Ranking of Halos
Sticking to the FPS games only here, no spin-off like Wars or those top-down shooters.
Wow, a 20+ year franchise and counting that I've actually played all the (main) entries of? Guess that means it's time for another ranking list because I can't stop making 'em.
This will mostly be focused on campaign. I only really got into multiplayer with 3 and dropped off soon after once Modern Warfare 2 became the next zeitgeist.
Wow, a 20+ year franchise and counting that I've actually played all the (main) entries of? Guess that means it's time for another ranking list because I can't stop making 'em.
This will mostly be focused on campaign. I only really got into multiplayer with 3 and dropped off soon after once Modern Warfare 2 became the next zeitgeist.
8 Games
They say you never forget your first, and I sure as hell haven't with Halo 3. This game blew my mind back on release with its approach to varied combat scenarios. One moment it's a corridor shooter, the next it's an open plains fight against a giant walking behemoth. then an onslaught of space zombies. The double whopper of The Ark/The Covenant back to back is truly the highlight of the entire franchise. This really sold the feeling of being a grand finale that I was able to get invested in even without prior knowledge of the events that came before. Oh, and the multiplayer rocked too.
1
How fitting that Bungie's final effort before departing to GaaSier pastures was one of their finest. Reach feels like the most pure, distilled form of what makes Halo good. A struggling humanity with their backs against the wall against an alien menace who broke no quarter. A true military sci-fi epic with some of the bleakest consequences imaginable. This game might be the most consistent in quality across the board.
2
This one is carried heavily by just how good the gunplay is. The series peaked with its weapon balancing at the onset and it's all been downhill since. The trifecta of the 60-mag AR, magnum and shogtun cannot be matched. This could easily be higher were it not for one major issue. Halo is a game of two halves. The first is excellent, the latter....not so much. Between the Library, the repeated levels in reverse and now primarily fighting an enemy faction that is nowhere near as fun and deep as the Covenant mean the game takes a right nosedive in quality by the midpoint. Still, its legacy cannot be overstated.
3
Halo 2 suffers from being the last Bungie made Halo that I got round to playing, due to never owning an original Xbox and only getting my hands on it when the Anniversary version released in 2014. As such, there's no nostalgia fuel powering this rocket ship. That seems to mean I'm less likely to glance over the issues the game has, namely that on higher difficulty settings, the campaign is a slog, bordering on misery at times. There's a reason it took 18 years for someone to finally beat LASO deathless. Anyway, at least the Arbiter is a nice new perspective. I can't believe people hated on him back in the day. How can you not love alien Keith David?
4
ODST only really suffers from being a bit of a retread due to being a standalone expansion based on 3's engine and systems. It was more Halo 3 but with the twist of having a miniature open world that lead to the more traditional Halo missions. The atmosphere was top notch as well. Also, Firefight remains the best multiplayer mode in series history.
5
Closing out the (as of now) 343 trilogy, I ironically believe their first outing was their strongest effort. Whilst not reaching the highs of the Bungie developed games, there were some cool set piece moments and I really enjoyed the story.
6
Honestly, I know that outside of the whole GaaS nonsense and empty promises, this is a pretty beloved entry, but I didn't really enjoy it all that much. The open world felt more akin to padding than anything meaningful, which is what my primary fear was before release. At least the grappling hook was a great new addition.
7
It's bad when you can barely remember parts of a game except frustration and a plotline that grinded your gears. I can't even really point to what makes Halo 5 mediocre from a gameplay department, I just honestly don't remember having much of a good time. It's the only game here (sans Infinite) which I haven't done touched since its release.
8
