Posts Tagged ‘Halo’

Game Review: Halo Reach

Friday, November 12th, 2010

Halo: Reach grabs a Busy Gamer 4

First Glance:
The prequel to the epic Halo Trilogy and what is said to be Bungie’s “final” Halo game.

Short Story:
You play as Noble 6, the newest member of Noble Team. This team of Spartans, physically and genetically altered super soldiers armed with high tech armor and weapons, is the last defense against the Covenant, a combination of different alien races who believe that it is their divine right to destroy the human race. Noble Team’s mission is to repel an invasion of the planet Reach, the last human compound before Earth. You and your team must prevent Reach from falling to the Covenant in order to keep the location of Earth a secret. If you are a fan of the Halo series, you know how this story ends.

The Score:
*Disclaimer!  The score I give Halo: Reach does not reflect how I really feel about this game.*  This was easily the most anticipated game release of this year. With stunning cinematics, wonderful voice acting, and not to mention the incredible and epic story of the campaign, I would be shocked if this game does not receive game of the year. With that said, the campaign can take a while to complete especially if you are trying to get the Legendary Campaign achievements. Then, once you are done with the campaign, you can spend the rest of your day playing the awesome online multi-player. For the sole reason that you can spend countless hours playing online, for the Busy Gamer, Halo: Reach is going to get the score of a 4.

Body of the Review:
This was easily the best game I’ve played this year. Bungie really went all out with what they call their last Halo installment. As I mentioned before, the story was incredible. As you start off as a full team, and slowly, one by one, the team of six eventually comes down to one, you realize that the mission you started will not be a successful one. For those of you familiar with the Halo universe, you know that Reach falls to the Covenant, but Bungie makes sure that everyone knows that Reach did not fall without a fight.

There were a number of exciting additions made to Reach. Along with new weapons, my personal favorite being the DMR which is a single fire version of the Battle Rifle from Halo 2 and Halo 3, there were also the addition of the armor load outs. The load outs were my favorite addition to this game. There are a variety of armor load outs available in Reach, including: Sprint, Armor Lock, Invisibility, Hologram, a Deployable Bubble Shield, and let us not forget, a Jet Pack. I am a huge fan of Red vs. Blue, an online series made using the Halo game engine. Now, in the Red vs. Blue storyline, there is a special division of soldiers called “Freelancers.”  Each Freelancer’s armor is equipped with a special ability. Sound familiar?  Being a Red vs. Blue fan, I was really excited to see something like this be apart of the game. My favorite load out would have to be the Sprint load out. It’s the simplest one of the bunch, but it works best for me in Matchmaking.

"Get some, little creepy dino looking thing!"

Halo: Combat Evolved was such a breakthrough game because it was the first game to initialize the melee attack in a First Person Shooter. Halo 2 and 3 took it one step further with instant kills when you melee an opponent from behind. Now, when you do this in a multiplayer match, you would get a badge for an assassination. Halo: Reach took the assassination one step further by actually giving you the visual satisfaction of seeing your character brutally assassinate your opponent. This usually involves the breaking of the neck or a brutal stabbing of the head or chest of your opponent. I love those!
Along with the additions of the gameplay, your ability to customize your Spartan are incredible. There are so many different armor types this time around that the possibilities are endless for how your Spartan looks.

The multiplayer has gone through a huge revamp as well. You can now change your settings to where if you like to play with people who like to talk while playing, or players who are there to have fun, you can set it to where those will be the only players you will be matched with. There are also some new multiplayer games with Reach. These include Head Hunters, Elite Slayer, Invasion, and now SWAT and Living Dead have their own multiplayer playlist. Personally, I am not a fan of any of these new games except for SWAT, but that’s been in the mix since Halo 3. Elite Slayer is probably my least favorite of the new multiplayer games. It was not very fun to play.

Right now, Reach doesn’t have too many maps to choose from and the majority of them are all remakes of maps from previous Halo games, my favorite currently being Countdown.

"Your tactics are transparent!"

One of the best changes would be the changes made in the Forge. Not only did Bungie manage to change things by giving the players the ability to make their own movies using Theater mode and giving players the ability to create their own maps as well in Halo 3. Now in Reach, players have endless possibilities in the Forge. You can now mesh objects together and rotate objects to the angle you desire. And to build your creations, Bungie has given us Forge World. Forge World is like nothing I’ve ever seen before. It’s one huge map that holds at least six different maps inside of it. Most notably, this map has brought back possibly Halo’s most famous map: Blood Gulch. Once again, as a Red vs. Blue fan, I was excited to see Blood Gulch again as it was where the first five seasons of the show took place.

Final Thoughts:
Reach is as close to the perfect FPS as you can get. It has the story, the look, and the gameplay that many will love. I only hope that this will not be Bungie’s last hurrah in the Halo Universe.

Until next time Busy Gamers, Happy gaming!

M-Dawg out.

Halo : Leaks

Tuesday, August 24th, 2010

(Kotaku.com) – As leaked copies of Halo: Reach hit the torrent sites, Microsoft tells Kotaku that they are aggressively investigating the leak and are fully prepared to hand out bans to anyone caught playing the game pre-release.

It happens every time a big game comes out, but when it’s a game as big as Bungie’s final Halo title, Microsoft sits up and takes notice. Released on the internet far in advance of its September 14 street date, a Microsoft representative tells Kotaku that the source of the leak is under investigation.

“We are aware that an unauthorized copy of “Halo: Reach” has leaked. We are aggressively investigating the matter. We have no further details to share at this time.”

So where does that leave folks who can’t resist the lure of early Halo: Reach? Even if you have every intention of picking up a retail copy, we’d suggest you wait, lest Microsoft come after you.

“We are aggressively pursuing the violators. Microsoft’s commitment to combat piracy and support safer and more secure gameplay for the 25 million members of the Xbox LIVE community remains a top priority. All consumers should know that piracy is illegal and modifying their Xbox 360 console violates the Xbox LIVE terms of use, will void their warranty and result in a ban from Xbox LIVE.”

Within Our Reach

Monday, May 3rd, 2010

Red vs Blue Redefined

Its within a week now that the Halo Reach Beta will be hitting the masses. On the 27th, gamers with Halo Reach Beta codes can start playing over Xbox Live in all the new different modes. May 3rd is the day that everyone else is going to be green-lit for beta access.

While you wait, why not torture ourselves by watching teasers? In preparation for the release of the beta, Bungie has released a ViDoc and a live-action trailer.

The ViDoc, entitled Carnàge Carnivàle, teases all elements of the beta hyping all Bungie fanboys via BuTube. Describing the exact appetite of the hardcore gamer, Luke Smith calls the campaign of any game the preparation of the table while the multiplayer is your meal.

http://www.vg247.com/2010/04/28/halo-birth-of-a-spartan-live-action-teaser-springs-forth-from-microsofts-womb/

http://www.bungie.net/News/Blog.aspx?mode=news#Reach_Beta_Guide

‘Reach’ing for New Details

Tuesday, January 12th, 2010

Are you ready to Reach for the next Halo title?

ODST came out last fall and blew away all fans of the favored Microsoft franchise, but that was last year; Halo: Reach is SO this year! Game Informer has a Reach as their cover game for their February magazine and now someone has gotten their copy so its time to see what the article brings to the table of new information and pictures.

Bungie has officially released information about the article in a forum that was posted on Bungie.net. Exclusive to magazine readers? Not so much, but we’ll help spread all the new announcements and enhancements around. Depending on what kind of Halo player you are, you might be thrilled to hear that the spike and flame grenades have vanished from the playing field making the obviously dominant grenades, frag and plasma, the only grenades to find in Halo: Reach. Contrary to popular belief, Halo: Reach will not follow Fall of Reach’s storyline.

Like the idea of archaic battles with over 30 enemies in a combat situation? Well Bungie will take those 30 enemy AI and raise you 20 AI vehicles and another 10 enemies on screen at the same time. Epic battles AHOY! Speaking of epic, you’ll be able to battle your way through a revival of what seems to be a squad based remake of Halo: Combat Evolved. With marines looking similar to that of the marines in the original title and the health bar returning, this game will either finish the epicness of the Halo Franchise or project it into a new generation of Halo fans.

(more…)

Must haves for new Xbox-ers!

Tuesday, January 5th, 2010

HO, HO, I puHOwned you.

So I know some of you out there are late on the get go, heck I’M ALWAYS late on the get go. I’m speaking to those of you who just now managed to be on the adequate behavior list, and ole Santa went and decided to drop you a Xbox 360 down your chimney last week. Now you have all that cash that your Aunt Edna and Uncle Willard passed on to you since they found out that you wern’t a Jonas Brothers fan, and bought you the boxed set last year…ahh what to do with all that fat dough.

Well I thought that I would convey on to you some vital info, since we do mingle some games around here with our busy lifestyles. Yes, we are awesome, and yes we occasionally get to fire up a console now and then. That being noted, I’d like to compile a few ‘must haves’ for new Xbox 360 owners out there. We know, since you’re here, you understand our BusyGamer Theology, and may not have, nor want to take risks on game titles that (a) you know nothing about; (b) may have the potential to just suck, and really suck; or (c) cost too much to risk beer money on.

So here below are some definite titles to consider, I’ve also tried to keep the genres varied (to cater to your playstyles). But these are games that I refuse to vendor back to my local resale shop, hence the fact I always come back to them. Kinda like bad girlfriends, only less pricey.

I could be running over prostitutes.

RANDOM CHAOS GAME
Grand Theft Auto IV – No questions asked. They should ship this to you when you buy an Xbox 360. You’ve seen it, you’ve heard the controversy in it, and yes, it’s all what they make it – AND MORE. For a 2007 game release, it is still one of my favorites that does not lose any thing on replay. It’s always fun running down pedestrians, chasing criminals (and the law), jacking a new Ferrari because you scratched yours on that old lady crossing the road, or taking over the local Burger Shot at gunpoint with my friends online, to see how many cars we can pile up in the lobby.

ROLE PLAYING GAME
Mass Effect – As much as I write about this game, and anticipate the sequel coming January 26, no surprise that I would put this on a list. And for someone new to this console, a $19.99 game that is well rounded, fun, surprising, beautiful, and well deserving of a play through with a new character type, this is a steal. A Science Fiction, RPG, third person shooter, with action reminiscent of Starship Troopers meets Star Trek meets Space 1999, hell I’m sold. AND a great story to boot!

We still look the best in armor.

FALLOUT 3 – Can you say HUGE? Let’s add a few DLC’s and then HUGEAMOUS! Yeah, this game is big. Not too good on the staying busy with your normal life, but a fantastic RPG game set in a post-nuclear-fallout environment. This game makes me feel like a character out of Road Warrior, mainly because my armor never matches and I’m always out of ammo. Guns and melee weapons are great, tons of quests, playthroughs will guarantee new things to discover, and if you think you’ve seen it all – just download some new content episodes, available online via the Xbox Live Store.

SPORTS GAME
Madden Football – Since one comes out every year just pick one. If you don’t care about the new rosters, and you plan to create all your friends on your hometown team, then buy one that is 2 years old. They all offer pretty much the same thing, and seeing my name on the back of a Texans jersey is damn exciting in my book. They all play great, and football video games are good party starters, plus injuring your friends for the season is fantastic too. Madden Football + beer + bowl of Doritos = win, no matter how you look at it.

Claymore, or less, I win.

FIRST PERSON SHOOTER
COD:Modern Warfare 1 or 2 – Like a story where you (the heroes) get to shoot the terrorists (the enemies) in a third world country? We do. Like a game that boasts an arsenal of real military weapons that you get to test drive, in a world where that would be impossible to the general population? We do. Like a game that offers hours upon hours of online multiplayer gameplay, with so many unlockables, that they themselves have wikisites dedicated to them? We do too. And again some could argue that the Halo series overpowers this, but I vote no, (my article, my rules), and lets add even more varied teamplay to the dish, better maps, and well executed co-op missions to challenge you and your war buddy.

STAR WARS GAME (yes it gets it’s own category)
Star Wars : Battlefront II – One thing that makes the Xbox 360 superior to other consoles, is BACKWARDS COMPATIBILTY! That brings this Star Wars title (from the original Xbox) to the table that won’t get pawned at the store. As much as I love the Star Wars franchise, a majority of the serious Lucas games are a big fail. Most of them. Not this one, BFII is still kicking butt at my house from a ‘console ago’. If you need a blaster fix, this is your game. The story starts at Episode III and goes on into Episode VI and beyond, even includes the fan based cosplay club, the 501st, in the story line, /WIN!

Old, but never outdated.

There you have it, these are all great games (my all time picks). And they most ALL have won awards for how bad a$$ they are, in their respective categories. As for the older titles, well it’s a bonus – because NOW they are discounted, and can be readily found at your local “previously-played shops”. So get to it, their are plenty of old worlds to fight battles in, and all in all, these worlds definitely deserve being saved again, and again, and again….

HALO scripted for the big screen!

Monday, August 10th, 2009

halo-movie

Ok kiddos, the much anticipated HALO movie may be coming to the big screen much sooner than we expected. The wildly popular video games follow Master Chief, a cybernetically-enhanced human super-soldier, and his artificial intelligence (AI) companion, Cortana as they aide future humanity in battling the Covenant. So we are thinking action, aliens and atleast one hot chick.

Movie news site IESB has learned exclusively that one of the biggest producers in Hollywood history is currently in active negotiations to develop the feature film adaptation and no it’s not Jerry Bruckheimer or Peter Jackson. It’s the man behind Jaws, E.T., Indiana Jones and Transformers, Mr. Steven Spielberg.

Spielberg is blown away by writer Stuart Beattie’s take on the game in his script entitled HALO THE FALL OF REACH. This coupled with the fact that his Dreamworks umbrella is looking for a big tent pole to help launch their newly independant studio with distribution over at Walt Disney Pictures after losing Transformers to Paramount in the separation, it’s the perfect combination.

With Spielberg tipping this scales for this take on a video game movie, we can only hope he does it justice. We all know what happened to the Street Fighter series…ugh. /fail

[Source]

Much more in the Halo franchise, including Master Chief

Wednesday, March 4th, 2009
Halo: Uprising #3 Cover

Halo: Uprising #3 Cover by Marvel

For those Halo fans out there, we here at Busy Gamer are getting the buzz that plenty of things are coming in the future for the first person shooter sci-fi series.

Halo franchise development director has announced two new Halo comic series for 2009 (in addition to The Halo: Uprising #4 coming out March 18, which closes the gaps on activities between Halo 2 and Halo 3). Marvel has stated that two new working titles are ‘Halo: Hell Jumpers’ about the Orbital Drop Shock Troopers and ‘Halo: Spartan Black’, tales of a team of Spartans.

The ODST comic arriving this summer will be stories of the Shock Trooper Team who are known for their “Navy Seal” type skills, according to O’connor. These ass whoopers will be the focus of the next Halo game “Halo 3: ODST” (a first person shooter taking place just after Halo 2 and before Halo 3).

O’Connor says:

“(this game) is significantly more than an add-on. It’s a lot of game. You play the game through the point of view of an ODST. They are dropped into combat from orbit. They have a rivalry with the Spartans that is well known to the fans of the fiction. We finally let you into their boots as it were. …It’s kind of a detective story in a way. But it is much more action-packed than that.”

O’Connor also added penetrating words regarding our favorite main character, “I doubt we have seen the last of Master Chief.”

So as if your Halo wish list was not full already, it ought to be full as hell by now.

[Source]

-Crutchboy out










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