Submit Your Comment On Halo: Combat Evolved's Second Half For The Deepest Dive

Austin Taylor

I had to write in about your impressions on The Maw. This is to me the quintessential Halo 1 mission, and playing it today brings me right back to my buddy's living room carpet and his Dad talking about Pepsi-Cola with his Chicago accent. The opening is fantastic, with the sweeping camera and the 2nd best subtitle in the game, '...And The Horse You Rode In On' (after 'I Would Have Been Your Daddy' of course). The final escape sequence is so memorable and if you know the correct path, an exhilarating ride to the end. I just can't believe over half of MinnMax has no nostalgia for the Halo escape sequence!

Mark Garcia

Hey CLCs, I remember the final level being the bane of my existence in college, largely due to how finicky the warthog could be if you accidentally hit an enemy or didn’t land a jump, just right. I love the concept of escaping an exploding ship with a ticking clock, but between the driving controls, explosions, enemies, and the topography, this was easily one of the most frustrating moments in the game for me (with the library being the most frustrating of course). And while it may be somewhat manageable on a single player run, it is elevated to a whole different level of challenging when playing co-op and trying to get both people to the end.

G-Max Thoeren

Hey CLCs, Nintendo Switch controller guy writing in again. Still liked the game, but boy was a lot of this second half rough, especially that final level. I hoped Halo wouldn't fall into the "changing up the gameplay for the climax" trap because we'd spent so much time with the Warthog previously, but nope - this was basically a glorified racing section that went on for way too long (and forced you to restart from the very beginning if you failed).

Danny Yorkus

Hello Ben I thought of something more specific this time around! Many of the grunts in the final level The Maw were carrying Fusion Rod Canons, those huge guns usually used by the Hunters. I thought it was a great way for the game designers to portray the covenant's desperation as they gave the most powerful weapons to those little annoying guys. Also the Grunts wear those respirators which are filled with Methane so they pretty much live on farts. -Danny

TeriyakiBlues

Second half lowlights: The Library, I mean c'mon. Perhaps the epitome of repetitive hallwayish (Kyle's word, not mine) levels. The only thing enjoyable were Guilty Sparks's quips. I don't know how when playtesting this level they thought "Oh yeah, this is fun". Two Betrayels had epic outdoor moments but like Assault on the Control Room felt a little too long. The reused environments in the second half were also a letdown, but expected with a perhaps rushed launch game. Also speaking of lowlights, did anyone else play this with the giant xbox launch controller? Worst console controller ever?

TeriyakiBlues

Second half highlights: I love the transition into a horror game in 343 Guilty Spark. The horrified marine shooting at you, the mystery of what happened, Jenkin's video, so well done. I also love how the flood makes you change your tactics, now you have an enemy that relentlessly charges at you in contrast to the Covenant. Also, since you have only two weapon slots, you have to balance out what to use vs the Flood or the Covenant. Finding Keyes and literally ripping the chip out of his head was also awesome. And of course, the second half of the Warthog escape when Echo 419 goes down and the music kicks in was the part I remember the most from playing this game, epic moment.

BeatenDownBrian

It's definitely there in the old graphics, but it's harder to make out. As far as I'm aware, it was in the original game, though I never heard about it until MCC came out.

Is that in the old graphics too or just the new graphics?

BeatenDownBrian

It’s probably a pretty well known easter egg as it’s tied to an achievement, but after you find Captain Keyes and the cutscene plays, if you follow one of the tentacles just to the right of him you can find his pipe hanging from the end of it. It’s a small unnecessary detail that they didn’t really need to add, but it makes me happy they did. Also, pistol/shotgun combo is god tier.

Quick reference guide to the Flood forms in this game, so that we don't end up with another "Kyle calling the Hunters 'Brutes' situation" :P Infection Form: those tiny bug-like creatures that swarm about and turn sentient beings into Flood Carrier Form: the slow-moving, bulbous creatures that explode and release Infection Forms upon death Combat Form: the result of when an Infection Form attaches to a host, such as a Marine or an Elite, and assumes control of their flesh. Some Combat Forms attack you by running up to you and lunging at you, while others carry the weapons from their previous life. These all fall under the same category, despite being quite different in appearance and tactics.

Jacob Haslam

When coming across The Flood and The Covenant battling in the later part of Two Betrayals, I always have that 'wow' moment. Watching tanks, hunters, elites, and the flood battling was something I hadn't seen before.... then you have to fight the remaining enemies! It's rare that we have these large scale battles in new games, let alone Halo that did this 20 years ago. The latter part of the game does reuse assets (The Library being the worst offender!) but the scale and intensity is really taken up to another level. It provides memorable set pieces that stay with you after you finish the game which in my eyes, truly makes it a memorable experience and why it's still thought of fondly today.

Lore-wise, I appreciate that the Flood are not mindless zombies. They know how to repair and operate the technology of any species they encounter, and their goal in this game is to repair the human and covenant spaceships on Installation 4 so that they can escape and continue spreading. You wouldn't expect one of those waddling Carrier Forms to be a great engineer, but it just goes to show, you can't judge a book by its hideous fleshy cover.