Halo: Reach (Review)

Developer: 343 Industries
Publisher: Xbox Game Studios
Available On: PC, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S
Reviewed On: Xbox Series S

After recently purchasing an Xbox Series S, I thought it would be fun to review the entirety of the Halo franchise. Thanks to the power of Xbox Game Pass, I have access to every game in the series via The Master Chief Collection and Halo 5, so I’ll be working through them in quick succession. However, before properly jumping into this first review, there are a few things I want to acknowledge. For starters, I owned an Xbox 360 years ago and have already played the vast majority of these games, so with the exception of ODST and Halo 5, I will be going into each game with a degree of familiarity. My reviews will also be focused on the campaigns. I love Halo’s multiplayer, but I haven’t built up much of a friend base on Xbox yet (most of my friends are on PlayStation) and I prefer playing with friends over randoms. That being said, let’s take a look at Halo: Reach.

It’s worth noting that the original release of Halo: Reach was the last Halo game to be developed by Bungie, the studio that created the franchise. However, for the version in The Master Chief Collection, Reach (and every other Halo game) has been updated by 343 Industries, the studio now holding the reigns to the Halo universe. While the story and gameplay of Reach has remained largely intact, 343 Industries have done a terrific job of increasing the resolution, textures, and frame rate to make the game look and run significantly better and feel like a more modern release. Whether it’s the wear and tear on a vehicle, the immaculate detail on the weapons, or the absolutely stunning views of the scenery, 343 have put in tremendous effort to both preserve and fully realize Bungie’s grand vision for this game.

Although there’s an RTS spin-off called Halo Wars that technically takes place earlier, Halo: Reach is chronologically the first game in the core storyline. Taking place just days before the original game, Reach tells the story of Noble Team, a group of highly skilled Spartan warriors tasked with defending the planet Reach from the invading alien force known as the Covenant. You play as Noble Team’s newest member, Noble Six, and work with your unit to repel the attack while rescuing civilians, taking out key targets, and even engaging in space combat. While the Halo series has always had a bit of humor peppered throughout the games, Reach is a much darker and more somber experience full of relentless action, sorrow, and heavy consequence.

One of the elements that makes the story so effective is how perfectly it captures the sense of confusion and impending doom of the final moments of this planet during an invasion. Compared to other games in the series, Reach is considerably harder to follow, but I feel like that’s intentional. The basic plot is easy enough to keep track of, but there’s also times where you’re sent to different areas and tasked with destroying certain objects and fortifications without much of an explanation. The members of Noble Team are clearly frustrated and confused about being in the dark, but they also see what’s at stake and follow their orders. Nobody knows why they’re being attacked, and while some answers are revealed later in the game, it primarily focuses on keeping up the anxiety and stress of the situation by keeping full knowledge and understanding just out of reach (no pun intended).

This theme wouldn’t work as profoundly without a strong cast to connect with, and thankfully that’s not a problem here. Each member of Noble Team is fleshed out, given their time to shine, and are all immediately captivating. Carter is the reliably strong and determined leader, Kat is his bionic-arm wielding second in command with a dry sense of humor, Jorge is a towering heavy weapons specialist with a heart of gold, Emile is a tenacious warrior with a skull visage on his visor, and Jun is an extremely chatty marksman. One of the ways this team dynamic is sold is by the fact that they have an incredibly strong bond and history with each other, meaning that despite the occasional frustration of their situation, this is a team that’s there for each other in a heartbeat. You can feel the respect and camaraderie of this team at every step and it’s made abundantly clear that Noble Team is the heart of the story.

Reach also gets to explore some of the characters that are only hinted at in other games. One of the most notable is Dr. Catherine Halsey, the no-nonsense genius intellect woman responsible for creating the super soldiers of the Spartan project. As someone who was obsessed with the Halo universe as a kid, I bought and read the novels and comics and voraciously poured over them. Halsey played very prominently in the expanded universe and I remember being so excited to see her make her first in-game appearance when I first played Reach back in 2010. Likewise, the lovable Captain Keyes from the first Halo game gets some screen time here as well. Although not featured as extensively as Dr. Halsey, it’s still neat to see him show up, especially since Reach leads directly into the first game. While I haven’t kept up on the expanded Halo universe over the years, seeing Halsey and remembering how excited younger me was to see her in the game makes me want to pick up some of the newer books I’ve missed.

Despite how great the story and characters of Reach may be, the gameplay is even better. One of the biggest improvements in this version is the fact that the game now runs at 60 fps. I remember Reach chugging on the Xbox 360, especially during some of the more intense firefights. However, The Master Chief Collection version of this game runs so unbelievable smooth that it almost feels like an entirely different game. Aiming your weapons feels more fluid, piloting vehicles is more responsive, and that extra fluidity simply makes the world feel more alive. I’m not one of those weird purists who demands 60+ fps or else considers a game terrible, but it definitely makes a difference.

Like every other mainline Halo game, Reach is a first-person shooter, but this one is drastically different in execution. While the core loop of firing your weapons, killing aliens, picking up their weapons, and continuing the cycle remains, Reach introduces armor abilities that fundamentally change how you play. You can only equip one at a time, but these powerful new abilities can completely alter the course of a battle. Armor Lock allows you to become temporarily invulnerable at the cost of movement, the Jet Pack allows you to scale heights to reach new vantage points, the Drop Shield allows you to create a protective dome that refills your health, and the Active Camo allows you to cloak yourself to sneak past enemies. There’s also a few more to discover and the coolest thing about these abilities is that each and every one of them feels like a valuable tool that allows you to approach fights in a different manner.

As for the actual difficulty of the game, maybe it’s just because I haven’t played Halo in such a long time, but I found Reach to be quite challenging, despite only playing on Normal. The enemy AI for the Covenant is smart, often flanking your position, drawing you out with grenades, or simply overwhelming your position with sheer numbers. Each alien type has their own strengths and weaknesses and a huge part of Reach is spent learning their behavior and how to dispatch them efficiently. Grunts are obnoxious little guys who rush you like suicide bombers, Jackals hide behind plasma shields for extra cover, and Elites are powerful fighters who move about erratically, making them tough targets to pin down. Some later enemies can even fly around or shoot powerful explosives, so you’re constantly kept on your toes and forced to reevaluate your plan of attack. In some ways, combat feels like a puzzle, tasking you with working out the best way to combine your weapons and armor abilities to overcome encounters.

Reach also excels at variety, ensuring you’re never spent doing the same thing for too long. While the bulk of the gameplay is spent shooting at the Covenant, there are also entire levels centered around driving a tank, hopping into a ship for space combat, or rescuing hostages from occupied areas. Noble Team is highly trained and robustly talented, so getting to spice things up every few chapters feels not only understandable, but incredibly satisfying. The space combat level stands out as the most unique and the way it introduced different maneuvers and weapon functionality honestly feels strong enough to support an entire game, which I would gladly play in a heartbeat.

Music has always been a key component to the Halo franchise and the score for Reach is phenomenal. I don’t know how they do it, but the combination of religious sounding chants and electric guitars that Halo is famous for never ceases to amaze me. The way some of the chanting and slower music builds to support the sense of discovery and awe is jaw dropping, while the heavy guitar work and drums make action sequences feel larger than life, chaotic, and full of adrenaline. While the new pieces composed specifically for Reach are incredibly solid, the way it incorporates some of the more prominent and memorable themes from the franchise and reworks them is just as satisfying.

Lastly, as far as technical stability is concerned, Reach is practically flawless. It’s been well documented that The Master Chief Collection was released in a buggy state, but 343 has put in a ton of work over the years to stabilize the experience and it’s just about as perfect as you could ask for now. With one exception where I jumped behind a rock that I couldn’t jump back out from, I didn’t encounter a single technical issue in the entirety of my time with the campaign. Everything loads fast, there were no texture pop ins, frame rate stayed buttery smooth the entire time, and everything objective based worked properly and never glitched. While I imagine the Xbox 360 version is considerably cheaper, it’s clear that Halo: Reach is best played via The Master Chief Collection on either Xbox Series X|S or PC. I had a blast replaying this game for the first time in years and the new visual and performance boosts of this version were a perfect way to break in my new Xbox.

FINAL VERDICT

While the original Xbox 360 version of Halo: Reach can still offer a great time, the enhanced version on The Master Chief Collection is the best way to experience this thrilling entry in the Halo franchise. The story of an alien invasion is captivating and the wonderful cast of characters that make up Noble Team adds emotional depth and weight to the confusion and horror of the situation. It’s a more serious story compared to other games in the franchise, but that extra seriousness helps propel the emotional current further. The gameplay is tight and fluid, with armor abilities fundamentally changing the way you approach every situation and allowing you plenty of freedom. There’s also a heavy dose of variety, changing up the formula every few missions to pilot different vehicles or help civilians evacuate. In typical Halo fashion, the music is out of this world and perfectly adds to the mood of every moment in the game. Everything about Halo: Reach works in harmony with each other and the way 343 Industries was able to implement new visual upgrades and stability to the game helps ensure the vision of Bungie’s last hurrah at Halo will live on.

– Zack Burrows