Halo 2 is the sequel to the superb games known as Halo. You play as the same guy, Master Chief. Now in this
game the story is pretty similar to the first one in that you need to stop the same enemy from doing the same thing, but there
are surprising twist that change the experience. Now to the review.
Sound
Eli: The sound in Halo 2 not only is as good as Halos but better, your not going to here anything
better in other Xbox titles. The voice acting is top notch as is the music. Some of the music has been re-done
with a mix of rock from the original Halo. Just like the first one the music comes and goes in specific areas
and during cutscenes. All of the weapons in halo 2 sound extremely realistic. The only word to describe
the sound in Halo 2 is perfect. There really is nothing bad to say about the sound.
Graphics
Eli: The graphics are as impressive as the sound with stunning visuals that look superb. One thing that
really caught my eye were the lighting on the weapons like the Battle Rifle and the carbine. The master cheif looks
extremely well done and so does the new covenant character Arbitar. It looks extremely cool to see all the shadowing
and lighting that was put on this game. Halo 2 visuals completly top the orginals no questions asked.The thing that
I thought was pretty cool was that the cutscenes in the games were in real time. This is great and all but the bad thing is
that the xbox is too slow to produce all those nice visuals at once which means slowdowns during cutscenes and popping graphics
when you walk up closer to an object, and blurring effects.
Gameplay
Eli: The gameplay in Halo 2 is not very different from Halo 1. In that I mean that the game is still
awesome. There is tons of action in the campaign where you can play through it by yourself or with a
buddy. Besides the Master Chief being the main character the bungie guys added a new character.
A covenant elite that goes by the name of Arbitar. While playing through the game you'll face tougher and
new enemies. There is the return of all of the enemies including a bug flying freak and a new covenant race
known as the brutes. The AI is incredibly intellegent. An ex. would be that the enemy finds for cover
when you toss a grenade at them or if your behind cover they'll throw a grenade right at you. There shots are accurate
and difficult to dodge especially if your playing this on harder difficulties like Heroic and legendary. Once you
have finished the campaign there is still multiplayer modes including Xbox Live that will keep you busy for a long time.
For those who don't have Xbox Live they can still play throught the campaign in co-op or go head to head in 4 player
splitscreen action that is just unbelieveable. There are the same modes as the first halo and a new mode called territories.
There are also tons of new maps that are extremely fun including the remake of a couple of Halo 1 maps. The split screen
is pretty smooth for the most part. While playing through the campaign in co-op mode you will notice slowdowns that are
pretty jerky. The Split screen action isn't perfectly smooth either. The checkpoints are better but not perfect.
Also, the story line isn't very entertaining either. All in all the gameplay still rocks as hard as the first one did.
Overall
Eli: Halo 2 is the best game to come out for the Xbox since Halo 1and is a must have. Plus, you can t-bag
your friends in it.
Eli's score: 9.5
