The prequel to trump all prequels has finally landed. Halo: Reach has been buzzing for over a year now and with more hype than even Halo 3 had, it seemed to be becoming the one part of the franchise that would pull out all the brakes and make like a Toyota and slam on the accelerator. With no Master Chief and instead using Noble Team as the main characters, it has made Spartans human...albeit humans with extraordinary powers and resilience. Reach has dominated the sales books as well as has nearly a million online gamers at anytime of the day or night, we know online is important but is the storyline good as well? Here is your review of Halo: Reach.
Story
We all decently understand the storyline so far...
*The covenant aim to destroy humanity and activate the rings so as to ascend to some form of divine heavy and are lead by the prophets.
*Master Chief and Cortana understand this and destroy the first ring.
*The Elites are kicked out of the Covenant (essentially) in favor of the Brutes which angers the Elites and they form a shaky alliance with the humans of the UNSC.
*The Flood destroy everything and the rings are the failsafe...in other words everything goes boom.
*You destroy a ring that the flood Gravemind was creating in order to sustain itself.
*The end of Halo 3 is utterly confusing as to where the Master Chief is actually located, if beat on legendary you'll see a planet...what that planet is we do not know...but I bet that Bungie does.
So now that we are caught up somewhat, this storyline involving Noble Team is by far the best built and most worked on campaigns that they have put together. The game pins you as Noble 6, the new addition to the team. You and the team are sent out to find out why a relay station has gone offline. ONI suspects that it is insurgents taking out a military installation, but when Noble Team arrives it is the Covenant...they found Reach.
The story is very strong and the characters (Spartans with ACTUAL personalities) are played very well. You have your no nonsense soldier, your dryly humorous techie, your big gun-wielding softy, your quiet-type sniper, your I-want-to-kill-everything guy and then you, Noble 6. Reach adds much more to the galaxy and universe of Halo and it keeps the storyline of all the games intact and never undermines them. Don't get me wrong, Master Chief is of Chuck Norris status, but seeing these superhuman characters with emotion and understanding that they will die it just makes you feel for them, it makes you go "Why must you die like Carmine from Gears of War!?"
The experience you have while playing this story is simply great. It keeps itself going and helps you dive deeper into the Halo universe. As most FPS these days rely on online play nearly 100%, it was nice to see Bungie actually make Reach a playable and enjoyable storyline.
Gameplay
Halo has constantly had some of the best gameplay for a FPS throughout the past decade. The guns are upgraded and look better, Covenant weapons are much improved and the new powers you can use (like jet packs and holograms) make for not just an exciting online game but for the campaign as well. The flow is smoother, and improved graphics and online maps make for some brutal conflicts.
Let's be honest with ourselves, you want to hear about the online play. So if I were simple...I would say it's awesome 4, or even 5 times, and stop there; but lets go into deeper detail and let me tell you why it is in fact, awesome.
You still have your old-fashioned "Slayer" mode; where it's kill or be killed in a 4v4 face-off which is always nice. You have newcomer "Invasion" which is similar to Battlefield: Bad Co. 2's "Rush" mode where you need to take control points and in the case of reach Reach, ultimately take your enemies' shiny colored thing. Both versions of "Invasion" are great though: you can do regular "Invasion", where you capture the points and move on to the next objective, or "Slayer Invasion" where it's 6v6 with control points that spawn better weapons (tanks, aircraft, rockets, spartan lasers, etc.) all while killing each other as much as you can in a full 15 minutes.
The addition of the armor upgrade abilities to customize your Spartan make the online even better, along with getting credits to make your Spartan look badder than Shaft on a good day. The different combos you can do are fun and make it more enjoyable to play (believe it or not). Being able to switch package sets for different weapons as well as a special ability (jet pack, sprint, etc.) makes all the online games even better. Now your strategy can change by the click of a button and on the fly as needed. It presents a "what do you need now" scenario, which for online gaming is what we all want.
To say it as I did earlier, it is awesome. The online quality is indisputable though, as it trumps Call of Duty MW2 and Battlefield Bad Co. 2 when it comes to online gaming. Halo has some special thing that fans are tantalized by and it has lasted a near decade, so again I reiterate...it is awesome.
Sound
The music is still the same music Halo has been using since we can remember. It is still memorable and recognizable from the first musical note. It sticks to the guns that works and when it comes to sounds in games, usually you need to stick with that anyhow. The weapons sound great when firing and reloading. The musical scores and destruction still pay the needed bill.
The in-game music still gets your blood going and your testosterone pumping (yes ladies, even you get some Jersey Shore fist pumping juice flowing as well). You'll feel the need to kill anything and everything when you hear it and that is where the music makes its real mark. It does the job but doesn't present a WOW factor.
Visuals
The graphics and planet Reach took a HUGE upgrade. Not just on the guns and characters, but take time (when not being shot at) to look over all the scenery. Reach is truly a beautiful planet and with the detail upgrades it's plain to see. The night mission has one of the best looking nighttime skylines I've seen in the past few years. It simply makes itself out as a lush planet that you're about to watch go to hell. Throughout the game, as you progress further, you notice Reach taking an ungodly beating through how it looks as well as the planet's skyline. It is truly a remarkable visual.
Replay
Reach delivers on its storyline, but the real moneymaker here is the online gameplay. Playing online is key nowadays and Halo is the predecessor to this current obsession (I know others came before, but Halo was essentially the game that put online gameplay on the map). With all the customization and things you can do, the desire to replay this game is not just expected, it's nearly guaranteed. Halo: Reach is a game you will play till the next Halo-something is released.
Final Analysis
Halo: Reach is what we expected and more. It gave a strong and enjoyable storyline as well as some of the best and up-to-date online gameplay worth your hard-earned dollars. I can't further explain why it is worth it, but simply knowing what Halo is and seeing the upgrades done to this franchise are beyond what any of us thought possible just 3 years ago when Halo 3 hit shelves.
Reach has gone far and beyond what we expected as a game and has taken customization to a new high for FPS games. From playing this, it really makes you look forward to the next installment of what Bungie comes up with and trust me...there will be something. Halo: Reach does its job to the degree and bar most in the community had set. It will rule online gaming even past Medal of Honor and Call of Duty: Black Ops. It has surpassed its competition in terms of gameplay, graphics and replay value. With hitting on all cylinders it makes for a fun and worthwhile buy.
"Halo: Reach" is on sale September 14, 2010 and is rated M. Shooter. Developed by Bungie. Published by Microsoft Game Studios.
