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I don't know how it happened. I really don't. The game that I have been waiting for since the day I beat Halo has come out, and I hate it.
Let me begin by saying that I desperately wanted to like this game. I stood out in the cold for 2 hours for this game. If you had told me that Halo 2 was going to be this bad on Nov. 8th, I would have called you a liar. I would have been wrong.

Let me explain...

Graphics: 8 - At the very least, there's nothing wrong with the graphics. Actually, I'd say that they're pretty good, excellent even. All the shiny new effects and the bump mapping look really keen, and I can dig all the new animations for the characters. Granted there are a few little spots in the movies where textures don't load as fast as they should, but overall this game is visually very sharp.

Sound: 8 - The guns...sound like guns. The alien energy weapons sound like alien energy weapons. All in all everything sound like it ought to. You ask, what is so special about that? I answer: everything! There is no fakeness to the sounds, they sound more lifelike than a lot of video game sounds I've heard recently. The music is also very nice, although a bit of a penalty for the overuse of wailing guitar. To the gentlemen at Bungie: yes, wailing guitars are awesome, no doubt. They are, however, not appropriate for every other level. I'm sure that an alien space warrior doesn't rock out on metal when he's storming a stronghold.

Control: 5 - To set the record straight, I did really like the Halo 1 control scheme. I thought it worked very well. When playing Halo 2, however, I constantly felt like there was something wrong with my controller. It seemed just a little broke. After trying three other controllers I decided that the problem wasn't on my end. Everything just seemed....squirrelly. The melee attack doesn't work for crap now, dual wielding is more of a burden than a blessing, and the chief jumps like a friggin' rabbit. The vehicles also don't seem to control quite right. It seems like to compensate for the overly slippery nature of vehicles on Halo 1 that they made everything too tight. In general the controls left a sour taste in my mouth.

Multiplayer: 3 - Heaven help you if you haven't got Xbox Live. Almost all of the maps are absolutely cavernous. Want something for you and a few friends to have a quick round on like Halo 1's Chill Out? Well that's too bad, because in place of fast-paced action, you get to wander around for what seems like forever to try and find your opponent. Want to play with more than you and your friend, maybe fill out the map a little with some bots? Tough! If you want the luxury of shooting something on Zanzibar at 2AM besides an exploding barrel and you don't have any friends over then you have to pay for Live. Make sense? Without bots you have to buy Live to play a halfway decent multiplayer game. You buy Live, Billy Gates gets richer. You wonder why they decided not to do bots? You could set up a system link game of course, provided you know 16 people with enough equipment and copies of Halo 2 to get things running. From the experience I just had tonight trying that I can tell you that you're better off going to bed early and telling everyone to stay home. Also, co-op is a joke. A sad one. The graphics get bad, already dark levels get get even darker, and even getting a vague idea of whats going on in a dark level with only half a screen is even less fun than having your teeth chipped out with a screwdriver and a claw hammer.

Single Player:1 - Talk about frustrating. Easy is far too easy. I'm talking to the point where I never even had a moment where I thought I might die. The whole game was a cakewalk. Normal, on the other hand, was a major headache. By comparison in Halo 1 easy was easy, but not to the point where it was insulting. Normal was a decent challenge, but by no means undoable. Heroic, where I usually played, was hard and required you to plan ahead (and die a little), but eventually you could figure out what to do. Legendary was just that. Halo 2 skips the gradual progression in favor of "easy enough for kids with no thumbs" mode and the ever so popular "let's label it Normal and make it as obnoxious as possible without making it totally impossible so that they play for hours at a constant state of enragement." At any higher difficulty you'll just become too angered to play and will wither quit or smash your controller through your TV. The whole thing is so bad I just want to cry.

Story: 1 - OH GOD, WHY DO YOU HATE ME SO? After only 9 hours of playing through an obviously slapped together story, I was summarily treated to the most anti-climactic end EVER. Not only was it a horrible anti-climax, it wasn't even the end! It was a lame cliffhanger. I didn't even know the game was over until the credits rolled! I completely expected to start another mission, and BAM! Credits. I was in a state of shock. Not only was it over, it was awful. After all that time playing, begging for the sweet release of a well wrapped up story, all I got was a lame cliffhanger. One of the main reasons I bought the game was to find out what happened after the engrossing story of Halo 1. This is what I get? Heresy! Absolute heresy!

In closing, it has to be an illusion. This can't be the sequel to my beloved Halo. This can't have come from Bungie. It's impossible. This is just a cruel joke played on us by Bill Gates. Shame on you Bill, shame. I've loved everything Bungie did before this, the Marathon series, the Myth series, even Oni was ok. But this, this can't be from them. If it truly is, if this is really what Bungie cranked out as Halo 2, then this is a sad day for us all, for it means the yet another company with talent and fresh creative ideas has burned out and become but a hollow ashy shell of its former self.

10/10I think it's an AWESOME game indeed!! This sequel is the best in the series. First of all I own all Soul calibur games and I tell you this is the best yet. I was hooked on the other ones but this is ridiculus in a good way. I have always played fighting games, it's my favorite genre. So I know what makes a fighting game a good fighting game. I have played many fighting games both 2D and 3D but they never really caught too much of my attention. This game however really did blow my mind away. Starting the review:Gameplay 10/10:I was highly addicted to so much things this game has to offer. The main storyline is taken place in TALES OF SOULS(TOS), where you choose your character and you go through a story, based on whom you picked. Once you pick a character a brief story will show, then going to a World map. You are able to Choose the path you wish to take, choose carefully you may stumble upon hidden features.They brought back almost the whole entire character roster from both soul calibur 1& 2. Also, they have introduced three new characters to the series Tira, Zasalamel, and, Setsuka. There is also Chronicles of the sword (COTS) which is very addictive. I literally spent almost two hours playing this mode, which also provides a very good challenge. SOUL ARENA is a mode that allows you to play certain missions with certain conditions. Here you can also play a QUICK RUN which is similar to arcade mode in SCI and SCII. There is also a CHARACTER CREATION in which you can make and play with in COTS or other modes. PRACTICE is also present in order to master the techniques you wish to achieve. Familiarize yourself with the moves from both standard and created characters. I myself Have found new moves that can help me win in battle. Just because your a veteran doesn't mean you can't find something new or just practice to get better. I tell you this becuase the CPU really makes you feel like a fresh meat to the series.Sound 10/10:Great music!! This game featured soundtracks from SCI and SCII. The music fits in perfect with the stages and setting. They don't all sound too similar but they still sound phenominal. The clashing of weapons are very well done and good timed. Even the stages superb looking backround can sound amazing. The music will sometimes get into your head and you will start hearing it everywhere you go. Choosing also from English to Japanese can change the feel of the battle. Most fighting games have the same rythem or beats to the songs but this game offers quite a different variety of soundtracks. For veterans who have played the 1st soul calibur it will almost feel like your actually playing it because of the returning soundtracks that are updated and done very well.Graphics 9/10:The graphics are amazing!! The scenery, characters, and, weapons look incredible in the opening movie. The stages and thier enviroment look spectacular, they will actually distract you from the battle at times. The character models look very detailed and magnificent. There is not much bad I can say except the CHARACTER-CREATION. The models can sometimes look mediocore when compared to the standard character, but this is not that a big deal. Other than this very minor and not really that noticable problem, the graphics are superb. The lighting in this game is also done very good along with good detail. Stages that are colored in a way will resemble what the character shade will be and it feels like they really are in the stage.Control 10/10:Controls are very easy to get used to. I myself have gotten very used to the gamecube controls since I have SCII for that console, but its very similar to it, so both gamecube veterans and newbies can learn quick. You can always go into practice if you feel you need to learn a bit more. Overall the PS2 controller shouldn't be any hassle since it's set up pretty symmetrical.Replay Value 10/10:WARNING!!!You may get addicted and attached to this title. You will want to play for hours and hours and forget your other games. Trying to beat TOS with every character, or try to conquer all of cots, or try to beat the missions in soul arena, and thats only the surface. There are tons of things to unlock, buy all weapons and Items, collect illustrations and then their is CHARACTERCREATION. Making your own fighters choosing thier discipline,giving them weapons, name, armor, cloths,etc...Trust me you WILL have fun with this one!!Overall 10/10This title is literally the best fighting game that I have ever played. To tell you something this is my first review and I never thought I would actually write one, but this game is well worth it. I normally don't get so crazy about a game but DAMN, I can't help it. Trust me, you will start feeling something like this once you start playing.To those who don't know whether to buy it or not? BUY IT you won't have any regrets once you have obtained this addictive, spectacular game!!! Forget renting it, it's a waste of money knowing you will buy this afterwards.

Pretty cool! I still like Google better, though. I don't need to compare. :DThe look of Google is a lot better and the filtering of sites that don't match is better too. Plus, I think Google is faster. AND more popular.Alltogether, Google is a way better site than Yahoo will ever be in my opinion.

Final Fantsy IX wins my heart. :DZidane is an adventurous being, that falls in love with Garnet(who later changes her name to Dagger), and they go on a mission to save the world! They meet up with Vivi, a black mage. He's about 3 feet tall, but his courage stands taller. He learns his fire attack in the Ice Cavern to melt a sheet of ice. AND, he can do special moves with Steiner's sword. These moves are my favorite attacks in Final Fantasy IX. You can make his sword to fire attacks, ice attacks, water attacks, bio attacks, and just about every other black magic move too.Now, there are other character, but those are the four ones I always use. Actually, I beat the game with Zidane, Dagger, Vivi, and Steiner. Heh, that was my lineup from left to right, too. If you plan on playing this game or if you want to play through it again, try playing throuw with Zidane, Garnet, Vivi, and Steiner. Those are the 4 best characters in my opinion.Zidane: Well, you have to use him. But his attacks come in handy later on in the game.Garnet: She can summon as well use White Magic. In every RPG, you ALWAYS need a White Mage. They come in handy.Vivi: He's a black mage. You always need those. He can use attacks like Firaga, Blizzaga, Thundaga, and Waterga! And plus, he's just cool to have around!Steiner: He's one of the best all-around characters. You WILL be glad once him and Vivi learn their sword-magic attacks. They are VERY useful and VERY powerful. I'm being blunt when I say this. You're going to like these characters. :DAnd this people, is why I like Final Fantasy IX. I think it has the best story, the best characters, and the best moves. I didn't like Final Fantasy VIII because of the junctionaing system. I hated that so much...

Ok, I got my PSP for Christmas, and I need some more games. I've got 4 right now. Those 4 are:Twisted Metal: Head-OnMLBBurnout: LegendsInfectedI was thinking of getting The Legend of Heroes, but then I saw some videos of Kingdom of Paradise and now both looks interesting. I only have $82, and I need to get another ethernet cord, so that's $20 right there. I was leaning towards The Legend of Heroes only because it's a turn-based RPG, and I really like those. My question is, are there any other TURN-BASED RPGs on the PSP? Oh, and don't suggest homebrew; I'm not into that.Thanks.