Price: £44.99 Players: 1-16 Halo is the first Xbox game I have played at length - as opposed to having a quick demo in a shop with Amped - and be advised that even though I've been having enormous fun with it, I probably have only scratched the surface as to what lies within, since this is a game that isn't easily quantified like a beat-em-up, but will take some time to complete. In the plot, the year is 2552 and over-population has forced us to look beyond Earth for habitation and a keystone planet in the attempt to colonise outside of our known planets is one called Reach. 32 years ago, we lost contact with the outer colony Harvest, courtesy of the efforts of the baddies, the Covenant. As part of one of a range of SPARTAN-II soldiers, it's up to you to lead the charge to kick alien butt and return things back to the way they used to be, whether it's done by walking across the land, driving about in your warthog or flying in a number of different aircraft.

Or alternatively, it's another first-person shooter (FPS) where you'll get so far during a game and then stop because you just can't get any further, but as soon as you pick it up again the next day you'll work out where you went wrong and will continue. It's also pleasing to note that the FMV sequences blend seamlessly with the in-game action. I noticed the same thing recently with Ico on the PS2, so it's clear that games and consoles have begun to evolve to the level we've been waiting for some time to see. Multiplayer fans will be pleased to learn that with a single Xbox you can play 2-player or 4-player games with the split-screen mode. They'll also be no doubt over the moon to also learn that four Xboxes can be linked together with a maximum of 16 players blasting away, but you'd better make sure you've got big TVs to make the most of the smaller screen area.

Those waiting for this game with baited breath will have doubtlessly seen the game footage shown on TV and will already be aware that the graphics are, quite simply, shit-hot. There's a gorgeous amount of detail, right down to thin blades of grass. Of course, these don't move but it's a whole sight better than the smeary textures of Command and Conquer: Renegade on the PC that makes that game so damn dated. Also, unlike other console games where you blast chunks out of the scenery, here the bullet holes stay in the wall. This is down to the Xbox's built-in hard drive and PC owners will be familiar with this type of thing happening within their games. As well as the landscapes being gorgeous to look at, the speed of the action has to be seen to be believed when monsters are after you. Also, it's impressive to test a grenade early on in the second section of the game. By that point, the team-mates who accompanied you in the rather linear first level are all dead and there's a few corpses lying around. Toss a grenade their way and watch them fly!!

Sonically, the game is also a treat. I'm only listening in Dolby Surround at the moment as I'm still trying to find the Joytech S-video/Dolby Digital lead for DD5.1 sound. However, whether it's explosions or the an evocating score, it all rocks, even though we've been there before many a time. I quite enjoyed also testing this by shooting loads of purple ammo at the walls and spinning round. Hear it subsequently explode in turn as you shot it out. The control system is relatively easy to get to grips with for those who are used to games like this on a console, such as with Red Faction. I found it best to let the right analogue joystick control the look and turn functions, while the left one let me move forward, backwards and strafe left/right. Any niggles to the game? I could complain that despite the freedom in later levels, there is still a degree of linearity, but that's to be expected from a FPS, since the aim is to get from A to B and survive. The only other thing that bugged me was that when you save your position, as opposed to quick-saving automatically after each checkpoint, you are forced to exit back to the main menu. This isn't too intrusive though, since saved games load very quickly from this hard drive. Oh and one tip before I finish here - don't shoot your team-mates, otherwise they'll turn on you.. permanently! The only way to get anywhere after that is to go back to the last saved game. I only tried this on the first level though.

GRAPHICS SOUND EFFECTS AND MUSIC PLAYABILITY ENJOYMENT
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Review copyright © Dominic Robinson, 2002.