Halo 2

Halo 2 is a first-person shooter developed by Bungie Studios for the Xbox video game console and is backwards-compatible with Xbox 360. It is the sequel to the game Halo: Combat Evolved, and features a newly built graphics engine and the addition of new elements to the game. Like the Marathon series, the game will further develop the struggle between the human race and a religiously zealous and technologically superior foe.

The release date of Halo 2 was November 9, 2004. This was one of the most highly anticipated games on the Xbox. On the morning of October 14, a leak of the French version of the game was posted on the Internet, and circulated widely. Microsoft, the parent company of Bungie, tried to contain the spread, and pledged to bring legal action against anyone who spread the leaked version. Regardless, Microsoft later touted that there were 1.5 million preorders for Halo 2 in the United States alone and that this guaranteed it to have the largest first-day revenue of any game or movie ever. The game sold 2.4 million copies and earned up to $125 million US in its first 24 hours on store shelves. As of March 2006, the game has sold over eight million copies worldwide.

The official strategy guide is Halo 2: The Official Guide, published by Piggyback Interactive.

Halo 2 (Xbox) latest version: 1.5

Halo 2 (Xbox) Auto-Updates

Halo 2 (Xbox) downloadable content packages:


 * Bonus Map Pack


 * Killtacular Pack


 * Maptacular Pack


 * Blastacular Pack



Campaign
The game is playable in campaign mode either single-player or cooperative. When playing in this mode the player(s) must complete a series of episodes. Some of these episodes require the player to compete as a Covenant hero called The Arbiter, while the majority are still played as Master Chief. Aside from variations caused simply by switching sides in the conflict, most notably The Arbiter is different from Master Chief in that his armor lacks a flashlight and is equipped with a short duration rechargeable form of Active Camouflage that will drop if an action other than movement is taken. There is, however, no difference in weapon use. Both characters still cannot reload the power cores of Covenant plasma weaponry or use the twin plasma cannons on Wraiths that NPCs can use.

There are four levels of competition: Easy, Normal, Heroic and Legendary

You can have a variety of allies: if you are the Master Chief, you are accompanied by Marines and occasionally ODSTs, but if you are the Arbiter you are joined by Grunts, Jackals, Hunters, and Elites.

Multiplayer
There are a wide variety of multiplayer game types, several of which have returned from the original Halo game. A typical deathmatch game called Slayer, a team based Capture the Flag game, an offense/defense version of capture the flag called Assault, a more esoteric free-for-all form of capture the flag called Oddball, and a game extrapolated from a child's game of "it" called Juggernaut, as well as others and the ability to create one's own variants. Of the preset variations present in the original game, only Race is missing, replaced by a similar but different game. Plus you have an option of becoming an Elite in multiplayer.

Unlike its predecessor, Halo 2 allows players to compete with each other over the xbox live online service, in addition to the original's support for split-screen and System Link multiplayer. Halo 2's Xbox Live mode offers a unique and, some would say, innovative approach to online gaming that is intended to alleviate some of the problems that have plagued online first-person shooters in the past. Traditionally, one player sets his or her computer or console up as a game server (or host), specifying the game type and map and configuring other settings. The game software then uses a service like Xbox Live or GameSpy to advertise the game to the world at large; other players choose which game to join based upon criteria such as the map and game options each host is offering as well as the ping times they are able to receive.

In Halo 2, Xbox Live players do not choose to host games, and they do not get to specify individual maps and options to search for. Instead, players sign up for "playlists" that are geared to different styles of play. For example, the "Rumble Pit" playlist offers a variety of "every man for himself" game types, primarily Slayer or variations there of; "Team Skirmish" offers a number of 4-on-4 team games, which are primarily objective-based games like Capture the Flag; "Big Team Battle Skirmish is similar to Team Skirmish but allows teams of up to 8 players. Other playlists allow various things such as matches between different clans. The Xbox Live servers create games automatically from the pool of players that have signed up for each playlist, choosing a game type and map automatically and selecting one player to serve as the game's host . Players can create small "parties" with their friends and enter games together as teammates or, in Rumble Pit, adversaries. They can also play custom gametypes like regular multiplayer.  Unranked gametypes allow people on the same xbox console without an xbox live account to play with them as "guests". If the Xbox console hosting the game drops out, the Xbox Live service automatically selects a new host from among the remaining players so the game can continue. Note: It appears that the host has some advantages over other players during the game due to lag, although (giving him the ability to move/react faster than the other players, and for certain glitches to work), resulting in a form of cheating called bridging in which somebody uses their pc to get host

Since launching in November 2004, the service has been very popular with gamers. While some players resent the loss of individual control inherent in Halo 2's approach to online gaming, others feel it provides a significantly improved gaming experience compared to more traditional online first-person shooters. Bungie's servers match players up by skill level, which tends to eliminate the kind of severely imbalanced games that less-skilled players often consider unfair and unenjoyable. The automatic host selection process also eliminates the ability of the host to exert outsized control over the parameters of the game.

Halo 2 players with Microsoft Passport accounts can log on to bungie.net and obtain extremely detailed statistics on their performance, including level maps for several hundred of the player's most recent games that indicate graphically where and when the player scored a kill or was killed him- or herself.

On April 25, 2005, Bungie released the first four of nine new multiplayer maps over Xbox Live. The first four were Containment and Warlock for free and Sanctuary and Turf for $4.99 until they were made free on June 28, 2005. On July 5, 2005, the final five of the nine new maps: Backwash, Elongation, Gemini, Relic, and Terminal, were released for $11.99 until they were made free on August 30, 2005.

On November 15, 2006, Bungie announced that more new multiplayer maps being made for a Spring 2007 release. They were released on April 17, 2007 and re-released on May 7, 2007 after several glitches on the maps were fixed. The maps are Desolation and Tombstone and they cost a fee of $4.00. Bungie has said that they will be made free starting the first week of July 2007.

Damage system
The damage system in Halo 2 is much different from what it was in Halo: Combat Evolved. The player has a regenerating shield and regenerating health.


 * Shields: The Shield in Halo 2 is slightly weaker than it was in Halo: Combat Evolved, but recharges at a higher rate. It slowly decreases in power as it sustains damage.  After it takes damage, it starts to recharge 2 seconds after the last time damage was sustained.  The power is displayed above the motion tracker in the bottom-left of the screen.

Note: the amount of protection/recharge time it provides varies with difficulty, decreasing as the difficulty is raised


 * Health: In Halo 2, once the shields run out, the player also has a buffer of health. Unlike Halo: Combat Evolved, the health in Halo 2 regenerates after the shield.  The amount of health left is not visible to the player. Bungie's word on this new system is the addition of a Biofoam dispenser in the armor ( so health regenerates after time).

Powerups
There are two types of normal powerups available in Halo 2.


 * Overshield: An enhanced, non-regenerating shield which adds an additional two layers to your shield (red then green). The overshield functions on top of the regular shield - when it is active, the normal shield does not take damage. However, the overshield will gradually reduce in power until it is gone, at which point the player's normal shields will be vulnerable to damage. Unlike Halo: Combat Evolved, the overshield powerup is not available in the single player campaign.


 * Active Camouflage: Drastically reduces the player's visibility for a period of time, making all but a faint outline of him transparent. This effect is reduced if the player is hit by weapons fire, if he or she fires a weapon or throws a grenade, or in some cases if he or she switches weapons. In campaign mode, active camouflage is only available in levels in which you play as the Arbiter. (note. if the Overshield technology and the Active Camouflage are used in conjunction the Active Camouflage is not sophisticated enough to hide the enhanced over shields)

More unique powerups known as skulls exist in campaign mode, as hidden items for the player to find.

Easter Eggs
Like most games Bungie has "hidden" a number of Easter eggs in their games. Some as big as the Scarab gun and a giant soccer ball found on Metropolis, to some as small as a "No Swimming" sign on Zanzibar to make the sign change you must change the date and time on your Xbox or Xbox 360 console to Christmas new years or you can try other times to(also make sure that the time is midnight OR noon). One of the most famous set of Easter eggs in Halo 2 are the skulls. The Halo 2 Skulls are a set of item that are hidden in the campaign mostly under the "legendary" setting, but some skulls can be found even on the "easy" setting. When picked up (usually by pressing "X") these skulls activate effects like headshots making enemies explode like plasma grenades and intensifying explosions. A listing of Easter Eggs in the Halo series can be found here.

UNSC Weapons

 * BR55 Battle Rifle
 * M9 HE-DP Grenade
 * M6C Magnum
 * M90 Shotgun
 * SRS99C-S2 AM Sniper Rifle
 * M7/Caseless Sub-Machine Gun
 * M41 SSR MAV/AW Rocket Launcher

Covenant Weapons

 * Plasma Pistol
 * Plasma Rifle
 * Needler
 * Covenant Carbine
 * Particle Beam Rifle
 * Fuel Rod Cannon
 * Energy Sword
 * Brute Shot
 * Brute Plasma Rifle
 * Plasma Grenade

Campaign

 * The Heretic
 * Armory
 * Cairo Station
 * Outskirts
 * Metropolis
 * The Arbiter
 * Oracle
 * Delta Halo
 * Regret
 * Sacred Icon
 * Quarantine Zone
 * Gravemind
 * Uprising
 * High Charity
 * The Great Journey

Multiplayer

 * Lockout
 * Ascension
 * Midship
 * Ivory Tower
 * Beaver Creek
 * Burial Mounds
 * Colossus
 * Zanzibar
 * Coagulation
 * Headlong
 * Waterworks
 * Foundation
 * Containment
 * Warlock
 * Sanctuary
 * Turf
 * Backwash
 * Elongation
 * Gemini
 * Relic
 * Terminal
 * Desolation (Exclusive to the Xbox version)
 * Tombstone (Exclusive to the Xbox version)
 * District (Exclusive to the PC version)
 * Uplift (Exclusive to the PC version)
 * Example (An example map in the PC version's map editor)

Timeline
October 20, 2552 October 21, 2552
 * Trial of the Arbiter
 * The Heretic
 * The Armory
 * First Battle of Earth
 * Cairo Station
 * Outskirts
 * Metropolis
 * Battle of the Gas Mine
 * The Arbiter
 * The Oracle
 * Battle of Installation 05
 * Delta Halo
 * Regret
 * Changing of the Guard
 * Sacred Icon
 * Quarantine Zone
 * Covenant Civil War
 * Gravemind
 * Uprising
 * High Charity
 * The Great Journey
 * '''Second Battle of Earth

Storyline
The game starts with a Covenant attack on Earth. Master Chief begins on one of the three hundred space defense platforms which orbit the planet. After repelling the Covenant boarding parties, the battle shifts to Earth's surface.

The player engages in urban combat in the city of New Mombasa. After which a Covenant ship makes a slipspace jump which destroys the city, the UNSC ship the In Amber Clad, with the Master Chief aboard gets swept up in the warp field in a desperate effort to follow it.

The player is transported to the vicinity of another Halo ring - the Delta Halo - perhaps many tens of thousands of light years from Earth, on which they land. Also, a power struggle within the Covenant is revealed, with Brutes usurping the role of the Elites. Furthermore, there is a movement, regarded by the Covenant leadership as heretical, which argues that Covenant teachings aren't true. Lastly, we are introduced to an (apparently massive) creature called the Gravemind, which appears to be the controlling mind of the Flood. The creature is obviously highly intelligent and gives the impression of knowing a great deal. It appears to live deep within Delta Halo, out of sight and yet its actual size, although not revealed, may occupy many of the entire hidden underground caverns that encircle the ring.

At some point, when she does not want a remote detonation of In Amber Clad, Cortana becomes separated from the Master Chief and is left within a computer on High Charity.

The Halos, we learn from 343 Guilty Spark, were built to prevent the Flood from spreading throughout the Galaxy, and that the Forerunners who built it were wiped out when they fired it as a "weapon of last resort" at some point in the remote past. In spite of this, the Brute leader Tartarus activates the ring in preparation to fire, to bring about - in his eyes - the Great Journey. The player must fight to retrieve the Index and deactivate the ring before it fires and destroys all sentient life in the Galaxy.

The Index is retrieved and the Installation cannot fire. 343 Guilty Spark reveals that although the Index was removed before Delta Halo had time to complete it's firing sequence, it sent signals to other Installations in the Galaxy, putting them on standby mode. Now, they can be activated remotely from the Ark (assumed to be either on Earth or the Forerunner Ship itself). The game ends here and the credits roll.

After the credits roll a teaser for Halo 3 shows where the flood has completely taken over High Charity with the Gravemind saying "Silence fills the empty grave now that I am gone, but my mind is not at rest, for questions linger on." The scene then changes to a stand in the council chambers of the Hierarchs the Gravemind then says "Now I shall ask, and you shall answer." It then changes to Cortana saying "Alright, shoot".

There is no novelization of this game yet. It is possible that a novelisation that follows the canon laid down by the previous three novels might differ somewhat plotwise from the game, due to various differences between the game and the other novels.

Characters

 * Master Chief Petty Officer SPARTAN John-117
 * Cortana
 * Sergeant Major A.J. Johnson
 * Commander Miranda Keyes
 * Arbiter (Former Supreme Commander of the Fleet of Paticular Justice)
 * SpecOps Commander Rtas 'Vadumee
 * High Prophet of Truth
 * High Prophet of Mercy
 * High Prophet of Regret
 * Brute Chieftain Tartarus
 * 343 Guilty Spark
 * 2401 Penitent Tangent
 * Gravemind
 * Heretic Commander Sesa 'Refumee
 * Fleet Admiral Sir Terrence Hood
 * Staff Sergeant Banks
 * Corporal Perez

Trailers
In 2002, Bungie released the first glimpse of Halo 2 in a pre-rendered CG trailer. The trailer featured the Master Chief in his new Mark VI Armor ( MJOLNIR armor) preparing for battle in a space station. Cortana is also heard and has dialogue with the Chief. It also featured Earth and Covenant CCS-class Battlecruiser in orbit. The battle appears to have the UNSC losing. The events of this trailer were featured in the final version of Halo 2. Some of the events and dialogue of this trailer was changed to fit the finished storyline of the game. Most of this now appears in the Halo 2 level: Cairo Station.


 * Halo 2 Announcement Trailer
 * Halo 2 Cinematic Trailer

Demonstrations
In 2003 at E3, Bungie released footage of a playable in-game demo of the Halo 2 campaign. The demo featured the battle on Earth in the city of New Mombasa. Master Chief, Cortana, Sergeant Johnson, Corporal Perez, Major Easley and Sergeant Banks were all seen/heard in the demo. The demo showed off new features like Dual-Wielding, Vehicle Damage, and Boarding. A new vehicles shown was the Gauss Warthog. Returning vehicles featured the Ghost, Pelican, Covenant Cruiser, and Longsword Fighters. New weapons the Battle Rifle, SMG, and Brute Shot were also shown. The events of this demo were featured in the final version of Halo 2. Some of the events and dialogue of this demo was changed to fit the finished storyline of the game. Most of this now appears in the Halo 2 level: Metropolis.

In 2004 at E3, Bungie released footage of a playable in game demo of the Halo 2 multiplayer. The demo featured the multiplayer map Zanzibar and displayed playable character models the Spartan model and the Elite model. It also showed off some of the weaponry of the game and some special features. The Battle Rifle, SMG, Needler, Rocket Launcher, and Energy Sword were displayed. The Gauss Warthog and the Ghost also made an appearance. Some features included the lock-on feature of the Rocket Launcher, the Duel-Wielding ability, Explosive Barrels, Ghost's boosting, Warthog's horn and Gauss Cannon and Sword Lunging. Afterwards fans were allowed to try out the demo.

Halo 2 Versions
Halo 2 shipped in two versions:

Halo 2 Regular Edition ($49.99 at launch, now $29.99)


 * Standard Xbox game case with Halo 2 box art.
 * Halo 2 for Xbox.
 * Halo 2 game manual from the Humans' perspective.
 * Pamphlet advertising Halo 2: The Official Guide and Halo 2: Original Soundtrack Volume 1.
 * 2 month Xbox Live trial card.

Halo 2 Limited Collector's Edition ($54.99 at launch, now discontinued)


 * Sleek metal case with outer plastic slipcover.
 * Halo 2 for Xbox.
 * Halo 2 game manual from the Covenant's perspective (written as a report from the Arbiter to the Prophet of Truth)
 * "Making of Halo 2" DVD with other featurettes including game design, deleted scenes, concept art, deleted content and more.
 * Pamphlet advertising Halo 2: The Official Guide and Halo 2: Original Soundtrack Volume 1.
 * Booklet called Conversations from the Universe.
 * 7-Eleven Slurpee coupon (advertising the three Limited Edition Halo 2 Slurpee cups).
 * 2 month Xbox Live trial card specially printed with Halo 2 imagery.



Reaction
Halo 2 was generally well received, but it was also heavly criticized for its short campaign (though it still has an amazing story line) and unbalanced weapons. Many reviewers praised the audio for being especially vivid. Multiplayer especially was noted in being the best on Xbox Live at the time. Game Informer, along with numerous other publications, rated it higher than Halo: Combat Evolved, citing enhanced multiplayer and less repetitive gameplay. Halo 2 received multiple awards, including Best Console game and Best Sound Design from the Interactive Achievement Awards. Most critics noted that Halo 2 stuck with the formula that made its predecessor successful, and was alternatively praised and faulted for this decision. EGM gave it a 10/10. The avarage score for Halo 2 was/is 7.2/10, while the original had a score of 9.7/10.

Trivia

 * Due to the limited time before release, the original last three levels were cut.


 * Bungie has referred to Halo 2 as "...a lot like Halo 1. Only it's Halo 1 on fire, going 120 miles per hour in a hospital zone, being chased by helicopters and ninjas. And the ninjas are all on fire too." This phrase inspired various references, in the game and throughout the community, to burning ninjas.
 * A song, known as "Rememberance" at the start up screen, (The un-edited version found on the "Halo 2 Original Sound Track Volume 1") just happens to play for exactly 1:17 or "117".

Halo 2: Original Soundtrack
Halo 2: Original Soundtrack is the soundtrack for Halo 2. Two volumes were released, almost two years apart from each other. Volume One was released on November 9th, 2004 and Volume Two was released on April 25th, 2006. All music was created by Martin O'Donnell and Michael Salvatori except where noted.

Related Links
Internal
 * Halo 2 Credits
 * Action Figures
 * List of Halo 2 changes
 * I Love Bees
 * List of "Seven" references in Halo
 * Early Halo 2 Script
 * Halo 2 PC
 * Halo 2 Combat Evolved

External
 * Bungie's Official Halo 2 Site
 * Halo Easter Eggs- Halo Easter Eggs, Glitches and forums
 * Xbox.com's Official Halo 2 Site
 * Halo.Bungie.Org
 * Halo 2 Vista website and forums - a community for gamers & modders of Halo 2 Vista
 * HALO2PC.org - news about the Vista version of HALO 2
 * IGN E3 2004 Preview
 * "Frankie's Bungie Updates"
 * Howstuffworks article on the game AI of Halo 2.
 * HaloWiki.net Another halo wiki, focusing mainly on multiplayer. Extremely in-depth.
 * Halo Planet
 * Documentry A Halo documentry.