Evolution according to Halo

Driftwood
Wednesday, January 27, 2010 | 11:00 AM
56 comments

Images Xbox 360

Bungie offers you a chance to realize how far we have come since the first Halo game by releasing a bunch of comparative shots. You can see the evolution of the character models and get a more precise idea of how much an improvement Halo Reach should be.

Comparative shots

nepton

Commented on 2010-01-27 11:17:42

Character models in Halo have always looked like shit, so I hope they have made som huge improvements in Reach...

In reply to

SplitTongue

Commented on 2010-01-27 11:42:42

Evolution ? Pfff, the only thing that's been evoluting so far was and is Bungie's moneybags. Graphically they keep running in circles and that for years now. Unless Reach has some nice 4x AntiAliasing to offer (or 2x at least) it's a no buy for me, and seriously, you're kidding yourself if you think it will... bullshots all the way !!

In reply to

This message and account have been deleted at the user's request

Ashe

Commented on 2010-01-27 12:02:59 In reply to SplitTongue

Posted by SplitTongue

Unless Reach has some nice 4x AntiAliasing to offer (or 2x at least) it's a no buy for me,

Say again? Graphics are the deciding factor for buy or no buy? Or to put things at the extreme, the anti-aliasing is? That's pretty funny.

In reply to

FireWire

Commented on 2010-01-27 12:16:14 In reply to SplitTongue

So no AA is a no buy? Good reason.... :-S

In reply to

Burglarize

Commented on 2010-01-27 12:30:06

I buy games based on whether there are jaggies or not. Tetris is good.

In reply to

Ragism

Commented on 2010-01-27 13:08:03

Aren't the the last of the four models the ones from ODST?

In reply to

Ronsauce

Commented on 2010-01-27 13:18:13 In reply to Burglarize

Man, I think I actually prefer the Halo 3 Elite over the Reach one. Also, I had to laugh at the...kneepads?...on the Halo:CE human model. So tiny.

Posted by Burglarize

I buy games based on whether there are jaggies or not. Tetris is good.

lol. Good stuff.

In reply to

Redneck

Commented on 2010-01-27 13:52:33 In reply to SplitTongue

On bungie.net they say that the Assault Rifle in Reach will have more polygons than one Marine in Halo3.

On this screens, the improvement are indeed not THAT obvious, but I will wait for the final product before I judge about it...

In reply to

zomfg

Commented on 2010-01-27 13:58:47 In reply to SplitTongue

Like said before, I don't see any graphical improvement from Halo3 to Reach models really (except for the generic soldier)... just changes in design. Some of them I even prefer the Halo3 models, but whatever.

In reply to

SplitTongue

Commented on 2010-01-27 14:03:27 In reply to Ashe

Posted by Ashe

Say again? Graphics are the deciding factor for buy or no buy? Or to put things at the extreme, the anti-aliasing is? That's pretty funny.

To some extent... yes, definately ! Look at what Crytek pulled off in 2007 (and will pull off this year on the 360) !! And if by coincidence you happend to play Halo 3 on a 1920x1200 LCD monitor you would've come to the term that Halo 3 looks like utter crap ! So many jaggies everywhere that it hurts the eyes... it's like playing CS1.6 in 2010 !

In reply to

Viginti_Tres

Commented on 2010-01-27 14:19:34

Posted by droezelke

I don't see a big evolution between Halo 3 and Reach in terms of quality.

Posted by Bungie

The AR in Reach actually has more polygons than an entire Marine character did in Halo 3.

That's a generational leap. But I can only repeat myself: Haters gonna hate.

In reply to

zomfg

Commented on 2010-01-27 14:23:29

I really enjoyed Halo3... There were just enough flaws in the graphics that I wasn't completely 100% immersed, but the lighting was excellent. It was hit and miss. Some levels were lackluster, while others were amazing.

I keep hoping that they're going to make a change in style in the same way that they did graphically from Halo1 to Halo2... throw out some of those crappy flat grass/ground textures... Capitalize on the lighting even more than before... Make the textures work WITH the lighting instead of using the lighting to make up for them. Considering that this is supposed to be a step in a different direction, they could have really re-invented things. Maybe they will in the end... who knows, but right now it's a little TOO familiar in my opinion.

I still love Halo and I can't wait for this game, but I just really had my hopes up this time that they were going to pull out the stops and turn the tables on us. Maybe for the next Xbox? They're working on some other project... I'm just tired of telling myself "Maybe the next project will blow people away" haha.

In reply to

I keep hoping that they're going to make a change in style in the same way that they did graphically from Halo1 to Halo2... throw out some of those crappy flat grass/ground textures...  Capitalize on the lighting even more than before... Make the textures work WITH the lighting instead of using the lighting to make up for them.  Considering that this is supposed to be a step in a different direction, they could have really re-invented things.  Maybe they will in the end... who knows, but right now it's a little TOO familiar in my opinion.

I still love Halo and I can't wait for this game, but I just really had my hopes up this time that they were going to pull out the stops and turn the tables on us.  Maybe for the next Xbox?  They're working on some other project... I'm just tired of telling myself "Maybe the next project will blow people away" haha.

mykmarian

Commented on 2010-01-27 14:25:10 In reply to SplitTongue

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Posted by SplitTongue

GO play your super graphics games and in about 20 minutes you come back to HALO

O and this is evolution of the character models not of Graphics so StFU about the Graphics

moroboshi

Commented on 2010-01-27 14:26:00

They've gone from looking terrible to looking slightly less terrible.

Bungie, employ some good character artists for a change!

In reply to

FemaleTengu

Commented on 2010-01-27 14:42:53

If you just cant see a difference between the H3 and the Reach marine, then you need to check your eyes.

Every charaktermodel uses more polys than the previous one, has more detailed textures and samll details. The Reach Marine looks good. No edgy heads etc.

There IS an improvement.

And the Halo Engine focuses on massive battles for most parts with lots of vehicles, charakters and gfx. That's ALSO some kind of improvement, not just the graphics.
Games like Lost Planet 2 have weak charaktermodels but look what's going on during the actual gameplay. You just cant judge about the graphics by watching a SINGLE charaktermodel.

But I have to agree that the Reach Marine looks like a korean soldier or so. But he is still very detailed.

In reply to

SplitTongue

Commented on 2010-01-27 15:03:47 In reply to mykmarian

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Posted by mykmarian

GO play your super graphics games and in about 20 minutes you come back to HALO

O and this is evolution of the character models not of Graphics so StFU about the Graphics

I think it'll be the other way round. But you can keep playing Reach1.6 if you want. And btw: You should try evolution yourself, little troll, you're slowing mankind down. Fanboyism = Fanatism.

Redneck

Commented on 2010-01-27 15:29:09 In reply to SplitTongue

Posted by SplitTongue

I think it'll be the other way round. But you can keep playing Reach1.6 if you want. And btw: You should try evolution yourself, little troll, you're slowing mankind down. Fanboyism = Fanatism.

You should not forget how Halo revolutionized the whole fps-genre and yes I am talking about the PC sector too. (Look at the reloading shield for example. EVERYONE copied it and it changed the gameplay from the ground up). Correct me if the shield thing was there before, but in Halo I saw it for the first time...

Plus Halo tries to implement new gameplay elements in every new installement. If you really think that gfx is the only thing that evolutes, than poor you. I mean there are other fps (lots of them) that look better, but also lots of them are boring as crap...

In reply to

omegaheat

Commented on 2010-01-27 15:35:26

One of the most disturbing things that I read coming from Bungie themselves was their original intentions with Halo Reach were to take Halo3's engine and components over to Reach and just up the polys a bit and increase the textures. I've always assumed that Bungie did that with Halo3 succeeding Halo2. It was clearly Halo2's graphic engine with barely a hint of evolution even with the leap of a much more powerful console. That's not a good impression of a company that's made billions from one IP spanning 10 years.
I personally think that any bashing that Bungie gets from the gaming community about graphics is well deserved. Hopefully it will make them work harder this time around to earn our money. They know the competition is heating up for fps'. There's no longer only one good fps anymore. Painting over chipped wood will no longer be acceptable.

In reply to

mykmarian

Commented on 2010-01-27 15:39:04 In reply to SplitTongue

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Posted by SplitTongue

I think it'll be the other way round. But you can keep playing Reach1.6 if you want. And btw: You should try evolution yourself, little troll, you're slowing mankind down. Fanboyism = Fanatism.

Come on junior I'm a veteran of game industry ... and about the fanboy thing the last time I played HALO was like 2008 but if you think your more intelligent go resolve some puzzle or something .

Frozpot

Commented on 2010-01-27 16:18:27

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Wow, nothing like Halo to bring out the hate in some people :P. Any changes made are going to be more subtle( especially in the character models). There were enough polys in H3 that it comes down to how well they allocate them. The Elites already looked great, it was the humans that needed to be reworked, and they obviously have been. For the most part it will be difficult to see the difference until you are up close. Of course, the new animation will make the biggest impact, i think.
If you look closely, you will notice a lot more detail on those models( except the warthog, but I'm not sure what more you can do)- smoother edges and better textures(not to mention more realistic lighting).
@split tongue- I wouldn't be calling anyone a Fanboy, if I were you. Says the Pot to the Kettle, and all that...

jackdoe

Commented on 2010-01-27 16:20:06

Wow, the marines looked awful in Halo 2. Seeing this comparison reminded me of that. Glad to see that Bungie hired better character artists though.

In reply to

Viginti_Tres

Commented on 2010-01-27 16:20:57 In reply to SplitTongue

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Posted by SplitTongue

I think it'll be the other way round. But you can keep playing Reach1.6 if you want. And btw: You should try evolution yourself, little troll, you're slowing mankind down. Fanboyism = Fanatism.

You're the reason why I hate my kind.

TheFuriousOne

Commented on 2010-01-27 16:22:52

marines are the only ones that have improved remarkably, the added detail on the warthog is good too.

Remember Halo Reach engine can run 40 AIs or 20 Vehicles at the same time, so these shots are pretty good

In reply to

Frozpot

Commented on 2010-01-27 16:37:40 In reply to TheFuriousOne

Posted by TheFuriousOne

Yeah, but they were the only ones that NEEDED to be improved remarkably. If you look at the elites closely, you can tell that there is a lot more fine detail, and that the lighting is more sophisticated...

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Evolution according to Halo

Comparative shots

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