Happy Birthday Halo: Staff picks

Halo turns 10 years old today, which makes us feel a mixture of whimsical nostalgia and depressingly aged. To help offset some of these bittersweet feelings, and help celebrate the franchise's decade-long run, we thought it best to draw a line of demarcation around our favorite Halo games. You're either with us on Halo _ or you're against us. Choose wisely.
Francesca Reyes, editor-in-chief: "I doubt this will be the popular pick among the staff, but I would be lying to myself if I didn't say it was Halo 3. I mean, I love love love Combat Evolved after spending hours upon hours in LAN multiplayer matches (come back, Blood Gulch!) -- I still miss the M6D pistol and always will. But Halo 3 was just the shiny newness I wanted when it finally hit 360. Admittedly, maybe I'm more dazzled by the sheer amount of stuff that Bungie managed to pack into it — Forge, Theater mode, terminals, four-player co-op, etc. And the ending is one of my all-time favorite gaming moments, honestly. But I secretly suspect that my real reason for picking it is that Halo 3 feels like the last Halo game that Bungie's heart was fully invested in. I have nothing to back up that feeling, but let's just call it some intangible thing I intuited from the games that came after Halo 3. After that, even though ODST and Reach were worthwhile for different reasons, it's like they had mentally moved on and were giving us just pieces of what Bungie's capable of. Halo 3, though…that was epic."
Corey Cohen, executive editor: "Halo: Combat Evolved, easily. I savored the story, loved Master Chief, worshipped the music, and despised the Flood. And all of it was totally unforgettable."
Kevin W. Smith, features editor: "Halo: Combat Evolved — because you’ll never forget your first encounter with Master Chief and Cortana. Yes, I am aware how weird that sounds."
Ryan McCaffrey, senior editor: "I’ll go out on a limb and say Halo 2. It’s not the best Halo (that’d be Halo: CE), but it was such a world-shifting event in 2004. The hype was so all-encompassing and yet so fun to get swept up in, and no game has equaled that for me since. Plus, we had a blast with multiplayer on Xbox Live every night for nine straight months. Swords on Lockout FTW!"
Alaina Yee, managing editor: "Well, seeing as I’m still catching up on the series (an unfortunate side effect of being a recovering Nintendo diehard), I’m going to have to answer “Undecided” for now — I think if I answer Halo: Reach without having played them all, I might find some upset visitors at our office’s front door."
Dave Rudden, web editor: "I have to go with Halo: Combat Evolved. The campaign (save one or two Flood-heavy levels) is pitch-perfect, and the multiplayer has been the basis for some of my favorite LAN-party memories."
Dave Cordon, art director: "I’m picking Halo: Reach. I used to avoid first-person shooters, but I jumped right into Reach. The gameplay was so smooth and slick, and I thought its campaign was well-paced and had some moving, cinematic moments. I also loved the ending. Reach made me a Halo fan."
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louiedog
November 18, 2011 at 12:52pm
Halo: CE is definitely my favorite. I put so much time into that with my friends. It was the first console FPS that felt good. For some it was Goldeneye, but I'd been playing PC FPS and for me it couldn't compare. Halo was the first to get the controls right. #OXMHaloContest
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gkicker2
November 18, 2011 at 11:19am
Give me Halo: CE anyday. I couldnt even beat Halo 2 on legendary... co-op. And the flood inside the ship scene was just terrible in Halo 3. No Chief in ODST or Reach, so CE is my favorite if for nothing else by default. #OXMHaloContest
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TyvanJO
November 17, 2011 at 8:29pm
blood gulch was awesome will it be in halo ce and also loved how the tanks there the driver controlled both guns. Like Ryan, I love halo 2 because it introduced me to the series and blood gulch. But like Fransesca «I loved Halo 3 and the features. #OXMHaloContest
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xBluepearlx11
November 17, 2011 at 10:27am
I'm gonna say it's Halo 2 for me. It was the first game that made it's mutiplayer feel less like a game and more like an art that could be honed and mastered. #OXMHaloContest
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ptc
November 17, 2011 at 9:06am
Halo Reach is my favorite. First Halo game I really got into, especially the multiplayer. Made me read the books and play some of the older games, like ODST #OXMHaloContest
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Gamer83
November 17, 2011 at 12:09am
All the Halo games are awesome but I'll have to go with Halo: CE as my favorite. At the time of its release it had the best single player campaign I'd ever played in an FPS and going through the Anniversary edition I believe that still holds true today. The multiplayer was also an absolute blast and provided me with some of my favorite gaming memories.
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Romar
November 16, 2011 at 11:03pm
I really enjoyed my time with Reach. I thought that the campaign was good but I found myself really getting into the MP. And firefight? Loved it. Reach is my favorite. #OXMHaloContest
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jdenney
November 16, 2011 at 10:53pm
It's gotta be Halo: CE for me. I was only eight years old when i played it and it was my very first experience with gaming. I still remember almost peeing my pants when I saw my first elite. That and the adrenaline fueled warthog ending gave me an experience that I have not got from gaming since. Thank you Halo. Thank you #OXMHaloContest
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kingmii21
November 16, 2011 at 7:02pm
I'll have to pick Halo 2 as my favorite since it was the first Halo game I've had and it started my love for first-person shooters. I've never been real picky when it comes to games and there was something about it that caught my eye and it didn't disappoint. I know a lot of people weren't too fond of the ending, but to me, a cliffhanger is good every now and then. #OXMHaloContest
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xjoex93
November 16, 2011 at 5:35pm
Yea I agree too, Halo 3 was all new with so much added into it. As for ODST and Reach they were the same things but just will a little tweaks here and there. Halo 3 was the first Halo game to be on the 360 and was one of the nicest looking games. Definitly redefined the way we play games with forge mode, I think a lot of games now should take time to develop on that mode. I'd love to make my own maps in MW3. #OXMHaloContest
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Kamikaze102
November 16, 2011 at 7:04pm
Man, it's way too hard to pick just ONE Halo game for me. Though, the original trilogy, 1, 2 and 3 just seem to be more of the "Big Guys" and the other side-games are their followers. ODST and Reach are both great, but they just don't stand up as much as the original trilogy. I'm not sure if Halo Wars qualifies since it was made by Ensemble and not Bungie, but it's still a Halo game I guess :P But, If I had to pick just one for the sake of choosing one, it would be Halo 2. Ryan McCaffrey explains it perfectly. It's not the best of course, but I remember having LAN parties with my friends in Combat Evolved. But it was always a hassle as we all had to lug our Xbox's and TV's to one person's house. With Halo 2, I was definitely caught in the huge wave of hype. It was so much fun, watching all these trailers, watching E3 and seeing people chant Halo 2, and screaming and yelling for Halo 2 in the line at a GameStop's Midnight Madness. Also, the fact that Halo 2 exploded Xbox Live for us. Like I said before, we loved the LAN parties with Combat Evolved, but when Halo 2 came out, my friends and I could play Halo wherever we were, whenever we were. No game series has rivaled my love for Halo yet (Well.. Mass Effect series is a very very close 2nd) and even though I'm... hesitant.. about Halo 4, it seems 343 studios knows what they're doing, and I expect nothing less than previous Halo games. Here's to hopefully another decade of quality Halo games that further my love for the epic series :) #OXMHaloContest
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EvilTodd
November 16, 2011 at 4:28pm
My favorite would have to be Halo 3 for one simple reason, Avalanche. I love that map and my friends and I played it all the time. #OXMHaloContest
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gkicker2
November 16, 2011 at 11:23am
I am a little surprised to see that ODST didnt get any love. Its not my favorite, but I figured it would be somebodys. Especially since it ushered in Firefight... one of my favorite multiplayer modes.
















