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This topic has moved here: Subject: Just got back from Playing Halo: Very Impressed!
  • Subject: Just got back from Playing Halo: Very Impressed!
Subject: Just got back from Playing Halo: Very Impressed!
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Well, this is my first post here. To begin, 2 years ago, I made a big mistake. Not really a mistake, but mostly a regret if you know what I mean. My brother and I bought a Nintendo gamecube, and, before then, used another Nintendo system.
Now, I was pretty happy with the Gamecube up to the point that one particular game wasn't being made for the gamecube, but for Xbox.
I suddenly wondered what I was thinking, and realized, I was a totally different person 2 years ago. My view of video games in general had changed dramatically.
It was around this time that my buddies next door bought an Xbox. My brother was good friends with them, and he was over at their house whenever he got the chance.
And it was also at this time that I heard about this 'Halo', and that my friends next door had it on their Xbox. My brother assured me it was the greatest game of all time.
To make things worse, more and more games I wanted were being made for the Xbox, not the gamecube. It was at this time I started to resent it so much, I felt like throwing it out the window. For some reason, Mario and Luigi and their parties and races and tennis had just become...childish. I was ready for something more grown up.
Now, I have always been a shy person in comparison to my brother, and rarely went over to my friend’s house next door, but, on a dark rainy day, I thought, why not.
We played their gamecube for about an hour, until the oldest of the kids invited us up to his room, where the Xbox was. There, he slid the Halo disk into the machine, and away he went.
It was probably the most amazing thing that ever happened to me in the history of my gaming career. I was absolutely blown away. Everything in Halo was great. Not only the graphics, but also the game-play. While playing Halo, I experienced no slow game play, none of those slow moments when too much was going on, like on the gamecube, none of that happened. Then there were the marines and the covenant. To my surprise, they were actually....smart! The aliens dodged grenades! It was amazing.
Simply put, it was a great day, and I played Halo in 2-player adventure with my friend for 3 hours strait. I don't believe I've ever felt that good about a video game since the day I first played an old Zelda game.
Now of course, I was faced with a dilemma. Halo 2 was coming out on November 9th, and I didn't own an Xbox. What was I to do?
Then I remembered. 2 years ago, during the holidays, I had received about one hundred dollars, and put it into savings. Go me! Now, all I needed was about another hundred, to pay for the rest of the system (I think it goes for about $160) and about $50 plus tax for Halo 2.
Of course, I could buy Halo for my computer, but it just wouldn't be the same. Video games rarely have the same quality on a Mac.
But, my parents (my mother anyway) were skeptical. My dad however was all for it, he had always liked the Tom Clancy games, and when I told him you could buy them all on Xbox, he was pleased.
I personally was surprised by the M rating for Halo, because, on looking at games like Resident Evil, the violence wasn't nearly as bad as that game. I guess it must have been the swearing, which really doesn't bother me.
I think as long as it doesn't make a bad impression on me, and my brother and I team up to pay for the rest of the Xbox and Halo 2, they wouldn't really care. But, my parents have always been the protective sorts. They were the only people I knew who never let us watch the now dead Power Rangers series until we were 11. I still laugh about it.
To get back on track, I think I've come to the right place. I know these questions might sound a little stupid, but I feel as if I should ask the experts:

I'm not much of a fan for collector's editions, but would the collector's edition of Halo 2 really be worth it? Would it add more fun to the game at all?

Also, when I come up with the money, should I pre order Halo 2? Would you?

Are there any extra accessories that are options for the Xbox that would be useful for Halo 2?

For the last question, what reasons should I give my parents for buying an M rated game? To be more descriptive, how should I word it to them to get the 'ok'?

Once again, thanks Bungie for creating a great game (Halo) and for showing me the light in the Xbox.


Ben

EDIT: I also apolgize if I put this in the wrong forum. Sorry once again.

[Edited on 8/26/2004 6:25:20 AM]

  • 08.26.2004 6:17 AM PDT

Posted by: benlen
Well, this is my first post here. To begin, 2 years ago, I made a big mistake. Not really a mistake, but mostly a regret if you know what I mean. My brother and I bought a Nintendo gamecube, and, before then, used another Nintendo system.
Now, I was pretty happy with the Gamecube up to the point that one particular game wasn't being made for the gamecube, but for Xbox.
I suddenly wondered what I was thinking, and realized, I was a totally different person 2 years ago. My view of video games in general had changed dramatically.
It was around this time that my buddies next door bought an Xbox. My brother was good friends with them, and he was over at their house whenever he got the chance.
And it was also at this time that I heard about this 'Halo', and that my friends next door had it on their Xbox. My brother assured me it was the greatest game of all time.
To make things worse, more and more games I wanted were being made for the Xbox, not the gamecube. It was at this time I started to resent it so much, I felt like throwing it out the window. For some reason, Mario and Luigi and their parties and races and tennis had just become...childish. I was ready for something more grown up.
Now, I have always been a shy person in comparison to my brother, and rarely went over to my friend’s house next door, but, on a dark rainy day, I thought, why not.
We played their gamecube for about an hour, until the oldest of the kids invited us up to his room, where the Xbox was. There, he slid the Halo disk into the machine, and away he went.
It was probably the most amazing thing that ever happened to me in the history of my gaming career. I was absolutely blown away. Everything in Halo was great. Not only the graphics, but also the game-play. While playing Halo, I experienced no slow game play, none of those slow moments when too much was going on, like on the gamecube, none of that happened. Then there were the marines and the covenant. To my surprise, they were actually....smart! The aliens dodged grenades! It was amazing.
Simply put, it was a great day, and I played Halo in 2-player adventure with my friend for 3 hours strait. I don't believe I've ever felt that good about a video game since the day I first played an old Zelda game.
Now of course, I was faced with a dilemma. Halo 2 was coming out on November 9th, and I didn't own an Xbox. What was I to do?
Then I remembered. 2 years ago, during the holidays, I had received about one hundred dollars, and put it into savings. Go me! Now, all I needed was about another hundred, to pay for the rest of the system (I think it goes for about $160) and about $50 plus tax for Halo 2.
Of course, I could buy Halo for my computer, but it just wouldn't be the same. Video games rarely have the same quality on a Mac.
But, my parents (my mother anyway) were skeptical. My dad however was all for it, he had always liked the Tom Clancy games, and when I told him you could buy them all on Xbox, he was pleased.
I personally was surprised by the M rating for Halo, because, on looking at games like Resident Evil, the violence wasn't nearly as bad as that game. I guess it must have been the swearing, which really doesn't bother me.
I think as long as it doesn't make a bad impression on me, and my brother and I team up to pay for the rest of the Xbox and Halo 2, they wouldn't really care. But, my parents have always been the protective sorts. They were the only people I knew who never let us watch the now dead Power Rangers series until we were 11. I still laugh about it.
To get back on track, I think I've come to the right place. I know these questions might sound a little stupid, but I feel as if I should ask the experts:

I'm not much of a fan for collector's editions, but would the collector's edition of Halo 2 really be worth it? Would it add more fun to the game at all?

Also, when I come up with the money, should I pre order Halo 2? Would you?

Are there any extra accessories that are options for the Xbox that would be useful for Halo 2?

For the last question, what reasons should I give my parents for buying an M rated game? To be more descriptive, how should I word it to them to get the 'ok'?

Once again, thanks Bungie for creating a great game (Halo) and for showing me the light in the Xbox.


Ben

EDIT: I also apolgize if I put this in the wrong forum. Sorry once again.


I'm glad to here Bungie has a new fan;)

-If you're a fan of the Halo universe, like everyone at this site, then the special edition is worth buying. It's only an extra $5 dollars, it comes with that snazzy tin case, and the best part is the special features DVD, which has a feature documentary on the making of Halo 2.

-Preordering Halo 2 is a must. Halo (1) is the 5th best selling game of all time, and Halo 2 will surpase that by millions. The preorders are already larger in numbers than most games will sell in their entire life span... I'm not kidding about that. If you want your copy of Halo 2 on the first day, or week it comes out, then you will HAVE to preorder it.

-Xbox supports HDTV, so you can buy the HD pack if you have an HDTV. Other than that, things like surround sound, which Halo 2 will use to the fullest, can get pretty high in the $$$.

-Um... I would tell your parents that if you don't get Halo 2, your "gaming career", as you called it, will be a complete joke. Tell them that you won't be a complete gamer if you can't own the most anticipated game of the last 3 years. You know, get them to feel guilty... offer to pay for it with your own money;)

Welcome to the b.net community!

-Eagle 117

[Edited on 8/26/2004 7:00:05 AM]

  • 08.26.2004 6:54 AM PDT
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Posted by: benlen
I'm not much of a fan for collector's editions, but would the collector's edition of Halo 2 really be worth it? Would it add more fun to the game at all?

Also, when I come up with the money, should I pre order Halo 2? Would you?

Are there any extra accessories that are options for the Xbox that would be useful for Halo 2?

For the last question, what reasons should I give my parents for buying an M rated game? To be more descriptive, how should I word it to them to get the 'ok'?

Once again, thanks Bungie for creating a great game (Halo) and for showing me the light in the Xbox.


Yes! He's seen the light!

The Collectors Edition really doesn't matter, it won't make the game more fun. If you really like Halo it's coming with some treats, I think posters and deleted scenes, kind of like a "Directors Cut" DVD. But, Bungie has said, the games are the exact same for both, it's just extra content.

If you have the money, pre ordering it would be a good idea. Just to keep it safe, it would be a bad day if you couldn't come up with the money for it on the 9th.

The accesories for Halo 2, hmm. A Controller S is a bit nicer, and smaller than the regular xbox controller, but it's in no means necessary. If you have a really expensive TV with HDTV, or one with Composite Video, you should get HDTV Pack to improve the visuals.

As for your parents, I don't know how conservative they are when it comes to video games. I'd just say that it has an M Rating, but you don't shoot humans, there is less swearing than network TV, and the like. Make sure to say that nearly everyone who owns an Xbox has a copy of Halo, which is true. I can't remember the current sales, but it's way more than half.

[Edited on 8/26/2004 6:55:34 AM]

  • 08.26.2004 6:55 AM PDT
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Something these 2 guys left out is that youll need a mic.....since xbox has no keabored to talk to your other online members (if your getting it to play online as well) youll need a mic to communicate!

  • 08.26.2004 9:08 AM PDT
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Thanks for all the replies. Especially for the insight on pre-ordering.
I think I might have exaggerated a little bit, but not too much. I think my parents would be more worried if Halo involved killing humans in a vast majority (I mean, you can kill humans, but why would you want to?) then they might be worried, but since it involves fictional aliens, then I think they'd let it go. I think this partially explains the PG-13 ratings on all of the Lord of the Rings movies, you're killing orcs for the most part, as well as for thier video games.
I think the one thing they think about the most is the Xbox. Since I'm paying for it with my own money, they probably don't care, and, as I have explained to them, the Xbox is worth the money twice fold. Not only for Halo 2 and Halo, but a lot of other good games not made for my current system.

Thanks for the help guys.

ben

  • 08.26.2004 10:45 AM PDT
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Also let your parents know that ratings must rate the worst possibly case scenario.

In a past Weekly Update, Bunge community guy Frankie told us his adventures showing the German rating board Halo 2. Simply because you can shoot marines (humans) and blood and stuff comes out automatically makes it a very high rating - despite the fact that you'll end up dead faster than having a sticky pasted to your face if you start shoot marines.

I'd say that teaches you morals: don't shoot humans. Shoot things that don't bleed red. That's why its rated M. its not rated M for "mature -blam!- themes" (Dead or Alive) or for intense violence or "horrific" 'gameplay (Grand Theft Auto). Halo is almost as tame as the Tom Clancy's.

And make sure to say things like "may I clean the dinner table?" and "shall I take out the trash?" a lot until you buy your xbox and halo 2. Have fun!

  • 08.26.2004 1:38 PM PDT

Welcome to the Bungie Army.

If your father enjoys Tom Clancy games (I'm assuming that means Rainbow Six, Splinter Cell, etc.) it should't take much convincing to turn him into a Halo fan.

While Halo carries a M rating, it is relatively light on violence compared to many other games. Halo is a game with violence in it, but it is driven by an amazing and enthralling sci-fi story, unlike games like resident evil or grand theft auto where the focus is on graphic gore or unjustified violence.

By the way, if you are a huge Mac fan like your profile states, you ought to look around on the forum for information on Marathon if you haven't previously played it. The story is even more complex than that of halo.

  • 08.26.2004 4:18 PM PDT