HALO 3 TOMORROW

[Professor S]

Originally Posted by BreakABone

Personally speaking, I think Halo is probably one of the most overrated franchises there are now.

Only reasons getting

4 player co-op
And most ppl i know on Live will be playing and enjoy playing with friends.

Honestly, its hard to call something overrated when it has broken pretty much every sales record in gaming history. I'd say that makes it rated right where it should be.

I've never called Mario an overrated franchise... I find him uncredibly played out and annoying, but his rating as one of the all time greats stands. Just as Halo's rating as the franchise that made FPS games (or even all non-sports games) mainstream stands as well. You could also call it the game that bridged the gap between adults and casual gaming.

Halo is the game that changed everything for original content in gaming.

[BreakABone]

Originally Posted by Professor S

Honestly, its hard to call something overrated when it has broken pretty much every sales record in gaming history. I'd say that makes it rated right where it should be.

I've never called Mario an overrated franchise... I find him uncredibly played out and annoying, but his rating as one of the all time greats stands. Just as Halo's rating as the franchise that made FPS games (or even all non-sports games) mainstream stands as well. You could also call it the game that bridged the gap between adults and casual gaming.

Halo is the game that changed everything for original content in gaming.

I don't think sales should equate to quality.

Not saying it is a bad game, I just think that people put it on this huge pedestal but I just never felt it deserved it.

I can see why people will consider it important, but that doens't mean can't feel the way I feel.

[Professor S]

Originally Posted by BreakABone

I don't think sales should equate to quality.

Not saying it is a bad game, I just think that people put it on this huge pedestal but I just never felt it deserved it.

I can see why people will consider it important, but that doens't mean can't feel the way I feel.

I never said you couldn't feel that way, I just said it was hard. In my opinion, it is hard to call Halo overrated. Opinions work both ways.

[BreakABone]

Originally Posted by Professor S

I never said you couldn't feel that way, I just said it was hard. In my opinion, it is hard to call Halo overrated. Opinions work both ways.

I don't think it's hard to call it overrated, but we won't agree on this.

I mean it's not like I'm not buying the game, just don't see what everyone else sees in it.

That is all I guess.

[Professor S]

Originally Posted by BreakABone

I don't think it's hard to call it overrated, but we won't agree on this.

I mean it's not like I'm not buying the game, just don't see what everyone else sees in it.

That is all I guess.

If you look at Halo piece by piece, there really isn't much to see. IMO, its the synergy of the peice's that make it work so well, the larger peices being gameplay and music.

Halo is hard to judge because of 2 and maybe more points:

It's a very likable game. Simple and enjoyable gameplay, everybody can play it (in contradiction to those difficult Metroid games).

I like to use the term "accessible" when referring to Halo's gameplay. Yes, on the surface its very simply and easy to pick up and play. After all, I feel that is what all developers should strive for. When gameplay is overly complicated or unintuitive, it gets in the way of the game. Metroid is a perfect case in point, IMO. Metroid (the first Gamecube version) relied too much on challenging mechanics, and I never got into the game. Halo allowed me to almost forget I was holding a controller and just worry about the story, atmosphere and purpose. For me, thats what makes a game become a visceral experience and not just a time waster.

Then you can get into a whole other discussion about tasteful mix of cutscenes and in game story components, music, a few "Oh Fuck" moments, the blending of sci-fi action that mixes survival horror elements once the Flood is introduced and you get a lot of what makes Halo a great franchise.

I think I feel a thread coming on....

[Angrist]

Originally Posted by Professor S

Metroid (the first Gamecube version) relied too much on challenging mechanics, and I never got into the game. Halo allowed me to almost forget I was holding a controller and just worry about the story, atmosphere and purpose. For me, thats what makes a game become a visceral experience and not just a time waster.

I have to disagree. All Metroid games totally engulf me. When I played Metroid Prime 1 and 2, I never had to worry about controls. I díd however have to worry about looking at the map, solving puzzles, looking at things in new ways.
So I would say that Metroid games are more difficult, but for those who like it, they provide a great experience.

Doesn't mean that I never feel the urge to play a simpler shooter like Halo.

[Neo]

Would I be able to walk in and buy this?

[Professor S]

Originally Posted by Angrist

I have to disagree. All Metroid games totally engulf me. When I played Metroid Prime 1 and 2, I never had to worry about controls. I díd however have to worry about looking at the map, solving puzzles, looking at things in new ways.
So I would say that Metroid games are more difficult, but for those who like it, they provide a great experience.

Doesn't mean that I never feel the urge to play a simpler shooter like Halo.

I guess it comes down to personal tastes, but everything you just described as being a strength of Metroid is exactly why I disliked it.

1) The Map - Having to check a map constantly to know where the hell you are because you spent half your time confused doesn't attract me or add a satisfying level of difficulty. It lacks purpose in a design sense, IMO. I thought most of the chambers were poorly placed as well. The whole time I'm thinking "What the hell is this chamber here? Who built this mess? The architect of this building should be SHOT!" I was constantly reminded I was playing a game as very little of the level design would make a lick on sense in real life.

Meanwhile in Halo, there were considerable areas that were essentially repeats of each other, but in the story and plot they were indentical/redundant structures. This makes sense because if it was important enought for me to sabotage, wouldn't it be important enough for my enemy to have made backups of them?

2) Puzzles - I have the same complaints about the puzzles in Metroid. Meaning, they make no sense. Who makes a door that only opens if you fire a rocket at it? The insurance rates alone would make the entire project cost prohibitive!

Also, the entire game is a puzzle. The AI of you enemies is nearly non-existent. Its all about patterns and "figuring it out" Shoot this weapon when the boss does this, duck here, manage your unavoidable damage. Personally, I grew up wioth those types on games and I find them tedious, but again thats just personal preference.

Halo's AI is the best I've played, including Half-Life 1 and 2. Honestly, after hearing all the raves about Half-Life's AI I was underwhelmed when playing it. My teammates were borderline retarded. In Halo 2, the friendly AI was so good you could sometimes sit back and just snipe while your teammates occupied the opposing force. AND THEY DID REAL DAMAGE, unlike the traditional AI where friendlies only serve to occupy enemies until you can get to them.

3) The Confusion of Difficulty and Challenge - I don't like difficult games, I like challenging ones. Metroid is difficult to me. I call any game that was designed to be confusing and frustrating difficult. The challenge feels inorganic to the desired experience.

Halo is not difficult, but there are a TON of challenging aspects to it, including well done difficulty levels where your enemies don't just get tougher, they get smarter. There is also a small element of sandbox play with Halo games, that makes for players creating their own challenges after defeating the overall campaign. Plus, easter eggs a plenty.

Well, thats my opinion. If you can't have agreement you can at least achieve clarity.