J
oin me now on a
journey through time
and space. To a time
when it seemed like
there was suddenly
more space. When first-person
shooter developers, wielding the
power of the new millennium’s 3D
technology, began to push back the
borders of their levels.
It began in the military simulators,
which plonked players down in open
terrain and asked them to crawl on
their bellies through hostile territory.
Games like Operation Flashpoint
offered extraordinary freedom to
commandeer vehicles and tackle
scenarios from any angle. But they
were also cruel; a single bullet could
put a stop to your experimentation.
Though it’s not often credited as
such, Halo: Combat Evolved marked
the shift of that open-ended design to
the mainstream. Yeah, there’s a lot of
linear action in strangely spiritual
underground monoliths. But in
between those bits, Halo opens up—
as far as there’s room to open up on a
giant ring spinning in space, anyway.
In the green, widescreen spaces
where its pitched battles take place,
Halo feels like a real sandbox shooter.
You might blow up a Covenant pilot
with your rocket launcher, then turn
your reticule to a distant turret. But
it’s just as feasible to knock that pilot
from his seat, take his Ghost for
yourself, and go on a joyride.
Thanks to its recharging shields
and gung-ho hero, Halo leaves room
for mistakes that simply wouldn’t be
tolerated in, say, Ghost Recon, which
launched the same week. There’s
something about a game that gives
you lots of tools, but doesn’t ask you
to use them all with perfect
efficiency; instead you’re allowed to
muck about with the possibilities.
The incentive to try different
approaches comes from the marines
who run around in your wake. You’re“I’m just trying to avoid a charge of
workplace negligence”
never actually given any explicit
directive to look after them, but I’ve
found it nearly impossible to ignore
their diminishing numbers over the
course of a mission.MASTER AND COMMANDER
Early on, I reloaded a checkpoint and
discovered that, if I picked up the
sniper rifle on a ridge overlooking a
Covenant base rather than storming
the front door, I’d be able to save
more marine lives. And ever since
I’ve been unable to escape that
nagging sense of moral responsibility.
I don’t know if Bungie envisioned
Master Chief doing a headcount at
the end of every skirmish like a
teacher on a school trip, but that’s
how I’ve ended up playing him. No
need to thank me—I’m just trying
very hard to avoid a charge of
workplace negligence.
Oddly enough, Halo: Combat
Evolved feels a little more freeform
than some of the open-world
shooters that followed, with their
fondness for rote tasks. The scale
continued to grow, but the
possibilities became fixed and
familiar. Before industry standards
set in, there was a golden age where
you stepped out onto rolling hills and
weren’t sure what the limits were.JEREMY PEEL
THIS MONTH
Led men to their deaths,
then reloaded.ALSO PLAYED
Doom Eternal,
Call of Duty: WarzoneRediscovering the wistful world of pre-open-world shooters in HALO: COMBAT EVOLVED
I’VE BEEN UNABLE TO ESCAPE
THAT NAGGING SENSE OF
MORAL RESPONSIBILITYTHE GAMES WE LOVE RIGHT NOW
NOW PLAYING
In retrospect, ‘The Silent Cartographer’ opened
Pandora’s box for Destiny 2 gun names.You knew where you were with a skybox.
None of that newfangled day-night stuff.