Is Halo: Combat Evolved A Masterpiece?! 

__________________Time Stamps__________________ Introduction 0:00 - 3:00 #1 Setting The Tone 3:00 - 5:28 #2 The FPS Revolution 5:28 - 8:29 #3 Gameplay That Holds Up 8:29 - 18:10 #4 Yes, you can go ANYWHERE! 18:10 - 20:57 #5 Level Design Evolved 20:57 - 26:48 #6 Once more, with Purpose 26:48 - 28:26 #7 The Story 28:26 - 36:08 Conclusion 36:10 - 37:05 I Would Have Been Your Daddy 37:06 - 38:53 Thanks for watching! :)

The Earth is round The Earth is flat The Earth is a cube The Earth is a *ring*

When you first played Halo were you blinded by its majesty?

The characters in the game written incredibly well, they even get you to care about a pelican pilot with no backstory or character model. RIP Echo 419, Foe Hammer.

Who would've thought a 19 year old game has better AI than Cyberpunk

When the Master Chief removes his helmet, there is another helmet.

“Is Halo: Combat Evolved a masterpiece?” Is a carrot a vegetable?

So many don’t understand that CE redefined everything about the FPS. It was mind blowing to see it for the first time. You knew that it was going to create a genre all to itself.

14:09 “...that turn the gameplay into a sort of dance...” Yes. A Covenant Dance.

I recently finished playing CE with a friend of mine that had never played a Halo game before. He was incredibly impressed by the simple fact that grunts ran away when stuck with plas grenades, but elites ran towards you. Simple things like that is what makes CE incredible. It's crazy that this game came out 19 years ago.

"Maybe nobody is home" Few seconds later: "CONTACT! LOTS OF CONTACT!" Still my fav moment of the game. I wanna play the game again now

Just finished my first playthough and my god the rocket launcher flood enemies got me so many times. Got to say tho it still holds up today I’m impressed

Me watching this in 2021: “that’s why it holds up 20 years later”

The funniest line of dialogue I've ever heard came from Halo CE and I've only heard it once. It happened when my brother stuck a grunt in the face and it said: "Not again!" We had to pause the game cause we were laughing so hard.

"I don't care if it's god's own anti-son-of-a-bitch-machine" lmfao still one of the best things I've ever heard

25:10 Strategy? Basically… 1. Use shotgun on flood 2. Use assault rifle on flood spores and any leftovers 3. Throw grenades at rocket flood

I didn't grow up playing Halo, but I started playing the MCC to get ready for Infinite. Let me say that playing Halo 1's campaign was the most enriching and frustrating experiences I've had in gaming.

I loved how the flood actually weren’t just dumb zombies. Yeah, their ai was rather simplistic, mainly just swarm ai but more complex, but I think their spawn areas are what makes them feel intelligent. They constantly surround you in the Library, and in the mission Keyes they drop from openings in the ceiling. It’s great.

Dude the god Marty O Donnell himself just gave this video a shoutout

I remember being wowed by the grass textures in this game back in 2001. You could see individual blades! It was nuts!

"Gods own anti-son of a bitch machine" is still one of the best lines of dialogue in gaming ever.

Proudly saying that Halo Combat Evolved was the very first game i ever played and got me into gaming and my favorite franchise

I still have PTSD flashbacks of the Library on Legendary

I actually quite liked the flood. The scene where they are first revealed you fight off wave after wave, as they crawl on the ceiling and floor, was really really cool!

"Is Halo CE a masterpiece?" Does Dolly Parton sleep on her back?

"It's not good, it's not great, or even awesome.... IT'S FUCKING PERFECT."

My computer class teacher left this on the computers for us to find and he let us play that shit for hours if he liked our test scores. That guy made all of us interested in that class and we all passed with As just because he let us play CE with each other

I recall so much anger, frustration, and fun from playing CE on legendary difficulty alone. But, after several attempts, finishing a level and getting to a cut scene was always such a bittersweet, satisfying feeling.

Two betrayals is absolutely the BEST level. I love that you played assault on the control room not too long ago and it was pristine and beautiful with sleeping grunts everywhere…then you come back and everything has gone to hell! It’s so cinematic

The people who complain about Halo CE levels being repeated must have had an aneurysm when playing ODST

"In 2002, Halo was the first real First Person Shooter game I've ever played, and when I stepped out of that lifepod onto that gigantic ring my world change forever and so did the gaming industry" FUCKING LEGENDARY.

CE was just amazing, the music was on another level

I was 18 when Combat Evolved came out. I’ll never forget playing through it - I was so amazed with it as a whole, the story, the gameplay, the experience Bungie had created was so impressive to me as I watched the credits role on the first ever completion I cried a few tears. I don’t share that with everyone but I feel like if I can’t share that here, where can I? :-) Bungie had me at Halo.

" Is Halo: Combat Evolved A Masterpiece?!" Yes, next question

Legendary game. I've spent north of 1000 hours on this game on PC and Xbox. Bought it with the Xbox system for my 8th birthday in 2003. 2 years later I finally played the 3rd level. I was too scared of the dark to play it LMAO!

I remember my dad seeing me and my buddies play combat evolved split screen in 2017,and he questioned why we were even playing it when we had halo 4,and we told him,because its a relic of our culture that we know and love,and no matter what,it will always be good to us.

This game changed so many people’s lives, including mine. Ever since I’ve first played it with my friends, we’ve been hosting LAN parties on our school’s computers to enjoy the same sense of community halo brought to the world and created a new generation of gamers.

The friendly fire dialogue was pretty funny too. "I'd appreciate it if you'd STOP KILLIN MY MEN" "Woah man, do I owe you money or something?" etc

Is "Is Halo: Combat Evolved a Masterpiece?" a masterpiece?

I finally got to experience this master piece for the first time 2 months ago. Since then, I have played through two times already, and am starting a Legendary play though most recently. I can’t believe 20 years later, I choose this game over any other modern shooter. Well played Bungie, and thank you Act Man 👍🏻👊🏻

Beating Halo 1 on Legendary without dying once...? *Challenge Accepted*

I first played Halo: CE when I got my Xbox One X in March 2019. During my first playthrough I felt an odd sense of nostalgia (odd because I had never played it before), mostly because it reminded me of other games that I played as a kid (mainly Star Wars Jedi Knights II: Jedi Outcast). As I got further and further through the campaign, right up until the moment I finished it, I asked myself along the way "If this game had just came out this year, would it still be as fun, influential and popular as it was when it was first released?", and I found myself answering that hypothetical with a solid "Yes" every time. It was at that moment that I fully understood the impact Halo has had on the gaming community. I was even more impressed when I learned about Halo's development story, and how quickly the game was put together despite being such an instant classic. It's like the universe aligned perfectly to give us this once in a million years experience, with characters, dialogue, story, sound effects, environments, and music that make such an immediately positive impression and become firmly engrained in our memories, to the point where we can hardly fathom of a time before we were so familiar with the Halo universe.

“A giant hula hoop.” -Sgt Johnson 2001

I just did my very first playthrough of this game with a friend who’s an absolute veteran, we did it on Legendary and it was fucking awesome. So many deaths, but such a perfect challenge.

I feel like everything I was thinking about the game was put into words. A masterpiece of a video

Halo. Half-Life. Quake. Doom. Unreal Tournament. True legendary games, that still kick the asses of any new games releasing today unfinished, or selling off content for cash.

The most revolutionary thing about Halo was that it wasn't another "find the exit" shooter. It was a sandbox. You really could tackle the objectives on different orders in many missions. Like in mission 2, it wasn't a straight line when you had to go find the surviving marines. You could go to each little group of marines in whichever order you wanted. Same with the silent cartographer (the beach level). It wasn't just a straight line. You could go around the island in different directions.

Man, Halo CE does so many things right. Each level looks different and plays different. How the story is told, the music. It's so freaking memorable and well done. What I also love in Two Betrayals, is the contrast with Assault on the Control Room. In AotCR, you had managed to bring together a human resistance and try to push against the Covenant. You had team Zulu on your side, there were large vehicle battles against the Covenant, it was thrilling. But in TB, you come back and it's chaos. The human resistance is all but gone, the Flood is everywhere. You are completely alone. It's literally day and night. It's basically the same level backwards, but that only helps make the contrast stronger. As for The Library, I think it's an awesome level, for reasons you mentioned. I think the repetitiveness of the level is part of the charm. It's really a horror shooter mission. The repetitiveness level design makes you wonder when it is ever going to end. Flood everywhere, in all directions, and it feels like you are not making progress. I think it adds to the horror aspect of the mission. And I love how it totally changes the gameplay. There's no level that plays like this one. It's challenging even on lower difficulties, and fun.

Honestly I think every bit of it is a masterpiece, me and my friend beat it on heroic and while We did get frustrated at some of the sections, it was worth finishing. Overall it’s a great game and is a must-play for all

I remember once I was playing Halo 2, right after it came out, with my dad. We did a second playthrough on Legendary splitscreen and remembered how hard Tartarus could be, so we improvised and slowly/carefully shot the wings off a Banshee and were able to squeeze it into the arena with Tartarus. I can't remember if the game de-spawned it after the cutscene, but I do remember how fucking slick we thought we were for doing that. That is the type of shit that makes Halo so damn unique to me.

Masterpiece = Master Chief

Thank you, Act Man, for this wonderful trip down memory lane. Brought me right back to Christmas morning the year Xbox came out and I had an Xbox under the tree with just one game: Halo. And man was that the best Christmas gift, ever.

I will never forget playing Halo the first time... and then splitspcreen multiplayer afterward. Life changing kind of stuff, honestly.

I still play Halo Combat Evolved and it's 2019

This game blew my mind as a kid. I will always have a soft spot in my heart for this one

so Halo CE is what allowed the goddess Vert to become prominent in the gaming industry, and the Game still so beloved that it has people modding it to make it much better In the form of SPV3 is just amazing

Thank you for putting into words all the emotions I have about halo CE. I still remember the first time I played through 343 guilty spark like it happened yesterday that’s how gripping an experience that level was and I was in 5th grade at the time. 20 years later I’ve played all the games and read almost all the books. CE was a masterpiece in so many ways and I’m glad its still getting that recognition to this day. Thank you for making this video and bringing back so many good memories of playIng through the campaign. Might go dust off the original CE disc for a play through sometime soon

Moment flood are revealed, My preferred weapons became assault rifle, shotgun. One of the greatest games I’ve ever played. Even the graphics are fun. Almost nostalgic even though the game is older than me. We don’t deserve it. Hope infinite is at least half the game this was

Your description of the Library is perfect. When I was young, I always found it to be so difficult but most importantly scary as shit at times. The Library is so large and open, yet so claustrophobic. Your one man, even though your a spartan, you can't help but feel like your at your most vulnerable during this level. Your armor isn't enough to convince you, because the Flood is a large horde waiting for you in every dark corner or hole.

How is this game still so damned fun 20 years later?

It's the best Halo of the entire series. The music and mission levels were the greatest, along with the actual storyline.

Halo: CE will forever be one of my fondest childhood memories. Specifically, that ending Warthog run! I first played the campaign when I was in my single digits and my dad basically carried my dumb, baby brain through the missions. Yet right at the end, we were screaming our heads off to get out because he'd let me drive, for some Ring forsaken reason, and the timer just passed the thirty second mark when we reached the corridor of barrels and bullshit. The urgency in Cortana's voice and the epic orchestra that only added onto the pressure. The ramp to our escape vehicle was within sight, but the crossfire between the Flood and Elites was tearing us apart. Our shields went out almost instantly and my brave papa father was shot down by those alien bastards right in front of me! I distinctly remember him shouting, "Go on without me! Tell my story!" Though I limped to the Longsword with a single chunk of health, boy, would I be telling this story for a long time to come. Because Halo: CE will always be my favorite in the series and one of the best FPSs I've ever been lucky enough to play. Future Halo titles would, naturally, evolve the formula and improve (or degrade) the mechanics that make it unique and fun, but the fondness I have for this OG killer is one and only.

my god....NEEDLER AMMO?

Every time I hear the soundtrack… damn, all those memories!

A friend and I went into a cyber cafe to play Combat evolved, campaign, legendary. (Basically everyone else was playing that also on the computers). This was my first encounter with the flood. When they came out, with a tentacled arm hitting me from behind, and those sounds...I with my headset on, reactively kicked back and slid about 6 feet in my chair away from the computer. Good thing no one was at the time behind in my travel path. Man, that was scary!!!

Halo is older than me... and it's still one of my favorites.

18:51 I saw this amazing meme once. It showed Chief and the text said: I can survive hundreds of plasma shots, grenades, falling from the sky. I've defeated countless enemies countless times, and I know how to use any tech I pick up perfectly. ... But surviving in water for more than 3 seconds? Yeah, that's way out of my skill sets.

Act Man, I discovered your channel in 2018 and fell in love with your content. I recently built my first PC in 2021 and bought Halo: Master Chief collection and played Halo for the first time (Reach is the only one I have played so far) and I loved it! Everything you said about this series was true and more. I seriously love it! Thanks man.

I have to say that the note about the music sometimes not playing is on point. It's cool and relaxing to just silently wander through the forest (and hear the sounds of nature) or just listen for sounds when exploring the corridors.

This video is a masterpiece.

I actually like the repeated missions and the feeling of dread they give you. To think not too long ago, in this same burning lifeless room sprinkled with blood, you were tossing grenades to clear out several enemies constantly swarming you that you start to miss fighting rather than the gruesome, scary flood. When you finally make it into a more open area, its either empty or you can see small patches of the covenant get overrun and the whole story gets turned to it's head. No unsc, no consistent enemy, and a creepy ass soundtrack. Fighting the flood was much nastier, and you always felt hopeless making you want to fight the covenant again settling the good ol' rivalry in massy populated canyons and ships like everything felt like it had meaning, and I feel you got an Easter egg of this thought in Keyes where you spawn in the ship but everything's upside down and you plop down to the ground. With just a simple change in view, the perception is wayyy different. Keyes and 2 betrayals usually felt like what it would feel like to walk around a chuck cheese or another entertainment center after it closes (the maw gets that feeling worst) if you get my drift.

4 years later and I've finally completed this masterpiece. And I loved every second of it. Hell, I even liked The Library

Thank you so much for talking about what I love about The Library and Two Betrayals -- they're so underrated, people don't understand how pivotal and interesting these levels truly are!

To me CE was more than a masterpiece.

You know my motto, "Act Man Delivers!"

Playing “The Library” for the first time I thought I was tripping balls because of the 30 exact same rooms hahah, but once you left and got in the swamp shit got REAL

It's awesome that the reasons and points that make Halo CE a masterpiece are very similar to the points that Halo Infinite has Good sandbox, Difficult but fair challenge, Interesting (somewhat repetitive) world design, Good graphics for its day, Mysterious and exciting storytelling, Iconic music, Opportunity for intentional player decision, Great art style, Player freedom, Minimum world boundaries Good pacing, Fun easter eggs, Environmental storytelling, Phenomenal voice acting, Can't wait to see The Act Man's review of Halo Infinite's Campaign

I nearly shat myself the first time I played 343 Guilty Spark

I still think Halo CE has the best sound effects and physics of all the halos. Everything is just so crisp.

First played Halo CE (Anniversary) this year. Wow, this game!!

I played CE's campaign relentlessly, and play it every few years like im visiting an old friend. I've never done that with any other halo campaign. The physics, ambience, sound effects, and music have never really been repeated.

I was like "aight this guys making decent points" and then you showed the bullshit part of the rocket flood guy from the Library and I was like "FUCKING FINALLY SOMEONE GETS IT". Fuck that flood. Good vid though!

Act Man, all I need to know is if Halo: CE a master piece I think we both know the answer to that.

Quantum TV could only dream of reviewing a game half as well as this

Seeing footage of the big open canyon section from Two Betrayals gave me PTSD false backs. It took me so long to get past that one section.

NEEDLER AMMO?!? 32:35 Wonderful video, your commentary is as epic as the game itself

I actually liked the Flood. Ammo conservation was hard, but it was the first time an FPS spooked me with atmosphere.

21 years of playing Halo and I only just found out about Keyes' pipe hanging there. Man I miss Bungie making Halo.😭

I cared more about the pelican pilot in halo ce than anybody in halo 4 and 5.

Sgt.: I'd love it if you'd stOP KILLIN' MY MEN!!!! ME: WELL I WOULD LOVE IT IF THEY'D STOP DIVING IN FRONT OF MY BIG A$$ TIRES!!👿

343 needs to see this shit. theactman is totally a bro from the oldschool days!

I've watched this video 4 times now and honestly just makes me fall in love with Halo and nostalgia over and over again. Thanks for making such great review videos for the Bungie era of Halo.

FINALLY a review of CE that mentions the controls. You’d be amazed how many don’t and it’s one of, if not the most important innovation Halo made. I will never forget the ecstasy of getting out of the drop pod and just being like omg… it just feels right. It just feels perfect. No control adjustment needed. Even modern day shooters rarely feel this good to me.

Its still a masterpiece. for 2001 its a miracle

Sgt. Johnson was THE BEST character in the entire Halo franchise. CHANGE MY MIND .

"Stealthy precision" *LOUDEST SOUND IN THE GAME*

I just finished playing 343 GS with my friend who's never played Halo before on a trip through MCC. It was amazing to see someone experience the game 20 years after it's original release.

Halo CE invented teabagging... GIVE THANKS MEN!!!!

It makes me cringe into the 5th dimension whenever I see people call this game a "simple generic cover shooter" They have absolutely no idea what makes this game great

I re watch this about 1-2 a year, and every time it brings tears to my eyes. :)