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Best Halo game narrative?

  • Halo: Reach šŸ˜­

    Votes: 291 37.6%
  • Halo: ODST Serenity

    Votes: 91 11.8%
  • Halo: Combat Evolved

    Votes: 91 11.8%
  • Halo 2: Keith David and Bomberman

    Votes: 147 19.0%
  • Halo 3: The Thing

    Votes: 96 12.4%
  • Halo 4: Didact Attack feat. Ancient Aliens

    Votes: 38 4.9%
  • Halo 5: LOL

    Votes: 19 2.5%

  • Total voters
    773
There is a limit to poll responses! Type Infinite out if you wish to vote for it.

BossAttack

Member
Oct 27, 2017
42,978
I'll be honest, I've never cared much for the mainline Halo stories. Master Chief is a pretty boring protagonist that the developers can never seem to decide is either just the player insert or a character in their own right. And the plot themselves are often to scattershot to make sense lacking much emotional weight, hell that's why the Arbiter is the best part of Halo 2. But hot damn did Halo: Reach fix all those issues for me. Now I played Reach before ODST and so didn't realize that Bungie had basically already started crafting more interesting character stories, but Reach is ODST perfected in terms of pure story and character.

Now, Reach came out before Rogue One. However, it shares similar elements, including a similar ending. But as many people know, I think Rogue One is pretty awful. On the other hand, Reach is magnificent with how it tells its war story. I don't want to get into a back and forth between the two, but for me RO was just tonally wrong for Star Wars and its cast lacked any character. They were all just boring stiffs that you couldn't really delineate from each other.

I know others have expressed the same for Reach's cast, but I feel Bungie did a great job making each member of Noble Team feel unique. George, the only Spartan II and an absolute unit of a man is somehow the softie of the group who actually gives a shit about the plight of regular people, colonist or UNSC citizen be damned. Kat is the sassy brains of the group whose constantly letting her curiosity meddle in areas she shouldn't. Carter is the papa leader that tries to keep everyone together. Jun is the silent, methodical sniper. And Emile is the loveable asshole with trust issues, but secretly loves his team.

Of course, what makes the whole narrative great is how it makes the Planet Reach feel like its own character and you a witness to its fall. The game really makes you feel like you're fighting this unwinnable battle where every victory is immediately counteracted by an even bigger loss. Best line that sums up the game: "I know we're losing. I just want to know if we've lost."

While every character doesn't get a ton of dialogue, I felt each interaction was stuffed with character detail that made me feel for each member of Noble Team. By the end, I always get a little teary-eyed for these mad bastards. šŸ˜­

So, anyone else feel this way? If not, what do you consider the best campaign story? And we are talking STORY/NARRATIVE here not what has the best campaign in terms of gameplay.

R.6eb9850e5b7aa893947e64c06bbea72e
 

xGeneral Ice

Member
Nov 1, 2017
1,950
Emile has a skull on his helmet. My teen angst connected to him dearly. So it's automatically the best.

and my adult self used my credit card to get to his armor on the battle pass. /s I don't have enough money for that but I would have if I could have
 

Lifejumper

Member
Oct 25, 2017
25,304
Reach and ODST having the best narratives says something about having Master Chief as the main playable character but I dunno whatā€¦

Give me a arbiter game pls
 

Cranster

Prophet of Truth
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
9,788
Reach has one of the worst. It not only is full of plotholes and inconsistencies but it was an attempt by Bungie to retcon the Fall of Reach novel.
 

Bxrz

Banned
Dec 18, 2020
1,902
Nah its Halo CE for me. The Flood introduction is still the peak of the series.

Reach had a good campaign though. A shame the multiplayer was so god awful
 

Lukar

Unshakable Resolve - Prophet of Truth
Member
Oct 27, 2017
23,374
Why omit Infinite from the poll?

To answer the question though, it's a tie between Reach and 4 for me. I really enjoyed what they did with Chief and Cortana in the latter.
 

Deleted member 49611

Nov 14, 2018
5,052
nah, didn't enjoy Reach. 3 was the best Bungie Halo game.

1. Infinite
2. 4
3. 3
4. 2
5. 5
6. 1
7. Reach
8. ODST
 

vixolus

Prophet of Truth
Member
Sep 22, 2020
54,401
Halo 2 imo because I really dug the dual pov and expanding of the political/grand space opera stuff. Blur cinematics helped sell it for the Anniversary edition.
Reach a close second.
 

Rendering...

Member
Oct 30, 2017
19,089
I'm not a huge fan of Halo of Duty, though the characters weren't bad, and the campaign had its moments. But Halo is more about the mystery and wonder of alien worlds, seasoned with a distinctive brand of campy humor.

Reach is a decent experimental diversion from the rest of the series, but it's not a direction I'd want to see another Halo game pursue if I can have something like the Bungie trilogy or Infinite instead.
 
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Kahhhhyle

Member
Jun 8, 2021
2,170
Haven't finished Infinite yet, but Reach is definitely my favorite so far. Gameplay was peak Halo (until Infinite imo) and yeah I love the story. I remember logging on to Halo 4 and having trouble finding a game, then logging on to Reach and getting one quick.

Good times:)
 

Blackie

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,643
Wherever
It's either this or Halo 1 for me. As much as I loved the OG Reach novel this game 100% worked for me in every way, from presentation down to every last facet of gameplay.
 

Trey

Member
Oct 25, 2017
17,994
Still 2. Most consequential too.

Reach has bog standard but serviceable Band of Brothers squad characterization, but the game never makes you care about Reach particularly, even as it gets glassed. And it very little to the lore - actually conflicts with established dates directly which had to be fixed after the fact. It feels like as much a sidestory as ODST, except the latter games introduced characters that would at least go on to be relevant in the franchise.

And for the first game that directly features Halsey, it's weirdly reserved with how it handles her. It feels very much like a game that Bungie just wanted to get out the door so they could go make the game they really wanted to in Destiny.

I'll grant that it has memorable setpieces though.
 

Nateo

Member
Oct 27, 2017
7,542
ODST was my favourite. Wish they would expand to other FPS genres within the Halo universe so so much there. We need a survival horror and a tac shooter please.
 

Kyari

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,848
Naw, Reach was trash. Its just a race to see who can die next.

ODST is superb.
 

Exposure

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,655
No.

Ever since it's been pointed out to me you basically completely miss out on the actual invasion of Reach parts in the game about the invasion of Reach, the game's been living in my head rent free for all the "wrong" reasons compared to other people once i started realizing other stuff like "this game emulates stuff like Band of Brothers but forgets the part like making you actually care for them, for various reasons like non-ironically having way too many people on the squad compared to what narrative room the game had to work with."
 
OP
OP
BossAttack

BossAttack

Member
Oct 27, 2017
42,978
Reach has one of the worst. It not only is full of plotholes and inconsistencies but it was an attempt by Bungie to retcon the Fall of Reach novel.

Oh please, who cares about lining up with the dumb novel. All that matters is if it told a satisfying narrative on its own.

Why omit Infinite from the poll?

To answer the question though, it's a tie between Reach and 4 for me. I really enjoyed what they did with Chief and Cortana in the latter.

I reached the maximum limit of poll responses. šŸ¤·ā€ā™€ļø
 

Bigg

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,629
I haven't finished Infinite yet but yeah probably

Reach is one of the few times I can think of a prequel that actually felt like it added meaningful context to the narrative and managed an ending that actually had a stronger impact because you know how it eventually ends.

Halo spends so much time trying to emphasize that the humans trying to stop The Convenant was a fool's errand against impossible odds but it never feels that way in the mainline Halo games because Chief is an invincible one man army. In Reach they actually accomplish that feeling that you're just doing everything you can against a near-unstoppable threat and hoping it works.
 

digitalrelic

Weight Loss Champion 2018: Biggest Change
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
13,124
Why is Infinite not an option in the poll? It clearly has the best story.
 

Y2Kev

Member
Oct 25, 2017
13,861
By far. I think halo plots have been way too complicated post 3 but reach was beautifully done.
 

CubeApple76

Member
Jan 20, 2021
6,677
Infinite though

Reach, 2, and 3 in any order after that, then 4, then 1, then ODST, then 5 imo.

Infinite > 2 > Reach > 3 > 4 > 1 > ODST > 5 final answer
 

Rendering...

Member
Oct 30, 2017
19,089
Why is Infinite not an option in the poll? It clearly has the best story.
Definitely the best from a storytelling perspective IMO, though Halo CE is underrated in that regard. Collecting your scattered crew, and the eventual descent into horror and chaos, and the desperate race to make your escape, is all very well done in the original.
 
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Chumunga64

Member
Jun 22, 2018
14,255
the one thing I don't like is Kat, the one girl on the squad being the only one that didn't get a heroic death
 
Jul 14, 2018
1,527
Philadelphia
Not really. Whenever I replay Reach, it feels like it doesn't have any central plot to care about. Every mission feels inconsequential. It's a bunch of tangentially related vignettes that don't serve any greater purpose in the story's progression.

I feel like the mission where you receive Cortana should've been where the game started and the whole campaign should've taken place over a much smaller span of time, to really emphasize the last few hours before Reach falls apart and actually give the story some focus.
 

FeD

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,275
I love the way the story is structured. With Long Night of Solace as the tipping point. That mission in itself could be a final campaign mission. It ending in this:




Just the complete hopelessness it plunges you in after one of the most heroic missions. Beautifully executed.
 

Rendering...

Member
Oct 30, 2017
19,089
Oh please, who cares about lining up with the dumb novel. All that matters is if it told a satisfying narrative on its own.
The "dumb novel" is the best Halo novel for sure, and that's not a backhanded compliment, because the Halo EU is some damn solid sci-fi, and Eric Nylund is legit. The game is good but it would have been immensely better if it had been a straight adaptation.
 

Nemesis121

Member
Nov 3, 2017
13,840
Wut? Reach was forgettable. I can't recall an aspect of the story other than the Ending, and the only reason i remember it, over the years they set up Reach into CE, otherwise if this fresh story line i wouldn't remember anything about that game, it was bland AF.
 

Lothars

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
9,765
Yes, Reach is the best halo story followed by ODST and Halo 3. Reach is just above them all and the game does such a great job with it.
 

Caiusto

Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,744
Reach and ODST having the best narratives says something about having Master Chief as the main playable character but I dunno whatā€¦

Give me a arbiter game pls

You can do a lot more from the narrative point of view when your main character is not an invencible spartan (something they tried to mitigate in Infinite) but the trade-off is on the gameplay imo.
 

Remeran

Member
Nov 27, 2018
3,893
Mine go: Reach > Halo 2 > Halo Infinite > Halo 1 > Halo 4 > ODST > Halo 3 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Halo 5

I really liked infinite's campaign, it comes close to 2 for me but Reach is the GOAT in my opinion.
 

AlaBaby

Member
Jul 7, 2020
93
Reach campaign was so not halo - like you can replace the story with any generic shooter and it would fit. Also it never felt like reach was actually being destroyed I felt they coneyed that horribly
 

Jroc

Banned
Jun 9, 2018
6,145
I can't forgive Halo Reach for fucking with the canon. They should have written it around The Fall of Reach instead of overwriting parts of it.

I think Halo 2 has the best story, though I do like Halo 1's relative simplicity.
 
OP
OP
BossAttack

BossAttack

Member
Oct 27, 2017
42,978
the one thing I don't like is Kat, the one girl on the squad being the only one that didn't get a heroic death

I find her death to be the most impactful because of how sudden it is. It's also nice how every death has a kind of irony to it:

George, says he'll never leave Reach. Dies in orbit.
Kat, the brains of the group is shot in the head.
Carter, the captain that goes down with the ship.
Emile, dude with trust issues is stabbed in the back.
Jun, ghost sniper that just disappears.
Noble 6, "leave that lone wolf stuff behind." Dies a lone wolf.
 

nbnt

Member
Oct 26, 2017
2,811
Certainly not. The original trilogy tells far better and more interesting stories and establishes one of the best universes in video games.

Halo Reach stars forgettable side characters no one cared about in a side story no one cared about.
 

BannerThief

Member
Apr 10, 2019
224
Seattle
I love Halo, but truth be told, none of the games have more than a passable story. All the actually interesting stuff is tucked away in the novels.

And yeah, Master Chief has always been a pretty bad protagonist to actually build off of, since by design he can never really grow or change as a person.
 

Remeran

Member
Nov 27, 2018
3,893
I find her death to be the most impactful because of how sudden it is. It's also nice how every death has a kind of irony to it:

George, says he'll never leave Reach. Dies in orbit.
Kat, the brains of the group is shot in the head.
Carter, the captain that goes down with the ship.
Emile, dude with trust issues is stabbed in the back.
Jun, ghost sniper that just disappears.
Noble 6, "leave that lone wolf stuff behind." Dies a lone wolf.
Never thought about it like that but wow yeah I think this is on the money.

Certainly not. The original trilogy tells far better and more interesting stories and establishes one of the best universes in video games.

Halo Reach stars forgettable side characters no one cared about in a side story no one cared about.
How dare you? Who do you think you are? What gives you the right?!

Seriously though, the only thing I love about 1 is that it establishes the universe and shows the potential of the franchise, Chief's last words (something like "it's only just begun") really beings that home. The story to me is just passable, Halo 2 is what really builds out the world starting with the scene in High Charity. 3 was just meh to me, decent ending but generally speaking was just okay.
 
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VinFTW

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,470
I love Halo, but truth be told, none of the games have more than a passable story. All the actually interesting stuff is tucked away in the novels.

And yeah, Master Chief has always been a pretty bad protagonist to actually build off of, since by design he can never really grow or change as a person.
Yeah but did you see when Mendicant Bias tried to redeem himself in the most haunting Halo 3 terminal of all time? CHILLS