Halo: Combat Evolved
When everyone pointed to this game as a franchise for the (then) brand-new Microsoft Xbox, I was leery. I came from the era of Goldeneye and Perfect Dark, just how good could this game be?
Returning to Halo years later, the storyline-driven game content, the near seamless loading times and more cohesively makes this game a classic still to this day. I upped the ante by playing this on my Xbox 360, as it is a backwards compatible game and the visuals, though letter boxed on my screen, were incredible for a game created so long ago.
I remember thinking back then that seeing the ammo remaining on the assault rifle was groundbreaking: and it still looks cool! The story and the cut scenes really make Halo standout, however, and the its transfer into a survival genre add-on later in the game also makes it really “pop” in terms of classic games.
The only thing I could do without is the Warthog: that jeep inspired vehicle that’s nearly impossible to control and critical to finishing the game. Otherwise, this is about as perfect and instant classic as you can get. If you’ve never played it, drop everything and do it now!
