Halo 3... Very, very unimpressive.

[Strazos]

Gears of War - Best. Headshots. Ever.

[stark]

I never understood the allure of Halo, although I've only played it on the PC.

I don't claim to be any kind of gaming historian, but here is a short list of features or innovations the original halo brought to the table:

• Frequent Autosave triggers
• 2 Weapon Limit
• Grenade on its own button, shoot + throw grenade at same time
• Every weapon could melee
• Refilling Shield System
• Drivable vehicles (with intuitive, but loose controls)
• Computer Allies (that would hop into your battle jeep)
• Co-op Mode for entire campaign

I don't know if they were really the first FPS to implement these specific features, but when I played Halo the first time, they were all new to me.  Combine that with high production values, a coherent plot, and a very strong musical score and it should be easy to understand the appeal.

[schild]

Many games had weapon limits, some by inventory size, some by money, and some by "You Get 2."
Autosave triggers are nothing new, they're called lives, you just have an infinite amount of them.
Unreal had the gauntlet.
I'm pretty sure a few games had every weapon melee, but don't quote me. I don't particularly care about it enough think hard.
Serious Sam had Coop mode for the entire campaign.
Vehicles ^_^ Meh. You'll never find me in one in any game by choice. So once again, wouldn't know.

Really, it's mostly the "First decent FPS on a console" thing that made it a phenomenon. That's where the buck begins and stops.

[Strazos]

Also:

Shields = Regen, lol.

Gren + Shoot? Oh geez, I might have to left-click + KB key, OH NOES.

AI allies, by the by, suck.

[Johny Cee]

I never understood the allure of Halo, although I've only played it on the PC.

I don't claim to be any kind of gaming historian, but here is a short list of features or innovations the original halo brought to the table:

• Frequent Autosave triggers
• 2 Weapon Limit
• Grenade on its own button, shoot + throw grenade at same time
• Every weapon could melee
• Refilling Shield System
• Drivable vehicles (with intuitive, but loose controls)
• Computer Allies (that would hop into your battle jeep)
• Co-op Mode for entire campaign

I don't know if they were really the first FPS to implement these specific features, but when I played Halo the first time, they were all new to me.  Combine that with high production values, a coherent plot, and a very strong musical score and it should be easy to understand the appeal.

Most of this stuff was originally in Marathon in '94,  along with most of what's considered standard gameplay in FPSes.  But no one knows/cares because Marathon wasn't ported to Windows until after Windows FPSes had caught up.

[Azazel]

I replaced my PC Logitech pads with X360 pads. The X360 analog sticks are the best in gaming - period.

These ones?

And do they play nice with XP?

[Trippy]

I replaced my PC Logitech pads with X360 pads. The X360 analog sticks are the best in gaming - period.

These ones?

And do they play nice with XP?

Yes they do. The "Windows" version comes with the driver on a CD but if you get the Xbox 360 ones (same hardware) you can just download the driver from MS and save yourself like $5.

[Azazel]

Ah, excellent. I saw the two of them side by side a couple of days ago in a store, but wasn't sure about them because of the Vista logo, and the au$12 price difference here.

[Strazos]

If you want to download the drivers from MS, do they pull that "Verification" nonsense on you?

[Trippy]

If you want to download the drivers from MS, do they pull that "Verification" nonsense on you?

Yes it does, though if I remember correctly it either automatically recognizes it if you have SP2 or it downloads it for you without you having to go through that step.

[Azazel]

Verification? As in, "is your copy of windows legit?"

Also, do the wireless controllers work just as well as the wired ones on xp?

[Trippy]

Verification? As in, "is your copy of windows legit?"

Yes.

Also, do the wireless controllers work just as well as the wired ones on xp?

No idea.

[Velorath]

Verification? As in, "is your copy of windows legit?"

Also, do the wireless controllers work just as well as the wired ones on xp?

They've got these for connecting the wireless controllers to the PC, although from the reviews it seems like some people have problems getting them to work. 

[Azazel]

Meh, looks like the wired ones will be the way to go then.

[Strazos]

Heh, I guess no 360 controller for the PC for me. 

[Azazel]

If you're worried about "verification", just buy the one that costs an extra fiver. 

[Strazos]

Heh, it's really a moot point, as I don't really play anything that would warrant a gamepad on the PC.

It's nice to have the option though, I suppose.

[MrHat]

Many games had weapon limits, some by inventory size, some by money, and some by "You Get 2."
Autosave triggers are nothing new, they're called lives, you just have an infinite amount of them.
Unreal had the gauntlet.
I'm pretty sure a few games had every weapon melee, but don't quote me. I don't particularly care about it enough think hard.
Serious Sam had Coop mode for the entire campaign.
Vehicles ^_^ Meh. You'll never find me in one in any game by choice. So once again, wouldn't know.

Really, it's mostly the "First decent FPS on a console" thing that made it a phenomenon. That's where the buck begins and stops.

You should've been a patent examiner.

[bhodi]

I simply don't understand his hatred of vehicles, it's like he had his birthday cake run over as a little kid.

Vehicles are awesome and any FPS is made better by their inclusion.

[Yegolev]

Vehicles are awesome and any FPS is made better by their inclusion.

Hey, there's this hot "new" FPS called Half-Life 2.  Apparently you missed it.

[schild]

To be fair, Halo did vechicles before Half Life. Doesn't mean much though.

[Teleku]

Actually, vehicles are a big reason for Halo's success I believe.  I remember everybody looking forward to it because it looked to be the first FPS that would really combine a full Vehicle/FPS over large area gameplay.  We all enjoyed it quite a bit for that alone, and that was what made multiplayer a blast at the time.  It was just really new and cool.

[Valmorian]

Actually, vehicles are a big reason for Halo's success I believe.  I remember everybody looking forward to it because it looked to be the first FPS that would really combine a full Vehicle/FPS over large area gameplay.  We all enjoyed it quite a bit for that alone, and that was what made multiplayer a blast at the time.  It was just really new and cool.

Didn't Starsiege Tribes and Tribes 2 have vehicles over a large area?

[Teleku]

Yeah, think it did, but tribes wasn't really that popular (how was the vehicle combat in it?  Good?).......  Don't know what it was, but I never tried it and never knew anybody else who had ever played it.  Hell, most people hadn't even heard of it.  Tribes 2 also came out around the same time as Halo if I recall correctly.  Plus Halo, again, was for a console, so it stood out big time there.

[Yegolev]

I was actually scoffing at the "vehicles make any FPS better" idea by providing the obvious counterexample.  The Halo vehicles, all of them, are so much better than the HL2 ones, any of them, that I can't believe Gabe Newell has a driver's license.

[Sky]

I didn't spend a lot of time in vehicles in Tribes2. I think I would set up the remote base and then go grab heavy armor or something.

However...vehicles in BF1942...Wake Island with some good pilots, trying to keep your tanks shielded from the onslaught...humping through the woods as infantry with tanks lobbing shells all around you, AA guns pounding flak, planes flying overhead, naval bombardments, jeeps zooming along...goddamn that's a great game. Still the most visceral vehicle-inclusion in an fps to me (Planetside has good integration, too).

I do give credit to the fun drive physics of the Warthog and the good vibe of the force-feedback chaingun on the back.

[Morfiend]

I loved the vehicles in UT2k4. So much fun. The Manta was awesome, so was that HUGE tank thing.

[Strazos]

Agreed. I also liked shooting fliers out of the sky with the main tank cannon.

Pissed the pilots off something fierce.

[Sky]

Going prone with the medic rifle in BF1942, you could take out planes every now and again. BF2 had some nice tricks with the upgraded sniper rifle...but you had to grind to open it up

[Fordel]

Tribes (1 and 2) had vehicles that were novel, but not really integral to gameplay, since every player was their own vehicle in the end. Outside of a few specific scenario's in game, you were almost always better of just skiing wherever you needed to be. Unless you had a dedicated crew to hangout with in Tribes, it was really difficult to 'click' with anyone else in regards to vehicle usage and have any kind of effectiveness. Halo seems much better at the "Hay a jeep, lets go drive the jeep and shoot stuff!" then other FPS's. There is a complexity to the Tribes2 vehicles that is just lost on the average Katabatic CTF player :). Which is sad, since Katabatic was one of the better vehicle maps.

[Azazel]

Actually, vehicles are a big reason for Halo's success I believe.  I remember everybody looking forward to it because it looked to be the first FPS that would really combine a full Vehicle/FPS over large area gameplay.  We all enjoyed it quite a bit for that alone, and that was what made multiplayer a blast at the time.  It was just really new and cool.

Didn't Starsiege Tribes and Tribes 2 have vehicles over a large area?

As did Mobile Forces, back in the day...

[HaemishM]

For it's time, Tribes 1 had good vehicles, but vehicles were a novelty then. UT2k4 had great vehicles. Halo just happened to have them on a console.

[Strazos]

Also, the UT series has the sexy female voice to artificially inflate my ego, whispering sweet things in my ears when I do well.

Seriously, the damn announcers are one of my favorite features of the UT series.

[bhodi]

MO-MO-MO-MONSTER KILL!

[Strazos]

EAGLE EYE, RAMPAGE, HOOOOLY SHIT!