Rev Your Engines

By Alex McLain

The original Halo: Combat Evolved introduced an exquisitely designed vehicle combat system into the FPS genre. You can argue that vehicles had been done in FPS games before, but never to this degree, and never with the polish that Halo boasted. The mere sight of the Warthog was enough to make anyone smile, let alone the Scorpion, or a Ghost, or whatever else Bungie Studios came up with. The ability to get behind the wheel and fundamentally change the gameplay is a treat no fan will soon forget. Halo 2 embraces this gameplay changeup even more so than its predecessor, with whole areas of levels dedicated and designed with vehicle mayhem in mind. Let's take a look at both the vehicles available in Halo 2 as well as some of the changes you might notice.

Vehicle Damage
The first game I remember beating the snot out of a vehicle in was Grand Theft Auto III. Seeing doors and hoods fly off, windows shatter, fenders drag, and bumpers crumple added substantially to the immersion factor. There's something a little odd about driving into a brick wall or taking a rocket launcher blast to a vehicle and seeing it still shine like new. Luckily, Halo 2 embraces vehicle damage modeling as well. You'll see panels shot off Ghosts, engines flare out on the Wraith, smoke billow from the Warthog, and a whole lot more. More importantly, though, the damage you sustain will actually affect the performance of each machine. It doesn't just look cool, it affects gameplay as well.

Just cruising along.

Boarding
This has been covered in other articles, but it bears repeating here. Just because some Elite is blasting you from a Ghost doesn't mean you can't take it for yourself. A well timed button press will have you leaping on top of the Ghost, kicking out its driver, and taking it over for yourself. Of course, the same can be done to you if you're not careful, and it likely will if you don't smite the Covenant who's vehicle you just swiped.

Now, let's get onto the vehicles themselves.

Old Faithful
The Warthog is back and back in style. It's still the same all-terrain monster you knew and loved, complete with chain gun turret, but there are some minor tweaks. First off, the old model seems to have been reengineered for tighter control. It handles less loosely now, and is a bit easier to accurately direct. However, when you do need to swoop around in a wide arc or around a sharp corner, you can now use an e-brake and power-slide to your heart's content. It's the best of both worlds. Oh, and the new 'hog comes with a horn, for those moments when you actually need to bark instead of bite.

Hitting up some boost.

The Ghost
The Ghost is back and in good form as well. When you're all by your lonesome and you need to do some damage whilst driving, the Covenant's nimble little vehicle is what you want. Its dual-mounted plasma cannons deal out respectable damage, and this year's version comes with a boost ability as well. Just pull on the left trigger and you're off to the races. This works great when you want to run over a pesky Elite, but bear in mind that your maneuverability is greatly hindered while boosting, and you can't fire those cannons while on the fly, either.

The Scorpion
It's not all about speed and handling. The Scorpion is the human tank to end all tanks. It's giant, it's slow, it's heavily armored, and it can bare its teeth with the best of them. One shot from its heavy cannon can destroy just about anything. The force behind it is such that you'll blast a Ghost or a Banshee and watch it skitter back across the pavement or twist wildly through the air as it crashes to the ground. It's quite a sight to behold. It's also quite capable of rolling over large obstacles (big semis along a highway are always fun to roll over), and don't forget about its secondary chain gun, plenty powerful in its own right.

Scorpion against dropship.

The Wraith
The Wraith is the Covenant's answer to the human's big bad Scorpion. It's also heavily armored (though not as much), and its large plasma cannon doesn't pack quite the punch. However, it is a heckuva lot more maneuverable, and, like the Ghost, it even has a bit of a boost ability. Boarding the Wraith is a lot of fun, too. Watch as the Master Chief climbs on top of its heavily armored shell, beats into it with his bare hands, and then drops in a grenade to take care of the driver. It's good stuff.

The Banshee
Ground vehicles are all very well and good, but what about getting into a little dog-fighting? It's a nice change of pace, and the agile Covenant Banshee is just the craft to give us the air combat we crave. It's quick and easy to maneuver in general, but it also boasts Crimson Skies-like aerial maneuvers. Pull left on the thumbstick and press the A button, for example, and you'll see your Banshee barrel roll to the left. The game doesn't make you privy to these abilities right off the bat, so make sure you're aware of them. It will infinitely ease the difficulty of the Banshee-on-Banshee combat.

Vehicles are a mainstay in the Halo universe. Not only do they provide a nice changeup from the FPS experience, but they're just a lot of fun to play around with. Oh, and I haven't even mentioned the Spectre, which is a slightly upgraded version of the Warthog. Just wait 'til you see that one in action, especially in multiplayer!