Halo 2 Forum
This topic has moved here: Subject: The Charm of Halo 2
  • Subject: The Charm of Halo 2
Subject: The Charm of Halo 2

Hello one and all,

Surfing through these rather slow-paced threads for hours on end has led me to the conclusion that you all are a group of "rebels" unwilling to leave the game you love. I'm not here to bash or flame or tell you to move to Halo 3. On the contrary, I am here to discover what special charm Halo 2 has that separates it from all-other games.

The spirit, the frenzy that Halo 2 puts into those daring enough to pick up the controller once more is like nothing else; instilling loyalty and unity to its players. This enigma known as Halo 2 has kept all of you here, playing this "dying" video game into a never failing source of enjoyment.

And so I ask you, the loyal Halo 2 player. What is it that keeps you here? Is it just the logistics of the game? The community? Or, for me at least, the indefinable charm that permeates every single bit of this game?

Thank you for reading, it means a lot. :>

Cheers,

-YF

  • 11.08.2008 6:24 AM PDT
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Personally, I think that CE is a heck of a lot better than H2. The charm of 2 is how different it is from CE:

The maps that are great (Outskirts/Delta Halo)
The skulls that add and subtract from the MC's abilities
.......................
Well, that's about it for me. If you really want some good replies, re-post the thread asking why we hardcore CE players won't come back to 2, rather than 2 players not going to 3!

  • 11.08.2008 7:50 AM PDT
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ARBITER, I CAN'T BELIEVE IT'S NOT BUTTER!!! WORT WORT WORT.

I used to be a regular here.. for 3 years? The hunt for TUE was my call. I came in on page 330 something of posts, and I remember it being at the top of the forum the moment before it was deleted.

The campaign rocks. I don't do multiplayer. My days though are gone. I'm onto COD4. I won't do COD5... WWII isn't me.

And now I'm off to the Navy to be a Nuclear Engineer, though I'm at least as ambitious to take on BUD/S and SQT. I'm not here much anymore. It's up to you guys I guess.

  • 11.08.2008 11:09 AM PDT

"Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy." Benjamin Franklin

My answer is simple:
- Better maps
- Less lag

  • 11.09.2008 1:54 AM PDT

Fac Fortia Et Patere

I actually play all three of the Halo games, but what really makes Halo 2 still special to me was just the excitement about Xbox Live, and the saving Earth Campaign. It just felt like Halo 2 was going to be the best game ever made, with the most rock solid multiplayer(it did at the time, but Halo 3 has surpassed it, even with a wonky spawning system/placement of spawns), and the utlra-mega blockbuster story(was cut short due to time, I miss you Earth City). I still spend countless minutes looking at the matchmaking menus in Halo 2 and getting giddy like a kid in a candy store.

  • 11.09.2008 2:39 PM PDT
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Halo 2 brings back the best memories for me. The people, the frenzy of the maps, everything you can imagine. I laughed hard, got mad at people, talked all the sh** in the world. It was the best. I just don't get the whole Halo 3 thing. Yeah, a lot more weapons, more vehicles, more detailed maps, BUT the engine is different. I'm excied for World at War online because they've done something Bungie should of done... they used the same engine and expanded the multiplayer from there.

Instead, they changed the pace of the games, which is a really odd pace for a multiplayer, the same as a Perfect Dark Zero flow. Then they added a lot of weapons, which sounds good on paper, but never gives everyone a fair playing field. There's just wayyy too many options for players to get big weapons. In Halo 2, there were the rockets, maybe a sword and that was it. How would a match work if there are 3-4 type big weapons on a map? It doesn't. It becomes a kill fest. There are INSANE amounts of kills on Halo 3... gee, I wonder why.

Another big issue I had were some of the maps are wayyy huge with no clarity between the two bases. Nobody knows where they're going or what to do. And also with the maps...Last Resort for example was a updated version of Zanzibar which was a very competitive match on Halo 2. Now, with Last Resort, it's an insane map with TOO MANY OPTIONS for players. Like I said, many options for the player sounds good on paper, but it just doesn't translate. There's too many ways for an opposing team to enter the base, it's just too much. You're forced to leave the base and roam free around the map without sticking to your base and guarding the flag.

I can go on and on, but all I can say is the biggest thing for me is the engine... it kills everything. Players move differently, shoot differently, grenades and gravity seem not real. The game feels more like an arcade sim than a true console multiplayer.

I get mad about this issue because i waited like 4 hours in line for Halo 3 at launch, dying to get my hands on it figuring I would be playing Multiplayer forever and ever, but when I got home, the first thing I said was..."wtf is this?" Believe me, I wish there were still 20-30 thousand people playing Halo 2 online cuz I'd be playing right now. The fun factor is too good.

  • 11.13.2008 1:36 AM PDT

halo 2 is good in respects of the maps and stuff like that halo 3 could ave use at lest 1 more month in production halo 2 is funny because yesterday i was killed , some how, by head shot ,warthog, and beatdown , at the same time it was funny

  • 11.13.2008 4:19 AM PDT
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www.clanfds.e107clan.com

this link will take you to a very active gaming community that will show you why people love halo 2 so much

  • 11.14.2008 3:19 AM PDT

Old School

i think what kept me playin halo2 and halo CE more than Halo 3 was the fact that i was younger. Since im older now, i dnt play my xbox that much, and all my old xbox live friends dont play either, so playin a game like halo 3 is a turn off when you cant really play with those that you enjoy the beggining of halo 2 with.

  • 11.14.2008 10:16 AM PDT
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To me the community means nothing to the actual games. I don't mean it like that but I have never partied up with anyone in Halo 2 or Halo 3. My opinion is based on actual game play and H2 has a different feel than H3. Now I'd say the overall shooter is superior in Halo 3.

However, there is something about Halo 2 that keeps me coming back. One could call it an "It" factor. It has something that Halo 3 does not..and I am not sure exactly what it is.

  • 11.14.2008 11:17 AM PDT
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I would say that it's the simplicity of Halo 2. It's pin-point accurate and simply fun.

  • 11.14.2008 1:22 PM PDT

OUTxTHINK

...I Modded my fingers

everything just seemed to work and the play was just so intense and frantic
halo 3 seems much slower paced and unequal

  • 11.14.2008 4:15 PM PDT
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Posted by: aDeadlyBird
everything just seemed to work and the play was just so intense and frantic
halo 3 seems much slower paced and unequal

Yep that is also the reason why I miss halo 2... plus no crappy hit registration unlike halo 3

  • 11.16.2008 12:55 PM PDT

Posted by: splatterbox
Yep that is also the reason why I miss halo 2... plus no crappy hit registration unlike halo 3


God I hate that thing.

  • 11.17.2008 12:56 PM PDT

Halo 3 just doesn't sit as well with me a Halo 2 did. I mean, it's a great game but they maybe changed a bit too much. The gameplay just feels so slow and heavy now. I feel like it's tried too hard to be something better and that maybe, they could've just stayed the same and everything would've been fine. I just don't get that same satisfying feel when nailing someone in the face with a BR from across the map in Halo 3.

*sigh* So much lost time. I should've played it more. Cherished it like how it should have been cherished. But now it's too late...

  • 11.17.2008 5:52 PM PDT
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I was recently watching montages and came across a Halo 2 montage. It made me want to play Halo 2 again, so today my younger brother and I started some co-op. I can't believe how much I've missed this game and didn't realize it. Just running around by myself on the multiplayer maps almost made me cry. They're just so perfect.

[Edited on 11.17.2008 7:35 PM PST]

  • 11.17.2008 7:34 PM PDT

Honor, Respect, Devotion to Duty. Semper Paratus, Always Ready.

theres something about turning on my xbox and playing halo 2.

i dont even get past the login screen before I remember why I love the game so much.
great memories, fun times, and all of that added with beautifully composed music.

the campaign is great and i think there could be no better sequel to CE, the multiplayer is great, nothing is too powerful or too weak, everything just fits.

personally i think what killed halo 3 is the campaign. the whole "I LOVE CORTANA" stuff just ruined it...

Cortana in halo 1 and 2 was fantastic, giving intel and being an AI and thats how she was treated, in halo 3 it was like....WTF? i mean seriously... its like everyone in the story suddenly is obsessed with cortana, i thought for real master chief was going to say "I love you, marry me"

halo 3 ruined alot of other things too, the AR for example was perfect in halo CE but in halo 3 they made it shoot -blam!-, sound -blam!-, and have no real use at all compared to the SMG.
shotgun was great in halo 1, it wasnt too great in halo 2 but a far better gun than the halo 3 shotgun.
same with the pistol from halo 2, halo ce pistol was too insane.

halo 2 with halo 3 graphics.... mmmmmm PERFECTION!

[Edited on 11.18.2008 12:11 AM PST]

  • 11.18.2008 12:10 AM PDT

Posted by: ShadowzKiller
But he always lies!
If he lies all the time, would that itself not be a lie? oh noez a paradox!
Posted by: Lies
Lol, it's like the Liar Paradox.

I find the difference between Halo 2 and Halo 3 to be quite refreshing, actually. It's the same type of gameplay, with the added BXR and the odd sensation of going backwards.

  • 11.18.2008 5:30 PM PDT
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i agree with all of you that say halo 2 is better there is just something not right about halo 3

  • 11.18.2008 6:54 PM PDT