Halo 2 improves on every single thing that the last game did. It expands the sandbox and the lore, has much deeper character writing and worldbuilding, and has one of the most tech-heavy multiplayer experiences on the console side of gaming.
You take the role again as the Master Chief as he storms his way across Earth and a new Halo ring to stop the Covenant once again. In the midst of all of this, a disavowed Elite named Thel 'Vadam is cast into the role as Arbiter of the Covenant for failing to top Chief's destruction of the first Halo. The Arbiter and Chief must learn more about The Covenant's Great Journey and stop it before it leads to the destruction of the universe.
I can't begin to say how much the game has improved in it's sense of scale. You need to really balance your usage of combined arms in a way not many single player games get right still. Even out of vehicles, the infantry combat is even more deadlier when you add enemy snipers and impatient rushing into the mix. Not to worry, because almost every weapon the Covenant drops now can be equipped for use back at them. It makes for a compelling (albeit sometimes unfair) campaign.
The multiplayer is so much better in this game because of the high skill ceiling. You can play it like Halo 1 still, or you can use the new sandbox elements like Dual Wielding to get an edge. Want to fly off that edge, well Energy Sword Flings have you covered. There isn't much depth like this in most military shooters, you normally have to look toward different fps game subgenres to find it (i.e movement shooters, hero shooters), but Halo 2 finds a way to make it all work together.
Halo 2 is still the finest FPS the original Xbox had to offer, and it only gets better from here for a short time.
You take the role again as the Master Chief as he storms his way across Earth and a new Halo ring to stop the Covenant once again. In the midst of all of this, a disavowed Elite named Thel 'Vadam is cast into the role as Arbiter of the Covenant for failing to top Chief's destruction of the first Halo. The Arbiter and Chief must learn more about The Covenant's Great Journey and stop it before it leads to the destruction of the universe.
I can't begin to say how much the game has improved in it's sense of scale. You need to really balance your usage of combined arms in a way not many single player games get right still. Even out of vehicles, the infantry combat is even more deadlier when you add enemy snipers and impatient rushing into the mix. Not to worry, because almost every weapon the Covenant drops now can be equipped for use back at them. It makes for a compelling (albeit sometimes unfair) campaign.
The multiplayer is so much better in this game because of the high skill ceiling. You can play it like Halo 1 still, or you can use the new sandbox elements like Dual Wielding to get an edge. Want to fly off that edge, well Energy Sword Flings have you covered. There isn't much depth like this in most military shooters, you normally have to look toward different fps game subgenres to find it (i.e movement shooters, hero shooters), but Halo 2 finds a way to make it all work together.
Halo 2 is still the finest FPS the original Xbox had to offer, and it only gets better from here for a short time.
While not bad at all, the game is made far weaker by it's copout cliffhanger ending and a boring and washed out multiplayer.
The story is excellent, giving more character to the covenant gives the player a entirely new cast of interesting characters, good as the first game killed most of the few characters it had. The levels are alright, but far too many of them have you stand in a big room fighting waves of enemies like it's firefight for ten minutes, the level where you fly a banshee and chase the heretic is a great example as you have about ten seconds of excitement followed by twenty life-draining minutes of flying around and killing the same three enemies forever.
The multiplayer is a step down from Combat Evolved, but by no means is it a disaster. The battle rifle sadly overshadows almost every weapon as instead of making everything strong like in the original, everything shoots pool noodles except the BR and power weapons. The levels have begun to lose all the gimmicky, party-game charm already, and are now just boring octagons of nothingness outside of the big-team battle maps. And I know people love their high-skill buggy game mechanics because it makes them feel just another step above everyone else, but things like BXR end up making the strong weapons stronger, and do next to nothing for the weaker weapons that actually would need such a boon.
The big new feature for multiplayer is dual wielding, and I am sorry to say that this only further weakens the already pathetic pool of weapons. Weapons like the smg and pistol are weak enough at their ""full-potential" when dual-wielded, and neigh-unusable when held alone, meaning to stand any semblance of a chance against the weapon everyone starts with in most modes, you must handicap yourself by being unable to use grenades/equipment without dropping your other weapon.
This may be the second ugliest Halo game, though still miles above Halo 5. Unlike the original, which played the weaknesses of the original xbox to it's strength with a more cartooney and shiny aesthetic, Halo 2 just looks like they found stretched stock art textures over everything and it ends up looking muddy and ugly all throughout.
I see no reason why they should not have just waited for the Xbox 360 to release a full, unbroken, balanced, and high-fidelity game. And so, for me, while it is not terrible by any means, there is little to no reason to play Halo 2 over most other Halo games.
The story is excellent, giving more character to the covenant gives the player a entirely new cast of interesting characters, good as the first game killed most of the few characters it had. The levels are alright, but far too many of them have you stand in a big room fighting waves of enemies like it's firefight for ten minutes, the level where you fly a banshee and chase the heretic is a great example as you have about ten seconds of excitement followed by twenty life-draining minutes of flying around and killing the same three enemies forever.
The multiplayer is a step down from Combat Evolved, but by no means is it a disaster. The battle rifle sadly overshadows almost every weapon as instead of making everything strong like in the original, everything shoots pool noodles except the BR and power weapons. The levels have begun to lose all the gimmicky, party-game charm already, and are now just boring octagons of nothingness outside of the big-team battle maps. And I know people love their high-skill buggy game mechanics because it makes them feel just another step above everyone else, but things like BXR end up making the strong weapons stronger, and do next to nothing for the weaker weapons that actually would need such a boon.
The big new feature for multiplayer is dual wielding, and I am sorry to say that this only further weakens the already pathetic pool of weapons. Weapons like the smg and pistol are weak enough at their ""full-potential" when dual-wielded, and neigh-unusable when held alone, meaning to stand any semblance of a chance against the weapon everyone starts with in most modes, you must handicap yourself by being unable to use grenades/equipment without dropping your other weapon.
This may be the second ugliest Halo game, though still miles above Halo 5. Unlike the original, which played the weaknesses of the original xbox to it's strength with a more cartooney and shiny aesthetic, Halo 2 just looks like they found stretched stock art textures over everything and it ends up looking muddy and ugly all throughout.
I see no reason why they should not have just waited for the Xbox 360 to release a full, unbroken, balanced, and high-fidelity game. And so, for me, while it is not terrible by any means, there is little to no reason to play Halo 2 over most other Halo games.
pls take me back i dont want no valorant no more