Tips from the Halo 2 Beta Testers

Recently Microsoft employees had the opportunity to play Halo 2 and test the multiplayer features. We asked some of them for the best tips they learned from beta testing, and here's what they had to say.

LegoLife

"Chat early, chat often. Lots of dead time on the air seemed to lead to lots of dead Spartans on the ground.
Know your color. I can't tell you how many times I was shot (and sometimes killed) by friendly fire from folks who didn't seem to know what team they were on.
You don't have to dual wield. It is very very cool, but a well-placed grenade followed by a burst of SMG fire will do the trick faster as well as give you an easier way to flush those campers out of the blind spots.
Sword play. Many folks seemed to either stand still or even charge me when I had the sword. Remember: Distance is your friend when fighting against the sword, so throw it into reverse and keep a bead on the Elite's head."

Splines

"You don't need to start holding down X when you see the prompt to interact with things. You can start holding it down well before you need to, and when you get within range of an interactive thing (like getting into a warthog or opening the gate in Zanzibar), it will activate instantly.

If you don't have 5.1 and are using your TV's crappy speakers, try using headphones instead. The stereo separation is more pronounced when using headphones, so you can more easily tell where sounds are coming from. Master Chief walks fairly quietly, but for those no-radar games, this can give you the edge you need to win."

DeathJester

"Get to know the controls, maps, and weapons. There are specific advantages unique to each map. Be patient and learn from death.
As for getting better at playing on teams, find a friend who does a bit better on teams and have him show you the ropes—or at least just follow him around, do what he does, and see what the good strategies are.
Use your ears … many times you can hear others jumping or coming up lifts, and if you are prepared … they are dead.
Keep ammo in your shotgun … nothing like going on a rampage, then being forced to reload when you have two guys on your back!
In CTF, you can 'throw' the flag if you are sure you are going to die. Just jump and throw the flag, so that one of your teammates can have a chance at it.
Get the Carbine weapon on Ivory Tower behind the crates on the first floor, below the upper level entry, near the shotgun area with two vents.
When waiting for a game to start, if you have screaming kids or a nagging wife, mute your mike! Just because you have to listen to it, do not assume we all deserve that privilege."

Microserf44

"One of the best things about the Plasma Pistol in Halo was that you could pretty much drop a Spartan or Elite's shields with one fully charged blast. Couple that with a dual-wielded SMG in Halo 2, and you can take out another player in about half-a-second flat. This works especially well on Ivory Tower."

Kuniklo

"Whenever you hit a quiet moment, reload (X). It sucks to empty a clip after five shots in an intense fire fight and then get beat down.
Adjust your Look Sensitivity (in Settings/Controls) to higher than default (I prefer 8) to make sure you can turn fast enough to catch people coming up behind you.
Practice makes perfect.
Take time to explore all of the levels by yourself or with a friend. Learn how the environments work, such as the catwalk and steel shutters in Zanzibar and where the flags and bases are placed in the game variants.
Take turns with a friend and learn to hijack the vehicles.
Take turns with a friend and learn the weapons, including how many hits it takes from each to defeat your opponent.
In team games, sometimes the best defense is a good offense. Most offensive teams won't expect one or two guys to suddenly rain fiery death upon them before they have a chance to get organized. In a four-person team, have two people guard your base and send two to confront the enemy, before they even get close, and keep the upper hand.
Understand the rules of the game variant and how to exploit them. For example, if there is a Flag or Bomb Reset Time in CTF or Assault of 30 seconds, and the Flag/Bomb is dropped in an open area, make sure you at least pick up the dropped flag for a second before the 30 seconds is up—even if it means getting killed—so the reset time starts over and the Flag/Bomb stays in play without being returned.
Use the radar and remember that a crouching soldier cannot be seen on radar.
Talk! This cannot be emphasized enough. Talk to your team, keep the chatter up to help your comrades, and taunt the enemy."

Gimpster

"All of the maps have multiple angles of attack, no matter where you are on the map, and many times they are out of range of your motion tracker, so you always need to keep a keen eye on who's sneaking up behind you. Twirl that hulking mass of hot, sexy Spartan armor around like a ballerina and keep track of the full 360.

Team games are called that for a reason. Pick your wingman and stick by his side no matter what. If you come across a lone enemy, one of you may go down, but you are practically guaranteed to take them out as well.

Don't discount the Battle Rifle just because you can't play Rambo with it. Instead, think S.W.A.T. A few well-placed shots will take out the other guy well before he can do any serious damage to you, and aside from the sniper rifle, nothing else has that 'reach out and smack someone' power. On top of that, you can zoom in for those long-range pot shots across the map, which works well to disrupt the other team's flow in an attack."

Strife

"Dual-wielded Needlers are deadly from a distance. Don't try to use them up-close though. By the time you fill someone full of Needles up-close, they'll have taken you out as well, and the only good fight is one you can walk away from.
The Covenant sword is an excellent weapon in tight, winding hallways (think of the Ivory Tower's hallways). The hallways not only make it hard for the person to backpedal away from you, but they also keep them close enough to get a lock on them. Ninety-degree corners are great ambush spots.
Make sure to use both the standard and melee attacks of the Covenant sword. They are different.
Always lob a grenade into the waterfall "pit" in Ivory Tower when you pass it. Seven times out of ten someone is in there either hiding or collecting the rocket launcher.
The Needler makes an excellent 'enemy finder.' Pair one person with Needlers with a player carrying a sniper rifle. Fire the Needlers in a direction that you think the enemy is hiding. If they curve away from their standard path, you've found someone. Have the sniper shoot in the direction the Needler went."

Chris Redfield

"Wield two weapons, but only fire one at a time for better accuracy. Once one weapon runs out of ammo, switch to shooting the second, so you don't have to reload.
Memorize the levels and locations of the key weapons. The Covenant sword is one of the best prizes to be found.
The shotgun is great for close, pointblank encounters.
Sneaking up on an opponent can yield a quick melee shot to the back that is an instant kill.
Find battles raging between others and finish off the stragglers for easy points and scavenger kills."

Intenzity

“Don't play against people who work at Bungie unless you want to feel like a worthless shell of a human, as far as your videogame skills are concerned.”

Jordan

"Take some time with your friends practicing kicking people off the Ghost and other vehicles."

KingCobra

This dude is apparently getting his PhD in Halo 2. Here's his doctoral dissertation …

"Never underestimate the power of a good network. The prices for switches, routers, access points, and bridges have continued to drop since Xbox Live went live. There is a lot of good information on www.xbox.com, including compatible routers.

One of my favorite wireless brands is not listed on the Xbox.com site. Buffalo Technology makes some of the best equipment on the market, so be sure to check out their wireless gear."

General Gameplay
Have fun—this is the number one rule. Keep in mind: Unless you are really in the elite ranks of the top 100, there's always going to be someone better than you. So learn from the people that own you, share knowledge with the newbies, and enjoy the carnage.

Communication is really crucial in order to understand who is guarding your flank and coordinating attacks or point drives. Too many games are lost simply because of the lack of team communication. Use your headset and mike … but don't sing Milli Vanilli songs.

Don't be a "honky." Okay, honking the horn is fun, but running up through Waterworks blasting the horn is inviting a target-tracking rocket.

Don't be a neon sign—you can change your armor colors. However, bright colors like pink or yellow make it easier to be spotted at longer distances.

Dual wielding … what can I say? Bullet-hose output is fun. However, experiment with all of the combinations. Some are better than others.

Maps
Map knowledge is still, as always, critical to your success.

Midship: On flag games, timing is critical. So is team work. Learn to use the elevators if you're carrying the flag to escape predators.

Waterworks: If you're on defense, play defense. I have seen many games where everyone blindly rushes out of the door to go kill the enemy. Trust me, they'll come to you. I also love tank camping. It's very fun on this map. Pisses people off.

Zanzibar: Use the rocket launcher to guard the flag on CTF. Go on the offensive for Assault. Never give up running down a flag runner. Your team can come up with unexpected delays for the runner, and I have seen games decided at the flag plant location with the offensive team denied a point right at the scoring location on the beach. If you go swimming, watch out for sharks.

Ivory Tower: This map takes a little while to learn. There are many ways to approach playing the map, but generally higher is better. Look for rockets under the water. Bomb the other team on Assault.

Lockout: This was the grenadefest map in the Alpha, and it turned into a bloody Plasma Sword slash map in the Beta. Learn to jump for CTF wins.

Weapons
Pick your weapons carefully. The shotgun and battle rifle combo is nice, but the plasma sword is also scary deadly. The effectiveness of the weapon and results will vary, depending on the size of the map, reload locations, etc.

Battle rifle: In the beta, it was a blast using this weapon to blow up explosive canisters next to the enemy. The weapon is more effective than many gave it credit for. More people started using it towards the end of the Beta.

Shotgun: Still the wonderful tight-quarters weapon of choice. It will be interesting to see if it gets a tad more choke in the final release, for longer-range effectiveness.

Rockets: Target tracking is awesome. Need I say more? Oh, yes, I shall. Target tracking a flag runner should be an option for arranged games. That would be a fun twist occasionally.

SMG: Dual wielding the SMG is too much fun. It's a little hard to hold them down, but running forward helps.

Plasma Sword: Lunge attacks rock. It takes some practice to play some plasma sword-only games, and you'll get the idea quickly.

Vehicles
Ghost Jacking is too fun. Tank Jacking is fun, but not as satisfying as stealing the ghost from the other team.

Banshee: Boosting is cool, but doing rolls and flips is beyond fun. There's nothing like avoiding a rocket with a well-timed roll to the right or left.

Wraith Tank: It's a bit slow for my taste, but I love the cannon. I look forward to seeing this more often in different maps.

Warthog: Blowing up warthogs is a blast, so to speak. I also like the ability to use the rocket launcher or whatever it's called on the back. Stay away from the horn, though. Also, don't go charging up Zanzibar at the beginning of the game, unless you really like rocket wash in your teeth.

Ghost: Boosting rocks. Road kill city."

vagabond

"On general game play:

Don't stand still.
Always look around. Then, look some more.
Keep to the high ground. It's easier to jump on unsuspecting enemies.
Voice helps immensely with team games. Tell your teammates where the enemy is and what you're planning to do.
A dead teammate marker (red cross) isn't always a bad thing. Head that way, if possible. You might find the enemy with his shield still down from his encounter with your teammate.

On game types:

Slayer: Do abbreviated circuits of the map that include the spawn point of your favorite weapons.
Team Slayer: Hold a defendable point. The opposition will always come and always leave more ammo and new weapons on their departure.
Territory holding: Camping isn't always a bad thing. Try to find two territories to hold that are close together and just guard those.
King of the Hill: If you're the King the Hill, crouch and stay close to the boundary. The opposition will know someone is in the area already, so there's no need to help them further.
Capture The Flag: Creeping into the enemy base may keep you off enemy radar. If defending, the hog is the most dangerous object to watch out for. If you can take control, park it somewhere inconvenient to the attackers. Blowing it up can cause it to respawn.
Oddball: Keep to areas that cause the most inconvenience to your opponent(s). For example, if you're near elevators: Take elevator up when enemy comes close and drop back down when he comes up. Repeat.

On weapons:

Carry both long- and short-range weapons (e.g. shotgun and rocket launcher, sword and sniper rifle).
When using rockets: Splash damage is better than direct hits. Fire at the ground a little forward of your opponent's position and time their jumps.
When using swords: Red (reticule) means go; pull that attack.
Melee: One tap to the back of the head is all you need.
Dual wielding: One Needler may tickle, but two Needlers are explosive. A full burst from the Plasma Pistol, to strip your opponent's shield, followed immediately by an SMG to perforate him works wonders—and quickly.

On mind games:

Bash the corpse of your opponent a few times immediately after dropping him. You better believe he's still watching, and it really helps grow relationships.
Hop into the gunner/turret seat of a vehicle that your opponent is driving. As a personal chauffeur, he can't touch you, but you can still fire away at his team members. 'Monkey on the back' events are always appreciated by the opposition."

DanO

"Since you will probably be coming from some of the other first-person shooters out there (Rainbow Six 3, Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon, etc.) that held you over until November 9, don't forget that, in the Halo universe, you can jump. During the Beta, this was probably the most difficult thing for me to remember when switching to Halo 2, and as soon as I remembered, I was more mobile in Halo 2. I fared much better.

I also found this hard to forget when I went back to Rainbow Six 3 after the Halo 2 Beta ended. Most of you won't have this problem, as I am sure you will stay in Halo 2 for quite a while. (I know I would have.)"