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Halo: Combat Evolved

Xbox » First-Person » Microsoft

User Review: review this item | see game reviews
Date Released: Jun 14, 2006
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Description

More often than not, when a game is in development for more than three years, it does not live up to the hype. Bungie's Halo is the exception. Not only does it meet expectations, it greatly exceeds them. This sci-fi first-person shooter is a nearly perfect blend of gameplay, graphics, and sound.

The story revolves around the conflict between humans and an alien race known as the Covenant. The aliens have discovered a powerful artifact--on the ring-shaped planet called Halo--that will shift the balance of power, and it's up to the player to stop them. In addition to several first-person-shooter levels, the game offers numerous opportunities to engage in vehicular combat. Both the enemy and allied artificial intelligence are extremely impressive. Enemies will use the terrain and layout to put you in tight spots. Allies will know when to cover and aid you. For instance, if you hop into a jeep, an ally will know to jump in and man the turret on the back of it.

The graphics are exquisitely detailed, but only move at 30 frames per second rather than 60. The sound effects and voice acting are superb. The level design is among the best ever; most of the game is engaging and challenging without being frustrating. There's also high replay value thanks to the built-in single-player, cooperative, and deathmatch modes.

Much like the outstanding GoldenEye 007 for Nintendo 64, Halo raises the bar for console first-person shooters. All console action games will be measured against Halo for years to come. --Raymond M. Padilla

Pros:

  • Outstanding game design
  • High replay value
  • Impressive AI
Cons:
  • Several maps are used multiple times
  • Save functions could have been better implemented
  • Graphics move at 30 frames per second, not 60

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User Review
  Mark Christensen, May 31, 2010

Certainly overhyped

Sure, this game has had rave reviews, and I'm basing this on games released in the same time period.

Yes, there is a story. It's a fairly decent setup, but after the initial training, it's simply, "kill the aliens and save the marines" missions. It gets pretty old, pretty fast. Of course, the second one was supposed to be a lot better. We'll see, when I get to that. It works really well on the xbox 360, as I would have guessed, since this was their flagship title for the first xbox. It is available for download, but I like to have physical media, since you never know when their virtual store may not be available anymore, or older titles may be removed.
  C. Eberlein, May 26, 2010

The games that started the series

I jumped onto the Halo series bandwagon after hearing the hype that led up to Halo 2's release in 2004. Having beat that, I decided to try out the original on my Xbox and, needless to say, can say that this series is worth the hype. Graphically, it cannot compare to Halo 3, which in itself cannot compare as well to games released this year (Halo 3 is, of course, already 3 years old). But Halo's topnotch story, voice acting and script leaves the original, almost 10 years old, as one of the best games of all time. While I prefer Halo 2 in terms of gameplay and overall storyline, Halo is in itself a perfect game for any gamer.
  LithiumNitrate, May 23, 2010

Still the King - start here if you're new to the franchise

It's almost ten years since I first played this masterpiece (god is that possible?). It is only so rare that a game title comes out that strikes emotional veinage through story/gameplay/music. Halo CE is one of them. I remember the first weekend i played it. It completely sucked me in and I could not stop playing the campaign: incredible world, story, pacing, fluid physics and the best soundtrack in gaming history. Every chapter ends with a hook. Every hook deepens the story and pulls you further in.

Video game developers do/will study this title as coursework because of its near perfection. It fires on all 12 cylinders. Somehow Bungie was able to create an ineffable whole out of the many parts that so few gamemakers can ever assemble with success. This is why you must play this game.

I came back to write this review because it's 9 years and right now I'm playing through the single player campaign again and realizing Halo CE is still better than just about every game coming out on today's consoles. Even at 480 resolution on my xb360, the game still holds up graphically and the physics and great story will never age.

This game is a classic because it is that rare gem of many component parts uniting into a near-perfect whole. Most games fail because they don't get all those parts into a working whole. This one does. And, without Halo CE, one could argue that the xbox would have failed and that we'd only be playing on PS3 and Nintendo today. The only thing that saddens and disbelieves me is that a Collector's Edition of this masterpiece was never issued. How is that possible? I would buy it today, if they did.

Long live the King. Halo CE is still the best of the franchise, and still one of the greatest games in history.
  Stephan Dettman, April 21, 2010

A Classic

This game has been around for several years now, but remains one of the best combat games ever made. The graphics are fantastic, the game play is flawless, and the multi-player is top notch. In fact, the multi-player is why I purchased this copy. I hosted a HALO party where we had four TVs and four XBoxes hooked up with the system-link option. It was an absolute blast having 16 players in battling it out on the best combat game ever. I highly recommend it!
  Sports Guru, April 2, 2010

Very disappointed

As the title says, I am extremely disappointed. Not only did the game arrive damaged and unplayable, but since lodging 2 complaints, nothing has been done to rectify the problem. I will not be using the client who sold me this game again.

Additional info for Halo: Combat Evolved

Features:

Control a character during massive firefights as you eliminate as many Covenant soldiers as possible

Engage in guerilla warfare against the enemy, using whatever is at your disposal on the station

Use your tactics skills to command squads and eliminate the enemy

Role-based team & multiplayer combat with over 25 characters onscreen at a time

A wide variety of vehicles & locations designed in perfect detail