Halo 4 released for the Xbox 360 on November 6th, 2012. An incredibly controversial game, we’ve had almost ten years to look over the game for positives. Here’s my list of five things I enjoy from Halo 4.
. The Master Chief and Cortana
While Halo 4’s Forerunner/Promethean story is very lacking without external material, the story between its two protagonists is good. The emotions the game conveys feel genuine, and the concept of the Master Chief losing the brain to his brawn (thus forcing out his humanity) is an interesting one.
. The Halo atmosphere
Halo games always have an atmosphere which is exclusive to that entry, and Halo 4 is no exception. The game’s story and setting have a very foreign and unsettling nature to them, and the visuals and music both match this perfectly. While the game feels very removed from previous entries, this core trait is still very much present.
. Progression and customization
In Halo: Reach, players had to grind for both their rank and in-game currency to customize their character. In Halo 4, rank is all that is needed to unlock customization items. With helmet, visor, shoulders, chest, forearms, legs, emblems, and stances in the various lobbies, players are given quite a bit of options to personalize their visual identity.
. Forge
Unlike Halo: Reach which only had a single blank canvas map (with the same weather, time of day, etc. at all times), Halo 4 has three (four including downloadable content), with each having their own distinct visual style. With the ability to magnetize objects to one another, alter gravity, etc., this is a very underrated Forge mode.
. Lack of map remakes
While it’s nice to see beloved old maps reimagined, it’s even nicer to not see a game go overboard with them (especially when what worked with one game, like Lockout in Halo 2, may not neccesarily work with another game, like Blackout in Halo 3). Halo 4 only has two remade maps (Ragnarok and Pitfall, remakes of Valhalla and The Pit from Halo 3 respectively). While I find the best of Halo 4’s maps to simply be serviceable, I’ll give 343 Industries points for originality in the map department.