Posted 5 days ago
Leroux: After I bought The Masterchief Collection to see what all the fuss was about, I started with Combat Evolved, but after a while I got bored with it due to the long labyrinthine and same-y looking levels, fighting the same opponents again and again. There were some fun parts outdoors, with ridable vehicles and such, but the indoor crawls seemed rather meh.
I had the same experience when I played HALO: CE (the original version) for the first time this last summer. I could write the same words... well, actually I had started writing reviews for games I finished this year, but then lost steam along the way, just when it was time to review this particular game. I ended up giving it a 3/5 rating, just OK, not great. It's a pity since combat is actually very good, with challenging opponents and satisfying (if not particularly varied or fanciful) weapons. But that level design, so uninspired and repetitive, really killed the game for me. All those copy-paste corridors, rooms, bridges, over and over again...
At one point, I wasn't even sure I was really making progress, I felt like I was backtracking! And it doesn't get better the more you go on, no it possibly gets worse. I started wanting the game to be over soon, which is never a good sign...
There was some twist in the plot, but I stopped caring for that and the characters, with all their banter - I was reminded of Portal 2, and not in a good way.
The outdoor sections were indeed the best, as you write, and the vehicles were great, so fun to ride (especially the tank, of course!). It's also a very beautiful game, both visually and aurally. The more a pity. With a little more creativity in the level design department, it could have really been something great.
Perhaps my disappointment stemmed in part from very high expectations in approaching this revered piece of gaming history.