was nice too.
Apparently there was no legendary bonus though.
I would have liked it if there was something like Noble Six beating said elites, only for the camera to zoom out and we see the certain doom amassing around them. Or something similar. No legendary bonus just isn't right.

You summed up my feelings for the final level. I remember thinking, "I'm going to die. You're all coming with me." Even when I was down to one sniper round, I made sure one of the five Elites coming at me took it through the head. Still went down swinging with the butt of the rifle
I like your idea for the bonus legendary ending, and agree that no bonus is just wrong.

For the original post, Six doesn't get stabbed multiple times (at least it didn't look like it). Elites jump the Spartan, but Six keeps shooting them or kicking them off. My cutscene ended when an Elite stepped in front of the helmet and activated his sword. Six was still fighting even then.

 

[Terminate421]

It was how you were supposed to die, make sure you take down as many as you can, the only way it got better was how it was in a grave yard full of spartan corpses. It also made you feel like you were actually dying, with the screen cracking and everything.

No respawns, it really made you feel like there was no hope.

 

[Talon Julius]

When I saw the ending I felt like I was just stabbed in the heart. All I could think of was the sacrifices the others made to get me here. Jorge, Kat, Carter, Emile. My team gone. I was alone. There was no objective. All I could do is fight and die. And that's what I did. I fought. I tore off turrets, sniped, splazered, bludgeoned, and unloaded everything I had onto them. But it wasn't enough. Nothing would have been enough. The description for the Silver Visor in the Armory really struck me as the message of the mission. "It's not your job to dive feet first into hell, it's to make sure it's crowded when you get there.". That is the objective. To fight and die. You will fight with glory and honor, but still, you will die.

 

[shadyh8er]

Wow. If I actually owned an Xbox and got this game, I probably would've cried. Refusing to go down without a fight is just...just...God, there's just no way I could describe it. "Admirable" seems like an understatement.

 

[A Gent of Villainous Intent]

Once I got an energy sword I never tried to heal myself again, I just ran around until I died.

 

[gabe12301]

[edit]if the Master chief was on the pillar of Autumn why didn't he come out and assisst Noble Team?

If the Master Chief fell at Reach, all hope would be inevitably lost.

There was no reason for him to do so, when Noble Six was still alive and fighting the brutal end.

They still have Sargent Johnson

 

[gabe12301]

knew it was coming, i knew they all would die, i just wish kat died more heroicly );

It was kind of sad that she got shot in the head so randomly.

 

[Korten12]

What happened to Jun is he alive, because I thought Masterchief was the only who was definitely alive. (rest are dead or a few are MIA)

It is unclear what happens to Jun. We know that he escorted Dr.Halsey off of Reach. She survived, which would mean Jun either lives or was killed while escorting Halsey.

Most likely he is dead becuase of spoilers from Ghosts of Onyx:

Spoiler

She escaped with Kell off of Reach to Onyx, had Jun lived he most likely would have been with them.

Though of course this isn't definite.

Edit: He is alive, apparently in the legendary edition it confirms it in a developers commentary thing.

 

[Turbo_Destructor]

I loved the ending. Noble 6 had done what he needed to do, he kept the hope of humanity alive, now all that is left for him to do is take as many covenant scum down with him before the end - a final act of defiance.

Something that did disappoint me about Reach was that they didn't bother that much with characterisation. If you compare it to ODST, which was a pretty bloody short game, the characters were much more developed than Noble team.

 

[Druyn]

Ill just paste what I posted in a similar thread.

I was actually pretty surprised by it. I think everyone that says Reach has a crap story is missing the point. The story itself is incredibly simple, there's nothing particularly special about it, but there doesn't need to be. What Reach excels at (actually, I think Halo in general does this well) is creating an amazing atmosphere. The music and the art direction are both absolutely fantastic, they're so melancholy and they manage to bring the planet and characters to life.

Spoiler: Major spoilers, don't read until the credits roll.

Especially the level after the credits. That was absolutely masterful. you're alone for the first time in the game, surrounded by Covenant and just given the objective; 'Survive'. At first I was excited, preparing to make the fuckers pay, and pay hard. But after a few minutes I just lost the will for it. The team is dead, the planet is broken, I'm possibly the last remaining piece of resistance on the planet. The environment is covered in thick fog, and you can see countless Covenant moving within it, as well as dropships circling overhead. The cracks started appearing in my visor and I just thought 'what's the point?' It's not going to achieve anything, we've lost. So I just charged at the nearest Elite, took him down with a left hook and then gave in. It was absolutely fantastic, and yet so simple.

I agree completely, spoiler included. Halo really has always been good at creating an atmosphere. In Halo:CE, the first flood level was terrifying for me, because they could come from literally anywhere, and even the dead ones werent really dead. In Halo 2, when the Flood invade the ship, you see really how an empire falls. They invade, they assimilate, and over the course of the level, you watch as the greatest space station in the Covenant fleet is utterly overrun, and you feel the covenant fighting the losing battle. In Halo 3, the whole game was like that. From the flood taking earth, to the finding COrtana. And I consider the ending to be the master stroke. The planet has fallen around you. You know you are going to die, the only question is when. Your friends and allies lie dead around you, youve lost your closest allies one by one, and go down fighting to the last as the world crumbles around you. Obviously Im embellishing a bit, but Bungie has always been really good at setting the mood, and the end of this game was one of the best ending Ive seen from them. And it brought up something I hadnt thought about: I may not have been alive to see it, but I saved the universe. I kept Cortana safe, I defended Captain keyes,and even if Master Chief pulled it through, it al started with me. It was really gratifying for me.

And you know what? At least Jun is alive to tell the story.

 

[ShadowsofHope]

[edit]if the Master chief was on the pillar of Autumn why didn't he come out and assisst Noble Team?

If the Master Chief fell at Reach, all hope would be inevitably lost.

There was no reason for him to do so, when Noble Six was still alive and fighting the brutal end.

They still have Sargent Johnson

Sergeant Johnson wasn't a Spartan. Major difference maker.

 

[RandomWords]

What happened to Jun is he alive, because I thought Masterchief was the only who was definitely alive. (rest are dead or a few are MIA)

didn't he die in that pelican that was with captain keyes.

Oh yeah by the way you can see master chief in the cutscene after you blow up the capital ship with the mac cannon just hold right on your right stick there is a solid 3 second of looking at chief in his cryo tube

No that was just Carter, I was wondering if he lived after he escorted halsey. And yeah I saw that easteregg and a bunch of others, they are all epic.

Spoiler: my espression when I saw him

 

[Miumaru]

Not suggesting a "actually not dead" thing (Noble 6 is very dead) but you dont ever see any actual hits on them. They never show any Elite landing a hit with the sword.