YNCG's Halo 4 REVIEW (BIAS INCLUDED/NO SPOILERS)

Avatar image for yourneighborhoodcomicgeek
YourNeighborhoodComicGeek

21616

Forum Posts

23390

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 11

User Lists: 15

Storyline

As a Halo fanboy/fanatic, the storyline really fascinated me. I mean, Master Chief vs. Prometheans! What's not to like? Forward Unto Dawn really got me excited, and this magnificent game really delivered. The elements of the emotions are perfect, and it really shows more depth to the characters (much like the novels), more so/unlike the other games in the Halo franchise. You really felt more connected and interested in all the characters. You really explore the humanity in John, and the breakdown of Cortana. In my opinion, they expanded more on the Halo Universe than any of the other video games, and they flawlessly crafted the story for Halo 4. In fact, I'd say they beat every single Bungie Halo Video Game in this category.

Gameplay

Halo, a franchise known for it's fast-paced, and excellently executed action, mixed with the perfect measure of sci-fi awesomeness. Halo 4, obviously, does not disappoint, and 343 Studios did an excellent job. Everything is perfectly placed, and the newly introduced weapons are fabulous! The assassination animations, semi/first-person cutscenes, and general movement in this game is more fluid than any other, and you really feel like you are Master Chief, unlike Halo 3 wherein most stuff where very basic (basic melee, basic jump, no sprint, etc. etc.) The 10 different excellent maps are each unique and have their own special quality, and fit in nearly every single game category/mode (especially Flood Mode). Leveling up is not too different, but still very interesting nonetheless, as it is more based around experience. Such examples are medals, capturing the flag, winning a Slayer match, and more. Other new add-ons only add to the fun, as Supply Drops are balanced and not overpowered like the Halo : Combat Evolved Pistol, and Spartan Ops is even better than Fire-Fight, as there is an actual story and you can team up with up to 3 other players. All of this adds up to possibly the best Multiplayer experience in decades.

Audio

Neil Davidge did an awesome job with the soundtrack, but in my opinion, didn't live up to his hype, nor did he succeed in besting Marty O'Donnell. But don't get me wrong. Neil still did an excellent job, and really set the atmosphere of the games, but I'm just more used to Marty's work, and I'm more accustomed and used to hearing his music after the many years he's produced music for the Halo franchise. However, that's just my opinion, and I could see other gamers being perfectly suit to the new soundtrack(s). As for in-game audio effects, 343 introduced an entirely new array of weaponry effects, and they all fit without any problems. Explosions, footsteps, melee, and other audio applications are flawless, and do not disappoint. As for Voice Acting, they isn't an actual improvement, since they are mostly the same people for the main characters, but have a lot more room to breathe, and the characters are more lively and human. For the other characters/voice actors, they did a fantastic job.

Visuals

Halo was never specifically known for it's mind-blowing graphics (other than Halo 3, which, for a 2007 video game, was spectacular and highly impressive). Halo 4 delivered, visually-wise, a new quality that the other Halo video games failed to deliver. Sure, Halo : Reach had good graphics, but the visuals didn't stand out much against other games like Crysis 2. 343's first video game is, at a minimum, eye-candy. There are few bugs/glitches that ruin the visuals, and everything is sleek and fits the atmosphere, such as minor organic roots growing, or an entirely flat fore-runner platform. The weapons are even better and have the best details compared to other 2012/Halo video games. Explosions are awesome, and the cut-scenes are even better than Halo Wars, which is an impressive feat to bout. It really leaves you to imagine how this game would look like on an Alienware computer.

I mean, how can you not love these sick graphics?

Lasting Appeal

I could, without a doubt, seem me playing this game in a couple years. This game really has special qualities that make it special amongst other generic First Person Shooters *cough*Call of Duty Black Ops II*cough*. If Half-Life and Half-Life II survived as one of the legendary games of the First Person Shooter genre, I could definitely bet that Halo 4 would survive as one of the best First Person Shooter, if not generally one of the best games, of these several decades. There are no other games in the market that I know of that are like Halo, unlike the generic Modern-Day Military shoot-em-ups.

The Verdict

All in all, Halo 4 perfectly delivers the visuals, gameplay, audio, and storyline you guys seek, especially if you're a Halo fan like me. This is easily one of the best video games of the decade, and the best Halo game to date. The game has very few bugs/glitches to interfere with the experience, and everything fits together like a jigsaw puzzle, with no missing pieces at all. I can't wait for any upcoming DLC's (if they have them), as that may even boost up the score for Halo 4. As for now, I'll wait (which is fine with me), for I'll be playing Halo 4!!!

Avatar image for laflux
laflux

25242

Forum Posts

2367

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 2

#2  Edited By laflux

@YourNeighborhoodComicGeek:

Really good review. But how's multi-player in your opinion? I've seen a few videos on YouTube and it seems more fast paced. Do you think 343 has pandered to the COD community with kill cams, custom loadouts and perks? And if so, where they correct to do so?

But again great. You don't need to tell me to get this game, I've ordered it. Hopefully I will headshot you with the beam rifle in TDM soon lol.

I guess your not getting BLOPS 2 LOL.

Avatar image for yourneighborhoodcomicgeek
YourNeighborhoodComicGeek

21616

Forum Posts

23390

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 11

User Lists: 15

@laflux:

Multi-Player is excellent. It's somewhat different from the others, but in no means is it worse, although some gamers may dislike it for it's differences. In my opinion it is more fast-paced, but there are so many new qualities, such as weapons, game-types, etc. etc. It really is a huge package for $60+.

And I probably won't :P

Avatar image for deranged_midget
Deranged Midget

18346

Forum Posts

4277

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 8

User Lists: 4

#4  Edited By Deranged Midget

@YourNeighborhoodComicGeek: Fantastic review mate! Love the design of it!

Avatar image for yourneighborhoodcomicgeek
YourNeighborhoodComicGeek

21616

Forum Posts

23390

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 11

User Lists: 15

@Deranged Midget: Thanks man! Much appreciated!

Avatar image for inverno
Inverno

13756

Forum Posts

8579

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 14

User Lists: 6

#6  Edited By Inverno

@YourNeighborhoodComicGeek: First off, great review dude, biased or not. But I would ask you something: how long is this game? Because it seems to be a pretty short since you and DerangedMidget managed to beat it relatively quickly and do a review for it.

Avatar image for deranged_midget
Deranged Midget

18346

Forum Posts

4277

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 8

User Lists: 4

#7  Edited By Deranged Midget

@CaioTrubat: I don't how long it took YNCG, but the campaign was relatively short, even for Halo.

Avatar image for joewell911
Joewell911

14735

Forum Posts

129

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#8  Edited By Joewell911

@YourNeighborhoodComicGeek: Nice, i would love to get it if i had moneys

Avatar image for jobiwankenobi
jobiwankenobi

1498

Forum Posts

81

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 6

#9  Edited By jobiwankenobi

Damn you got this out fast, and it was a really good in-depth review with no real spoilers.

It's good to hear the game was good because I was disappointed with Reach.

Question (and this is a potential deal breaker for this game): Did the keep the same F-ed up controls from Reach. Because that irritated the crap outta me. It was like they were trying to copy COD's controls (which I do not like, and whenever I play COD I try to play it like Halo) and utterly failed. If they go back to the old controls, I might buy this game right now, if not I may never buy it.

Avatar image for yourneighborhoodcomicgeek
YourNeighborhoodComicGeek

21616

Forum Posts

23390

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 11

User Lists: 15

@CaioTrubat: It's not terribly long. You can finish it in one day if you commit to it.

Avatar image for yourneighborhoodcomicgeek
YourNeighborhoodComicGeek

21616

Forum Posts

23390

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 11

User Lists: 15

@jobiwankenobi said:

Question (and this is a potential deal breaker for this game): Did the keep the same F-ed up controls from Reach. Because that irritated the crap outta me. It was like they were trying to copy COD's controls (which I do not like, and whenever I play COD I try to play it like Halo) and utterly failed. If they go back to the old controls, I might buy this game right now, if not I may never buy it.

The one I got wasn't changed too much, but you can customize the controls anyways, so it shouldn't be a problem.

Avatar image for _black
_Black

2301

Forum Posts

1134

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#12  Edited By _Black

Nice review. Excited to get this game.

Avatar image for yourneighborhoodcomicgeek
YourNeighborhoodComicGeek

21616

Forum Posts

23390

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 11

User Lists: 15

@_Black: Thanks for the feedback!

Avatar image for inverno
Inverno

13756

Forum Posts

8579

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 14

User Lists: 6

#14  Edited By Inverno

@Deranged Midget,@YourNeighborhoodComicGeek: I see. But isn't it kinda of a bummer because the game is really short?

:P

Avatar image for yourneighborhoodcomicgeek
YourNeighborhoodComicGeek

21616

Forum Posts

23390

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 11

User Lists: 15

@CaioTrubat said:

@Deranged Midget,@YourNeighborhoodComicGeek: I see. But isn't it kinda of a bummer because the game is really short?

:P

It does kind of suck, but all the other features more than make up for it.

Avatar image for deranged_midget
Deranged Midget

18346

Forum Posts

4277

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 8

User Lists: 4

#16  Edited By Deranged Midget

@YourNeighborhoodComicGeek said:

It does kind of suck, but all the other features more than make up for it.

I'd have to disagree. While the campaign was a little short, it was by-far the best one in the Halo series and easily the shining star of the whole package.

Avatar image for 8bitgangsta
8bitGangsta

592

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#17  Edited By 8bitGangsta

I just got this game, and It's awesome

Avatar image for yourneighborhoodcomicgeek
YourNeighborhoodComicGeek

21616

Forum Posts

23390

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 11

User Lists: 15

@8bitGangsta: It really is!

Avatar image for ghostofonyx
GhostofOnyx

675

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 1

#19  Edited By GhostofOnyx

Great Review! 343 did take some elements from cod but all in all Halo 4 is still undoubtedly a halo game.

Avatar image for stmichalofwilson
StMichalofWilson

5643

Forum Posts

29688

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 4

User Lists: 107

#20  Edited By StMichalofWilson

Good Review! I'd give it a 9.5 cause you know.....THEY KILLED CORTANA.....for now maybe....