- last post: 01.01.0001 12:00 AM PDT
Posted by: MasterGrief
The beautiful thing about Halo1 was, everyone had a Pistol. You could never totally get owned by any weapon. Lets say someone is camping with a shotgun and a RL, in Halo2, you pretty much get owned unless you get to either a PP/BR combo or a sniper if you're good enough. In Halo1, you actually have a chance with your Pistol.
...Yes, but in Halo 2, you also all start with the BR or SMG.
And no, killing a power weapon camper is not impossible. There is such a wide variety of spawn-points that there is a high chance you won't even spawn next to the enemy. And even if you do, what good is an RL going to do if you're right in the enemy's face? Chances are, they'll blow themselves up. Or, since the SMG is a spectacular close-range weapon, you could kill him yourself. Spawncamping is about as big as a problem as it was in halo 1. By which I mean, not that bad at all.
You can't forget that everyone else on the map has the pistol.
You also can't forget that everyone on a Halo 2 map had a BR.
Its not like everyone had an AR or Needler, it wasn't ever instant-ownage. If you played with people who were around your skill level, you never got totally owned, it was always right around the same score each round. When you play Halo2, especially Team Slayer, every round there are completely different numbers because the weapons are so different each time.
Weapons make no difference in the match outcome of Halo 2. Every weapon is a good one; it all depends on what you prefer. There may be a sword-guy on Backwash...but say there's someone else that loves that sentinel beam, and he fries the sword-wielder?
Say there's an RL guy. Say there's someone else with a magnum. He could use up a whole clip of the magnum and finish off with two lightning-quick melee attacks using the magnum, since its melees are VERY fast. No weapon is overpowered, as long as you know how to counterattack them.
Every weapon in Halo1 had a purpose. The Pistol was the anti-personnel, the AR was the close-range spray-and-pray, the Shotgun was the close-range bad-ass, the Sniper was the long-range bad-ass, the RL was the anti-vehicle weapon.
BR--Anti-personnel at medium range.
cons--not much bursts.
SMG--Close range killer
cons--recoil and not much rounds
Shotgun--A more guaranteed close-range killer
cons--Shorter range than magnum, and slow reload time.
Sword--Powerful close range weapon
cons--You're helpless if spotted from afar. And if your lunge misses, you go helplessly flying past the enemy and either hit a wall, or go off the map, leaving you open for an attack.
Magnum--side-weapon used effectively with grenades and/or melee attacks
cons--bullets are very weak.
Plasma Pistol--Charge ability
cons--Normal shots are terrible.
Plasma Rifle--Automatic that rocks at depleting shields
cons--Overheat, plasma bullets spread.
Brute Plasma Rifle--Stronger and faster than plasma rifle
cons--less battery, overheats faster, plasma bullets spread.
Needler--Strands of needles fired to take down snipers
cons--needles are slow and can be easy to dodge.
Sentinel beam--using its laser to sweep down ranks of enemies
cons--battery depletion is beyond measure, and so is its overheat
SR--uh...sniping
cons--just don't miss. Don't be like me :(.
...Need I go on?
Back when Halo2 first came out and i was a strong Halo2 supporter, i always forgot that everytime you spawned it was an even playing field, since everyone was equipped with the same bad-ass gun. If someone spawns right next to the RL and Sniper, you could still kill them. If someone got into the Ghost, you could kill them. It made Halo1 what it is.
...And you can still kill them, just as easily. But see, instead of the ghost just giving you a tap to kill you, you can board them. And if someone has a RL, you can kill them with whatever weapon you're good with. Heck, some vehicles can dodge the rocket's tracking feature. Is it a piece of cake pulling all this off? No. Is it impossible? Still no. Is halo 2 more balanced than Halo 1? No.
I sound like I like Halo 2 more than Halo 1, because of my complaints over the pistol. I'm not saying Halo 2 is perfect--nothing is. For example, I think the PP's tracking should be toned down just a little so you have a chance to dodge it. If someone said they liked Halo 2 more, then I would give reasons as to why halo 1 is just as good.