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Subject: What happened to Halo 2 PC?

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I remember Major Nelson's Xbox Live Activity List used to show Halo 2 PC as the number one most played Games For Windows Live Game. But then recently, it just dissapeared from the list completely. It wasn't a gradual drop or anything. It just vanished. I'm pretty sure quite a lot of people still play Halo 2 PC, at least more than those playing the bottom 5 games on the list. So does anybody know what happened? Or is this Microsoft's attempt to get people to forget about Halo 2 PC and cover up its existence?

  • 03.30.2012 12:30 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.

Halo 2 Vista 2007-2008 was seriously the only time it was really booming. It has incompatibility issues with the Games for Windows Live client, it was poorly ported and is unsupported. Somtimes even the master server list will go down out of nowhere for days until the community bugs the GFWL team to look into it.

The last patch was in 2007, so what does that tell ya? Coming from a player that played H2V for a good 3-4 years, I can tell you that the golden days are over. Nothing really happened to H2V, the player population just slowly dissolved into what it is now.

  • 03.30.2012 12:53 PM PDT

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Posted by: Super PolarBear
Halo 2 Vista 2007-2008 was seriously the only time it was really booming. It has incompatibility issues with the Games for Windows Live client, it was poorly ported and is unsupported. Somtimes even the master server list will go down out of nowhere for days until the community bugs the GFWL team to look into it.

The last patch was in 2007, so what does that tell ya? Coming from a player that played H2V for a good 3-4 years, I can tell you that the golden days are over. Nothing really happened to H2V, the player population just slowly dissolved into what it is now.


But less than 6 months ago, Halo 2 Vista was still at the top of the list. That means in less than half a year, Halo 2 Vista's population just crashed like the stock market did during the Great Depression. Normally that doesn't happen. You don't go from #1 to the bottom of the list that fast. Halo 3, despite being almost 5 years old, is still on the 20 of the list. It'd be understandable if Halo 2 Vista was somewhere around #15-20 on the list right now, but it's completely gone. One day it was #1, the next day it was gone. It's like everyone stopped playing it all of a sudden or Microsoft stopped tracking Halo 2 players.

Yes, Halo 2 vista had a lot of problems and was poorly supported by Microsoft, but for those of us who were console gamers and played Halo 2 Xbox a lot, Halo 2 Vista has become the legacy of Halo 2 Xbox and the multiplayer of Halo 2 Vista is all we have left in terms of multiplayer. Yeah there's Xbox Connect and Xlink kai, but those servers tend to be laggy and it's difficult for some people to set up. Games for Windows live is still more reliable and convenient despite the problems on Halo 2 Vista.

[Edited on 03.30.2012 3:52 PM PDT]

  • 03.30.2012 3:51 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.

It was probably because of the great "master servers fallout" that happened not too long ago. The server list was down for more than a week before finally being brought back up. I think it also happened again just recently, but not for that long of period of time.

Don't get me wrong, Halo 2 Vista brought me great fun and good gaming memories with the community, but it just wasn't worth it in the end to keep playing it in the later years.

  • 03.30.2012 8:35 PM PDT

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Posted by: Super PolarBear
It was probably because of the great "master servers fallout" that happened not too long ago. The server list was down for more than a week before finally being brought back up. I think it also happened again just recently, but not for that long of period of time.

Don't get me wrong, Halo 2 Vista brought me great fun and good gaming memories with the community, but it just wasn't worth it in the end to keep playing it in the later years.


Still, once the servers are back up, Halo 2 Vista should've jumped back near the top of the list instead of completely dissapearing.

  • 03.30.2012 9:39 PM PDT
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Posted by: General Heed
I remember Major Nelson's Xbox Live Activity List used to show Halo 2 PC as the number one most played Games For Windows Live Game.


Now there's a sad indictment of GFWL. Also, I laughed.

  • 03.31.2012 6:27 AM PDT

Posted by: General Heed
But less than 6 months ago, Halo 2 Vista was still at the top of the list.

That's true. Halo 2 went out of the Top 20 list in the first week of November 2011. Check yourself.
Halo 2 is out of the Top 20 GFWL
In the last week of October Halo 2 was still in the chart: http://majornelson.com/2011/11/09/live-activity-for-week-of-o ctober-31/

[Edited on 03.31.2012 8:49 AM PDT]

  • 03.31.2012 7:52 AM PDT

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Posted by: NeverStop91
Posted by: General Heed
But less than 6 months ago, Halo 2 Vista was still at the top of the list.

That's true. Halo 2 went out of the Top 20 list in the first week of November 2011. Check yourself.
Halo 2 is out of the Top 20 GFWL
In the last week of October Halo 2 was still in the chart: http://majornelson.com/2011/11/09/live-activity-for-week-of-o ctober-31/


That's why I suspected that either something happened to Halo 2 PC or Microsoft simply stopped tracking it in order to get people to forget about it.

  • 04.01.2012 2:26 PM PDT

Last member of the i4Ni clan.

It's funny because gfwl.

  • 04.01.2012 6:02 PM PDT
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When did you see it at the top? June 6th it rates Halo 2 at 13th place. In fact, it was 7th - 10th in 2009. Can't really blame Games for Windows Live on its low scoring compared to the other games seeing as though all the other games are hindered by the exact same thing... >.>

Most GFWL games aren't high in population at all. They're pretty much all (Except a few) close to death. Halo 2 Vista is creeping towards it and that's why it slid off the top games. It's not like Steam games where it takes a massive shift to cause a game to fall. It's just so low for most of the games that anything can cause it to fall off the list.

Posted by: Super PolarBear
It was probably because of the great "master servers fallout" that happened not too long ago. The server list was down for more than a week before finally being brought back up. I think it also happened again just recently, but not for that long of period of time.
The population did fall down by about half but seeing as how low Halo 2 Vista's population was already, it didn't really even matter in game. Still feels the same to me. Everyone plays the same damned gametypes anyways.

[Edited on 04.01.2012 8:58 PM PDT]

  • 04.01.2012 8:37 PM PDT

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Posted by: Dr Syx
When did you see it at the top? June 6th it rates Halo 2 at 13th place. In fact, it was 7th - 10th in 2009. Can't really blame Games for Windows Live on its low scoring compared to the other games seeing as though all the other games are hindered by the exact same thing... >.>

Most GFWL games aren't high in population at all. They're pretty much all (Except a few) close to death. Halo 2 Vista is creeping towards it and that's why it slid off the top games. It's not like Steam games where it takes a massive shift to cause a game to fall. It's just so low for most of the games that anything can cause it to fall off the list.

Posted by: Super PolarBear
It was probably because of the great "master servers fallout" that happened not too long ago. The server list was down for more than a week before finally being brought back up. I think it also happened again just recently, but not for that long of period of time.
The population did fall down by about half but seeing as how low Halo 2 Vista's population was already, it didn't really even matter in game. Still feels the same to me. Everyone plays the same damned gametypes anyways.


But I regularly play Games For Windows Live games and I don't really notice a problem with the populations. They're obviously not at the same level as the top games on the Xbox 360, but I feel the population is acceptable. Now it's possible what I perceived as the population was really Xbox 360 gamers from the cross-platform games I play (Shadowrun and Lost Planet). I used to play Universe at War, but the multiplayer is absolutely empty now for both Xbox 360 and PC. So just based on Shadowrun and Lost Planet, the population is good, but perhaps it's just because it's cross platform. However, I don't see people on Xbox Live playing either of those games anymore and almost no one has those games anymore.

  • 04.01.2012 9:45 PM PDT
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Last time I checked both Shadowrun and Lost Planet are pretty much dead as well... Don't know what you're talking about. Shadowrun isn't even on the top 20 either.

  • 04.01.2012 9:54 PM PDT
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Yeah. That's right. I don't have a 50 in H3. I never got Onyx in Reach. If a game sucks too much, I won't even bother trying for such trivial "accolades". Besides, I've done way more things that take far more skill and talent than anything that can be done in a video game.

Posted by: General Heed
But I regularly play Games For Windows Live games and I don't really notice a problem with the populations. They're obviously not at the same level as the top games on the Xbox 360, but I feel the population is acceptable.

Let us know when you start playing real PC multiplayer games. After a few rounds of those, you'll be laughing at H2V's hilariously low population along with the rest of us.

  • 04.01.2012 10:50 PM PDT

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Posted by: Dr Syx
Last time I checked both Shadowrun and Lost Planet are pretty much dead as well... Don't know what you're talking about. Shadowrun isn't even on the top 20 either.


Shadowrun may not be on the top 20 list, but it does still have a decent amount of players. I never have trouble getting matched up with people. Like I said, those two games' populations may be pooled together from both the PC and Xbox 360 since they're cross platform games.

They may be on the top 30, I'm not sure though.

  • 04.02.2012 11:54 AM PDT

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Posted by: DusK
Posted by: General Heed
But I regularly play Games For Windows Live games and I don't really notice a problem with the populations. They're obviously not at the same level as the top games on the Xbox 360, but I feel the population is acceptable.

Let us know when you start playing real PC multiplayer games. After a few rounds of those, you'll be laughing at H2V's hilariously low population along with the rest of us.


Well unfortunately, Halo 2 Vista is the legacy of Halo 2 Xbox and it's all we have left in terms of real Halo 2 Multiplayer. Xbox Connect and Xlink Kai just don't cut it. And what I consider to be a good population is one in which getting matched up with players takes less than 30 seconds which all the games I listed above fulfill.

Besides, cross-platform multiplayer is a great feature in my opinion. Shadowrun and Lost Planet proved, at least in their respective genres, that neither the Controller or Keyboard & Mouse have a significant advantage over each other. Plus, it's fun to continue playing with my friends when they're on the 360 and I'm on the PC. Microsoft should really start encouraging developers to make more cross-platform games.

  • 04.02.2012 11:58 AM PDT

Last member of the i4Ni clan.

When the xlive support closes in october, expect an even more massive drop, and then some tunngle before h2v finally "dies" (no player communities) somewhere around mid-january. If not sooner.

  • 04.02.2012 2:39 PM PDT

Something smells fishy...

No more H2V?! No More?!

*puts on party hat*

  • 04.02.2012 2:59 PM PDT
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Posted by: General Heed
Shadowrun and Lost Planet proved, at least in their respective genres, that neither the Controller or Keyboard & Mouse have a significant advantage over each other.
Last time I checked pretty much everyone claimed the exact opposite... In fact, you need to check this article out. The mouse is a more precise tool for first person shooters. This isn't just a wide opinion, this has been proven many times over. It's absolute fact. Why else do you think controllers need aim assist? That's the "revolutionary" step Bungie took to make FPS games work with a controller.

I think pretty much everyone here will agree with me that you've shown absolutely nothing but absolute ignorance while posting in this forum recently... Are you acting ignorant on purpose for laughs or are you really like this? No offence....

[Edited on 04.02.2012 3:34 PM PDT]

  • 04.02.2012 3:28 PM PDT

Cross platform flopped because Microsoft were foolish. Valve got it right with Portal 2 and perhaps could have with CS:GO had they not wished to update the PC platform ahead of the PS3. They intended to let PS3 gamers use a Mouse and Keyboard to compete which Microsoft are too proud to let developers do.

In order for a cross platform shooter to work, consoles must have the option to use a mouse and keyboard (As said Valve recognized this) or limit the ranked gameplay to platform only with unranked servers for cross platform play. That, or co-op FPS could work fine. Finally, Shadowrun just did not seem appealing to me at all in the run up to release so i think it would have to be an established franchise. CS:GO was looking very promising with it's cross platform play with PS3 but now that they axed it (in order to update the PC version quicker), I have to say I'm rather disappointed.

Maybe one day developers will be brave enough to rise to the challenge, or in Valve's case, maybe enable it at a later date. I guess my main argument here is the fact Valve was going to allow PS3 users to use a mouse and keyboard shows it's dominance over controllers.

  • 04.02.2012 4:57 PM PDT
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Microsoft would do that if they didn't already claim to have the "perfect FPS controller". I'm just hoping they bring out a massive redesign that will have the same precision as a mouse. It would be nice to be able to actually enjoy playing the later Halo games on console without having to deal with an inferior tool. :/

  • 04.02.2012 5:19 PM PDT

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Posted by: Wilis_kid
Cross platform flopped because Microsoft were foolish. Valve got it right with Portal 2 and perhaps could have with CS:GO had they not wished to update the PC platform ahead of the PS3. They intended to let PS3 gamers use a Mouse and Keyboard to compete which Microsoft are too proud to let developers do.

In order for a cross platform shooter to work, consoles must have the option to use a mouse and keyboard (As said Valve recognized this) or limit the ranked gameplay to platform only with unranked servers for cross platform play. That, or co-op FPS could work fine. Finally, Shadowrun just did not seem appealing to me at all in the run up to release so i think it would have to be an established franchise. CS:GO was looking very promising with it's cross platform play with PS3 but now that they axed it (in order to update the PC version quicker), I have to say I'm rather disappointed.

Maybe one day developers will be brave enough to rise to the challenge, or in Valve's case, maybe enable it at a later date. I guess my main argument here is the fact Valve was going to allow PS3 users to use a mouse and keyboard shows it's dominance over controllers.


Cross-platform actually turned out just fine on Games For Windows Live. Some new games still support cross-platform. The most recent Games For Windows Live game to add suppport for cross platform was BlazBlue: CT. I personally haven't played it yet, but it's significant in that it shows cross-platform gaming is not dead yet and developers still show an interest in it.

In fact, Games For Windows Live is currently the best hope for more cross-platform games. Valve has yet to release their first true cross-platform game. Portal 2 was not truely cross-platform.

You don't have to have consistent controls in order for a game to be cross-platform. The whole point of the cross-platform initiative was so Console gamers and PC gamers could finally settle which platform had better controls. In the past, PC gamers claimed their Mouse & Keyboard could dominate console players anytime. However, the results of this cross-platform initiative revealed that there's actually very little difference in skill between the two platforms. Both sides were evenly matched and neither side had any significant advantage.

Now for Universe At War, I'd admit that the mouse and keyboard would have to be better since it is an RTS game. However, I don't have much information about how cross-platform gaming went on Universe at War. It would seem as if not enough people played it to make any judgements. However, as a console gamer, I just don't see how the controller could be better than a keyboard for RTS games.

Anyways, Microsoft is leading the way for Cross-Platform gaming right now. No other company has pulled it off yet with the exception of SquareEnix for one Final Fantasy Game. But since then, only Microsoft has been rolling out cross-platform games. I don't believe Valve has the resources to implement such a cross-platform system. Steam may be more popular than GFWL, however, as a company, Microsoft still has more resources than Valve to do whatever they want.


Posted by: Dr Syx
Microsoft would do that if they didn't already claim to have the "perfect FPS controller". I'm just hoping they bring out a massive redesign that will have the same precision as a mouse. It would be nice to be able to actually enjoy playing the later Halo games on console without having to deal with an inferior tool. :/


I do believe the Xbox 360 controller is the best "FPS controller" so far. Whether it's better than a mouse and keyboard is debatable. Even a lot of PC gamers prefer the Xbox 360 controller as their gamepad of choice when they do choose to use a controller. You don't see many people using a PS3 controller or Wiimote instead. Ergonomics-wise, the Xbox 360 controller is one of the nicest controllers to hold in your hand and I feel its layout is perfect. Accuracy is debatable of course.

[Edited on 04.02.2012 7:00 PM PDT]

  • 04.02.2012 6:58 PM PDT


Posted by: General Heed
You don't have to have consistent controls in order for a game to be cross-platform. The whole point of the cross-platform initiative was so Console gamers and PC gamers could finally settle which platform had better controls. In the past, PC gamers claimed their Mouse & Keyboard could dominate console players anytime. However, the results of this cross-platform initiative revealed that there's actually very little difference in skill between the two platforms. Both sides were evenly matched and neither side had any significant advantage.


The Mouse and Keyboard has been proven by Microsoft and many PC gamers to be vastly superior, and it doesn't take a brain cell to know that. The cross platform initiative has been abandoned for this very reason. The most elite console gamers could not keep up with rookie or mediocre PC gamers, it's just how it is. The only exception is where the controls are gimped, e.g. Halo 2 Vista.

As for Microsoft leading the way, they're not. Valve has made the most recent attempt with CS:GO but retracted on that. Microsoft has bailed and it's evident with the lack of a AAA title worthy of being looked at since the idea was first concevied with Shadowrun. I would like to see Microsoft give it another shot in Halo 4 with some of the suggestions i made in my previous post but this is unlikely. As said, it's down to whatever developer is brave enough to incorporate the functionality in the future with a reasonable balance.

[Edited on 04.02.2012 7:34 PM PDT]

  • 04.02.2012 7:33 PM PDT

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Posted by: Wilis_kid

Posted by: General Heed
You don't have to have consistent controls in order for a game to be cross-platform. The whole point of the cross-platform initiative was so Console gamers and PC gamers could finally settle which platform had better controls. In the past, PC gamers claimed their Mouse & Keyboard could dominate console players anytime. However, the results of this cross-platform initiative revealed that there's actually very little difference in skill between the two platforms. Both sides were evenly matched and neither side had any significant advantage.


The Mouse and Keyboard has been proven by Microsoft and many PC gamers to be vastly superior, and it doesn't take a brain cell to know that. The cross platform initiative has been abandoned for this very reason. The most elite console gamers could not keep up with rookie or mediocre PC gamers, it's just how it is. The only exception is where the controls are gimped, e.g. Halo 2 Vista.

As for Microsoft leading the way, they're not. Valve has made the most recent attempt with CS:GO but retracted on that. Microsoft has bailed and it's evident with the lack of a AAA title worthy of being looked at since the idea was first concevied with Shadowrun. I would like to see Microsoft give it another shot in Halo 4 with some of the suggestions i made in my previous post but this is unlikely. As said, it's down to whatever developer is brave enough to incorporate the functionality in the future with a reasonable balance.


I believe Lost Planet was the poster AAA title that had cross-platform support. Lost Planet is a pretty popular game and is also a commonly used benchmarking tool for PC's.

The Cross-Platform Initiative was never abandoned. Developers just didn't feel any incentive to add cross-platform support. Microsft still maintains cross-platform support as part of Games For Windows Live. New cross-platform games are still being added.

Microsoft is currently THE ONLY company with the infrastructure to support cross-platform gaming. And when it comes to Shadowrun and Lost Planet, neither the PC nor the Xbox was better. If you play either of those games, you won't be able to tell who's playing on which platform.

Valve couldn't deliver cross-platform. Microsoft already has and continues too.

Like I said, the cross-platform initiative was never abandoned and still lives on with new games being added every now and then. So based on the available cross-platform games, neither platform is superior.

I know where you got your information from about cross-platform being abandoned. I can tell you for a fact that source is extremely biased and has no facts to back up his claims. It makes no sense for Microsoft to abandon cross-platform gaming just because one platform is superior to the other. In fact, that was the whole point they even conceived cross-platform, to finally settle the debate about which platform is better. So if PC gamers really did destroy all the console gamers, then Microsoft would've accomplished their mission. But in reality, what really happened when cross-platform gaming became available, was that neither side was dominant. PC Gamers did not have any significant advantage and console gamers did not suddenly feel they were facing a new foe of unimaginable skill.

[Edited on 04.02.2012 8:04 PM PDT]

  • 04.02.2012 8:01 PM PDT
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It's not debatable which control option is better for shooters. It's absolutely clear to anyone that has sense that the mouse is a much better tool for aiming. There is absolutely no debate in regards to this and if you actually want to debate that you obviously have no idea what you're talking about.

Also, why the hell don't you consider Portal 2 to be cross-platform? If you can play with other people across two platforms, it's cross-platform play. Global Offensive was going to be cross platform but they didn't want to deal with the stuff they would have to go through with Sony. They also have pretty much their entire fan base screaming at them at the idea seeing as though Counter-Strike players are the hive for PC elitism.

It makes no sense for Microsoft to abandon cross-platform gaming just because one platform is superior to the other. In fact, that was the whole point they even conceived cross-platform, to finally settle the debate about which platform is better.It does when your platform is shown to be the one that's inferior. Don't even start with saying that the PC is Microsoft's platform either. They're not making much money off the PC gaming market. GFWL was their failed attempt at that. There have been multiple sources that confirm Microsoft shut down cross platform gameplay projects with FPS games in a competitive arena because of this. They were embarrassed by it.

[Edited on 04.02.2012 8:12 PM PDT]

  • 04.02.2012 8:05 PM PDT

It still doesn't change the fact that Mouse and Keyboard beats a controller any day unless the controls are gimped. And I don't believe Lost Planet is a AAA title, it wasn't very good and the player counts I saw were pretty low. I'm talking Microsofts so called AAA titles - Halo, Gears, Forza etc that could all have had cross-platform.

Microsoft has failed with cross platform gaming as they are refusing to add any games worthy of note which is why most of the releases never get any good attention. While they did attempt to reintroduce cross-platform gaming with Shadowrun, it never caught on due to balancing issues which is why many developers have not bothered with it except Valve which was going to implement it to one of their AAA franchises, which Microsoft refuses to do.

I don't consider myself to be a great PC gamer, but I know damn well with a good number of years experience with PC and consoles that a mouse and keyboard would dominate hands down. Even in a game such as COD (yes I uttered those words) there is a noticeable difference which makes switching back and forth between platforms in those games unbearable. Halo PC is no different, it's alot slower to aim on CEA than Halo PC, which is noticeable. Even BF3 is the same, the list goes on. Any gamer with experience on the two will tell you that mouse and keyboard wins.

It's something that can't really be disputed unless there is massive amounts of controller aim assist and gimped mouse and keyboard controls...in other words Halo 2 Vista.

[Edited on 04.02.2012 8:16 PM PDT]

  • 04.02.2012 8:14 PM PDT

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