Second verse, different than the first
After the release of Halo: Combat Evolved, you would think the sequel couldn’t live up to the hype, and in some cases that would be right. The amount of hype leading up to Halo 2 was tremendous, fans were lining up for the midnight release, advertisements were literally everywhere, news stations were reporting about the hype even. With so much hype around this game, transforming it into a phenomenon it was literally impossible for it to live even close to it.
The minute the fans put the game into the console, everyone knew it was an amazing game. Whether they started up multiplayer or played through the campaign with their friends on co-op mode. The hype surrounding the game blinded anyone who played it that day. The question many people asked themselves after the hype settled was, is the game better than the first game? The answer for most people it seemed was no.
Comparing this game to Halo 1 is hard because Halo 2 incorporated its biggest feature into the mix with online multiplayer. I’m going to try to just compare the two campaigns first. Later I will incorporate multiplayer into the review.
Halo 2 starts off fantastic, now with the ability to duel-wield weapons you feel as if there are no useless weapons. Even though the gun by itself is weak, when you duel-wield it becomes less of an issue. One thing that some might like and some might not, is the replacement of the assault rifle with and new weapon called the battle rifle. The battle rifle is a burst-fire weapon, meaning that it fires three rounds automatically then stops, after another pull of the trigger it refires three more rounds. The absence of the assault rifle sorta leaves a gap for a primary weapon, the battle rifle comes off as very replaceable and not worth using. The gap is filled better by the SMG, a fully automatic gun that can be duel-wielded for extra carnage.
Halo 2 has a story that can enjoyed by some and hated by others. It starts out fine but then half way through the 5th mission I started to lose interest fast. Towards the end of the game it starts to pick up again and make you care. Then the end comes and hits you like a ton of bricks. The end is so anti-climatic, it hurts. No spoilers here but it leaves off on a huge cliffhanger. The story feels incomplete because of this and this is why it doesn't even hold a candle to the Halo 1 story.
The sound here is again good but no where near as good as Halo 1. In Halo 1 it had iconic tracks, and also ambient tracks that fit the scene perfectly. In Halo 2 its not bad but the soundtrack just doesn't fit. It feels too poppy and with almost no ambient tracks it feels weird. Towards the end it starts playing a alternative rock track by the band Breaking Benjamin that couldn't really feel more out of place.
Finally we come to the multiplayer, this is easily the best new feature. Halo 1 had multiplayer but Halo 2 brings that great multiplayer online with Xbox Live. There is abuilt-in clan system and tons more. The multiplayer will allow for hours of playtime after the story will be long gone. You can tell that they rebalanced all of the weapons to work better in multiplayer. Unfortunately Microsoft discontinued online support for all original Xbox games, so no more online multiplayer for Halo 2.
Overall Halo 2 is a good game. Its not as amazing as Halo 1 but it still is a great game. If you didn't like the first Halo you wont like this one. It has all the components of a good Halo game but it just doesn't have the charm of the first game.
