When I think of some of the top franchises in gaming, Halo always comes to mind. Throughout the years and over the course of the many forms of media Halo has always managed to stay relevant in the eyes of many gamers. When 343 took over the franchise it scared many of the hardcore fans. But Halo 4 proved that no only could they create a competent game, 343 could create an exceptional game. Fast forward a few years now and here comes the second game in their trilogy, Halo 5 Guardians.
The Campaign: (Spoiler Free)
I had many questions going into this game on the direction they were heading. To many players that only have a faint interest or even a moderate interest in Halo there may be a lot of confusion and questions also. Without the other forms of media, Hunt the Truth podcast and having read most of the Halo books, there is a lot to be confused by as they don’t do a very good job of explaining why and how they got to where they are and where some of these characters came from. With that aside though I did find that the characters were all interesting and engaging. The structure of the duel storyline I found to be fantastic. Playing through I felt they did a great job of leaving the player at a spot were they wanted to keep playing as they switched from Osiris to Blue team in order to see how the situation plays out. Every level was fairly large and there is also a surprising number of different paths you and your team can take to get where you need to go. On top of the epic battles you get in throughout the missions , the slower moments I found myself just stopping and looking around the environment and marveling at the art direction. Each mission was absolutely stunning and always ran perfectly smooth even during the craziest situations. This particular game seemed to be built around playing co-op online with friends. I had the opportunity to play with a great group of friends on legendary co-op for the first playthrough and we all agreed it was extremely fun and just the right amount of challenging. There were parts that took several tries toward the end of the game and when you finally break through them it was extremely satisfying for everyone. When the credits started rolling I came away from it feeling slightly underwhelmed with were they chose to end but also excited to see where 343 plan to take the franchise.
Multiplayer:
Halo multiplayer has always been at the top when it comes to competitive console fps games. It has had a particular feel while playing that kept players coming back for years. 343 managed this time around to keep that same classic feel while also updating the gameplay and the results are outstanding. Doing away with the loadouts and separate spartan abilities within loadouts was the best decision they could have made. Instead they gave all players the ability to now run and added the ability to dash as well as the ground pound. All of which feels to add extra speed to the game and make everything seem more fluid. With loadouts gone that means that everyone again starts out with the same weapons and must find their favorites around the map just like classic halo. This creates a very balanced experience across the board. Updating the gameplay wasn’t the only addition to Halo, all new game modes also have brought some new experiences. For those that love the higher level competition, Breakout is here to give you your fix. A four on four round based game mode that pits players against eachother with a flag in the center of the map. Your team can score points by either eliminating all the enemy players or grabbing the flag from the center of the map and bringing it to the opposing teams base. You must be careful though as you only get one life per round. Warzone is another big addition to Halo. It’s a 24 player moba style gametype where players battle over 3 objectives. Controlling all 3 objectives opens up the enemy base core. Destroy that core to win or the first team to 1000 points wins. You can score points by obtaining objectives, killing enemy Spartans, and also killing enemy AI that spawn throughout the course of the game. AI enemies are worth various amounts of point the max being the legendary bosses worth 150 points. The gameplay gets more interesting as the match progresses due to the REQ leveling. REQ packs are obtained for leveling up in multiplayer and completing challenges. Those packs contain cards that each are attached to a REQ level while in warzone. Get to that level and you can use a card to obtain weapons or vehicles. Some cards are permanent and every match you can use them once you reach that level again and others are one time use. Once you die that weapon or vehicle are gone. All these elements make for an extremely fun and addicting new game type.
Despite some plot flaws the campaign was extremely fun and satisfying. Split screen is gone for those that like couch co-op but co-op online runs with no issues at all. Visually the game is stunning. This is a clear mid point in the trilogy that is building up to what will seemingly be an epic finale. The multiplayer is near perfect with all new game modes and great new features while also running flawlessly from launch. This all makes this a game you should not miss out on.
8/10
Cory J. (Twitter: @Fiction315)
