Editing Cut Halo 2 levels

{{Series/Cut/H2}}

During the [[Development of Halo 2|development of ''Halo 2'']], several levels were cut during development.

==Cut campaign levels==

===covenantship===

This level was to take place immediately following [[Cairo Station]]. The level would have seen the player, as John-117, board a Covenant {{Class|CAS|assault carrier}} with a team of [[ODST]]s, serving as the main introduction for [[Miranda Keyes]]. After opening the airlock of the [[Cairo Station (station)|Cairo Station]]'s docking bay, the player would be blasted toward the Covenant ship and board it instead of destroying it with the [[antimatter charge|bomb]] as seen in the final game. This level would have involved infiltrating the Covenant ship, taking on and killing its crew and eventually stealing a [[Zurdo-pattern Wraith|Wraith]] and end up destroying the ship by bombarding its power core with the Wraith's [[plasma mortar|mortar]].

===Infinite Succor===

{{Quote|This is Eddie’s [Smith] interior design with my heap of corpses. This is the Infinite Succor, which was never used. Here, the Gravemind is basically a giant mass grave of putrescent flesh and bodily fluids.|Robert McLees, discussing the ''Infinite Succor''{{'}}s concept.{{Ref/Reuse|FoB}}}}

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File:H2_InfiniteSuccor_Concept.jpg|Early ''Halo 2'' concept of the ''Infinite Succor''.

===forerunnertank===

The level would have described the [[John-117|Master Chief]]'s adventure through the bowels of [[Delta Halo]] before his eventual capture by the Gravemind; the "Forerunner Tank" providing the namesake of the level was only described as something "''... awesome, that blows things up, glows a lot from little windows and moves real fast.''" When asked why he wanted the Forerunner Tank in the game, Jason Jones' response was, "Awesomeness would ensue". The level's replacement was the short cutscene at the end of Regret; the level's removal resulted in the long series of different cutscenes between Quarantine Zone and [[Gravemind (level)|Gravemind]].

An early version of the levels [[Outskirts]]/ [[Metropolis]] in the September 2003 build, bearing heavy visual resemblance to the [[Halo 2 E3 demo|''Halo 2'' E3 demo]]. A large section of the city is modelled, with Wraiths attacking the player.{{Ref/Reuse|stream}}

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Overboard is a map ill-recalled by Max Hoberman, who remembers little of its existence - and suggested it may have morphed into another map. In April of 2023, he posted several design layouts by [[Chris Carney]] on his Twitter, further adding that the reason for the map's cutting may have been due to his preference for mirrored map layouts over rotational symmetry.{{Ref/Twitter|Id=OB1|MaxHoberman|1579585211658272775|Max Hoberman|Quote=Everyone is always asking about cut mp maps from Halo 2. Well here's one I have no recollection of: Overboard. Maybe it morphed into another? Carney would remember, they're his drawings. I recall being adamant that mirrored > rotational symmetry, so that may have been a factor.|D=11|M=04|Y=2023}} This is due to his belief that mirrored symmetry is more intuitive for allowing a player to navigate a map - something that is an issue in rotational symmetry style maps.{{Ref/Twitter|MaxHoberman|1579591050884440064|Max Hoberman|Quote=It's easier to intuitively know where you are on a map that uses mirrored symmetry – something to your left, vs to your right on the opposite side.|D=11|M=04|Y=2023}}

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File:H2 OverboardMap DesignDoc 1.jpg|A top-down layout for Overboard.

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The [[Blastacular Pack]] was originally conceived to release with three multiplayer maps; two remakes and one original map. The two remakes - [[Desolation]] and [[Tombstone]] - were able to make the cut but the original map had to be cut, as the map pack's original release date would have clashed with the timing of the ''[[Halo 3 Beta]]''. As such, the map was cut for "the wrong reasons" to allow the map pack to release earlier in [[2007 (real world)|2007]]. Unlike other cut maps, this map was described by Max Hoberman as coming along fairly well and having potential.{{Ref/Site|Id=Blastacular|D=01|M=6|Y=2020|URL=https://youtu.be/9BURsPjNKck?t=2280|Site=YouTube|Page=Ex-Bungie Dev Shares Halo 2 Stories - Podcast Unlocked|Detail=38:00}}

This map was to be an asymmetric level similar to [[Zanzibar]], and feature many dynamic elements. A focal dynamic element on the map was intended to be a [[light bridge]] which could be turned on or off by the players. As of [[2014]], Hoberman has yet to resurrect this level, though still wants to.{{Ref/Reuse|Blastacular}}

==''Halo 2'' for Windows Vista map editor examples==

"Earth City", known by the filename <code>human_sample</code>, serves as a small test environment similar to Example set in [[Old Mombasa]]. The map consists of a short street surrounded by buildings, with a [[Gauss Warthog]] present in the middle. The extremely small nature of the map makes it best suited for 1v1 or 2v2 play, and features weapons such as [[Battle Rifle]]s.{{Ref/Reuse|H2VMaps}}

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File:H2V HumanSample Screenshot 1.jpg|A screenshot of human_sample.

"Beach Battle" serves as the [[Forerunner]] counterpart to Earth City, under the filename <code>forerunner_sample</code>. The map is set on a small coastal outcropping presumably on Delta Halo, and notably features the [[M7S SMG|Suppressed SMG]] - similarly to Example.{{Ref/Reuse|H2VMaps}}

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File:H2V ForerunnerSample Screenshot 1.jpg|A screenshot of forerunner_sample.

===covenant_sample===

==Development and testing levels==