text:
- Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
- Release Date: Nov 6, 2012
User Score
Mixed or average reviews- based on 2868 Ratings
User score distribution:
Positive: 1,962 out of 2868
Mixed: 218 out of 2868
Negative: 688 out of 2868
Review this game
- User score
- Most active
- By date
- Most helpful
- Most Clicked
Nov 6, 2012Exactly what I have been waiting for in a game. Story is great, action is great. Multiplayer is refreshing and the maps are beautiful. Definitely a must buy.
Nov 6, 2012OK got my halo 4 in started playing and right out the box I was like **** yeah halo man I love this game so gorgeous and like most other halos before it the gun play and story are fun and interesting.mulitiplayer as usaul is a blast I just. Confused again like when reach came out why so much hate. What do ppl want 343i to do to halo change into cod or something cause I I read o its not evovled or it's the same. Well Idk what they are babbling about cause halo 4 in my opinion is the BEST game I have played this year so far and is a awesome introduction to the new trilogy if u are a halo fan BUY this game u WILL love it lol.… Expand
Apr 19, 2013I have all the halo games and this one is a bit different but still attach to the original game play, it has a lot CoD but i don't see that like a bad thing, for me this game is a 1 year online game to play.
Nov 7, 2012I was sort of bummed out by this game, maybe because my expectiations were too high. I mean, it is not bad in any way, but it is far from extraordinary. It looks amazing, the story is refreshingly different, the voice acting is top of the class: it is definetly Halo (SP campaign is not exactly long, tho).
Where it fails for me is multiplayer; the heart and soul of Halo. First off, what happened to invasion? I loved that mode in Reach :( Slayer mode is fun as always, but the level design feels a bit off on some maps. The minimap colors isn't good enough either. All in all, I'm somewhat disappointed, but I should mention my expectations were sky high.… Expand
Nov 12, 2012Halo 4. Apparently we didnt finish the fight afterall. But you know what, I'm ok with that. Ignore the negative scores on this site. These are the same trolls that complained about Diablo and Mass Effect. These are the same trolls that complain about how things changed too much, but would also complain if nothing changed. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery they say. There is no denying the multi-player comparisons to Call of Duty. Hell, some of the changes are clearly blatant ripoffs. But this is still Halo. Its still the fast paced, twitch firing, map memorizing game weve been playing since the LAN parties of 2001. Multiplayer is fine, and when BLOPS2 comes out, all the COD fan boys will leave and Halo's MP experience can only strengthen. However, MP is only part of the game. Spartan Ops add a fresh co-op experience, and 343 is pumping it full of maps every week...for free. The single player is more lore driven than previous entries, and personally i learned more about the Halo universe from H4, than any game before. I play single player in one of two ways, "Easy" - i like to play for the story, i want that to progress smoothly and fluidly with no frustrations. However, "legendary" with a friend is a must, i still want a challenge. But i need to get that story out of the way first, this is a lore centric series now (something i feel Bungie missed out on) and you owe it to yourself to see the single player game through. I gave this game a 9 because it isnt perfect. The mission objectives in SP are repetitive, their only saving grace is the level variety. But really, other than that, this game is amazing. Matchmaking in MP is fluid, smooth, quick, and i rarely get dumped into a random losing game. The guns are amazingly balanced for an initial release (really guys, the DMR kills at long range, but doesnt stand a chance vs a BR at mid, learn to aim) As someone who has routinely sucked at past Halo MP offerings, i can say that i am having an absolute blast with H4, the changes have allowed me to become a "better" player, thus making the game more enjoyable. 343 took a huge risk with a beloved franchise, and came out on top. Halo can only go up from here!… Expand
Nov 19, 2012This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I've loved the Halo series since the beginning, and every single one has been great, this one as no exception. I was skeptical in buying it at first, because many game play videos made the game look like COD. Once you step in to the game, it feels much less like that. I agree that they really didn't need to add all of the COD mechanics that they did, but I can see past that. The graphics were stunning, I truly thought the characters in cut-scenes were actual people. The two points I took off of this game were due to the campaign seriously lacking. It was only four hours, and I felt that it was very repetitive. Many, many, many occasions on the lines of "go to each station and disable/activate something". Examples: The two light beams in Requiem, moving the lift in Shutdown, and overloading the shields during the ending. I also feel that the quick time event on the ending was unneeded. I was also excited for the Pelican mission, only to find out that you never even use the Pelican in the mission, you only use it to jump to the different stations in the level. Besides this, the game has been thrilling and enjoyable.… Expand
Dec 18, 2012Absolutely brilliant game. Couldn't ask for more, except maybe a bigger Forge map and a helicopter in multiplayer. But to break it down...
- The campaign is incredible and has possibly the best story I've ever played. You really feel like Master Chief.
- The graphics are the best I've ever seen and are the best on the Xbox 360, hands down.
- The multiplayer is incredibly fun, deep, and extraordinarily balanced. Best multiplayer since Halo 2. - Spartan Ops is fantastic, and the cinematic pieces before each episode make the missions have meaning.
This game is incredible. Games like Call of Duty are laughable in comparison. If you like games, pick this up. Now.… Expand
Jan 1, 2013Halo 4 is an awesome game, it continues the story of Master chief precisely 4 years 7 months and 10 days after entering cryo sleep at the end of Halo 3. Chief awakes to find the Forward unto Dawn spiraling towards a mysterious forerunner planet. The story is great, and does a great job at provoking nostalgia. However the story revolves around Cortana more so than Chief, it raises some interesting themes, and those familiar with the novels will no doubt be excited about Halo 5 & 6 as it delves deeper into the wider narrative. Overall the story is great, and the level design helps keep each mission fresh. Spartan ops is a weekly episodic based series, it is great fun with friends and comes with excellent cinematic cut scenes that is slowly weaving a story of its own. However after the first 5 episodes, many areas have been reused, which has made this mode go stale, repetitive and at times tedious. Thankfully for the next 5 episodes 343 have created all new battlegrounds, so lets hope the 2nd half avoides the first halves shortcomings. Multiplayer has undergone some extensive changes, such as custom loadouts, kill cams and ordnance drops. Custom loadouts have been balanced quite well, with all primary weapons being ideal for certain situations, but no so much that one is necessarily better than another, same with armour abilities, tactical packages and support upgrades. some tweaks to make them more balanced would certainly be welcome, as i have found the DMR might just be a tad to powerful, and the boltshot pistol should take longer to charge. Overall the maps are great, spawning is not a problem in this game. The only map i dislike is exile, even then it is still not an evil map to play on. Kill cams are just that kill cams, while ordnance drops give you a power weapon, an upgrade or grenades after reaching a certain amount of points. these are a welcome addition as weapons such as the rocket launcher and binary rifle only showing up rarely. The upgrades consist of speed boost, overshield and damage boost, each offering only a slight edge, but can often be the difference in a firefight. Overall the multiplayer is fresh and interesting, and is quite balanced, but does cater for noobs a little to much, the maps are great, and it discourages camping. However i found that the multiplayer lacks the wow factor, i have not found myself addicted to this multiplayer as i did in Halo 2 & 3. The sound design in this game is top notch to say the least, each gun sounds badass, and yet sounds like it should. The clunking of your armour as you walk helps build immersion. The graphics are no different, pushing the limits of the xbox 360 to the max. It is the best looking game on xbox. Overall Halo 4 is a great game, with a fantastic single player, a muliplayer that successfully changes so much, Spartan ops being the only let down, but that looks like it could change, so i give this game an 8/10. This a great game and anyone who is on the fence i recommend you get this, it is the Halo you know and love, but with enough new content to keep it fresh. 343 have done a great job with this game and i can't wait to see what they do for Halo 5 & 6.… Expand
Feb 25, 2013I really hoped that bungies absence in a Halo game wouldn't be that big of a deal...but i was very wrong. Halo 4, despite its graphical superiority is a very poor Halo game. the Campaign is a bit of mixed bag, the antagonist and his plans feels rushed and is very bland, but the interactions between John 117 and Cortana are very well done. the campaign also briefly delves into John's sociopathic side which is very interesting despite the fact that its extremely brief. The campaigns weakest link is its criminally anti climatic QTE boss fight. it may be very short but it makes the villain even more worthless than he was in the first place. The multiplayer is also a complete disaster.... the spartan IV's armors look absolutely ridiculous and resemble power rangers more than the traditional realistic and badass looking Spartan II and III's. Rather then the addictive firefight from REACH and ODST 343 added a mode called Spartan Ops, an episodic series of missions that take place after the campaign...while this seemed like a decent idea, it ultimately fails due to the missions being painfully repetitive constantly recycling areas from campaign and having little to no story at all. the weekly cinematics also seemed nice but they are way too short to make anyone give a about the characters or story. Matchmaking rather then being a refined but familiar Halo experience, takes more hints from the appalling CoD series in its inclusion of perks, custom classes, Killcams, and zero spawn time. This ultimately rapes the Halo experience that people have come to know and love and makes it a COD game with a Halo color palette... in the end Halo 4 is an extremely weak Halo game with the only appeal being the ability to gawk at the games gorgeous visuals.… Expand
Feb 17, 2013A good game but the multiplayer and a lot of the campaign feels too dejavu. Fantastic, there's a new enemy, an awesome soundtrack, and little tweaks that are much appreciated, but the overall feel is too familiar. Halo 3.5, not Halo 4.
Jul 14, 2013I have to give this game a 8/10 because it IS good game play, graphics and game style but sadly there are some bugs in the games sometimes that did not get fixed but other than that it's a good game.
Aug 19, 2013The story is quite good, it has stellar sound and looks, character development has increased tenfold over it's predecessors, and can be challenging due to decently smart AI. A little on the short side though.
The multiplayer is somewhat derivative and hectic by Halo standards, but stellar by any other measure. (No pun intended)
Verdict: Much better than Halo Reach, but this title doesn't live up match the glory days of Halo 3.… Expand
Mar 14, 2014This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. (Minimal spoilers)
I honestly can't give this game more than a 6 for the simple reason that throughout the entire playthrough, I couldn't help but feel bored and disinterested in the characters, the plot, the chief and Cortana, or the action. Please note, this is a review of the single-player campaign only.
I've always loved the Halo series, in its prime the game was an incredible showing of what shooters could be. A combination of fun, semi-open field exploration with vehicles of all sizes, battling against untold odds. Halo Reach was a decent addition to a great series, adding important backstory to the Chief's grand adventure. Halo 4, on the other hand, adds little to the mythos of the chief, trying instead to forge a 2-dimensional relationship between the him and the AI Cortana.
The gameplay felt tedius at times, where I'd often think to myself 'oh great, yet another section of the game that I don't want to complete', and I'd force myself through it because I'm that kind of gamer. That is, hopeful, wishing for this game to pick up the pace and throw some interesting combat at me. Instead, it was rehash after rehash, with repetitive enemy battles throughout. They basically introduce the principle enemies at you near the beginning of the game, and they recycle the same ones over and over and over again.
As for the story, I still don't know what the hell happened. I'm no slouch when it comes to picking up on complex philosophical implications, but this story was way over my head. Who was the principle enemy? Why do I care? What's his motive for destroying humanity if humanity poses little to no threat to the galaxy? Why does human technology integrate so easily into theirs? This is basically how it goes: Chief wakes up from slumber, **** going down, somehow through the expanse of space he meets up with a human ship, they run into a giant mechanical planet thing, chief **** **** up, casualties of war happen, the chief blows a nuke and doesn't die, humanity wins and the chief loses.
The one part of the game that kept me engaged was the visuals. I have to hand it to 343, they made a handsome looking game. The fidelity was sharp and the colors bright and vibrant. The enemies were well designed and the worlds felt real. While running through space stations you felt like you were there. The sound design was also top notch, with an excellent musical track to carry through the otherwise sleepy and predictable storyline.
I bought it used for $15 on amazon. Personally the game didn't resonate with me, but it was worth what I'd paid for it. I don't think I would recommend this game to my friends, so I wouldn't recommend it to you. If you don't mind the lack of a story and gameplay that has regressed from its prior glory in order to play as the chief again, go for it. If you care about progress in gaming, leave this one on the rack.… Expand
May 9, 2014A really good game but lacked one thing the story chief and finished the fight and why was the covenant attacking us again i knew they were a cult but what started it? that is what we should need 2 know also mulitplayer is really awesome and spartan ops its just like the halo reach campaign (what i mean is you can use your spartan in a campaign) that is what i liked the most so anyway it is a really fun no not fun AMAZING GAME YOU COULD SPEND 60$ ON! and I've read all the reviews its trying to be like COD but don't let that fool you cause its not. so what are you waiting for if your a big fan of halo and you got 60$ go get it!… Expand
May 22, 2014It's the fourth time i rewrite this review. I'm tired of trying to find something to explain why i think this game is one of my favourite, so that's all i going to say: buy it. Really, you won't be disappointed. So many of my friends started to love halo series because of this game. Are you searching for a fps with excellent graphics, good story and excellent gameplay? Well, you just found it.
Nov 10, 2012This game was.....ok. Not as good as the other ones. The quality of the series keeps going down and down. As great as HALO2 was, 3 then 4 continue the downward spiral of the once great series. I suggest if you wanna play a great shooter, try Black Ops 2.
Nov 6, 2012I already wrote a review for this game but i feel like the other reviewers are giving extremely harsh scores for small details.. if u have already read my other review i've said that the game is different from halos past.. its gone for the more sci-fi route. ive seen people write about clunky vehicles? im sorry i don't know what game you're playing but its not halo 4 cause i had no trouble driving the vehicles.… Expand
Nov 17, 2012First off, I'm almost entirely a single player guy, so this review will be heavily biased in that regards. If you want to know about multiplayer, this review is not for you. Saying that, previous Halo games have always provided me with more than enough single player value for my dollar. Halo 4 is the first time I have not felt this way. As short as part 4 was, this was the first time I ever had to force myself to finish a Halo game. I began to wonder if after so many Halo games, if perhaps I had finally gotten tired of them. So I loaded up Halo Reach, and it was quickly reestablished why I love Halo so much after all. No, this wasn't a Halo thing. It was a Halo 4 thing. No joke, I had more fun in a single 30 minute single player round of Reach firefight then I did in the entire Halo 4 campaign. Thinking more on the whole Bungie's past visions of Halo vs. 343's new vision of Halo, I found something that summoned up my thoughts perfectly. A comparison of the former Firefight vs the new Spartan Ops. Firefight (Bungie) gives 1-4 people a hugh number of options, weapons, vehicles, levels and enemies, then lets you decide how you want to play the game to make your own fun. Spartan Ops (343) wants to tell you what to do, when to do it, and how you should do it. And it also wants to sell you a Gold membership at the same time. No thanks. Bungies Halos were nothing short of brilliant. 343's Halo was a good first attempt, yes. But its lacking it so many areas I just can't recommend it as a single player only game for those expecting more of the same. The campaign on display is a shell of it's former self. The new enemies, new weapons, empty battlefields, rail like progression (reviews that say the sandbox feel is better than ever are lying to you), horribly lifeless areas with little diversity (if I never see another silver level filled with orange neon lights and orange enemies with orange weapons it will be too soon), and enemy AI, can't hold a candle to what's already been established in the previous Halo games. And the worst new offender would be the reduced grenade damage in single player. My biggest guilty pleasure in Halo has always been making sure to save at least one grenade for when the enemy congregated in large numbers so I could reign down firey death. In halo 4 I would just as soon throw my grenades off a cliff for all the good they did. Another thing Bungie's Halos did great was introducing new enemy types with a bang, and making me fear and respect certain types of enemies. I have many fond memories of enemy encounters in past Halo games. What do I remember about Halo 4's enemies? Not fear, but dread. Dread of tedium (how many bullets does this thing take before warping and reshielding?) and cheap tactics over genuine challenge when a new Promethan knight appeared. That and about half way through the game I began wondering how long had I already been killing these resident evil dogs for. 343 / Microsoft have two directions to go in at this point. Bring back the single player value, or continue with the multiplayer only focus. Since we've already seen it's possible to do both, I'm hoping they choose the former over the latter.… Expand
Nov 13, 2012This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. TROLLS ARE BRINGING THE AVERAGE OF THIS GAME DOWN.
They need to cut that out, because this is an amazing game. In fact, I think its the best Halo since Halo 2. 343 went all out for this game and it should not be overlooked because a bunch of haters are trying to bring something popular down.
Graphics. 10/10 -- Lightyears ahead of any other Halo game and some of the best I've seen on the 360. The only games on a console I would put above Halo 4 in terms of graphics would be Uncharted 3 and Gear of War 3
Gameplay -- 10/10 -- A solid as it gets. Very smooth never had any trouble. The weapons, the aim, everything just feels right and natural. I do miss the grenade swap from Halo 3 though. I prefer switching grenades with the LB button rather then the d-pad. But that's a small gripe
Sound - Epic soundtrack, amazing score and the sound effects are top notch. I love the gun sounds, they sound a lot better than previous halos. 9/10
Campaign - 9/10 In terms of action, the campaign was great. However I preferred the first half of the game more. I felt the second half was too focused on indoor environments. I really loved the natural environments in the beginning. I think it made the graphics shine and it had a cool feel to it. Story -- 7/10 The story is nothing special. I played the earlier Halos a long time ago and I was a little confused at times. The Cortona/Master Chief relationship missed the mark as well. But, Halo was never a game I played for its story. Multiplayer - 10/10 -- Amazing multiplayer. My favorite of any Halo. Truly a masterpiece
Overall - 10/10 ( its not an average.. but that my lasting appeal)
Multiplayer -… Expand
Nov 6, 2012The kills suck. Repetitive death animations, incredibly unsatisfying shooting. Loud noises, and pretty lights galore, but just generally not as sweet as say a game like Max Payne 3. Euphoria and Ragdoll Physics FTW! screw motion capture.!!!
Nov 7, 2012look amazing, the gameplay is so amazing all of this game is amazinf if you think "this game see soo boring " you don't know what are you saying just play and enjoy
Nov 6, 2012You already played this. After over ten years of halo games Halo 4 is exactly the same formula :-/ Pretty graphics, decent sounds,cool new enemies (finally). But I am very disapointed that the series hasn't envolved. Come on 343 what modern shooter doesn't zoom with all guns to aim! It needs to be faster! Also the slomo jumping got to go! Average game thanks to its dated nature smh...
Will be trading her in tomorrow.… Expand
Nov 11, 2012The campaign is great and the story is finally back on track from that debacle that was "Reach". Spartan Ops is interesting and it's cool to see the story of the universe expand past campaign.......
The reason why the score is so low is because the Multi-Player is "Turrible"... It is the worst bastardization of a solid franchise i have ever seen. The game copies so many other games that it no longer feels like Halo. The maps are poorly laid out with poor spacial referencing for callouts. The small number of maps is appalling. The whole multiplayer experience is inconsistent with all the random weapon spawns, ordinance drops, and all the random variables and "perks" that the games are loaded with. The entire game could be great if they would just make classic playlists.... Personally it feels like a Beta, with 4 maps to choose from in any playlist and weapons that are polished but need some work on balance. The game feels noobie and too much like COD....… Expand
Feb 13, 2013Halo 4's campaign is right up there with the Combat Evolved campaign in terms of greatness. Spartan Ops is a fun new co-op mode that has only gotten better as time went on. Multiplayer introduces fresh new features to the Halo experience and will only get better and more polished.
Overall, amazing game that is deserving of the hype. Haters gonna hate.
Aug 30, 2013Classic Halo game. Shooting and aiming is well balanced and I really enjoyed the story, but it did get a bit long in the tooth near the end. Maybe I was just getting tired and wanted to finish. LOL
Nov 11, 2012Campaign and spartan ops are superb. Ultimate evolution of the franchise. Graphics are bordering on next, next gen. You really wouldn't have been disappointed if the XBOX 720 had launched with these graphics. Multiplayer is good but I'm more of a battlefield man. Well done 343.
Nov 11, 2012PROS: - Good graphics in general. Old armor and weapon designs have been revamped, some nice environment set pieces. - The Halo gameplay we know and love is back, with a few tweaks here and there. - Multiplayer is fun, with some nice updates to familiar modes. - Good sound effects. - Some very impressive cutscenes. CONS: -The gameplay is Halo by the numbers. Not much in the way of innovation or brand new features, just the same old package wrapped in a shinier skin.
- Bland missions, mostly consisting of Chief running back and forth doing various menial tasks. Not much in the way of pacing.
- Art direction is typical sci-fi flair, nothing we haven't seen before. The forerunner planet didn't strike any awe or sense of exploration in me, which was disappointing.
- There is alot of unexplained backstory. The game throws you right into it. Which is fine for Halo diehards, but completely unforgiving to newcomers.
- There's an admirable attempt to humanize Master Chief and make him a more serious character. Nice try, but the character is little more than a walking tank that shoots aliens. Always has been, always will be. They pretty much wrote him into a corner by throwing a helmet over his face. - The character of Cortana annoys me to no end. The generic "sexy" voice that grated on me in the previous games is now front and center. She simply won't shut up. If you're going to use her so prominently, ditch this voice actress and hire someone whose voice has a little more character and imperfection.
- Forgettable musical score. It's amazing how much O'Donnell's work added to the old games, and his presence is sorely missed here.
A by the books Halo wrapped in a shinier package. This series is in dire need of evolution or it will become another Call of Duty.… Expand
Nov 7, 2012Overall I thought the game was great. Gave a spectacular campaign, although the writing has changed a lot compared to the other Halo games. The visuals and graphics are astounding with dynamic shadows. The environments great. The only problem I saw with the game was the multiplayer. Some of the playlists are really disappointing. Such as Big Team which now only allows infinity slayer. I would have personally liked it more if they didn't have Infinity slayer because of the overwhelming amount of power weapons held by the teams. There needs to be some playlist adjustments to add objective gametypes. Also the matchmaking is sad considering that you can now join games in mid session. Other than these issues the multiplayer is very smooth and plays like any other Halo game.… Expand
Mar 17, 2014simply the best halo in my opinion, the multiplayer is better then ever, graphics are amazing, and story was more emotional.well worth the buy, for the xbox 360
Nov 30, 2012All I can say about Halo 4 is that it is probably the best game I have ever played. The story is amazing, multiplayer is SEXY as hell and the Spartan Ops mode is juicy. I can never get enough of this game. If you are not a fan of Halo or have never played a Halo game, I don't care. Get this game. It's worth every penny. Hell its worth more than its retail price! 343i, thank you for this wonderful game and I can't wait for the next installment!… Expand
Nov 7, 2012Halo 4 Multiplayer mixes the best elements of Call of Duty Modern Warfare with the best elements of Halo. These elements like loadout customization joinable online matches, and kill cams are just plain great. I got home from work popped the game in installed the multiplayer and then was able to hop right into a game with my brothers who were already playing a match. Granted someone had to leave before i could join, but they did and I replaced them without having to sit there waiting for their match to be over because the teams were uneven. Weapons are generally more powerful allowing for more frequent deaths but that takes little away from the "Halo" experience it still takes a fair amount of skill to shoot someone in the face several times. Once I got used to the slightly modified (for sprinting) controls I was back in my element and the Halo universe has never looked or sounded better. Since all the weapons are more powerful even my Assault rifle loving friends were having a great time. Like all other halo games we had zero problems connecting and little lag in any of our numerous matches.… Expand
Nov 7, 2012If you're new to the Halo multiplayer franchise i advise you to pick up Halo 3 its cheaper and totally the same.its just the typical walk shoot game nothing new story ehhh nobody cares about the story multiplayer is worse then ever.
Nov 8, 2012nice job 343 industries! you just made halo better and halo 4 will be game of the year!:)
Nov 14, 2012Halo used to distance itself from other shooters like COD and Battlefield. It wasn't necessarily better, just different. However, Halo 4 ruins that tradition. Halo 4 borrows too many mechanics from COD and Battlefield and loses sight of what made the previous Halo games so great. Halo 4 has a campaign that looks great but is simple, predictable, tedious, and ultimately too short. The campaign tries to create a story that the player can get emotionally invested in, but it just doesn't work. That being said, most people play Halo for the multiplayer. Is the multiplayer fun? No, not really. It no longer means anything to have a BR because now everyone can spawn with a BR if they so choose. That is not Halo. Players can customize their starting loadout for matches, which seems like a good idea at first.... then you realize that this makes the game inherently unfair; people will start the game with advantages that others do not have. That is not Halo. If you are doing better in a game, you get rewarded with weapon drops. This may make sense to those who are familiar with COD, but, once again, this is not Halo. But what about the graphics in Halo 4? Aren't they amazing? No, not really. I don't understand why people are gushing about them. First of all, graphics take the back seat behind story and gameplay. Second of all, what game isn't good looking nowadays? Third of all, the new look to Halo 4 is... well... annoying. Everything is all bright and reflective, just for the sake of showcasing the graphics, but I think most people will agree with me when I say I want to be able to SEE my radar and the people I am shooting. Finally, the controls for Halo 4 are very annoying. Did you use the "recon" configuration in Halo Reach like I did? Well, have fun using X to sprint instead of left bumper. In conclusion, I was very disapointed with Halo 4. I wouldn't buy it. Maybe rent it.… Expand
Nov 20, 2012This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I'm not the biggest Halo fan out there. As expected this will likely feel just like another Halo game. However, there are vast improvements. Gone are the days of camping weapon spawns. Here now are the days of getting care packages with random weapons. I feel this makes multiplayer more appealing since I don't have to worry about racing to a weapon spawn that someone has camped and timed. Also, the new weapons add an interesting touch. While they do operate the same as already existing weapons, they do add subtle nuances such as how the boltshot reloads. It gets better. The human shotgun, DMR, and battle rifle are all here. The major negative factor for me was the spawn points feeling random and aim assist not allowing me to do my own work.
As for the campaign, it was short. That does not mean it wasn't good. It provided the continuation of the Halo story but with aspects often overlooked. It very well portrayed the bond and tension between the chief and cortana. Also, it portrays the chief as a human being who is not perfect or emotionless. Throughout the campaign it shows chief's struggle to get jobs done with a friend who isn't operating perfectly and how he deals with tasks going awry and not being completed.
Other than that, the environments should be noted. While the engine is modified but flawed, the environments are far superior to those experienced by franchises with more clout. (Sorry, call of duty.)
Also, at the end of the campaign is a little thank you from 343 to the gamers who follow Halo. Overall, it's the small and subtle things that count and there are plenty of them to make this game feel like one of the best Halo games produced with enough differences to consider it something new and polished.… Expand
Nov 20, 2012Halo is just awesome ... and Halo 4 really sets the bar for where this genre should go next. Amazing stuff. There are certainly things it could do better ... but, yeah, it's really, really good.
Nov 25, 2012Fantastic game! Best graphics on Xbox 360 by a mile. Gameplay is great in single player, but not hooked on multiplayer, just is'nt doing anything for me. have'nt been hooked on a halo game since 3, but this is still a great game.
Dec 7, 2012I'm only giving this a 9 to pull this game out of an injust 6.8 user rating... While I felt it was more along the lines of a high 7 to 8. Halo is by far my favorite franchise, it tells the best story I've ever heard, with the smoothest gameplay, most stunning visuals and ground-breaking musical scores... The scores. That's where MY score comes in. I hold Halo to such a high standard that once Marty left the party I was legitimately scared. Turns out I was right... Neil Davidge does not show this game justice, and while his musical score was quite good it can't touch Marty's legacy with a 40 metre pole.
During the entire campaign, as soon as I started to feel the thrill of past Halo's rush through me, I would cut myself short and wonder where the amazing music was. Then I would realize that Marty is gone, and slump back into my couch, apathetically racing a ghost through a wonderfully designed level.
That is my great critique as a Halo fan; however the rest of the campaign was not perfect, not even on par with Reach in my opinion. I disliked the poor character development of the captain of the UNSC Infinity, I disliked the feeling that 343 rushed to tell a story (where can they even go with Halo 5?) and above all I disliked the Diadact. He was most certainly the most poorly developed villain in the Halo universe.
Multiplayer wise, however, I was blown away. The fact that they could revolutionize the good old Halo experience by adding weapon drops, new (BALANCED!!!) armour abilities, and custom classes which aren't overpowered; by this I'm referring to something along the lines of COD, where if you want to play with the best you need a silenced UMP, or a Type 95. The way they allowed players to customize their classes was FAIR; not better, not worse, just different, to respond to different situations.
My only critiques I have of the multiplayer aspect of the game are spawn times, the Mantis, and starting grenades. All of these can easily be modified later, which is why I don't feel they are fundamental gameplay errors. I feel that instant spawns is taking the Halo out of Halo, as we now have problems of "reverse spawn camping" (killing the player whom killed you, as you can go after him instantly). The Mantis needs to be nerfed a little, since (as any banshee pilot can attest to) a single fly-by is fatal, and there is no chance in hell you are able to take down a mantis from the sky. Lastly, spawning grenades. This is the only problem I have with customizable loadouts, as it can turn simple infantry into anti-vehicle nightmares; right from the spawn. There's few things more frustrating than loading up a warthog at the beginning of a match, knowing (falsely) that the only plausible oppositions are enemy vehicles, only to be stuck by a few stragglers instantly.
This is my review, which doubles as a rant. Hope it was helpful and that you enjoyed it. Cheers :)… Expand
Jan 24, 2013+Awesome Campaign
+Cool Multiplayer
+Spartan Ops
+Master Chief is Back!
+Gorgerous Graphics Halo 4 is a masterpiece game,graphics,campaign ad multiplayer
Feb 4, 2013I have been a Halo fan since the Combat Evolved and though this game was not perfect I have very high hopes for what 343 will end up doing with the series. First of all this game doesn't deserve a 10 or 9, it deserves a 7 or 8, but also keep in mind this game in no way deserves the low scores people are giving it and some people don't know how to score a game if they give almost anything a zero. Now to get into the game, the story is great. Cortana is starting to deteriorate as all AI's do eventually and your primary mission is to save her although you get sidetracked with saving the universe again from the new enemy the Prometheans. This game is very good at really showing emotion in Master Chief which I can't say I've ever seen in the whole series before. The missions are fun, but the first three missions feel pretty dull and like all you do is press buttons. After that the game really picks up and is a fun adventure. The next thing to review is the new enemy, the Prometheans, (I'm not going to bother going over the covenant). The Promethean knights and Crawlers are very cool enemies to fight. My only problem would be with crawlers having a sniper killing you in one shot and I feel the teleporting of the knights is more frustrating than entertaining. The thing I can't stand is the Watchers, or in other words the little flying guys. They give the knights shields and deflect grenades back at you, and when you shoot them they fly away. It's fine for a game to be challenging, but the watchers are just plain irritating. Spartan Ops is just maps being constantly recycled. There's an attempt at a story, but it's ridiculous and you won't find yourself caring. There's not much to it, I don't recommend it. I love the multiplayer, it is great and I don't care what people have to say about it. The new modes are great, there's no real problems with the classes and infinity slayer is very fun. There's tons of new armor and reasons to rank up. Ordinance isn't cheap and I like the power weapons scattered throughout the map randomly. I kind of wish they had a mode of just classic Halo but it's ok without it. I hate the Boltshot, almost like a mini shotgun, but it's not the worst thing and it won't ruin the experience. Please don't even acknowledge people saying this multiplayer is just COD, these are either just stupid 5 year-old COD fanboys or Halo fans who can't handle small changes. I haven't loved the multiplayer of a game to the point where I actually play it a lot and enjoy myself since Halo 3 (even though I liked Halo: Reach). In conclusion Bungie blessed us with a studio that knows what it's doing and remember this is their first game that they fully did! It will only get better and a true Halo fan should be able to stick with it instead of hating on it because it had changes. And if you are a huge Halo fan and don't like it than just don't complain and stick with the old ones… Expand
Apr 8, 2013I know this review is really late. I got Halo 4 on launch (Nov 6) but since I am new to Metacritic I am writing the review now because I recently just went through the game again. I have beaten the game on every difficulty level and can honestly say they ramp up the difficulty perfectly. The game is tough but fair. You need to be extremely tactical in Legendary mode. The Master Chief story continues in Halo 4 and I have to say, I think it's the best yet. I have played through every Halo game but I think this one stands above the rest. 343 has done an excellent job taking over from Bungie which isn't an easy thing to do. The story is truly epic, and you get to see a different side to the Chief, his human side. It's nice to see under all that armour that there is a living, thinking person under there. He talks a lot in this game, I would say more than the 3 previous Halo games combined. In terms of multiplayer, again very well done. Combat and maps feel fresh. This is a must own game for any 360 user.… Expand
Apr 16, 2013In my honest opinion, this game has to be one of the worst FPS's I have ever played. In more simpler terms, this game is a colossal disaster. The story itself wasn't my main concern, it was the multiplayer. I really did not care much for the story in this game because, it really got boring and just plain stupid after playing the first hour or two. Granted, the campaign has some very beautiful scenery at points, the soundtrack is okay, and the guns sounds decent. But the story itself is nothing to get completely hyped up about.
Now fore the real meat and bone, the multiplayer A.K.A. what made the game terrible I can see what 343 Industries were trying to do by incorporating all these new mechanics like default sprint, armor abilities, and loadouts. Basic terms, they were simply attempting to mimic Call of Duty to gather a bigger audience from that fan base. But the end result ended in a complete disaster. First off, my major pet peeve was the customization in this game. Instead of building off of Halo: Reach's amazing armor Customization, 343 Industries decides to rip off Halo 3's customization. That's right. HALO 3, a game made 5 YEARS AGO. My next concern is the feel of the game. This game has 0% Halo feel to it. In previous Halo multiplayers, teamwork was vital, you had to work with your team. But in this game, everyone is a lone wolf, fighting for themselves and not working co-operatively. The weapons in this game are terrible, some weapons I feel need to be stronger, like the assault rifle, and some weapons feel way too over powered to the point it's ridiculous. And some weapons that shouldn't be there in the first place. The game modes, are practically the same as Reach's Excluding the few new modes This game was not improved. It was turned into Call of Halo: Future Warfare 4. As a side note, if you leave too many games, you get banned for an hour. No warning what so ever. Just straight up banned. At least in Reach you got a warning and you only got banned for 15 minutes. I bet in that hour of being banned, you could get in a car bus, bike or walk to your nearest Gamestop, get a full refund, and Buy Halo: Reach.
My overall score for the garbage game is a three out of ten. Those perfect scores are incorrect and dishonest, they are only reviewed by people who don't see the real errors that are right in their faces. 343 Industries won't be seeing another dime from me any time soon.… Expand
May 28, 2013I come from Gears Of War, Epic games, UT etc. Halo 4 is my 1st Halo, I dont play campaigns except for Gears, so my rating only goes for MP, Multiplayer bored me already and I just started playing it, People spamming weapons with no skill what so ever, COD is better and thats a joke also. Gears of War Judgement is the biggest joke though, hence me trying out Halo. We are all in the same boat, originality is a thing of the past now days in gaming,
They all just rehash off each other.… Expand
Aug 5, 2013Halo 4, to start off with, looks amazing. It has, by far, some of the greatest graphics of all time, breaking the boundaries of human likeness. Even the in-game graphics look spectacular, feeling like cutscenes that never end. The gameplay is also really good; I really enjoyed the new helmet perspective that, like the graphics, really developed the atmosphere and world around me. The weapons weren't too overpowered, no-one had too much of an advantage and the multiplayer was a really fun experience, however, these were the only good prospects. Halo 4's campaign was just boring, basically just playing out as cutscene, rush of monsters, cutscene, rush of monsters. Because of this the story just wasn't engaging, and I spent most of my time killing the same things over and over again. The multiplayer mode was really unfair thanks to the new random-spawning, with people spawning right in the centre of an enemy base. Overall, Halo 4 was really disappointing thanks to the hype brought up by Microsoft, and it didn't live up to the expectations Halo 3 and Halo Reach brought to the table. The graphics and gameplay are the only things that rescued this game from an under-5 score and I really hope the next Halo game does a lot better.… Expand
Oct 12, 2013343 have made the Halo game I wanted from them, enough new that it keeps it fresh but stayed true to what makes Halo, Halo. Its by no means perfect, but its a solid game that had me gripped during the campaign and I cant wait to see where it goes next. After an emotional and satisfying end to the game it reassured me that 343 know what they are doing and Halo is in safe hands. Well done 343, I hope you can continue down this path.… Expand
Dec 7, 2013A terrific game, 343 did a really good job with the storyline and enemy/weapon design. Although it would've been nice if there where more levels. The ending left me wanting more, and after seeing what 343 could do I have high hopes for Halo5
Dec 13, 2013WTF IS THIS!!!??? I'm so disappointed. Boring campaign, terrible muti-player, 'Spartan ops' is compared to firefight, and forge is terrible. Loadout system is lazy and the maps are puny. DON'T BUY IT.
Apr 29, 2014I enjoyed this game very much, immersing and entertaining ,both multiplayer and campaign. But I can't help but to feel that it doesn't have the same catch it did with me than reach.
The graphics are wonderful for the Xbox 360, possibly the best graphics on the FPS genre towards the end of 2012.
Loved the campaign, the story flows on nicely, and can't wait to play Halo 5 coming this (or next) year.… Expand
May 29, 2014I feel Halo 4 is like a breath of fresh air to the Halo series. I've been around since the beginning of the Halo franchise. So I know what I'm talking about. The story mode wasn't the best for a Halo game, however the multiplayer feels so much better compared to previous Halo games, there's barely any campers, the specializations are really awesome. The only downside is the ordinance drops, but I admit I kinda like it cause I'm the killer, not the victim. So I get ordinance quite a bit. I didn't like the fact how whoever has the rocket launcher wins the game in previous halo titles In halo 4 YOU ARE THE WEAPON. I just wish they had elites, invasion mode, firefight, and better armor customization. I don't want a paint job, I WANT A ROBOT ARM!!!… Expand
Oct 22, 2014Halo 4 is a fairly good game, at the same time a massive disappointment. The good aspects is that it brings in new fairly interesting enemies, great cinematic cut-scenes and some really beautiful graphics.
These are important improvements and this would have been a great game if they had not thrown out what made Halo what it is. The most important aspect of this is the horrible sound system. The game doesn't sound like Halo any more, but a cheap call of duty wanna be. For instance the weapons sound like ordinary modern battle rifles (even some of the alien guns), instead of the futuristic sound they had in the previous games. If they had copy and pasted the sound straight from Halo 3 this game would have been vastly better.
Secondly they have destroyed the unique multiplayer that defined Halo and changed it so that you customize your character (like CoD), which means that players don't have to search for better weapons. That later part was however part of what made Halo fun and made it stand apart from the rest of all generic shooters out there. Not only that but they have marked the location of all the weapons so there is no need to memorize the location of them any more. But that was also what made Halo unique: you don't start with a great arsenal, it is something that you find on the battlefield.
To summarize it, 343 succeeded with many of the difficult parts such as developing the main characters (Master Chief and Cortana) and creating a good campaign (although not as good as Halo 2 and 3). However they ended up destroying the franchise by throwing out what made Halo the unique and great experience it was and that is a shame.… Expand
Nov 7, 2012This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Halo 4 is a sad, sorry sequel to a good series. From start to finish, the game underperforms dramatically; the level design is insipid and repetitive, the enemy design ridiculous, the gamefeel vague or even absent. Major plot points and characters pass by without comment from the Chief or Cortana, critical events go unnoticed, there is no air of mystery or wonder. Halo has always been about being pitted against incredible odds in a high-stakes gamble for the fate of the galaxy; this time it feels like a hissy fight between Cortana and a monkey in a ball.
Overall, the game is forgettable and bland, lacking any flair or polish. I regret paying $60 for this game; hell, I'd regret paying $30.… Expand
Nov 7, 2012Currently the average user ratings stand at 5.3 due to all the haters giving the game a 0 rating which is quite honestly criminal, yes the campaign is short and the new multiplayer direction may not suit all previous hlo players but with out a doubt this is still a great game and should at least score a 7 for players that dont like the changes. Graphical the game is one of the best looking console games to date, the story is strong and although i'm still not 100% sold on the COD/Halo game mechanics its still well above par and hats off to 343 for trying something diffrent. I was going to rate the game as a 8.5 to 9 but considering all the crappy reviews that some users are giving it, it deserves the extra 1 to 1.5 rating to make up for your reviewing skills. To all of you who haven't played the game yet don't believe the crappy scores if you are in doubt rent the game as i'm sure your love it and will end up buying it anyway, and for the wonderful reviews that have said I would have given this a 10 but because crap crap and more crap ..... so i'll give it a zero and for you that have said its a good game and given it a 0 you really should play the game first before reviewing it and if you have played it at least give it a score it deserves! rant over thanks for listening… Expand
Nov 27, 2012At first i was unsure about purchasing this game because of the many negative and few positive User reviews i've seen, but after watching gameplay i decided that Halo 4 was for me. After playing almost entirely through the campaign and over 5 hours of online multiplayer, i can certainly say that 343 Studios has succeeded in the creation of such a memorable and time consuming game. The campaign brought back the master chief in the the most epic fashion possible. The campaign is very fun and quite a challenge at times as well, it creates a perfect balance of challenge, gameplay, and story to generate what seems to be the most memorable of all the Halo campaigns. The multiplayer is fantastic, unlocking weapons, armor, and emblems is only half the game, but working towards unlocking these things gives a great sense of achievement, the multiplayer makes me feel like i'm playing the Halo we all love and remember, it makes me forget about how much i disliked Halo: Reach, and gives me that fantastic feeling that previous Halo titles have always given me. I have complete respect for 343 studios for being able to replicate and improve the Halo universe, and for that i give them props. If you have yet to find a great FPS, look no further, Halo 4 is here.… Expand
Nov 10, 2012I have to admit that I expected much more from this game. It's still a lot of fun, the important gameplay mechanics have been preserved, yet it feels a little dull. The AI isn't as good as it was in CE: Anniversary or Reach, new enemies don't seem that original (Gears of War 3, anyone?) and the overall experience doesn't deliver that "WOW" feeling. The older Halo titles seemed kind of heartfelt, this feels just like a huge budget game made for earning billions of dollars. Ït could've been so much better...… Expand
Nov 6, 2012Quick Review:
Graphics: 10/10
Absolutely gorgeous. Cut scenes are better than Wars.
Story: 9.5
Greg Bear definitely had a large part in this.
Gameplay: 9.5
Slightly repetitive but it kept me interested throughout.
Multiplayer: 9.5
Very, very fun, much better than Reach.
Dialogue: 10
Brilliant Writing.
Soundtrack: 9.5
Average is above 9.5, so it rounds up to 10.
Nov 8, 2012Halo 4, like its predecessors, has a great story. It has a depth and complexity that most FPS games in this generation lack. The graphics, of course, are yet another iteration on the game engine that drives the Halo franchise. Though I enjoyed the game very much, the glitz and glamor of a good story and great graphics cannot hide the glaring flaws in this game, and that is the gameplay. In a sentence, 343 simply fails to innovate its gameplay. If you have played the first Halo, you have played all of them. In essence, there is nothing new about this game, and that is disappointing. Instead of learning valuable lessons from games like Uncharted, Gears of War, Assassins Creed, or Dishonored, the developers choose to play it safe by sticking to the same old formula it has always used. The question is, is a compelling story enough to make you overlook uninventive gameplay? For some of us maybe, but not for me.… Expand
Nov 6, 2012This game is better than Reach, Halo 3, and Halo 2 ...to a certain extent with 2 cause it was the game i first played online and i think thats what makes it unique...given Halo 4 would I switch back to Halo 2?...no. Its like windows xp and window 7, xp was good and windows 7 was good too...but would i go back to xp? no. new is always better. I think its safe to say that the negative ratings are jealous ps3 fanboys. Guess what my PS3 will be doing...collecting a whole bunch of dust.… Expand
Nov 6, 2012I don't have live and this game, like so many FPS' these days was made more for the online player. The campaign was brutally short and not all that replayable. However, it was fun while it lasted. It was also quite polished, but that isn't enough to carry it on its own. Most people will give it horrible reviews just because they want to feel like they're keeping the Halo franchise back, as they felt it should have ended with Halo 3. Although I agree the series should have stayed finished, 343 did a good enough job.… Expand
Dec 26, 2012I enjoyed all the other Halo games (except for Halo Wars. I'm just not a fan of strategy games.) but found myself extremely disappointed with Halo 4, First of all the campaign needed to be much longer because me and my friend managed to play through this in just under 4 hours. That's the amount of time it should take to finish a DLC not a big budget triple A game.
My second problem with the game is the actual gameplay, when the first Halo released in 2001 it redefined the FPS genre, eleven years later and next to nothings changed. The gameplay is incredibly simple: Shoot enemies, walk/ drive to next area, shoot more enemies. Rinse and repeat. I think it's time for Combat to take another evolutionary step forward.
My final major problem with Halo 4 is this is the first ever game I have ever played where I felt bored while playing. I'm sorry 343 but I was incredibly bored during Halo 4. It just did nothing to excite me.
To be fair to the game though not everything about Halo 4 is bad though, I have to admit that the graphics are gorgeous to look at, the voice acting from Steve Downs and Mackenzie Mason is some of the best this year and the game actually has a decent story unlike most modern first person shooters (Cough COD Cough)
Remember though this is just my opinion, maybe you'll agree with me , or maybe you will love it. If you are a fan of Halo, then I would recommend giving it a try hopefully your opinion differs from mine, otherwise give it a miss unless you see it cheap.… Expand
Nov 6, 2012I don't know, I feel like a lot of the negative reviews of this game are from the "hardcore" or "true" gamer crowd. I consider myself hardcore, and I like this game for the multiplayer, the singleplayer is alright. My gripes are that the multiplayer does feel a little strange compared to old games and, as a few have said, grenades don't seem to matter as much. The combat felt slightly slower than previous entries in the series, but its not bad by any means. I think you should take all reviews as someone else's opinion for this reason, alot of the negative reviews probably went in expecting the game to suck and they only remembered it sucking. They want to seem popular and talk about how games have sold out without realizing that these companies do in fact want your money. This isn't some family fun time and realistically they don't owe you anything, so if you wanna be popular with the gaming hipsters who pretend to be hardcore, bad talk the game before you try it, and then remember the time you jumped off the cliff in game, not the gorgeous visuals.… Expand
Nov 7, 2012I want to love this game I really do it's just ... just. Where do I begin?
The story isn't bad don't get me wrong and playing campaign is pretty fun as well. But it feels off, it doesn't feel like a halo game yet a game that was in mid development and kinda just threw in characters from halo in there at the last second.
So campaign: Pretty decent.
And where my main problem is the multi-player. Why is it trying to be so complex? It's just multiplayer doesn't need a story. That's not even the problem though. The problem is how it feels closer to call of duty then anything. I mean instant respawns, kill streaks, and classes. I just miss the old halo feeling.
Multiplayer: Awful.
As a person that loved all the halo games I hate to say this but I doubt I'll be getting another halo game in the future. Never before in all of the halos I've played did the multiplayer turn me off so badly.… Expand
Nov 7, 2012343 industries has taken all the best of the Bungie installments (especially Reach), built one of the finest console engines from scratch, recorded perfect audio, re-balanced every weapon, spliced multiplayer with a little of COD4, and has put Master Chief in new, different situations. This new dedicated studio has only enriched this franchise's pedigree after leaving its mother developer.
Nov 7, 2012Haters gonna hate I guess. The game is good so far. I am playing on legendary and compared to the older games legendary is a bit of a joke. I'm looking at about 1.5 hours on the campaign and I have completed the first chapter/mission. Very rarely do I need more than 2 or 3 tries at an encounter to pass it (as opposed to the 20 or 30 that I needed for the older Halo legendary difficulties). Maybe I am just a better FPS player, hard to say::::::::::: Graphically speaking this game desperately needs better hardware to run on. I think that 343i would have had an absolute field day if they were able to produce this on a next-gen console. As it stands, probably the best looking console game, though the Uncharted series always looks outstanding for the hardware. Cortana's buck teeth really bother me though::::::::::::: Sound is classic Halo for the most part. However, there are a few things that have been greatly improved. Guns in particular. Cortana's voice acting is going South. Just awful. Chief sounds good during the cinematics, but pretty bad during gameplay. Maybe that is just a personal perception, but I don't much care for chief's ingame voice::::::::::: Replay-ability is hard to say at this point. I feel that any campaign based game has no replay-ability unless it has some sort of RPG aspect, which of course Halo has none::::::::::::: Multiplayer - no comment. I have not even touched it and I may never touch it. The load out option seems to be fine to me, so long as the guns are balanced. Of course having never played I cannot say one way or the other::::::::::::: In short, what the heck is with all of these scores in the red? I could almost understand a 6, lots of let down to be had for many people, but a freakin' 0? Absolute garbage. Also, no where near a 10. I can already tell this game will be pretty short. I feel that on the hardest difficulty the campaign should take at least 24 hours; somehow I seriously doubt there are 24 missions averaging 1 hour each. So, 8. Worth a buy for certain.… Expand
Nov 6, 2012although i am a major gamer, this will be the first halo game that i have played and while its not as good as dishonored, it really shows the people at ubisoft what can be acomplished by not overthinking a game development and letting it get completely out of control (hello assassins creed 3)!! i have found halo 4 to be one of the best looking, atmospheric games on any console. the controls are tight and the AI is very very good (without being over the top hard). i am about 3/4 of the way through and i am really enjoying it. so forget all the stupidly low scores and for that matter the stupidly high ones because even though its not a ground breaking game changer. It is a quality title and what it does is give you a quality title filled with enjoyment without all those annoying bugs that plague some other major releases (hello assassins creed 3 AGAIN!!!!). so suit up, load your weapons and most of all.....ENJOY!!… Expand
Jan 4, 2013Graphics was a huge improvement campaign wise and I really like the direction they took with the legacy of Master Chief in campaign mode. I am huge fan of Halo Multiplayer and I thought the changes were pretty good improvements for the most part,but one thing kept nagging me, I felt like a lot of the new ideas were COD ripoffs (E.g. Drop packages, the prestige which not really prestige, ranking to unlock item system). COD is amazing title but if I wanted to play COD multiplayer, I would go buy it. I think some ideas were needed to improve the competitive play (Ability to enter and exit games without handicapping teammates) but they lack originality. I personally thought the ranking system in Halo 3 was more impressive when a person's skill level was more important rather than his/her ability to not have a life and live on the game, just my opinion.… Expand
Nov 6, 2012343 Studios delivered a fantastic Halo game. The first thing that stood out for me was the graphics. I was truly surprised at how beautiful this game is considering the aging console. Next was how tight the controls felt, this was most definitely Halo. As I played I was very impressed by the sounds. The guns sound amazing. Not only do they sound powerful but IMO it felt like 343 bumped up the power on them. The music however is not the most impressive of the series and is a let down. At times I didn't even realize it was playing in the background. I don't know why the original composer was not kept but I guess I'll have to fix that with custom soundtracks. The story on the single player part is absolutely awesome. It is one of the few times I found myself caring about the characters in a Halo game, especially Cortana. Don't worry, no spoilers. As far a multiplayer goes, I felt the that some maps where awesome but others a little lack luster and feel like they where thrown together over a weekend. So is this game worth it? Absolutely. 343 has got my attention and I can't wait to see what their next two titles in this trilogy are going to offer. I had a lot of fun with the campaign, I'm loving Spartan ops, and the multiplayer is pretty much what I've come to expect from Halo.… Expand
Nov 12, 2012My first Halo game was Halo 3: ODST. I first played I when a friend came over and showed it to me. I was astounded. I had heard Halo was good, but not this good. Since then I've played Wars, Reach, and the Anniversary Edition. I have to say the best out of those three was Reach. With its stellar campaign and it's chaotic multiplayer, I thought Halo 4 would have a hard time beating it. I was wrong, very, very wrong. Halo 4 exceeds all expectations and shatters my idea of a good game. It combines the most emotional story of the Halo series, the best graphics that have been seen to this very day, and exciting new changes to multiplayer, to create the best Halo game that I have ever played, heck the best game I've played to date, which Borderlands 2 had the honor of being before. You hear this a lot, but Halo 4 is really Cortana's story. You see, after 7 years an AI becomes rampant. It's been 8. When an AI becomes Rampant, it literally thinks itself to death. So you can imagine how Cortana feels. Your main mission, throughout the story is to get Cortana to Dr. Halsey so she can be fixed. This goes hand-in-hand with defeating the Didact and getting Infinity off of Requeim. The Promethean enemies are so much fun to fight. I wonder how I stood fighting these Covenant after fighting the Prometheans. The new enemies are tactically smart, and aren't anything like the Covenant. For spoiler related reasons, I will move onto the robust, new multiplayer. Multiplayer is less vehicle based, and more gun based since the guns are now so much more badass. Each gun has brand new sounds, and some of them look different, too. I love the new sound of the Assault Rifle. Now with all these new Promethean weapons, that are extremely powerful and fun to use, I never use vehicles, and this is coming from a person who loved to drive vehicles. Instead of choosing large, expansive maps, like I would in Reach, I choose small, close up maps. I hated the guns and loved the vehicles, Halo 4 flipped that around, and it's a very good thing. Now there are Loadouts, which include Primary, and Secondary Weapons, Grenades, and Abilities. Their are plenty new weapons, both Promethean and UNSC to make the formula feel newer. Now there are more Abilities than ever before. The Run ability has been disabled, instead you can run by simply pressing on the joystick. The Armor Lock is gone, too. In fact, the only ones that they still have is Jetpack, invisibility, and the ability in which you make a duplicate. The new multiplayer is a refreshing new turn for the franchise. This game looks stunning. It feels stunning. Everything about this game is stunning. From its emotional story, to it's groundbreaking multiplayer, Halo 4 is what I dreamt what Halo should be. Looking back at ODST again, I feel like, what was great, is now archaic. 343i has accomplished something no other company could, even Bungie.… Expand
Nov 6, 2012This game is amazing. Seriously don't listen to anyone giving this game lower than a 8/10. To the people giving it a '0' really ? That's not even possible..games like "Happy Wars" don't even get zeros. No way you can honestly play any Halo game and give it that score without being an absolute troll. Game is more than worth the $60 especially if you were a fan of Halo, 2 and 3.
Nov 6, 2012So much fun, the campaign is amazing and many new features are incorperated. Multiplayer is also very fun although there are many cod like elements that many wont like. I myself hated them as i started but once you play you realize they are balanced. One thing i personally don't like is the multiplayer interface eg: lobbies, commendation menus, armor menus ect. I also believe the armor doesnt look as cool as in previous games. Yet these things hardly deteriorate the playing experience. This game is a must buy for all Halo fans and is definitely worth buying for new comers to the series.… Expand
Mar 23, 2013Halo 4 is by far one of the best games of all time. The story is more personal, dark, and rewarding than previous halo entries and ends on an all out high note. The graphics are a revolution in gaming, with detailed environments, superb lighting, ridiculously high res textures, and incredible facial animation and motion capture. The sweeping spectacle and breath taking views of distant forerunner structures reminisce to when people first saw halo combat evolved. Also, the cinematics are so incredible when I first saw them I thought they were live action. They really are that good. As for the gameplay, they keep to the series' main roots, straight up runnin and gunnin like a baller. It is incrediblely satisfying to just run out and desimate enemies. The weapons not only look and sound great but are all unique and perfectly balanced. Speaking of sound, it's epic, from the crack of an assault rifle, to the all new beautiful score by Neil davidge, to the simple hum of a warthog halo 4 stays true to the awesome sound design we've come to expect from halo games. Themu,tip layer has been redone and is incredibly fun and addicting, with the new loadout system, halo 4 adds much more customization that is nice change to halo. Spartan ops is since bit of narrative based arcade style killing feet that can be a real blast to play. While the sequences are over in minutes and aren't that challenging even on legendary and you won't get hold of much of the story during combat,they still feel epic and the weekly cinematics they bring are a treat to watch. As for forge, it's just as awesome as ever but, allowing you to make the map of your dreams, but as been refined to the point that does away with the annoying issues it used to have. So overall, halo 4 is one of the best of the series, an incredible start to the new trilogy, and one of the best looking, best sounding, best playing, straight up BEST game of all time.… Expand
Jan 11, 2013I have played every single Halo game, including Halo: AE and Halo Wars, so I have a good spectrum of the Halo universe and the good and bad Halo games. PROS: 1) Beautiful graphics and sound. This game just looks good! Lush jungles, cool Forerunner areas, etc. 2) Matchmaking system is great as always... easy to find a game and stay with a group. 3) Multiplayer is good fun. Good maps, and an old favorite. Vehicles all perform well. Most weapons feel good to shoot.
4) Loadout system adds something new to match your playstyle, but doesn't make the game unbalanced.
5) Campaign was solid, new enemies are always welcome after the Covenant was done for multiple games.
1) Spartan Ops is pretty shallow and offers little to the game or story.
2) Campaign was short and the plot was all over the place. IE - Who is this guy, who is that guy and why are they important?
3) Ordinance drops don;t really work with Halo. I would rather have good weapons on the map that respawn quicker. Many ordinance drops make you choose between 3 equally bad weapons or bonuses. Feels too COD.
4) 343 Studios went overboard on the weapons. I don't need 3 long range weapons, 3 medium and 3 short range weapons. Just a bit too much.
5) Armor is unlocked through finishing challenges which forces you to use crummy weapons etc if you want the armor. The credit system from Halo: Reach was great and one of the better ideas from that game.
A pretty good, almost great game with a few issues. Halo 4 doesn't need to copy COD... everyone has had their fill of that anyway. Also, the campaign was fun, but pretty forgettable. Beyond that though, this game has a robust MP that will make most fans and newcomers happy.… Expand
Nov 6, 2012Ignore the stupidly negative score - users on **** have been intentionally spamming all day with negative reviews.
The game is amazing, improved in all the right ways - most notably the graphics and sound, which are staggeringly good. The story and voice acting are also mesmerising and truly complement the technological improvements to create a game that you care about and that has you both grinning inanely and hugging yourself in despair.
See you online for the next 24 months :-)… Expand
Nov 16, 2012Best Halo since Combat Evolved. I am not a Halo fan, ever since Combat Evolved you could say I've been a Halo Hater. Till now. I felt that Bungie squandered and incredible Universe by forcing us to play through campaigns with confusing and lackluster stories, that were set in a great universe with characters that had all the potential to be memorable. Also I felt that Bungie never took any chances with updating Multiplayer. I can say with no doubt I trust in 343, they made em care about the characters, I actually enjoyed the story and the visuals and sound are second to none and did a great job of engrossing you. I also feel the Multiplayer with Spartan Ops is a great change and addition to Multiplayer and has had me fighting my way to 50 to get my first specialization… Expand
Nov 10, 2012When Bungie left, I was very hesitant on Halo 4, but to my surprise, the story and feel was still Halo at its core. The campaign was coherent and had started where it was left off. It was great paced, and the visuals were borderline stunning. The campaign was its strong suit, and it showed. The Multiplayer is a toss up, when you get in a good connected game, and everyone isnt sitting on a vantage point with the DMR, it is an enriching experience, but those games are few and far between. The host drops constantly and as stated, the DMR is overpowered. It looks like Halo, it feels like Halo, the MP doesnt play like Halo. Its no longer a methodical tug of war where the most accurate shot wins, but rather who becomes full of lead first, no matter placement. In Halo 3 a well placed BR burst could take out shields, that is absent here, the DMR was balanced in Reach because there wasnt many options from it, now there is, and it is proven dominant. If this was a stand alone IP then it should have had a better score, but with the Halo brand comes expectations that were met in areas, but the total package was lacking.… Expand
Nov 29, 2012Halo may not be the king it once was nearly a decade ago. But I think it is safe to say that under the excellent supervision of 343, it
Nov 20, 2012This game was okay and it would have gotten a higher score from me if it was released like 3 years ago. Sorry but this is getting old and Bungie made better Halo games, even Reach IMO. I even liked Halo 3 so much that i sticked my ding dong into the disc and out several times, it was fabulous if i may say so myself.
Nov 23, 2012This game is incredible. Halo 4's multiplayer is the best that the series has ever offered, with exciting matchmaking and the ability to customize your loadouts to suit your play style. The campaign has an excellent story, fleshing out the relationship between Master Chief and Cortana more than ever before. My only real criticisms of Halo 4 are that the campaign doesn't provide a very wide variety of objectives, and I still prefer Firefight to Spartan Ops. But otherwise the game is fantastic, and well worth the money for both new and old Halo fans.… Expand
Dec 2, 2012I love this game. The graphics are immense and the campaign is also brilliant. Multiplayer has brilliant maps and guns. Ordnance is a feature I love and forge is great for building anything you like, the magnets really help.
Dec 7, 2012I rented this game at my local grocery store and only got to play this game for like 6 hours. 2 singleplayer in forever alone world and 4 in multiplayer with friends. My biases here? I fell out with Halo after Halo 2 and never got interested in it again till Halo Reach. So I'm missing Halo 3 and ODST. So when the story started I was rather confused so I had to wiki the story. The thing is even after two hours, the story still seemed a bit unexplained and the designers at 343 assumed that you know and accept everything that happened before Halo 4. Honestly, they could of weaved the narrative better and had a better 5 minute introduction (see Extra Creditz) Alright, that doesn't bug me that much because the game is smooth and controls extremely well. But that this point the combat of Halo has not evolved very much. I swear if there was more time and budget for it, Halo 1 could of had the same armor abilities as this Halo. This game actually is pretty boring playing alone, if I had time for co-op, I assume that I would of had a better time. The multiplayer? I had a lot of fun with. During my first match, when I got my first airdropped rocket launcher my first thought was, this was a hell of a lot like Call of Duty. After I got that feeling I couldn't shake it off, it didn't help there was custom classes, leveling, and unlock tokens. Interestly, Black Ops 2 and Halo 4 were developing at similar times. Were designers at 343 and Treyarch sharing ideas? Not to say this is a bad idea, taking what good design choices from other games and putting it in yours to improve the experience is a good idea. Overall, I don't feel Halo 4 improved much on the template of Halo. I'm probably going to get this during the holiday season, but there was always the feeling of slight disappointment while playing Halo 4. Still you did a relatively good job, 343. Halo 5 should be able to make some improvements...hopefully… Expand
Dec 18, 2012Ah, Halo, how I love you.
Master Chief has returned in the new installment of the explosive blockbuster franchise, and I (like so many) am as happy as Larry to see that this game is so fantastic.
Graphically, this is one of the best looking games on the Xbox 360, and in the first cutscene, I did mistake the CGI for reality. Honestly, it's that good-looking. Although textures are sometimes a little on the dodgy side, and explosion effects are rarely just not exciting enough, this is undoubtedly a graphical triumph.
The sound design is almost flat-out the best you will ever experience. Buy a good pair of headphones and you will drool at the sound of the DMR punching holes in enemies' faces. I actually start shouting "Pew, pew, pew!" in some sections of the campaign, in which voice acting (for most characters) is brilliant. 343 Industries took a leap of faith with an entirely new musical score, and let me tell you that on the way down, they grew a pair of wings and flew up high into the sky! The music sometimes doesn't complement the situation perfectly, but for the most part it was great.
Let's think about the campaign for a second. This time around, I really began to care for Cortana and John 117 in a way that I never originally had before. Their bond grew so much stronger in the game, and it brought out who Master Chief really was, and what he thought of himself and others. Story-wise, this game is very memorable, with a good (if slightly under-explained) villain. Some of the secondary characters get lost in the thick of it, and the commander of the ship Infinity has some completely unjustified orders, which make you question his competence as the captain of the biggest human spaceship ever. These minor gripes do not affect the overall product, which is a beautiful culmination of everything Halo. A saddening (but definitely satisfying) ending ties things up perfectly, making this one of the best stories ever told in a Halo game. Gameplay-wise, the campaign retains the sandbox mechanics of previous Halos, but only widens the possibilities with the new enemies: Prometheans. These are fun new enemies to fight, as they employ new tactics to keep you on you toes: Crawlers climb around, pounding the player with light arms fire, Knights bring the heavy weapons and blast though Covenant and UNSC personnel alike, and Watchers (spawned by Knights) float about, spawning more Knights and Crawlers, and giving your forcefield something to think about. After a while, the campaign begins to get a tad repetitive, but the objectives can differ enough for it to stay almost perfect throughout, with the last mission putting a wonderful spin on the classic Halo Warthog run. The campaign is, in every sense of the word, incredible.
A welcome change in Halo 4 is to the multiplayer, which allows players to create their own custom classes, with various weapons, armour abilities and armour mods. This creates the fear of unfairness in multiplayer, but that fear is crushed by how balanced the game seems. Gameplay is now faster-paced, with sprinting now a default for all players, letting the maps get bigger and bigger- some too big. Most maps in this game are enjoyable to play on, but the good-old medium-sized maps have almost completely disappeared, spare two or three that you could class as such. New gametypes arrive, however, such as Dominion, Regicide and Infinity Slayer, which bring the best kind of change to multiplayer, whilst catering to the sizes of maps and mixing things up perfectly. Altogether, multiplayer is wonderful.
And now, the newcomer: Spartan Ops, an episodic series of missions, updated weekly for insane cooperative play, but replacing the much-loved Firefight. It's great, but there are several flaws. The maps are recycled several times (but are used for different objectives), the story is very basic and hardly exists outside of the eye-popping CGI cutscenes, and some of the characters are completely unlikeable, though to counter that, there are some that you'll like a lot. This was a very bold statement for such an anticipated game, and, overall, it is a blast to play with people online as well as friends.
Forge remains relatively untouched, but with new (if smaller) Forge environments, making the possibilities for map design even more exciting.
That just about wraps the review up. This game is an absolute must-buy for all Xbox 360 owners, as it pushes the system to its limits, delivering one of the best games on consoles!… Expand
Jan 15, 2013Brilliant graphics . Solid shooting and amazing new guns. Multiplayer is the best . Campaign story is so gooood and intresting cant wait to find out what happens in this amazing trilogy . 343 industries made the best halo game to date.
Jan 19, 2013343 have done a great job with this game, the campaign is blast to play through and multiplayer is fun but not as good as Halo 3's. The only complaint i have with this game is that the Spartan Ops mode feels dull and uninspired, however that should improve upon further episodes. This is a must buy for every halo or fps fan.
Jan 21, 2013Halo 4 is visually extraordinary, but it lacks the emotional depth and exceptional storytelling of it's predecessors. I can't help but call it a disappointment.
Jan 26, 2013When I bought this game, I knew this would not be as good as Killzone 3, but when I started to play, I was shocked. This is the worst game I ever played: campaign is short and stupid, storyline is very bad and not interesting, gameplay is simple, run from point A, to point B, and so on... This game has very poor graphics, Killzone 2 had better graphics, than this. DO NOT BUY THIS GAME, GO GET KILLZONE 3!!… Expand
Jan 28, 201310/10 is the minimum i would have give a 11/10
This is the game of the years the best game in the world
Fun and not violent like the others fps this game is the best game i know the reason I sold my ps3 and buy a xbox360
You will love it as I do
Enjoy ;)
Mar 17, 2013THE GAME IS GREAT AND ALL! The multiplayer is splendid! Campaign is the best! But too bad bungie was busy on other projects. So i will give this game a 8/10!
Mar 20, 2013This game is absolutely beautiful! I have been a long-time fan of the Halo series, and when I heard that Halo 4 was finally coming out, I was extremely excited! Now that I have had the chance to play through all the content available, I must say it is hard to find a problem with this game. For an ageing console, the graphics are simply stunning. Controls are still tight, so that is still not broken. Enemy and friendly AI is more challenging then ever, especially on harder difficulties. The story in the campaign was well-written, and touching at times. Spartan Ops started off slow, but recently has truly turned into a good story. The biggest beef that people keep bringing up is '343 stole from CoD'. I will tell you that the multiplayer in Halo 4 is nothing like Call of Duty's. Nothing at all! The supposed things ripped of the competition were used in countless games before CoD, and are used in ways that still provide balance and keep the game feeling like Halo. This game is worth the buy, 100%!… Expand
Nov 9, 2013I wrote a longer review for this game but it was deleted" I'm writing simply to warn others NOT to buy this game. Its an outrage that this is allowed to be released as a Halo 4 release when it's a sub subpar COD clone.
Apr 2, 2013Halo 4 is a fantastic FPS. It is far better than Halo Reach and outclasses it in every way. The campaign is slightly better with awesome enemies and a good storyline. The online multiplayer is far better than Halo Reach with good maps and some from older games. However, it wasn't as good as the classic Halo 3. I still highly recommend, but I still don't feel it was as classic and simple as Halo 3.
Jun 11, 2013lets be honest with each other franchises at the moment are really milking it. This is one of them there is nothing in this game that stood out as a major innovation. Its just Halo that's it, remember when you played halo 3 well don't get halo 4 because you already played it I love halo i was a great franchise and it had a few spin offs that i also enjoyed. But there's nothing here i haven't seen before in other Halo games. What happened in the campaign besides cortarna getting p**sed off at people and i know people will say well bungie didn't make it no and that's probably why it wasn't anywhere near as good as past Halo games. Technically there's nothing wrong with the game. you get the odd glitch here and there but nothing new to the Halo series. The only draw here is multiplayer but it not even changed enough from the last game to make it OK to spend £40 on it. All i see with this game is a way for franchises that developers know people will buy becoming a way to make a quick buck.… Expand
Jul 9, 2013Good for a generic FPS but bad for a halo title. Campaign was short and boring. Enemies are cheap and boring. Its only kinda fun at best. If you really want it get it cheap.
Jul 9, 2013I played halo since halo 2 and so yes, i was greatly looking forward to a new halo game. Campaign had fun gameplay but boring and almost cheesy/corny storytelling. Like some 7 year old was making it up. The graphics were amazing. The multiplayer didnt come close to previous halo's skill and past time. It was like they added perks and ordnance drops to make it noob friendly for cod players. Forge had no maps worthy of playing on. Overall, this game did not at any way shape or form, live up to its predecessors. This was not halo, but a cheap mix of cod and halo. I am sure hardcore halo fans like myself will agree to my thoughts.… Expand
Jul 15, 2013Good game, but the campaign was way to short. Its 5 hours! It would be okay if the multiplayer had a little more longevity. I really do miss bungie. Halo doesn't feel the same.
Aug 18, 2014When mentioning the word Halo in the video game industry is synonymous with excellence. When you make a game and call it "Halo" you are expected to hold that level of excellence. If you are a long time halo fan, like myself, this game deviates too much from the core of what kept us up for ridiculously long late night sessions and hours of unforgettable fun. I understand pressing the edge to try and uncover the next best thing, but you have to maintain the core of what drove the success in the past.
Major Pros:
Graphcs, the game is art, one of the best looking games ever on the console, hands down. Game makers will soon realize this only gets you so far.
New game types that added some value.
Major Cons:
Weapon imbalance: No one should ever make a weapon that cannot be used in the game, some of the weapons are virtually useless. Random weapon spawns make for a more exciting experience perhaps, but no one likes to lose because of bad luck.
Custom Classes: Having separate classes can have its advantages, but the proper amount of detail was not given to this feature, you really only needed 1 or two classes that you could use virtually for all situations. If you have a class customization ability, it has to be worthwhile to customize with a lot of USEFUL options. BR or DMR, not much else.
Map designs: One of the best things about past halo titles was the maps. All titles had their memorable maps that fueled the white-knuckle gameplay. This game lacks creative maps designed to facilitate skillful play. It feels like being put into a box half the time to just duke it out. A multitude of skill jumps and shortcuts help with this, and some DLC maps had them but they were lacking throughout.
Sounds: Some of the sounds of the weapons you shoot were less than impressive, when you have only one or two main weapons that are functional, and are being used 70% of the time, make them sound beastly. The BR sounds like a spring trap fill with stones.
Campaign Plot and Dialogue: The dialogue in the very linear story line was kind of embarrassing. I was playing co-op with my friend and could finish the sentences before the characters in the story did. And never make a game ending move with the click of a button....actually making it require skill gives the gamer SO much more satisfaction. A monkey can click a button, and that is what you made me feel like when I beat the campaign.
Overall, this was a VERY average game, you can use it to kill some time and have some fun. However, critically speaking, it doesn't quite hit the mark of high expectations that many have come to expect with its half-hearted attempt at employing a custom class system on poorly designed multiplayer maps and an average campaign.… Expand
Feb 16, 2014343 industries was tasked with producing a follow-up on the Halo trilogy, to add yet more into the universe known as the Halo Nation. They knew that what they would develop would automatically become canon, to be judged under intense scrutiny. Fans of thus franchise are among the most 'honest' fan bases out there, and there was no room for failure.
Thankfully, 'Halo 4' largely delivers on the experience fans have come to expect from this all-conquering franchise.
What grabs you first, at least in my opinion, is the graphics. Compared to Halo 3, it feels as if a light covering of smoke had been cleared, bringing everything into sharper focus. It is superior than anything Halo 3 could muster in this department, made clearly by the rendering of Cortana. It is honesty surprising that both '3' and '4' were released on the same console.
The soundtrack for this game is incredible, and there is no one here that can summon an effective argument otherwise. While the signature 'Halo' theme song will remain the best piece of all, '4''s piece takes on a variety of feelings, especially prominent when it highlights the intense danger Spartan 117 finds himself in, while also providing a suitable backdrop to Cortana's mental degradation, and the exchanges both she and her Spartan initiate in.
The story, however, takes the shine off this game, just a miniscule, insignificant amount. While anyone with a heart would flinch from Cortana's fate, after spending the entire game attempting to find Halsey and repair her, introducing the Covenant was a bit of a misstep, considering both Humanity and they had formed a truce. True, runaway factions occur in real life engagements, but the game would have benefited from the sole attention of the main Antagonist, and his plan. While focusing on the Covenant, their designs were needlessly altered, looking nothing like the creatures that had graced the previous three Halo games ( not their armor, but the aliens themselves.)
Other than that, however, Halo 4 remains one of the best releases for the franchise, as well as the most lucrative, which only shows that 343 industries had managed to fulfill the brief, satisfying 95% of fans.… Expand
May 8, 2014This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Halo 4 was a beautiful game. But I was really hanged to dry seeing that the boss battle is a quick time event montage but multiplayer is fun so then thumbs up 343 you do have big shoes to fill in so i didn't really think it would do that good also damn firefight mode!… Expand
Sep 15, 2014Not good enough to keep me playing, unlike the previous instalments Bungie made. Halo 3 was probably the best of the series for me, and hopefully 343i will be able to bring it back to the same level, if not higher, with Halo 5.
The campaign was fun to play with friends and on solo alike, a decent story, with some cool new enemies and characters, though no single part was really that memorable. The spartan ops missions are also quite interesting, although they do reuse areas from the campaign a lot, and the majority of missions just have you press a button, pick something up, shoot a load of enemies, and that's it. Although a mini-story has been created for this mode, cutscenes included.
Now the main thing people stay for with Halo is the Multiplayer, and i'm really disappointed and also quite annoyed what they did with the multiplayer. 343i have gone almost full CoD with this game, you can now unlock weapons and create loadouts for mutiplayer, which feels like every FPS ever does that now. Also borrowing from CoD's formula, they have added killstreak rewards in the form of a weapon drop, which takes away from how Halo's multiplayer works, or at least used to work.
343i have put prominence on the CoD control scheme as well, allowing everyone to sprint as well as moving crouch over to the B button. You look at the top favourite Halo games, which are 1,2 and 3, and what are they? Balanced. Nobody was sprinting around the map, nobody had or could not get something the other players could. Everything the players could have was already on the map, waiting to be picked up. There wasn't any ordnace drops, there wasn't any special abilities or perks, it was a simple system and it worked great.
The game is also missing firefight, a fun mode, and although it got boring after a while of grinding through it a few dozen times, why is it not in the game? another mode i thought was a great addition was the invasion game type from Reach, that's not in either. To be honest there's a heap of popular gametypes not in the game.
Now other than all that, aswell as the new armor system being rubbish, the game isn't terrible and new players will find it fun to play for longer than returning Halo players in my opinion, and hopefully 343i will be able to reignite my interest with the next game, and hopefully keep me interested in all the ones after.… Expand
Nov 6, 2012Halo 4 largely unscripted AI dependent combat set pieces set this apart from any COD games, that what it boils down to. More important than improved visuals which this got in spades, narrative is fine but what make you come back is how fun and challenging to fight against AI. Multi player does pick up some of the popular features in COD, but its remains very much Halo in its heart and instantly familiar to those who loved previous iterations of Halo MP modes. No Firefight but Spartan Ops Mode make up for it, episodic co op campaign with mates.
What to hate? Don't want then don't buy, but if you tired of same old COD iron sight based game, this is a breath of fresh air on a new planet!… Expand
Nov 9, 2012I have played every single Halo game - except for Halo Wars. And, I was quite worried about Halo 4, not being sure what to expect from 343 vs. Bungie. Overall, this is very solid game. I should note that this is a review for the single-player campaign as I'm not much of multiplayer gamer. As far as the campaign goes, I have some mixed feelings. As far as story goes, the story for this outing is second only to the original halo as far as I'm concerned. I wasn't in love with some of the Cortana voicework, but I greatly enjoyed the story, the direction of the plot, and the focus on the relationship between MC and Cortana. To me the story was the highlight of this release. The graphics in some areas are also pretty incredible. In other areas - especially when inside the forerunner structures they were very meh. Kind of a Tron:Legacy feeling - but it was hard to distinguish see some barriers in the final flying section. Gameplay was solid - but somewhat of a let down. The gameplay is very solid - no complaints with regard to controls or how the guns handle, etc. But, I was really hoping for more innovation - especially in the forerunner weapons. But, basically, they fell into the standard tropes - I.e. Sniper Riffle, Assault Rifle, Shotgun. There were a couple of weapons that I didn't try - but pretty much we've seen and used them all before. While there were some interesting and new set pieces in this game - I'm hoping they will bring more innovation to the next two games. Yes, the Knights require a slightly different strategy - but overall you are doing the same thing from previous games. Fight grunts, fight elites, fight hunters, rinse/repeat. Changing out the flood for the forerunner units doesn't add that much for. Finally, I do wish the campaign was longer. I know I'm in the minority - but I want more for my $60 than 7-10 hours. I've little interest in multi-player and don't think its unreasonable to expect a 15-20 hour single-player campaign for a AAA title. That being said - I do not regret paying full price for this game. While I had hoped for more innovation - this is definitely the second best game in the series. Not as mind-blowing as the original Halo - but I'm not sure if that is possible. This game was a very strong effort - and will definitely bring me back for the next chapter. I wished for a stronger sense of "new & different" from this release, but otherwise I would recommend this game. Its a very worthy addition to the Halo franchise - and 343 really deserves to be successful. They put a lot of love and hard work, and it shows in the story that will keep you playing until the end.… Expand
Nov 28, 2012This game is just amazing ! Both Campaign and Multiplayer are better than ever before:) The story is more interesting and suprising while the storytelling is much better,too. It is more emotional than any halo game before! A lot of people complained that the campaign was short, but it's 7 hours long which is okay. Considering Spartan Ops (a new mode) is a co-op camaign with a different Story, there is still enough Content for solo/splitscreen co-op fans. The good thing about Spartan Ops is, that the levels are designed for co-op, but the story and presentation is rather flat compared to the campaign mode. It should be mentioned that the game is a lot faster than previous Halo games, not only because of the ability to sprint without picking it as an armor ability. The Spartans are faster, jump higher and feel more like supersoldiers. There is no fall damage , which is great and the health bar is nearly gone, you can take a few hits after the shields are down and that's it. There are a lot more armor abilities like the ability to see threw walls (for a limited time only) and all of them feel balanced. In Multiplayer, you can unlock and choose different armor abilities in addition to the new perks and the new "kill streaks" (It's different than killstreaks thought, you get rewarded after earing a certain amount of points in a match) let you choose between weapons and things like a supershield or a speed boost. These additions are fun and rewarding, but are not as unbalanced as in cod. They are powerful, but not too powerful ;) Oh and there are some multiplayer modes missing, but those who are there are more fun than ever before. Infection has been replaced with the genious flood mode, CTF has been improved there are a few other new modes... I liked all modes and that is a huge achievement ! Oh I forgot to mention it, there are a bunch of new weapons that are great ! However, there are a few flaws... There could have been more multiplayer modes, I personally miss the Headhunter mode and the firefight mode from Reach and the second flaw is that splitcreen doesn't feauter widescreen. Dual-Wielding is missing,too (except for CTF). It is a masterpiece and all in all it is the best Halo game yet, but there are a few things, that other Halo games did better.… Collapse
Dec 17, 2012Halo 4 eschews esoteric delivery for a sledgehammer story with a blockbuster aesthetic. Epic, engaging and sensorially awesome. [Jan 2013, p.60]
Dec 5, 2012In the end, this game is still a fairly conservative and faithful to the original spirit, even with some significant changes.
Dec 3, 2012The narrative is outstanding, even in spite of a few plot-point missteps, and the character evolution of Master Chief and Cortana deserves to be further explored with these wonderful storytellers (well, maybe one of them can't happen, but I'll avoid spoilers). However, the gameplay feels jilted, awkward and unrefined, three unforgivable sins in a landscape populated with other quite-capable FPS franchises. As a result, I'm going to average everything out: great story plus bad gameplay equals an average experience. And in this overcrowded FPS genre, "average" is isn't something I'd recommend buying.