Halo 2: Anniversary

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"Because the seeds of our future are sown in his past."

— Arbiter Thel 'Vadam

Halo 2 Anniversary is an upcoming remastered edition of Halo 2. It will be released on November 11, 2014 as part of Halo: The Master Chief Collection for the Xbox One. Halo 2 Anniversary will be the first Halo game to support the upcoming Halo Channel, an Xbox One feature that releases alongside the game.

Features

Campaign

As with Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, the Halo 2 Anniversary campaign has been visually remastered by Saber Interactive along with completely redone audio and the original soundtrack rerecorded by Skywalker Sound. Similar to its predecessor, Halo 2 Anniversary will use a combination of 3D models from several of the prior games (such as Halo: Reach's Grunts) as well as modified and all-new assets. Unlike the other games in the Master Chief Collection which run at a 1920x1080p resolution, the Halo 2 Anniversary campaign will have a lower resolution of 1328x1080p due to stated technical problems that arose from running the twin graphics and audio engines at 1080p. The game will nonetheless have a frame rate of 60 frames per second like the other titles in the collection. The remastered cutscenes have been pre-rendered by Blur Studios as opposed to being in-engine like those in most of the Halo games.

Like Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, the game will allow users to switch between the remastered version and a "Classic Mode" (also referred to as "Legacy" mode); both visuals and audio will be remastered in the Anniversary mode but will remain original in the Classic Mode. The switch between the two modes is more seamless than in Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, being instantaneous as opposed to the screen fading to black in the interim. However, the toggle will not work in cutscenes, which will be played in the mode active when the cutscene starts due to the pre-rendered nature of the custscenes.

Like Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary and Halo 4, Halo 2 Anniversary will contain hidden terminal videos; these terminals have been stated to be easier to find than before. As in Halo 4 the videos are hosted on Halo Waypoint, not on the disc, and as such require an Internet connection to access. The game will also feature new skulls. Halo 2 Anniversary will also contain a remastered version of Another Day at the Beach (a bonus video originally shipped with the Halo 2 Multiplayer Map Pack) animated by Blur Studio.

Multiplayer

Main article: Halo: The Master Chief Collection multiplayer

The Halo 2 Anniversary multiplayer has been stated to be based on a post-patch version of Halo 2 as rather than the shipping version. The game will also have an online co-op mode. Split-screen multiplayer will be laid out in horizontal view instead of the original vertical orientation.

All original multiplayer maps (including the extra ones in the DLC map packs and Halo 2 Vista) are featured in the classic multiplayer mode.

Remastered multiplayer

File:Halo MCC Menu Elites.jpg

Various Elite armor permutations available in the Halo 2 Anniversary multiplayer.

Six of Halo 2's multiplayer maps have been completely re-imagined in a separate multiplayer engine described as a combination of the multiplayer of the classic Halo 2 and that of the more recent Halo titles. A Forge mode will be featured in the six re-imagined maps. Certain Affinity president Max Hoberman, one of the multiplayer design leads on the original Halo 2, helped 343 Industries design and create the remastered multiplayer component. Many of the added features in the remastered maps were proposed for the original game but ended up being cut; thus, 343 Industries considers the remastered component a "Director's Cut" of sorts.

The developers' stated goals for the remastered maps were to expand upon the core Halo 2 experience, create the definitive version of each of the remastered maps, and to approach the remastering as more of an upgrade than a remake. Multiple aspects of the sandbox will be tweaked to both improve and "modernize" the gameplay, although the goal is to remain faithful to the original experience. Some of these improvements include a boost to player speed, making the magnum more powerful and the addition of the assault rifle as a mid-range weapon option, something the developers found lacking in the original. The silenced SMG has also been added along with the newly introduced M274-M Gungoose.

As an added feature, players are able to choose their weapon set upon spawning, similar to the loadout system in Halo: Reach. According to Max Hoberman, this feature was originally designed for Halo 2 but was ultimately cut. Hoberman hesitated to call the weapon sets "loadouts" and underscored that the system is designed to be more evenly balanced; e.g. Lockdown's weapon sets include a choice between the SMG, plasma rifle and magnum. The human weapon sets equip the player with two frag grenades while the Covenant ones have the player spawn with plasma grenades.

Like earlier games' multiplayer customization includes nameplates, service tags, armor permutations for both Spartans and Sangheili, and emblems. New features to customization include clan tags and in-game avatars.

Though most of the map geometry — including "skill jumps" — will remain intact, the remastered maps will contain a number of gameplay tweaks (such as additional cover) along with new "dynamic features", some of which Max Hoberman proposed to be added in the original Halo 2. These include the addition of a large energy shield in the center of Zenith, the remake of Ascension, which can be triggered by three panels across the map, and three stalactites which can be dropped on players on Lockdown, the remake of Lockout. Most of these new features can be disabled via Forge for an experience closer to the original game.

Other additions to the remastered multiplayer include the name of the segment of the map that the player is currently in being displayed near the motion sensor as in Halo: Reach. Gametypes such as Infection, Race, Ricochet and Team SWAT have been added to the remastered multiplayer.

Remastered maps

• Bloodline, remake of Coagulation.
• Lockdown, remake of Lockout.
• Shrine, remake of Sanctuary.
• Stonetown, remake of Zanzibar.
• Warlord, remake of Warlock.
• Zenith, remake of Ascension.

Forge

Main article: Halo 2 Anniversary Forge

Forge is set to return in Halo 2 Anniversary with many more improvements and additional features. New features include simple scripting objects (such as switches which can be used to trigger various actions) and mirrored versions of objects. Additionally, the budget can now either be limited on the amount of objects placed in a map, or how well the map will run with the amount of objects placed. Three Skybox-only maps have been added to allow players to build and create with little restrictions.

Forge maps

• Awash

Development

Audio

The soundtrack in Halo 2 Anniversary will be in surround sound and has been completely re-orchestrated by Skywalker Sound, with several new tracks exclusive to the remake. Steve Vai, who worked on the original Halo 2 original soundtrack, was hired to re-record his original guitar tracks for the remastered soundtrack. Two new tracks by Misha Mansoor will replace the exclusive songs by Breaking Benjamin and Incubus in the Anniversary mode; the original tracks will be retained in Classic mode. An official Halo 2 Anniversary Original Soundtrack will be released alongside The Master Chief Collection on November 11, 2014. The soundtrack will be available as a double CD, digital download, and a limited edition vinyl record.

Every sound effect from the original Halo 2 has been redone, including weapons, vehicles and ambient sounds. The Anniversary mode will also feature an overhauled audio engine, with new reflection and level of distance systems to more realistically model the sound effects' interaction with the environment, accounting for level geometry and distance in the propagation of weapon sounds. Each weapon's sound effects have been changed to make every weapon seem more intimidating and similar to the weapons' sound effects in Halo 4.

The toggle between the original and the remastered audio will be tied to the graphics switch and cannot be changed independently.

Gallery

Cinematics

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  Master Chief Petty Officer John-117

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  Cortana

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  Sergeant Major Avery Johnson

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  Fleet Admiral Terrence Hood

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  Commander Miranda Keyes

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  Arbiter Thel 'Vadam

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  Special Operations Commander Rtas 'Vadum

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  The High Prophet of Regret

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  Chieftain of the Jiralhanae Tartarus

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  John-117 drags an antimatter charge across Cairo Station

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  The UNSC In Amber Clad approaches Installation 05

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  Rtas 'Vadum and Thel 'Vadam converse

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  The High Prophet of Mercy dying from Flood infection.

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  John peering towards Earth as his vessel nears.

In-game

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  Comparison between screenshots taken on classic and remastered Cairo Station

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  Gameplay on Cairo Station

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  John-117 facing down a Grunt on Cairo Station

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  The Master Chief wielding a BR55 battle rifle

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  Multiplayer gameplay on Zenith

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  ODSTs make landfall in the ruins on Installation 05 from remastered Delta Halo