The Controversial Take That Will Rile Up Hardcore Gamers

While it’s common to see different game franchises spark a few conflicting opinions every now and then, Halo, especially the early games, has never truly been a part of it all. In fact, finding someone taking aim at this iconic franchise is about as rare as actually catching a shiny Pokémon.

So, when such opinions do pop up every now and then, consider ourselves utterly baffled by what said person is trying to cook up. Keeping that in mind, while we ourselves don’t have a horse in this race (for now), let’s take a look at what aspects might potentially make the Halo games “not” click for someone.

Is the Halo Series Really as Lacking as Few Make It Out to Be?

Let’s start with perhaps the spiciest take of all that we found. It simply dismisses Halo as average and goes so far as to say that Master Chief—yes, John-117—looks like a rip-off of Doom Guy.

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byu/Bricklesworth from discussion
inpcgaming

Not only that, but the guy argues that Halo didn’t innovate enough and simply borrowed from earlier FPS games like Quake, Doom, and Half-Life. Not sure how we feel about that, chief.

The next one, however, while not as wild, tries to present a somewhat more reasonable take, contending that the games made by 343—now the already-controversial Halo Studios—weren’t exactly as bad as people made them out to be and, more importantly, the difference between 4 to Infinite and CE to Reach isn’t as big as people make it out to be.

Bungie’s Halo games were overrated
byu/cacaweewee69 inunpopularopinion

The final one, if we’re being honest, is the one some might find the strangest. The OP shares how they never felt the draw of Halo while comparing it unfavorably to Titanfall 2 and admitting that they simply cannot grasp the hype surrounding these games.

CMV: the halo series is one of the most overrated game series ever.
byu/LITTLExxVortex inchangemyview

These are, ultimately, completely subjective takes, and while controversial, they do reflect some common critiques of the series that newcomers might have—from claims of uninspired design to gameplay repetition.

But objectively speaking, what these hot takes miss out on is how you really had to be there when these games were at their absolute peak to genuinely understand what the deal truly was with this series and why it is still, to this day, regarded by many as one of the greatest of all time.

The Halo Series Was an Incredible Achievement in the 2000s

At the end of the day, objectively speaking, the series had one of the biggest impacts on gaming during the 2000s, and it’s hard to deny the series’ accomplishments.

Let’s start with Combat Evolved first. With features like rechargeable health, adding more personality to the enemies with the way they talk, coordinate, and behave, and revolutionizing console shooters overnight, it’s a little unjustified to pass it off as a DOOM clone.

Then there’s the impact of the second game and its online multiplayer, for which people wait entire days in line just to grab a copy. With Xbox Live integration, it set a new standard for online gaming on consoles and popularized matchmaking systems that are followed to this day.

It’s important not to forget 3, ODST, and Reach, too. These games went way past the medium and were one of the few titles that just about everyone—even one’s grandparents—knew and was excited about. These titles not only perfected the gameplay loop of the series but also brought enough lore and features to help the series be appreciated by fans for years to come.

Even 343/Halo Studios, for all the mistakes it made, tried to provide us with a fresh perspective on the series, humanizing Master Chief in a way that wasn’t seen before. Even if they might never wholly succeed with their experiments, their projects still have a lot of heart and care put into them.

All that is to say, whether you love Halo or hate it, it’s important to think of what they accomplished at each specific point in time when all the entries first came out. When you think about it like that, no hot take can truly dethrone Halo from its place as one of the most ground-breaking FPS franchises of all time.

But with all that said, what are your thoughts on all this? Do you think the series lives up to the hype, or do you side with the hot takes we mentioned above? Let us know in the comments below!