Halo Reach Beta Review

The Halo Reach beta test is one of this year’s most anticipated gaming events. The prequel to the enormously successful Halo franchise is meant to be wowing audiences in the autumn but to keep fans and critics hungry for more, the beta gives a taste of what the online play is going to be like.

As this is a prequel, most of the Master Chief time line weapons will be replaced by their predecessors. Bungie have managed to create a new breed of weapons that create a game play feeling that Reach is different to the previous Halo games. The DRM rifle and assault rifle bear all the similarities to their successors but have a type of retro charm to their aesthetic appearance that makes them favourites to pick up but as lethal as their offspring.

Reach also introduces character classes to the mix. Classes bring a great dynamic to the multiplayer frenzy. With recon offering players the chance to get to the best weapons first and stalker giving players the joy of getting to a flag unseen makes strategic games like Capture the Flag more competitive and fast paced.

New game modes also offer new spins of classic favourites. Stockpile is a great new evolution of capture the flag into having a number of flags spread across a map and having designated areas for flags to be everyone 60 seconds to count towards your teams score. The madness that ensues in stockpile is a combination of team work and lone wolf tactics to do what you have to do to get flags to your area.

Bungie have downplayed the power of the Spartans. Gone are mammoth leaps through the air. Instead more realistic, human physicals skills are given, blank canvases for players to choose their favourite class to create a lethal Spartan in their own image. While humans have been downgraded, Covenant Elites are still the tall, build like a brick house aliens, feared in the original Halo.

Bungie claim these new character dynamics lead to innovative combat. While Spartans are small and slow, Elites are big targets, easier to shoot at before using a chosen class to either escape or give a final stand. This is sure to make the Invasion game mode one of the most compelling modes in the final game.

So far the Reach beta is impressive and enjoyable to play and has shown what Bungie claim isn’t all they have planned for online multiplayer. Cheeky buggers.