Halo: Reach is an upcoming first-person shooter video game for the Xbox 360. This is the next part of Halo series, and it is scheduled for release during 2010. The game takes place in the year 2552, where humanity is locked in a war with the alien Covenant.
Bungie has finally released concrete details on what will arguably be the biggest game on 360 this year, Halo: Reach. In the latest installment in the award-winning, mega-selling series, you’re back in the armour of a Spartan and the story rewinds to the early days of the momentous human/Covenant conflict.
The big news is that you’ll be a member of a crack team of Spartans fighting for their lives when they run into the Covenant’s advance invasion party. It’ll also feature brand new weapons and enemies and will be made using an entirely new engine. Fans are already clamouring to get to grips with the beta version of the multiplayer mode.
1) Noble Team
In Halo; Reach you’ll get to see six Spartans fighting alongside one another. To emphasise the greater sense of teamwork the characters will be more fully fleshed out too.
2) Beta be quick
Anyone who has a copy of Halo 3: ODST can see that there’s a Reach option in the menu. Once the multiplayer beta goes live, they’ll be able to sign in and start playing. This is tremendously exciting because Halo’s multiplayer is near peerless amongst shooters. We’re guessing this will happen some time around spring.
3) Secret mode
Halo creators Bungie are notoriously secretive, but they’ve hinted at a secret multiplayer mode in Halo: Reach. We’re hugely excited by this, as the last mode they created was ODST’s excellent Firefight. There’s no further info available, but we’re hoping for dedicated co-op similar to Modern Warfare 2’s Spec Ops mode.
4) Man tank
The Spartan super soldier is like a tank on legs. He has a regenerating shield, and can run and jump like an Olympian. In a nod to the original Halo, he’ll have a health bar that can be depleted if his shield is down.
5) Squad tactics
Whereas Master Chief and the Rookie generally went it alone, here the emphasis is on teamwork. And you’ll need all the help you can get, with up to 40 AI characters to a single battle, as well as 20 vehicles.
6) Tooled up
Dissection of the trailer reveals several old friends, including the battle rifle, sniper rifle and shotgun. There’ll also be a one-shot rifle suitable for long and short-range attacks, plus the new needler rifle.
7) Meet the elite
During the later Halo games, alien race the Sangheili (aka Elites) slowly came to the realisation that the Covenant were a bit mental. It was a huge plot twist that led to the Arbiter helping Master Chief finish the fight in Halo 3. However Reach is a prequel so the Predator-faced warriors are back. But will the Arbiter show up?
8) Shellshocked
The plot follows the battle between the UNSC and the Covenant on the planet of Reach (a story told in the novel Fall of Reach). It was here that the war took a turn for the worse, and aliens destroyed much of the UNSC’s means of manufacturing arms. As a member of Noble Team, you must salvage what you can and escape.
9) New engine
Not only is Halo: Reach a fresh chapter in the Halo series, it will also feature a brand new engine. The images on these pages were all created using said engine, so expect considerably more detail, improved textures and a far more impressive physicality (include facial animations) to the Spartans and the Covenant.
10) What no Chief?
There’s no evidence of Master Chief in the trailer, but we know that he played a key role in the battle of Reach. Perhaps it’s no surprise that there hasn’t yet been confirmation. After all, imagine the whoops of joy when the big reveal finally happens. We reckon he’s likely to make a cameo appearance at the very least!
5) Squad tactics
Whereas Master Chief and the Rookie generally went it alone, here the emphasis is on teamwork. And you’ll need all the help you can get, with up to 40 AI characters to a single battle, as well as 20 vehicles.
6) Tooled up
Dissection of the trailer reveals several old friends, including the battle rifle, sniper rifle and shotgun. There’ll also be a one-shot rifle suitable for long and short-range attacks, plus the new needler rifle.
7) Meet the elite
During the later Halo games, alien race the Sangheili (aka Elites) slowly came to the realisation that the Covenant were a bit mental. It was a huge plot twist that led to the Arbiter helping Master Chief finish the fight in Halo 3. However Reach is a prequel so the Predator-faced warriors are back. But will the Arbiter show up?
8) Shellshocked
The plot follows the battle between the UNSC and the Covenant on the planet of Reach (a story told in the novel Fall of Reach). It was here that the war took a turn for the worse, and aliens destroyed much of the UNSC’s means of manufacturing arms. As a member of Noble Team, you must salvage what you can and escape.
9) New engine
Not only is Halo: Reach a fresh chapter in the Halo series, it will also feature a brand new engine. The images on these pages were all created using said engine, so expect considerably more detail, improved textures and a far more impressive physicality (include facial animations) to the Spartans and the Covenant.
10) What no Chief?
There’s no evidence of Master Chief in the trailer, but we know that he played a key role in the battle of Reach. Perhaps it’s no surprise that there hasn’t yet been confirmation. After all, imagine the whoops of joy when the big reveal finally happens. We reckon he’s likely to make a cameo appearance at the very least!
