Halo: Reach tells the tale of the planet Reach, before the events that took place on the Pillar of Autumn and Master Chief’s awakening from his cryogenic sleep in the original Halo. Reach is invaded by the Covenant, all human life on the planet is being systematically, brutally executed. Obviously this doesn’t sit well with the super soldier Spartans that call Reach home, and Noble Team is going to fight back, hard.

    For the entire game, players will take the perspective of a rookie Spartan known only as Noble 6. This time around, players will create their own Spartan from the ground up. They will choose either a male or female soldier, and pick from a variety of customizable and upgradeable armor options. Like other Halo games, players will also design their emblems and color palates for their armor. These customizable options appear in full in the game’s amazing cut scenes, as well as online play.

    After players settle on a look for their Spartan, Noble 6 is quickly acquainted with his (or her) new squad mates. It doesn’t take too long for things to turn sour, and Noble Team to discover that the Covenant has indeed invaded Reach when they find farmers have been brutally murdered. Unfortunately for them and the planet, things only continue to get worse from there. As Noble Team progresses through Reach’s darkest days, their true characters begin to show. The formula in how each member of Noble Team is presented is similar to that in Halo: ODST, as Noble 6 will often be partnered up with one of the other five Nobles during each mission. That is where their similarities end however. Noble Teams world is literally being torn apart around them, and each character sets itself apart in the chaos that ensues. In their own way, they tell a story of courage and sacrifice when things are bleakest. Players will have no problem identifying with this cast, as they add a layer of humanity to the super human mystic of the Spartans. This helps concrete Halo: Reach as one of the best told stories in the franchise. For anyone who picks up Reach as their first Halo experience, they will have no problem following the straight forward plot. Hardcore fans will obviously find the experience deeper, as they will notice some of the more subtle moments that foreshadow events to come. There are also plenty of familiar faces that pop up and revelations that occur in reach that will please everyone, but I’ll leave it at that as to prevent any spoilers. This story really needs to be experienced first hand, and its well worth the investment.

    When it comes to game play, Halo: Reach is surprisingly rich. Reach is a culmination of everything that was great throughout the entire course of the franchise, along with some new additions that make those great elements even better. Before I even picked up the controller, Reach was a guarantee to be an outstanding first person shooter, and the first person aspects are indeed rock solid so there is no need to go into too much detail on that. New comers and veterans alike will have no problem popping off headshots with the good old M6G-Magnum pistol. There is also a large variety of alien and human weapons, with each having several new additions like a Grenade launcher or Needle Rifle just to name a few. Unfortunately, dual wielding weapons has yet to return to the Spartans. It is a missed opportunity, although really doesn’t effect the game. Reach’s AI as with many Halo games is spot on when it comes to the Enemy AI. The Covenant are cunning, lethal killers that will stop at nothing to take you down. The fact the Elites are back in action with the Covenant this time around makes them all the better. The human AI, isn’t quite as sharp for some reason although is better than what it was in ODST. The two most refreshing additions to Halo Reach however, is the use of armor abilities, and assassination attacks.

    Armor abilities are special items that are either issued at the start of a level, or picked up in the field. They allow your Spartan to have key skills that can give you the upper hand against those nasty alien invaders. The armor abilities are used with the LB button, and players will begin with the basic Sprint ability. Sprint obviously allows your Spartan quick bursts of speed, which can either save your life or thrust your straight into the heat of combat. Possibly the most interesting part of these armor abilities is there is something for every play style. Stealthy players who want to sneak up on enemies will probably want to use Active Camouflage the most, more aggressive players might enjoy a drop shield or Armor Lock that will protect them from incoming damage. All of these Armor abilities change the scope of game in Halo Reach, and each player should spend some time experimenting with which one they like best because these abilities now transfer into other modes of play.

    Easily the most entertaining addition to Halo: Reach is the use of assassination attacks. In every Halo, players have had the ability to give an unsuspecting grunt a good swift pistol whip to the back of the head. Alone, this was highly entertaining. Bungie has finally decided to develop this a bit more, and add a flashy animated kill to those who sneak up and take their enemies out silently. This seems like such a simple addition, but feels right at home in Halo. Its actually hard to believe that stealth kills are just finally showing up now this late in the franchise, but I digress. There is one draw back to these stealth kills. Players will still take damage, and can possibly be killed themselves while trying to pull this off. So choose when you want to sink that knife into an alien wisely, especially in firefight or online play!

    It goes without saying at this point, that Halo: Reach has extensive multiplayer options. The campaign can support up to 4 friends to join in either through a LAN network or Xbox Live. Although I can’t verify this myself being the game is still new, the campaign will apparently adjust its difficulty to the number of players that join into your game. So heroic or Legendary difficulties will remain just that. Firefight mode has also seen a dramatic revamp from its introduction in ODST. It is much more customizable, and features different equipment kits for players to choose from. In terms of the fights themselves, they feel much more dramatic and live up to the full potential of what this mode can be. I can say with absolute certainty Reach’s Firefight mode will get seriously more play time than its predecessors. And then there is of course the competitive online scene, where players join one another to see who really is Top Spartan. Many of the usual match ups remain the same, although they are on a much grander scale. Anyone who has played Halo online competitively will tell you it is incredibly addictive, and the quality of play hasn’t changed at all in Reach. One downside is, that several of the multiplayer maps players already have from the other Halo games have been recycled in Reach. There is nothing wrong with this per say, although it does feel kind of cheap. This isn’t just something that is tied to Halo however, and is something that is becoming common in all franchise that feature competitive online modes.

    Graphically, Halo Reach is one of the best looking games I’ve seen on the Xbox 360. The attention to detail is superb, whether in character and weapon design, or level design. Reach is truly a beautiful looking game, although there is a flaw. Yeah, you read that right, a flaw. Throughout my play time, I noticed a problem with motion blurring. At first, I though it was a problem with my TV or possibly my 360 which has had issues in the past. Fortunately, and unfortunately neither one of these was the cause. It is in fact an issue with the game itself. From time to time, Reach’s beautiful graphics are marred horribly by this motion blurring that resembles the “Ghosting Effect” from LCD/Plasma TVs that aren’t really designed for gaming. Although when this motion blur does occur it is rare, it is noticeable and shouldn’t have even made it into the finished copy. Hopefully, Bungie will issue a patch to correct this. If so, I will make comment on it at a later time in this review. Finally we come to one of my favorite aspects of the Halo franchise, which is sound. Excellent sound effects, and musical scores are a staple to the franchise. Halo Reach only continues that legacy with some of the best effects and music featured in any Halo game.

    Halo: Reach is a game that truly rewards its players. Everything you do in game helps earn you points to unlock new gear, and rank. With many ways to play, players will undoubtedly be spending a lot of time on the planet Reach and with good reason. Bungie pulled out all the stops in their final moments in the Halo universe they delivered us nearly a decade ago, and now they’re going to move onto new things. With that said and done, they once again delivered perhaps one of the best Halo experiences in the franchise. Anyone who has the ability to get their hands on a copy of this game owes it to themselves to do so, as it could contend for one of the best titles of this year.  Halo: Reach, reached for the stars and it paid off big.

Written by RB

Over and Out!

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