The original Halo was released as a launch game for the original Xbox. This game was a fancy remake that was the first Halo game to be made by the guys at 343 Studios, they would go on to make Halo 4. Halo is the biggest exclusive franchise that the Xbox has and it is known as a system seller.
Story & Presentation
Halo to me has one of the best stories of any series of first person shooter games. The story of the game is set far in the future and humanity is at war with a alien race called The Covenant. These guys are kind of reptilian in their appearance and have deep religious beliefs as well. You play the role of Master Chief a genetically altered super soldier know as a Spartan. The Covenant attack one of earths ships causing it to crash land on the mysterious planet of Halo. The story is just awesome and while this first game in the series may not be as story driven as the others I still loved it.
The game looks amazing. The guys at 343 studios did a wonderful job in giving this game a fresh lick of paint. Something that is actually really cool is the ability at the press of a button to switch the graphics back to the way they looked on the original Xbox. In general the game just has much more detail all around. And it’s pretty fun to see how much more detail has been added when you change back to the old style of graphics.
Gameplay
Now I may get some hate for this, but for me Halo is a perfect first person shooter. When you are playing as Master Chief you really do feel like an unstoppable bad ass that can just rip right through anything. I just love the shooting in this game you always feel like you are in control of whatever gun it is you are holding. Halo also has some pretty amazing melee combat. It is very satisfying to sneak up on a Covenant Grunt or Jackal and smash them in the back.
Now the game play has not changed at all. It retains the same core game play that was in the original Halo game that was released over a decade ago. This to me is not a bad thing, but if you were a player who say hated the handling of the Warthog and the other vehicles in the original Halo then this will not win you over. I though am glad they kept the original game play and did not use the engine from Halo 3. But to some people the game play does feel a little dated. I simply have to disagree with that opinion.
The single player campaign will take you around 8-10 hours to beat. There are multiple difficulties and one thing that 343 Studios did add was these terminals that you could find. These terminals would fill you in more on the back story of the amazing world of Halo.
Final Thoughts
Halo Combat Evolved Anniversary Edition is a game that is just pure fan service through and through. If you are someone who loved the original Halo then this is a great trip down memory lane. All be it a trip down memory lane that has had a nice lick of HD paint applied.
