- last post: 01.01.0001 12:00 AM PDT
The only way I will ever purchase another Bungie game is if it is the ORIGINAL Halo in its purest form, and is compatible with xbox live.
The most disgusting release in the history of video games was Halo 2. The original Halo was a triumph, and its successors were all abject failures. Don't argue this point with game sales or anything of that nature, because that doesn't change anything about the truth. Bungie had success with the original halo because it was a great game. And, like any smart business in america, they tried to increase their sales, and they did so with Halo 2. The way they did this was by dumbing it down and lowering the ceiling on skill levels so that it appealed to a wider audience, and I hold no bones for that. I would have done the same for more money. But that doesn't make me any less disgusted with Halo 2 and any other garbage that followed it.
I use a comparison with Golf. Golf is a great game because it is time tested. Its been around for centuries and will be around for centuries more. But golf is great because it is hard to be the best. The incentive to be good at that game is what drives people to do it. Only so many will play it and be the greatest in the world. Only some possess the work ethic and the creativity needed to maneuver an infinite amount of courses, not to mention the physical ability.
What makes tiger woods so great, on top of his physical ability, is the fact that he is creative and extremely intelligent when it comes to defeating golf courses. This creativity does not just happen by itself. It came from an insane work ethic, and countless practice hours and other factors that contributes to him being able to possess and implement that creativity. So if you wanted to take that advantage away from him, how would you do it?
Its simple, strip him of the abilities that allow him to distinguish himself. Take away his driver so he can't drive the ball 400 yards. Take away the opportunity for him to take a risk and chip a ball over a huge tree. Take away his ability to out think and maneuver other golfers. Dumb the game down. Then everyone can compete with him. More people now have the chance to beat the best. And lets say you do that, what do you get? You get MINIATURE GOLF.
Mini golf, or putt-putt, is just that. Golf dumbed down to the lowest point. Very similar to Halo 2 and all the other horrid releases. I would bet that there are more mini golf courses than real ones. I would bet that more people have played mini golf as opposed to real golf. Its not surprising either. Mini golf is easy to pick up and play and have some success, just not consistent success. I have no problem with that, in fact I play mini golf for a game or two a summer. Its fun for a little bit, but then you get bored because you can only get so good at mini golf.
If random people played against tiger woods in a mini golf tournament I bet he wouldn't win. There would be no real way to distinguish the best player because the ceiling is so low it would be more random than anything. In the greatest games of all time you can always name a best player, or at least have an argument about a handful of people. Basketball has Jordan. Baseball has the babe. Hockey has Gretsky. Soccer has Pele. Golf has Woods. Chess has Fisher. All Of those sports were great because the ceiling was so high that only a few could reach it.
And that is why mini golf will never be as good as real golf. Because it has a very low ceiling. But it appeals to a wider range of people and because of that it will stick around for a while too. But is it the same as golf? Is it as great of a game? Hell no.
And thus is the world Halo is trapped in. A truly great game that had a high ceiling, but that ceiling was lowered by the complainers who won't ever be as good as the greats, and Bungie for making more money, which I don't have an issue with. You take those factors and combine it with a technology world that is always waiting for the next thing, and you get Halo, a game that was great for 3 years.
Anyone who has an ounce of competitive spirit played halo for its multiplayer, which to this day remains the greatest game of all time without question. The modern warfare games are great, but they don't hold a candle to the original halo for a ton of reasons.
What made the original halo great was the fact that there was no ceiling on skill level. Just when I thought I couldn't be beat, I always ran into a better player. And despite what anyone says, success in the original halo derived not from how skilled you were with certain weapons, or how lucky you were. But for two main factors:
1. How smart you were
and
2. How efficient of a killer you were
The other factors in the game certainly played a roll in game to game success, like the quality of your opponents, how skilled you were with weapons, luck, position on the level. But in the end, regular success over a long period of time ALWAYS yielded to the two factors mentioned above. Anyone who tries to argue that point is just angry that they aren't as good as you at those two factors.
The new halo games have nothing of that sort. They are dumbed down for the masses so everyone can taste a little success. Which, if I am bungie makes sense because you want to apeal to a wider audience and make more money. So you can't fault them for that. But knowing this doesn't change my disgust and abhorrence for halo 2 and anything that was released after it because I didn't have the stomach to play a game that was so far inferior to the original multiplayer release.
Halo two stripped any superior player of their tools that they used to distinguish themselves from average players, which includes the ability to outsmart others, and be more efficient with your weapons. They did this a number of ways, but only two reasons REALLY stick out.
1. Weapons became similar in attributes
2. Shorter lifespans
The key to Halo's original success was that there were a variety of ways to use weapons. Long range, intermediate, close, and melee. In every situation each weapon had its strengths and weaknesses. The problem was that most people had no idea how to be efficient in each circumstance.
A great example is the assault rifle. A weapon that was best at close, to mid range. But if you got out of that range, it was completely useless. And it was a default weapon on several levels, so people were forced to use it in several situations.
I loved when people would be a distance away from me, and see me first and initiate combat. They would spray me with the trigger down and empty their clip and not kill me. Mean while, I knew my weapons limitations and pulsed it which made it more accurate at a longer distance, and would eventually kill them.
Then you would get the complaints from the other room. "Oh thats BS! Shields are cheap. If we didn't have shields on you would have died" Are shields to blame for his death? No. Its his inferior ability level and thinking ability.
So how does Bungie change this? They took away health, and made the shields easier to take down. Thus resulting in a shorter life span. In an identical situation the superior player is hurt because he can't live as long to use his weapon better than his attacker.
The biggest attack on weps was the pistol. Everyone argued that it was over powered and unfair. Which is insane. All that argument does is prove they are a certifiable idiot because they didn't use it themselves. So they would never use the weapon and then whine and moan when they died to anyone using it. This is a typical response from someone who isn't good. People who made this argument were simply not good with it, period. Because if it was too over powered, then why wouldn't they use it all the time? Why would they sit there and get pwned all day long by the pistol and then complain about it? Its just a defense mechanism that is used world wide for a number of different reasons. First they try and pass off the fact that they are holier than thou by not using an "over powered weapon" and as a result make the game more enjoyable and more fair for everyone. Because if they were using it and still died, they now have nothing to hide behind. And hiding is their entire game because they are cowards anyway.
I mean, did Jedi's use blasters to be fair? No. They used Light sabers because they weren't idiots. They were more difficult to learn, but the skill level ceiling was so high that it was worth taking the time to become a master.
So bungie took that weapon away because they wanted to appeal to a wider range. They basically listened to the complainers.
They also took the stun ability away from alien weapons. Another huge mistake. All this did was make them exactly like human weapons. When you make them all the same, nothing is distinguished. They have no strengths. So using weapons becomes meaningless. They are all the same in every situation, so whats the use in being smart with them?
They replaced it with duel wielding, which was a travesty because it was always the best option. One wep always trumped two. And if you got shot at first, you were always dead because you died so quickly. You had no time to out manuever your opponent, or use your weapon more effectively. The levels became jumbled and crowded so it really became about who saw who first.
I am running out of space so I am going to wrap up. I am sure you can tell because my writing is becoming random and sporadic. But I say all this to say that Bungie will probably never release the new Halo on xbox live because it just doesn't appeal to as many people as the newer games like 2 and 3. You can't argue against this. Halo is golf, and Halo 2 is putt putt. Anyone who argues my points about why Halo is superior and every other game is inferior will attack me and say a bunch of crap. But Deep down in places they dont want to acknowledge, they know I am right.