Key points to CE that make a good Halo Campaign

Games Other Halo
#1

If we look a Combat Evolved, it really nailed everything that just about every Halo campaign has lacked since… It had a way of making something linear feel non-linear, had an exploration element, and also had very well-designed encounters with surprisingly smart AI. There was always a new and interesting way to approach certain areas, rather than just blast your way from point A to point B.

CE: Mission #2… Huge, wide open set-piece. Then you go on to rally with marines and defend the beacon (music heightens the mood at the climactic part of the battle… and it FEELS like a battle), and searching for the marines (taking different paths in different orders, if you wanted to)…

Mission #3, a multi-faceted mission, taking you from the ground, into a Covenant ship. Begins with a stealthy sniper section (an encounter unlike anything you’ve had so far… variety of encounters). Then you crawl along the edge of the cliffs and as soon as you set your sights on and pull the trigger on another enemy, the music kicks in RIGHT HERE… and it’s so good (and not a generic sounding score) and completely fitting the mood of the ensuing battle. THAT’S Halo…

Every mission in CE just had a little something about it, and was scored with the memorable music that just sent it way over the top. Still some of the best gaming ever. There were no “video gamey” boss fights and giant ridiculous creature-looking mech’s crawling around that took away from feeling immersed in an alien war. It was epic, but it didn’t TRY too hard to be epic. It was a semi-grounded, space marine story.

Then Halo went on to make a lot of money and got big and got a little too big for its britches, as a result… If the game just hit on some of these points, and didn’t try to expand itself into this outlandish, over the top space epic, stick to the main points of the OG universe, man… we could really have the kind of Halo sequel we’ve been waiting over a decade for. It’s unfortunate too… the H2 E3 2003 Campaign demo was hitting all of the right notes in its set-pieces, flow of combat, and pacing… music was stellar and fitting… and then, SCRAPPED…

CE and the H2 Demo should be studied long and hard, with extreme depth… the level and encounter design (where not recycled), the AI, combat… scripted elements, TONE… FEEL… and maybe FINALLY, Halo can have a stellar Campaign once again. The corridor shooting against stagnant Promethean’s ain’t cutting it.

#2

How about we leave out the backtracking CE had though? Cause There were literally only four unique maps out of 10 missions.

#3

> 2533274907200114;2:
> How about we leave out the backtracking CE had though? Cause There were literally only four unique maps out of 10 missions.

“…the level and encounter design (where not recycled)…”

#4

> 2533274873580796;3:
> > 2533274907200114;2:
> > How about we leave out the backtracking CE had though? Cause There were literally only four unique maps out of 10 missions.
>
> “…the level and encounter design (where not recycled)…”

This isn’t a real problem for me but: mission 8(Two Betrayals) is a backwards route of mission 5(Assault The Control Room). Mission 9 has very similar map to mission 3(The Truth and Reconciliation). Mission 10 and 1 obviously are both the Pillar of Autumn.

Now my real problem with the game is repetitive gamelplay and less character from Master Chief and Cortana. I used to play a lot of Halo CE but it is not my favorite. I am playing a Halo marathon of all nine games in order of story(starting with Halo Wars and ending with Halo Wars 2), and Halo CE bored me the most. I have no idea why it is so many many’s favorite.

Each Halo games improved character development and interesting characters in general. Halo CE has literally four characters(Master Chief, Cortana, Jacob Keyes, and 343 Guilty Spark). Halo 2 added Johnson, Miranda Keyes, Hood, Arbiter, Tartarus, Gravemind, and The Prophet of Truth. In my opinion; Halo 2, Halo Reach, and Halo 4 are the best. Halo CE is just considered the best because it was the first.

Music gets better later too. “High Charity” in Halo 2 is beautiful. “Arrival” in Halo 4 is epic. Halo Reach has the most moving music whith “Long Night of Solace”. Halo CE has the basic Halo music that evolves throughout the trilogy but doesn’t move me.

#5

> 2535416616313329;4:
> > 2533274873580796;3:
> > > 2533274907200114;2:
> > > How about we leave out the backtracking CE had though? Cause There were literally only four unique maps out of 10 missions.
> >
> > “…the level and encounter design (where not recycled)…”
>
> This isn’t a real problem for me but: mission 8(Two Betrayals) is a backwards route of mission 5(Assault The Control Room). Mission 9 has very similar map to mission 3(The Truth and Reconciliation). Mission 10 and 1 obviously are both the Pillar of Autumn.
>
> Now my real problem with the game is repetitive gamelplay and less character from Master Chief and Cortana. I used to play a lot of Halo CE but it is not my favorite. I am playing a Halo marathon of all nine games in order of story(starting with Halo Wars and ending with Halo Wars 2), and Halo CE bored me the most. I have no idea why it is so many many’s favorite.
>
> Each Halo games improved character development and interesting characters in general. Halo CE has literally four characters(Master Chief, Cortana, Jacob Keyes, and 343 Guilty Spark). Halo 2 added Johnson, Miranda Keyes, Hood, Arbiter, Tartarus, Gravemind, and The Prophet of Truth. In my opinion; Halo 2, Halo Reach, and Halo 4 are the best. Halo CE is just considered the best because it was the first.
>
> Music gets better later too. “High Charity” in Halo 2 is beautiful. “Arrival” in Halo 4 is epic. Halo Reach has the most moving music whith “Long Night of Solace”. Halo CE has the basic Halo music that evolves throughout the trilogy but doesn’t move me.

The thing about CE’s recycling of geometry and levels even, is that it made sense… if the story warranted visiting the same location, or if hallways were reused within a certain environment, that’s fine… every level or environment, structures in real life, are designed around a theme. That’s fine.

The issue here in H5 MP is you have one map, and then you use the framework to produce another, and then you call it a new map. Well half the time, a large percentage of the map plays nearly the same as its counterpart! Overgrowth and Plaza… the entire outer perimeter plays nearly identically, for NEW content, that’s not acceptable.

There’s no in-game story or context to account for it, it’s a competitive playspace for the sake of being a competitive playspace. I’m getting too far into MP now… but you can try to wrap as much lore around it as possible, if your 343, but none of that even matters in MP… Variety, fun, and good gameplay matters most. Not helmets and armor, not lore-elements, etc.

The point is, in Campaign, it should be avoided but it CAN be warranted… IF it makes sense. Multiplayer? Not so much…

#6

I thought it was the interesting plot twists.

#7

> 2533274907200114;2:
> How about we leave out the backtracking CE had though? Cause There were literally only four unique maps out of 10 missions.

This is an exaggeration. It’s 7 out of 10, actually, Pillar of Autumn, Halo, TnR, SC, AotCR, 343GS, and The Library do not share environments. Plus, only the beginning of The Maw is copied, which makes it closer to 7.5/10. Furthermore, the whole outdoors section of Keyes is new, making this jump to 8/10. With everything considered, 1 full mission and half of two other missions use the same environments.

#8

> 2533274826191452;7:
> > 2533274907200114;2:
> > How about we leave out the backtracking CE had though? Cause There were literally only four unique maps out of 10 missions.
>
> This is an exaggeration. It’s 7 out of 10, actually, Pillar of Autumn, Halo, TnR, SC, AotCR, 343GS, and The Library do not share environments. Plus, only the beginning of The Maw is copied, which makes it closer to 7.5/10. So 2.5 missions use the same environments, not 6.

Is it the Keyes mission too? …similar environments but not copied directly from TnR.

#9

> 2533274873580796;8:
> > 2533274826191452;7:
> > > 2533274907200114;2:
> > > How about we leave out the backtracking CE had though? Cause There were literally only four unique maps out of 10 missions.
> >
> > This is an exaggeration. It’s 7 out of 10, actually, Pillar of Autumn, Halo, TnR, SC, AotCR, 343GS, and The Library do not share environments. Plus, only the beginning of The Maw is copied, which makes it closer to 7.5/10. So 2.5 missions use the same environments, not 6.
>
> Is it the Keyes mission too? …similar environments but not copied directly from TnR.

True, the whole area below is entirely new, I’ll add that.