Halo 2 - game of the year, game of the century

Description

Halo 2 is the sequel to the highly successful and critically acclaimed Halo: Combat Evolved. In Halo 2, the saga continues as Master Chief — a genetically enhanced super-soldier — is the only thing standing between the relentless Covenant and the destruction of all humankind.

• Superior graphics, cinematic excellence: Vast, imaginative environments, detailed animation, and realistic lighting effects bring the world of Halo 2 to life.
• Improved A.I.: Fight side by side with fellow human survivors who react quickly and naturally to events and circumstances; they help you when needed, man guns, and even drive vehicles for you. No two games seem the same, as enemy attackers coordinate, triangulate, and annihilate. They duck to take cover, clamber over obstacles, or smash their way through debris to reach you.
• Fully positional Dolby® Digital 5.1 surround sound: Duck as a rocket sizzles over your head. Take action as a Covenant Elite growls behind you. Every sound is fully positional, bringing the world of Halo 2 to an even more vivid level of realism.

Introduction

With the Covenant weapon dubbed “Halo” destroyed, you'd think that the universe might be safe. Think again.

Welcome back to Earth, Master Chief. Please go shoot those aliens.

there is no rest for the Master Chief, and again you escort your Marines around the galaxy in an effort to squelch the Covenant's retaliatory attacks. This time around, Master Chief is equipped with new armor and new abilities, opening fresh facets of gameplay that require mastering.

Basic Training

Enemy Strategies

Grunt (Unggoy)

The Grunts are notoriously weak, but that does not mean you should ignore them. In numbers, Grunts can be pretty dangerous, especially when left alone. They die to most weapons with just one shot to the head, and the Battle Rifle takes them out with one burst at pretty much any part of their body. Grunts are also prime targets for sticky plasma grenades — since they are less likely to dodge than Elites, it is easy to land a sticky on 'em and watch them run into their commrades to rack up more kills.

Jackal (Kig-Yar)

Jackals are often equipped with powerful weapons, though they are relatively slow to fire them. Because of their shields which they almost always keep up, it can be difficult to fight them at medium range. There are methods of attacking them that are most effective, depending on the weapons you have equipped. If you have got a gun with a zoom feature, you can zoom in and shoot around their shield for quick kills (they are pretty weak). If you are stuck with close and medium range weapons, do not be afraid to run up to them (assuming there are no other enemies around). Because they are so slow to attack, you can often melee attack them to death without fear of taking any damage. Also, energy-based weapons such as the Plasma Pistol and Rifle can work well to destroy the shields — when the shield is down, attack with a bullet-based weapon to seal the deal.

Elite (Sangheili)

As the main leaders in the Covenant force, the Elites are always a force to be reckoned with. They can take a significant number of hits before dying, making them especially fierce opposition when in close range combat. Elites have about the same vitality as Master Chief, so if you know what it takes to defeat enemies in multiplayer you know what it takes to bring down an Elite. If you are forced into close-range combat, your best bet is to quickly bring down their shields with plasma weapons and instantly come at them with a quick melee attack to finish the job.

Drone (Yanme'e)

Though their flight patterns can be confusing and make them difficult to target, the Drones are hardly any more dangerous than Grunts. They have about the same vitality as Grunts (they die to headshots and quick Battle Rifle bursts), though they are slightly more intimidating with their mobility. If you are having trouble targeting them while they fly, just wait a while — they'll eventually land on the ground, giving you an easy shot to take 'em down.

Hunter (Lekgolo)

Hunters make an interesting opponent. In mid range combat, they are very difficult to attack as they use their shields to block your shots while coming at you with your own. Your best bet is in either close or long range combat. If you can target them from afar, you can often get a good position to aim for the soft red spots on their body. Zoom in and nail those spots to damage the beasts (Sniper Rifle rounds work great, and the Battle Rifle is also effective). In close range, the best way to defeat them is to lure them into lunging toward you. As they swing their shields at you, jump and dodge the attack &dmash; they expose their very vulnerable back side as they whiff the punch.

Brute (Jiralhanae)

What makes the Brutes so devastating is how aggressive they are. If you get the attention of a group of Brutes, expect them to come rushing at you together and do not expect to get away easily. The best way to deal with Brutes is to pick 'em off singularly. If you can lure one Brute away from the group (without attracting the attention of the others), you have a better chance of dealing with their speed and power. Sniper Rifle fire and the Battle Rifle are both very effective, but you still have trouble unless you carefully execute them one at a time. A group of Brutes is nothing you want to deal with.

General Strategies

Stay mobile. Even when shooting.

This is pretty obvious to first person shooter vets, but new blood playing Halo 2 might not realize the importance of constantly staying mobile. it is vital that you learn how to accurately fire your weapons while running and strafing about. If you just stand still and fire you are an easy target in both the single player campaign and (especially) multiplayer battles.

Pick your weapons wisely, on a level-by-level basis.

As you can see in our weapons ranking list in this guide (check the Weapons page), some weapons are most definitely better than others. However, just because the Energy Blade is absolutely nasty in close range combat does not mean you should pick it up whenever you see it. Consider the level you are on and what range of combat you are most likely to encounter. In most combat situations (assuming the skill level of both players is somewhat equal), the player with the best weapon for the situation is going to win.

do not reload in the middle of a fight.

About the worst situation you can get yourself into is emptying your weapon's ammo clip in the middle of a firefight. Reloading your weapon should always be a last resort. You can avoid the situation a couple of ways (most include dual wielding and using both weapons singularly), but you never be able to avoid it entirely. it is important to make sure you have a secondary weapon equipped (even if it is the same as one of your dual wielded weapons). When you spend all your ammo, switch to your secondary weapon instead of reloading. You have more shots to bury into your opponent much more quickly than if you had reloaded. Even if the weapon is not the best for the job, you should have dealt enough damage with your previous gun to be able to finish the job with your secondary weapon.

Use stealth to your advantage.

Going face-to-face with enemies is always a gamble, and even if you get the first shot on your opponents the win in combat is not guaranteed. When possible, use stealth to your advantage and come up on your opponents with instant-defeat melee attacks to the back of the head. All enemies die with one melee attack to the rear of the dome, which is especially awesome because it allows you to defeat them without getting their attention. If you start a fire fight they are able to react before dying (usually), but an instant defeat melee strike is guaranteed to leave you safe.

Weapons

Battle Rifle

The Battle Rifle is your new Pistol. Though it does not quite match the deadly power of Halo 1's Pistol, the Battle Rifle does pack in the accuracy and well-roundedness. The Battle Rifle is effective at any range, especially in medium and long range gun battles. Use the weapon's zoom to pinpoint your target with bullets — when they are shields are almost down, target the head for an instant defeat.

Magnum

The Magnum is the bastard child of the much-revered Pistol from the first Halo. On its own, the Magnum is pretty worthless, though it is still accurate at long range. However, combine the Magnum with the SMG and you have got one deadly combination — in fact, one of the deadliest.

SMG

As the weapon you most commonly spawn with, the SMG is a tool you want to get familiar with. it is relatively weak but has a decent clip size and a quick melee strike. Used singly, the SMG is bound to lose out to most other weapons, but combined with other dual-wield weapons (especially the Magnum and Plasma Pistol) the SMG becomes a significantly powerful force.

Plasma Pistol

Even though the Plasma Pistol has lost its stun properties from the first game (and therefore lost its ability to be even remotely useful as a single weapon), it is still a very formidable weapon when dual-wielded. If you charge up the Plamsa Pistol, it is single shot drops your opponent's shields — combine that with SMG fire or a single Magnum shot to the head, and you have got a very, very quick defeat.

Plasma Rifle

Much like the Plasma Pistol, the Plasma Rifle has lost much of its usefulness as a stand-alone weapon. A quick burst of fire to drain your opponent's shields followed with an ultra-quick melee strike can be enough to defeat them. Combine the Plasma Rifle with another dual-wieldable weapon (preferrably not another Plasma weapon) and you have got something to talk about.

Brute Plasma Rifle

So you have got the Brute Plasma Rifle, which is almost exactly like the regular Plasma Rifle, but worse. What makes the Brute Plasma Rifle so terrible is how quickly it overheats. It does not deal any more damage than the regular version.

Rocket Launcher

The Rocket Launcher is the bane of vehicles, and this time around it is even more so. Put your crosshairs over any vehicle piloted by an opponent and hold the trigger to acquire a lock on — most vehicles go down with just one rocket. Versus human opponents, you need to be a bit trickier. Hitting an opponent head-on is always difficult, and the best way to defeat them is to fire the rocket at their feet. Even if you miss the feet, the splash damage from the nearby explosion is almost always enough to defeat them.

Shotgun

The old-school master of short range combat is back in almost exact form. Up-close and personal, the Shotgun is capable one of one-hit kills. At any other distance, it is pretty impotent as its shot spreads out too much. Anytime approaching an opponent, do not bother popping off shots when you are out of range. Make sure that you do not have to wait for the one shot that can defeat them instantly. hold your fire until you are close enough to take them down with just one pull of the trigger.

Sniper Rifle

The Sniper Rifle is still the premiere choice for long range combat, and is useful at far medium ranges. Two shots to any part of the body defeat anyone, and one headshot is good too. do not rely on it in close range, though with such a small hit radius, targeting opponents so close is pretty hard unless they are confined to a narrow corridor.

Brute Shot

With a clip of only four rounds, it takes three direct shots to bring someone down (four indirect shots also defeat). Where the Brute Shot is effective is in close range combat. Hit an opponent with just one grenade and follow up with a melee strike for a super quick defeat. Two melee strikes from any angle are enough to take down an opponent.

Needler

The Needler has uses at medium range. it is tracking ability works decently on wide open levels, but it is still slow and ineffective versus vehicles. dual-wielding a Needler with something else is never a terrible idea.

Carbine

As an alternative to the Battle Rifle, the Carbine succeeds in most ways. it is accurate at all ranges and has a decent zoom, making the Carbine more effect than most other weapons at medium and long ranges. However, its power is severely lacking — it takes at minimum seven shots to defeat someone (the last shot must be a headshot).

Beam Rifle

A Beam Rifle is the next best thing to a Sniper Rifle at long ranges. With a powerful zoom, it is almost perfect for sniping, though its tendency to overheat easily forces restraint when using it. It benefits from not having to reload like the Sniper Rifle — even just two shots in rapid succession can overheat the gun, kicking you out of your zoom.

Energy Sword

Nothing beats an Energy Sword at close range. Nothing. With the ability to lock-on from a fairly safe distance, the Energy Sword is most definitely something to fear — one lock on strike defeats, and two regular melee slashes do the trick (slashing with the trigger is faster than with the melee button).

Sentinel Beam

The Beam has a relatively short range. it is effective at medium range but does not deal a whole lot of damage. If you hold down the trigger the weapon overheats before killing anyone. To use it effectively, let off the trigger briefly while attacking to let it cool down.

Secrets

Two Guns, One Target

As we all know from the 2003 E3 demo, Master Chief gets to dual-wield guns. This is not just an aesthetic upgrade, though. Dual-wielded weapons have their advantages and disadvantages. Here are the two major ones:

• If you use your melee attack while dual-wielding (press the B button), you immediately drop the weapon in your left hand, so keep this in mind before picking up a second weapon. Pressing the B button also works great for dropping that second weapon to throw a grenade.
• An energy weapon in one hand and a ballistic weapon in the other is a good strategic choice. This way, you can knock out the shields of an enemy quickly with the energy weapon and then follow it up with bullet fire for a quick dispatch.

Getting Boarded

Master Chief can now board someone else's vehicle (and evict them in the process). Not only can he leap up and take over a vehicle, but he can do this while the enemy is barreling down on him. There are a few things to note here:

• Time your button press to board the vehicle to a half-second or so before the vehicle gets to you (if you are trying to board a vehicle that is bearing down on you, otherwise just run up alongside the vehicle and press the X button). Also, make sure you press the X button down for a second or so. do not just tap it.
• Make sure your first target after commandeering a new ride is the Covenant freak you just took it from. Otherwise, they board you right back, which is no fun at all.
• (SPOILER ALERT) Here's a third bonus trick. When you fight the Covenant's prophet Regret, do not sweat trying to gun him down.Jump up and use the X button to grab onto his little hovering mechanism. You are not able to get him off of it, but while you are attached, you can use the B button to pound him into oblivion with your armored fists.

Damn Brutes

The Brutes are savage enemies. They come at you as much with fists (and a well-placed shoulder charge) as they do with their guns, and it only takes a hit or two to take you out. you have got three best bets to take them out.

• Snipe them from afar with the human or Covenant sniper rifle. A couple shots to the head ought to do it.
• Get into melee combat with them when you have the energy sword. Wait till they charge you, and then jump over or around their charge and come at them from behind with a couple swipes of the energy sword.
• One plasma grenade stuck to their hide defeats them.

The Hunters

Many may have fond or not-so-fond memories of their first encounter with the huge green-armored Hunters in Halo: Combat Evolved. Well, they are back, and the same rules for killing them apply. For the uninitiated, they are:

• You have to hit the exposed orange fleshy areas. You find them under their chin, along their ribcages, and on their back.
• If you can, use the sniper rifle from afar. If you cannot, try to use the scope on the battle rifle.
• Like the Brutes, the Hunters can be killed by a well-placed plasma grenade, but it takes more than one.
• do not bother with inaccurate weapons like the plasma rifle or the SMG. Also, do not use the energy sword on these fellows, it does not work.

there is no rest for the Master Chief, and again you escort your Marines around the galaxy in an effort to squelch the Covenant's retaliatory attacks. This time around, Master Chief is equipped with new armor and new abilities, opening fresh facets of gameplay that require mastering.

• Developer: Bungie Studios
• Publisher: Microsoft Game Studio
• Game Rating: M (Mature) [Blood and Gore, Violence]
• Release Date: July 5, 2005
• $5.99: GameStop - Sacramento: December 27, 2008
• Players: 1 - 4
• Multiplayer Versus, System Link: 2-16, Dolby 5.1 Surround, HDTV 720p, Custom Soundtracks
• Playable on Xbox 360

The Halo 2 Multiplayer Map Pack, the first true expansion pack for a console title, adds nine all-new and highly detailed multiplayer maps to the most popular Xbox® game to date. Additional bonus content showcases previously unreleased footage including an animated feature highlighting an unseen battle in Old Mombasa and a mini-documentary showcasing the creative process behind the new multiplayer maps. In addition, the map pack disc contains the Halo 2 Auto-Update which provides gamers who do not use Xbox Live™ with the ability to enjoy recent gameplay enhancements and improvements. The map pack, from developer Bungie Studios and publisher Microsoft Game Studios, is Rated M.

The Extras

Along with the nine brand new maps, the Halo 2 Multiplayer Map Pack comes with a few extra features including exclusive videos, the required Halo 2 update and a couple classic trailers. The alternative to buying the $19.99 Map Pack is to download the new maps via Xbox Live for a fee. Either way, gamers have easy access to all the maps, but the Map Pack disks adds the value of being able to keep the maps stored as a quick backup in case you need to reload them for some reason. The disk also comes with the extra exclusive features that are not available online, so the price along with the packaging and ability to keep hold of the maps as a backup in case of emergency is well worth it.

Halo 2 Update

Already available as a free download, the Halo 2 update patch is included in the Map Pack since it is required in order to play the new maps. To sum it up quickly, the update patch fixes just about every known bug, cheat and glitch while also tweaking some of the gameplay settings based upon gamer feedback since Halo 2’s release. After comparing the game before and after the update, it is great to see Bungie paying attention to the feedback in order to make vast improvements to both the gameplay and the bugs that allowed some users to exploit a number of cheats. For a detailed look at what the update has to offer, check out our detailed Halo 2 Auto Update Overview article.

Another Day at the Beach

In this cinematic created especially for the bonus disk of the Halo 2 Multiplayer Map Pack, players are treated to a sequence that shows what happened to the lost unit of the ODST team on Old Mombasa. This scene, complete with 5.1 surround sound, helps give players a look at some of the action taking place during the campaign mode of Halo 2 that transpired in another area of the combat from where Master Chief was fighting. The scene is very well done and has a couple cool sequences involving a Covenant Elite and the members of the lost ODST as they square off in a deadly face off. A bit on the short side, but nonetheless an interesting addition that fits into the story of Halo 2. It is nothing mind blowing, but it is great to see Bungie putting forth the effort to create something exclusive to the bonus disk gamers can pick up, helping add value to the $19.99 purchase.

Halo 2 Killtacular Featurette

Adding even more value to the Halo 2 Multiplayer Map Pack is an in depth behind-the-scenes look at the making of the content for the map pack. Here gamers can go behind the closed doors of Bungie’s studios as they are given a detailed overview of each of the new maps by the creators who made them possible. Anyone who considers themselves a hardcore Halo fan definitely wants to check this video out for insight into the process from which the new maps were born. Again, this is simply something Bungie took the effort to create to help extend the value of the Map Pack, and it is very much appreciated.

First Encounter

Recently, a handful of lucky journalists and Microsoft insiders got some trigger time with Halo 2. The event took place deep within Bungie-occupied territory, where a once-stodgy meeting room had been converted into a gamer’s paradise.

Fourteen Xbox video game systems, earth-shaking speaker systems, flat panel TVs, Xbox Live® headsets, and plush chairs awaited the chosen few. For the rest of the, we found ourselves firmly planted in front of our screens, enjoying a first encounter with what may be the most anticipated game on any console to date.

The fortunate crew included folks from 1UP, GamePro, Games Domain, GameSpot, GameSpy, IGN, MSN, TeamXbox and yours truly from Xbox.com. The event was hosted by Bungie’s Community Guy Brian Jarrard and Bungie.net Editor Frank O’Connor. Jarrard and O'Connor took time out from their busy schedules not only to talk to us about Halo 2, but also to play with us and demonstrate some of the new game types and maps.

New Blood

Weapons

you have probably heard about the new ability to dual-wield smaller weapons. It’s exactly as cool as you have hoped it is, and it is perfect for fighting in close quarters, when grenades are too risky to use. You also find new tools of the trade, like the Battle Rifle, and tweaks to classics like the Pistol and Needler.

Game Types

Old friends like Slayer are joined by new varieties, such as Assault, where you need to plant a bomb in the enemy base, and one-flag Capture the Flag (CTF). Factor in downloadable content, and Halo 2 is going to have some serious legs!

Maps

Quality maps are the backbone of any shooter, and the maps in Halo 2 are positively sublime. This time, there is a greater emphasis on asymmetrical team-play maps, like the amazing Zanzibar map that Bungie debuted at E3.

Online Play

Halo 2 has full Xbox Live support, including some of its own online features you won’t find in any other XboxLive-enabled game. “Parties” of friends make it easy to stick together from game to game, and the matchmaking features ensure you find the best possible opponents, according to skill and connection speed. As Bungie told us, matchmaking can be a "real nail-biter" because you'll always be playing against people who are close to your skill level.

Vehicles

There will be some new vehicles, such as Warthog variants, but what really stood out was the way you could damage the vehicles. Battlefields will now be home to smoking wreckage, just as nature intended! You'll also be able to jack an inattentive driver and take their ride. (I witnessed an impromptu demo of this when Jarrard casually ejected the MSN rep from his Warthog during one of our first Slayer matches.)

That’s just scratching the surface of what Halo 2 has to offer. Everyone attending this special event was blown away—no pun intended — and yours truly never had so much fun getting shot, run over, stabbed, bludgeoned, and exploded. Launch day can’t get here fast enough for these itchy trigger fingers.

Halo's secrets must be unlocked if humanity is to survive the Covenant onslaught.