Save Ferris

I got my new Xbox and Halo with it and was slightly underwhelmed.

I suppose im spoiled from playing Unreal on my PC.

1. Theres not enough weapon variety in Halo. The energy-based weapons are all the same except for the needler which is too lightweight. The machine gun takes forever to chop up the flood and really you only effectively use the shotgun and grenades for the flood.

2. Theres too much running LONG distances from check point to checkpoint over and over through the same environment as an objective. Since you dont benefit much from killing enemy (rarely useable ammo-see above, no health boost) I often found i was running from checkpoint to checkpoint and avoiding most of the enemies. Why take on a firefight if you just need to pass through as fast as possible?

---Would of been cooler:

1. more weapons. grenade launcher under machine gun? Bladed weapons? different types of automatic rifles with different damage, speed Light, Med, Heavy? Proximity mines?

2. Objective to take out a boss bad guy? Might be more fun than 'running errands' all the time.

3. More levels where i can use the tank. Ability to use the jeep and shoot?

4. ability to set traps/proximity mines?

5. better hand to hand combat. I REALLY wanted to pick up and THROW those little guys! If i could flip a geep/ghost/banshee cant i throw a little guy!

I havent played multiplayer yet, is it any different? I liked the game but i didnt love it. I cant wait for Unreal.

darkside

I'm having Deja Vu on this topic.

I think some of the issues people have had with Halo will probably be adressed in Halo 2. I thought it was a very good FPS overall, but the repetitiveness of some of the levels was a minor complaint from me. I would expect a lot of new additions for the next game.

gross@iastate

This has already been discussed.

http://www.dvdtalk.com/forum/showthr...hreadid=248111

My input:

You need to find a friend to play through the levels with you. Co-op is really fun. Deathmatch with 4 or more is a blast. If you have broadband, connect your box to your computer and get gamespy. If you can find a game without lag you'll be hooked.

Don't forget that Halo has been out for a year. So it's been over-hyped since then but in MY OPIONION this is the best game I have ever played. This is the only game that I still play at least 2-3 times a week.

Let the marines jump in the jeep and they will man the gun and shoot from the passenger seat. Or in co-op mode your friend can do the same.

I really didn't care for games with bosses at the ends of the levels. That's just me though.

Surround sound with Dolby Digital adds a lot also.

Oh and don't play it on the easiest level either.

I also enjoyed Unreal on the PC but you really can't compare the two.

finbogg

Different weapons are used in different situations. You'll have a favorite combination (I love the plasma rifle and the pistol) but this will change based on the situation. The Shotgun/pistol is best for the Flood.

The Needler is a great weapon when going up against the Gold Elites or any enemy where you can fire (unload the whole clip) then duck behind cover. One clip in the gold Elites usually does the trick. Works wonders in that part where you go up in the ship for the first time and get surrounded by invisible and gold elites. The needler is the only way to survive.

eXcentris

Crap, I'm stuck exactly at that spot! I must have tried this at least 30 times and I always get whacked. Problem is the weapons I have are the sniper rifle and the machine gun... When this starts, there are no bodies around to pick up a needler from, and you only have about 3 sec before the mayhem starts. I even tried talking to the invisible guys but they woudn't listen.

Centurion

In addition to what finbogg posted in response to your first qualm with the game:
If there were more weapons, would you really use them all?
I think the game nicely balances the effectiveness of the weapons in ways that forces you to pick one over the other depending on the situation you find yourself in.

Another thing, the energy weapons you're referring to are not the same. The plasma pistol can be charged if you hold down the trigger before releasing it. This one blast is all you'll need to knock-out a Jackals shield or severely damage an Elite's body shield. From there, you can switch to the good 'ol Human weapons and finish them off.

There really is a lot to this game. Spend more time with it.
I believe this is the only launch game that is still selling for $50. There's a reason for this you know.

finbogg

Yep, I thought this was the toughest part of the game. Two player co-op legendary mode is maddening. I try to have the plasma rifle and needler when I go up the gravity lift. Find the first guy coming in (he'll be invisible and coming thru the first door) and use the plasma rifle to take him out before he can get to you guys. Then start lobbing frags at the other bay doors that open (or plasmas). This will take out the grunts and shield guys coming in. A great way is to hit the wall above the door (with plasma nade) and it drops behind them where they can't see it and get creamed before they can run away.

Now use your needler on the gold elites. Hold out as long as you can then grab the cloaking shield. My strat from here is to grab as much ammo as I can. Usually the plasma rifle is empty so I grab a plasma pistol and then run through the doors that lead to the lighted hallway. This is where you make your stand. Run back and forth between doors (the hall forms a "U" with doors at either end) and take pot shots with a charged plasma pistol and needler. Watch out for elites storming up the hall or coming from the side hallways up by where you're holding out.

Then you get to fight two hunters. Enjoy.

zerotl

Yeah it was pretty tough, but that's what sticky grenades are for. Stick it to them the first time they come out, then actually go to one corner of the rooms, so you can see them coming (or not). For me one of the toughest was the bluelight special.

Get Me Coffee

All I can say is HALO 2!

Joshic

I usually do this part with the plasma pistol & grenades alone. When one of the 4 doors open, you can lob a grenade to help clear out grunts & jackals quickly. Always keep an eye on the motion detector so you can tell which doors enemies are coming from before the door even opens. If a invisible sword elite shows up, just blast him with rapid fire from the plasma pistol. If a visible (gold) elite shows up, hit him with a blast from the overcharge shot on the plasma pistol to take out his shields and stun him, then blast him with rapid fire from the plasma pistol to finish him off. Don't dump your sniper rifle on this level. There's tons of sniper ammo throughout the level, but no sniper rifles to pick up.

Using the above technique I have been able to clear the area out and have 4 marines survive the whole battle - all on legendary single player.

BTW the plasma rifle & plasma pistol have different damage potential. Each shot from the plasma pistol does HALF as much damage as a shot from the plasma rifle. But the plasma pistol can fire much faster than the plasma rifle, and the plasma pistol cools off much faster too. So over the same period of time, the plasma pistol is more damaging than the plasma rifle. These days I never use the plasma rifle anymore - it is inferior to the pistol in every way - except in multiplayer. The plasma rifle is better at stunning enemies in multiplayer mode. You can fire at a player with the rifle, circle around them as you keep firing & stun them, then whack them in the back with a melee attack to finish them off.

eXcentris

Ok thanks guys, I'll try the plasma pistol and/or the needler. Although it's a pain to have to go back to the previous level to find the right weapons!

Sloth911

$39 at traget, $29 at best buy. I picked it up for $26.59 w/ the $5 netflix coupon at BB.

previous post

well, i started the thread above, that was metioned prior in this post, after i picked up Halo last weekend.

The consensus?
1. LOTS of people love this game, almost as blindly as people love Mario!
2. LOTS of people also agree that the game is very repetitive, lacking a sense of variety in backgrounds, and having levels that are a little to long.

After 1 week of play, and 5 levels finished (sorry i have a life!), i still find the game lacking, however, i have learned to enjoy the game, despite its downfalls.

The indoor levels are really cool, the 5.1 sound is pretty neat, has virtually no loading time during play, pretty good AI, sniper rifle is neat, very good graphics.

I personally like games that are more "check point" or "objective" based, and dislike beating a "boss" at the end of each level like in Trojan --- yeah, that's right, i said "Trojan", anyone remember that game on the nes? LOL!

For $26 i cant complain, for $50 i would complain. I found Agent Under Fire more appealing though.

Chris_D

Trust me, the needler is not light weight! There's almost no better way to take out those pesky shielded elites than to pump a clip full of needles into them. If you try and play through on legendary without using the needler I think you'll find it pretty tough in a few spots.

Chris