Halo has become a staple in not just first-person shooters but the video game community as a whole. Master Chief is possibly one of the most recognizable characters in the world, and it is not just because of the recent release of Halo Infinite. The Halo series has been around for over 20 years, and though the franchise has grown and developed over time, many lifelong fans still believe that the first few games perfectly captured the essence of the series.
The first Halo had humble beginnings on the Xbox that blossomed into a massively popular series for its story as well as its highly competitive multiplayer. As franchise started to expand, the original trilogy not only created a huge fan base for itself, but also helped put the Xbox console on the map and essentially kickstarted the beginning of Xbox Live. Even though many other Halo games have come out since the series first began, none have been able to truly recapture the feeling of the original games or their astonishing impact on the world of video games.
How the First Halo Games Curated the Perfect Gaming Experience
On the surface, the Halo: Combat Evolved looks to be a simple FPS set in a futuristic environment. The idea was not exactly new and bold, but it was the execution that really piqued players’ interest. Halo introduced fans to Master Chief, a stoic and grizzled super soldier who did not say much but still had a personality, and the game guided players through his story and mission to save Earth. During the time of Halo’s release, not many single-player FPS games had much of a story or memorable characters, but Halo stood out from the pack and made an effort to actually tell a story and make the players care about Master Chief and his A.I. companion, Cortana.
Not only did the original Halo have solid FPS mechanics and a standout set of characters, but it also had the benefit of Xbox exclusivity. Back in the days of console wars, Sony and Microsoft were constantly attempting to gain a higher fan base by releasing console-exclusive games, and Halo became the Xbox’s flagship FPS that some argue PlayStation has still never been able to top. With that said, Halo quickly made a name for itself and, in turn, the Xbox console.
Though the original Halo did have split-screen multiplayer and LAN multiplayer capabilities, the series’ multiplayer did not truly take off until Halo 2, which was released three years after the original. Just as the first game helped kickstart the Xbox console, Halo 2 had a huge role to play in the popularity of Xbox Live. As one of the first popular and competitive FPS games for consoles, Halo 2’s multiplayer helped put Xbox Live on the map, and its simplistic yet effective matchmaking and ranking systems have influenced not only future Halo games but many other competitive multiplayer FPS titles.
The Legacy Left Behind by Halo
After the first two Halo games, the series began to rapidly expand, and most of the new games in the series followed the same formula as the original game and were met with equal success. New game modes such as Warzone and Firefight changed the way players would go about the multiplayer, but the classic Halo game modes will always be a staple of the series’ multiplayer. Many of the newer titles also introduced gameplay mechanics such as sprinting or equipment, which proved jarring for longtime fans but ultimately made sense to keep up with modern FPS games.
The Halo story has remained centered around Master Chief and Cortana, barring a few one-off games, but with so many titles now in the Halo series, few of the stories have the same impact and feel as the original games. Fans may begin to wonder how much longer Master Chief can remain the face of the Xbox console, but with Halo Infinite’s campaign being praised by fans, it seems that Master Chief is still as iconic as ever.
Though the Halo franchise remains exceptionally popular, it is impossible to deny the impact of the first few games in the series. With a franchise that has been around for so long, fans may forget where it all began, and some current Halo players may not have even played the original games. Fortunately, Halo: The Master Chief Collection allows newcomers and lifelong fans to revisit the classic Halo titles, which have been polished and ported to PC as well. Though the initial feeling of booting up Halo on the original Xbox or logging into Xbox Live on Halo 2’ multiplayer may be a distant memory, for many Halo fans, these classic moments are the fondest and most groundbreaking experiences in all of gaming.
Halo Infinite is available now on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.