Halo 2: Anniversary
From Halopedia, the Halo wiki
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- "Because the seeds of our future are sown in his past."
- — Arbiter Thel 'Vadam[5]
Halo 2: Anniversary is the remastered edition of Halo 2. The game was released on November 11, 2014 as part of Halo: The Master Chief Collection for the Xbox One.[2][6] Halo 2: Anniversary is the first Halo game to support Halo Channel, an Xbox One feature that was released alongside the game.[7] On May 12, 2020, Halo 2: Anniversary launched on the PC platform as part of The Master Chief Collection.[3]
Features[edit]
Campaign[edit]
As with Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, the Halo 2: Anniversary campaign has been visually remastered by Saber Interactive along with completely redone audio and the original soundtrack rerecorded by Skywalker Sound.[8][9] Similar to its predecessor, Halo 2: Anniversary uses a combination of 3D models from several of the prior games (such as Halo: Reach's Grunts) as well as modified and all-new assets.[4] Unlike the other games in the Master Chief Collection which run at a 1920x1080p resolution, the Halo 2: Anniversary campaign has a lower resolution of 1328x1080p due to stated technical problems that arose from running the twin graphics and audio engines at 1080p. The game nonetheless has a frame rate of 60 frames per second like the other titles in the collection.[10] The remastered cutscenes have been pre-rendered by Blur Studio as opposed to being in-engine like those in most of the Halo games.[2]
Like Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, the game allows users to switch between the remastered version and a "Classic Mode" (also referred to as "Legacy" mode);[8] both visuals and audio are remastered in the Anniversary mode but remain original in the Classic Mode. The switch between the two modes is more seamless than in Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, being instantaneous as opposed to the screen fading to black in the interim.[11]
Halo 2: Anniversary also contains a remastered version of Another Day at the Beach (a bonus video originally shipped with the Halo 2 Multiplayer Map Pack) animated by Blur Studio.[12] In addition, two cutscenes were added to the campaign's beginning and its ending, linking to the events of Halo 5: Guardians. The two aforementioned cutscenes later being removed from the game all together, and were instead moved to the Videos tab.
The campaign consists of 15 levels, of which 14 are playable.
- The Heretic - "For failure such as this, no punishment is too great." (cutscene; unplayable)
- The Armory - "Suit up, prepare for battle." (tutorial)
- Cairo Station - "Defend the station's MAC gun from Covenant boarders."
- Outskirts - "Rally scattered marines, clear hostile contacts from the old-city."
- Metropolis - "Take the bridge, break the Covenant's grip on the city-center."
- The Arbiter - "Infiltrate a Forerunner facility, quell the heresy within."
- The Oracle - "Kill the Heretic Leader. The Prophets' will be done."
- Delta Halo - "A Covenant army stands between you and Regret. Get to work."
- Regret - "You heard the lady. Locate the Prophet, take him down."
- Sacred Icon - "Succeed where others have failed. Lower the shield protecting the Sacred Icon."
- Quarantine Zone - "Parasites, humans - no matter. The Icon must be found."
- Gravemind - "The Prophets have the Index and plan to use it? Over your dead body."
- Uprising - "This is certain: The Brutes shall pay for the blood they have spilled."
- High Charity - "Cortana can handle the Index - stopping Truth is up to you."
- The Great Journey - "Form an unexpected alliance, keep Tartarus from activating the ring."
Terminals[edit]
Like Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary and Halo 4, Halo 2: Anniversary contains hidden terminal videos; these terminals have been stated to be easier to find than before.[13] As in Halo 4 the videos are hosted on Halo Waypoint, not on the disc, and as such require an Internet connection to access.
Skulls[edit]
The game also features its own set of skulls.[2]
Multiplayer[edit]
- Main article: Halo: The Master Chief Collection multiplayer
The Halo 2: Anniversary multiplayer has been stated to be based on a post-patch version of Halo 2 as rather than the shipping version.[14] The game also has an online co-op mode.[4] Split-screen multiplayer is laid out in horizontal view instead of the original vertical orientation.[14]
All original multiplayer maps (including the extra ones in the DLC map packs and Halo 2 for Windows Vista)[15] are featured in the classic multiplayer mode.[2]
Remastered multiplayer[edit]
Six of Halo 2's multiplayer maps h