satterfield said:
I disagree. If you look around you'll see that Halo 2 really is the concensus pick. Even if it isn't chosen by any given publication, which is pretty rare, it's almost always mentioned as the second pick and one that was just edged out by another game. You can't say that about any other game from last year. And it's not surprising that people here constantly bag on Halo 2 and try to make it seem like it was such a disappointment, when it's absolutely not. I would guess I've logged over 100 hours on Xbox Live in addition to playing through the single-player campaign on two difficulty settings, playing co-op, and split-screen DM. Nothing else even comes close to the enjoyment I've received from that game. And yes, Halo 2 is darn lucky that RE4 was released two weeks too late.
GA is just about the only place that chose MGS3 as game of the year. Personally, I wouldn't even place it in the top five or six of last year. Lots of MGS fanboys in this here message board who refuse to see all the flaws in that game. I don't know how anyone could say that the healing and eating systems were anything but highly annoying after the second time you used them. But hey, everyone's entitled to their opinion, I guess.
fucking brilliant post! and I totally agree!
I would also add this... there are some genuine Halo 2 haters that are former Halo fans. but I tend to think that there is a logical reason for this. when someone plays a game, if he or she is successful in that game, they tend to like the game more. on the other hand, if you start losing a lot more than your accustomed to, the logical thought is that this new version of the game somehow "sucks". gamers always like to blame the game for their shortcomings.
but the reality of it is, they basically got introduced to a lot of amazing players in Halo 2 that they never had to face in Halo. instead of just 10 of their friends on a LAN... where they are accustomed to kicking ass, they are facing hundreds of thousands. the thing about Halo 2 that is so brutal to all great players is, the game recognizes their greatness and in an attempt to create a fair field, places these talented players among people of their skill level.
what this causes is, lots of getting killed and losing that the player is not used to having to deal with. they therefore hate the game and surmise the game is obviously inferior to the first game that they dominated in so much. I have seen this phenomena so many times, especially with friends. when they can't win in a game, no matter how awesome the game, they simply blame the game and refuse to admit it's greatness. hell, I've seen gamers flat out stop playing a game at all.
many Halo 2 hater I promise you fit ^^^ this bill. add to that all the fanboys of other systems who just simply hate everything xbox, and especially it's marquee game, and you got your big list of Halo 2 haters. but there is absolutely no fucking doubt, Halo 2 kicks the shit out of Halo and in my opinion, is one of the greatest games ever, and definately the best of 2004. the list of improvement of Halo 2 over Halo go on forever. but all the haters can come up with is "the ending sucks" which is honestly the most laughable fucking bullshit lame reason i have ever heard. thousands of hours of greatness and only 10 seconds of something they don't like supposedly ruins all the fun they had.
i also agree with you... RE4 would have been right there had it came out in time and gave Halo 2 a run for it's money. although Halo 2 would win IMO because of the legs it has (ie: multiplayer, co-op, etc)