I punch harder than bullets

So anyway, I've been playing a lot of Halo: Reach lately, from the Legendary Mode campaign with friends to Firefight Mode to Matchmaker Mode. I have to say, the game has really been fun so far.

Out of no hatred to Halo, I have prolonged actually playing Halo: Reach and beating it for some time. However some time ago I did actually beat the game, and I really enjoyed it. Keep in mind, Halo is a brilliant franchise, and as much as haters may say that the series has no originality or whatever, it really does. They probably just don't know what originality is--that, or I go cynical and say "Nothing new under the sun."

Me, getting ready to kill an enemy in Infection Mode

Now, I will say that Halo is best played with a friend. Even the campaign mode is best played with a friend, and that is true of both Halo 3 and Reach. The multiplayer is much the same as the singleplayer, except that you respawn whenever you or a partner are killed in battle. If all players are killed, they go back to checkpoint.
The control scheme is close to identical to all Halo games, save for the addition of Armor Powers, including Armor Lock, Jetpack, Sprint, Portable Shield, and Active Camo. Each ability doing almost exactly as it explains, it definitely adds an element to Halo not seen before.

The story takes place before Halo: Combat Evolved. As the Spartan known solely as Noble VI, you have joined the team Noble Six. A team that has been contracted to--what else?--save Reach from the coming alien invasion. As you progress through the game, it gives a sense of melancholy. Anybody who has played any of the Halo Trilogy, and has the combined knowledge that Reach is before that, knows that this battle is destined to be a failure.

That is where this game gets it's uniquity. It is about saving the world, but ultimately losing. You can try your hardest, but no matter what--the game will end with the destruction of Reach. Therefore, the game takes several liberties in missions--hordes of enemies, loads of dropships, and barely any allies whatsoever. It makes you feel like a badass as Noble VI is one of the few people able to do anything about it.

As Noble VI, an unnamed character that is widely unexplored, you get to be close to whoever you want to be. You even get to customize his armor, for use in both campaign and Online Modes. As you progress in Multiplayer and Campaign, you get upgrades to your military rank, from Privateer all the way to General, then to Master and Hero.

The more you play, the more credits you get. According to rank and credit amount, you can buy different armor and helmets, as well as things like Firefight Voices and Armor Effects. Firefight Voices being what they sound like--the voice Noble VI will have--and Armor Effects being the effect that happens when you die. It can be anything from Birthday Party Confetti all the way to Thunder and Lightning. They have no effect on the overall game, however.

Having logged enough hours of play to achieve Warrant Officer Grade 1 rank, I highly recommend the game. It is an action shooter, still, and keeps to the theme Halo has had throughout the whole series: Humans vs Aliens. I suggest it if you are looking for a good game, a refresher from standard Halo. The replay value is "Meh" unless you're playing with friends, and the online maps are actually quite fun. (coming from someone without the map packs)

Until next time I post, see you around!