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I Survived the Halo 2 Multiplayer Demo…
Barely. (aka Halo Preview #2)
by Tim Surette
Get out your green crayons and markers, because 99.99% of you should start coloring yourselves envious. At this year’s E3, I was fortunate enough to be one of a select few (okay, maybe we numbered in the hundreds, but I like to feel special) to take a gander at the Halo 2 multiplayer E3 demo. These are the sorts of times that make a grown man a kid again – the feeling of impending Christmas when Christmas used to be cool. Before the days of listening to family badger you about your job (or lack of), marriage (or lack of), and general sanity (or lack of). Halo 2 is one of the most anticipated pieces of media since we found out about the extended Paris Hilton video (although I’m sure we all felt a little Ghost Recon-ish with the night vision version). Its release date has been delayed more than a 35-year old virgin’s, but to those who doubt the creative minds at Bungie I can comfortably say, “It was worth it, so shut up!”
At last year’s E3, I had two simple goals: Get as much free shiznit I could and get a peek at Halo 2. E3 2003 souvenirs still clutters my room and my friends’ backs, but I failed miserably at seeing any footage of Halo 2. The lines were too long to wait for – I was working, after all, journalistic integrity requires that fun be limited at E3. Private meetings were too hard to come by, and the only way to see the show was to wait in the hour-plus line for the private theater. So this year’s approach was more tactical – find out who has the GameZone meeting, chloroform them in the bathroom, and assume their identity. Unfortunately, I’d grown attached to fellow GameZone writer Steven Hopper and couldn’t bring myself to do it, so I just decided to tag along and claim I was Photographer/Illustrator/Web Designer/Emperor of GameZone.
Halo 2 was once again being shown in a private theater, but it was not available to the public. Set in the back of the über-cool Microsoft booth, the inconspicuous black theater was mobbed by journalists from all over. Journalists with television cameras, journalists from legitimate news magazines, journalists with accents, I think I even saw someone from Home and Garden there. Point is it wasn’t easy to get in, but I did it – for all of you out there - and to satisfy my insatiable Halo appetite. But the real reason I did it? To brag to my friends, those suckers. After the PR people pointed to us and said we’re in, Steven and I breathed a collective sigh of relief – our (his) appointment had been delayed several times and time was running out. As we stepped towards Nirvana, an arm blocked our path.
“Hold on,” the figure said. I could have taken her with a few left/right combos I learned from EA’s Fight Night, but I didn’t want to cause a scene - yet. As our path to salvation was cut short, a crew of television cameras led by a blonde bombshell in a tight T-shirt made their way into the room. She bounced around the room as though she were on a pogo stick blabbering about who-knows-what. As soon as the cameras stopped rolling, her face sunk into boredom and she signaled to the crew that it was time to get the hell out of there. As she brushed against me on her way out – on purpose no doubt, I’ve been working out – I realized it was Jenny McCarthy of Singled Out ‘fame’. I wanted to sarcastically tell her I loved her in ‘Underground Comedy Movie’, but realized it was actually Gena Lee Nolin, not McCarthy. Then I realized it would have been even funnier if I did say it knowing it actually wasn’t her, but it was too late. By the way, she looks both smaller and bigger in real life – if y’all know what I mean.
The Blonde Blockade having been removed, it was time to make our way in. The theater was decked out with two large plasma screens along the center of one wall, and eight plasma screens arranged in a semi-circle on the opposite wall. White plush chairs similar to those in the Milk Bar in A Clockwork Orange sat in front of each of the smaller plasma screens. I grabbed a seat as though it were the last beer in the fridge after 2am and got ready. I noticed some controllers in front of the chairs – they weren’t going to let us play it were they?
Frank O’Connor of Bungie began the demonstration innocently enough. A simple video demonstration gave an example of the improved graphics engine. Everything looked MUCH sharper than the original Halo. The setting was a beach with about thirty yards of sand before hitting a rocky shore that appeared hurriedly man-made. Next we got our first look at Master Chief. He/She/It looked unchanged – same armor, same visor, same attitude. Frank (I’ll pretend we’re on a first name basis) explained that the armor would be more customizable and detailed this time. Details were fuzzy, but hopefully we’ll see some real-time damage, clan logos, and different color combinations (Salmon and Mauve, anyone?). Over the cliff edge came a user-controlled Wort with a gravity-defying leap. Wort, presumably named in an onomatopoeic fashion, is a Covenant baddie familiar from the first Halo – an elite soldier that slaughtered my Master Chief several times. For purposes of the demo, the two weren’t outright enemies, but rather Guinea Pigs in Frank’s evil laboratory. Closer looks revealed the Wort relatively unchanged as well, which made me very nostalgic for the original Halo. It’s obvious that while many of the old characters are going to return, they will remain unchanged to keep fans of the original able to take the transition easily.
It was time for Chief to show off some of his weapon skills, the most notable being his ability to dual wield weapons. Holding an assault rifle in one hand, Chief simply walked to a Needler and pressed Y and voila! Chief now held two guns like a space-aged gangster from the Westside. Wort stood innocently admiring the new textures and bump-mapping of his surroundings when Chief unloaded on him. Wort was no more – quickly. The dual-wield feature is bound to delight many with its independent triggers (left trigger for the gun in the left hand and right for right) and many uses which gamers will quickly figure out. Aim will be slightly off, but when you’re blowing off sixty rounds per second, who cares? Chief can also wield the Covenant energy sword (remember that thing that repeatedly sliced you in half in that arena type level once aboard the Covenant ship?). With two primary swings, this thing is going to do some serious gutting. “If you’re in a corridor and see an enemy coming at you with the energy sword,” Frank explained, “you may as well just blow yourself up.” Advice duly noted. Chief also demonstrated the Rocket Launcher’s new lock-on feature at the expense of poor Wort, the Igor to Chief’s Frankenstein.
After Wort respawned, a Pelican dropped off a Warthog. Not just any Warthog, a Rocket Hog. That’s right, this warthog was equipped with a rocket launcher instead of the machine gun turret. Now of course the first thing you want to do when you get a vehicle on the screen is blow the thing up. Frank demonstrated the new vehicle damage system in Halo 2 by unloading several clips into the Warthog. Real-time damage splintered the chassis, sent smoke rising from the engine, and removed tires from axels. There were three main stages of damage – drivable, incapacitated, and rubble. As the Warthog got to its smoldering incapacitated stage, Frank asked Wort to hop on the ‘Hog and man the rocket launcher. “If there’s still a round left in the rocket launcher…,” he said. And sure enough there was, leaving Wort to take a rocket to the face. “It will discharge.” I can’t wait to see what redvsblue.com does with this feature. “Lopez, did you fire all the rounds off in the rocket launcher?” “Uhhhhh, yeah. I’m pretty sure I did.” “Pretty sure?” “Yes, yes… I think.” Comedy ensues. Chief continued to unload rounds into the Warthog and it eventually exploded, sending off a small nuclear shockwave with it. Beautiful. Next on the spot was a Ghost, revamped and retuned. Frank explained that the new Ghost was easier to drive and added a new boost feature. Good for a limited time, the boost (left trigger) is useful for evading, pursuing, or as I found out later, something else. The Ghost also has the same damage modeling as the Warthog. Another feature that dazzled Halophiles from last year’s E3 was Chief’s ability to jack drivers. Frank displayed the ease of the maneuver from the front, side, and rear of the vehicle, and promised that the move would be easier in multiplayer, citing the disrespect factor that multiplayer is all about (see: defiling an enemy’s corpse by repeatedly ducking on them, simulating necrophilia). Vehicles will play a larger part in Halo 2, and many new vehicles will be introduced, but no others were discussed during the demo.
Next we saw a video demonstration of the level we were about to play on. Yep, we were about to play it – something I hadn’t expected. Zanzibar, as it was called, was an assault type of map – one fortress and lots of ways to get in. It was a combination of natural landscape and man-made buildings and passages, and was simply gorgeous. The video presentation was a fly-by, stopping at key points. A large circular spinning thing (trust me – there really isn’t an easier way to describe it) was the centerpiece of the map, and a switch toggled it on or off. From the looks of Zanzibar, the environments are going to be much more interactive, with levers, switches, and buttons activating certain level-specific functions, further imploring team strategy (“Take the bridge!”). Turning the concrete circle on began the spin, revealing a compartment with the Covenant energy sword in it. Frank challenged us to find a way to get it, which we gladly accepted. At another strong point, an elevated plateau was adorned with a sniper rifle, a spot Frank insisted was very important for ‘midfield defense’. At that phrase, I knew these guys put a lot of thought into the importance of team play – something amiss in most multi-player shooters. Approaching the fortress, we saw two mounted machine gun turrets perched high above the ground, but Frank assured us we could blow them up with a well-placed rocket. There were three ways into the fortress. Straight up the gut were two entryways for the courageous, to the right was a sneakier passage for the lone wolf, and to the left was a gate that could only be opened by pressing a button in the middle of the base. The gate was big enough for vehicles to pass, a key strategy for those who like to drive up to the flag, grab it, and smoke off in a Warthog waving the flag like an astronaut at a homecoming parade. This demonstration was an example of what sets Bungie apart from other developers. People will talk about controls, story, weapons, and AI as being Bungie’s strengths, but I’ll take level design any day. Bungie has perfected level design to both a science and art. Even back in the days of Marathon on the Macintosh, level design has always been Bungie’s bread and butter, making the games flat out more fun to play because of strategy and sneaky nooks and crannies. Everything is balanced with Bungie – something other developers can take a cue from.
The game was simple – five on five Single Capture the Flag. A blend of CTF and Assault, Single Capture the Flag pits one team on offense against one team on defense. The offensive team’s goal is to snatch the flag and take it back to their scoring point. Defense’s job is to stop them with a certain time limit. Switch roles and repeat - Simple. No word on whether this will replace standard CTF, but it’s doubtful. The teams were divided into Master Chiefs and Covenant Elites, with five on each side. We (the Elite) began on offense and were offered a few Warthogs and a Ghost to get things started. Chaos immediately sat in as we had no idea where we were going and were just eager to try dual-wielding and anything else we could. After a few games (they lasted about three minutes each) and a disappointing start, I decided to try and grab the energy sword. Jumping up to the spinning wheel, I peered down at the hidden compartment and jumped onto the inside of the circle, going for a ride as though it were a ferris wheel that didn’t exactly pass safety inspections. Once the compartment was in view, I jumped into it and grabbed the sword. To my knowledge, I was the first of our group to grab the sword, which could put me in the first 100 to wield the damn thing. I’m going to boast whenever I can, so get used to it. It was time to do a little slicing and dicing, so I jumped into the fray and immediately ran towards the closest Chief I could find. Unfortunately, I had no idea how to use the damn thing (I should have paid more attention during the demonstration – my bad) and swung and missed like Tony Batista against Barry Zito. My life ended shortly after, but at least I gave it a try.
I eventually got my bearings, and thanks to the hundred plus hours logged onto Halo (and that’s a conservative estimate) I just decided to play. The controls will be a snap for anyone with Halo experience to pick up as very little has changed. Always the dominant sniper, I sent Chiefs back to the lab with no problem with headshot after headshot. The open courtyard in front of the fortress proved to be the Antietam of our little Civil War, with bodies littering the floor and Elite and Chiefs ragdolling to their demise with alarming frequency. Playing around with dual-wielding was a great experience, but being such a fan of the original Halo, I found it difficult to pull the left trigger with the same frequency as the right trigger. That will change though, as Halo exercised my right index finger, so too will Halo 2 exercise the left. My game is dominated by using grenades and guns simultaneously, so I abandoned dual-wielding (you can’t grenade with two weapons). As we played more and more games, team play began to take shape and prove its worthiness. We worked like a well-oiled machine, moving in teams and hitting the same spots. This is the main objective of the Bungie team – implementing teamwork – and they have accomplished it beautifully. Our team began bringing vehicles down the Chiefs throats, jumping into the hogs with the precision of a bobsled team, and mounting the rocket launchers like a Chihuahua does your leg. Driving down the gut in tow with other vehicles reminded me of the ‘Flight of the Valkyrie’ scene from Apocalypse Now. I could practically hear Wagner’s horn section bellowing as I let loose rockets at turrets while driving full speed, reducing the towers to rubble and watching the other team scatter like the villagers in Coppola’s epic. It was a rush, it was incredible, it was perfect. Frank O’Connor had the gall to ask me during play how I liked the game. I turned to him and couldn’t decide whether laugh in his face or kowtow to him, kiss his feet, and ask him when the space ship was going to come out of the barn and take us to the holy land behind the moon or drink the poisonous Kool-Aid.
Halo 2 exceeded my lofty expectations. The wait was worth it, trust me. The November 9th release date was no doubt due to the new features of Xbox Live – teams, clans, and new friends features just wouldn’t be worth it without Halo 2. Though everything is still tight-lipped on the game, Halo 2 is bound to dominate the FPS market again, and may even finally push the Xbox past PS2 as top console. I’m a believer. LAN party at my house on November 9th. I’ll provide the Kool-Aid.
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