Halo 3!

[Wiglaf]

One thing I really want to hear is your impressions of Halo 3...

[DinoDoc]

It's not that bad only real way a dorm floor could play Halo 1 IMO.

[Wiglaf]

It's the only way they can play Halo 3 too, unless everyone has a 360 and a TV.

[Asher]

Originally posted by Wiglaf
It's the only way they can play Halo 3 too, unless everyone has a 360 and a TV.

A computer monitor works just as well, considering there's a VGA adapter (official) for the 360 and HDMI->DVI are cheap and easy also.

[Agathon]

Originally posted by lord of the mark


So, does that matter? If the Halo series (introduced in 2001?) basically polished the Doom model, and Halo3 finishes that series, is that a bad thing? If there are some genres or subgenres that are rapidly developing, and others that are retreating to niche or semi-niche status, could there not be some in more or less "equilibrium" where there isnt more to achieve but marginal improvements in production values and certain aspects of MP, but where the genre isnt going into decline? Could "old-school FPS" be one such?

I guess it wouldn't matter for people who discovered the FPS genre last week.

[Agathon]

Originally posted by Wiglaf

Also asher, stop looking down on people who did not major in CS.

It's funny that, since on the only objective measure of academic aptitude that both take, philosophers smoke CS students, and just about everyone else (except the Physics students and the Chemical Engineers, I think).

edit: it's the physics students and astronomers, who do better overall than us due to them smoking the math section by a greater degree than we do the others.

The idea that computer science students are some sort of cognitive elite is ridiculous.

[Verto]

I've beat the game...sort of. I don't know what happened, but I didn't get credit for completing the 7th mission, but once I do that'll unlock the Achievements for Legendary (and Heroic and Normal).

[Agathon]

It's probably worth pointing out that reviews are not the be all and end all when it comes to evaluating anything. A review is usually a snapshot opinion taken right after the release of a product. It's not hard to find many great things in many areas of human achievement that have garnered mediocre reviews at first, but have then gone on to be appreciated as classics (the Stones' Exile album is a good example, which is now regarded as their greatest record). And the reverse is also true: sometimes things with no staying power get good reviews.

[DrSpike]

Originally posted by Verto
I've beat the game...sort of. I don't know what happened, but I didn't get credit for completing the 7th mission, but once I do that'll unlock the Achievements for Legendary (and Heroic and Normal).

Well done - nice to see an actual post about playing Halo 3 in the Halo 3 thread.

[DrSpike]

I finished this afternoon, though have to replay and also try co-op............and MP.

[lord of the mark]

Originally posted by Agathon


I guess it wouldn't matter for people who discovered the FPS genre last week.

Touche, monsieur.

I was actually thinking precisely of the Blizzard analogy.

I'm still wondering though, and this is serious, are there "old school FPS" that are more innovative than the Halo series? This is partly in connection to the dicussion Dr Spike and others have had in my FPS genre thread. And of course I suspect Dr Spike could give about the best answer

[Wiglaf]

Marathon was just as innovative in 1994. It had duel wielding. It had a good space marine plot and turned out to be a pretty involving trilogy. It allowed for unprecedented control over designing single and multi-player levels using the included editor.

Halo's got the graphics, the sound, the hype, and a bigger online community with some new options. I wouldn't call that much innovation after thirteen years, but apparently some are losing it in their pants over it.

[Asher]

Which do you think is a better game: Marathon or Halo 3?

While Marathon was great back in the day, there's a lot to be said about refinement instead of feature checklists. Marathon's AI was, to be blunt, incredibly lacking. Its online modes were lacking. It's graphics were awful. It's sound was awful.

It was good for its time, but not for today.

I get that you want to be jealous of Halo's success. Just let people enjoy Halo. Even if you don't like it, clearly a LOT of people do. It's as simple as that.

[Wiglaf]

Right, but he asked about innovation. I'd rather play Halo than Marathon. Does not mean one is as original as the other.

[Agathon]

Asher hates Marathon because that was back when Bungie was a Mac developer and made interesting and innovative games.

Halo itself looked to be an innovative and interesting game before Micro**** bought Bungie out and turned it into yet another first person shooter, while getting rid of the multiplayer that was supposed to be the point of the original game.

When Microsoft bought Bungie, the company ceased being an innovative developer and was subordinated to the goal of selling Xboxes. After having played Halo 3 for a couple of days, I can't see the point myself, unless you were a fan of the original games. Other than that, it doesn't have much new stuff to offer, and it isn't even the best shooter on the 360.