So since I’ve played all the FPS themed Halo Games I feel like reviewing each one. I’ll start with Reach since it was the last one. [i’ll end with Halo:CE]
Campaign
Gameplay
Halo Reach delivers some pretty solid and heavy firefights. I noticed they are smaller then most games in the grand scale however are more defined then some of the other games.
What I mean is the enemy A.I is perfect. It’s a great balance of players intelligence meeting enemies power and A.I. What I mean is enemies on higher modes are stronger then you and may seem OP, however with good smart moves and tactics you will always win. It’s the perfect balance not really seen since Halo:CE.
The allies however give it some bad rep. They don’t do much, sometimes don’t even follow you, and there aren’t enough vehicle moments for them to be good gunners. I don’t care about them like I did with the other games. It’s a shame
Grade- 85/100
Story
Reach could have been perfect if it took from Fall of Reach. They could have kept Noble Team but went with a more character evolved story. The ones in game are C+ grade development that just isn’t too amazing. It was fun the first time but doesn’t last. Halo 2 and 3 seem to have this greatly.
Yet on it’s own the game has a nice story of sacrifice and really shows how powerful the Covenant really are. They are alien, they are fierce, and they show a power you don’t see much in other games. The amount of times the Covenant literally give you the finger is insane
>Blow up Spire
>They blow up your army
>Blow up Carrier
>They just make it worth nothing
>Save the POA (With 500 or so marines if I remember)
>Millions+ die during glassing
Grade- 65/100
Bonus
Halo Reach campaign is great with skulls, giving it a huge but great OP challenge. Yet what it fails at is exploring, invisible barriers and killzones literally killed one of the BEST features of any Halo game.
The maps are HUGE. Exploring them would have given this game literally so much replay value and fun it would have been much better.
Yet what it lacks in exploring it gains in some awesome bonuses. Reach Racer (yea it exists) the Pelican and Phantom trick, The Club trick, etc. It’s some awesome tricks that really give it a good grade in this.
Grade- 75/100
Overall Campaign Grade =75%
Multilayer
Gameplay
Reach’s multiplayer is much like it’s campaign. Wether you like to admit it or not the core gameplay is pretty good and balanced. Most of the AA’s add some depth to the game. However the pretty below average maps, over powered AA’s and other elements keeps it from being perfect.
Halo Reach with no AA’s is much better yet sadly as I said before most of the maps are bad. And taking them from campaign was a terrible idea. Yet that’s for later.
Overall the core of the gameplay is great. I won’t get into bloom, it’s fine for me and I honestly think people over react way too much with that. It’s just the bullet spread of Reach. If Reach had no armor lock it would have been much better.
Grade- 70/100
Maps
I said this a little before, the maps are below average. The DLC maps are pretty awesome yet they can’t carry the other levels. Forge was amazing and honestly the custom forge maps are better then some of the maps the game came out with.
Taking them from campaign was a bad idea, Halo 2 took IDEAS from campaign levels and made them into great levels. Halo 3 did the same with some nice touches. Reach just kinda failed. Some of the newer maps are fun, and a FEW FEW FEW maps are cool.
Also the BTB invasion maps are so badly set up outside of invasion it’s not even funny. You only use about 2/3rds of Spire and Boneyard.
Grade- 60/100
Options, Custom Games, the people
Halo Reach custom options and forge are a new level of AWESOME. I know Halo 3 has some options that Reach doesn’t have however regardless Reach has much better options in the long run. I’ve said it 10000 times the custom games made on Reach are sometimes so incredible you don’t even know they would be possible.
Forge itself gives you the ability to make great custom games, now you have insane options. If you know how to build and you take your time you can make some AMAZING works of art and fun.
The people who make maps who share them are great, you can literally fine 1000’s of race tracks, fun maps, a few glitches, and fun party games with ease. A great system Bungie has made.
Grade- 95/100
The online community
The online community is that of Halo2’s if Halo2’s community was more spread out, silent, and harder to find. I don’t mean the # of players I mean players who talk and play customs. Around only 30% of the players have mics and only about 50% of those are in open chat. Party chat RUINED online gaming more then armor lock ruined Reach.
However the few and golden moments I’ve found those who want to play customs and such I’ve had a amount of fun I haven’t had since Halo 2 and a very few times in Halo 3. When you take the time to look and when you get lucky you can meet great people
When those great people have great games you get great times. Infact the last time I played we talked about Halo 2, we all were about the same age and we really got along, total strangers connected, something I loved about Halo 2.
Grade- 80/100
Overall Multiplayer Grade= 76.25
Firefight
Firefight overall is a step forward from ODST. Yet it lacks the survival feel that ODST had. You don’t seem as helpless and “back to the wall” you did in ODST. Firefight gives you pretty good maps and the 4 player online was a step in the very right direction.
Yet as much as core gameplay isn’t as hard as ODST the A.I is much better as well as the options and replay value. Much more to do then in ODST in the long run. Yet as with campaign the lack of glitches and such sometimes makes you feel like you are playing a damn COD game -__-
Grade-70/100
Forge
Well where forge may not have been 100 steps in the great direction Forge is in every way. I don’t think you could ever say Halo 3 was better in any other way then very few things. The main system and ability is so much better that trying to argue is like saying “Sharing information was much better in the 1500’s”.
Reach’s forge gives people the ability to create so many maps it’s not even funny. Forge world, huge cash, just awesome. Sadly however it has some stupid little things. Only two lights, Not as many little pieces. No NPC’s.
Grade-90/100
Theater
Theater in Halo Reach doesn’t seem better at all. It still gives awesome screenshots and fun clips and the system seems better yet a few things Halo 3 beats in it completly. I don’t use it much so I can’t say too much. So this one is really not important to me.
Grade- 65/100
Bonus Overall Grade: 75%
BEST 3 GRADES
Campaign Gamplay
MP Options, Customs, People
Forge
WORST 3 GRADES
SP story
MP Maps
Theater
Average Grade=75.41
Was it worth 60 bucks: Hell. Yes.