Wow, just wow!
Having worked halmy way through the sensational Halo 3 this past few days, it is the first time in a long time, probably since I played the wonderfully creative Bulletstorm.
For the first time, as the credits rolled, I was left with nothing to say other than "wow" over and over again and this is where I earn my crust (well I would if I got paid for this!) by saying, or justifying, why I think this deserves the title of one of the best games of last generation.
First off I want to thank Bungie and Microsoft Game Studios for the quality of story that has branched out since the days of the original Xbox's launch title Halo back in 2001. I remember that day very well, the day when I finally got my Xbox having been a Sony fanboy beforehand and it was one of the few games that still sticks in my mind as being truly memorable for all the right reasons.
Who can forget the nightmarish first encounter with the Flood?!
I still remember to this day being drawn into panic mode as you had to survive until the game unlocked the right door for you to go through and me and my dad got to that part only to get stuck and never really go back to it.
I did beforehand, completing it twice and hearing all about the nightmarish time you'd need to eclipse in the final race to the finish having destroyed the first ring.
In number two, which to this day I have not completed, was all about the roles the Arbiter, the Truth and Master Chief et al would have to take on as the universe was pushed to the brink of annihilation all part of the Prophet's foretelling and plan.
Now at this point I have to admit that jumping into Halo 3 having not finished number two would probably be akin to, say, watching The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug having not seen either any or all of The Hobbit.
Why?
Because I was left wondering just what this plan was that the Prophet was speaking of and just why in the hell I could control this Arbiter sonuvagun in the first one with the wonkiest cloaking device known to man.
I know for about half an hour I was trying to piece together what had happened in the culmination of Combat Evolved, even though my nephew told me that 3 picked up where number 2 ended.
But that did not stop me from enjoying the story because it dragged me in with all my questions and took me on a rollercoaster ride that did not stop until the final destruction of the *spoiler alert* "secret ring" that Master Chief had to destroy.
I was pleasantly surprised to see the little robot dude, the Monitor, turn up having seen him get chased off at the end of Combat Evolved and from my memory he did not at all feature in most of the second one. Only to turn nasty and you have to finally destroy him when he realises what Master Chief is here to do; destroy the secret ring and prevent the Halo rings from firing.
This was all new to me because I knew the Prophet was up to something from the way he and his kind were featured in number 2 and then to find that the Flood had been given a voice courtesy of the Truth I found unsettling at first but soon grew to accept it because of the way the story gripped me throughout the Flood ship level and then the final confrontation with the Monitor at the Control Room.
I'll be completely honest with you at this point and say that I cannot wait to get a-hold of ODST, before moving onto Halo 4 in time for number 5; Forward Unto Dawn later this year.
No doubt I'll probably have to get a One for that, but such is the case for greatness!
In all honesty, having felt like I'd missed out a large chunk of the lore of this game having not fully completed number two (with its boss battle at the end), I wasn't sure whether I'd be able to enjoy this fully.
Instead I was treated to a wonderful right for the senses that saw finally dual-wielding work to Halo's great advantage, having used it it other games to woeful effect. A plasma repeater in one hand and machine gun in the other was like combining future weaponry with the present and was one of my most popular combinations with the energy sword being added as my backup.
Then there's the freakin' hammer!
Maan, that weapon is so bad-ass!
The first time you face a Brute with the hammer, my goodness you do not want to be too close when it goes off... fortunately for me, I glitched him behind the scenery and because I was on the lowest difficulty (like I always do, not like the morons who swear again and again they can't beat a game when it's too hard for them!), he couldn't figure out how to get around it meaning I could strafe and fire, strafe and fire, eventually after a shedload of ammo, blew him to kingdom come.
Which brings me to my only flaw with the game; the low level AI... I'm not kidding you, some of them were that stupid as the game went on that they either couldn't find me when I was in their line of sight or they did not do a single thing until I fired the first shot at them.
Also, I must add at this point that the game was made ridiculously easy by simply watching and letting the Arbiter take care of the enemies you faced, that is when you weren't separated from him and the marines for no reason only to find they've beaten you to the next room, despite claiming not to know which way to go!
Other than that, it was a thoroughly enjoyable game that fully deserves the rating I'm giving it: -
Despite the flaws I've pointed out I'm able to overlook it simply because a game has not left me just uttering one word of a stunned reaction for a long-a$$ time so it deserves to counter the half-star drop I would have otherwise given it for a faux pas making it easier than Combat Evolved without a shadow of a doubt!
Peace out,
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