Registration has been disabled and the moderation extension has been turned off.

Contact an admin on Discord or EDF if you want an account. Also fuck bots.

Halo: Difference between revisions

From Encyclopedia Dramatica
Jump to navigation Jump to search
imported>Spartans312
No edit summary
imported>Mezzmers
No edit summary
 
(44 intermediate revisions by 17 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{Other uses|Halo (disambiguation){{!}}Halo}}
[[Image:Halo gameplay.gif|thumb|[[Typical]] Halo gameplay.]]
{{pp-vandalism|expiry=27 January 2014|small=yes}}
{{pp-move-indef}}
{{Infobox VG series
| title =
| image = [[File:Halo-Logo.png|264px]]
| caption = The current logo of the franchise.
| developer = '''Primary'''<br />[[Bungie]] (2001–2010)<br />[[Ensemble Studios]] (2009)<br />[[343 Industries]] (2011–present)<br />'''Ports'''<br />[[Gearbox Software]] (2003)<br />[[Westlake Interactive]] (2003)<br />[[Pi Studios]] (2007)<br/>[[Microsoft Studios (game studio)|Microsoft Studios]] (2007)<br/>'''DLC and Support'''<br/>[[Certain Affinity]]<br/>[[Saber Interactive]]<br/>[[Robot Entertainment]]
| publisher = '''Primary'''<br />[[Microsoft Studios]]
| platforms = [[Xbox]] (2001–2004)<br/>[[Microsoft Windows]] (2003–2007)<br/>[[Mac&nbsp;OS&nbsp;X]] (2003)<br/>[[Xbox 360]] (2007–present)
| platform of origin = Xbox
| first release version = ''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]''
| first release date = November 15, 2001
| latest release version = ''[[Halo 4]]''
| latest release date = November 6, 2012
| website = [http://web.archive.org/web/20110204124537/http://halowaypoint.com/ Halo Waypoint]
}}
'''''Halo''''' is a multi-billion dollar [[science fiction]] video game franchise created by [[Bungie]] and now managed by [[343 Industries]] and owned by [[Microsoft Studios (game studio)|Microsoft Studios]]. The series centers on an interstellar war between humanity and a [[theocratic]] alliance of aliens known as the [[Covenant (Halo)|Covenant]]. The Covenant are led by their religious leaders, The Prophets, and worship an ancient civilization known as the [[Forerunners (Halo)|Forerunners]], who perished in combat with the parasitic [[Flood (Halo)|Flood]]. Many of the games center on the experiences of [[Master Chief (Halo)|Master Chief]] John-117, a [[cybernetics|cybernetically]] enhanced human super-soldier, and his [[artificial intelligence]] (AI) companion, [[Cortana]]. The term "Halo" refers to the [[Halo (megastructure)|Halo rings]]: large, habitable structures that were created by the Forerunners to destroy the Flood. They are similar to the [[Orbital (The Culture)|Orbitals]] in [[Iain M Banks]]' ''[[Culture series|Culture]]'' novels, and author [[Larry Niven]]'s ''[[Ringworld]]'' concept.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/704/704806p6.html |title = The Influence of Literature and Myth in Videogames|accessdate = 2007-08-12|last = Perry|first = Douglas C.|date = 2006-05-17|publisher = IGN|page = 6|quote = [Frank O'Connor, Bungie Studios] The idea of a Ringworld, first posited in sci-fi by Larry Niven in his novel of the same name, is actually a variation of a [[Dyson Sphere]], a fantastically impossible object described by the 20th century physicist, [[Freeman Dyson]]... icosohedron-shaped artificial worlds have also been used by [[Iain M. Banks]] and others because they are cool. And that's why we used one.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| last=Grazier| first=Kevin R.| title=''Halo'' Science 101| url=http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20070502/grazier_02.shtml| date=2007-05-02| publisher=[[CMP Media]]| accessdate=2007-08-12}}</ref>


The games in the series have been praised as being among the best [[first-person shooter]]s on a [[video game console]], and are considered the [[Xbox]]'s "[[killer app]]".<ref name="GWR08-Hardware">{{cite book| editor= Craig Glenday| title= Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition 2008| series= [[Guinness World Records]]| date= 2008-03-11| publisher= Guinness| isbn= 978-1-904994-21-3| chapter= Hardware History II| page= 27}}</ref> This has led to the term "''Halo'' killer" being used to describe console games that aspire, or are considered, to be better than ''Halo''.<ref name=halokiller>{{cite web| last=Islam| first=Zak| date=2011-07-11| url=http://www.playstationlifestyle.net/2010/07/11/pachter-respawn-entertainment%E2%80%99s-next-game-will-be-halo-killer/| title=Respawn Entertainment's Next Game Will be Halo Killer| publisher=PlayStation LifeStyle| accessdate=2012-07-23}}</ref> Fueled by the success of ''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]'', and immense marketing campaigns from publisher Microsoft, its sequels went on to break various sales records. ''[[Halo 3]]'' sold more than [[United States dollar|US$]]170&nbsp;million worth of copies in the first twenty-four hours of release, breaking the record set by ''[[Halo 2]]'' three years prior.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.gamespot.com/news/xbox-360-exclusive-halo-3-registers-biggest-day-in-us-entertainment-history-with-170-million-in-sales-6179940| title = Xbox&nbsp;360 Exclusive Halo 3 Registers Biggest Day in Us Entertainment History with $170 Million in Sales| publisher=[[GameSpot]]| author=[[Microsoft Game Studios]]| date=2007-09-27| accessdate=2008-06-03}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/09/22/1189881838207.html| title=The $300m space invader| publisher=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]| date=2007-09-23| first=Laura| last=Parker| accessdate=2008-06-03}}</ref> ''[[Halo: Reach]]'', in turn, broke the record set by ''Halo 3'', selling US$200&nbsp;million worth of copies on its first day of release.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.reuters.com/article/2010/09/16/us-microsoft-sales-idUSTRE68F0AC20100916| title=Microsoft "Halo: Reach" sales hit $200 million on 1st day|work=[[Reuters.com]]|date=September 16, 2010| accessdate=June 13, 2011 |last1=Slodkowski |first1=Antoni |last2=Izumi |first2=Sachi}}</ref> Continuing the trend, ''[[Halo 4]]'' broke ''[[Halo: Reach]]'s'' record on its opening day by grossing US$220 million. The games have sold over 50&nbsp;million copies worldwide, with the games alone grossing almost $3.4&nbsp;billion.<ref name="revenue1">{{cite web| url=http://www.joystiq.com/2012/11/12/halo-4-made-220-million-day-one-on-track-to-300-million-in-fi/| title=Halo 4 made $220 million day one, on track to $300 million in first week|work=joystiq.com|date=November 12, 2012| accessdate=November 12, 2012|last1=Sliwinski |first1=Alexander}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.videogamer.com/xbox360/halo_4/news/halo_4_sales_in_the_region_of_4_million_next_game_in_series_already_underway.html| title=Halo 4 sales in the region of 4 million, next game in series already underway|work=videogamer.com|date=December 6, 2012| accessdate=December 6, 2012|last1=Orry |first1=James}}</ref>
'''''[[Halo]]''''', is an overrated, over-hyped [[FPS]] game with outdated controls, [[Runescape|terrible]] graphics, shitty characters, and a [[Retarded|convoluted]] storyline that was once considered "good" only because most gamers have never read a chapter book in their lives. The online multiplayer is scientifically designed to get on your nerves. The storyline also [[Theft|took several creative liberties from]] some shitty 1970's book called ''Ringworld'', that [[Shit nobody cares about|nobody cared about]], and also ripped off vehicles, designs, and Sgt. Apone (Johnson) from ''Aliens'', which everyone ''did'' care about. The game was credited for saving [[Microsoft]]'s [[Xbox]] from being branded a corporate money and timesink.


Strong sales of the games led to the franchise's expansion to other media; there are multiple bestselling novels, [[graphic novel]]s, and [[List of Halo media|other licensed products]]. ''[[Halo Wars]]'' took the franchise into new [[video game genre]] territory, as it is a [[real-time strategy game]], while the rest of the games in the series are first-person shooters. Beyond the original trilogy, Bungie developed the expansion ''[[Halo 3: ODST]]'', and a prequel, ''[[Halo: Reach]]'', their last project for the franchise. A high-definition remake of the first game entitled ''[[Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary]]'' was released on November 15, 2011, exactly ten years after the release of the original. A new installment in a second trilogy of games, ''[[Halo 4]]'', was released on November 6, 2012.
== Games ==


The cultural impact of the ''Halo'' series has been compared by writer [[Brian Bendis]] to that of ''[[Star Wars]]''.<ref name="IGN-Marvel">{{cite web| url= http://comics.ign.com/articles/789/789811p1.html| last= George| first=Richard| date=2007-05-18| title=IGN Exclusive Interview – Halo: Uprising| publisher=IGN| accessdate=2008-04-24}}</ref> The collective group of fans of the series is referred to as the "Halo Nation".<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/article/259674| title=Halo 3 hype is justified| work=[[Toronto Star]]| date=2007-09-24| author=Dawson, Brett| accessdate=2007-10-04}}</ref><ref name="halo 101">{{cite web|url=http://halo.xbox.com/en-us/abouthalo/halo101|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20100425024422/http://halo.xbox.com/en-US/abouthalo/halo101|archivedate=2010-04-25|title=The Halo Universe 101|work=halo.xbox.com|publisher=Microsoft|accessdate=2009-11-19}}</ref>
=== ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' ===


==Story overview==
[[Image:HaloMyFirstFPS.jpg|thumb|It's like saying a bike with training wheels is better because anyone can ride it.]]
In the distant past, an intellectual race called the [[Forerunners (Halo)|Forerunners]] fought an alien parasite known as the [[Flood (Halo)|Flood]]. The Flood, which spread through infestation of sentient life, overran much of the [[Milky Way Galaxy]]. One of the races affected was humanity, who went into space and came into conflict with the Forerunners. Exhausted by their war and after having explored all other options, the Forerunners conceived a weapon of last resort to combat the Flood. Using an installation known as the Ark, they built large ring-shaped megastructures known as [[Halo (megastructure)|Halos]]. The Halo Array, when activated, would destroy all sentient life in the galaxy—depriving the Flood of their food. Delaying as long as they could, the Forerunners activated the rings and disappeared.<ref name="halo 101"/>


Tens of thousands of years later, in the 26th century, humanity—under the auspices of the [[United Nations Space Command]], or UNSC—colonize many worlds thanks to the development of faster-than-light "[[Slipstream (science fiction)|slipspace]]" travel. Tensions escalate between the older and more stable "Inner Colonies" and the remote "Outer Colonies", leading to [[civil war]]. The UNSC creates an elite group of enhanced supersoldiers, known as [[Spartan-IIIs|Spartans]], to suppress the rebellion covertly.<ref name="xbox.com-backstory">{{cite web|author=|archivedate=2007-02-24|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20070224233956/http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo/storyline.htm|url=http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo/storyline.htm|title=The Halo Timeline|work=Xbox.com|publisher=Microsoft|accessdate=2009-07-30}}</ref> In the year 2525, the human colony of Harvest falls under attack by a theocratic alliance of [[Extraterrestrial life|alien]] races known as the [[Covenant (Halo)|Covenant]]. The Covenant leadership declares humanity heretics and an affront to their gods—the Forerunners—and begins a [[Religious war|holy war]] of genocide. The Covenant's superior technology and numbers prove decisive advantages; though effective, the Spartans are too few in number to turn the tide of battle in humanity's favor.
The original ''Halo'' was known for being the only "good" [[Xbox]] game that wasn't available on other platforms. It received [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REJE2eBc_8c extremely good] reviews from every major publication thanks to its [[lie|great]] level design that repeated the same goddamn gray corridor every 30 feet, which cut loading times. And as if the repetition wasn't bad enough, halfway through the game, you get to play through each level BACKWARDS!


In 2552, the Covenant arrive at Reach, the UNSC's last major stronghold beyond Earth, and launch an invasion of the planet. The last Spartans and UNSC military are unable to stop the Covenant from bombarding the surface with plasma. Following directives to avoid leading the Covenant to Earth, [[Cortana]], the [[Artificial intelligence|AI]] aboard the fleeing UNSC ship ''Pillar of Autumn'', selects random coordinates that lead the ship to a Halo installation. The Covenant follow, damaging the ''Autumn'' and leading its crew to take the fight to the ring's surface. The Covenant accidentally release Flood imprisoned on the ring; in order to nullify the threat, the ring's AI caretaker, [[343 Guilty Spark]], enlists the help of the Spartan, [[Master Chief (Halo)|John-117]], or Master Chief. However, before the pair can activate Halo's defenses, Cortana reveals that Halo's activation would mean their own destruction. Master Chief and Cortana instead detonate the ''Autumn''{{'}}s engines, destroying Halo and preventing the escape of the Flood. They return to Earth with a few other human survivors, warning of an impending Covenant attack.
The original story involved the [[Pretty cool guy|Master Chief]], a 26th century [[300|Spartan]], who killed a fucktonne of [[Muslim|zealots]] and stopped a giant ring in outer space from fucking up everyone's shit, thus saving world/universe/day/whatever.  


The Covenant, unaware of the destructive nature of the rings, attempt to fire another ring, [[Installation 05]], in order to fulfill their religious prophecy.<ref name=wind>{{cite video game | title = [[Halo 2]] | developer = Bungie | publisher = Microsoft Game Studios|year = 2004 | platform =Xbox| level = Sacred Icon | quote = '''Mercy''': Halo. Its divine wind will rush through the stars, propelling all who are worthy along the path to salvation.}}</ref> and to do so launch an attack on Earth. Helping the Chief to defend the Earth are Sergeant [[Avery J. Johnson|Avery Johnson]] and Commander [[Miranda Keyes]]. One race in the Covenant, the Elites, learn the truth about the rings, and join forces with humanity in order to stop the firing of the ring. Though they are successful, the unexpected shutdown of the installation triggers a fail-safe protocol, priming all the rings for firing from one location, referred to as the [[The Ark (Halo)|Ark]].<ref>{{cite video game |title=[[Halo 2]] |developer=Bungie|publisher=Microsoft Game Studios|platform=Xbox |quote='''343 Guilty Spark:''' Fail-safe protocol: in the event of unexpected shut-down, the entire system will move to standby status. All installations are now ready for remote activation. / '''Commander Keyes:''' Remote activation? From here? / '''343 Guilty Spark:''' Don't be ridiculous. [...] Why... the Ark, of course.}}</ref> Still oblivious to the true nature of the rings, the Covenant [[High Prophet of Truth]] and the remaining loyalist Covenant proceed to head to Earth, where they believe the Ark is buried. A battle rages on Earth between human forces, the Covenant and a Flood-infected army. Eventually, the Covenant is repulsed and flees through a slipspace portal, and the Flood is purged from Earth, resulting in the devastation of Africa.
It was also notable for having a handgun that could [[headshot]] people from literally half a mile away. Every multiplayer game became a chorus of [[Butthurt|moans and profanity]] as just getting within 500 yards of a competent player would result in death.


Following a message [[Cortana]] left aboard the Flood ship, the Chief, Arbiter, Elites, Johnson, Keyes and their troops follow Truth through the portal. Joining them is 343 Guilty Spark, who aids the Chief as he has no function to fulfill after the destruction of his ringworld. Traveling through the portal, the humans and Elites discover an immense artificial structure known as the [[The Ark (Halo)|Ark]], far beyond the edges of the Milky Way galaxy. The Flood arrive ''en masse'' aboard ''High Charity'', the Covenant's 'holy city', and begin infesting the installation, Johnson is captured by Truth. Gravemind, a being representing the [[Collective intelligence|group-mind]] of the Flood, actually aids Arbiter and the Chief in finding Truth, since the activation of the Ark would doom its species. They find Keyes, who had tried to mount a solo rescue, dead and Johnson being used by Truth to activate the Ark. The Chief and Arbiter stop the activation, and Arbiter kills Truth before he can be consumed by the Flood. The group then discover that the Ark is constructing a new Halo ring to replace the one the Chief destroyed. The Chief decides to activate this Halo; the ringworld would eliminate the Flood infestation on the Ark while sparing the galaxy at large from destruction. To activate the ring, the Chief rescues Cortana, who has the Activation Index of the destroyed Halo, from ''High Charity''.
If the player completed the game on Legendary difficulty, he was rewarded by a nigger and an elite hugging. Bungie's innovative trend of rewarding effort with bestiality never really caught on with other developers.


The Chief, Arbiter, and Johnson travel to Halo's control room to activate the ring. Guilty Spark explains that because the ring is not yet complete, a premature activation will destroy it and the Ark. When Johnson ignores his warning, Guilty Spark kills him to protect "his" ring. The Chief and Arbiter destroy Guilty Spark, activate the ring, and escape the ring's self-destruction on the UNSC frigate ''Forward Unto Dawn''. However, the force of Halo's blast causes the slipspace portal to collapse, resulting in only the front half of ''Forward Unto Dawn'', carrying the Arbiter, making it back to Earth. Believing the Chief to have perished, a memorial service is held on Earth for the fallen heroes of the Human-Covenant war. After the memorial service, the Arbiter and his Elite brethren departs for their home planet. But it is shown that the rear half of ''Forward Unto Dawn'' is floating in space, with the Chief and Cortana on board. Cortana activates a distress beacon and the Chief goes into hibernation.
==== ''Halo PC'' ====


Four years after the destruction of the Ark, the Chief and Cortana awake to find they are being attacked by a Covenant splinter group. Caught in an artificial [[gravity well]], they are pulled down, with the remains of the ''Forward Unto Dawn'', onto the artificial Forerunner planet of Requiem.<ref name="halo4:Story">{{cite web|url=http://halo.xbox.com/halo4#!an-epic-universe/story/6eeabce4-dc80-4aa3-b2aa-2f5d123b7514|title=Halo 4 Official Site: STORY|work=halo.xbox.com|publisher=[[343 Industries]]|accessdate=2012-06-10}}</ref><ref name="oxme3">{{cite web|url=http://www.oxm.co.uk/42369/halo-4-screens-promethean-knights-sticky-launcher-and-forerunner-scattershot/|title=Halo 4 screens: Promethean Knights, Sticky Launcher and Forerunner Scattershot|publisher=''[[Official Xbox Magazine|Official Xbox Magazine UK]]''|first=Edwin|last=Evans-Thirlwell|date=2012-06-05|accessdate=2012-06-10}}</ref> Upon receiving a signal from the UNSC ship ''Infinity'', which received the ''Dawn'''s signal and is eventually captured in the gravity well, they go to the planet's core to deactivate what seem to be signal jammers: but, instead, they release a hostile Forerunner warrior called the Didact. The Chief and Cortana narrowly escape and, fighting both Covenant and AI soldiers called Prometheans, they reach the ''Infinity''. During this time, Cortana reveals that she is becoming Rampant, a state in AIs when their knowledge base becomes too large and gradually go insane. Upon going to destroy the gravity well, a Forerunner consciousness called the Librarian tells him about the Didact: during the crisis with the Flood, the Didact tried to use a device called the Composer (meant to turn lifeforms into digital beings immune to infection, but instead created horrific abominations) on humanity, a race he hated because of the war between their races, turning them into an army to fight the Flood. He was imprisoned by his own race, with Forerunner soldiers and humans he had already converted, the Prometheans, as his guardians.
A shitty port of ''Halo'' to the PC by [[Jews|Gearbox Software]]. Despite the dated graphics, you needed a "[[Shit|high-end]]" PC to run it decently. The only reason you would want to play ''Halo PC'' is for the single-player campaign, as the multiplayer is complete ass. No votekick, no voice chat, laggy online play, and a community of retards.


Defying the ''Infinity'' captain's orders to retire the increasingly erratic Cortana and escaping to chase after the Didact, he tries to deny him the Composer, hidden in an asteroid belt near one of the old Halo rings. He fails to stop the Didact, who reactivates the Composer and converts the humans on the research station set up to study it. Following the Composer through slipspace to Earth, the Chief and Cortana get on board and prepared to destroy the Composer and the Didact. The Chief brings a [[Nuclear weapon|nuke]] on board, while Cortana sends her Rampant personality spikes into the system, disrupting the Didact's shield. The Didact tries to kill the Chief, but Cortana intervenes, allowing the Chief to defeat the Didact and set off the nuke, destroying the Composer and saving the Earth. Cortana performs one final act for the Chief, shielding him from the blast and leaving him for the UNSC ships to rescue: but, while the Master Chief survives, Cortana perishes with the Composer.
=== Halo Lag Edition (a.k.a. ''Halo Trial'') ===


==Game series==
And you thought that ''Halo PC'' was laggy? Then you'll want to try the Halo Trial, which has the worst netcode in the history of online multiplayer games. Forget playing this freeware demo; it's hardly even a game since it doesn't even work. And if you do manage to get the multiplayer to work by buying the fastest internet connection possible, you'll meet players even more annoying and idiotic than the ones who play the full version. The only thing the Halo trial is good for is the one campaign level that it comes with, but the fun of the campaign level quickly diminishes after you save and quit, sit through the 20-minute video of Sgt Johnson screaming at you to buy several copies of the full game, then come back later only to find that [[Trolling|the trial doesn't actually save your game]].


===Original trilogy===
=== ''Halo Custom Edition'' ===
<div class="floatright">
<timeline>
ImageSize = width:250 height:500
PlotArea = left:50 bottom:10 top:10 right:0


DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy
Another shitty port of ''Halo'' to the PC, only with no campaign mode and the ability to play poorly-made custom maps. Gearbox released some shitty hack tools to go along with ''Halo CE'' so you can make your own maps. However, there are really only 3 known custom maps in existence. Because of the lack of good modding tools, many ''Halo CE'' fans decided to make their own hack tools, which are almost better than the Gearbox ones, aside from the fact that nearly all of them were written with .NET Framework and have constant exception errors or just don't work at all. Before Halo 2 for Vista came out, some maps ported from the Xbox version turned ''Halo CE'' into the poor man's Halo 2 multiplayer.
Period = from:01/01/2001 till:01/01/2013
TimeAxis = orientation:vertical
ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:1 start:2001
ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:1 start:2001


Colors =
=== ''Halo 2'' ===
id:black value:rgb(0,0,0)
id:red value:rgb(0.9,0.05,0.05)


# there is no automatic collision detection,
[[Image:Halo_2.jpg|thumb|''Halo 2'' was basically just ''Halo 1'' with bugged cutscenes, better textures and no atmosphere.]]
# so shift texts up or down manually to avoid overlap


Define $dx = 25 # shift text to right side of bar
Like any somewhat decent game that makes a lot of money, the designers had to [[FUBAR|fuck it up beyond all recognition]]. They took all of the redeeming qualities of the original and used them as enemas to get more "innovative" content out for the new game. The graphics were glitchy, the physics were non-existent, the weapons were shit, and the singleplayer levels were only slightly less shitty. Unfortunately, the 1000 years spent in MS Paint to improve those levels resulted in the multiplayer levels suffering tremendously. The game somehow sold even more copies than the first, and millions of 13-year-olds blindly embraced it as a gift from [[God]].


# shift texts up or down when two have same year
While the story of the first ''Halo'' was passable, the story of the second was riddled with plot holes, like how the Covenant somehow find Earth and (conveniently) a brand new Halo ring, or how they just randomly throw in the Venus Fly Trap from the ''Little Shop of Horrors'' halfway into the game.
Define $up = shift:($dx,3)
Define $dw = shift:($dx,-8)


PlotData=
''Halo 2'' also introduced a new playable character&mdash;The Arbiter&mdash;a Covenant warrior who was [[you have no friends|shunned by his people]] for letting the Master Chief blow up the first ring.
bar:Games anchor:till color:blue width:17 textcolor:blue align:left fontsize:S mark:(line, white) shift:($dx,-4)
from:start till:end
at:15/11/2001 text:"[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]"
at:09/11/2004 text:"[[Halo 2]]"
at:25/09/2007 text:"[[Halo 3]]"
at:03/03/2009 text:"[[Halo Wars]]"
at:22/09/2009 text:"[[Halo 3: ODST]]"
at:14/09/2010 text:"[[Halo: Reach]]"
at:15/11/2011 text:"[[Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary]]"
at:06/11/2012 text:"[[Halo 4]]"
</timeline>
</div>


{{Main|Halo: Combat Evolved|Halo 2|Halo 3}}
We also get introduced to a stupid bitch who (despite being shown piloting extremely recklessly) [[affirmative action|somehow became a captain]], some [[Catholics|prophets]], the aforementioned Venus fly trap, and an entirely new alien race that suddenly spread throughout the entire universe and took over the Covenant overnight.
The games of the main ''Halo'' trilogy were developed by [[Bungie]], and are [[first-person shooter]]s in which the player experiences most action from the protagonist's perspective.<ref name="gamesTM-61">{{cite journal| author= Staff| year=2007| month=September|title=Hail to the Chief| journal=[[gamesTM]]| publisher=[[Imagine Publishing]]| issue=61| pages=30–41}}</ref> The first title in the series is the [[Xbox]] version of ''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]'', released on November 15, 2001.<ref name=meta>{{cite web| url=http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/xbx/halo?q=halo| title=Halo on Metacritic| publisher=[[Metacritic]]| accessdate=2007-06-11}}</ref> The game was initially intended to be released for [[Mac OS]] and [[Microsoft Windows]] platforms, until [[Microsoft]]'s purchase of Bungie in 2000 led to the game becoming an Xbox launch title and platform exclusive.<ref name=bungie.net20 /><ref name=microsoftpressrelease>{{cite web| date=2000-06-19| url=http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2000/Jun00/BungiePR.mspx| title=Microsoft to Acquire Bungie Software| publisher=[[Microsoft]]| accessdate=2008-03-11}}</ref> ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' introduced many gameplay and plot themes common to the whole trilogy. Players battle various aliens on foot and in vehicles to complete objectives, while attempting to uncover the secrets of the [[eponym]]ous Halo. One concept introduced in ''Halo: Combat Evolved'', is limiting the number of weapons players could carry to two, forcing them to carefully select their preferred armament.<ref name=gamespotreview>{{cite web| last=Fielder| first= Joe| date=2001-11-09| url=http://www.gamespot.com/xbox/action/halo/review.html| title=''Halo: Combat Evolved'' review at GameSpot| publisher= [[GameSpot]]| accessdate= 2006-08-02}}</ref> Players fight with ranged and melee attacks, as well as a limited number of grenades. Bungie refers to the "weapons-grenades-melee" format as the "Golden Triangle of ''Halo''",<ref name="golden">{{cite video|people=Bakken, Lars, et al. |title=[[Halo 3 marketing|Is Quisnam Protero Damno!]]|publisher= [[Bungie]]|location=Washington|date=2007}}</ref> which has remained fundamentally unchanged throughout the trilogy. In ''Halo: Combat Evolved'', the player's health is measured in both [[hit point]]s and a continually recharging energy shield.<ref name=gamespyreview>{{cite web| last=Accardo| first=Sal| date=2001-11-15| url=http://wayback.archive.org/web/20061019185322/http://archive.gamespy.com/reviews/november01/halo/| title=GameSpy's review of ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' for the Xbox| publisher=[[GameSpy]]| accessdate=2006-09-02}}</ref> A [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]] and [[Mac OS X]] [[porting|port]] was later developed by [[Gearbox Software]], and released on September 30 and November 11, 2003 respectively.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/pc/halo| title=''Halo: Combat Evolved'' PC version on Metacritic| publisher=[[Metacritic]]| accessdate=2006-08-22}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.gamespot.com/mac/action/halo/index.html| title=''Halo: Combat Evolved'' Mac version at GameSpot| publisher=[[Gamespot]]| accessdate= 2006-08-22}}</ref> A stand-alone expansion, entitled ''Halo: Custom Edition'', was released as a Windows exclusive, and allowed players to create custom content for the game.


Its sequel, ''[[Halo 2]]'' was released on the Xbox on November 9, 2004 and later for [[Windows Vista]] on May 17, 2007. For the first time, the game was released in two different editions: a standard edition with just the game disc and traditional Xbox packaging; and the Collector's Edition with a specially designed aluminum case, along with an additional bonus DVD, extra booklet, and slightly different user manual. ''Halo 2'' introduced new gameplay elements, chief among them the ability to hold and fire two weapons simultaneously, known as "dual wielding".<ref name="ugo halo2 retro">{{cite web|url=http://www.ugo.com/games/halo-retrospective/?cur=halo-2|title=''Halo'' Retrospective: Halo 2|publisher=[[UGO Networks]]|accessdate=2008-02-19}}</ref> Unlike its predecessor, ''Halo 2'' fully supported online multiplayer via [[Xbox Live]]. The game uses "matchmaking" to facilitate joining online matches by grouping players looking for certain types of games.<ref name="ugo halo2 retro"/> This was a change from the more traditional "server list" approach, which was used to find matches in online games at this time. Upon release, ''Halo 2'' became the game played by the most people on the Xbox Live service that week; it retained this title for over two years — the longest streak any game has held the spot.<ref name=halo2mostplayed>{{cite web|date = 2006-02-21|url=http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=62981|title=Halo 2 tops Live most-played list|work=[[Eurogamer]]|accessdate=2006-12-10}}</ref>
''Halo 2'' was one of the first and most popular games for [[Xbox Live]]. Unfortunately, its multiplayer had even more holes than its storyline. Countless glitches existed, the most notable of which was the ability of the player to become a rubber bouncy ball and escape the map boundaries. [[Trolls|Master Rusemen]] found ways to exploit the networking and force people to endure unbearable lag and random bullshit like tanks being destroyed with a single shot from a sniper rifle, sword attacks from impossible distances, etc.


''[[Halo 3]]'' is the final game in the main ''Halo'' trilogy, ending the [[story arc]] begun in ''Halo: Combat Evolved''.<ref name="h3announcement">{{cite web |url = http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&link=Halo3Announcement |title = Halo 3 Announced |accessdate = 2007-08-06 |author = Achronos |authorlink = Bungie Studios |coauthors = Bungie |date = 2006-05-09 |work = Inside Bungie |publisher = Bungie.net}}</ref> The game was released on the [[Xbox 360]] on September 25, 2007.<ref name="h3releasedate">{{cite web |url = http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&cid=12467 |title = Finish the Fight on September 25, 2007| accessdate = 2007-05-16| author = Luke Smith| date = 2007-05-15|publisher = Bungie Software |quote = On September 25, 2007, players will be able to finish the fight they started in Halo: Combat Evolved and continued in Halo 2. Halo 3 will release in Europe on September 26, 2007}}</ref> It adds to the series new vehicles, new weapons, and a class of items called equipment.<ref name="ignburning">{{cite web |url = http://uk.xbox360.ign.com/articles/812/812177p1.html |title = Burn, Baby! Burn! |accessdate = 2007-08-10 |author = Goldstein, Hilary |date = 2007-08-10 |work = [[IGN]] |pages =1–2}}</ref> The game also includes a limited map-editing tool, known as the Forge, which allows players to insert game objects, such as weapons and crates, into existing multiplayer map geometry.<ref name="Bungie-podcast082707">{{cite video|people=Jarrard, Brian; O'Connor, Frank; Smith, Luke| url = http://wayback.archive.org/web/20120206033704/http://download.microsoft.com/download/d/8/5/d85ce76f-0cb2-41df-aaae-a8c96790332b/Bungie_Podcast_082807.mp3| title = Official Bungie Podcast: 08/28/07| accessdate = 2007-09-02| publisher = [[Bungie]]| date = 2007-08-28}}</ref> Players can also save a recording of their gameplay sessions, and view them as video, from any angle.<ref name="edge179">{{cite journal |journal = [[Edge (magazine)|Edge (UK)]] |title = Finish the Fight |month = September | year = 2007 |issue = 179 |pages = 66–77 |issn = 1350-1593 |accessdate = 2007-08-07 |url = http://www.edge-online.co.uk/archives/2007/08/edge_179.php | archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20070930183634/http://www.edge-online.co.uk/archives/2007/08/edge_179.php | archivedate = September 30, 2007}}</ref>
''Halo 2''&#39;s design improvements, such as the ability to hold two guns at once, were hailed as innovative, new, and totally original by people who had never played [[Marathon]], [[Goldeneye]], [[Unreal Tournament]] or [[Perfect Dark]].


===Reclaimer trilogy===
==== ''Halo 2 Vista'' ====
{{main|Halo 4}}
At [[Electronic Entertainment Expo|E3]] 2011, Microsoft announced the development of ''[[Halo 4]]'', as the first entry in a new series of ''Halo'' games dubbed the ''Reclaimer'' trilogy.<ref>[http://uk.gamespot.com/events/pax2011/story.html?sid=6331567 343 Industries opens up on Halo 4, The Reclaimer Trilogy – GameSpot.com<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>[http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-08-28-halo-4-5-6-the-reclaimer-trilogy Halo 4, 5, 6 the "Reclaimer Trilogy" News • News • Xbox 360 • Eurogamer.net<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> ''Halo 4'' was released worldwide on November 6, 2012.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/17755467|title=Halo 4 release date confirmed for November by Microsoft|date=18 April 2012|publisher=BBC|work=[[Newsbeat|BBC Radio 1 Newsbeat]]|accessdate=June 14, 2012}}</ref>


===Spin-offs===
A shitty port of ''Halo 2'' to the PC. It was exactly the same as ''Halo 2'' for the Xbox, except it has [[lie|better graphics]] and a [[shit nobody cares about|map editor]]. To get the ability to play a three year old Xbox game, all you had to do was downgrade to [[Vista|Shitsta]].
{{Main|Halo Wars|Halo 3: ODST|Halo: Reach}}
<!-- consider adding a page / some info about Halo: CE Anniversary, the remake of Halo: Combat Evolved. -->
<!-- expand a bit more, update and tensify (not a word, but whatever) -->
The success of the main ''Halo'' trilogy spurred the creation of spin-off games. ''[[Halo Wars]]'' is a [[real-time strategy]] game developed by [[Ensemble Studios]] for the [[Xbox 360]]. Set in the year 2531, the game takes place 21 years prior to the events of ''Halo: Combat Evolved''. Much effort was spent on developing a control scheme that was simple and intuitive, unlike other console strategy games.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=168577|work=[[Computer and Video Games]]| title=Interview: Ensemble talks up the console RTS| date=2007-06-21| accessdate=2007-10-04| first=Andy| last=Robinson}}</ref> The game was announced at [[X06 (Xbox show)|X06]], and released in February and March 2009.


In a July 2008 interview with [[MTV]], Microsoft's head of Xbox business, Don Mattrick, stated that [[Bungie]] was working on a new ''Halo'' game for [[Microsoft]], independent of other ''Halo'' projects. An announcement of the new ''Halo'' project was expected at the 2008 E3 game exposition, which Bungie stated "has been building for several months", but was delayed by their publisher Microsoft.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&cid=14782|author= lukems|publisher=[[Bungie.net]]|title=E3 Announcement Shelved, For Now |date=2008-07-07|accessdate=2008-07-23}}</ref> The ''Halo'' announcement was to be part of Microsoft's 150-minute E3 presentation, and was cut to trim the presentation down to 90 minutes; Microsoft stated it wanted to give the game its own dedicated event.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2008/07/halo-bungie-e3.html|last=Pham |first=Alex |newspaper=''[[Los Angeles Times]]''|title=Microsoft explains Halo's no-show at E3 game conference|date=2008-07-16|accessdate=2008-07-23}}</ref> After the release of an ambiguous teaser trailer on September 25,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/913/913483p1.html |title=Bungie Video Teases New Game |date=2008-09-25 |accessdate=2008-09-25 |last=Geddes |first=Ryan |publisher=IGN }}</ref> the project was revealed as ''Halo 3: Recon'', later changed to ''[[Halo 3: ODST]]''. Set between the events of ''Halo 2'' and ''Halo 3'', players take control of elite human soldiers called Orbital Drop Shock Troopers (ODST). The game was released on September 22, 2009.
Microsoft tried to [[jew]] the community by claiming that ''Halo 2'' needed DirectX10 in order to run, which is why it required Vista. Deeply unamused, the community quickly released a patch which installed the game on XP with a framerate increase. Microsoft became butthurt and refused to release any more ''Halo'' games on PC.


Announced at E3 2009, ''[[Halo: Reach]]'' is a prequel to the main trilogy and Bungie's last ''Halo'' game. Players control Noble Six, a "Hyper Lethal Vector" who is one of the members of the Spartan squad "Noble Team" as they defend Reach against the Covenant. The ending of the game leads directly into the events of ''Combat Evolved''. The game was released on September 14, 2010.
=== ''Halo 3'' ===
<!-- flesh out this para and source -->


===Cancelled and related projects===
[[Shit nobody cares about|Johnson dies]]. By the final installment of the trilogy, you would think the story couldn't possibly get any more butchered... right? Wrong. There are so many plot holes and random shit happening that anyone who didn't throw his Xbox 360 into the trash is probably a casual to the highest degree.
{{further|I Love Bees|Marketing for Halo 3#Alternate reality game|Marketing for Halo 3}}


[[Alternate reality game]]s were used to promote the release of the games in the main trilogy. The [[Cortana Letters]], a series of cryptic email messages, were circulated by Bungie prior to ''Halo: Combat Evolved''{{'}}s release.<ref name="HaloHist">{{cite web| url = http://retro.ign.com/articles/821/821618p1.html| title = IGN Presents The History of Halo| first = Rus| last = McLaughlin| date = 2007-09-20| publisher = IGN| accessdate = 2008-03-20}}</ref> ''I Love Bees'' was used to promote the release of ''Halo&nbsp;2''. The game revolved around a website created by [[42 Entertainment]], commissioned by Microsoft and endorsed by Bungie. Over the course of the game, audio clips were released that eventually formed a complete five-hour story set on Earth between ''Halo'' and ''Halo&nbsp;2''.<ref name="Bees-Wired">{{cite web| url = http://www.wired.com/culture/lifestyle/news/2004/10/65365| title = I Love Bees Game a Surprise Hit| first = Daniel| last = Terdiman| publisher = [[Wired News]]| date = 2004-10-18| accessdate = 2008-03-19}}</ref><ref name="NYT-Bees">{{cite news| url = http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/04/technology/circuits/04bees.html| title = Sci-Fi Fans Are Called Into an Alternate Reality| first = Noah| last = Shachman| date = 2004-11-04| publisher = The New York Times| accessdate = 2008-03-19}}</ref> Similarly, ''Iris'' was used as a [[viral marketing]] campaign for the release of ''Halo&nbsp;3''.<ref name=brandweek>{{cite web| url=http://www.brandweek.com/bw/magazine/current/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003637129| title=Anatomy Of An Onslaught: How Halo 3 Attacked| publisher=[[Brandweek]]| date=2007-09-10| first=Kenneth| last=Hein| accessdate=2008-03-20 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20080210123556/http://www.brandweek.com/bw/magazine/current/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003637129 |archivedate = February 10, 2008}}</ref> It featured five web servers containing various media files related to the ''Halo'' universe.
But hey, [[nobody cares]] about the story anymore, it's all about mindless zombie run'n'gun multiplayer! ''Halo 3''&#39;s multiplayer, while much more polished than ''Halo 2''&#39;s, still left much to be desired... or it least it would have, if the target demographic didn't have the collective attention span of a squirrel. Many of the old glitches were replaced by new "features," such as the ability to be killed by a traffic cone, despite the half-ton, energy-shielded armor suit you're wearing.


Spin-off titles were planned for release on handheld systems, but did not progress far in development. Rumors of a handheld ''Halo'' title for the [[Game Boy Advance]] surfaced in 2004. Bungie denied the rumors and commented that such a project between Microsoft and [[Nintendo]] would be "very unlikely".<ref name="gamespot-halo gba rumor">{{cite web| title = Rumor Control: Halo GBA and Dirty Harry: The Game| url = http://www.gamespot.com/news/6100959.html| author = Thorsen, Tor| publisher = [[GameSpot]]| date = 2004-06-18| accessdate = 2008-06-06}}</ref> At a Las Vegas consumer technology convention in January 2005, rumors spread about a version of ''Halo'' for the handheld [[Gizmondo]] system. Bungie denied the rumors stating they were not making a game for the system.<ref name="HaloGizmondo">{{cite web| url = http://www.gamespot.com/news/6115985.html| title = Rumor Control: Xbox Next Patents and Gizmondo Halo| publisher = [[GameSpot]]| accessdate = 2008-06-06| date = 2005-01-07| author = Thorsen, Tor}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url = http://kotaku.com/gaming/gossip/halo-going-portable-028928.php| title = Halo Going Portable?| publisher = Kotaku| date = 2005-01-05| author = Crecente, Brian|accessdate = 2008-06-06}}{{dead link|date=April 2013}}</ref> A former Gizmondo employee later revealed development only extended to basic story and game structure concepts to obtain funding from investors.<ref>{{cite web| title = Gizmondo Halo "project" used cam-mouselook| url = http://www.joystiq.com/2006/05/05/gizmondo-halo-project-used-cam-mouselook/| publisher = Joystiq| author = Grant, Christopher| date = 2006-05-05| accessdate = 2008-06-06}}</ref> In 2006, a concept video for Microsoft's portable [[Ultra-Mobile PC]] featured footage of ''Halo'' and caused speculation for a handheld title. Microsoft later stated the footage was for demonstration purposes only; ''Halo'' was included because it was a Microsoft-owned property.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.gamespot.com/news/6145658.html| title = Origami officially unveiled| author = Thorsen, Tor| publisher = [[GameSpot]]| date = 2006-03-09| accessdate = 2008-06-12}}</ref> In January 2007, [[IGN]] editor-in-chief [[Matt Casamassina]] claimed he played a version of ''Halo'' for the [[Nintendo DS]].<ref name="DS">{{cite web| author=Casamassina, Matt|title = Matt Casamassina claims playing Halo DS|date=2007-01-01 | accessdate = 2007-10-02| url = http://blogs.ign.com/Matt-IGN/2007/01/04/42284| publisher=IGN| authorlink= Matt Casamassina| archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20070907092350/http://blogs.ign.com/Matt-IGN/2007/01/04/42284 <!--Added by H3llBot-->| archivedate=2007-09-07}}</ref> He later demonstrated on-camera, in-game footage of an early-development style version of ''Halo DS''.<ref>{{cite web| author=Casamassina, Matt| title = Matt Casamassina demonstrates 'Halo DS'| publisher=IGN| date=2007-10-02| accessdate = 2007-10-02| url = http://wayback.archive.org/web/20090220175348/http://ds.kombo.com/article.php?artid=5828| authorlink= Matt Casamassina}}</ref> The demonstrated work featured dual-wielding and a version of the ''Halo&nbsp;2'' map Zanzibar.<ref name="DS"/> On October 5, 2007, Bungie employee Brian Jarrard explained the ''Halo DS'' demo was in fact an unsolicited pitch that was never taken on.<ref name="Kotaku">{{cite web| url=http://kotaku.com/gaming/feature/bungie-owns-bungie-the-qa-307656.php| title=Bungie Owns Bungie: The Q&A| accessdate=2007-10-05| date=2007-10-05| publisher=Kotaku| first=Brian| last=Crecente}}{{dead link|date=April 2013}}</ref>
Two new things that Bungie added were a map/gametype maker and the ability to record matches and make screenshots. The theater caused the internet to be flooded with incredibly shitty videos of 13-year-olds doing retarded things while trying to imitate the mosquito ringtone through their mics. ''Halo 3''&#39;s map/gametype maker, while a good idea in theory, was crippled by Bungie's incompetence. Despite this, every person who had ever picked up an Xbox controller immediately set out to create the best maps and modes ever, which resulted in thousands of "super speed, low gravity, insta-death weapons" gametypes.


In 2006, Microsoft announced an episodic video game to be developed by film director [[Peter Jackson]]'s Wingnut Interactive.<ref name="bungie-update4/25/08">{{cite web|url=http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&cid=13690|title=Bungie Weekly Update 04/25/08|publisher=[[Bungie]]|date=2008-04-25|first=Frank|last=O'Connor}}</ref> The game, dubbed ''Halo: Chronicles'', was confirmed to be in development in 2007,<ref name=GDC>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=13030|title=GDC: Microsoft Talks Episodic Halo Xbox 360 Series|publisher=[[Gamasutra]]|date=2007-03-07|first=Simon|last=Carless|accessdate=2007-01-15}}</ref> and by 2008 was still hiring for positions on the development team.<ref>{{cite web|author=Robinson, Andy|date=2008-08-01|url=http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=194439|title=Microsoft STILL hiring for Halo Chronicles|publisher=[[Computer and Video Games]]|accessdate=2009-02-09}}</ref> Jackson told game blog [[Joystiq]] in July 2009 that the project was no longer in development.<ref name="joystiq-jackson interview">{{cite web|author=Kelly, Kevin|date=2009-07-24|url=http://www.joystiq.com/2009/07/24/peter-jackson-tells-joystiq-about-the-halo-movie-video-games/|title=Peter Jackson tells Joystiq about the Halo movie, video game project|publisher=Joystiq|accessdate=2009-07-24}}</ref><ref name="gamasutra-07/09 reports">{{cite web|author=Nutt, Christian|date=2009-07-24|url=http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=24578|title=Reports: Halo: Reach Bungie's Last Halo Game, More|publisher=[[Gamasutra]]|accessdate=2009-07-25}}</ref> Jackson's manager Ken Kamins explained that the project was cancelled as part of budget cuts tied to job layoffs in January 2009.<ref name="latimes-chronicles cancelled">{{cite news|author=Fritz, Ben|date=2009-07-27|url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/entertainmentnewsbuzz/2009/07/peter-jacksons-halo-projects-dead-working-on-original-video-games.html|title=Halo project dead, Peter Jackson's working on original video games|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|accessdate=2009-07-28}}</ref>
=== ''Halo Wars'' ===


Before the company was shuttered after producing ''Halo Wars'', Ensemble Studios had been working on a ''Halo''-themed [[massively multiplayer online game]], often referred to as ''Titan Project'', or just ''Titan''. The project was cancelled internally in 2007–2008, without a formal announcement from Microsoft.<ref>{{cite web|author=Staff|date=2008-09-23|url=http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=20153|title=Exclusive: Ensemble Studios' Canceled Project Was Halo MMO|publisher=[[Gamasutra]]|accessdate=2009-10-27}}</ref><ref>[http://www.unseen64.net/2008/09/23/halo-mmo-titan-x360pc-cancelled/ HALO MMO (Titan) X360 PC – Cancelled | Unseen 64]</ref>
An attempt at making a fun console RTS. Despite being only slightly more complex than your average tower defense game, it was too much to handle for most of the Xbox Live crowd. Much rage and butthurt was directed at Bungie, despite the fact that Bungie didn't even make it.


Elements from the Halo universe have also appeared in other games. A ''Halo''-based character, [[List of Dead or Alive characters#SPARTAN-458|SPARTAN Nicole-458]], appeared in ''[[Dead or Alive 4]]'', a product of the collaboration between [[Tecmo]]'s [[Team Ninja]] and [[Microsoft]]'s [[Bungie Studios]].<ref name="Bungie">{{cite web| author=O'Connor, Frank|url = http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&cid=7349| title = Go Tell the Spartans: The Making of Slugfest| publisher = [[Bungie]]| date = 2005-12-13| accessdate = 2007-10-10}}</ref> The ''Halo'' theme tune was also available DLC for ''[[Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock]]''.<ref name="major-nelson-halo-theme">{{cite web | url=http://majornelson.com/2007/11/22/guitar-hero-iii-halo-theme-mjolnir-mix-free/ | title=''Guitar Hero III'': Halo Theme Mjolnir Mix (Free) | accessdate=2012-06-09 | last=Hryb | first=Larry | authorlink=Larry Hryb | date=2007-11-21 | publisher=Major Nelson}}</ref>
It quickly lost its playerbase due to the above-mentioned quality and the fact that each leader had a special power that, if spammed well enough, could win the game no matter what, which caused the few people who could play it to quit out of boredom.


==Development==
=== ''Halo 3: ODST'' ===


===Bungie games===
[[Image:Odst.png|thumb|All New Campaign - Same Shitty Game!]]
[[Bungie]] (formerly Bungie Software Products Corporation) is a Chicago, Illinois-based game development company started in 1991 by [[Alex Seropian]]. Seropian partnered with programmer [[Jason Jones (programmer)|Jason Jones]] to market and release Jones' game ''[[Minotaur: The Labyrinths of Crete]]''. Focusing on the Macintosh game market because it was smaller and easier to compete, Bungie became the biggest Mac developer with games including the shooters ''[[Pathways Into Darkness]]'' and ''[[Marathon (video game)|Marathon]]''. What became ''Halo'' was originally code-named ''Monkey Nuts'' and ''Blam!'',<ref>{{cite book |last= Trautmann|first=Eric|title=The Art of Halo|year= 2004|publisher= Del Ray Publishing|location=New York |isbn=0-345-47586-0|page=ix}}</ref> and took place on a hollowed-out world called Solipsis.<ref name="ign-history of halo">{{cite web|author=McLaughlin, Rus|date=2007-09-20|url=http://retro.ign.com/articles/821/821618p1.html|title=IGN Presents The History of Halo|publisher=IGN|accessdate=2008-11-01|pages=1–3}}</ref> The planet eventually became a [[ringworld]], and an artist suggested the name "Halo", which became the game's title.<ref>{{cite journal|author=Toyama, Kevin|year=2001|month=May|title=Cover Story: Holy Halo|journal=[[Next Generation Magazine]]|page=61}}</ref>


The first ''Halo'' game was announced on July 21, 1999, during the [[Macworld Conference & Expo]].<ref name=ignpreview>{{cite web| last=Lopez | first=Vincent| date=1999-07-21| url=http://pc.ign.com/articles/068/068975p1.html| title= Heavenly Halo Announced from Bungie| publisher=IGN| accessdate= 2008-03-11}}</ref> It was originally planned to be a [[real-time strategy]] game for the [[Mac OS|Mac]] and [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]] operating systems, but later changed into a third-person action game.<ref name=bungie.net20>{{cite web| url = http://bungie.net/Inside/CustomPage.aspx?section=History&subsection=Main&page=6| archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20060502035147/http://bungie.net/Inside/CustomPage.aspx?section=History&subsection=Main&page=6| archivedate=2006-05-02| title= Inside Bungie: History| publisher=[[Bungie.net]]| accessdate= 2006-06-19 }}</ref><ref name=ignpreview/><ref name="CGW Hiatt">{{cite journal| last = Hiatt| first = Jesse| month = November | year = 1999| title = Halo The Closest Thing to the Real Thing| journal = [[Computer Gaming World]]| publisher = [[Ziff Davis Media]]| issue = | pages = 94–96| url = http://halo.bungie.org/pressscans/display.html?scan=cgw1199| accessdate = 2008-03-11}}</ref> On June 19, 2000, [[Microsoft]] acquired Bungie Studios and ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' became a launch title for the Xbox [[video game console]].<ref name=microsoftpressrelease/> After receiving Xbox development kits, Bungie Studios rewrote the game's engine, heavily altered its presentation, and turned it into a [[first-person shooter]]. Though the first ''Halo'' was meant to include an online multiplayer mode, it was excluded because Xbox Live was not yet available.<ref name=gamestock>{{cite web| last=Lopez| first=Vincent| date=2001-03-04| url=http://xbox.ign.com/articles/098/098271p1.html| title=Playable ''Halo'' at GameStock| publisher=IGN| accessdate=2008-03-12}}</ref>
''Halo 3: ODST'' was a typical Jewish scheme to [[ipod|sell somebody the same product twice with a new package]]. Basically, it was ''Halo 3'' without energy shields.


''Halo'' was not intended to be the Xbox's flagship game due to internal concerns and gaming press criticism, but Microsoft VP of game publishing [[Ed Fries]] did not act on these concerns. The Xbox's marketing heavily featured ''Halo'', whose green color palette meshed with the console's design scheme.<ref name="gamasutra-fries">{{cite web|author=Alexander, Leigh|date=2009-08-14|url=http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=24831|title= Interview: Former Microsoft Exec Fries Talks Xbox's Genesis|publisher=[[Gamasutra]]|accessdate=2009-08-17}}</ref>
=== ''Halo: Reach'' ===


The success of the game led to a sequel, ''Halo&nbsp;2'', which was announced on August 8, 2002 at the Microsoft's New York [[X (Xbox show)|X02]] press event.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://xbox.ign.com/articles/367/367129p1.html| title = Halo 2 and Project Gotham Racing 2 Announced!| author = IGN Staff| date = 2002-08-08| accessdate = 2008-03-19| publisher = IGN}}</ref> It featured improved graphics, new weapons, and a multiplayer mode on Xbox Live.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://xbox.ign.com/articles/540/540845p1.html| title = Halo 2 Hands-On| first = Tal| last = Blevins| date = 2004-08-20| publisher = IGN| accessdate = 2008-03-19}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url = http://xbox.ign.com/articles/518/518409p1.html| title = Halo 2 Multiplayer Hands-On Vol. 4| first = Fran| last = Mirabella| date = 2004-05-24| publisher = IGN| accessdate = 2008-03-19}}</ref> ''Halo&nbsp;3'' was announced at the 2006 [[E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo)|Electronic Entertainment Expo]].<ref name="announcement">{{cite web |url = http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&link=Halo3Announcement |title = Halo 3 Announced |accessdate = 2007-08-06 |author = Achronos |authorlink = Bungie Studios|date = 2006-05-09|work = [[Bungie.net]]}}</ref> The initial conception for the third game was done before ''Halo&nbsp;2'' was released in 2004.<ref>{{cite video |people=[[Martin O'Donnell|O'Donnell, Marty]] |date=2007-09-25 |title=Halo 2 Developer's Commentary |medium=[[Halo 3 Legendary Edition|''Halo 3'' Legendary Edition]] | time=04:00| publisher=[[Bungie Studios]]}}— '''O'Donnell:'''"I remember when we were doing the Cortana Letters years ago where we had the entire plan from the beginning of the Cortana Letters to the end of the trilogy."</ref> It utilized a proprietary, in-house [[Game engine|graphics engine]], and employed advanced graphics technologies.<ref name="igntrailer">{{cite web| url = http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/706/706251p1.html| title = E3 2k6: Halo 3 Trailer Impressions| accessdate = 2007-06-25| last = Sanders| first = Kathleen |date = 2006-05-09 |publisher=IGN}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| last=Klepek| first=Patrick| date=2007-03-19| url=http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3158071| title=Bungie Says ''Halo 3'' Graphics are coming Together| publisher=[[1UP.com]]| accessdate=2007-10-02}}</ref>
Microsoft finally decided to cash in on the [[Call of Duty|Cock of Duty]] bandwagon by making CoD with energy shields, AKA ''Halo: Reach''.


They created two more Halo games before becoming independent as part of their deal with Microsoft: a side story ''Halo 3: ODST'' and a prequel ''Halo: Reach'' in 2009 and 2010 respectively.<!-- flesh out -->
=== ''Halo: Combat Evolved 2.0'' ===


===343 Industries===
Another attempt by Bill Gates to copy Steve Jobs' marketing strategy. Comparable to OOT's Master Quest.
{{Main|343 Industries}}
Following the release of ''Halo 3'', Bungie announced it was splitting off from Microsoft and becoming an independent limited liability company. While Bungie remained involved in the ''Halo'' series by developing games such as ''ODST'' and ''Reach'', the rights to ''Halo'' remain with Microsoft. To oversee everything ''Halo'', Microsoft created an internal division, [[343 Industries]],<ref name="latimes-halo legend">{{cite news|author=Fritz, Ben|date=2009-07-22|url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/entertainmentnewsbuzz/2009/07/video-game-publishers-microsoft-ubisoft-invading-hollywoods-turf.html|title=Video game publishers Microsoft, Ubisoft invading Hollywood's turf|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|accessdate=2009-07-22}}</ref> serving as "stewards" for the franchise.<ref name="majornelson-343">{{cite web|author=Hryb, Larry|date=2009-12-09|url=http://www.majornelson.com/archive/2009/12/09/show-343-interviews-with-some-of-the-343-team-about-halo-and-more.aspx|title=Show #343: Interviews with members of 343 Industries about Halo and more|publisher=Major Nelson Radio|accessdate=2009-12-09|authorlink=Larry Hryb}}</ref> Frank O'Connor, formerly a Bungie employee,<ref>{{cite web|author=Smith, Luke|authorlink=Luke Smith (writer)|date=2008-05-16|url=http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&cid=13795|title=Bungie Weekly Update: 5/16/2008|publisher=[[Bungie.net]]|accessdate=2009-07-22}}</ref> now serves as 343's creative director.<ref name="latimes-halo legend"/>


In announcing the formation of 343 Industries, Microsoft also announced that Xbox Live would be home to a central hub for ''Halo'' content called Halo Waypoint.<ref name="microsoft-waypoint press release">{{cite web|date=2009-07-23|url=http://wayback.archive.org/web/20090726104727/http://halo.xbox.com/article-Halo-Legends-Waypoint.html|title=Halo Legends and Halo Waypoint Announced at Comic-Con|work=Xbox.com|publisher=Microsoft|accessdate=2009-07-25}}</ref> Waypoint is accessed from the [[Xbox 360 Dashboard]] and offers players access to multimedia content in addition to tracking their ''Halo'' game "career". O'Connor described Waypoint as intended to be the prime destination for ''Halo''.<ref name="kotaku-waypoint overview">{{cite web|author=McWhertor, Michael|date=2009-07-25|url=http://kotaku.com/5322449/halo-waypoint-further-detailed-by-microsoft|title=Halo Waypoint Further Detailed By Microsoft|publisher=Kotaku|accessdate=2009-07-25}}</ref><!-- http://gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2010/01/18/343-industries.aspx -->
=== ''Halo 4'' ===
<!-- http://www.computerandvideogames.com/295592/interviews/343-industries-we-dont-always-get-it-right-but-we-love-halo/ -->


The company's first new game, ''Halo 4'', was released on November 6, 2012, to generally positive reviews.
After 4 years of chronic [[masterbation]], Chief wakes up in the shipwreck from the last game and finds himself crashing into Requiem. A giant robot planet with giant robot [[orgies]] and plants. Masterchief awakens [[Hitler|the Didact]], who is this [[oldfag]] that commits mass [[lollercaust]] to build his army of robots. A big [[dildo]] ship called ''Infinity'' crashes on the planet and fucks off again because [[Faggot|Captain Del Rio]] is a [[pussy]]. [[Scientology|The Covenant unite with their gods]], Chief pwns the Didact with a [[Cock|grenade]] to the [[Mouth|face]], Cortana dies, fanboys bawww.  


===Cultural influences===
The Campaign is continued with Spartan Ops. A shitty episodic series which is nothing more than [[Call of Duty|coop firefight with less replayability and a generic objective]]. Repeated [[over 9000]] times!
In 2006, in acknowledgement of the "wealth of influences adopted by the Bungie team", a list of Bungie employees' favorite science fiction material was published on the company's website.<ref name="bungie-scifi">{{cite web|url=http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&link=bungiescifiguide| title=The Bungie Guide to Sci Fi| publisher=[[Bungie]]| author=Frank O'Connor| date=2006-04-12| accessdate=2012-05-12}}</ref> The developers acknowledged that the ''Halo'' series' use of ring-shaped [[megastructure]]s followed on from concepts featured in [[Larry Niven]]'s ''[[Ringworld]]'' and [[Iain Banks|Iain M. Banks]]' [[Culture series]] (of which ''[[Consider Phlebas]]''<ref name="edge-2010"/> and ''[[Excession]]''<ref name="bungie-scifi"/> were said to be particularly influential). In a retrospective article in ''[[Edge (magazine)|Edge]]'', Bungie's Jaime Griesemer commented, "The influence of something like ''Ringworld'' isn't necessarily in the design—it's in that feeling of being somewhere else. That sense of scale and an epic story going on out there."<ref name="edge-2010">{{cite journal |editor1-first=Tony |editor1-last=Mott |last1=Anon. |year=2010 |title=2001: A Space Odyssey |journal=[[Edge (magazine)|Edge]] |publisher=[[Future plc|Future Publishing]] |issue=215 |page=86 |url=}} Published online as: {{cite web|url=http://www.edge-online.com/features/best-games-2000-2009-halo-combat-evolved|title=The Best Games Of 2000 To 2009: Halo: Combat Evolved|author=Edge Staff|work=[[Edge (magazine)|Edge-Online.com]]|publisher=[[Future plc|Future Publishing Limited]]|date=April 29, 2011|accessdate=2012-05-12}}</ref> Griesemer also explained, "One of the main sources of inspiration was ''[[Armor (novel)|Armor]]'' [by [[John Steakley]]], in which a soldier has to constantly re-live the same war over and over again. That sense of hopelessness, a relentless battle, was influential."<ref name="edge-2010"/> The Flood were influenced by the assimilating alien species in [[Christopher Rowley]]'s ''The Vang'';<ref name="edge-2010"/> it has also been speculated that the Master Chief's name "John 117" may have been a reference to a character named Jon 6725416 in Rowley's ''Starhammer'',<ref name="ign-literary"/> or to the John Spartan character of ''[[Demolition Man (film)|Demolition Man]]''.<ref>{{cite book|author=Stover, Matthew|editor=Glenn Yeffeth|year=2006|title=Halo Effect|series=You Are the Master Chief|publisher=Benbella Books|location=Dallas, Texas|isbn=1-933771-11-9|pages=}}</ref> An IGN article exploring the literary influences present in the ''Halo'' franchise commented on similarities between ''Halo'' and [[Orson Scott Card]]'s ''[[Ender's Game]]'': aspects of the [[SPARTAN Project]] and the design of the Covenant Drones are perceived as reminiscent of the super soldier program and Buggers found in the novel.<ref name="ign-literary">{{cite web| url=http://xbox.ign.com/articles/709/709122p5.html| archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20090220080109/http://xbox.ign.com/articles/709/709122p5.html| archivedate=2009-02-20| title=The Influence of Literature and Myth in Videogames| publisher=IGN| author=Douglass C. Perry| date=2007-03-17| accessdate=2007-12-10}}</ref> Bungie has also acknowledged [[James Cameron]]'s film ''[[Aliens (film)|Aliens]]'' as a strong cinematic influence.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?cid=24843| title=All the Right Moves| publisher=[[Bungie]]| date=2010-02-18| accessdate=2020-06-20}}</ref>
The cinematic story runs aside the missions and goes as follows. ''Infinity'' fucks back to Requiem after crying for 6 months around Earth. Spartans go full [[lollercaust]] on covis and prometheans. Palmer is a bitch to Halsey, resulting in having Halsey's [[oldfag]] arm shot off, and captured by [[Scientology|the Covenant]] along with half of a special key that tells you where the Forerunner's secret [[weed]] stash is. Also, [[WTF|Requiem plummets into sun]] and [[Michael Bay|ends in a big explosion]].  


A report written by Roger Travis and published by ''[[The Escapist (magazine)|The Escapist]]'' compares ''Halo'' with the Latin epic ''[[Aeneid]]'', written by classical Roman poet [[Virgil]]. Travis posits similarities between the plots of both works and compares the characters present in them, with the Flood and Covenant taking the role performed by the Carthaginians, and the Master Chief's role in the series to that of [[Aeneas]].<ref name="Aeneid">{{cite web| url=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/issues/issue_66/384-Bungie-s-Epic-Achievement| title=Bungie's Epic Achievement: Halo and the Aeneid|first=Roger |last=Travis| publisher=The Escapist| date=2006-10-10| accessdate=2007-12-10}}</ref>
If you try to play the multiplayer, you will find yourself foaming from the mouth in rage. If you somehow manage to get a high K/D in the game, you will constantly be playing against MLG faggots that try their hardest to ruin the game for others and will make you rage so hard that you will become extremely violent in person and will kill anyone that gets in your way.


==Music==
If you want to break all of your controllers and even your Xbox, or become an enraged mass murdering killing machine, this is the game for you.
[[File:Martin O'Donnell.png|thumb|upright|[[Martin O'Donnell]], lead composer for all ''Halo'' games developed by Bungie]]
{{Main|Halo Original Soundtrack|Halo 2 Original Soundtrack|Halo 3 Original Soundtrack|Halo Wars Soundtrack}}


Seven ''Halo'' soundtracks have been released. The ''[[Halo Original Soundtrack]]'' contains most of ''Combat Evolved''{{'}}s music. Due to the varying nature of gameplay, the music present was designed to use the game's dynamic audio playback engine. The engine allows for the mood, theme, and duration of music played to change according to gameplay.<ref name=music4gamers>{{cite web| last=Marks| first=Aaron| date=2002-12-02| url=http://wayback.archive.org/web/20071011064541/http://music4games.net/Features_Display.aspx?id=24| title=The Use and Effectiveness of Audio in ''Halo'': Game Music Evolved| publisher=[[Music4Games]]| accessdate=2006-09-06}}</ref> To afford a more enjoyable listening experience, O'Donnell rearranged portions of the music of ''Halo'' into standalone [[suite (music)|suites]], which follow the narrative course of the game. The soundtrack also contains music not used in the game, including a variation on the Halo theme that was first played at ''Halo''{{'}}s debut at [[Macworld]] 1999.<ref name=linerhalo>{{cite album-notes| authorlink=Martin O'Donnell |last=O'Donnell |first=Martin| notestitle=Introduction| year=2002| title=Halo: Original Soundtrack| publisher=[[Sumthing Distribution|Sumthing]]}}</ref>
To add to it being the most infuriating game ever, it is also the most broken game ever. [[343 Industries|343i]] studios (fun fact, 343i translates to the largest collection of retards on the planet) is incapable of making a simple proper kill cam system (which even the chimps that make call of d00ty have figured out how to make work), they are incapable of balancing weapons, incapable of launching proper updates to fix the game, they are so boring that they copy COD garbage, thought that ordinance was some how a good idea, and are so bad at making maps that they some how managed to fuck up Valhalla from ''Halo 3''. The worse fuck up that 343i thought was a good idea was the ranking system, which completely ruins the game all on its own. Nobody knows how it works. You can be the starting level in multiplayer and you can be still be placed in games against +100 SR level no-lives, in which they will then start raping your asshole into a bloody pulp. If you are some how able to get a high K/D, multiply the previous sentence by a thousand.  


For [[Halo 2 Original Soundtrack|''Halo 2''{{'}}s soundtrack]], producer [[Nile Rodgers]] and O'Donnell decided to split the music into two separate volumes. The first, Volume One, was released on November 9, 2004 and contained all the themes as well as the "inspired-by" music present in the game (featuring [[Steve Vai]], [[Incubus (band)|Incubus]], [[Hoobastank]], and [[Breaking Benjamin]]). The second release, Volume 2, contained the rest of the music, much of which was incomplete or not included in the first soundtrack, as the first soundtrack was shipped before the game was released.<ref name=vol2>{{cite album-notes |authorlink=Martin O'Donnell |last=O'Donnell |first=Martin |notestitle=Introduction |year=2006 |title=Halo 2 Original Soundtrack: Volume Two |publisher=[[Sumthing Distribution|Sumthing]]}}</ref> ''Halo&nbsp;2'', unlike its predecessor, was mixed to take full advantage of [[Dolby]] 5.1 Digital [[Surround Sound]].<ref name=vol1>{{cite album-notes |authorlink=Martin O'Donnell |last=O'Donnell |first=Martin |notestitle=Introduction |year=2006 |title=Halo 2 Original Soundtrack: Volume One |publisher=[[Sumthing Distribution|Sumthing]]}}</ref>
Not only is the multiplayer completely and utterly broken, but Spartan Ops takes the word "broken" to a whole other level. 343i thought it be a good idea to copy maps straight out of the campaign and pass them off in Spartan Ops, where you will play on the same maps 20+ times in a row. To make that boring, repetitive situation even worse, 343i thought it be a good idea to make elites 8 feet tall ninjas with shields more powerful than the bullet proof armor that you would find on a modern day tank. Not only is that annoying when it comes to a single elite, to make things worse 343i has no sense of balance when it comes to how much AI you will play at once, so when ever you have to go against an elite, you will find yourself fighting off several armadas of elites, along side entire armies of grunts and jackals, and if you're lucky, 4+ hunters all at once.


The [[Halo 3 Original Soundtrack|soundtrack for ''Halo 3'']] was released on November 20, 2007. O'Donnell noted he wanted to bring back the themes from the original game in order to help tie together the end of the trilogy.<ref name="odonnell interview">{{cite web| author=O'Connor, Frank; O'Donnell, Martin; Smith, Luke; Jarrard, Brian| url=http://download.microsoft.com/download/d/8/5/d85ce76f-0cb2-41df-aaae-a8c96790332b/BungiePodcast%5FEpisode%5F1.mp3| title= Bungie Podcast Ep. 51: With Martin O'Donnell| publisher=[[Bungie.net]]| accessdate=2007-12-10}}{{dead link|date=April 2013}}</ref> The tracks are presented, similarly to the [[Halo 2 Original Soundtrack: Volume Two|previous soundtrack for ''Halo 2'']],<ref name=vol2/> in a suite form. Unlike previous soundtracks, where much of the music had been synthesized on computer, the soundtrack for ''Halo 3'' was recorded using a 60-piece orchestra, along with a 24-voice chorus.<ref name=h3ost>{{cite album-notes |authorlink=Martin O'Donnell |last=O'Donnell |first=Martin |notestitle=Introduction |year=2007 |title=Halo 3 Original Soundtrack|publisher=[[Sumthing Distribution|Sumthing]]}}</ref> The final soundtrack was recorded by the Northwest Sinfonia at Studio X in Seattle, Washington.<ref name="m4g interview">{{cite web| author=Staff| date=2007-09-20| url=http://wayback.archive.org/web/20080309025232/http://www.music4games.net/Features_Display.aspx?id=172|title=Interview with Halo 3 Composer Marty O'Donnell| publisher=[[Music4Games]]| accessdate=2008-04-13}}</ref> The soundtracks were bundled and released as a box set in December 2008.<ref>{{cite news |first= Steve|last=Traiman|title="Halo Trilogy" soundtrack set previews new game |url=http://www.reuters.com/article/musicNews/idUSTRE4B07BZ20081201|publisher=Reuters|date=2008-12-01|accessdate=3 December 2008}}</ref> A soundtrack for ''Halo 3: ODST'' was released alongside the game and included many of the tracks from the game.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/699307/Halo-3-ODST-Soundtrack-Review---Music-for-Repelling-the-Covenant.html |title=Halo 3: ODST Soundtrack Review – Music for Repelling the Covenant |last=Damigella |first=Rick |date=September 19, 2009 |work=[[G4tv.com]] |accessdate=May 30, 2011}}</ref>
Words cant describe whats its like trying to play against entire space-time bending, intergalactic Promethean empires.  


For ''Halo Wars'', the task of creating the game's music fell to [[Stephen Rippy]]. Rippy listened to O'Donnell's soundtracks for inspiration and incorporated the ''Halo'' theme into parts of his arrangements. In addition to synthesized and orchestral components, the composer focused on the choir and piano as essential elements, feeling these were important in creating the "''Halo'' sound".<ref name="gamezone-ripppy interview">{{cite web|author=Bedegian, Louis|date=2009-02-13|url=http://wayback.archive.org/web/20100123212025/http://www.gamezone.com/news/02_13_09_09_00AM.htm|title=GameZone Chats with Halo Wars Composer Stephen Rippy|publisher=[[GameZone]]|accessdate=2009-02-17}}</ref> Rather than use the Northwest Sinfonia, Rippy travelled to Prague and recorded with the FILMharmonic Orchestra before returning to the United States to complete the music. A standalone compact disc and digital download retail version of the soundtrack was announced in January 2009 for release on February 17.<ref name="soundtrack-announce">{{cite web|author=Microsoft, Sumthing Else Music Works|date=2009-01-15|url=http://wayback.archive.org/web/20090219100309/http://music4games.net/News_Display.aspx?id=1137|title=Sumthing announces the release of Halo Wars Original Soundtrack|publisher=[[Music4Games]]|accessdate=2009-02-15}}</ref>
Oh and eggheads.


The music of ''Halo 4'' was composed by [[Neil Davidge]]. The ''[[Halo 4 Original Soundtrack]]'' was released on October 22, 2012, followed by a two-disc Special Edition on November 6.
=== ''Halo 5: Guardians'' ===


==Adaptations==
So it's been a few months since Chief fucked up [[Oldfag|Didact]] and lost his blue cybernetic sex doll, and he's been palling around with his bros and hos on vacation (i.e. shoving their fists down alien scums' throats; love what you do!). But it turns out that even in death the blue chick won't leave him alone and tells him to get his ass to Meridian, a colony of hicks who keep reminding you that the South will rise again.
{{Further|List of Halo media}}
[[File:UNSC arctic wolverine.JPG|thumb|[[Mega Brands|MEGA Blocks]] set of the UNSC Wolverine]]


The ''Halo'' franchise includes various types of merchandise and adaptations outside of the video games. This includes bestselling novels, graphic novels, and other licensed products, from action figures to a packaging tie-in with [[Mountain Dew]]. Numerous action figures and vehicles based on ''Halo'' have been produced. Joyride Studios created ''Halo'' and ''Halo&nbsp;2'' action figures, while ''Halo&nbsp;3'' poseable and collectible action figures, aimed at collectors, were produced by [[McFarlane Toys]] and became some of the top-selling action figures of 2007 and 2008.<ref>{{cite news|author=Solomon, Rizal|date=2009-01-10|url=|title=Saturday Halo onslaught|work=[[New Straits Times]]|page=4}}</ref> [[MEGA Brands|MEGA Blocks]] partnered with Microsoft to produce ''Halo Wars''-themed toys.<ref>{{cite news|author=Pachner, Joanna|date=2009-05-29|title=The Empire Strikes Back | url = http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/rob-magazine/the-empire-strikes-back/article1149686/ | work = [[The Globe and Mail]] | page=52}}</ref> <!-- http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/108/1082434p1.html -->
Meanwhile, there's another squad of super-special Spartans, Fireteam Osiris, who also get their lulz in the mass murder of space Muslims. Made up of a Brute, Buck the ODST-turned-sellout, and two vaginas (a black chick and a girl who keeps flooding her armor whenever she thinks about sweet sangheili cock), they're tasked with finding the AWOL Blue Team and bringing them to justice. They follow Chief to the South-in-Space, where an AI with alzheimers alternates between insulting the demigods and crying for their help, before confronting Cortana's fucktoy Warden Eternal and then Chief and Co. themselves. After breaking Chief's glasses, the Brute gets the absolute shit kicked out of him by the pissed off Space Jesus who hitches a ride on a [[Neon Genesis Evangelion|Guardian]] and leaves Osiris to think about what they've done.


===Books===
So we all knew Cortana wouldn't stay dead, right? Like, who didn't. But what we didn't know was that she would come back as a [[Nazi]] bent on bringing [[Slavery|peace]] and [[Communism|order]] to the galaxy. So Chief has to fight his way through Warden's legions (how is she planning on ruling the galaxy when she can't even control one horny Ultron knockoff?) to reach her while she reminds him how sweet dat robo pussy is. When Chief finds her he tells her to cut the shit and get back in the kitchen, but she puts him and his pals inside a big floating soccerball for a 10,000-Year nap until she whips things into shape.
[[File:Joe Staten and Eric Nylund.jpg|thumb|''Halo'' authors [[Joseph Staten]] and [[Eric Nylund]]]]


There have been numerous printed adaptations based on the ''Halo'' [[canon (fiction)|canon]] established by the video games. Larry Niven (author of ''Ringworld'') was originally approached to write a ''Halo'' novelization, but declined due to unfamiliarity with the subject matter.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://bs.bungie.org/2003/03/the_halo_author_1.html#000320| title=The Halo Author that Wasn't| publisher=[[Halo.Bungie.Org|Bungie Sightings]]| date=2003-03-05| accessdate=2007-10-04}} — Condensed version of information found at Niven's own site: [http://wayback.archive.org/web/20090220160506/http://www.larryniven.org/chatlogs/chat060402.shtml link]</ref> The first novel was ''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', a prequel to ''Halo: Combat Evolved''. It was written by [[Eric Nylund]] in seven weeks, and published in October 2001.<ref name=.com2>{{cite web| last=Longdale| first=Holly| url=http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo/spotlight.htm| work=Xbox.com| publisher=[[Microsoft]]| title=Game Worlds in Written Words| accessdate=2006-09-02 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20070228202019/http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo/spotlight.htm <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = 2007-02-28}}</ref> [[William C. Dietz]] wrote an adaptation of ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' called ''[[Halo: The Flood]]'', which was released in 2003.<ref name=gamingage>{{cite web| last=Klepek| first=Patrick| date=2003-05-05| url=http://wayback.archive.org/web/20071011213358/http://gaming-age.com/news/2003/5/2-15| title= ''Halo'' novel cracks bestseller| publisher=Gaming Age|accessdate=2006-09-02}}</ref> Eric Nylund returned to write the third novel, ''[[Halo: First Strike]]'', which takes place between ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' and ''Halo&nbsp;2'', and was published in December 2003. Nylund also wrote the fourth adaptation, ''[[Halo: Ghosts of Onyx]]'', which was published on October 31, 2006.<ref name=bungiestory>{{cite web| date=2006-08-29| url=http://www.bungie.net/News/TopStory.aspx?cid=8849| publisher=[[Bungie]]| title= The Next ''Halo'' Novel: ''Ghosts of Onyx''| accessdate=2006-09-02|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20061019160730/http://www.bungie.net/News/TopStory.aspx?cid=8849|archivedate=2006-10-06}}</ref> Bungie employee [[Joseph Staten]] wrote the fifth book, ''[[Halo: Contact Harvest]]'', which was released on October 30, 2007, while [[Tobias S. Buckell]] produced the sixth, ''Halo: The Cole Protocol'', published in November 2008. Bungie considers the ''Halo'' novels as additions to the ''Halo'' canon.<ref name=joestaten>{{cite web| author=Wu, Louis| date=2004-10-22| url=http://halostory.bungie.org/staten102204.html| title=Joe Staten Interview| publisher=[[Halo.Bungie.Org]]| accessdate=2006-08-06}}</ref>
Meantime, Osirirs visits Arbiter, who as it turns out, also gets his kicks shoving a long, hard sword deep into the Covenant's quivering, warm flesh. And after a few years of being the butt of the official galactic pastime, there's only one place left where the dirty Muslims can hide; so you get to help the biggest hunk on Sanghelios put the absolute beatdown on the last Covie bastards while hijacking a Guardian to find Chief and apologize for being so disrespectful. Despite Warden and his army fucking shit up, and Vale distracting Arbiter's troops with blowjobs and creampies, you manage to climb aboard and head off while Arbiter's troops finish buttfucking Covies as they beg for mercy.


A collection of ''Halo'' stories, ''[[Halo: Evolutions]]'', was simultaneously released in print and audiobook formats in November 2009. ''Evolutions'' includes original material by Nylund, Buckell, [[Karen Traviss]] and contributions from Bungie.<ref>{{cite web|author=Thorson, Thor|date=2009-08-12|url=http://www.gamespot.com/news/blogs/sidebar/909182374/26996832/tor-books-forging-halo-short-story-comp.html|title=Tor Books forging Halo short-story comp|publisher=[[Gamespot]]|accessdate=2009-09-12}}</ref> Tor eventually re-released the first three ''Halo'' novels with new content and cover art.<ref name="gamespot-makeover">{{cite web|author=Parker, Laura|date=2010-05-19|url=http://www.gamespot.com/news/6263133.html|title=Halo novels get a makeover|publisher=[[Gamespot]]|accessdate=2010-05-19}}</ref>
[[I Am In Your Base Killing Your D00ds|They get to Cortana's base]] and meet Guilty Spark's less-retarded sister, who immediately captured the fanbases' hearts by tossing you a tank and gushing over how good you are at killing bitches. You fight your way through robots and Covies who are too busy cumming over being in heaven to realize they just got royally rekt by Galactic Hunk #1 Thel 'Vadam, and manage to snag Chief and Co. while Cortana flies away in a [[RAGE]] to take over Earth and beyond with her army of Death Star-sized angels. In the end, Chief gets together with his bro Arbiter and mother/kidnapper to discuss how best to make Cortana chill out.
Science fiction author [[Greg Bear]] has been contracted to write a trilogy of books focusing on the Forerunners, called The Forerunner Saga. The first book, entitled ''[[Halo: Cryptum]]'', was released in January 2011,<ref name="waypoint-bear">{{cite web|author=Staff|date=2010-10-08|url=http://halo.xbox.com/en-us/news/headline/science-fiction-legend-greg-bear-set-to-explore-the-time-of-the-forerunners/5011|title=Science Fiction Legend Greg Bear Set to Explore the Time of the Forerunners|work=Halo Waypoint|publisher=Microsoft|archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/5tMAMHtko|archivedate=2010-10-09}}</ref> followed by ''Primordium'' in January 2012 and ''[[Halo: Silentium|Silentium]]'' on March 19, 2013.<ref>{{cite web|title=Tor Books Updates Release Date of the Third Halo Novel by Legendary Science Fiction Author Greg Bear|url=http://www.webcitation.org/6DGqOogSB|accessdate=29 December 2012|archiveurl=http://blogs.halowaypoint.com/Headlines/post/2012/10/22/Tor-Books-Updates-Release-Date-of-the-Third-Halo-Novel-by-Legendary-Science-Fiction-Author-Greg-Bear.aspx|archivedate=29 December 2012}}</ref> Karen Traviss is writing the Kilo-Five trilogy, which takes place after the events of ''Halo 3'' and ''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''.<ref name="traviss-tor novels">{{cite web|author=|date=2010-07-20|url=http://halo.xbox.com/en-us/transmissions/article/2010-07-20-Bestselling-Author-Karen-Traviss-Set-To-Explore-The-Halo-Universe|title=Bestselling Author Karen Traviss Set to Explore the Halo Universe|work=halo.xbox.com|publisher=Microsoft|accessdate=2010-07-20|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20100723142414/http://halo.xbox.com/en-us/transmissions/article/2010-07-20-Bestselling-Author-Karen-Traviss-Set-To-Explore-The-Halo-Universe <!--Added by H3llBot-->|archivedate=2010-07-23}}</ref> The first book,  ''Halo: Glasslands'', came out October 2011. Its sequel, ''Halo: The Thursday War'', was released on October 2, 2012.


===Comics===
Commonly referred to as the best Halo yet.
The ''Halo'' universe was first adapted into the graphic novel format in 2006, with the release of the ''[[Halo Graphic Novel]]'', a collection of four [[short story|short stories]].<ref name=igncomic>{{cite web| author=Staff|url=http://comics.ign.com/objects/818/818453.html| title= ''Halo Graphic Novel'' at IGN| work = [[IGN]]| accessdate=2006-09-02}}</ref> It was written and illustrated by graphic novelists Lee Hammock, [[Jay Faerber]], [[Tsutomu Nihei]], Brett Lewis, [[Simon Bisley]], Ed Lee and [[Jean Giraud]]. At the 2007 [[New York Comic Con]], [[Marvel Comics]] announced they would be working on an ongoing ''Halo'' series with [[Brian Michael Bendis]] and [[Alex Maleev]]. The limited series, titled ''[[Halo: Uprising]]'', bridges the gap between the events of ''Halo&nbsp;2'' and ''Halo&nbsp;3'';<ref name="IGN-Marvel"/> initially planned to conclude shortly before the release of ''Halo 3'', the constant delays led to the final issue being published April 2009.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://marvel.com/news/comicstories.7613.Halo_Uprising_%234_Hits_Stores_Today|title=Halo Uprising #4 Hits Stores Today!|date=2009-04-15|publisher=[[Marvel Comics]]|accessdate=2009-04-17}}</ref>


Marvel announced at the 2009 Comic Con that two new comics, a five-part series written by [[Peter David]] and a second series written by [[Fred Van Lente]], would appear the coming summer and winter.<ref>{{cite web|author=Collura, Scott|date=2009-02-07|url=http://comics.ign.com/articles/952/952434p1.html|title=NYCC 09: Halo Returns to Marvel|publisher=IGN|accessdate=2009-02-08}}</ref> David's series, ''Halo: Helljumper'', is set prior to ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' and focuses on the elite Orbital Drop Shock Troopers. The five-part series was published between July and November 2009.<ref>{{cite web|author=Bailey, Kat|date=2009-04-22|url=http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3173869|title=Halo: Helljumpers Coming This July|publisher=[[1UP.com]]|accessdate=2009-04-22}}</ref> Lente's series, originally titled ''Spartan Black'', revolves around a black ops team of Spartan supersoldiers assigned to the UNSC Office of Naval Intelligence.<ref name="newcomicsign">{{cite web| author=George, Richard|date=2009-02-08|url=http://comics.ign.com/articles/952/952462p1.html| publisher=IGN| title=The Halo War Continues at Marvel| accessdate=2009-02-14}}</ref> The rebranded comic, ''Halo: Blood Line'', debuted in December 2009.<ref name="ign-dec09">{{cite web|author=George, David|date=2009-09-22|url=http://comics.ign.com/articles/102/1027154p1.html|title=Marvel's December '09 Releases|publisher=IGN|accessdate=2009-09-23}}</ref> A comic-retelling of the novel ''Halo: The Fall of Reach'' was the most recent comic series entitled: ''Halo: Fall of Reach''. Fall of Reach was split into three mini-stories: ''Boot Camp'', ''Covenant'', and ''Invasion''.
=== ''Halo: Infinite'' ===


===Film===
In true 343i fashion the story was yet again retconned and totally thrown out the window with this supposed sequel to Halo 5. Everyone's dead except Master Chief and a Hungarian bum who was named [[Cringe|'Brohammer']] by the [[Retards|Halo community]]. For whatever reason Master Chief woke up in space next to a Halo ring, the Guardians from the previous games are totally gone and instead the main villain is now a Brute who's in cahoots with the one from Halo Wars 2, so expect a lot of players coming from Halo 5 and who don't like RTS games to not understand shit.
In 2005, Columbia Pictures president Peter Schlessel began working outside the studio system to produce a ''Halo'' filmic adaptation. [[Alex Garland]] wrote the first script,<ref name=filmforce>{{cite web| last=Linder| first=Brian |date=2005-02-03 |url=http://movies.ign.com/articles/585/585098p1.html |title=''Halo'' Goes Hollywood| publisher=IGN| accessdate=2006-09-09}}</ref> which was then pitched to studios by couriers dressed as Master Chief. Microsoft's terms required $10 million against 15&nbsp;percent of gross; most studios passed, citing the lack of risk for Microsoft compared to their large share of potential profits. 20th Century Fox and Universal Studios decided to partner to produce the film, paying Microsoft $5 million to option the film and 10&nbsp;percent of grosses.<ref name="nymag-halofilm">{{cite web|author=Brodesser-Akner, Claude|date=2010-10-06|url=http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2010/10/the_new_halo_video_game_is_a_h.html|title=The New Halo Game Is a Hit — So What's the Status of the Halo Movie?|work=[[New York Magazine]]|accessdate=2010-10-08|archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/5tKc2wXzF|archivedate=2010-10-08}}</ref> [[Peter Jackson]] was slated to be the [[executive producer]],<ref name=hollywood>{{cite web| last=Staten| first=Joseph| url=http://www.bungie.net/News/TopStory.aspx?story=biggorilla&p=4955829| publisher=[[Bungie]]| title=The Great Hollywood Journey, Part II| accessdate=2006-09-09|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20051025080922/http://www.bungie.net/News/TopStory.aspx?story=biggorilla&p=4955829|archivedate=2005-10-25}}</ref> with [[Neill Blomkamp]] as director. Before Blomkamp signed on, [[Guillermo del Toro]] was in negotiations to direct.<ref>{{cite news | author = Chris Hewitt | title = Guillermo Del Toro Talks The Hobbit | publisher = [[Empire (magazine)|Empire]] | date = 2008-02-08 | url = http://www.empireonline.com/interviews/Interview.asp?IID=740 | accessdate=2008-02-08}}</ref>


[[D. B. Weiss]] and [[Josh Olson]] rewrote Garland's script during 2006.<ref>{{cite web| last=Fritz| first=Ben |date=2006-10-31 |url=http://www.variety.com/VR1117953031.html|title= No home for 'Halo' pic| publisher=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |accessdate=2007-10-20}}</ref> The crew stopped and resumed preproduction of the film several times.<ref>{{cite web| last=Thorsen| first=Tor| date=2006-10-31| url=http://www.gamespot.com/news/6160742.html| title=Halo movie indefinitely postponed| publisher=[[GameSpot]]| accessdate=2007-03-13}}</ref> Later that year, 20th Century Fox threatened to pull out of the project, leading Universal to issue an ultimatum to Jackson and Schlessel: either cut their large "first-dollar" deals, or the project was ended. Both refused, and the project stalled.<ref name="nymag-halofilm"/>
<center><youtube>qZpQoeHobFQ</youtube></center>
<center>'''E3 2020 Halo: Infinite reveal'''</center>


Blomkamp declared the project dead in late 2007,<ref>{{cite web|author=Farrell, Nick|date=2007-10-09|url=http://www.theinquirer.net/gb/inquirer/news/2007/10/09/halo-canned|title=Halo movie canned|publisher=[[The Inquirer]]|accessdate=2008-05-30}}</ref> but Jackson replied that the film would still be made.<ref name="no, but wait!">{{cite web |author=Robinson, Andy | url= http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=174687 |title=Q&A: MS "already in talks" to continue Halo film |publisher=[[Computer and Video Games]]|date=2007-10-29 | accessdate=2007-10-30}}</ref> Blomkamp and Jackson collaborated on ''[[District 9]]'', but the director told [[/Film]] that he was no longer considering working on a ''Halo'' film if the opportunity arose,<ref>{{cite web|author=Chen, David|date=2009-07-24|url=http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/07/24/confirmed-director-neill-blomkamp-would-probably-not-do-a-halo-film-even-if-offered-one/|title=Confirmed: Director Neill Blomkamp Would Probably Not Do a Halo Film, Even If Offered One|publisher=[[/Film]]|accessdate=2009-07-24}}</ref> saying that after working on the film for five months before the project's collapse it would be difficult to return. The rights for the film have since reverted to Microsoft.<ref>{{cite web|author=Neill Blomkamp; Peter Jackson|date=2009-07-27|url=http://movies.ign.com/dor/objects/40236/halo/videos/sdcc09cap_inv_peterj_halo.html|title=Halo Movie Interview – SDCC 09: Will Halo Still Happen?|publisher=IGN|accessdate=2009-07-27}}</ref> O'Connor has stated that the movie will be made at some point.<ref name="ign-movie still happening">{{cite web|author=Collura, Scott; Jim Reillydate|url=http://movies.ign.com/articles/108/1082457p1.html|title=Halo Movie will Happen|publisher=IGN|accessdate=2010-04-08}}</ref> In 2009, filmmaker [[Steven Spielberg]] expressed interest in being involved in the making of a film adaptation of ''Halo''.<ref>{{cite web|last=Schedeen |first=Jesse |date=August 10, 2009 |url=http://movies.ign.com/articles/101/1012622p1.html|title=What Say You?: Steven Spielberg Gets Halo'd |work=[[IGN.com]]|accessdate=June 13, 2011}}</ref><!-- http://www.computerandvideogames.com/361634/features/halo-the-biggest-movie-never-made/ --> On April 10, 2013, Blomkamp told IGN that he's still interest in making the Halo film. <ref>{{cite web|author=Jim Vejvoda|url=http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/04/10/elysiums-neill-blomkamp-would-still-love-to-make-a-halo-movie | title=Elysium's Neill Blomkamp Would Still Love to Make a Halo Movie|date=April 9, 2013|accessdate=April 11, 2013}} </ref>
== Characters ==


===Anime===
=== Main Characters ===
{{Main|Halo Legends}}
Microsoft announced at [[San Diego Comic-Con International|Comic-Con]] 2009 that it was overseeing production of a series of seven short anime films, together called ''Halo Legends''. Financed by 343 Industries, the animation was created by five Japanese production houses: [[Bones (studio)|Bones]], Casio Entertainment, [[Production I.G.]], [[Studio 4°C]], and [[Toei Animation]]. [[Shinji Aramaki]], creator and director of ''[[Appleseed (film)|Appleseed]]'' and ''[[Appleseed Ex Machina]]'', served as the project's creative director. [[Warner Bros.]] distributed ''Legends'' on DVD and Blu-ray in February 2010.<ref name="latimes-halo legend"/><ref name="gamespot-delayed">{{cite web|author=Sinclair, Brendan|date=2010-01-07|url=http://www.gamespot.com/news/6245077.html?sid=6245077&part=rss&subj=6245077|title=Halo Legends slips to Feb. 16|publisher=[[Gamespot]]|accessdate=2010-01-25}}</ref> Six of the stories are officially part of the ''Halo'' canon, with the seventh, made by Toei, intended to be a parody of the universe.<ref name="ign-sdcc live blog">{{cite web|author=Goldstein, Hilary; Erik Brudvig|date=2009-07-23|url=http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/100/1006627p1.html|title=SDCC 09: Halo Panel Live Blog|publisher=IGN|accessdate=2009-07-24}}</ref>


==Reception and critical response==
[[Image:Master chief.jpg|thumb|Master Chief was [[Pedobear|abducted as a child]] to become a super soldier.]]
{{VG Series Reviews
|updated = April 14, 2013
|game1 = [[Halo: Combat Evolved]]
|gr1 = (Xbox) 95.54%<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamerankings.com/xbox/472132-halo-combat-evolved/index.html|title=''Halo: Combat Evolved'' Reviews|accessdate=January 22, 2013|publisher=[[GameRankings]]}}</ref><br />(PC) 85.93%<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamerankings.com/pc/291594-halo-combat-evolved/index.html|title=''Halo: Combat Evolved'' Reviews|accessdate=January 22, 2013|publisher=[[GameRankings]]}}</ref><br />([[Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary|X360]]) 81.92%<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamerankings.com/xbox360/632871-halo-combat-evolved-anniversary/index.html|title=''Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary'' Reviews|accessdate=April 14, 2013|publisher=[[GameRankings]]}}</ref>
|mc1 = (Xbox) 97<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox/halo-combat-evolved|title=''Halo: Combat Evolved'' Reviews|accessdate=November 15, 2011|publisher=[[Metacritic]]}}</ref><br />(PC) 83<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/halo-combat-evolved|title=''Halo: Combat Evolved'' Reviews|accessdate=November 15, 2011|publisher=[[Metacritic]]}}</ref><br />([[Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary|X360]]) 82<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/halo-combat-evolved-anniversary|title=''Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary'' Reviews|accessdate=November 15, 2011|publisher=[[Metacritic]]}}</ref>
|game2 = [[Halo 2]]
|gr2 = (Xbox) 94.57%<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamerankings.com/xbox/562116-halo-2/index.html|title=''Halo 2'' Reviews|accessdate=March 30, 2013|publisher=[[GameRankings]]}}</ref><br />(PC) 72.67%<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamerankings.com/pc/932095-halo-2/index.html|title=''Halo 2'' Reviews|accessdate=November 15, 2011|publisher=[[GameRankings]]}}</ref>
|mc2 = (Xbox) 95<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox/halo-2|title=''Halo 2'' Reviews|accessdate=November 15, 2011|publisher=[[Metacritic]]}}</ref><br />(PC) 72<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/halo-2|title=''Halo 2'' Reviews|accessdate=November 15, 2011|publisher=[[Metacritic]]}}</ref>
|game3 = [[Halo 3]]
|gr3 = (X360) 93.53%<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamerankings.com/xbox360/926632-halo-3/index.html|title=''Halo 3'' Reviews|accessdate=January 22, 2013|publisher=[[GameRankings]]}}</ref>
|mc3 = (X360) 94<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/halo-3|title=''Halo 3'' Reviews|accessdate=November 15, 2011|publisher=[[Metacritic]]}}</ref>
|game4 = [[Halo Wars]]
|gr4 = (X360) 82.05%<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamerankings.com/xbox360/935835-halo-wars/index.html|title=''Halo Wars'' Reviews|accessdate=January 22, 2013|publisher=[[GameRankings]]}}</ref>
|mc4 = (X360) 82<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/halo-wars |title=''Halo Wars'' Reviews |accessdate=October 20, 2012|publisher=[[Metacritic]]}}</ref>
|game5 = [[Halo 3: ODST]]
|gr5 = (X360) 84.77%<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamerankings.com/xbox360/954261-halo-3-odst/index.html|title=''Halo 3: ODST'' Reviews|accessdate=March 30, 2013|publisher=[[GameRankings]]}}</ref>
|mc5 = (X360) 83<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/halo-3-odst|title=''Halo 3: ODST'' Reviews|accessdate=October 20, 2012|publisher=[[Metacritic]]}}</ref>
|game6 = [[Halo: Reach]]
|gr6 = (X360) 91.79%<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamerankings.com/xbox360/960512-halo-reach/index.html|title=''Halo: Reach'' Reviews|accessdate=April 14, 2013|publisher=[[GameRankings]]}}</ref>
|mc6 = (X360) 91<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/halo-reach|title=''Halo: Reach'' Reviews|accessdate=October 20, 2012|publisher=[[Metacritic]]}}</ref>
|game7 = [[Halo 4]]
|gr7 = (X360) 87.61%<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gamerankings.com/xbox360/632877-halo-4/index.html|title=''Halo 4'' Reviews|accessdate=April 14, 2013|publisher=[[GameRankings]]}}</ref>
|mc7 = (X360) 87<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/halo-4|title=''Halo 4'' Reviews|accessdate=November 17, 2012|publisher=[[Metacritic]]}}</ref>
}}
[[File:Halo3LaunchInNYC BestBuy.jpg|thumb|left|Launch events such as this one in [[New York City]] were held the night of ''Halo 3''{{'}}s release.]]
The ''Halo'' franchise has been highly successful commercially and critically. During the two months following ''Halo: Combat Evolved''{{'}}s release, it sold alongside more than fifty percent of Xbox consoles<ref name=wired3>{{cite web| last=Patrizio| first=Andy| date=2002-01-08| url=http://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/news/2002/01/49600| title=Xbox Assault Only Starting| publisher=[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]]| accessdate=2006-09-27}}</ref> and sold a million units by April 2002.<ref>{{cite web |date=2002-04-08| url=http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2002/apr02/04-08halomillionpr.mspx| title="''Halo: Combat Evolved''" for Xbox Tops 1 Million Mark In Record Time: Xbox System And Games Are Off to Recording-Setting Start in Just Four Months | publisher=[[Microsoft]]| accessdate=2006-09-01}}</ref> ''Halo&nbsp;2''{{'}}s sales generated [[United States dollars|US$]]125&nbsp;million on its premiere day, making it the fastest selling United States media product in history up to that time.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.gamespot.com/news/2004/11/10/news_6112915.html| title=Microsoft raises estimated first-day Halo 2 sales to $124&nbsp;million-plus|publisher=[[GameSpot]]| accessdate=2006-03-15| last = Thorsen| first = Tor| date=2004-11-10}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal| year= 2005 |month= January| title=November 9 – By the Numbers| journal= Official Xbox Magazine| issue= 40| page= 15}}</ref> Combined with ''Halo''{{'}}s sales, the two games sold 14.8 million units before ''Halo 3''{{'}}s release.<ref name="GWR08-Charts">{{cite book| editor= Craig Glenday| title= Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition 2008| series= [[Guinness World Records]]| date= 2008-03-11| publisher= Guinness| isbn= 978-1-904994-21-3| chapter= Review of the Year: 2007 Chart| page= 14}}</ref>


[[GameSpot]] reported 4.2&nbsp;million units of ''Halo&nbsp;3'' were in retail outlets on September 24, 2007, a day before official release—a world record volume.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamespot.com/news/6179772.html| title=Analyst: 4.2M Halo 3s already at retail| accessdate=2007-09-24| author= Brendan Sinclair| publisher = [[GameSpot]]}}</ref><ref name="GWR08-Halo">{{cite book| editor= Craig Glenday| title= Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition 2008| series= [[Guinness World Records]]| date= 2008-03-11| publisher= Guinness| isbn= 978-1-904994-21-3| pages= 98–99| chapter= Record-Breaking Shooting Games: Halo}}</ref> ''Halo&nbsp;3'' broke the previous record for the highest grossing opening day in entertainment history, making [[United States dollar|US$]]170&nbsp;million in its first twenty-four hours.<ref name="GWR08-Halo"/><ref name="170 million">{{cite web | url=http://www.gamepro.com/news.cfm?article_id=136548| title=Analyst: Halo 3 shatters retail record; sells $170M in 24 hrs | accessdate=2007-09-26 | author= Blake Snow | publisher = [[GamePro]]|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20071011172345/http://gamepro.com/news.cfm?article_id=136548|archivedate=2007-10-11}}</ref> Worldwide, sales exceeded US$300&nbsp;million the first week, helping to more than double the sales of the Xbox&nbsp;360 when compared with the weekly average before the ''Halo&nbsp;3'' launch.<ref name="GWR08-Charts"/><ref name="halo3sales">{{cite web| url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUKN0438777720071005| accessdate=2007-10-08| date=2007-10-04 |publisher=Reuters| last=Hillis| first=Scott| title=Microsoft says "Halo" 1st-week sales were $300 mln}}</ref> At the end of 2007, ''Halo&nbsp;2'' and ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' were the number one and two best-selling Xbox titles, respectively, and ''Halo&nbsp;3'' was the best-selling Xbox&nbsp;360 title.<ref name="GWR08-BestSeller">{{cite book| editor= Craig Glenday| title= Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition 2008| series= [[Guinness World Records]]| date= 2008-03-11| publisher= Guinness| isbn= 978-1-904994-21-3| chapter= Hardware: Best-Sellers by Platform| page= 51}}</ref> ''Halo Wars'' was the best-selling RTS console game, selling more than one million units.<ref name="gamasutra-1mil">{{cite web|author=Alexander, Leigh|date=2009-03-19|url=http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=22813|title=Halo Wars Sells 1 Million|publisher=[[Gamasutra]]|accessdate=2009-03-19}}</ref> <!-- odst -->The ''Halo'' series went on to sell more than 27 million copies by August 2009,<ref>{{cite news|author=Koha, Nuite|date=2009-08-09|title=Halo Shines|work=[[Herald Sun|Sunday Herald Sun]]|page=13}}</ref> and more than 34 million copies by May 2010.<ref name="34mil">{{cite web|author=Staff|date=2010-05-24|url=http://gamerscoreblog.com/press/archive/2010/05/24/kz938.aspx?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+MSGamesPressAlerts+%28Microsoft+Games+Press+Alerts%29|title=Biggest Blockbuster Game of the Year 'Halo: Reach' Launches Sept. 14, 2010|work=GamerScore Blog|publisher=Microsoft|accessdate=2010-06-15|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20100527031556/http://gamerscoreblog.com/press/archive/2010/05/24/kz938.aspx?utm_source=feedburner&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=Feed:+MSGamesPressAlerts+(Microsoft+Games+Press+Alerts) <!--Added by H3llBot-->|archivedate=2010-05-27}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Beaumont|first=Claudine|title=Halo Reach: Thousands expected to queue for midnight release|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/video-games/8000053/Halo-Reach-Thousands-expected-to-queue-for-midnight-release.html|publisher=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]]|accessdate=April 4, 2011|date=September 13, 2010}}</ref> Tor Books reported that sales of all franchise materials are greater than $1.7&nbsp;billion,<ref name="gamespot-makeover"/> and Bungie's games before ''Reach'' accounted for $1.5&nbsp;billion in sales.<ref name="bungie-1.5">{{cite web|author=Osborne, Eric|date=2010-04-29|url=http://www.bungie.net/news/content.aspx?type=news&cid=25920|title=Non Facete Nobis Calcitrare Vestrum Perinæum|publisher=[[Bungie.net]]|accessdate=2010-05-03}}</ref> The soundtracks to ''Halo 2'', ''Halo 3'', ''ODST'' and ''Reach'' all appeared on the Billboard 200 charts for at least one week.<ref name="billboard-reach">{{cite web|author=Trust, Gary|date=2010-09-23|url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/956121/weekly-chart-notes-bruno-mars-rihanna-halo|title=Weekly Chart Notes: Bruno Mars, Rihanna, 'Halo'|work=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]|accessdate=2010-09-26|archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/5t2GWxjQk|archivedate=2010-09-26}}</ref> By May 2011, total gross of ''Halo'' merchandise was $2 billion, with 40 million copies of the games sold.<ref>[http://wayback.archive.org/web/20060224034417/http://archive.gamespy.com/articles/september03/25overrated/index17.shtml GameSpy.com – Gaming's Homepage<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> The total amount climbed to $2.3 billion in July 2011,<ref>[http://wayback.archive.org/web/20110722180807/http://halo.xbox.com/en-us/news/headline/tor-books-reveals-title-cover-art-and-release-date-of-second-halo-novel-by-greg-bear/113219 Halo News – Halo Official Site – Tor Books Reveals Title, Cover Art, And Release Date of Second Halo Novel By Greg Bear<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> and $2.8 billion in January 2012.<ref>[http://halo.xbox.com/blogs/Headlines/post/2012/01/03/Tor-Books-Announces-the-On-sale-Availability-of-HALO-PRIMORDIUM.aspx Tor Books Announces the On-sale Availability of Halo: Primordium<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
* '''Master Chief:''' [[Pretty cool guy]] who has a shield that absorbs damage to make up for the fact that his billion-dollar, half-ton, state-of-the-art armor suit can't even stop handgun rounds.
* '''Cortana:''' Annoying bitch whose job it is to be the Master Chief's Navi. Dies in the fourth game, is resurrected as a surrogate antagonist in the fifth game, and resurrected again in the sixth.
* '''Captain Keyes:''' A wise old captain. Dies in the first game due to being assimilated into the [http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/Proto-Gravemind Proto-Gravemind].
* '''Sargent Johnson:''' A sassy [[nigger]]. Dies in the third game.
* '''343 Guilty Spark:''' A [[gay]] robot that floats around. Is jealous that he can't be Master Chief's Navi. Dies in the third game.
* '''Miranda Keyes:''' Typical woman pilot. Dies in the third game.
* '''The Arbiter:''' A small dinosaur that you get to control. Becomes an atheist after listening to [[Richard Dawkins]] and turns on the Covenant. Voted "Sexiest Person of All Time"; capable of making women cum just by ordering them to make him a damn sandwich. Can cause enemies to defect just by flexing his pecs (it's canon, look it up).
* '''The Prophets:''' [[Catholic]] priests who get bored with molesting grunts and decide to blow up the universe. Were once "Sexiest Species in the Galaxy" before the Forerunners came along, shot down their brothels, and made them start worshiping old people. Thanks, Forerunners.
* '''[[Flood Detected|Gravemind]]:''' Audrey II.


The ''Halo'' adaptations have been successful as well. Many of the novels have appeared on ''[[Publisher Weekly]]''{{'}}s bestseller charts and the ''Halo Graphic Novel'' sold more than 100,000 copies, a "rare hit" for the games-to-comics genre.<ref>{{cite news|author=Associated Press|date=2008-12-04|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/12/04/entertainment/e125508S23.DTL&hw=cole+protocol&sn=002&sc=917|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20090220055929/http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/12/04/entertainment/e125508S23.DTL&hw=cole+protocol&sn=002&sc=917|archivedate=2009-02-20|title=BC-Best-sellers-Books-PW|work=[[San Francisco Chronicle]]|accessdate=2008-12-05}}</ref><ref name=pub>{{cite web| author=MacDonald, Heidi| date=2006-08-16| url=http://pwbeat.publishersweekly.com/blog/2006/08/18/halo-gn-selling-like-hotcakes/?q=halo+graphic+novel|title=HALO GN selling like hotcakes|work=[[Publishers Weekly]]|accessdate=2008-02-10}}{{dead link|date=April 2013}}</ref> ''Ghosts of Onyx'', ''Contact Harvest'', ''The Cole Protocol'' and the first volume of ''Cryptum'' appeared on ''[[The New York Times]]'' bestseller lists,<ref name=gamingage/><ref name=xbox.com3>{{cite web| last=Greene| first=Marty| url=http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo2/spotlight2.htm| work=Xbox.com| publisher=[[Microsoft]]| title=''First Strike'' Author Eric Nylund Q&A| accessdate=2006-09-02 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20060821171442/http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo2/spotlight2.htm <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = 2006-08-21}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.gamedaily.com/games/halo-3/xbox-360/game-news/halo-contact-harvest-becomes-new-york-times-bestseller-in-first-week/5186/18598/| archiveurl= http://web.archive.org/web/20090215054216/http://www.gamedaily.com/games/halo-3/xbox-360/game-news/halo-contact-harvest-becomes-new-york-times-bestseller-in-first-week/5186/18598/| archivedate= 2009-02-15| title=Halo: Contact Harvest Becomes New York Times Bestseller in First Week| date=2007-11-19| author=Brightman, James| publisher=GameDaily.com| accessdate=2008-01-15}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| author=Berardini, Cesar| date=2007-08-05| url=http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/13188/Halo-Ghosts-of-Onyx-Enjoys-Mass-Market-Debut-Today/| title=Halo: Ghosts of Onyx Enjoys Mass Market Debut Today| publisher=[[IGN|Team Xbox]]| accessdate=2008-04-13}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.nytimes.com/best-sellers-books/2011-01-23/hardcover-fiction/list.html | title=Best Sellers | work=[[The New York Times]] | date=January 23, 2011 | accessdate=August 17, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.nytimes.com/best-sellers-books/2011-01-30/hardcover-fiction/list.html | title=Best Sellers | work=The New York Times | date=January 23, 2011 | accessdate=August 17, 2012}}</ref> and ''The Cole Protocol'' also opened 50th overall on ''[[USA Today]]''{{'s}} bestsellers list.<ref>{{cite news|author=Associated Press|date=2008-12-04|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/12/04/entertainment/e125424S22.DTL&hw=cole+protocol&sn=003&sc=914|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20090422050619/http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/12/04/entertainment/e125424S22.DTL&hw=cole+protocol&sn=003&sc=914|archivedate=2009-04-22|title=BC-Best-sellers-Books-USAToday|work=[[San Francisco Chronicle]]|accessdate=2008-12-05}}</ref> Tor's first three novels sold more than one million copies by April 2009.<ref>{{cite web|author=|date=2009-04-06|url=http://halo.xbox.com/article-new-halo-trilogy.html|title=New Halo Trilogy from Tor Books|work=halo.xbox.com|publisher=Microsoft|accessdate=2009-07-24|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20090515112243/http://halo.xbox.com/article-new-halo-trilogy.html <!--Added by H3llBot-->|archivedate=2009-05-15}}</ref>
=== Friends and Enemies ===


Overall, the ''Halo'' series has been well received by critics. ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' has received numerous [[Game of the Year]] awards.<ref>{{cite web| date= 2002-02-28| url=http://www.interactive.org/awards.php?winners&year=2002&cat=200201#200201| title=The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences:: Awards| publisher=[[The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences]]| accessdate=2006-09-01 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20070929094428/http://www.interactive.org/awards.php?winners&year=2002&cat=200201#200201 |archivedate = September 29, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo/awards.htm| title= ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' – Awards| publisher=Xbox.com| accessdate= 2006-09-01 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20061210190117/http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo/awards.htm <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = 2006-12-10}}</ref> In March 2007, [[IGN]] listed it as the top Xbox game of all time, while readers ranked it the fourteenth best game ever on "IGN Readers' Choice 2006 – The Top 100 Games Ever".<ref name="IGN-Top25XB">{{cite web| url = http://xbox.ign.com/articles/772/772315p5.html| title = The Top 25 Xbox Games of All Time| author = Douglass C. Perry| coauthors= Erik Brudvig and Jon Miller| publisher = IGN| date = 2007-03-17| accessdate = 2008-04-23}}</ref><ref name=top100>{{cite web |url=http://top100.ign.com/2006/011-020.html| title=Readers' Picks Top 100 Games: 11–20 |work=IGN Readers' Choice 2006 – The Top 100 Games Ever| publisher=IGN| year=2006| accessdate=2008-01-23}}</ref> Conversely, [[GameSpy]] ranked ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' tenth on its list of "Top 25 Most Overrated Games of All Time", citing repetitive level design and the lack of an online multiplayer mode.<ref>{{cite web| date=2003-09-15| url=http://wayback.archive.org/web/20110513024349/http://halo.xbox.com/en-us/news/headline/titan-books-signs-up-10th-anniversary-halo-art-book/52225| title=Top 25 Most Overrated Games of All Time| publisher=[[GameSpy]]| accessdate=2006-06-26}}</ref> ''Halo 2'' also received numerous awards,<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo2/awards.htm| title=''Halo 2'' Awards| publisher=Xbox.com| accessdate=2007-02-12 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20070626231116/http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo2/awards.htm <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = 2007-06-26}}</ref> with IGN listing it as the number two top Xbox game of all time in March 2007.<ref name="IGN-Top25XB"/> From its initial release on the Xbox in November 2004 until the launch of ''[[Gears of War]]'' on the Xbox 360 in November 2006 – two years later – ''Halo 2'' was the most popular video game on Xbox Live.<ref>{{cite web| date = 2006-02-21| url=http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=62981| title=Halo 2 tops Live most-played list| publisher=[[Eurogamer]]| accessdate=2008-03-18}}</ref> ''Halo 3'' was nominated for and won multiple awards; it won [[Time (magazine)|''Time'' magazine's]] "Game of the Year" and IGN chose it as the Best Xbox 360 Online Multiplayer Game and Innovative Design of 2007.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/top10/article/0,30583,1686204_1686305_1692236,00.html|title=50 Top 10 Lists of 2007 – Top 10 Video Games|author=Grossman, Lev|publisher=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|accessdate=2008-03-10 | date=2007-12-09}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://bestof.ign.com/2007/xbox360/17.html|title=Best of 2007: Best Online Multiplayer Game (Xbox 360)| publisher=IGN| accessdate=2008-01-14}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://bestof.ign.com/2007/xbox360/20.html|title=Best of 2007: Most Innovative Design (Xbox 360)| publisher=IGN| accessdate=2008-01-14}}</ref> Most publications called the multiplayer aspect one of the best features; IGN said the multiplayer map lineup was the strongest of the series, and GameSpy added that the multiplayer offering will greatly please "''Halo'' veterans".<ref name="H3-ignrev">{{cite web| author=Goldstein, Hilary| url=http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/821/821911p5.html| title= IGN (USA) ''Halo 3'' Review| accessdate=2007-09-23| date=2007-09-23| publisher=IGN}}</ref><ref name="H3-gamespy review">{{cite web| url=http://xbox360.gamespy.com/xbox-360/halo-3/821976p1.html |title= GameSpy ''Halo 3'' Review | author=Graziani, Gabe|accessdate=2007-09-23| date=2007-09-23| publisher=[[GameSpy]]}}</ref> Complaints focused on the game's plot. ''[[The New York Times]]'' said the game had a "throwaway" plot and Total Video Games judged the single-player aspect ultimately disappointing.<ref name=nytreview>{{cite news| url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/27/technology/circuits/27games.html?_r=1&ex=1191470400| author=Herold, Charles| date=2007-09-27| accessdate=2007-10-03| title=Halo 3 Mimics Halo 2, With Some Improved Graphic| publisher=The New York Times}}</ref><ref name="tvg review">{{cite web|author=Wilcox, Jon| date=2007-09-27| title=TVG Review: ''Halo 3''| url=http://www.totalvideogames.com/articles/Halo_3_12180.htm|publisher= Total Video Games| accessdate=2007-10-03}}</ref> The series' music and audio has received enthusiastic response from game reviewers.<ref name="H3-gamespy review"/><ref name=ignreview>{{cite web| last=Boulding| first=Aaron| date=2001-11-09| url= http://xbox.ign.com/articles/165/165922p1.html| title=''Halo: Combat Evolved'' review at IGN| publisher=IGN| accessdate= 2006-08-31}}</ref><ref name=gi>{{cite web| url=http://gameinformer.com/NR/exeres/AF4EAEF7-1136-4985-82E0-EB6588130908.htm?CS_pid=210263| title=''Halo 2'' review at ''Game Informer''| publisher=[[Game Informer]]| accessdate=2007-02-09| last = McNamara| first = Andy |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20060109094139/http://www.gameinformer.com/NR/exeres/AF4EAEF7-1136-4985-82E0-EB6588130908.htm?CS_pid=210263 |archivedate = January 9, 2006}}</ref>
==== Friends ====


==Cultural impact==
'''[[Army|Marines]]:''' These dumb mother fuckers enjoy long walks on the beach, driving into rocks, driving off cliffs, shooting at rocks and generally shooting at anything besides the enemy. They stroke Master Chief's massive cock any chance they get and even have wet dreams about him. They rely on him to save their asses through out the whole game and have no idea what they're doing.
The main trilogy, particularly its protagonist, has been declared iconic and a symbol of today's videogames; a wax replica of the Master Chief was made by [[Madame Tussauds]] in [[Las Vegas Strip|Las Vegas]], where [[Pete Wentz]] compared the character to notable characters from previous generations like [[Spider-Man]], [[Frodo Baggins|Frodo]], and [[Luke Skywalker]].<ref name=wax>{{cite web|url=http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo3/articles/20070910-madametussaud.htm|title=Master Chief Invades Madame Tussauds|publisher=[[Microsoft]]|date=2007-09-10|accessdate=2007-09-21 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20070916150920/http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/h/halo3/articles/20070910-madametussaud.htm <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = 2007-09-16}}</ref> ''The Escapist'' author Roger Travis compared ''Halo''{{'}}s story to Virgil's ''[[Aeneid]]'', saying the religious and political struggle described in the games relates to the modern epic tradition.<ref name="Aeneid"/> ''[[GamesTM]]'' stated ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' "changed videogame combat forever", and ''Halo&nbsp;2'' showcased Xbox Live as a tool for communities.<ref name="gamesTM-61"/> GameDaily noted ''Halo&nbsp;2''{{'}}s launch was "easily comparable to the biggest in other sectors of the entertainment industry", marking the first time a video game launch has become a major cultural event in America.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/features/halo-2s-success-a-part-of-pop-culture/67308/| archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20090220012915/http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/features/halo-2s-success-a-part-of-pop-culture/67308/| archivedate=2009-02-20| title=Halo 2's Success A Part of Pop Culture| author=Brightman, James| publisher=GameDaily| date=2004-11-17| accessdate=2007-11-13}}</ref> [[Time (magazine)|''Time'']] magazine included the franchise in the "2005 Time 100", highlighting that in the first ten weeks after the release of ''Halo&nbsp;2'', players spent 91&nbsp;million combined hours playing the game online.<ref name="TIME">{{cite news| url=http://www.time.com/time/subscriber/2005/time100/artists/100halo.html| title=The Halo Trinity: Making Games That Matter| author=Grossman, Lev| publisher=[[Time (magazine)|''Time'']]| accessdate=2007-11-13 | date=2005-04-18}}</ref> A ''The New York Times'' report noted the success of ''Halo&nbsp;3'' was critical for Microsoft, persuading consumers to buy the Xbox&nbsp;360 console which was experiencing waning sales compared with the Nintendo [[Wii]], as well as helping restore the console's image. On September 25, 2007, the release date for ''Halo 3'', Microsoft's shares rose 1.7% based on sales expectations for the game.<ref name="NYT">{{cite news| url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/26/technology/26halo.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1| title=Halo 3 Arrives, Rewarding Gamers, and Microsodt| publisher=The New York Times| author=Schiesel, Seth| date=2007-09-26| accessdate=2007-11-13}}</ref> ''Halo'' has been described as a series that "has reinvented a genre that didn't know it needed to be reinvented", with aspects of the main trilogy being duplicated in other FPS games multiple times.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.cheatcc.com/extra/haloinfluenceonthegamingindustry2.html| title=Halo Influence on the Gaming Industry| publisher=cheatcc.com| author=Beatty, D'Marcus| accessdate=2007-11-13}}</ref>


''Variety'' called ''Halo'' "the equivalent of ''Star Wars''".<ref name="variety-halo care">{{cite news|author=Graser, Mark|date=2010-09-04|url=http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118023688.html?categoryid=13&cs=1|title='Halo': the care and feeding of a franchise|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|accessdate=2010-10-02|archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/5tBgJIzRI|archivedate=2010-10-02}}</ref>
Oh, and don't try attack them, because apparently they are enraged by you turning on them and juice themselves up with magic damage potions.
<!-- http://www.gamepro.com/article/features/214833/5-ways-halo-influenced-gaming/ http://www.oxm.co.uk/32062/if-we-lose-our-way-with-halo-we-lose-our-way-with-xbox-microsoft/-->


===Machinima===
==== Enemies ====
{{Main|Machinima}}
As a highly popular video game series with a large and active fan base, the ''Halo'' trilogy has given rise to an array of video productions in an emerging entertainment medium, [[machinima]].<ref>{{cite web| url = http://wayback.archive.org/web/20120122175208/http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2008/04/15/machinima/| title = Turning video games into movies| publisher = [[American Public Media]]| work = [[Marketplace (radio program)|Marketplace]]| author = Chong, David| date = 2008-04-15| accessdate = 2008-05-12}}</ref> Virtually all machinima footage based around the Halo games is taken from the multiplayer modes of the main trilogy games. Most productions are set outside ''Halo'' [[canon (fiction)|canon]], while others are based on [[fan fiction]] closely relating to the official story. ''Halo 3'' includes a [[Halo 3 weapons|saved film]] function that allows camera angles not possible in previous games, and other features that simplify production. The game has become one of the most popular tools for generating machinima, and Microsoft updated its [[Software license agreement|user license agreement]] to allow noncommercial distribution of such films.<ref>{{cite news|author=Price, Peter|date=2007-10-16|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7045018.stm|title=Machinima waits to go mainstream|work=[[BBC]]|accessdate=2009-02-11}}</ref>


A notable machinima production is the [[comedy]] series ''[[Red vs. Blue]]'' created by [[Rooster Teeth Productions]]. It has achieved an unparalleled level of success in ''Halo'' machinima in specific, and machinima in general; it is credited with bringing attention to the genre.<ref name="GWR08-Halo"/><ref>{{cite news| last=Thompson| first=Clive| date=2005-08-07| url=http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/07/magazine/07MACHINI.html?ex=1281067200&en=a0b469a4346f3cbb&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss| title=The Xbox Auteurs| publisher=The New York Times| accessdate=2006-01-08}}</ref> ''Red vs. Blue'' generated annual revenues of [[United States dollar|US$]]200,000, and special promotional episodes were commissioned by Bungie.<ref name="GWR08-Halo"/> The series ended on June 28, 2007, after 100 regular episodes and numerous promotional videos.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wired.com/entertainment/theweb/news/2007/06/redversusblue |title=Machinima Series Red vs. Blue Ends Tour of Duty |date=June 26, 2007 |last=Kohler |first=Chris |work=[[Wired.com]] |accessdate=June 13, 2011}}</ref> Sequels to the series include ''[[Red vs. Blue#The Recollection|The Recollection]]'', the second series which contains more dramatic elements than its comedic predecessor,<ref>{{cite news|author=Gallaga, Omar|date=2007-03-27|title=Game Over [Final Edition]|work=[[Austin American-Statesman]]|page=F1}}</ref> and ''[[Red vs. Blue#Project Freelancer|Project Freelancer]]'', the most recent series. Other machinima series include ''Fire Team Charlie'', ''The Codex'', and the in-game interview show ''[[This Spartan Life]]''.
'''The Covenant:''' [[Catholics|Religious zealots]] whose sole purpose is to kill off the humans. The Covenant is made up of several different species, two or three of which magically appear out of nowhere during the storyline. Despite having immense technological and numerical advantages, they manage to fuck up the attack on Earth and fail miserably.


==References==
'''Forerunners:''' Ancient aliens who died a long time ago. Faggots will tell you that humans are descended from them, but that's just about as retarded as saying that [[WE WUZ KINGZ AN SHEIT|the ancient Egyptians were black.]] They created the Halos and for some reason captured but didn't kill the flood before they died. Turns out they're also kinda assholes for the most part whose own parents decided they'd better have a post-natal abortion, before the Forerunners threw a fit and killed most of them.
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}


==External links==
'''Flood:''' Nigger version of the [[Star Trek|Borg]]. When enough of them have an orgy together, they create a Gravemind. Revealed to be the descendants of the godlike Precursors who created every living being, until Forerunners pissed them off with attempted genocide and decided to cause pain and suffering for everyone forever and always after. Thanks, Forerunners.
{{Commons category|Halo (video game)}}
<!--Please do not add an external link to this section without proposing it and achieving consensus on the talk page first.-->
{{wikiquote|Halo}}
* {{official website|http://halo.xbox.com/en-us/?}}
* [http://bungie.net/ Bungie Studios]
* [http://halopedia.org/Main_Page Halopedia, an external wiki]


{{Halo}}
== Novels ==
{{Bungie Studios}}
{{343 Industries}}


{{good article}}
Someone, realizing that bored 13-year-olds would need something to do while being grounded for trash-talking on Xbox Live, decided to create books for them to read. They're only slightly better than your average fanfic.


{{DEFAULTSORT:Halo (Series)}}
=== ''Fall of Reach'' ===
[[Category:2001 introductions]]
[[Category:Ancient astronauts in fiction]]
[[Category:Halo (series)| ]]


{{Link GA|fr}}
<s>A long time ago in a galaxy far far away</s> Humanity has spread across the galaxy like some sort of sick fungus, led by the [[Jewnited States of Americunts|UNSC]]. Some colonies have gotten pissy about taxation without representation or major abuse or some shit and threaten to rebel, with [[Islam|Insurrectionists]] bombing shit left and right (fun fact: [[9/11|guess what year this shit was released!]]) So after [[Lies|pursuing peace through reasonable dialogue and exhausting all efforts to peacefully negate aggression]], the genius [[Mary Sue]] Doctor Halsey abducts a bunch of kids to turn into war machines and assassinate anyone who stands in the [[Nazi|UNSC's]] way.
[[sl:Halo (serija)]]
 
If course, that would hit too close to home for the Amerifats who play this shit, so they only get in one good mission. Then a hoard of alien called the Covenant shows up from nowhere with a boner for melting planets, see how ridiculously unethical humanity is being, and decide to kill them for <s>Allah</s> the Forerunners. Once again we've got to remind you that this came out right after 9/11, so "subtlety" wasn't a priority beside "revenge fantasy". Anyway, these Islamists-in-space start wrecking the absolute shit out of humanity, while the UNSC squeal like bitches and pray to God that the Covenant doesn't find their really good shit on Reach.
 
For the rest of the plot, read the damn title.
 
=== ''The Flood'' ===
 
A shitty adaption of Combat Evolved. Just go play the fucking game, there's nothing to see here.
 
=== ''First Strike'' ===
 
So after the Halo gets btfo Chief gets some alone time with Cortana drifting in space. After he gets tired fucking the USB slot he decides it's about time to grab something exotic and fuck back off to Reach. So he grabs that one black guy who isn't dead for some reason and borrows a supercarrier from its understanding captain. When he gets back to Reach he picks up some of his bros and hos and steals some magical time-warping MacGuffin... you know what, nothing really happens here, the point is he kills a few aliens and gets back to earth eventually.
 
== Halo: Legends ==
 
Why ruin the gaming world when you can ruin the cinematic one too? That's right, [[Micro$oft|someone]] thought it was a good idea to make Halo an anime. The video itself is comprised of peoples sob stories. The only thing good about it is that it FINALLY explains what the fuck is happening in the ''Halo'' story line. All the stories are shit. One is based on [[Dragon Ball Z]] and another is horribly filter raped.
 
A small shitstorm ensued on Halo forums when a picture of a teddy bear key-chain started popping up in relation to one of the collaboration videos called Homecoming. This caused all the 13-year-olds to collectively shit brix at the thought that maybe their hyper-masculine franchise might have a sensitive side to it.
 
== Fanboys ==
 
Despite its lack of [[Mario|Italian plumbers]] and [[Sonic|blue hedgehogs]], Halo may be the most fanboyed game of all time. This is evidenced by all of the inexcusably shitty edits made to this page, and all the MASTER CHIEF VS MARIO VS SONIC flash [[Shit|cartoons]] on [[Newgrounds]].
 
== Gallery ==
 
{{Collapsegallery||Gallery|center|<gallery perrow="5">
File:Cortana.jpg|[[Orgasm|The knowledge... So much... So fast! It's glorious!]]
File:Halo 3 fan fap material.jpg
File:Actualcortana.jpg|What the fanboys secretly hope Cortana to be.
File:Halo4cortanaself.jpg
File:Halo 3 condoms.jpg|Official Halo product.
</gallery>|<gallery perrow="5">
File:Halo.png
File:Halo Brofist.gif
File:Zero Suit Master Chief.jpg
File:Halo knees.jpg
File:Blackandwhite.jpg|[[Rule 34]], anyone?
File:Haloelite.jpg|The Arbiter, savior of the Covenant.
File:Stuck_it_ware.jpg|Bungie... why so dirty? [http://www.bungie.net/Online/Halo3UserContentDetails.aspx?h3fileid=59636319 bungie link to DL]
File:Vehicles_deployed.jpg|Typical game of ''Halo'' in progress.
File:Halokid.jpg|The typical [[13 year old boy|''Halo'' player]]. Don't believe me? Go play ''Halo 4'' on Xbox Live.
File:Masterchefstory.jpg|''Halo'' in a nutshell.
File:halo_teabag.gif|A fallen player's view of his slayer about to get sniped due to being a faggot-humper who is more concerned about bragging over a kill than the task at hand.
File:Master Chief.PNG|How ''Halo'' fans see Master Chief
File:Captain Queen.jpg
File:HATERS GONNA HATE Reach.jpg
File:LegendaryEditionforyourcat.jpg|This is why everyone wanted the Legendary edition of ''Halo 3''.
File:Needler 3.jpg|[[Goatse]]?
File:fat_elite.jpg|[[Fat Furs|The final boss of ''Halo'' 1]]. Seriously, the game is that fucking easy to beat.
File:Elite human.gif
File:Halo-Maddie-where-are-you.jpg
File:Halo1.gif
</gallery>}}
 
== See Also ==
 
[[Image:Pinkuh elitewang.jpg|thumb|[[Zeta toy|Another]] official Halo product]]
 
* [[An Halo]]
* [[bungie.net]]
* [[Copypasta/Archive_12#How_Halo_Reach_ruined_my_life.|How ''Halo Reach'' ruined my life]]
* [[Machinima]]
* [[Pretty cool guy]]
* [[343 Industries]]
 
== External Links ==
 
* [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2304-Zero-Punctuation-Halo-3 An honest and true review of ''Halo 3''.]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7826663.stm Basement dweller pwned parents because they took away his Gaylo 3.] It is not known whether he teabagged them after the deed or not.
* [http://fanficofthelegendary.ytmnd.com The worst fanfiction of all time]
* [http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/549991 Typical ''Halo'' fanboys]
 
 
{{Gaming}}
 
[[Category:Gaming]]

Latest revision as of 12:22, 5 July 2022

Typical Halo gameplay.

Halo, is an overrated, over-hyped FPS game with outdated controls, terrible graphics, shitty characters, and a convoluted storyline that was once considered "good" only because most gamers have never read a chapter book in their lives. The online multiplayer is scientifically designed to get on your nerves. The storyline also took several creative liberties from some shitty 1970's book called Ringworld, that nobody cared about, and also ripped off vehicles, designs, and Sgt. Apone (Johnson) from Aliens, which everyone did care about. The game was credited for saving Microsoft's Xbox from being branded a corporate money and timesink.

Games

Halo: Combat Evolved

It's like saying a bike with training wheels is better because anyone can ride it.

The original Halo was known for being the only "good" Xbox game that wasn't available on other platforms. It received extremely good reviews from every major publication thanks to its great level design that repeated the same goddamn gray corridor every 30 feet, which cut loading times. And as if the repetition wasn't bad enough, halfway through the game, you get to play through each level BACKWARDS!

The original story involved the Master Chief, a 26th century Spartan, who killed a fucktonne of zealots and stopped a giant ring in outer space from fucking up everyone's shit, thus saving world/universe/day/whatever.

It was also notable for having a handgun that could headshot people from literally half a mile away. Every multiplayer game became a chorus of moans and profanity as just getting within 500 yards of a competent player would result in death.

If the player completed the game on Legendary difficulty, he was rewarded by a nigger and an elite hugging. Bungie's innovative trend of rewarding effort with bestiality never really caught on with other developers.

Halo PC

A shitty port of Halo to the PC by Gearbox Software. Despite the dated graphics, you needed a "high-end" PC to run it decently. The only reason you would want to play Halo PC is for the single-player campaign, as the multiplayer is complete ass. No votekick, no voice chat, laggy online play, and a community of retards.

Halo Lag Edition (a.k.a. Halo Trial)

And you thought that Halo PC was laggy? Then you'll want to try the Halo Trial, which has the worst netcode in the history of online multiplayer games. Forget playing this freeware demo; it's hardly even a game since it doesn't even work. And if you do manage to get the multiplayer to work by buying the fastest internet connection possible, you'll meet players even more annoying and idiotic than the ones who play the full version. The only thing the Halo trial is good for is the one campaign level that it comes with, but the fun of the campaign level quickly diminishes after you save and quit, sit through the 20-minute video of Sgt Johnson screaming at you to buy several copies of the full game, then come back later only to find that the trial doesn't actually save your game.

Halo Custom Edition

Another shitty port of Halo to the PC, only with no campaign mode and the ability to play poorly-made custom maps. Gearbox released some shitty hack tools to go along with Halo CE so you can make your own maps. However, there are really only 3 known custom maps in existence. Because of the lack of good modding tools, many Halo CE fans decided to make their own hack tools, which are almost better than the Gearbox ones, aside from the fact that nearly all of them were written with .NET Framework and have constant exception errors or just don't work at all. Before Halo 2 for Vista came out, some maps ported from the Xbox version turned Halo CE into the poor man's Halo 2 multiplayer.

Halo 2

Halo 2 was basically just Halo 1 with bugged cutscenes, better textures and no atmosphere.

Like any somewhat decent game that makes a lot of money, the designers had to fuck it up beyond all recognition. They took all of the redeeming qualities of the original and used them as enemas to get more "innovative" content out for the new game. The graphics were glitchy, the physics were non-existent, the weapons were shit, and the singleplayer levels were only slightly less shitty. Unfortunately, the 1000 years spent in MS Paint to improve those levels resulted in the multiplayer levels suffering tremendously. The game somehow sold even more copies than the first, and millions of 13-year-olds blindly embraced it as a gift from God.

While the story of the first Halo was passable, the story of the second was riddled with plot holes, like how the Covenant somehow find Earth and (conveniently) a brand new Halo ring, or how they just randomly throw in the Venus Fly Trap from the Little Shop of Horrors halfway into the game.

Halo 2 also introduced a new playable character—The Arbiter—a Covenant warrior who was shunned by his people for letting the Master Chief blow up the first ring.

We also get introduced to a stupid bitch who (despite being shown piloting extremely recklessly) somehow became a captain, some prophets, the aforementioned Venus fly trap, and an entirely new alien race that suddenly spread throughout the entire universe and took over the Covenant overnight.

Halo 2 was one of the first and most popular games for Xbox Live. Unfortunately, its multiplayer had even more holes than its storyline. Countless glitches existed, the most notable of which was the ability of the player to become a rubber bouncy ball and escape the map boundaries. Master Rusemen found ways to exploit the networking and force people to endure unbearable lag and random bullshit like tanks being destroyed with a single shot from a sniper rifle, sword attacks from impossible distances, etc.

Halo 2's design improvements, such as the ability to hold two guns at once, were hailed as innovative, new, and totally original by people who had never played Marathon, Goldeneye, Unreal Tournament or Perfect Dark.

Halo 2 Vista

A shitty port of Halo 2 to the PC. It was exactly the same as Halo 2 for the Xbox, except it has better graphics and a map editor. To get the ability to play a three year old Xbox game, all you had to do was downgrade to Shitsta.

Microsoft tried to jew the community by claiming that Halo 2 needed DirectX10 in order to run, which is why it required Vista. Deeply unamused, the community quickly released a patch which installed the game on XP with a framerate increase. Microsoft became butthurt and refused to release any more Halo games on PC.

Halo 3

Johnson dies. By the final installment of the trilogy, you would think the story couldn't possibly get any more butchered... right? Wrong. There are so many plot holes and random shit happening that anyone who didn't throw his Xbox 360 into the trash is probably a casual to the highest degree.

But hey, nobody cares about the story anymore, it's all about mindless zombie run'n'gun multiplayer! Halo 3's multiplayer, while much more polished than Halo 2's, still left much to be desired... or it least it would have, if the target demographic didn't have the collective attention span of a squirrel. Many of the old glitches were replaced by new "features," such as the ability to be killed by a traffic cone, despite the half-ton, energy-shielded armor suit you're wearing.

Two new things that Bungie added were a map/gametype maker and the ability to record matches and make screenshots. The theater caused the internet to be flooded with incredibly shitty videos of 13-year-olds doing retarded things while trying to imitate the mosquito ringtone through their mics. Halo 3's map/gametype maker, while a good idea in theory, was crippled by Bungie's incompetence. Despite this, every person who had ever picked up an Xbox controller immediately set out to create the best maps and modes ever, which resulted in thousands of "super speed, low gravity, insta-death weapons" gametypes.

Halo Wars

An attempt at making a fun console RTS. Despite being only slightly more complex than your average tower defense game, it was too much to handle for most of the Xbox Live crowd. Much rage and butthurt was directed at Bungie, despite the fact that Bungie didn't even make it.

It quickly lost its playerbase due to the above-mentioned quality and the fact that each leader had a special power that, if spammed well enough, could win the game no matter what, which caused the few people who could play it to quit out of boredom.

Halo 3: ODST

All New Campaign - Same Shitty Game!

Halo 3: ODST was a typical Jewish scheme to sell somebody the same product twice with a new package. Basically, it was Halo 3 without energy shields.

Halo: Reach

Microsoft finally decided to cash in on the Cock of Duty bandwagon by making CoD with energy shields, AKA Halo: Reach.

Halo: Combat Evolved 2.0

Another attempt by Bill Gates to copy Steve Jobs' marketing strategy. Comparable to OOT's Master Quest.

Halo 4

After 4 years of chronic masterbation, Chief wakes up in the shipwreck from the last game and finds himself crashing into Requiem. A giant robot planet with giant robot orgies and plants. Masterchief awakens the Didact, who is this oldfag that commits mass lollercaust to build his army of robots. A big dildo ship called Infinity crashes on the planet and fucks off again because Captain Del Rio is a pussy. The Covenant unite with their gods, Chief pwns the Didact with a grenade to the face, Cortana dies, fanboys bawww.

The Campaign is continued with Spartan Ops. A shitty episodic series which is nothing more than coop firefight with less replayability and a generic objective. Repeated over 9000 times! The cinematic story runs aside the missions and goes as follows. Infinity fucks back to Requiem after crying for 6 months around Earth. Spartans go full lollercaust on covis and prometheans. Palmer is a bitch to Halsey, resulting in having Halsey's oldfag arm shot off, and captured by the Covenant along with half of a special key that tells you where the Forerunner's secret weed stash is. Also, Requiem plummets into sun and ends in a big explosion.

If you try to play the multiplayer, you will find yourself foaming from the mouth in rage. If you somehow manage to get a high K/D in the game, you will constantly be playing against MLG faggots that try their hardest to ruin the game for others and will make you rage so hard that you will become extremely violent in person and will kill anyone that gets in your way.

If you want to break all of your controllers and even your Xbox, or become an enraged mass murdering killing machine, this is the game for you.

To add to it being the most infuriating game ever, it is also the most broken game ever. 343i studios (fun fact, 343i translates to the largest collection of retards on the planet) is incapable of making a simple proper kill cam system (which even the chimps that make call of d00ty have figured out how to make work), they are incapable of balancing weapons, incapable of launching proper updates to fix the game, they are so boring that they copy COD garbage, thought that ordinance was some how a good idea, and are so bad at making maps that they some how managed to fuck up Valhalla from Halo 3. The worse fuck up that 343i thought was a good idea was the ranking system, which completely ruins the game all on its own. Nobody knows how it works. You can be the starting level in multiplayer and you can be still be placed in games against +100 SR level no-lives, in which they will then start raping your asshole into a bloody pulp. If you are some how able to get a high K/D, multiply the previous sentence by a thousand.

Not only is the multiplayer completely and utterly broken, but Spartan Ops takes the word "broken" to a whole other level. 343i thought it be a good idea to copy maps straight out of the campaign and pass them off in Spartan Ops, where you will play on the same maps 20+ times in a row. To make that boring, repetitive situation even worse, 343i thought it be a good idea to make elites 8 feet tall ninjas with shields more powerful than the bullet proof armor that you would find on a modern day tank. Not only is that annoying when it comes to a single elite, to make things worse 343i has no sense of balance when it comes to how much AI you will play at once, so when ever you have to go against an elite, you will find yourself fighting off several armadas of elites, along side entire armies of grunts and jackals, and if you're lucky, 4+ hunters all at once.

Words cant describe whats its like trying to play against entire space-time bending, intergalactic Promethean empires.

Oh and eggheads.

Halo 5: Guardians

So it's been a few months since Chief fucked up Didact and lost his blue cybernetic sex doll, and he's been palling around with his bros and hos on vacation (i.e. shoving their fists down alien scums' throats; love what you do!). But it turns out that even in death the blue chick won't leave him alone and tells him to get his ass to Meridian, a colony of hicks who keep reminding you that the South will rise again.

Meanwhile, there's another squad of super-special Spartans, Fireteam Osiris, who also get their lulz in the mass murder of space Muslims. Made up of a Brute, Buck the ODST-turned-sellout, and two vaginas (a black chick and a girl who keeps flooding her armor whenever she thinks about sweet sangheili cock), they're tasked with finding the AWOL Blue Team and bringing them to justice. They follow Chief to the South-in-Space, where an AI with alzheimers alternates between insulting the demigods and crying for their help, before confronting Cortana's fucktoy Warden Eternal and then Chief and Co. themselves. After breaking Chief's glasses, the Brute gets the absolute shit kicked out of him by the pissed off Space Jesus who hitches a ride on a Guardian and leaves Osiris to think about what they've done.

So we all knew Cortana wouldn't stay dead, right? Like, who didn't. But what we didn't know was that she would come back as a Nazi bent on bringing peace and order to the galaxy. So Chief has to fight his way through Warden's legions (how is she planning on ruling the galaxy when she can't even control one horny Ultron knockoff?) to reach her while she reminds him how sweet dat robo pussy is. When Chief finds her he tells her to cut the shit and get back in the kitchen, but she puts him and his pals inside a big floating soccerball for a 10,000-Year nap until she whips things into shape.

Meantime, Osirirs visits Arbiter, who as it turns out, also gets his kicks shoving a long, hard sword deep into the Covenant's quivering, warm flesh. And after a few years of being the butt of the official galactic pastime, there's only one place left where the dirty Muslims can hide; so you get to help the biggest hunk on Sanghelios put the absolute beatdown on the last Covie bastards while hijacking a Guardian to find Chief and apologize for being so disrespectful. Despite Warden and his army fucking shit up, and Vale distracting Arbiter's troops with blowjobs and creampies, you manage to climb aboard and head off while Arbiter's troops finish buttfucking Covies as they beg for mercy.

They get to Cortana's base and meet Guilty Spark's less-retarded sister, who immediately captured the fanbases' hearts by tossing you a tank and gushing over how good you are at killing bitches. You fight your way through robots and Covies who are too busy cumming over being in heaven to realize they just got royally rekt by Galactic Hunk #1 Thel 'Vadam, and manage to snag Chief and Co. while Cortana flies away in a RAGE to take over Earth and beyond with her army of Death Star-sized angels. In the end, Chief gets together with his bro Arbiter and mother/kidnapper to discuss how best to make Cortana chill out.

Commonly referred to as the best Halo yet.

Halo: Infinite

In true 343i fashion the story was yet again retconned and totally thrown out the window with this supposed sequel to Halo 5. Everyone's dead except Master Chief and a Hungarian bum who was named 'Brohammer' by the Halo community. For whatever reason Master Chief woke up in space next to a Halo ring, the Guardians from the previous games are totally gone and instead the main villain is now a Brute who's in cahoots with the one from Halo Wars 2, so expect a lot of players coming from Halo 5 and who don't like RTS games to not understand shit.

E3 2020 Halo: Infinite reveal

Characters

Main Characters

Master Chief was abducted as a child to become a super soldier.
  • Master Chief: Pretty cool guy who has a shield that absorbs damage to make up for the fact that his billion-dollar, half-ton, state-of-the-art armor suit can't even stop handgun rounds.
  • Cortana: Annoying bitch whose job it is to be the Master Chief's Navi. Dies in the fourth game, is resurrected as a surrogate antagonist in the fifth game, and resurrected again in the sixth.
  • Captain Keyes: A wise old captain. Dies in the first game due to being assimilated into the Proto-Gravemind.
  • Sargent Johnson: A sassy nigger. Dies in the third game.
  • 343 Guilty Spark: A gay robot that floats around. Is jealous that he can't be Master Chief's Navi. Dies in the third game.
  • Miranda Keyes: Typical woman pilot. Dies in the third game.
  • The Arbiter: A small dinosaur that you get to control. Becomes an atheist after listening to Richard Dawkins and turns on the Covenant. Voted "Sexiest Person of All Time"; capable of making women cum just by ordering them to make him a damn sandwich. Can cause enemies to defect just by flexing his pecs (it's canon, look it up).
  • The Prophets: Catholic priests who get bored with molesting grunts and decide to blow up the universe. Were once "Sexiest Species in the Galaxy" before the Forerunners came along, shot down their brothels, and made them start worshiping old people. Thanks, Forerunners.
  • Gravemind: Audrey II.

Friends and Enemies

Friends

Marines: These dumb mother fuckers enjoy long walks on the beach, driving into rocks, driving off cliffs, shooting at rocks and generally shooting at anything besides the enemy. They stroke Master Chief's massive cock any chance they get and even have wet dreams about him. They rely on him to save their asses through out the whole game and have no idea what they're doing.

Oh, and don't try attack them, because apparently they are enraged by you turning on them and juice themselves up with magic damage potions.

Enemies

The Covenant: Religious zealots whose sole purpose is to kill off the humans. The Covenant is made up of several different species, two or three of which magically appear out of nowhere during the storyline. Despite having immense technological and numerical advantages, they manage to fuck up the attack on Earth and fail miserably.

Forerunners: Ancient aliens who died a long time ago. Faggots will tell you that humans are descended from them, but that's just about as retarded as saying that the ancient Egyptians were black. They created the Halos and for some reason captured but didn't kill the flood before they died. Turns out they're also kinda assholes for the most part whose own parents decided they'd better have a post-natal abortion, before the Forerunners threw a fit and killed most of them.

Flood: Nigger version of the Borg. When enough of them have an orgy together, they create a Gravemind. Revealed to be the descendants of the godlike Precursors who created every living being, until Forerunners pissed them off with attempted genocide and decided to cause pain and suffering for everyone forever and always after. Thanks, Forerunners.

Novels

Someone, realizing that bored 13-year-olds would need something to do while being grounded for trash-talking on Xbox Live, decided to create books for them to read. They're only slightly better than your average fanfic.

Fall of Reach

A long time ago in a galaxy far far away Humanity has spread across the galaxy like some sort of sick fungus, led by the UNSC. Some colonies have gotten pissy about taxation without representation or major abuse or some shit and threaten to rebel, with Insurrectionists bombing shit left and right (fun fact: guess what year this shit was released!) So after pursuing peace through reasonable dialogue and exhausting all efforts to peacefully negate aggression, the genius Mary Sue Doctor Halsey abducts a bunch of kids to turn into war machines and assassinate anyone who stands in the UNSC's way.

If course, that would hit too close to home for the Amerifats who play this shit, so they only get in one good mission. Then a hoard of alien called the Covenant shows up from nowhere with a boner for melting planets, see how ridiculously unethical humanity is being, and decide to kill them for Allah the Forerunners. Once again we've got to remind you that this came out right after 9/11, so "subtlety" wasn't a priority beside "revenge fantasy". Anyway, these Islamists-in-space start wrecking the absolute shit out of humanity, while the UNSC squeal like bitches and pray to God that the Covenant doesn't find their really good shit on Reach.

For the rest of the plot, read the damn title.

The Flood

A shitty adaption of Combat Evolved. Just go play the fucking game, there's nothing to see here.

First Strike

So after the Halo gets btfo Chief gets some alone time with Cortana drifting in space. After he gets tired fucking the USB slot he decides it's about time to grab something exotic and fuck back off to Reach. So he grabs that one black guy who isn't dead for some reason and borrows a supercarrier from its understanding captain. When he gets back to Reach he picks up some of his bros and hos and steals some magical time-warping MacGuffin... you know what, nothing really happens here, the point is he kills a few aliens and gets back to earth eventually.

Halo: Legends

Why ruin the gaming world when you can ruin the cinematic one too? That's right, someone thought it was a good idea to make Halo an anime. The video itself is comprised of peoples sob stories. The only thing good about it is that it FINALLY explains what the fuck is happening in the Halo story line. All the stories are shit. One is based on Dragon Ball Z and another is horribly filter raped.

A small shitstorm ensued on Halo forums when a picture of a teddy bear key-chain started popping up in relation to one of the collaboration videos called Homecoming. This caused all the 13-year-olds to collectively shit brix at the thought that maybe their hyper-masculine franchise might have a sensitive side to it.

Fanboys

Despite its lack of Italian plumbers and blue hedgehogs, Halo may be the most fanboyed game of all time. This is evidenced by all of the inexcusably shitty edits made to this page, and all the MASTER CHIEF VS MARIO VS SONIC flash cartoons on Newgrounds.

[Collapse GalleryExpand Gallery]

See Also

Another official Halo product


Halo is part of a series on

Gaming

Visit the Gaming Portal for complete coverage.