A magnificently frustrating experience on Legendary, Halo 2 was and still is a landmark achievement in both first person shooters and in science fiction.
While being one shot off-screen by Jackals with beam rifles was eternally frustrating, I had a blast getting giddy everytime Master Chiefs one-liners were soon to appear on screen. Each playthrough of Halo 2 feels like I'm transferred back to myself nearly twenty years ago when I experienced it for the first time.
The HD Touchups with the anniversary edition bring out the intricate lore and rich intrigue that the Halo universe holds. Cutscenes get a massive lift with the new graphics, though they feel now like they did to me way back when. I played in constant awe of the way familiar faces like Miranda Keys, Sergeant Johnson, and the Arbiter looked like with a fresh coat of paint. This game is beautiful, and even though its now nine years old in the anniversary iteration, fits like a glove in the current gamesphere. Another anniversary touchup that I greatly appreciated was the soundtracking. While Marty O'Donnell's initial flight was superb at the time, the updated soundfront and songs breathe a new life into the game that the annivesary desperately needed.
My qualms with H2A really just rest in issues I had with the main game (co-op deaths reset you to checkpoint on legendary for example) thus I cannot detract the anniversary for this per se. Overall I had an amazing time taking that trip through my childhood once more and had the right person to play with. I had a blast setting up cheese strats to hit checkpoints or avoid entire encounters because we were overwhelmed by enemy forces or low on ammunition, its occurrences like this that make the older school FPS' as fun as they are.
I'm glad I got to "Finish the Fight" once more.
While being one shot off-screen by Jackals with beam rifles was eternally frustrating, I had a blast getting giddy everytime Master Chiefs one-liners were soon to appear on screen. Each playthrough of Halo 2 feels like I'm transferred back to myself nearly twenty years ago when I experienced it for the first time.
The HD Touchups with the anniversary edition bring out the intricate lore and rich intrigue that the Halo universe holds. Cutscenes get a massive lift with the new graphics, though they feel now like they did to me way back when. I played in constant awe of the way familiar faces like Miranda Keys, Sergeant Johnson, and the Arbiter looked like with a fresh coat of paint. This game is beautiful, and even though its now nine years old in the anniversary iteration, fits like a glove in the current gamesphere. Another anniversary touchup that I greatly appreciated was the soundtracking. While Marty O'Donnell's initial flight was superb at the time, the updated soundfront and songs breathe a new life into the game that the annivesary desperately needed.
My qualms with H2A really just rest in issues I had with the main game (co-op deaths reset you to checkpoint on legendary for example) thus I cannot detract the anniversary for this per se. Overall I had an amazing time taking that trip through my childhood once more and had the right person to play with. I had a blast setting up cheese strats to hit checkpoints or avoid entire encounters because we were overwhelmed by enemy forces or low on ammunition, its occurrences like this that make the older school FPS' as fun as they are.
I'm glad I got to "Finish the Fight" once more.
2 Comments
@Hologon Definitely, it does the most to involve the player with the lore and introduce new/interesting sites within each level. Halo 3 might have my favorite but we'll see when my group plays that next if it holds up. I think the power in Halo 2 is the way it scales the story in unveiling the Arbiter and his leadup to co-exist with the Master Chief
Hologon
5 months ago