Halo 4

Its finally here and made by new people but the legacy has been done justice with the best halo adventure since the original, the graphics are noticeable immediately! They have much improved and look sweet, the campaign mode is awesome with one of the best stories in a halo game, lots of original new ideas that break out into so many cool ways, Spartan ops mode is great even though it replaces firefight does I feel still have a lasting appeal once you have all 50 missions there will be plenty of challenges to complete, the multiplayer is fantastic with so many new weapons and maps and cool new armour upgrades etc the forge mode is back too for endless building your own maps, all round you wont be bored of this for many years! A must for fan.

Just completed this on heroic lvl and all I can say is WOW!! The makers 343 have done the franchise proud, the gfx are beautiful, the games smooth and enjoyable, the storyline and actors make some so called movie blockbuster hang their heads with shame. Every little detail is perfect even down to the sound of the Chiefs armour creaking and chinking with small movements. The music and effects are straight outa Hollywood. I've only given multiplayer a short go and I've never been a huge halo online fan as I much prefer cod but its nice enough and plays well, I like the new kill streaks that u can call down for a weapon upgrade or armour boost. If u are a fan of the game this will blow u away, if you've never played halo before, where u been?? Get the others then play this. This is a must buy for any fans of story based games with soul rather than just empty shooters which don't pull u in emotionally and make u feel the game, not just play the game.

Following the highly publicised change of developer the gaming world was rightly curious as to how one of its biggest selling franchises would fare following the departure of its creators Bungie. Despite now being developed by 343 industries however this is still, for better or worse, the same Halo we've all seen before and those that criticise the series for not really evolving since its Xbox debut over a decade ago certainly make a fair point. As a result this fourth 'mainline' title is not really going to be of any interest to those that didn't like previous installments.

Having said all that Halo 4 is still undeniably a great package and certainly offers better value for money than many modern video games. The main campaign itself will last most players somewhere around the 10 hour mark depending on the difficulty setting and their level of skill and can be played either solo or with up to three other players. As with every previous game it is at its best when offering open areas in which to fight the array of enemies and their vehicles and to this day there are few better experiences in the FPS genre than when Halo gets the balance just right. For me the game forces players to spend a little too long inside long thin corridors and smaller indoor areas as in these instances the freedom to tackle the battle the way you want to is removed and it simply is not as much fun to play, hopefully this is something that can be addressed in the inevitable sequels.

On top of the campaign Halo 4 also provides a series of 'Spartan Op' missions. Each of these lasts between 15 and 30 minutes and can again be tackled either alone or in multi-player. The idea seems to have been taken from the special ops missions featured in the Call of Duty series and provide the player with various tasks such as clearing an area of enemies or destroying set objectives. Admittedly maps are reused throughout these ops but it is hard to complain when they can all be downloaded for free.

The final part of this generous package is the competitive multi-player. All the usual modes, as well as a few surprises, are present and correct and the solid gunplay still translates well. Controversially Halo 4 has again taken a page out of the Call of Duty handbook with weapons and perks now being unlocked as the player levels up. I was never a huge fan of the online multi-player in the previous installments anyway but purists will understandable be disappointed and it is certainly a shame to see yet another game attempt to imitate Activisions all conquering behemoth.

All in all then this is a safe but promising start for 343 industries and the wealth of options and modes will provide most with hour upon hour of gameplay.

Following the highly publicised change of developer the gaming world was rightly curious as to how one of its biggest selling franchises would fare following the departure of its creators Bungie. Despite now being developed by 343 industries however this is still, for better or worse, the same Halo we've all seen before and those that criticise the series for not really evolving since its Xbox debut over a decade ago certainly make a fair point. As a result this fourth 'mainline' title is not really going to be of any interest to those that didn't like previous installments.

Having said all that Halo 4 is still undeniably a great package and certainly offers better value for money than many modern video games. The main campaign itself will last most players somewhere around the 10 hour mark depending on the difficulty setting and their level of skill and can be played either solo or with up to three other players. As with every previous game it is at its best when offering open areas in which to fight the array of enemies and their vehicles and to this day there are few better experiences in the FPS genre than when Halo gets the balance just right. For me the game forces players to spend a little too long inside long thin corridors and smaller indoor areas as in these instances the freedom to tackle the battle the way you want to is removed and it simply is not as much fun to play, hopefully this is something that can be addressed in the inevitable sequels.

On top of the campaign Halo 4 also provides a series of 'Spartan Op' missions. Each of these lasts between 15 and 30 minutes and can again be tackled either alone or in multi-player. The idea seems to have been taken from the special ops missions featured in the Call of Duty series and provide the player with various tasks such as clearing an area of enemies or destroying set objectives. Admittedly maps are reused throughout these ops but it is hard to complain when they can all be downloaded for free.

The final part of this generous package is the competitive multi-player. All the usual modes, as well as a few surprises, are present and correct and the solid gunplay still translates well. Controversially Halo 4 has again taken a page out of the Call of Duty handbook with weapons and perks now being unlocked as the player levels up. I was never a huge fan of the online multi-player in the previous installments anyway but purists will understandable be disappointed and it is certainly a shame to see yet another game attempt to imitate Activisions all conquering behemoth.

All in all then this is a safe but promising start for 343 industries and the wealth of options and modes will provide most with hour upon hour of gameplay.

i have only played the campaign story and can still say its the best halo by far, the story between master chief and cortana is good to watch and listen to, the game play, especially the gun controls are much better, also the introduction of a new species of enemy along with a variety of new weapons are the highlight of the game, could not rate this less than 5 stars