MIXED BAG. REVIEW OF
(BONUS: Forward Unto Dawn Web Mini-Series)
By Sean Barnes
Developer: 343 Studios (Microsoft Studios)
System: Xbox 360 (Released Nov. 2012)
Genre: First-Person ShooterMore videos and relevant links will be included along with my review.
11 years ago, Microsoft's first home console the Xbox hit homes and a game that had been fumbling around for a few years was one of the launch titles for the new console, Halo: Combat Evolved. Not only would Halo 1 set its mark as the most successful Xbox launch title, but as the forerunner of a new generation of first person shooters in the console market. The controls, graphics, story, etc. set a new standard that was the biggest leap in console shooters since Goldeneye 007 (N64, 1997) and would leave another indelible mark in the market. Halo attracted gamers with the prospect of local network that would be impressively succeeded by the advent of Xbox Live and the immense success of Halo 2. Halo became a phenomena and Master Chief the closest thing they Xbox would get it to a mascot. Halo: Combat Evolved was truly the start of an evolution.
Halo revolutionized console multi-player, but that's not the only thing that makes Halo so special; the universe it created, not only in the narrative of the games, but in books, comics, films, mini-series and a variety of multimedia, is something that sets Halo apart from the generic space-shooters and modern shooters of the gaming zeitgeist. There is a reason that one of the talking points of this generation was Sony's many failed attempts to create a "Halo-killer".
As the Wii U came out on the 18th of November, marking a new generation of consoles, Halo has been eclipsed as a phenomena by series like Call of Duty, but it hardly has lots its sheen. With seven titles, with even the worst (looking at you Halo Wars) having its fans, Halo still stands as a AAA-series that stands to continuing evolving into the next generation.
So, the question for our review is, as the beginning of a new Halo trilogy, how does Halo 4 evolve the series and what lies ahead?
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| "Don't Make a Girl a Promise You Can't Keep." |
When we last left Master Chief, he and Cortana were stranded in space inside the barely operating wreckage of the UNSC Forward Unto Dawn. Master Chief climbed inside a cryochamber and told Cortana,"wake me when you need me."
Four years later, the ship has drifted into a strange space object and a fleet of rogue covenant zealots known as the Storm. Cortana wakes Master Chief only for the ship and the fleet to end up being sucked into a space well to the surface of a Forerunner planet populated by cybernetic enemies and overrun by Covenant. As the story unfolds, Master Chief must prevent a Forerunner threat from eradicating humanity, save the crew of the UNSC ship Infinity who came to rescue him, and, perhaps most importantly, to save Cortana.
As an artificial intelligence, created by and as a copy of Dr. Hallsy, mother of the Spartan Program, Cortana has a short lifespan of about 7 years. After that point, to which she has reached in Halo 4, she begins to degrade and "think" herself to death. Master Chief will do anything to save the only "person" he loves and so he must return to Earth to see if he can save her.
I don't want to spoil too much--it would be easy to do so since the campaign in Halo 4 feels very short, but trust me when I say that the story is pretty good. Halo 4 manages to humanize Master Chief's and Cortana's futuristic relationship and introduce enough new characters and hooks for the rest of the trilogy and multimedia of the universe. As a whole, the story is pretty solid.
The cinematics are stunning (linked above in the title "Presentation" is the first cinematic) that was so impressive that, when watching the cinematics with a friend, he couldn't help but admit he thought Dr. Hallsy was a live-action actress. The game clearly has state-of-the-art cinematics and yet, even more impressive, is when such graphics bleed seamlessly to the less intense graphics of the in-game engine; in other words, the game pushes the boundaries between fantasy and reality.
Worthy of note is the upgrade to Cortana from Halo 3 (2007) to Halo 4's far more detailed and human looking Cortana, with more detailed curves and even a gap in her teeth. This helps humanize the character that represents the emotional heart of the title.
The menus are fairly explanatory and goals are almost always apparent...almost. Several times during the campaign and in the Spartan Ops mode I found myself searching for the objective, waiting for a waypoint to show up, and getting lost. The upgrade to Master Chief's HUD helps offset some of this frustration and the general design of the multiplayer mode's objectives/presentation are better than even Halo Reach. The new guns are also well-designed so that they can be identified from a distance by color, shape, and profile.
The problem with the game's graphics come with the intensity of lighting, shadow, color, and texture in the game; with new effects like disintegrating character models, more animated characters, and everything having far more detail, it would be easy to see how the game pushes it's engine and hardware to the limit; the game often feels fuzzy and walking into new areas objects, character models, and the like will appear as if out of a fog or mid-air.
In the end, Halo 4 is beautiful, full of awe-inspiring vistas and vivid colors, is the crowning achievement of Microsoft Studios art dept.
The single-player campaign is one of my favorite elements of Halo, with Combat Evolved's campaign being a terribly memorable and enjoyable experience, and Halo 4 delivers in many ways...but also falls a little short. On one hand, playing as Master Chief with Cortana in the backseat is an enjoyable experience and the narrative that plays out is certainly worth the investment. Yet, I hate to admit that the campaign falls short, literally because of its short length, but also in its variety. I often felt like the objective wasn't terribly clear, the enemies, both old and new, lacked variety, and even the missions that revolved around vehicles were not as satisfying as the Saber mission from Halo Reach.
Note: I played the campaign on Heroic by myself, which felt satisfyingly difficult, and Normal in co-op, with the latter being intensely easy but still fun.
Halo 4's multi-player delivers on the promises of Reach's customization that I felt was unsatisfied; not only can you create classes like Battlefield and Call of Duty that mix weapon choices with special abilities and perks, it also has even more armor customization. Funnily, Sprint has become a basic default ability on every class and will get into the overall ramifications further down.
The game modes and custom forge mode is what really sets Halo apart from its competitor by supplying traditional arena gameplay with newer game conventions; modes like Flood mode (zombies) and Regicide (kill the head honcho for more points) gives the game a lot of fun variety that can't be beat. Forge Mode has gotten better, but is in no way the kind of evolution I expected to see by this point; you still have to build your custom maps with a limited pool of options-- regardless, forge mode continues to be the game element that gives Halo years of play value.
As I conclude my feeling on the gameplay, it is important to explain how I feel about sprinting being a normal part of gameplay... I love it. After playing faster paced shooters like Call of Duty and Battlefield, it felt strange that as eight foot tall super humans that the Spartan would be slow and cumbersome. The game has taken several cues from other successful series and admittedly, Halo 4's biggest disappointment is that it does little to innovate and instead focuses on improve the formula. I hate to say it, but Halo is no longer "evolving" at the speed I would like it to.
PROS VS. CONS
+ Master Chief and Cortana's tragic story and the expansion of new characters/threats provides a satisfying experience for Halo Universe fans.+ The visuals are top of the line and push the Xbox 360 to the limit
+ Multi-player is as fun as if ever, if not more fun, and includes even more customization
+ Faster sprinting, more weapon variety, and more customization make up lots of little improvements for the series.
VS.
- The Campaign is too short and repetitive and the game does little to innovate
4/5.
With games like Halo 4, the experience will grow with the Forge Mode and continued to be a fun experience for years to come; only time will tell how well the fun holds up a year or two years from now and yet, it stands as a positive testament to this generation's growth.In the end, the title shows great improvement since Halo 3 and even Halo Reach, and Halo 4 manages to deliver another AAA experience that will send the console to the end of its cycle in much the same way it began it with a Halo--with a bang.
I'm gonna review this like I would review a film, in short form; its a fantastic mini-series that any Halo fan would enjoy that adds another layer to the expanded universe, serves as an effective prequel that sets up the relationship between Master Chief and Lasky, and has amazing production values that would make for a fantastic full-length series or film that I really feel the fans and the public would appreciate. The coolest part is seeing Master Chief in the flesh and seeing him go up against Covenant that are mostly, and cleverly, just out of the purview of the other characters because, if they were able to see them, they could be seen and most likely killed.
Make sure to watch it and enjoy.
