- last post: 01.01.0001 12:00 AM PDT
It's hard to quantify an aspect of gameplay. It's usually just a subjective opinion. In my opinion, the gameplay just "felt" better. There was a crispness to it. I know a large part of that was due to weapon sound. Nothing beats the crack of the human weapons in Halo 1. The Plasma Rifle was also much more fun to use.
There was also the aspect of level design. They both had levels that went from indoors to outside and back, but in Halo 1, the levels were huge. The action was much more intense and not as predictable. I know they were both basically linear, but since the environments in Halo were so much larger, it didn't feel that way as much.
I think the vehicles played better. Okay, so there are more vehicles in Halo 2, and they are destructable, which is cool. But the controls of the ones in Halo 1 were better, in my opinion. Assault on the Control Room in that speedy Scorpion is one of my favorite parts of both games.
Another major factor, as someone else pointed out, is continuity. It was just the MC. You and him, together throughout the game (not forgetting Cortana, of course, but you didn't play her). It was much easier to become totally immersed when you didn't get swapped out from level to level, where you had to adjust your mindset. Halo 1 just flowed much more naturally. As a further example of flowing smoothly and having to change your mindset, I give you boss battles.
Lastly, there is the mystique factor, which was also pointed out by someone else. There was a much bigger sense of urgency to me. Every first fight was creepy, as were a lot of the cutscenes. They made you think, "Oh, crap... What the hell am I getting into now?" much more than the ones in Halo 2. The Flood actually scared you, especially in the Library. As did any Elite with a Sword. I realize it was necessary for the story, but making them all speak English ruined something for me. The only new villians in Halo 2 were the Drones and the Brutes, none of which were introduced with any flair to make you scared of them. They were both just more annoying than the rest.
Keep in mind that this is only referring to campaign. Obviously, Halo 2's multiplayer beats Halo 1's. It's also all just my opinion.