Halo: Combat Evolved he made the Xbox what it is today in 2001 and made the Xbox brand in general something Microsoft can be proud of. Although it was a slow build to success, Halo the fandom grew to incredible levels during the console's life cycle. According to time Hello 2 launched in 2004, fever was at an all-time high, leading to incredible sales, and is easily one of the best video game openers of all time.
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Aside from the sales, however, some fans remember it fondly Hello 2 is the incredible first mission. It doesn't matter if players are dealing with the Xbox version or the remastered version as they use the same building blocks. Is it the best of the series or better yet the best first person shooter opener of all time? Let's walk through why this may be the case decades later.
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Start
Easy (15s) Medium (10s) Hard (5s) Permadeath (5s)
Slow build
Dichotomy between people and contract
The actual first mission in the game is actually the third chapter called “Cairo Station”, but there are two chapters before it called “The Heretic” and “The Armory”. Players will see a cutscene that shows Master Chief being celebrated by the Marines and receiving a physical reward for his efforts in the first game. Next to this, the Arbiter is criticized by the Covenant council and then tortured by his fellow aliens.
This is a great way to set up the story as players will be able to play as Master Chief and Arbiter during the campaign as it features two protagonists. During this section, players will also need to see the Quartermaster, which is how they learn the controls and get their bearings in Cairo, which is the space station and location of the first attack. After all the honors are handed out, things get chaotic when the Covenant soldiers start boarding, which is when “Cairo Station” begins.
It's a team effort
March on the Marines!
Master Chief is the star of the game, although Arbiter is playable and like all the others Halo games, he is incredibly strong and can single-handedly stop entire armies, as Master Chief is a one-man army himself. That said, it's great that the sequel continued the tradition of Master Chief fighting alongside the Marines while boarding Cairo Station. Without proper support, soldiers will die at the hands of the Covenant.
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There are no consequences to letting soldiers die, and Master Chief won't swear to avenge the fallen, but if players want to delve further Hello 2they will want to do their best to stop the Covenant before they can kill their comrades. Watching the soldiers give their lives for the cause is noble and it's great to always see them supporting the Master Chief. Even though the opening mission takes place in cramped corridors, players will feel like it's a real war effort, complete with action and tragedy like the Normandy landings during WWII.
Dual-Welding Felt incredibly
The next level was also the variety of weapons
What really makes the opening of the game powerful, in a literal sense, is the new dual control mechanic that improves the gameplay tenfold. Players will be directed to a weapon dump to arm themselves, and while the game doesn't explicitly explain the dual-wielding mechanic, an on-screen prompt lets players know that it's possible to start with two machine guns. There is a downside to dual wielding in the game, as players cannot throw grenades in this mode, and if they switch to another weapon such as a rifle, that secondary weapon will be lost until players pick it up again. Bugs aside, the dual controls were still incredible in 2004 and still feel like a power trip to me now.
Regardless of the alien's size, they fell in rapid succession when dual-wielding the right combination of weapons, and it wasn't limited to the Marines' machine guns. Players could dual wield various Covenant weapons such as the Plasma Pistol. This opening mission provided players with plenty of ammo among fallen enemies, allies, and at checkpoints, but while supplies were good, the sheer existence of all the weapons made it hard to stick to one build. One way is to use almost every weapon in the game in one mission Hello 2 stands out specifically from other shooters of its era.
Outdoor section
A sense of the vastness of the universe
Most of the original game took place on surfaces, i.e. in Hello 2the big change from the developer, Bungie, was to give Master Chief platforming and shooting areas out in space. The physics are mostly the same, but the jumps are a bit smoother and the sound from weapons and enemies is different. Years later, the idea of exploring outer space and muting sound would be better explored indoors Dead universebut Hello 2 he gets credit for trying something different for his series.
There are several sections in “Cairo Station” where players can explore outside to reach a door like a platform between rising mechanical hinges and if they are not careful they can fall into the void of space. There are also moments where players have to shoot enemies trying to board. These sections are fleeting, but again, they are an unforgettable part of the game for fans.
Introducing new types of enemies
Shoot first, ask questions later
Grunt and Elite enemies are as iconic as Master Chief. While there were variants for each race and other alien enemies in the first game, they were like the lifeblood that kept the player engaged. They go back inside Hello 2 with better AI and even more audio, but there are also some new enemies that are introduced in the first mission.
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Players won't have to deal with Brutes, but they are exposed during the Arbiter trial and later appear in greater numbers throughout the rest of the game. The enemies that have a bigger presence, at least in one section, are the Drones, which look like overgrown grasshoppers. They are some of the hardest enemies to kill in the game because they are fast, can fly, and have a relatively small hit zone. A good battle rifle with a scope is recommended to take them down. In 2004, there was enough news for fans to notice, which is a small way to praise “Cairo Station”, but it deserves to be said.
Final
Dropping Bombs And Rockets On Earth
During the mission, Master Chief will be informed that the Covenant planted a bomb on the station and finding it is the last part of the opener. Once players do this, a cutscene will play, so they don't even have to try to disarm it. After a rather long and grueling fight, players will be rewarded with a great cutscene that is even better in the remaster.
When Admiral Hood asks what Master Chief is going to do with the bomb outside the ship, he replies, “To give the Covenant back their bomb.” It's a cheesy line, but it would fit right in with an intense action movie from the 80s or 90s. Master Chief then pulls out a large bomb himself and charges towards the Covenant ship, detonating it and then flying away. If players somehow mastered this section, it would make this opening mission even better, but as a cutscene, it's still pretty bad as a great way to end it.
Hello 2
- Released
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September 4, 2004
