Okay, so I'm not a gamer. ...I play around 2 hours a week total. What I like about Halo Reach is you can start it up for 15-20 minutes at a time, make progress, and then shut it off. Plenty of "checkpoints" and you can vary your intensity level to match your skill level. The story on Halo Reach is what I really enjoy. You know that, in the end, we loose the planet....yet each segment of game gives you a sense of hope that you can help protect the remaining humans on the planet....and you do get victories. But just when you think you will get ahead your chopper gets shot down, your area explodes from an alien bombing raid, etc.. It is a good lesson, albeit a virtual one, that you get up and fight on regardless of guaranteed victory. In the heat of the battle you are fighting for the guy next to you. When you come upon a settlement of humans...you fight to protect them. Never mind the overall war is going to be declared a victory for the enemy, you have a chance to make a difference in an individuals life. The graphics are great!!! Highly detailed, great lighting and shading, sound is OUTSTANDING--booth sound effects and musical scores. The blood and gore are minimal by todays wide-ope standards. There are no gasps for breath in the last moment of a persons life, the blood is seen from like 50 feet away so you see a puddle but no squirting or anything like that. And the driving of the wart-hog is just plain fun, if not a bit sloppy.....meaning it feels more like driving a boat at times than a tired vehicle. but its FUN!!!! I'm looking forward to see how this concludes as I am only about 6 game hours into this one. I think its going to set the stage nicely to move into the original Halo, which is now offered with much improved graphics so the 10+ year old game will feel more like todays games. I would highly recommend this game....especially at the regular used price of under $20 bucks.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Mainly got this for the case/cover art as ...its an old game. It was labeled as good, and while the front and game are alright the back is pretty messed up, plastic looks like it was melted a bit, just kinda deformed and some rips in it. Overall the cover art isnt harmed that much, but this definitely needed a picture of the back and a used rating, since ill need to switch the game case as the back is beyond an eye sore. Shipped quick though
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Reach tells the story of where the Ha...lo saga all began, a human colony named Reach. When the Covenant appears out of nowhere and begins an invasion of massive proportions, it is all the humans can do to fight to stay alive long enough to evacuate the planet. You play as the quiet and faceless Noble 6, the newest edition to a group of elite Spartan III's known as Noble Team. As part of this group you'll face off against seemingly insurmountable odds while executing top secret, nigh impossible missions. The story is a grand-arcing affair, taking you from cities to barren wastelands, and from lush vegetated mountains to a cavernous underground archeological site. One mission even sees you take to close-orbit space as you fight to defend a docking station against incoming waves of Covenant fighters. Needless to say, this game fully fits the definition of epic. Although you only play as the one Spartan throughout, Reach can best be described as an ensemble game. There are only a handful of moments throughout the campaign that you are without the company of at least one fellow super-soldier. This presents one of the games oddest dichotomies. The enemy AI is markedly improved from its predecessors, especially on Legendary. Even one single Elite needs to be respected, or you will quickly find yourself plastered against a nearby wall with the guttural laugh of the Elite echoing down the corridor. However, in either an effort to offset this, or as a story telling mechanism (to make sure they don't die), your Spartan companions are invulnerable. This can obviously be used to your benefit allowing them to soak up the hits as you pepper the enemies from a comfortable fifty yards away. However, if you are playing on Legendary this could be your only lifeline in some areas, as some of the fights can be ridiculously hard at times. [i](Note, when I discuss the AI or toughness of the game throughout this review, I'm referring to facing them in any way that does not use the plasma pistol + battle rifle “noob combo.” Even though this is a legitimate way to play, I find that it trivializes the experience and tend to not use it.)[/i] As mentioned earlier, the AI for Elites has improved tremendously. They dodge and flank like never before, leaving the unprepared as an easy target. Vehicles can also can be punishing to the unwary. One new vehicle in particular stands out, as it's quick-firing cannon and lightning-fast driver reflexes will spell certain doom to you at least several times throughout the campaign. However, to help you through the story, you'll find the newest element to the Halo games in the form of Armor Abilities. These have taken the place of the gadgets from Halo 3, and serve to be a main staple of the game play. They come in several flavors, including Active Camo, Armor Lock, and Jet Packs. These all see full use in online matches as well as in single player, and can at many times decide the difference between life and death. I lost count of how many times I made it around a corner under a hurricane of plasma fire with only a sliver of health left thanks only to Sprint.
Halo Reach has beautiful graphics and a nice story ...line as you progress threw in the solo game.I did not care for the lack of ammo and healing device drops. I found myself spending way to much time running around looking for both. You can use enemy weapons they drop, but are extremely low on ammo when you pick them up. I found myself starting new Missions empty. This game gets harder as you advance which I do extremely like.Driving one of the many vehicles or flying the planes into battle is wonderful. You also develop a love/hate for those enemy elites ha ha ha. I would love to see more ammo, choices of weapons available in the solo missions. I enjoy playing them over and trying new tricks.The games Ai is pretty good, but can not compare with the online fast paced matches.I have had my clock kicked many times. I am still training before I get to involved in the online team death matches. I have reviewed many matches via YouTube and my Nefphew's who's a pretty good player.Many of the players online are unbelievably great. Overall this is a fantastic game.
I hav...e now played ALL the HALO series games, and frankly, I don't care for this one as much as Halo 2 or 3. I like some of the new tricks, like the jet-pack and being able to fly the Sabre and the Falcon, but the controls keep changing with every evolution which inevitably gets one killed, while hitting the wrong button for changing weapons or reloading. The story, the art, the animation, the imagination are all still top of the line, genius talent, but in the world of 'reality', we need to deal with so many losses and so many changes. Leave the games alone! Bring back the Master Chief, and put the controls back where they belong! I like the new menu items that allow you to build your own game, which makes this version virtually eternal. I bought this disk used, so I don't know if there is a problem with it, or if I am doing something wrong, but every time I 'finish' a level. I get my points, my achievements, my rank promotions, but the game restarts at the same level, over and over again. Bungie has never been big on instructions, so it's hard to even know if I am making the right menu selections when starting, but one would assume that 'resume game' would put you at the next level, not start you again at the level you just completed. Might be a tech problem with the saves or something. Another issue is when and how to deploy articles/equipment picked up, or even its function, there are so many, and my biggest peeve with this and all versions, is trying to read the screen instructions, communications, HUD, etc. Why bother having a huge screen so you can sit comfortably 10 feet away, if you can't read the screen! Even a young, 14-year old player, had to stand 2 feet in front of the screen to see what it was reporting. One more peeve, and don't get me wrong, I am not a biggot, but these 'foreign' accents drive me nuts! I don't understand half of the dialogue because of bad accents! I understand that the UNSC is a multi-national force, but come-on guys, even Hollywood gives us language we can understand! If you are making different language versions anyway, why not have the characters speak clearly in the selected language? (subtitles would help, but not if you can't read them because the characters are too small!) I am not an online player, so I cannot comment on that function or its capability. Balancing all the positives and negatives, it is a great game and I recommend it to Halo players. But 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it'! Hopefully Halo 4 will bring back Spartan-117 (and The Arbiter) and maybe even be Kinect enabled!).
