HALO 2 - Xbox (2004)
One of the most hyped games in history, Halo 2 saw the saga continue back on Earth as the Master Chief defended it against invading Covenant forces. It also introduced online multiplayer, which would set the standard for the ranked matchmaking we enjoy in competitive shooters today.
Story: Far more elaborate than the original, Halo 2's story was told from two sides. As the Master Chief, players fought against Covenant forces invading Earth, and ended up on a second Halo ring. As The Arbiter, a Covenant Elite, they hunted down rebel Covenant forces - and unearthed a truth behind the Halo rings which would send the Covenant race into civil war.
Halo's big twist had been that the Halo ring was, in fact, a weapon - created by the long-dead Forerunner race, to wipe out a parasitic entity known as The Flood. Halo 2 saw both Arbiter and Chief fighting to prevent the Covenant leaders from activating a network of Halo rings which would wipe out The Flood's food source; all sentient life in the galaxy.
Gameplay: The early levels were Halo 2's best. Fighting Covenant on Earth was what everyone wanted, and while it lasted it was fantastic. Alas, when the setting switched to the second Halo ring the game became more linear than its predecessor, which disappointed many. Still, this was a longer game than the first, the plot was a more in-depth space opera, and the enhancements to weapon quota (including new dual-wielding) and enemy types were all incredibly satisfying. The level design wasn't in Halo 1's league, but this was still the best shooting engine around.
It was online play, however, that captured the hearts of the Xbox public. With broadband now a fixture in homes and Bungie's genius matchmaking system grouping players of equal skill, it streamlined the experience of playing online, making it incredibly easy to get the kind of large-scale deathmatch and team shooter experiences that had previously been available only on PC.
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