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This topic has moved here: Subject: Halo 2: The game that might have been (beta).
  • Subject: Halo 2: The game that might have been (beta).
Subject: Halo 2: The game that might have been (beta).

Currently studying Computer Science & Software engineering. Hope to work on mobile devices of the future! When a certain game's credits roll, look out for my name! ;)

You will -blam!- bricks when you see what game it is! =)

The main menu looked far better than in the final version, I think.

  • 09.13.2011 11:13 AM PDT
Subject: Halo 2: The game it should have been (beta).

This is the average H2 Fanboy.
Xfire: JacobGRocks.
50 in H2/H3? Great, but you still fail at this.

Just found another new beta vid.

[Edited on 10.20.2011 1:25 PM PDT]

  • 10.20.2011 1:24 PM PDT

A MAN CHOOSES, A SLAVE OBEYS.

Halo 2 still turned out to be decent considering how rushed it was to be finished.

  • 10.23.2011 12:19 PM PDT
Subject: Halo 2: The game that might have been (beta).
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A 3 Legged Goat
Nobody cares about anyone else's opinion - be it mine, yours, or a cult of angry star wars nerds - when they are enjoying what they enjoy.

Zombine
Everyone cares about opinions, that's why we socialize on a forum with strangers.


Posted by: BOB570
Posted by: Cheeto666
This. There originally was no Halo 3. Halo 2 was going to have Halo 3 in it. But Microsoft wanted Halo 3 to be the launch game for the 360, so they told them to cut the game in half and ship what they had for Halo 2.
Posted by: Shock120
@ Halo 2 mourners.
You think Microsoft shutting down Halo 2 was bad?
Take a look at how Halo 2 should've been, until Microsoft stepped in with their Golden Shoes, demanding Bungie for a quick and rushed release.
I'm pretty sure that's not true. Bungie is in it for the money too you know. There would be no reason that Bungie wouldn't want to make a third installment.

No, it's true. There are numerous interviews with Bungie employees (mostly circa E3 2003) confirming that Halo 2 was supposed to be the end of the series. A game called Phoenix was supposed to be Bungie's next project, set in an entirely new universe, but Microsoft saw $$$ in the Halo franchise and forced Bungie to make a third Halo game instead.

  • 10.27.2011 11:26 AM PDT
Subject: Halo 2: The game it should have been (beta).
  •  | 
  • Veteran Heroic Member

A 3 Legged Goat
Nobody cares about anyone else's opinion - be it mine, yours, or a cult of angry star wars nerds - when they are enjoying what they enjoy.

Zombine
Everyone cares about opinions, that's why we socialize on a forum with strangers.

Still, Halo 2 turned out to be the best game in the series and one of the greatest games of all time, so it's no big deal. Could it have been better? Of course, but that's true for all games. There's always something that could have used some improvement.

One thing I'll never understand is people who complain about how Outskirts/Metropolis are nothing like the E3 2003 demo. It's actually a good thing that this happened, because just watching the E3 demo, I can see that it would have been a totally unplayable P.O.S. It looks cool and it feels cool, but that's because of the HUGE amount of scripted events that only worked if you played the game EXACTLY the right way. There are 3 or 4 separate recordings of the E3 demo being played, and if you watch each recording, you'll notice that they're all played exactly the same way - down to the path the player takes through the level and the exact timing of certain events (Ghost boarding, triggering the final cutscene, etc...) This had to be done because of the way the level was programmed. If the Ghost was boarded too late (or not at all), or the Master Chief drove instead of letting the Marines drive, the game would have crashed. (Okay, I haven't actually seen the code for myself, but judging by the fact that the level was played the same way every time, down to the last meticulous detail, this is probably a true statement.)

It was all smoke and mirrors. As a video, E3 2003 was mind-blowing, but as a game, it would have been absolutely unplayable.

But I digress.

[Edited on 10.27.2011 11:34 AM PDT]

  • 10.27.2011 11:31 AM PDT


Posted by: car15
Still, Halo 2 turned out to be the best game in the series and one of the greatest games of all time, so it's no big deal. Could it have been better? Of course, but that's true for all games. There's always something that could have used some improvement.

One thing I'll never understand is people who complain about how Outskirts/Metropolis are nothing like the E3 2003 demo. It's actually a good thing that this happened, because just watching the E3 demo, I can see that it would have been a totally unplayable P.O.S. It looks cool and it feels cool, but that's because of the HUGE amount of scripted events that only worked if you played the game EXACTLY the right way. There are 3 or 4 separate recordings of the E3 demo being played, and if you watch each recording, you'll notice that they're all played exactly the same way - down to the path the player takes through the level and the exact timing of certain events (Ghost boarding, triggering the final cutscene, etc...) This had to be done because of the way the level was programmed. If the Ghost was boarded too late (or not at all), or the Master Chief drove instead of letting the Marines drive, the game would have crashed. (Okay, I haven't actually seen the code for myself, but judging by the fact that the level was played the same way every time, down to the last meticulous detail, this is probably a true statement.)

It was all smoke and mirrors. As a video, E3 2003 was mind-blowing, but as a game, it would have been absolutely unplayable.

But I digress.
I've said before that had we been given the E3 demo for an in-game level and outskirts and metropolis were the demos and played it for 7 years we would wish for the Outskirts and Metropolis levels. What you were denied always seems better, at least to me anyway.

  • 10.27.2011 11:55 AM PDT

This is the average H2 Fanboy.
Xfire: JacobGRocks.
50 in H2/H3? Great, but you still fail at this.


Posted by: car15
Still, Halo 2 turned out to be the best game in the series and one of the greatest games of all time, so it's no big deal. Could it have been better? Of course, but that's true for all games. There's always something that could have used some improvement.

One thing I'll never understand is people who complain about how Outskirts/Metropolis are nothing like the E3 2003 demo. It's actually a good thing that this happened, because just watching the E3 demo, I can see that it would have been a totally unplayable P.O.S. It looks cool and it feels cool, but that's because of the HUGE amount of scripted events that only worked if you played the game EXACTLY the right way. There are 3 or 4 separate recordings of the E3 demo being played, and if you watch each recording, you'll notice that they're all played exactly the same way - down to the path the player takes through the level and the exact timing of certain events (Ghost boarding, triggering the final cutscene, etc...) This had to be done because of the way the level was programmed. If the Ghost was boarded too late (or not at all), or the Master Chief drove instead of letting the Marines drive, the game would have crashed. (Okay, I haven't actually seen the code for myself, but judging by the fact that the level was played the same way every time, down to the last meticulous detail, this is probably a true statement.)

It was all smoke and mirrors. As a video, E3 2003 was mind-blowing, but as a game, it would have been absolutely unplayable.

But I digress.


Hey, there IS a game like that where you MUST PLAY LIKE SCRIPTED! It's called Sonic Generations, and it blows.

Also, there was a game too released as a beta called Sonic 06. It was horribly unfinished and had so many glitches that it made Halo 2 look glitch free.

  • 11.05.2011 8:30 PM PDT
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halo 2 still the best game in the series. long live halo 2.

Dam, I miss the old days playing halo 2 with my old brothers in arms. Thank you my old friends for giving me this account, I shall continue our legacy.


Posted by: JacobGRocks

Posted by: car15
Still, Halo 2 turned out to be the best game in the series and one of the greatest games of all time, so it's no big deal. Could it have been better? Of course, but that's true for all games. There's always something that could have used some improvement.

One thing I'll never understand is people who complain about how Outskirts/Metropolis are nothing like the E3 2003 demo. It's actually a good thing that this happened, because just watching the E3 demo, I can see that it would have been a totally unplayable P.O.S. It looks cool and it feels cool, but that's because of the HUGE amount of scripted events that only worked if you played the game EXACTLY the right way. There are 3 or 4 separate recordings of the E3 demo being played, and if you watch each recording, you'll notice that they're all played exactly the same way - down to the path the player takes through the level and the exact timing of certain events (Ghost boarding, triggering the final cutscene, etc...) This had to be done because of the way the level was programmed. If the Ghost was boarded too late (or not at all), or the Master Chief drove instead of letting the Marines drive, the game would have crashed. (Okay, I haven't actually seen the code for myself, but judging by the fact that the level was played the same way every time, down to the last meticulous detail, this is probably a true statement.)

It was all smoke and mirrors. As a video, E3 2003 was mind-blowing, but as a game, it would have been absolutely unplayable.

But I digress.


Hey, there IS a game like that where you MUST PLAY LIKE SCRIPTED! It's called Sonic Generations, and it blows.

Also, there was a game too released as a beta called Sonic 06. It was horribly unfinished and had so many glitches that it made Halo 2 look glitch free.


Lol, you are right Jacob. The 2006 Sonic game was so horribly made that it did make Halo 2 look glitch free. My friend smashed his controller in anger over the long loading screens and the many gameplay glitches that screwed you over. And yet he managed to stomach through the games faults to play the storyline once to satisfy his love for Sonic, then burned the game after playing it.

  • 11.05.2011 10:29 PM PDT

This is the average H2 Fanboy.
Xfire: JacobGRocks.
50 in H2/H3? Great, but you still fail at this.

No, burning it is not enough, you must blow 06 up.

  • 12.12.2011 12:32 PM PDT

E4web

Hm, apparently I'm considered an absent member now.

Good to see this thread is still running; I've just acquired a copy of a pre-release Halo 2 so I'm going to dig around in that. No I'm not providing links.

I wonder if my Halo 2: The Truth: Unlimited Collector's Edition thread is still running. Edit: Aw, it got buried. :(

Oh, and hi everyone.

[Edited on 12.14.2011 1:05 PM PST]

  • 12.14.2011 12:49 PM PDT


Posted by: Ghost Unknown

I wonder if my Halo 2: The Truth: Unlimited Collector's Edition thread is still running. Edit: Aw, it got buried. :(

That's sad. It really looked like a nice thread too.

  • 12.14.2011 2:15 PM PDT

This is the average H2 Fanboy.
Xfire: JacobGRocks.
50 in H2/H3? Great, but you still fail at this.

Nice, put a vid up of it.

  • 12.16.2011 10:48 AM PDT
Subject: Halo 2: The pre release thread.

There are always thing in beta that get cut out that would be really fun to actually have. (e.x. Sticky Tripmines Halo 3 Beta)

  • 12.16.2011 6:58 PM PDT

\¯\/¯/ |¯|)¯) /¯/\¯\ \¯\/¯/
----Foxie Grandpa----
/_/\_\ |_|)_) \_\/_/ /_/\_\

Eh... Sure some of the stuff looked "cool" in the videos, and I agree that the main menu did look better. But you can HEAR why they didn't put the Mongoose in, and I would imagine the rest of these things have very similar reasons behind them. They didn't put it in because they didn't feel it was right for gameplay or overall player experience.

And that's something I 100% support. I only wish we had the same/similar team working on the next Halo installments.

  • 01.09.2012 12:36 AM PDT
Subject: Halo 2: The game it should have been (beta).
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  • Noble Heroic Member

"A life lived for others is the only life worth living" - Albert Einstein

"I have your RCON right here." - Iggwilv

"Always my pleasure to be lazy." - InvasionImminent


Posted by: Foxie Grandpa
you can HEAR why they didn't put the Mongoose in
You seriously think the reason they didn't put the mongoose into Halo 2 is because they didn't have good sounds for it? Really?

The reason they didn't put it in is due to them not being able to balance it right into the gameplay. It wasn't that useful for the most part. If you take a moment to think about the vehicle in Halo 2 multiplayer you can see why it wouldn't be useful. The only map I can think of it being useful in is Coagulation.

[Edited on 01.09.2012 3:10 PM PST]

  • 01.09.2012 3:09 PM PDT

This is the average H2 Fanboy.
Xfire: JacobGRocks.
50 in H2/H3? Great, but you still fail at this.

Updated with more footage.

  • 02.06.2012 7:38 PM PDT


Posted by: JacobGRocks
Updated with more footage.

Good to hear.

  • 02.06.2012 8:00 PM PDT

This is actually the stupidest thing ever posted on B.net:

Posted by: the omega man117
Why does everyone hate Halo 2? Maybe its because its the worst game ever next to mario.

This is a good thread.

I know we have had many disputes in the past Jacob, but I really am glad that you keep contributing to this topic.

  • 02.06.2012 8:03 PM PDT
  • gamertag: [none]
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Sometimes, I dream about cheese.

^ 117th post!
congratulations Super PolarBear

  • 02.06.2012 8:24 PM PDT


Posted by: path1k
^ 117th post!
congratulations Super PolarBear

Dammit. I didn't even want to post my above comment. I just got bored.

  • 02.06.2012 10:40 PM PDT
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  • Noble Heroic Member

"A life lived for others is the only life worth living" - Albert Einstein

"I have your RCON right here." - Iggwilv

"Always my pleasure to be lazy." - InvasionImminent

Hmm... Never knew Headhunter was thought of back in the Halo 2 days. I do remember hearing that Invasion was thought of then, though. Apparently Zanzibar was built for it.

  • 02.06.2012 10:55 PM PDT


Posted by: Dr Syx
I do remember hearing that Invasion was thought of then, though. Apparently Zanzibar was built for it.

You heard right.

  • 02.06.2012 11:01 PM PDT

I've managed to get a hold of the Halo 2 Beta and I'll try to get you guys some video's with a commentary about a few of the missing features/elements from the final game but I won't be able to do this until March (need a capture card etc).

[Edited on 02.07.2012 8:04 AM PST]

  • 02.07.2012 8:04 AM PDT
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  • Noble Heroic Member

"A life lived for others is the only life worth living" - Albert Einstein

"I have your RCON right here." - Iggwilv

"Always my pleasure to be lazy." - InvasionImminent


Posted by: Wilis_kid
I've managed to get a hold of the Halo 2 Beta and I'll try to get you guys some video's with a commentary about a few of the missing features/elements from the final game but I won't be able to do this until March (need a capture card etc).
I wish I had a modded Xbox so I could join you on it... I can imagine it would be fun to see some stuff. Found anything you like so far?

  • 02.07.2012 10:34 AM PDT


Posted by: Dr Syx

Posted by: Wilis_kid
I've managed to get a hold of the Halo 2 Beta and I'll try to get you guys some video's with a commentary about a few of the missing features/elements from the final game but I won't be able to do this until March (need a capture card etc).
I wish I had a modded Xbox so I could join you on it... I can imagine it would be fun to see some stuff. Found anything you like so far?

So far, the single shot zoom BR is nice. A single shot doesn't maintain the power of a 3 shot burst but it has a higher ROF. The Ghost and Banshee have slower ROF's and the Banshee still has it's Banshee bomb. Scorpions main cannon is equivalent to the campaigns ROF whereas in the final game in MP it's slower.

Carbine and Sword are full auto (no need to tap the trigger, holding it makes them fire/swing as fast as possible) and interestingly I found health kits on Waterworks, perhaps a health system like CE was going to be implemented? Also, unlike the final game, a melee to the back of a teammate is an instant kill just like CE.

I haven't been able to figure out how to get the Mongoose, Flamethrower and Disintigrator to spawn though. When I do I'll report back/make a video.

  • 02.08.2012 12:21 PM PDT