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‘Halo 4’ does not disappoint

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Halo 4

Andrew Keating ‘13| Executive Web Editor

Although the sci-fi/first-person shooter “Halo” video game series has been around for over a decade, “Halo 4” still manages to feel fresh, delivering a solid single player experience and a variety of exciting multiplayer modes. The game is sure to be one of the best to arrive this year.

“Halo 4,” like the popular “Call of Duty” games, is a first-person shooter (FPS). Thus, it may not appeal to players who don’t enjoy being placed behind a weapon. But for fans of the FPS genre, “Halo 4” is a clear winner, with a large variety of weapons that can fit any play style. The game’s sci-fi setting makes a large amount of the guns unusual and impractical, yet nearly all weapons feel powerful and almost realistic. And the weapons that don’t feel realistic are just plain fun, such as the “gravity hammer,” my personal favorite. The gravity hammer isn’t a gun per se in that you smack other players with it really hard. The player will often be flung across hallways, rooms and even the occasional canyon (where the game map allows).

The first playable mode in “Halo 4” is the campaign (or story) mode. The player controls the super soldier Master Chief, the series protagonist, as he tries to save himself and a shipwrecked crew from mysterious unknown planet. Of course, you aren’t alone on this planet, and you’ll soon find yourself shooting your way through ancient alien ruins and hostile extraterrestrials. The plot takes quite a few twists and turns, and is surprisingly interesting and compelling for a video game. At about 10 hours, “Halo 4’s” campaign is short, sweet and packed full of action.

For fans of cooperative play, “Halo 4” does not disappoint. In addition to the campaign, which can be played in its entirety with up to three friends, the game offers an additional co-op only mode. This mode, called “Spartan Ops,” allows players to battle their way through enemies in several story-based missions. The best part of “Spartan Ops” is that a new mission is added weekly, drastically increasing the amount of game content throughout the next few months. Unfortunately, online co-op can become glitchy at some points. However, the game developers should be able to have this problem fixed soon, if they haven’t already.

“Halo 4” is at its best when it comes to online multiplayer. Players can connect with other from around the world and duke it out in online games of up to 16 players. Unlike previous “Halo” games, players can pick what weapons, grenades and perks they will receive before starting a game, using the new load-out system. While each player starts with a limited selection of ways to customize their load-outs, players unlock more and more guns, grenades and more as they keep playing online. One of the best elements of the new load-out system is the wide variety of “armor abilities.” These abilities allow a players character to fly, heal themselves, become invisible and more. When used correctly with one’s play style, these abilities can cause devastating damage to opponents. While other shooters have been doing this for years, “Halo’s” implementation is a welcome addition that brings many benefits.

In “Halo 4’s” online multiplayer, there are a variety of options in modes. Options include deathmatch, Capture-the-Flag and enormous big team battles. These varieties keeps the multiplayer from getting too stale, and trust me, it’s all good fun.

One of the most impressive qualities of this game is its graphics. Running on the Xbox 360’s 7-year-old hardware, “Halo 4” still manages to look beautiful and well-detailed. The colorful art style is superb as well, offering an alternative to the drab, dark color schemes of many modern games.

As a fan of the “Halo” series since I started playing video games, I was a bit worried about “Halo 4.” I thought it couldn’t stand up to the original classics, but I was wrong. I probably realized this at about 10 am on launch day, after having bought the game at midnight. Yes, I played it all night with no sleep and no breaks. That’s what makes a great game, right there.

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