Official Halo 2 thread

[captain nintendo]

Sorry for the double post.

But did you know, when playing on Xbox Live, the person with the highest internet connection automatically hosts the game regardless if you created the room? Thats why it never seems to lag. LOL

Whats sucks about that is, you dont know when and if your hosting, so if you pay for your internet by the bandwidth you use...Cha-Ching.... :/

Wow ! I did not know that :hmm: Anyhow , about my plan for world domination. Errrr , I mean my plans for a digitpress clan ;)
Anybody like this idea ?

[Ed Oscuro]

Haha, the Battle Creek Enquirer has some wierd looking kid stretching his mouth in a strange way on their front page and a pretty good size headline:

"Gamers go toward the light"

Says he's a "serious" gamer (he waited with maybe 150-200 guys by somebody's estimation) because he was seen waiting outside the store.

[ddockery]

Wouldn't a "serious gamer" stay home and play games instead of waiting in line? Wait, that would be a serious gamer with common sense. I will never understand why people feel compelled to stand in line for hours to get something they wouldn't have to wait for the very next day. Is playing a game a day sooner really going to make your life more fulfilling in some way?

[digitalpress]

Wouldn't a "serious gamer" stay home and play games instead of waiting in line? Wait, that would be a serious gamer with common sense. I will never understand why people feel compelled to stand in line for hours to get something they wouldn't have to wait for the very next day. Is playing a game a day sooner really going to make your life more fulfilling in some way?

I kinda agree with you on this, but I can see it from the other side too.

The other side would say it's "hardcore" to wait in line - it doesn't necessarily have anything to do with having the game a day earlier (though for some it might), it has to do with the experience you share with 100 other dumbasses in line anticipating the game. It's like a mini game convention, and there are often good stories that come out of those waiting lines.

[ddockery]

Perhaps, but for some reason I get the impression that most of the people who would do this fall into the "dumbass" category and any stories I had to tell wold be of annoyance. And I'm sorry but anyone waiting outside and in the rain needs their head examined. I could MAYBE understand it if this were like a console launch, and there weren't enough copies to go around, but even that is pushing it.

[Oobgarm]

People get excited for different reasons, that's all. Plus, some of the folks who got it early stayed up all night to play. Why waste those hours sleeping if you don't have any responsibities the next day?

[bargora]

Plus, they need something to play while they're waiting in line for tickets to see Revenge of the Sith.

[ubersaurus]

People get excited for different reasons, that's all. Plus, some of the folks who got it early stayed up all night to play. Why waste those hours sleeping if you don't have any responsibities the next day?

You just described my tuesday LOL


Play Halo 2 til 6 am, go to bed, wake up, play it the rest of the day.

here's a piece of advice to people on Live. The Plasma Pistol/SMG combo is brutal. Overcharge+bullet stream=death. Only thing I can think that could top it is the plasma pistol and the magnum, if you're good at getting headshots.

i've heard from alot of people the Carbine and the Battle Rifle are also really good weapon choices, which certainly seems true, but unlike Halo 1, there doesn't seem to be an "end all" weapon you can take for any situation.

[Ed Oscuro]

People get excited for different reasons, that's all. Plus, some of the folks who got it early stayed up all night to play. Why waste those hours sleeping if you don't have any responsibities the next day?
Damnit! You've got Bad Dudes' soda, right?! I want some :(

I waaaant eet!

Oh, ah. Halo 2, yeah it'll be awesome. @_@

[ScottK]

One thing that totally confused the hell out of me is the 3rd stage (at least I think it's the 3rd). It's the stage where you start off with the Sword and have some of the aliens on your side. I admit that I fast-forwarded past the cut scenes to get straight to the action and that maybe why I don't understand why they are on your side. It confused me because it was kinda hard to tell who is the good guys and who you're supposed to kill. I ended up killing most of my own men because I thought they were on the other side. I mean sure I could wait and see if the cursor turns red first, but playing the game on a hard level would mean I could get slaughtered before I find out who's who.

[LiquidX01]

I havent played it on XBL yet, I have a thing where I like to beat the games first before playing on Live. I guess I like to get the games down first, before getting my ass handed to me... LOL

**Spoiler Warning**

a Few of the changes I really like about H2 would be, Playing as the Covenant, the Plasma Sword (wooo, that thing is viscious), be able to now switch between grenades, Dualies, oh and being able to lock on with the rocket launcher. Power sliding in the warthog is pretty cool too. :D

[Avenger]

so i stayed up all night and playing the campaign co-op with a buddy, beat it in one sitting...

i thought it sucked...we both thought it sucked...i actually dozed off twice while playing...

who else has beaten it already? i thought the ending was so stupid...just when you think someting really awesome is gunna happen...THE END

who else was totally dissapointed?

[kai123]

so i stayed up all night and playing the campaign co-op with a buddy, beat it in one sitting...

i thought it sucked...we both thought it sucked...i actually dozed off twice while playing...

who else has beaten it already? i thought the ending was so stupid...just when you think someting really awesome is gunna happen...THE END

who else was totally dissapointed?

Let me guess you played on easy or normal and killed all the enemies with great ease. Oh BTW I bet it was easier with your buddy their. The ending does suck but I bet it is different if you beat it on legendary.


Also thanks for giving those great reasons as to why it sucked. :roll: Nothing beats an explanation as to why you thought it sucked.

[Avenger]

quiet you...im sick and tired of listing off the reasons i think Halo sucks...ive done it probably 20 times on this forum alone....so no more listing...all i had to say was that it suffers from the same crap the first one did...so dont act all high and mighty

now onto a serious prob...when you guys were playin campaign and a cut scene came up...did it load like...one layer at a time...im not good with the technical terms but if you have the problem you would know what im sayin....lets take Master Cheif for example...at first hes just green, they a bit of detail comes in, a little more, then its finished...its not all there at the start...im rambling, i just hope someone here knows what im talkin bout and how to fix it...if its just a problem only I am having...

[ubersaurus]

quiet you...im sick and tired of listing off the reasons i think Halo sucks...ive done it probably 20 times on this forum alone....so no more listing...all i had to say was that it suffers from the same crap the first one did...so dont act all high and mighty

now onto a serious prob...when you guys were playin campaign and a cut scene came up...did it load like...one layer at a time...im not good with the technical terms but if you have the problem you would know what im sayin....lets take Master Cheif for example...at first hes just green, they a bit of detail comes in, a little more, then its finished...its not all there at the start...im rambling, i just hope someone here knows what im talkin bout and how to fix it...if its just a problem only I am having...

That's just how the game is...I think halo 2 just pushes the Xbox REALLY hard.

I'm convinced there's going to be a true final level to download down the line, because that wasn't really an ending, it was a set up for another level. Of course, I don't know anyone who's beaten the game on lgendary, so who knows-maybe there's something there. I know you unlock an extra level for multiplayer upon beating campaign.

And Co-Op is always easy (except on legendary).

[kai123]

quiet you...im sick and tired of listing off the reasons i think Halo sucks...ive done it probably 20 times on this forum alone....so no more listing...all i had to say was that it suffers from the same crap the first one did...so dont act all high and mighty


I am acting "high and mighty" by asking for your reasons as to why it "sucked"? What I don't understand is that you didn't like the first game but you went and paid the full price for the sequel. x_x I never do that with games I don't like. I never think the sequel will be better. I at least wait for a price drop or something.

Oh yea and I will not be quiet. You post on a message board expect replies. Also I don't keep up with all of your posts, you are not that important to me. I am not going to go searching for your previous posts on halo 1 when we are discussing the second game.

[petewhitley]

i've heard from alot of people the Carbine and the Battle Rifle are also really good weapon choices, which certainly seems true, but unlike Halo 1, there doesn't seem to be an "end all" weapon you can take for any situation.

I don't know. The sword is pretty freaking devasting on most maps.

[ubersaurus]

i've heard from alot of people the Carbine and the Battle Rifle are also really good weapon choices, which certainly seems true, but unlike Halo 1, there doesn't seem to be an "end all" weapon you can take for any situation.

I don't know. The sword is pretty freaking devasting on most maps.

The sword is good, but the shotgun beats it, as well as any distance weapon, like the battle rifle, carbine, or the snipers.

If you're dealing with up close combat though, the shotgun is your best bet. Unless you're a dead shot with the plasma pistol/magnum combo, you'll be hardpressed to kill the sword user before they lunge. I mean, you can do it...but its harder.

[Nature Boy]

Perhaps, but for some reason I get the impression that most of the people who would do this fall into the "dumbass" category and any stories I had to tell wold be of annoyance. And I'm sorry but anyone waiting outside and in the rain needs their head examined. I could MAYBE understand it if this were like a console launch, and there weren't enough copies to go around, but even that is pushing it.

It's not like people are standing in this line to go to the *dentist* or anything. Lighten up man! :D

[Avenger]

if there as an extra level to download later on that would be really cool...does anyone have a iost of unlockables for the game?

[ubersaurus]

if there as an extra level to download later on that would be really cool...does anyone have a iost of unlockables for the game?

So far the only unlockable I'm aware of is Foundation, the multiplayer map.

I'm expecting to see quite a bit for downloadables though-specifically the rocket hog (from the old multiplayer demo) and the flamethrower (from Halo PC).

I have a question for those of you who've played the game-what did you think of their use of the outside artists music? I thought they handled it pretty well-if I didn't know what Steve Vai and those other bands sounded like, I don't think I'd have noticed.

Damn though, Vai did more songs then I thought he did.

[Avenger]

one of the best parts was the music imo

[briskbc]

I loved the way Halo started. Then it kind of went downhill from there. I was really hoping to be done with the Flood. I hate the Flood . The story is rehashed with some twists thrown in and the single player campaign is a little on the short side. I don't have Live so I can't comment on the multiplayer although I would imagine it kicks much ass. I'm glad I rented it.

[Avenger]

oh god the flood is the worst thing ever

[GrayFox]

I rented it.

I just beat single-player. And I must say, I loved it. I absolutely loved it. Granted, the ending is killing me right now, just because it's such a cliffhanger, but oh well. I still loved it.

Now, time to buy the game. I must buy the game.

[Six Switch]

Has anyone heard that when you beat it on legendary it says Feb.9th?Any info at all?


Oh and my gamer tag is Timorous Scott if you guys wanna play sometime.

[allsport11]

Just finished the game myself last night and although the game is really short I simply loved it. The ending left me wanting to play more, can only hope the wait for a third won't be too long. Even though the Flood were back in this one they weren't as abundant as the first and the story was good. They went a little further in explaining things. Highly recommend it. :)

[YoshiM]

Well, I gave this sucker a rent and put a good four or so hours into it (maybe a bit less, I lost track of time). My verdict: it's "okay". It's a solid FPS but doesn't deserve all the hype that's been generated by media and fans, at least based on the single player. When I first started playing the first thing that came to my mind was that I was playing a "Halo Expansion Pack" or a "Halo WAD". Everything was too familiar as I had played the first Halo. The city added some new environmental twists as did access to more vehicles but soon I was back on a Halo...pretty much fighting the same enemies. As I said earlier-it felt more like a separate missions pack than a full fledged new game.


Graphically it was a *bit* better. More textures, more bumps. The big problem I had was that many of the bump-maps "flickered" in and out of view, turning detailed kills into plain skinned models and then back. Somewhat annoying. Cutscenes also had the same problem but that doesn't matter so much.

I don't have Xbox Live yet (it's coming in the mail from SBC) and I my friends don't like Halo so I couldn't try that aspect out.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying it's a *bad* game. It's enjoyable but for single player I've played better (so far it doesn't beat Riddick in my eyes). With all the bombardment of hype from practically everywhere it's hard not to have some expectations. Glad I rented it-I won't pay full admission for this ride.

[jgenotte]

I have a theory..........

I beat the game and was shocked to see credtis roll by when they did. I got to thinking about why they (bungie) would do this and came up with this:

So, Halo 2 was delayed like a year or two. Kinda fishy! I am guessing that When they were making halo 2, they decided that they didnt have enough room on the DVD to fit the whole story line. They then made the decisison to start work on Halo 3 (a continuation of halo 2). I think that Halo 2 has been ready for a long time and they have just been delaying it so that they can release halo 3 right after halo 2.....say just in time for christmass? Anyway, think about it...it is Microsoft, you know.

Just a theory......

-james

[YoshiM]

I have a theory..........

I beat the game and was shocked to see credtis roll by when they did. I got to thinking about why they (bungie) would do this and came up with this:

So, Halo 2 was delayed like a year or two. Kinda fishy! I am guessing that When they were making halo 2, they decided that they didnt have enough room on the DVD to fit the whole story line. They then made the decisison to start work on Halo 3 (a continuation of halo 2). I think that Halo 2 has been ready for a long time and they have just been delaying it so that they can release halo 3 right after halo 2.....say just in time for christmass? Anyway, think about it...it is Microsoft, you know.

Just a theory......

-james

How about this: XBL subscribers may be able to download future levels/additional story for $X.

The "Madden" route: they now release expansions each year to continue the story (unlikely but it's fun to theorize).

[jgenotte]

I have a theory..........

I beat the game and was shocked to see credtis roll by when they did. I got to thinking about why they (bungie) would do this and came up with this:

So, Halo 2 was delayed like a year or two. Kinda fishy! I am guessing that When they were making halo 2, they decided that they didnt have enough room on the DVD to fit the whole story line. They then made the decisison to start work on Halo 3 (a continuation of halo 2). I think that Halo 2 has been ready for a long time and they have just been delaying it so that they can release halo 3 right after halo 2.....say just in time for christmass? Anyway, think about it...it is Microsoft, you know.

Just a theory......

-james

How about this: XBL subscribers may be able to download future levels/additional story for $X.

The "Madden" route: they now release expansions each year to continue the story (unlikely but it's fun to theorize).

I didnt think about paying for future dowloads.....good call. This is my new theory.

[Avenger]

therres no way Halo 3 is right around the corner...but yes downloadable levels would be a reasonable theory

[allsport11]

The downloadable content theory is pretty good. Now how many people here would pay to download new levels/story for a fee? Or would you prefer to have expansion packs released every few months or so instead of waiting years for an entirely new game?

[LiquidX01]

Damn I should have posted this sooner but someone over at the Bungie forums posted something about this and was later banned and the post was deleted twice.

Luckily, I saved its text. If you read it all, it makes very good sense, Its alot, but its VERY interesting.


Originally posted by a member on Bungie's forum.

"Make of this what you will, but maybe I said something a little too close to the truth and someone nervous. My original post on the bungie forums got 42 replies within 50 minutes and then the topic was locked. Shortly after that I was blacklisted (banned) from the forums. Keep in mind the bungie forums are automatically censored, so curse words appear as "-blam-", so I know I wasn't banned for language. I'll try to restate this word for word as best as possible, but I can't reference my original post because it has since been removed.

The game of Halo 2 as it exists now is not what bungie initially intended for it to be, nor is this close to the final product they worked three years on to complete. Lets start with the Halo 2 cinematic trailer (released in september of 2002). MC is on a ship and you can hear random chatter over his comm as he walks down a corridor: notice you'll hear things like "that's not enough to stop an assault carrier" and "its like the god damn apocolypse". They have called for reinforcements and the reinforcements are MC alone -- one man, exciting enough that it still gives me goosebumps. So then master chief ejects from the ships air lock and makes his dive towards earth. What do you see? A whole continent saturated with fire and nuclear explosions. That does seem pretty apocolyptic.

Now lets move on to the E3 demo (released in may 2003). MC flies into New Mombasa on a pelican with the sarge and a few ODSTs. When he exits the pelican, yes, it would appear to be a full-scale invasion of earth. Wounded soldiers all around, huge covenant artillery blasting buildings, etc... exciting! He makes his run through the city and then mans the gun on the back of the gauss hog. He rolls through New Mombasa with a couple marines, you see a few other hogs rolling around, streets intersecting in and out of one another, passages that lead to other areas... its a battle on a pretty large scale. A convenant invasion of earth.

Compare these situations to the actual game of Halo 2. Where is the "god damn apocolypse"? Earth isnt even being invaded. A few small covenant platoons go to earth for one reason or another and thats it. There isnt even a hint of earth being invaded in halo 2 until the very end, then the game ends. You can see earth from space station cairo and its untouched. When it comes to all this missing storyline, what went wrong? What changed? Who intervened?

The -single- level that does take place on earth is -OBVIOUSLY- a last minute change. Notice some similarities between this earth level and the new mombasa level from the E3 demo. MC still flies in on a pelican with the sarge and some marines, not ODSTs this time. If you really pay attention you can see the marines in the pelican doing the exact same movements as the ODSTs in the E3 demo -EXACTLY-. one marine shoves a clip into his rifle while another puts on his helmet, the same as the ODSTs in the E3 demo. Sarge even says the same stuff except this time he has a little monologue about 'regret'. Also notice at the start of this level, there is no text on screen telling you where you are headed. No mention of the city name, date or location. How odd is that? When the game starts and you see the opening cinematic, you get a date and you are told exactly what you are seeing; the covenant high charity. Even in the new mombasa level on the E3 demo, you are given the same information. Strangely enough this information is missing in the actual game. Minor inconsistencies like this can only mean a handful of things. This level was added at the last minute to replace the new mombasa level because the direction of the game had taken a serious change in direction because of something or someone. Load up the outskirts level and point your view to the rooftops and tell me what you see. You might not be looking for them but you'll see power lines. You have got to be kidding me. Its the year 2552... Power lines?! Things like this, the inconsistencies and missing -important- cinematic information just do not happen when you spend three years developing a game. It simply does not happen. You do not "hype" a game up to be an awesome showdown on earth between the humans and covenant and then make the -single- earth level in the game complete garbage. My god is that level ever so linear and boring. From point A to point B. Its not the "god damn apocolypse" its a god damn conspiracy.

Simply put, Microsoft is greedy. Microsoft made bungie change the direction of the game and gave it that awful cliffhanger ending. They ran out of time because they had to take out a lot of the content that was already in the game and replace it with whatever they could. Propbably why you end up playing as the arbiter so much. Its all filler for the missing content. Watch the limited edition DVD and check out the segment on the mongoose (the human atv). They say it was buggy and didnt handle properly, watch the video and decide for yourself, it was perfectly fine. There are a few misleading statements from bungie employees in this dvd. Its not their fault, they are just covering for microsoft. Like when they say that the new mombasa E3 level was the first thing they worked on. That is utter BS. All the vehicles had their physics and mass properties already. The character models and animations were finished. There were cinematics and scripted dialogue from all the real voice actors. There was an entire level designed. Don't tell me they spent the next year and a half to design the 6 other awful levels we got. Even with all the bug testing and all that, is not reasonable. 60+ people were working on the campaign mode while 4 people worked on the multiplayer. Too many things just dont add up. Nothing about it makes any sense at all. If there is truth in the fact that the E3 new mombasa level was the first thing they worked on... which already had so many features already implemented, what in the **** did they do with all that time in between may 2003 and november 9th?

Read any publication online or in real life dealing with halo 2 before its release. Whenever someone from bungie spoke about the game, the focus was earth. The cinematic trailer, focus: earth. The E3 demo, focus: earth. It was all supposed to be about earth. Would bungie intentionally mislead us to think that is was going to be all about earth and then smack us in the face with an awful game like this? I dont think so. You cant say that what i expected halo 2 to be was just what i had in my head. It is what we were -lead- to believe and what we were told it would be. This isnt me being disappointed because I believed too much hype -- this is me being disappointed because for one reason or another, "we" didnt the the game of halo 2 that was "promised" to us.

Think about it... the E3 gameplay demo was released in may of 2003, almost a full year a half before the release of the game. The new mombasa level was brilliant. They didnt have to keep the scripting for the level, just the level itself. Why take it out? Why not put as much as you can into halo 2 including that level, because it definitely had a place in the game. Oh, im sorry. It had a place in the game as it was originally conceived, but not the greedy stripped down micro$oft half-assed version that we got.

In conclusion... what do you think went wrong? You're a fool if you think they just couldnt fit one more level into the game, they could have put the game on two discs and added 20 (we wish) more levels very easily, and microsoft has the money for that. Don't tell me it was because of hardware issues, because its only a map. And dont tell me that you cant include a rocket hog or a personnel transport hog in the game because of hardware issues either, if you can support one vehicle, you can support another. You're being mislead in a number of ways to hide the fact that you've been shafted out of $55 for a game that is shorter than the original and far less enjoyable (aside form the multiplayer which is spectacular). Bungie wanted to give us everything we had hoped for, its just a shame we'll never get to see the godliness of what they had in store for us.

Go to www.bungie.net and look at the title for the halo 2 forums. They are called new mombasa. A level that doesnt even exist in the game (now). What kind of reasoning is there for that? Should that be reserved for halo 3 *cough* when you -might- actually get a chance to catch a glimpse of the city. Rubbish. Bungie said many times halo 2 would bringe closure and there would be no halo 3. Bungie also said they would "never specify a release date for halo 2 until we are certain we could release a finished product." That statement was on their main website the day that the release date was accounced. So why would they set a date for themselves where they knew they wouldnt finish in time and be forced to take out all kinds of content? They wouldn't."

Interesting huh??? :hmm:

[YoshiM]

@LiquidX01- Thanks for posting that. A pretty dang solid conspiracy theory. It does make sense as a lot of the screens and direction info we the public were given gave the impression that the battle would take place on Earth, or at least a good deal of it. Makes you wonder if Microsoft or Bungie were seeing the amount of self-made hype by the fans and decided to short change #2 and make for another sequel or downloadable content. Like Star Wars fans, the Halo crowds might eat it up.

[Avenger]

oh my god that guy who posted that is a GENIUS! i felt EXACTLY the same...we are suppost to be defending earth, thats what the whole game was suppost to be about! and we get ONE shitty level on earth, with hardly any aliens...im so sick and tired of this Halo crap this will most likely be my last post about it...if Halo freaks woul open their eyes they would realize they have been F'ed in the A BIG TIME by M$...people loved Halo 2 before it even came out! they would never turn around and say otherwise....and the Halo conspiricy continues

[kai123]

I do think that shed some light to the "cliffhanger ending". Maybe Bungie pulled a Konami on us. Remember MGS 2. Snake was the only one seen in all of the pictures, but low and behold we get to play as Raiden.

[ubersaurus]

@LiquidX01- Thanks for posting that. A pretty dang solid conspiracy theory. It does make sense as a lot of the screens and direction info we the public were given gave the impression that the battle would take place on Earth, or at least a good deal of it. Makes you wonder if Microsoft or Bungie were seeing the amount of self-made hype by the fans and decided to short change #2 and make for another sequel or downloadable content. Like Star Wars fans, the Halo crowds might eat it up.

It doesn't make any sense, because A) New Mombasa is the 2nd and 3rd actual levels, and because lots of things change from the original demos. I recall the needler being very fast. I also recall the scene from the old Halo demos not being in the game. Hell the Silent Cartographer was only in Halo because they needed to cram another level in the game, and the test one seemed good enough.

The covenant did invade Earth-Regret just did it ahead of schedule. That's why so few ships attacked. It's all explained in the damn game. I was disappointed that there was only 2 earth levels, but you know what? I'll live, because the story just wouldn't have worked if you were on earth the whole time, and even if it went on for a few more levels, it would've felt stretched.

[Six Switch]

They did make the needler faster,but it was too good so they toned it down a bit.It still sucks,unless you use it against a brute.

[SkiDragon]

What I'm wondering is why the heck they would choose Mombasa, some unknown city in Kenya, to be the only city on earth that you play in. Or for that matter why the aliens even choose to attack there? Because it has a weird name? Oh well, its probably the first time in a video game where you get to play in Mombasa. And does anybody know what that really tall building is supposed to be?

Anyway my "gamertag" on Xbox live is SkiDragon, if anyone cares.

[YoshiM]

@LiquidX01- Thanks for posting that. A pretty dang solid conspiracy theory. It does make sense as a lot of the screens and direction info we the public were given gave the impression that the battle would take place on Earth, or at least a good deal of it. Makes you wonder if Microsoft or Bungie were seeing the amount of self-made hype by the fans and decided to short change #2 and make for another sequel or downloadable content. Like Star Wars fans, the Halo crowds might eat it up.

It doesn't make any sense, because A) New Mombasa is the 2nd and 3rd actual levels, and because lots of things change from the original demos. I recall the needler being very fast. I also recall the scene from the old Halo demos not being in the game. Hell the Silent Cartographer was only in Halo because they needed to cram another level in the game, and the test one seemed good enough.

The covenant did invade Earth-Regret just did it ahead of schedule. That's why so few ships attacked. It's all explained in the damn game. I was disappointed that there was only 2 earth levels, but you know what? I'll live, because the story just wouldn't have worked if you were on earth the whole time, and even if it went on for a few more levels, it would've felt stretched.

Different strokes for different folks, I guess. Who knows what the story would have been like if things were kept the way they were. The invasion on earth was so heavily keyed up that it seemed like that was going to be the crux of the game. Kinda like what happened with the movie Pearl Harbor-people expected it to be more of a war movie than the love story it pretty much was.

[Half Japanese]

Hey guys, update today:

- New map: Foundation

- HDTV fix (it was chopping off the HUD when in 480p, which pissed me off)

- Fixed matchmaking problems


You can find this more in depth across the internets, just thought I'd throw these little tidbits out there for those who weren't aware. You'll be prompted to update when you get online today.

[ubersaurus]

Hey guys, update today:

- New map: Foundation

- HDTV fix (it was chopping off the HUD when in 480p, which pissed me off)

- Fixed matchmaking problems


You can find this more in depth across the internets, just thought I'd throw these little tidbits out there for those who weren't aware. You'll be prompted to update when you get online today.

So that's what that was for. I already had Foundation, but I understand that there was a glitch keeping most people from unlocking it like it was supposed to.

[LiquidX01]

The matchmaking for me still takes awhile, though not as long as it was but still longer than it should. :/

The HDTV fix was a plus also. That shit was getting annoying.

[jdc]

And now for something completely different.

I finally got the free time to sit down and play this game. I was disappointed in the final shipped result.

I was very surprised to see pop-up, framerate dives, poor texturing, jaggies, out of sync voice track and CG that reminded me of the CG shown in PSX games. To have this product released in this form after continuous delay is questionable. IMO it wasn't ready but Microsoft put the thumbscrews to Bungie in order to ensure that their biggest Christmas seller was on the shelves, come hell or high water.

It's not all bad. The story is fantastic, the soundrack is killer, I liked playing as the other side...it's not all Master Chief, Master Chief, Master Chief, and the dual wield feature means that my weapons last a lot longer before I have to ditch them. Just as in the first Halo, I constantly wield plasma rifles from the earliest opportunity...it's just that this time it's great that I get two.

This game will most likely take home game-of-the-year for the XboX, flaws and all....but I most certainly don't think that it merits overall-game-of-the-year across all consoles. A game-of-the-year recipient should have all aspects of game creation done to higher levels than the competition. In order to do that HALO 2 needed much more polish.

It's too bad. No game can live up to the overwhelming amount of hype generated these days but I was expecting a superior experience to the original Halo. Playing the original game makes me realize....we got it all the first time around.

That's just the way I saw it.

[Six Switch]

When I try to join a party or accept a party invite it takes a while and then just says "The network is having problems".I already got the new download and it still doing this.It is getting pretty damn annoying,help?

[ubersaurus]

And now for something completely different.

I finally got the free time to sit down and play this game. I was disappointed in the final shipped result.

I was very surprised to see pop-up, framerate dives, poor texturing, jaggies, out of sync voice track and CG that reminded me of the CG shown in PSX games. To have this product released in this form after continuous delay is questionable. IMO it wasn't ready but Microsoft put the thumbscrews to Bungie in order to ensure that their biggest Christmas seller was on the shelves, come hell or high water.


You DO know there wasn't any CG in the game, right? The cutscenes are all done in-engine. The reason for the load times was because Bungie didn't want any load times to slow down the game. I personally wouldn't have minded a slight delay to get the textures in, but I didn't make the game.

I've never heard of the network problems error...I'd send a message to Bungie or something, see if they know what's up.

[SkiDragon]

I had my Xbox connected through a hub for a while, and it wasnt downloading the update. I found that connecting directly to the wall ethernet jack let me download, and when I hooked back up to the hub I was able to play. Until I had to download a second update...

[ddockery]

Alright, here's a question on the LIVe play... I was on there with a friend earlier, and he sent a party invite. From there he chose team slayer, and was trying to get us into a team game. No matter what we tried, we always ended up in the game alone. Any idea how we can enter the game together?

[ubersaurus]

Alright, here's a question on the LIVe play... I was on there with a friend earlier, and he sent a party invite. From there he chose team slayer, and was trying to get us into a team game. No matter what we tried, we always ended up in the game alone. Any idea how we can enter the game together?

You get a party, go into game options, go into the game type listing and pick "Team Skirmish" or "Big Team Battle". You can't actually pick a team slayer game and play with random people, because there's no server list-Bungie expects you to invite people from the random games into your party and go from there.

Personally, I just filled my list with people from message boards and play with them ;p

[LiquidX01]

For awhile I hated the way the multiplayer setup in Halo 2 worked, probably because it was different and not what I was used to. Now I kinda like how it works. Its just a matter of getting used to the whole look and feel of it.