120°

Can Halo forever be Microsoft's trump card?

Quentyn from AnalogHype writes: "I think it would be an understatement to simply say that Halo is a big franchise. It is one of the most widely recognized entities in the gaming world, and has quickly become THE first person shooter to beat. Has it really come down to just one game for Microsoft?"
ogwilson - contributor
Published: 250 days 12 hours ago | Article | PlayStation 3 | Xbox 360 | Industry News
 
 

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slak - 250 days 12 hours ago
1 - idk
but i have halo wars and its fu*king awesome...Halo is a big franchise.....h3=9B dammmmm
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ogwilson - 250 days 11 hours ago
1.1 -
Yea it seems like Halo Wars will do alot better than I'd originally thought.
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MisterNiwa - 250 days 7 hours ago
1.2 - ...
Im looking forward to Halo Carts and Halo Intergalactic Tennis.
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Information Minister - 250 days 7 hours ago
1.3 -
Sonic says hi!
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Trollimite - 250 days 6 hours ago
1.4 - let me answer your question with a question
"can sonic forever be segas trump card"
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JsonHenry - 250 days 6 hours ago
1.5 -
If someone who has ever played an RTS on a PC, if you could PM me and let me know what you think of Halo Wars on the 360 and give me the pros and cons I would appreciate. I might buy a new (my 3rd) 360 if the game is any good.
1.6 Kill Crow | 250 days 6 hours ago - User only got 1 bubble - Show
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SupaPlaya - 250 days 5 hours ago
1.7 - No
just in the word forever alone. It will last quite awhile, but not forever. Unlike Mario where it has a casual appeal and people would buy them up just because there is the Mario name in it. It also helps that Mario is one of the most well known character/franchise since video games become mainstream.

Master Chief on the other hand is mostly known to gamers, so how it long it last will depend on if future titles can live up to or exceed the quality of current Halo games. Hopefully future spin offs (you know they're coming) would be better than Mario Olympics...
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evrfighter - 250 days 5 hours ago
1.8 -
Sure as hell is working for Nintendo and a certain plumber. But master chief seems like such a generic character.

Out of curiosity's sake and with nothing to do with the article I wonder who's more popular. Gordon Freeman, Master Chief, or Duke Nukem. These are the poster boys of FPS gaming

Although I just threw master chief up there for the sake of console fans. He looks too much like the Doom space marine for me to take him seriously.

http://www.supaquake.com/bo... (space marine)

http://upload.wikimedia.org... (master chief)
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Elven6 - 250 days 4 hours ago
1.9 -
If the quality keeps up then yes, no Halo title has gone below 80% on Metacritic. Although Microsoft does know better then to play their card for too long, previous franchises are a prime example of that.

Its a shame though, Halo is a victim of its own success, their is just so much to explore in the Halo universe (including Marathon), it can all make for a really intriguing story line.

I also picked up Halo Wars and am really enjoying it, reviews above 8 is really what the game deserves, not sure how people have thought it should deserve less. I've played RTS games on console and PC and Halo Wars is a really good console implementation.

When it comes to sales, Halo Wars will probably to better in the long run then Killzone 2. Although both will sell great (Which they both deserve) the Halo name make take Halo Wars further in the long run. Halo 3 is a prime example, it still shows it up in the top 50 (IIRC) sales charts in Europe.
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ThanatosDMC - 250 days 4 hours ago
1.10 -
So... umm... i bought the game. First of all, yes it is playable on the 360. Tons better than End War that's for sure. It's "ok" for a console RTS but if we were able to use a mouse then the game would be even better.

It lacks the definition of "strategy"... you know how say in AoE3 or any Age of Empires game or all strategy games for that matter... your siege units or ranged units shouldnt do stupid stuff that will make them go closer to melee units. But in this game, it's hard to micromanage that.

So to adapt (why do i have to adapt?!)... i dont control them and move melee units first then move the siege/longer range units. Not moving them will make them attack anything in their range.

Also, i found most missions linear without being able to actually explore the map properly. Linear pathways... why cant it be open? or have multi paths where i could attack.

For the most part, it's a turtle type of game. Compared to starcraft... both sides are always turtles.. and not dynamic bases.

Passable... but at least it's not my money that got me the game... hehehe... It'd be better if they put it on the PCs... preferably Steam.

/end rant

Not for hardcore RTS fans. Losing units because you couldnt go to a certain part of the map instantly... will piss you off.
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euchreprof - 250 days 11 hours ago
2 -
Killzone 2 > Halo 1-2-3-Wars
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die_fiend - 250 days 9 hours ago
2.1 -
lol is that why Killzone 2 scored lower than all of them not including Halo Wars? I think you're confusing graphics with gameplay. If Killzone 2 was absolutely amazing, the reviews would've reflected it
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vega75 - 250 days 7 hours ago
2.2 -
only thing KZ2 does right is the graphics. halo owns KZ2 in gameplay,replayabilty,more features, bungie still support the game with fresh content,forge is great,controls,ect.
2.3 UltraNova | 250 days 6 hours ago - deleted by mod -
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vega75 - 250 days 5 hours ago
2.4 - @ UltraNova
hey dude do me a favor talk what you know. yes i own KZ2 the gameplay for halo is much better. the controls is better and the replayablity is better,more features and bungie still makes content for halo. i'm at the end of KZ2. yes i do own the game. and can't wait til i finish it(which will be tonight) so i can trade it in for RE5 for the 360.

i hate sonyfan that think because someone gives their honest opinion about a game. they automatically think you don't own/played the game. get a F'''in life dude.

@edit: as i said before. the only thing KZ2 does right is the graphics. their nothing in KZ2 that screams innovation. to me it's more of a CoD4 clone with better graphic and alittle more chaotic. thats it thats all. get over it

@below.
thanks man. but i'm not worry about him calling me a troll or whatever. he's a kid. and like all little kids they have to resort to name calling because someone doesn't like what they like. he assumes that everyone must love KZ2 because he does. he's no different than the rest of the sonyfan on this site.
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II Necroplasm II - 250 days 5 hours ago
2.5 -
UltraNova, why are you on this article if you hate the 360? and don't call vega a troll he is just a gamer and I agree and I'm sure many other gamers would also agree with what he said.

and far as gameplay...
Gameplay
HALO>>>Killzone
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Eiffel - 250 days 5 hours ago
2.6 - @euchreprof
LYKE HOLY SHEET THIS ARTICLE HAS SO MUCH TO DO WITH KILLZONE2!!?!!

Get the F off my screen.
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MicroSony4Life - 250 days 3 hours ago
2.7 - Has any one seen master chiefs face?
I am not a big fan so just wondering if they ever showed his face.
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Eddie20101 - 250 days ago
2.8 -
Vega75, The guy wasn't really giving a opinion , he was measuring how good Killzone 2 is by MetaCritic scores. well, guess what the metacritic score is 91, in my opinion if a game gets 90 or above it is equal in quality and gameplay to any game that scores in the 90's, because only idiots would measure a game by tenths and say a game is better because it scored overall a couple of tenths higher, is a couple of tenths even a measurable difference when playing a game. Another thing , even though I don't think any game deserves a perfect score, most of the major gaming sites (Not blogs) scored the game in the upper 90's to a perfect 100, in fact most of the scores are in the upper 90's including blog scores.

After the first Halo, the single player in 2 and 3 were not the greatest nor were the graphics in Halo 3, multi player is great though.

Sorry Ultra Nova.
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LinuxGuru - 250 days 11 hours ago
3 -
Nothing lasts forever.
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ogwilson - 250 days 11 hours ago
3.1 -
Yea right, tell that to Nintendo.
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v1c1ous - 250 days 6 hours ago
3.2 - nothing lasts forever
sony is experiencing that right now
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Parappa The Rappa - 250 days 6 hours ago
3.3 - LINUX GURU
Youre halfway there.

Crap doesn't last forever.

BUT GREATNESS DOES.
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UltraNova - 250 days 6 hours ago
3.4 - wow this must be a record!
Three guys talking about the same thing but with totally different end points and opinions while all being right!! Wow just wow!
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LinuxGuru - 249 days ago
3.5 -
You're all wrong. Nothing lasts forever. The statement ends there.
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Cajun Chicken - 250 days 11 hours ago
4 -
Not if MS isn't fully prepared for when Bungie walk away from the franchise.
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Kushan - 250 days 7 hours ago
4.1 -
Halo Wars isn't made by Bungie and it seems to be doing fine. They'll just pass the torch on to someone else.
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jadenkorri - 250 days 6 hours ago
4.2 - ummm..
didn't bungie already walk away from MS
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king dong - 250 days 6 hours ago
4.3 - cajun chicken
get a clue ey!

bungie will never walk away from halo! they went indie because they wanted and rightly so, a bigger share of the jackpot everytime they got a halo on the market.

to think that bungie will drop the safety blanket, and guaranteed millions that they will get from every future halo game just shows how niave, and the willingness to believe everything negative that gets wrote by sony fanboys.

why now that bungie are an indie studio, would they risk commercial failures with new i.ps, when they are guaranteed bumper paydays by doing what they know best....and microsoft will always get bungie contracts for halo games!
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silvacrest - 250 days 6 hours ago
4.4 - ^^
in that case i hope rare is up to the job...
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Foxgod - 250 days 5 hours ago
4.5 -
Lurk more will ya, Halo Chronicles will be made by Peter jacksons studio.
And MS game studio's will be working on Halo4, which consists of former members of Kojima, ensemble and other studio's.
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Cajun Chicken - 250 days 2 hours ago
4.6 - 'Apparently un-informed'
Well, well, well. It seems like you people seemed to of forgotten what happens when publishers have full control over franchises and whore the franchise out to any developer under the sun after the main developer has lost the scene.
Now Halo Wars is just one game, well guess what, Crash Bandicoot worked for about 1 game after Naughty Dog left the scene, the Spyro games basically collapsed when Insomniac left, don't even mention Earthworm Jim 3D (again, same franchise, same publisher, different developer).

I can't believe how you think that now MS is in total control of the Halo IP as Bungie are moving away from the franchise think that just because of one considered successful jump in genre that everything is safe. Peter Jackson may make a good game, yes, Halo Team might be worthy of what Bungie do, but bear in mind, MS can now alter and retcon anything in the Halo mythos, since virtually owning all full rights and the whole bible again look at;

-Crash Bandicoot
-Spyro
-Earthworm Jim

Its obvious you care more about defending MS as a publisher than the actual Halo franchise and as a Halo (Single Player FPS) lover myself, well, I find that sickening. Because as of now, there is no proof that MS have any equivelent of Ready at Dawn (Daxter, GoW:CoO) and High Impact Games (R&C:SM, SAC). I mean, do you people even realise that Bungie is responsible for the creation of Halo? Guess not. You care more pointlessly praising MS as a publisher who can apparently do no wrong.
MS make mistakes, believe me.

I hope that MS care more about Quality Control than just selling a few more copies of a Halo game. Because this is what it sounds like. Its a very dangerous risk and I worry very much for the future of MC and Halo as a lover of Halo: Combat Evolved and steadily seeing the Halo franchise dip and peak throughout the years.
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djpolofish - 250 days 9 hours ago
5 -
Make it a PS3 game, come on Bungie make Halo all it can be no longer will you have to suffer with limited disk space, no longer will you have to choose between graphics or game content.

Be free, choose the PS3
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die_fiend - 250 days 9 hours ago
5.1 -
Lol yeah right. Dream on mate. Go back to your fantasy world where all good things come to you for free. By the way, you do realise that Microsoft own the Halo franchise don't you? Didn't think so...
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djpolofish - 250 days 9 hours ago
5.2 -
Yes i know they own it, and Halo 3 less of a game because of that
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die_fiend - 250 days 8 hours ago
5.3 -
If you knew, then y would you say "Make it a PS3 game, come on Bungie make Halo all it can"
If you knew this was impossible I doubt you'd say that somehow. Halo 3 is clearly more cos Microsoft paid for so much marketing, hence it outselling any PS3 game.
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djpolofish - 250 days 7 hours ago
5.4 -
much to bungies annoyance, they have been trying to pull away from microsoft for over a year now but microsoft know they cant afford to loose them, which is a shame because as developers they are being held back. They want to make games for other platforms but because microsoft is such an aggressive company they will cut funding to bungie. So as a halo fan i would like to see them have the freedom that they deserve and make games that they want to.
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butbutbuttehcell - 250 days 6 hours ago
5.5 -
clueless ^^^
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die_fiend - 250 days 6 hours ago
5.6 -
They're a completely independent studio now, what are you talking about?
"much to bungies annoyance, they have been trying to pull away from microsoft for over a year now" They've always said Microsoft were great partners and they owe them a huge amount for making Halo what it is today. Just because they wanted to become independent doesn't mean they dislike Microsoft. Microsoft didn't have to let them be independent either but clearly valued that they wanted to, and let them.
"they will cut funding to bungie" What? Microsoft don't own them anymore, so they don't fund them either, unless it's for games exclusive to 360. U don't expect them to fund them to make games for other consoles when they're not even owned by Microsoft do you?
You need to work on your English and logic pal
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djpolofish - 250 days 6 hours ago
5.7 -
fine ok microsoft dont own bungie but they own the rights to halo and as a halo fan i would like to see halo move away from this generation of xbox because with the 360 limitations the halo games suffer, wouldn't you like to see halo progress instead of stagnating on a poor system?
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butbutbuttehcell - 250 days 5 hours ago
5.8 -
Lol 360 is a poor system now is it? Y's that? Because for once the PS3 has better graphics with one game? 360 has so many sweet games, more than the PS3...Don't really care if Halo doesn't progress, I've only ever played the 3rd and it was good but I'm not that fussed. Lol I think you're just bitter that the PS3 is gonna be in last place for a looooong time. Speaking of limitations, don't you have to have about 5gb to install most games that can run perfectly fine (or better) from the disc on the 360? Also, can you install the whole game or just the mandatory part? Oh right, that's unfortunate
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djpolofish - 250 days 5 hours ago
5.9 -
with the xbox you have to choose between graphics or content because microsoft put a dvd drive on it. with the PS3 you can have both, and i do care if halo pays the price for this because it is a fantastic series
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butbutbuttehcell - 250 days 5 hours ago
5.10 -
So Gears of War 2 (which has pretty damn good graphics unless you're a blind dellusional fanboy) doesn't have any content? It doesn't have a long single player/co-op online mode as well as 7 other multiplayer modes and a large amount of maps? What the hell are you talking about? Obviously a Dvd drive can't hold that much but there are so many games with good graphics and lots of content on 360, such as res 5, u poor deluded little soul
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djpolofish - 250 days 4 hours ago
5.11 -
well get hold of rockstar as GTA4 had content taken out because of the 360 limitations, as well as id software Rage can no longer use mega textures because of the 360, also the new command and conquer the PS3 has a better version because the 360 wasn't able to cope with it, and the list is getting bigger. Please do google this if you don't believe me.

And why settle for good when you can have better. Even gears of War would benefit if it moved to the PS3
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butbutbuttehcell - 250 days 4 hours ago
5.12 -
Wasn't GTA4 delayed because of PS3? I heard about Rage but that's about it. What about all the sub-par PS3 ports you're neglecting? there are literally dozens of multiplats that are better on 360 lol. So how is that in any way better? I'll get a PS3 soon anyway, but all this stuff you're saying is rubbish, 360 can hold it's own just fine.
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djpolofish - 250 days 4 hours ago
5.13 -
Rockstar has stated that they will not be able to pull off the next Grand Theft Auto due to the struggles with Grand Theft Auto IV (source) on a disc that holds only 8.54 GB compared to a Blu-ray that is currently holding 50 GB. This may harm them in the long run because you see developers now a days wanting to expand their games while saving as much money as they can. Making a game on a Hi-Definition Blu- ray disc not only allows for more uncompressed raw data and more audio support, it also benefits the developer at cutting cost of production.

John Carmack, game programmer and co-founder of id Software, has brought this up many times relating to his upcoming title, Rage. He has stated thatin order to put the game onto the Xbox 360 and have it look identical to the PlayStation 3 version, they would need to put it on about four discs which would cost them a lot in production costs.He also stated thatif Microsoft does not allow for them to put this game on four discs without charging them extra, he will have to compress the game massively to have it fit on two discs degrading the visuals of the game.Developers will adopt Blu-ray because of advantages in size, as well as price. Who would not want to make a larger, cheaper game?
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MicroSony4Life - 250 days 3 hours ago
5.14 - I would love to play halo on my ps3
No fanboyism intended, can you imagine HALO with Killzone 2 Graphics.

I know allot of PS3 owner hate Halo but it would be interesting to see what the sales would be like if HALO was released on the PS3 and 360 and Wii, I think the Wii sales alone would dwarf Micro and Sony.
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Adropacrich2 - 250 days 9 hours ago
6 -
I think MS know that they can't allow a Chief fps to be done by any company other than Bungie.Sure they will explore the possibilities but sensibly it's best in Bungies hands and maybe they will even match the overal quality set by the first game(overal experience i'm talking here not gameplay)

The universe of Halo is wherever it wants to go and so long as quality games emerge, i really don't see a problem - Nintendo have the right idea and even MS realises it can't abuse the Halo franchise as it's way too important
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destrosio - 250 days 8 hours ago
7 -
halo isn't just a game. halo is a worldwide analogy for FPS, now. every other game is a runner up. sorry, KZ2, try again.
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