Girl Gamer

What’s So Special About Reach?

I highly recommend reading the book, The Fall of Reach by Eric Nylund. Not only is a great read, but it offers detailed insight into the birth of the Spartan program, where Master Chief came from, and humans’ first encounters with The Covenant. The book does NOT mirror the game, so there are no spoilers to worry about; however it will fill you with so much inside info that you’ll be bouncing up and down at the slightest details in this game. (Speaking from experience!) For example – you’ll learn who Dr. Halsey is, where Cortana came from and why she’s different from other AI and cool stuff like how the MJOLNAR armor works.

(If you read the book, then read the journal that comes with the Limited and Legendary editions of the game, you’ll REALLY get some fangasms goin’ on, lol)

To put it plainly, Reach is the last human military stronghold, protecting the location of Earth. To take Earth would be the extinction of mankind, which is exactly what the Covenant wants. The Spartan program is based on the planet of Reach and it was considered unbeatable, with its enormous MAC guns to shoot any ship out of space. If it’s anything we’ve learned from The Covenant, it’s that they’re a formidable foe. When Reach falls, it starts the story in the original Halo game. It was for this type of battle that Spartans were created, and now you get to see them in action. Halo: Reach allows you to witness first-hand the bravery and struggles that took place as the fate of humanity lays in your ass-whoopin’ Spartan hands.

Campaign

Obviously I’m a Halo fan, so I’ll try to be as unbiased as possible with this. The story, although it means a lot to extreme fans like myself, probably won’t mean much to the average player. For that reason, you might notice moments that seem important but you just don’t get it. Although not a problem for me, I could see how others may find that frustrating. If you’re just in it for the action, you’re in luck – there’s plenty. Heroic and Legendary modes offer plenty of Covenant to vent your daily frustrations on, trust me.

Tactics

Experiencing the armor abilities in Reach is like going from a really cool typewriter to a laptop. You’ll remember the previous version fondly but damn – it’s hard to imagine life without the new features! Your default ability is to sprint, something the previous games needly badly. Other abilities, such as armor lock, hologram, active camouflage and bubble shield can be found and swapped out through the campaign.

It’s also nice to not be the only Spartan for once. To be backed up by a team of qualified Spartans is not only kick-ass from a battle standpoint, it’s comforting in a way. The NPC (non-player characters) in Reach seem to be more responsive than in previous games, but beware – Kat drives a Warthog like a freakin’ maniac.

Using different armor abilities allows for a customized experience. Not only that, but your character is the one you created when you first popped in the game, so it feels like you, no matter what. You are Noble Six. Also, from a girl’s standpoint – if your character if female, they all refer to you as “she” and your character will respond with a female voice. NEAT!

The cinematics are great, the music is phenomenal and the story itself is the primal need to save yourself and your species from extinction. Can’t get more intense than that.

Multiplayer

Multiplayer has so many new options, it’s insane. You can now filter out the gamers you want to (or more importantly) DON’T want to play with. Ranging from chatty to competitive and even languages, gamers can create a filtered search for maximum enjoyment. Among the people you get matched with, you also get to vote on a map and multiplayer game so it’s much more diplomatic and not completely random.

SCORING – OMG.

Finally! You get credit for doing a great job even if the rest of your team sucks beans. You are individually rated, which is converted to credits. Those credits add up to rank and then can be cashed in for armor pieces and effects. Again, your scoring syncs with your campaign so you can go back and forth without having a different rank for every single mode you play.

You’re always going to encounter d-bags, so there’s nothing Bungie can do about that. Players get punished for quitting, though and even suspended if they keep it up, so that’s nice. Getting rewarded with more credits for just finishing the game should hopefully be incentive enough to keep rage quitters to a minimum.

Much like in Halo 3, players can choose among a plethora of modes, games and team match-ups. Go it alone or with a team to customize your experience every time.

Extra Incentives

Among the usual achievements, Bungie also offers Daily Challenges. By completing these challenges, you gain credits to spend/rank with. There’s also an achievement for completing weekly and daily challenges, for all you achievement hunters.

Before This Becomes A Novel…

I could go on and on and on obviously but to sum up, I’d say this is a solid title for sure. A lot of fans cry that Halo 2 was the best, but as far as versatility goes, I’d have to say Reach is where it’s at. The Bungie team does such a great job when it comes to utilizing fan suggestions and complaints to make an all-around great game.

Is This The End??

Of my review? Yes. Of the franchise? Seriously unlikely. Let’s face it – Halo is a huge money-maker for Microsoft and launched Bungie to the A-List of Video Game developers. Do you really think this is the last in the series? Yeah, no. Bungie has even been quoted as saying that Master Chief will return, but not in Halo:Reach and they left the end of 3 wide open.

Remember – Spartans don’t die, they just go missing in action.

For extra tips, updates and to study your competition, visit Bungie.net