Halo Excitement

You know what excites me? Well you probably guessed it because of the title, Halo! Halo is one of those games that helped me develop a love for games. Growing up I devoted countless hours to killing elites, flood, brutes and best of all grunts. Those experiences shaped my video gaming lifestyle forever, so to say the least, I owe a lot to Halo.  I have never been as excited for a release as I am for the new Halo 5. Actually, that last statement might not be true because I am pretty sure I almost imploded from excitement when Halo 4 came out. Nonetheless I am super excited! Now let me give you my top five reasons as to why I love Halo so much and why I’m excited for Halo 5

1. Skill

Halo can be evil sometimes. I have died a lot but I have also killed a lot. It is one of those games that require skill and skilled players fly high above others. I was never really good at Halo, but some people I have had the pleasure to meet honestly astonish me with their abilities. Now I don’t mean to put down other games, because I think to some degree all games require skill (just some maybe more than others). For example, I love that Halo doesn’t do hit markers and has very minimal aim assist. This really gives the advantage to players who can hit the head shots or even just keep the cross hairs drilled on the body of their target. Overall, Halo provides a challenge that is very unique to itself!

2. Vehicular Warfare

Whether I am ramming people with a Ghost or swooping in with a Banshee, Halo always provides some of the best and most fun vehicular combat in both the campaign and multiplayer. There are some fantastic missions centered around vehicles. Even in missions where vehicles aren’t immediately offered to the player as a weapon/means of transportation, they can still be found in hidden places by those who look for them. And of course if you really want to take a vehicle everywhere, there is always the option to just walk back all the way to the beginning of the mission in order to get that Mongoose that originally spawned. Sadly, I will admit I have done that more than I care to mention. In addition, even in multiplayer combat vehicles can be the bomb! Literally, they explode all the time which is perhaps my favorite thing about vehicular warfare in Halo. What excites me is just how horribly wrong things can go in a vehicle. One second you are cruising along in your warthog, then the next thing you know you got hit by a sticky grenade which flips you into a teammate walking by. Splat! Then a rocket launcher propels all three of you and the vehicle into the air and over the edge of the map. The best part is you don’t even need friends to have fun with vehicles. Forge has been the best for making funky contraptions. My brother and I built a system of ramps that we would drive mongooses down and try and jump off to land on a little box below. So basically we were human marbles! I don’t think we ever made it, probably wasn’t even possible, but who cares because it was so much fun! Early on it was vehicles that really set Halo apart because many games didn’t have them and though Halo is much more than vehicles, they have become a signature experience!

3. Story and Universe

The Halo Stories are epic and the universe is huge! I always look forward to what epic conclusion Bungie or now 343 Industries have in store. And I am so pumped for the showdown between Spartan Locke and Master Chief. Additionally it is fascinating to read about the Halo Universe, because it’s just so awesome!

4. Shield and Health Combo

I love the shield and health mechanic of Halo. I love the fact that by running away and letting my shield recharge I can have a second chance, but it is also wonderful at how difficult it is to kill another Spartan. This mechanic is what makes for the unbelievable 1 vs 1’s that we see so often in a Halo match.  As I mentioned earlier how skill is a big factor in Halo, well this is one of the big contributing elements. The shield is a Spartans chance to comeback to fight another day and everyone who has ever played Halo knows the noise of when you are in trouble. The shield goes away and lights start blinking and the noise batters your head. You know death is either a moment away or your salvation. It is just a matter of how fast your big, hulky, Spartan legs can carry you!

5. GRENADES!!!!!!!

Now this blog may give you a hint, but I love grenades! Halo has my favorite grenades in the history of the world. In many games, grenades don’t do that much, sure they explode but it is rare you actually get a kill with them. In Halo grenades make everything better! From sticking vehicles to sticking people they are the cat’s meow! Few things are as satisfying as sticking a plasma grenade to another players face and being like “oh boy, they’re gonna explode!” It is also awful when you are stuck. In that situation, all I want to do is run up and grab the guy who threw it at me and give them a big hug…so they explode too. In the past, Halo has some of the coolest explosives. From Napalm grenades to Spike grenades, there is a grenade for every occasion. But let me pay homage to the most classic of the grenades, the frag grenade. My friend, who I can bounce around corners to kill an unsuspecting enemy or simply use to flip the enemy warthog charging right at me, you have been my small explosive companion through all these journeys. As other grenades have come and gone you persist! You even rest in the logo of Grenative. So I thank you for saving my life and being my friend on so many adventures. I look forward to the great days ahead of us in Halo 5!

With that I must sign off and prepare my armor for tomorrow’s big release! I wish all of my fellow Grenatine Spartans good luck in the battle ahead. I will try to get gameplay footage posted as soon as possible to the Grenative YouTube channel. I hope you enjoyed the article, let me know what you think in the comments and join the discussion! I know I can say I love Halo!

-Ollie