Customer Reviews

Halo - Combat Evolved

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

15 - 20 hours of gameplay. Very enjoyable game, not a lot of weapons, but still not that redundant in terms of weapons. The end of the game feels repetitive though, but the final vehicle run is awesome. Great game.

This game is still great even after 10 years of being released on the original Xbox.

Graphics are great but would be better if my computer was up to date, game play is very challenging.

Being new to the Xbox 360, I had been wanting to try out the Halo franchise that garners so much praise and hype. However, never owning an original Xbox, instead having both a PlayStation 2 and a GameCube, I figured it would be best to start off with the first game of the series. So, I recently purchased Halo: Combat Evolved for the Xbox. However, when I heard about the various mods and extras that the PC version of the game has when compared to its console counterpart, I decided to purchase the PC version of the game. The game runs great on my laptop which runs Windows Vista.

The story is quite compelling, and quite unique as well, and does a great job of grabbing the players' attention. The story takes place in the distant future where space travel and planet colonization is standard practice by humans. Humans have colonized a planet known as "Reach" and use this planet to genetically alter humans into cyborgs known as "Spartans". This practice has infuriated an alien race known as The Covenant. The Covenant has begun attacking the planet Reach and destroying Spartans and humans. One ship manages to escape with a Spartan on board. The ship is known as the Autumn Pillar, and the Spartan is Master Chief Petty Office John-117, better known as simply Master Chief. Covenant begin boarding the Autumn Pillar, and leave Captain Keyes with no choice but to release Master Chief and other Marines in escape pods. Before launching the pods, Master Chief picks up the central control of the ship, known as Cortana, and fuses her connection to his own cybernetic suit. The two crash land and must find and gather any humans who have survived. The two must then go on to rescue Captain Keyes, who has been captured by The Covenant and imprisoned on their ship. Keyes issues a command to Master Chief to locate the control panel of the Covenant's main weapon, Halo. Halo is a giant ring-like structure that contains massive energy and could cause serious extermination if activated. Along the way to the control panel, Master Chief discovers that the Covenant have woken a dormant alien race known as the Flood. Now the fight between humanity includes a new enemy, as the Flood continue to spread rapidly. Master Chief is left facing some difficult decisions as the story progresses further.

The gameplay consists of run and gun shooting that occurs at a fast pace. Enemies are very intelligent on the higher difficulty levels, and even the inclusion of an automatically regenerating shield is sometimes not enough to survive the enemy onslaught. The lands are very detailed, but sometimes can become extremely repetitive. Many of the levels consist of the same room design repeated over and over again, making it feel like you aren't really getting anywhere and are simply running in circles. Some levels become tedious at times, and the feeling of "repetition" begins to grow as the level progresses. This rule definitely applies to the later levels where it feels as if you are simply re-entering the same two rooms over and over again in some sort of infinite loop, each time the rooms contain the same enemies as well, making the level feel even more repetitive. Stages that aren't so repetitive are quite compelling and fun to play in, but these are limited to the first few stages, as the game progresses the level designs lose their luster, becoming mundane and boring. The graphics hold up quite nicely for a last gen game, and the gameplay is smooth and addictive. The weapons the player picks up from the enemies are very effective and with enemies appearing by massive quantities, it's always easy to find another weapon to replace your current one upon running out of ammunition.

Another complaint I have regarding the original Halo: Combat Evolved is in regards to the controls of the vehicles. Some vehicles such as the Ghost and Banshee pilot beautifully, giving the player amazing control over the vehicles. However, the Warthog can be unruly and almost impossible to control and navigate, especially in tight corridors where obstacles are abundant. This is what makes the last level of the game almost impossible to beat since the Warthog has such a hard time maneuvering properly without hitting obstacles. The steering of the Warthog has greatly been corrected in the later games though, but in Combat Evolved it is a vehicle I like to try to avoid driving.

The PC version has countless mods available for download that allow the user to get even more out of the gaming experience. My favorite mod is the third person mod, which allows users to play the game in a camera angle very similar to that of Lost Planet. Using this viewpoint, the game feels more original, and allows the user to get a better view of Master Chief and his always cool looking armor. The game is relatively easy to run and install, due to its rather low PC requirements. It's just as engaging to play these days, despite its aging graphics, due to its original plot and likable characters.