While Halo Infinite, the latest installment in the long-running Halo series, continues to grow, many diehard Halo fans and sci-fi FPS veterans are still playing the original games via the excellent Master Chief Collection. Now, the venerable Halo 2 has just turned 20, and we think it's time to reminisce about why it became so huge and how it elevated the franchise to new heights.
To this day, most players consider Halo 2 to be a top 3 entry if they're asked to rank all the Halo games. What was the secret sauce that Bungie used to turn Xbox's flagship 2001 shooter into a mainstream sensation, setting themselves up for an even bigger blockbuster success with Halo 3?
If you can't remember (or weren't around at the time), Master Chief's second rodeo instantly became Xbox Live's most popular title, an accolade it held until Gears of War arrived two years later.
Many would argue it was all about the scope and new tech used to take the epic UNSC-Covenant conflict to the next level, but let's not forget how it widened the 'lens' of the story as well. The addition of an alien protagonist to root for, alongside plenty of plot twists, elevated the story above most other sci-fi shooters at the time — with the notable exception of Half-Life 2. Halo 2 was much more than your average alien invasion video game.
Halo Infinite did well, but it wasn't the revitalization of the franchise that Microsoft had hoped for, which has led to radically altered post-launch plans, and deep rework before a brand-new installment arrives. On the TV front, the Halo live-action series was canceled earlier this year after a disappointing second season that failed to connect with mainstream audiences (Perhaps it's time for a proper big-budget movie instead). And yet despite these disappointments, Xbox isn't letting Halo die.
Spoilers ahead for Halo 1 & 2.
Fate had us meet as foes...
Halo 2 starts with a bang: In the aftermath of the first Halo ring's destruction in Halo: Combat Evolved, the Covenant — the fearsome alien alliance on a religious crusade across the Milky Way — attacks Earth, targetting the African city of New Mombasa. This marks the beginning of the end of the UNSC-Covenant war, with Halo 3 serving up the big finale.
Despite this introduction, Earth isn't actually the main setting of Halo 2 — that was saved for Halo 3 — but it was the perfect follow-up to Combat Evolved's completely alien locale. We learn more about the strengths (and weaknesses) of the UNSC after their years of bloody war against the Covenant, and it's here that we learn about how dire the situation truly is for mankind. Of course, there's plenty of supplementary material that's been released over the years to properly flesh out the war, the UNSC, and Earth, but back in the day, this was the first good look at how humanity was doing after Halo: Combat Evolved kicked things off in medias res.
Halo 2 also introduced Commander Miranda Keyes, daughter of the late Captain Jacob Keyes and somehow an even more brave and fierce soldier than her father. Back in the early 2000s, having a strong female lead in a game was a rarity, and Halo 2 had two! Sure, the other one, Cortana, was a naked hologram pretty much acting as John-117's mother figure, but baby steps. To this day, we still wish Miranda played a larger role past Halo 3, as her bravado nearly matched that of Sgt. Johnson. The Prophet of Regret really didn't know what he was getting into when he attacked Earth.
...but this ring will make us brothers
Even more interesting was the switch to the Covenant's point-of-view, or at least the new Arbiter's (delightfully voiced by Keith David). After failing to stop the first Halo's destruction, the disgraced Elite commander Thel 'Vadam was branded a heretic... until he takes on the mantle of the Arbiter, destroys a rebel group, and regains the Prophets' trust. All this happens in the opening hours of Halo 2, which is a good example of how much more ambitious the narrative was the second time around.
While the story campaign's early stages from Master Chief's point of view gave us a brief look at Earth and the state of the UNSC, the Arbiter-centric sections underlined the turmoil brewing at the heart of the multi-species Covenant. All it took was one major failure in their search for salvation for uglier truths about their entire system to creep into view. In the end, the Prophets' actions after the attack on Earth end up dooming their holy city of High Charity, as the parasitic Flood boarded the city-ship and took no prisoners.
Such plot and character arc swings were divisive back in the day, but as the universe has been fleshed out over time, fans have developed a stronger appreciation for this daring sequel. The first Halo was a straightforward shooter and sci-fi tale despite its strong sense of style and universe-building, but Halo 2 represented the development of an entire mythology, with alien political intrigue and drama peppered throughout the action-heavy rollercoaster ride.
A monument to all our sins
Whether they're on foot or behind the wheel of Halo's iconic vehicles, set pieces abound in Halo 2. The development of the first game was notoriously shaky, so Bungie used all the money and acclaim from that breakout hit to go hard on the sequel. Mind you, that didn't stop the overall development process from being a "mess" due to leadership issues at the studio (and it seems they never quite went away).
Behind-the-scenes problems aside, all the sweat, blood, and tears poured into Halo 2 clearly paid off. As stated before, Halo 2 went on to become an online sensation on Xbox, establishing Microsoft's gaming efforts as something to watch out for and more than just an initial fluke. Whether it was the single-player campaign, co-op playthroughs, or fierce online PvP competition, it was impossible to avoid 'the Halo 2 conversation' back in 2004 and 2005. If you weren't 'Team Xbox' back then, you had to wait until the 2007 PC port to experience it (though you had to suffer Windows Vista to play it).
Halo 2's Metacritic score is 95 (universal acclaim). Considering the troubled development, the finished game being such a masterpiece still feels like a miracle to this day. While Halo 3 represented a mechanical iteration and perfect refinement of the series, Halo 2 was the 'make or break' moment of the franchise, and it's fascinating to stop for a moment and consider how the entire gaming landscape (not just the FPS space) would've looked like had Master Chief face-planted in his second adventure.
Halo 2 can be purchased on PC and Xbox consoles as part of the Master Chief Collection. It's also permanently available on Xbox/PC Game Pass.
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