I'll start off by jumping off my earlier "summary post."
Okay, let me try to clarify what I was saying before, because reading over my posts I'm confusing myself.
For a large part of the architecture, not a majority but certainly a sizable portion, I get the feeling that this isn't what Halo: Combat Evolved should look like with updated graphics. A lot of this change in architecture I don't like seem like "just because" changes (example of which is on the previous page). Yes, we've seen this kind of stylistic take on Forerunner architecture before, like in Halo Wars, but in that case it wasn't a remake.
In some cases, like the outside of the Halo ring, I'm left confused: What does a Halo ring look like? Does they look like the rings in Anniversary or in Halo 2 or 3? What is 343 going to use as a baseline for Forerunner stuff in Halo 4? Anniversary or the games by Bungie? Or will it be all of them?
Despite all of this, there are some things Saber has done well. As I said, for a large part of the campaign, I think Saber has faithfully brought it up to date, and Saber was really, really good at bringing the natural environments into this generation. The rolling grasslands of Halo and the snowy chasms of Assault on the Control Room are drop-dead gorgeous.
I still stand by all of this, so I won't bear to repeat it, but I would like to add an addendum to my comment on the environments. Saber was best at updating the environments and bringing them into the forefront of the generation: The rolling grasslands of "Halo," the short beaches of "The Silent Cartographer," the snowy chasms of "Assault on the Control Room," and the misty swamps of "343 Guilty Spark." Where Saber dropped the ball in this regard, sadly, was the nighttime of "Two Betrayals." Much of the level doesn't feel like it's nighttime mostly due to parts of the snow reflecting light like it's the daytime; as white in nighttime as it is in daytime (though the moon is a nice touch). The hazardous wastelands of "The Maw" were nicely done, I thought. Makes me wish we had some of the action down there.
Speaking of "The Maw," the level is by far the biggest technical problem of the game. The texture loading isn't terrible, but it isn't okay either, and it's bad enough to detract from the experience.
The audio, for the most part (90% if I had to place my thumb on it) is wonderful. I love all the updated sound effects. At times, while traversing the chasms of AotCR, I was mashing the right thumbstick more than usual because I love the sound of the beat downs. Most of my nitpicks stem from meaningless ("Just because!") track changes.
The terminals are a really, really great batch and they did NOT disappoint. My most hyped feature of Anniversary turns out to be the best batch of story information in a Halo game since Halo 2. Fine work, 343I, fine work indeed. You should pat yourselves on the back. Keep up this quality for the Reclaimer Trilogy.
Because of Anniversary's release, I was scrutinizing the game during my playthrough more than I usually do, paying attention to what the game does well and, just as important, what it doesn't.
The atmosphere, where Saber was able to faithfully restore the environments, aided by the new graphics, is still the best in the mainline Halo games (1-3, though some parts of "High Charity" in Halo 2 rival it). The sense of awe, mystery, and wonder, every level has make them that much more memorable and help upend the player's expectations around every corner ("If the Forerunners can do all of this, what's waiting for me beyond this door?").
Though I still think AotCR is among the three best campaign levels in any of the Halo games, I would now have to put it below "The Ark" and "The Covenant." Having played the level repeatedly for seven years now, the semi-repetitive rooms are starting to wear my patience. Such parts of the level can't detract from what it's remembered for the battles in the chasms but the makeup of the level gives the rooms (and the bridges) half the level, and as such, hamper it's replayability. (More on Halo's repetitive level design in a bit).
The story is good, though bare-bones (not the meatiness its immediate successor has), and I noticed 343 changed it just a tad. An example of such a change can be found on "The Maw." Cortana faces the Chief when she says, "Not much. A well-place grenade maybe..." I have to say I much prefer the camerawork of the 2001 release. Though the updated animations are very much welcomed. (It was weird seeing the Marines in the opening cutscenes not planting their feet then turning without moving them).
What people remember most about Halo are those open battles that play out in "Halo," "The Silent Cartographer," "Assault on the Control Room," and "Two Betrayals." Most of these battles still hold up incredibly well today and look positively glorious in light of CoD-esque campaigns. However, the improvements and additions Bungie has made to the sandbox since 2001 makes most of these sprawling encounters, though expansive for their time, feel limited (especially in comparison to Halo 3). Let's look at the first chasm fight in "Assault on the Control Room" as an example. There's a Wraith laying down mortar fire up ahead. There are only three ways to handle it with CE's sandbox: rockets, the warthog, or if you're lucky, you can grab the Ghost from the Elite that's driving around. If we were to conduct the same encounter with Halo 3's sandbox, you have more options: equipment, plasma pistol overcharge, and boarding. What was once an encounter in which you can tackle the Wraith in three ways has now been increased to six. Most of the encounters in the game are a generation behind Halo 3's, and it shows. The Scarab battle on "The Storm" showcases the leap between games (it's less linear and bigger in scope than any encounter in CE).
Probably the largest complaint you can level at CE is the level design. While I do think criticism of the game's level design on GAF is overblown because the game's sandbox helps to play down the repetitiveness, I do agree with it to a certain extent. I can't believe it's taken me this long to realize it, but half of CE "The Pillar of Autumn," half of "Truth and Reconciliation," "The Library," "Keyes" (ugh), and "The Maw" devolves into corridor shooting. Yes. Half. Now while some corridors are superior to others, it's not what Halo is remembered for. What compounds this problem is the fact that half of the levels that devolve into corridor shooting are retreads of earlier, corridor levels. ("The Pillar of Autumn" : "Truth and Reconciliation" :: "The Maw" and "Keyes"). Further more, in many ways these retreads are worse than their earlier counterparts because of constantly respawning and aggressive Flood, and such additions as the coolant section in "Keyes" (
hate). While Halo 2 was unable to escape this devolution, Halo 3, with the notable exception of "Cortana," was able to steer clear of such level design.
I'm glad 343 Industries embarked on Anniversary for more reasons than one. Hopefully because of their time devoted to Anniversary, 343 was able to look at what made Halo: Combat Evolved great, and what brought it down; what to embrace, and what to steer clear of. I have wanted an HD remake of Combat Evolved for quite some time, and having completed Anniversary, I feel justified in spending $40. This release was not without its disappointments, but in most respects, it lives up to its namesake.
With Anniversary's release, it's now time for 343, and the Halo community, to shift their attention. All aboard the Halo 4 hype train.
