The Halo series, and the magic it needs to rediscover

 

Halo, a science fiction series that spans multiple platforms including the Xbox 360, novels, and graphic novels, is not exactly a hard series to know exists. The games are mostly in the first person shooter (FPS) genre, but Ensemble Studios added in a realtime strategy game called Halo Wars. The company that started the series, Bungie, seemed to know what they were doing throughout the series and created a captivating story and addictive multiplayer.

I’ve been playing Halo 3: ODST again lately, and I heard a grunt ask in its comically squeaky voice, “When has us looking for it EVER been a good idea?” This reminded me of the flavor that Halo has always had to it. The series could never quite return totally that flavor mastered in the first game, but it has had moments of greatness in each one.

The first game was a magical experience. Halo: Combat Evolved had you feeling hunted at times, while being a lone wolf hunter at other times. Occasionally, you had allies to fight alongside you. The game was a good mix of getting the jump on the enemies in a strange, derelict setting whether or not you were the hunter or the hunted. The bottom line was that things wanted to kill you for their own equally important reasons.

Each faction’s personality and motivations for eliminating the other factions were woven together. The Covenant were tactical, cunning, and sophisticated conquerers. Their cooperation with each other and the hierarchy in the multi-species alliance was fascinating and complex. The Flood were bloodthirsty and would stop at nothing to consume their victims, whether it was you or anyone else the parasite could infect. Regardless, a twisted, mutated, rotting mess charging at you flailing its broken limbs was intimidating and unforgiving. They were to be taken seriously for their relentless hunger. The Forerunner machines were cold and eliminated anything that was Flood or potential food for the Flood. If you were not deemed part of the solution for dealing with the Flood, you were no exception.

For the Flood, killing you was in their nature. For the Covenant, killing you was in their scripture. For the Forerunner machines, killing you was in their programming. They wanted you dead, and you were vulnerable despite being a hyperlethal supersoldier in power armor.

I believe that mastering these fundamental aspects that were present in the first game can prove effective in the new trilogy that Microsoft’s 343 Industries is starting with Halo 4. Let’s hope the new trilogy isn’t bad.

Why I still (cautiously) wish there would be a Halo movie

If it is done, though, it cannot be about Master Chief. While he has some dialogue in the series, Chief is intended to be a substantially blank character so as to immerse the player in his experiences. I like to loosely compare this character technique to Half Life’s Gordon Freeman, who never talks at all.

Still, the video is impressive. I especially admire the CGI and emotional tone set by the audio.

Bioshock and Social/Political philosophies

Amongst seeing old friends and scraping together plans for things to do, I’ve also been replaying one of my favorite series: Bioshock. I’m really fascinated with the games’ critiques of various political philosophies.

From what I can tell, the first game’s message bids a warning about the fragility of libertarianism. As Fontaine makes Ryan paranoid and tries to enslave people via socialist/mob practices, Ryan’s desire to protect his libertarian utopia becomes its own undoing. It’s a powerful message that the United States should take heed of.

The second game, while not nearly the same as the first one due to 2K Boston (now Irrational Games) working on Bioshock Infinite instead of Bioshock 2 (made by 2K Marin), built upon the fragility of libertarianism and the difficulty to return to it. In the years following the first game, Rapture has deteriorated farther as a religious, collectivist cult led by psychologist Sofia Lamb further destroys the society Ryan had already watched crumble. Socialism really is a slippery slope.

Bioshock Infinite’s release date inches closer, but is still so far away. Not much about the actual story is available, but it appears to have criticism of both fascist capitalism and socialism. Bioshock Infinite’s Creative Director Ken Levine even mentions that the Occupy Wall Street movement has greatly influenced the development of the Vox Populi movement. Even more interesting is the rest of the interview with Levine, in which he states he’s more asking questions than pushing philosophies.

Two unique enemies revealed for Bioshock Infinite

Irrational Games recently revealed details about two unique –and terrifying– enemies in interviews with G4. The enemies, described as “heavy hitters”, include a mechanized juggernaut modeled after George Washington, and the Handyman, which made a brief appearance in the announcement teaser.

The Mechanized Patriot:

The Handyman:

Bioshock Infinite gets released in the United States on October 16th, 2012, making the long, agonizing wait finally come to an end.