Halo 3: ODST Forum
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Subject: Reach vs ODST: The Campaign

Ok, it's very clear that ODST was intended as a test for some of the gameplay features and story elements of Reach, and it's clear that Reach is much better than ODST in terms of gameplay/multiplayer (after all, it's a brand new game vs a stand alone expansion). But what about the story, characters and atmosphere? IMO, ODST easily wins. Characters may be stereotypes, but at least they're likeable, we get to know them better and they certainly have more personality than those bull-blam!- SPARTAN IIIs from Reach. Seriously, the only genuinely good character in Reach was Jorge. The story in ODST is nicely narrated in a non-linear way to keep things interesting, and there's an ongoing mistery with a little twist at the end. Reach has no story, just a collection of random independent missions. For the same reason I find hard to care for the fate of the planet, while ODST's depiction of a falling city is much more gripping and fascinating. I'm not saying that ODST is a completely AWESOME Halo story (the games of the main trilogy, for example, are much better even from this point of view) but it was a little and really enjoyable experience, and the fact that, in terms of narrative, a mere expansions beats what it's considered the fourth "real" Halo game shows how little was the effort that Bungie put in Reach's writing, compared to the effort they put in multiplayer and to the effort they put in the stories of their previous games.

Just my two cents.

  • 04.27.2011 10:51 AM PDT

ITz wat WE need

I agree ODST is the most epic of the series since "2". Halo 2 kept you on the edge of your seat between squashing prophets heads with new melee weapons, or being the arbiter and taking out those who betrayed him. Halo 2 was in my opinion the best by far, showed the side of the covenant more and gave you more feeling behind their race, "3" was a joke though it concluded halo, i felt it was done poorly, i enjoy the plot but not the game play nor the places the game is fought, halo 2 eviroments were the -blam!-! so my ratings for the halo series (excluding wars) is this.
#1"Halo 2" #2"Halo ODST" #3"Halo 1 Combat Evolved" #4 "Halo: Reach" and #5 " Halo 3" comes in last, but this is in my opinion as best campaigns

  • 04.27.2011 11:53 AM PDT
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  • Honorable Heroic Member

Does anyone even look at B.net sigs?

ODST- hands down.


Halo 3 beats all though.

  • 04.27.2011 11:55 AM PDT
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  • Exalted Legendary Member

ODST had a very intriguing story, but it didn't have much more. (aside from firefight.) Reach has a weaker story, but it's got a lot of other elements that make it really enjoyable.

  • 04.27.2011 12:13 PM PDT

ITz wat WE need

I'm under the influence and i reported your comment @Zaltyre, idk why? It was accidental. Anyway Reach was good and had a pretty cool spacecraft ride thrown in it. But Halo Custom Edition can give you better than that. When it comes to best story, dialog, and epic moments in halo i give it to 2. Remember this is in my own opinion. I'm not disagreeing with you.I Play Reach Mathmaking a lot but i was judging on campaigns .

  • 04.27.2011 12:29 PM PDT

Name's WIlliam,

For the love of God it's pronounced mister-shag, not misters-hag.

ODST's story was weaksauce. A love story I cared nothing about, and walking around an empty city for half of the game? On top of that, an engineer is the answer? Weaksauce.

IMO, Reach wins.

  • 04.27.2011 12:34 PM PDT

By the power of truth, I, while living, have conquered the universe.

ODST's story was nothing short of perfection.

I'll start off with Sadie's Story, one of the best things to ever happen to Halo. Everything is pulled off beautifully - the storyline, the art, the voice acting and sound effects were all excellent. The way it was based off Dante's Inferno was a great way of structuring the story too.

Then there's the main story, the best opening to a Halo game IMO (Halo Wars: 5 Long Years coming a close second). What makes ODST better than Reach is the fact that there's character development throughout the whole campaign. It's an added bonus that Nathan Fillion, Alan Tudyk and Adam Baldwin are playing the main roles which immediately gives them some wonderful chemistry (Firefly, anyone?).

Noble Team was a group of bland, uninteresting, sterile and one-dimensional Spartans. They do not do the novels any justice because Bungie portrays them as absolute retards.

Another point I might add is that nothing significant happens in Reach until The Package. There is no story before that, it's just Noble Team being deployed to various military bases to defend a few rally points. ODST's free-roaming feature in the desolate and darkened streets of New Mombasa having you play out this noir-esque story was a fantastic move. Yes, a few areas were copied and pasted but it didn't detract from the experience at all.

ODST wins by miles, Reach was nothing more than a convoluted mess as a result of Microsoft mandating it to Bungie.

  • 04.27.2011 12:50 PM PDT

Giver of love and witty comments

reach wins, odst sucks balls

  • 04.27.2011 1:18 PM PDT

I currently am working on Halo Wars achievements. 4 to go.
I currently am working on Halo 2 achievements.
I currently have all Halo 3 achievements.
I currently have all Halo 3:ODST achievements.
I currently have all Halo: Reach achievements.

Posted by: Zaltyre
ODST had a very intriguing story, but it didn't have much more. (aside from firefight.) Reach has a weaker story, but it's got a lot of other elements that make it really enjoyable.

This.

  • 04.27.2011 1:39 PM PDT

By the power of truth, I, while living, have conquered the universe.

Posted by: GoodBritinusa
reach wins, odst sucks balls


I appreciate that you have your own opinion, but you're wrong.

  • 04.27.2011 1:41 PM PDT

Bungie is the best.

I think that Bungie did the right thing, by taking everything from Halo 3 and ODST and putting it all into Reach. Plus adding awesome features such as forge world and new forge settings that allows players to be more precious of where they put scenery and vehicles etc witch make Reach even better. In a over all game I think Reach comes out on top. In The ODST campaign you were not a spartan like in the other games, This leaves you with less defense. The campaign had a very good story but was shallow in my eyes there was not as much room to roam such as the other Halos. In my eyes the campaign was simply extraordinary. In the Reach campaign there was new weapons and new characters. The graphics have definitely improved from Halo 3 or ODST. I really liked everything about Reach and ODST. But in my eyes Reach's campaign came out on top.

  • 04.27.2011 2:00 PM PDT

Vengeance only leads to an ongoing cycle of hatred.

Oh my dear lord there is no thought about this one. lol. ODST wins in epic proportions. Reach was the worst, most disappoiting campaign I've played. ODST was one of the best. I can go on about Reach's flaws and ODST's awesomesauce, but I'll just leave it at that.

  • 04.27.2011 4:28 PM PDT

ODST wins. Exactly
Reach's campaign never surprised or frightened me like the other halos. ODST did. ODST seemed more inherently halo while reach seems like some weird version- they changed too much for me. Reach did have some cool stuff, and was much more polished with the graphics, but ODST seemed more of a genuine halo experience.

  • 04.28.2011 2:40 AM PDT
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Honor est praemium virtutis.

ODST for me. The story was very intriguing, and I feel the music made up a massive part of it being enjoyable, it had an atmosphere that's unexplainable.
It stood on it's own for sure, but also remained true to the pure Halo fun that we experienced in Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2.

  • 04.28.2011 2:49 AM PDT

Reach is better. The levels in ODST are worse.

Story? Atmosphere? Bullcrap. Gameplay is where it's at.

  • 04.28.2011 1:22 PM PDT

tristan werbe

haynusa cheif

I think all halos have great story's but I can understand the odst hatred cause u play as a odst without a voice but I felt like I was the rookie was a good thing

  • 04.28.2011 2:14 PM PDT

Vengeance only leads to an ongoing cycle of hatred.


Posted by: Mutoid Log
Reach is better. The levels in ODST are worse.

Story? Atmosphere? Bullcrap. Gameplay is where it's at.

Wow. This, right here, is why games like Call of Duty actually suceed. All you care about is gameplay. Not a care in the world about story. Reach had the worst story out of all the Halos and ODST had one of the best. ODST, also, had the best atmosphere out of any Halo. Just sayin'. Don't see how an Exalted Legendary Member can't understand, or see/realize, that.

[Edited on 04.28.2011 2:28 PM PDT]

  • 04.28.2011 2:27 PM PDT

Forgotten Samurai leader
RIOTSTARTER360

odst campaign nuff said.

  • 04.28.2011 3:25 PM PDT

By the power of truth, I, while living, have conquered the universe.

Posted by: Sigma617
ODST is miles better than Reach's canon destroying catastrophe.
it did everything better than Reach.

EVERYTHING. City environments.
Military last stands. Character development.
everything. Reach's campaign is a joke.

EDIT: if you ever see this thread again I'd just like to propose a brofist to Ajw34307.


Brofist accepted, ODST FTW.

Honestly, people who say that gameplay is the definitive factor for Halo and the story/atmosphere/music means nothing has just completely missed the point. Reach's campaign was absolute shyte, a convoluted mess of what was once a great story.

ODST had everything, as my good friend Sigma has pointed out here. Bungie should have learned from what they did right in ODST and applied it to Reach, the switching of perspectives was an interesting twist that would have proved to be a benefit to Reach if they'd based the game on the novel.

For example, one mission you'd be playing as Fred with several dozen other Spartans after the high-altitude drop from the Pelican and you'd have to defend the SMAC generator. Another level you'd switch perspectives to John aboard the Circumference with Linda and James.

It would work, it would have been awesome but Bungie decided to create a bunch of Spartans that have absolutely no purpose in the canon apart from the last 2 missions of Reach.

  • 04.28.2011 5:36 PM PDT

Vengeance only leads to an ongoing cycle of hatred.


Posted by: ajw34307
Posted by: Sigma617
ODST is miles better than Reach's canon destroying catastrophe.
it did everything better than Reach.

EVERYTHING. City environments.
Military last stands. Character development.
everything. Reach's campaign is a joke.

EDIT: if you ever see this thread again I'd just like to propose a brofist to Ajw34307.


Brofist accepted, ODST FTW.

Honestly, people who say that gameplay is the definitive factor for Halo and the story/atmosphere/music means nothing has just completely missed the point. Reach's campaign was absolute shyte, a convoluted mess of what was once a great story.

ODST had everything, as my good friend Sigma has pointed out here. Bungie should have learned from what they did right in ODST and applied it to Reach, the switching of perspectives was an interesting twist that would have proved to be a benefit to Reach if they'd based the game on the novel.

For example, one mission you'd be playing as Fred with several dozen other Spartans after the high-altitude drop from the Pelican and you'd have to defend the SMAC generator. Another level you'd switch perspectives to John aboard the Circumference with Linda and James.

It would work, it would have been awesome but Bungie decided to create a bunch of Spartans that have absolutely no purpose in the canon apart from the last 2 missions of Reach.

Agree 100%. Also, those last two missions, shouldn't have even happened. Technically Cortana was already on the POA and didn't need to be delivered, I believe. I don't understand why Bungie decided to run with a half-assed story with crappy characters that broke canon. Instead of just going with the novel, everybody (That I know, at least) loved. I mean, like you said, why couldn't they incorporate what they did in ODST into Reach? Switch between John, Fred, James, Linda, Kelly, Joshua, and/or any other Spartan. Also, their bit with Buck in Reach was terrible. All we get is one small radio transmission from him? I mean, come on. You could have at least gave us that. But, no. Reach was such a failure. Felt like a sh**ty side story to Reach.

  • 04.28.2011 5:43 PM PDT

By the power of truth, I, while living, have conquered the universe.

Posted by: SEAL Sniper 9
Posted by: ajw34307
Posted by: Sigma617
ODST is miles better than Reach's canon destroying catastrophe.
it did everything better than Reach.

EVERYTHING. City environments.
Military last stands. Character development.
everything. Reach's campaign is a joke.

EDIT: if you ever see this thread again I'd just like to propose a brofist to Ajw34307.


Brofist accepted, ODST FTW.

Honestly, people who say that gameplay is the definitive factor for Halo and the story/atmosphere/music means nothing has just completely missed the point. Reach's campaign was absolute shyte, a convoluted mess of what was once a great story.

ODST had everything, as my good friend Sigma has pointed out here. Bungie should have learned from what they did right in ODST and applied it to Reach, the switching of perspectives was an interesting twist that would have proved to be a benefit to Reach if they'd based the game on the novel.

For example, one mission you'd be playing as Fred with several dozen other Spartans after the high-altitude drop from the Pelican and you'd have to defend the SMAC generator. Another level you'd switch perspectives to John aboard the Circumference with Linda and James.

It would work, it would have been awesome but Bungie decided to create a bunch of Spartans that have absolutely no purpose in the canon apart from the last 2 missions of Reach.

Agree 100%. Also, those last two missions, shouldn't have even happened. Technically Cortana was already on the POA and didn't need to be delivered, I believe. I don't understand why Bungie decided to run with a half-assed story with crappy characters that broke canon. Instead of just going with the novel, everybody (That I know, at least) loved. I mean, like you said, why couldn't they incorporate what they did in ODST into Reach? Switch between John, Fred, James, Linda, Kelly, Joshua, and/or any other Spartan. Also, their bit with Buck in Reach was terrible. All we get is one small radio transmission from him? I mean, come on. You could have at least gave us that. But, no. Reach was such a failure. Felt like a sh**ty side story to Reach.


Indeed. There's this bullshyte side-plot of Cortana's other fragment examining the Forerunner Latchkey Artefact. What for? This "gamechanger" has never been mentioned before, we know nothing about it. What is its purpose?

Reach truly is the Phantom Menace of the Halo series.

New Alexandria would have been made much better if we actually went with Buck on his classified op. They had 3 years to make Reach their swan song and ended up with this awful thing... It's like Halo cancer (/ME2 reference).

  • 04.28.2011 5:56 PM PDT

Posted by ajw34307:
Reach truly is the Phantom Menace of the Halo series.
Hey!
As a Star Wars fanboy, I have to say that watching all six movies in a row as if they're all one massive movie actually makes some of the prequels' flaws disappear. Of course, you have to be nuts to begin with to do it. :)

Reach, though, overtly violates the previously established plot, seems to conflate multiplayer armor colors with feasible colors in-story, and on and on. Its plot feels like a really, really bad fan fiction, perhaps written by someone who thinks RvB is canon supplemental material.

At least ODST (and even Wars) didn't dice up big pieces of the rest of the story for the sake of what seem to be developers' whimsies.

  • 04.29.2011 6:46 AM PDT


Posted by: ajw34307
Posted by: SEAL Sniper 9
Posted by: ajw34307
Posted by: Sigma617
ODST is miles better than Reach's canon destroying catastrophe.
it did everything better than Reach.

EVERYTHING. City environments.
Military last stands. Character development.
everything. Reach's campaign is a joke.

EDIT: if you ever see this thread again I'd just like to propose a brofist to Ajw34307.


Brofist accepted, ODST FTW.

Honestly, people who say that gameplay is the definitive factor for Halo and the story/atmosphere/music means nothing has just completely missed the point. Reach's campaign was absolute shyte, a convoluted mess of what was once a great story.

ODST had everything, as my good friend Sigma has pointed out here. Bungie should have learned from what they did right in ODST and applied it to Reach, the switching of perspectives was an interesting twist that would have proved to be a benefit to Reach if they'd based the game on the novel.

For example, one mission you'd be playing as Fred with several dozen other Spartans after the high-altitude drop from the Pelican and you'd have to defend the SMAC generator. Another level you'd switch perspectives to John aboard the Circumference with Linda and James.

It would work, it would have been awesome but Bungie decided to create a bunch of Spartans that have absolutely no purpose in the canon apart from the last 2 missions of Reach.

Agree 100%. Also, those last two missions, shouldn't have even happened. Technically Cortana was already on the POA and didn't need to be delivered, I believe. I don't understand why Bungie decided to run with a half-assed story with crappy characters that broke canon. Instead of just going with the novel, everybody (That I know, at least) loved. I mean, like you said, why couldn't they incorporate what they did in ODST into Reach? Switch between John, Fred, James, Linda, Kelly, Joshua, and/or any other Spartan. Also, their bit with Buck in Reach was terrible. All we get is one small radio transmission from him? I mean, come on. You could have at least gave us that. But, no. Reach was such a failure. Felt like a sh**ty side story to Reach.


Indeed. There's this bullshyte side-plot of Cortana's other fragment examining the Forerunner Latchkey Artefact. What for? This "gamechanger" has never been mentioned before, we know nothing about it. What is its purpose?

Reach truly is the Phantom Menace of the Halo series.

New Alexandria would have been made much better if we actually went with Buck on his classified op. They had 3 years to make Reach their swan song and ended up with this awful thing... It's like Halo cancer (/ME2 reference).

Wait wait wait... Although I do agree that ODST is better than Reach in many ways, I thought Cortana was the latchkey forerunner object?

Another reason why Reach's campaign was terrible. No thorough explanations.

  • 04.29.2011 6:50 AM PDT

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