The release of the game “Halo 2” has been met with more quivering, nerdy anticipation than has been seen in the technology world since the heyday of Nikola Tesla. Far be it for me to pigeonhole gamers into certain categories, but I believe that computer science, engineering and selected liberal arts classes will have several empty seats for days to come.
Whether it’s worth the hype of gamers getting their grubby, fast food- and sushi-residue-coated mitts on French advanced copies and hailing Bungie, the game’s manufacturer, as some sort of e-messianic figure, is debatable, though.
“Halo 2” is a first-person shooter with a simple concept: You are a human, and it is your job to find aliens, kill them and break their stuff. Your function is to not let them have nice things, even though they, personally, have probably never done anything to harm you.
If you are really horrible at first-person shooters, your job is to watch while your roommate does all that stuff for you, and then try and take credit for it.
The controls are similar to those of the original, but much tighter. The aiming system takes a lot of getting used to; fortunately, you begin with infinite lives. Any time you see yourself taking a few too many blasts from some vile piece of alien scum, simply go chill out, smoke a game cigarette and your energy shields will recharge.
Features like these are a real boon to the coordination-challenged, as well as those not quite used to the X-Box controller, which was probably designed for some mutant race of super space giants with 13 fingers per hand.
The weapons, while still neat, have not changed noticeably. You’ll notice the creators did away with the pistol, rendering you more or less helpless if you run out of ammo. The needler is still fun to shoot, and there are few things in the universe more enjoyable than hitting someone with a plasma grenade and watching them go about their business oblivious to their imminent, gory and visually spectacular demise.
The soundtrack is a highlight of this game. The music, ranging from orchestral to heavy metal, does a great job of accentuating the cut scenes and gameplay. Some of the voice acting is genuinely hilarious, and discriminating patrons will notice the ubiquitous David Scully (veteran of obscure sketch comedy troupe “Almost Live” and at least nine video games) as the voice of the protagonist, master chief Johnson.
The cut scenes, while long and unnecessarily drawn out, are a choice time to rest the eyes. After not blinking for two hours straight, you find yourself with the desire to go to a gamer hangout like Jin’s and get some gamer food (I have no idea what you people eat, but I assume it’s imported from Japan).
The game, while extremely solid, is not much better than the original. It’s a lot like a movie sequel; pretty much a continuation of the original’s storyline. The merits are obvious, and the multiplayer mode is worth the money alone. But, as a shooter, it just can’t offer me anything “Goldeneye” on Nintendo 64 couldn’t.