Halo: Reach is a first-person shooter video game, developed by Bungie and published by Microsoft Game Studios for the Xbox 360console. Reach was released in North America, Australia, and Europe on September 14, 2010. The game takes place in the year 2552, where humanity is locked in a war with the alien Covenant. Players control Noble Six, a member of an elite supersoldier squad, during the battle for the world of Reach. As the Covenant begin their assault on the planet, the UNSC begin their heroic yet ultimately futile effort to repel the alien invaders.
Synopsis
Setting and characters
Reach takes place in a futuristic science fiction setting during the year 2552, shortly before the events of the 2001 video game Halo: Combat Evolved, and during the events of the 2010 novel Halo: The Fall of Reach. Humans, under the auspices of the United Nations Space Command (UNSC), have been waging a long war against a collective of alien races known as the Covenant. By the events of Reach, almost all of humanity's interstellar colonies have fallen. Reach itself is an Earthlike colony that serves as the UNSC's main military hub. The colony is home to over 700 million civilians in addition to the military presence.
The game follows the actions of "Noble Team", a UNSC special operations unit composed of elite supersoldiers known as Spartans. Players assume the role of an unnamed new addition to the team, identified by the call sign Noble Six. Noble Team's leader is Carter-A259, a no-nonsense soldier. His second-in-command, Kat-B320, has a bionic arm; together, Carter and Kat are the only two remaining original members of Noble Team. The other members include heavy weapons specialist Jorge-052, assault specialist Emile-A239, and marksman Jun-A266.
Reach was originally announced at the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2009 in Los Angeles, California, with the first in-engine trailer shown at the 2009 Spike Video Game Awards. Players who purchased Halo 3: ODST were eligible to participate in a Reach multiplayer beta in May 2010; the beta allowed Bungie to gain player feedback for fixing bugs and making gameplay tweaks before shipping the final version. The developers focused on creating a compelling world, more difficult enemies, and updated graphics and audio.
Halo: Reach grossed US$200 million on its launch day, setting a new record for the franchise. The game sold well in most territories, moving more than three million units its first month in North America. Critical reception was positive; reviewers from publications such as IGN, GamePro, and Official Xbox Magazine called it the best Halo title yet. Reach was the final Halo title by Bungie, with future games overseen by the Microsoft-owned studio 343 Industries.
Setting and characters
Reach takes place in a futuristic science fiction setting during the year 2552, shortly before the events of the 2001 video game Halo: Combat Evolved, and during the events of the 2010 novel Halo: The Fall of Reach. Humans, under the auspices of the United Nations Space Command (UNSC), have been waging a long war against a collective of alien races known as the Covenant. By the events of Reach, almost all of humanity's interstellar colonies have fallen. Reach itself is an Earthlike colony that serves as the UNSC's main military hub. The colony is home to over 700 million civilians in addition to the military presence.
The game follows the actions of "Noble Team", a UNSC special operations unit composed of elite supersoldiers known as Spartans. Players assume the role of an unnamed new addition to the team, identified by the call sign Noble Six. Noble Team's leader is Carter-A259, a no-nonsense soldier. His second-in-command, Kat-B320, has a bionic arm; together, Carter and Kat are the only two remaining original members of Noble Team. The other members include heavy weapons specialist Jorge-052, assault specialist Emile-A239, and marksman Jun-A266.
Plot
Noble Team commander Colonel Holland sends the Spartans to discover why a relay station on Reach went offline, suspecting sabotage by insurgents. Instead of human rebels, however, Noble Team discovers Covenant forces. Soon after, Noble team is deployed to "Sword Base", an installation belonging to the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI), for defensive purposes. While there, the team encounters the scientist Catherine Halsey, mastermind of the SPARTAN-II program and the MJOLNIR powered armor worn by Spartans. Halsey informs Noble Team that the Covenant at the relay were searching for important information.
Jun and Six are dispatched on a covert night mission to assess the Covenant's forces and discover an invasion force. Noble Team is dispatched on various defensive missions such as assaulting a Covenant ground base and removing fortified Covenant defenses. When a massive Covenant super-carrier joins the fight, Jorge and Six take part in a plan to destroy the carrier using a makeshift bomb. After using starfighters to infiltrate a smaller Covenant ship, Jorge and Six dock with the carrier and place the bomb. Its timer malfunctions, however, so Jorge stays behind and sacrifices himself to destroy the carrier. More Covenant ships arrive at Reach.
After returning planet-side, Six travels to the city of New Alexandria and aids the local military in fighting the Covenant. Reuniting with Noble Team, Six assists with the evacuation of the city's civilians; Kat is killed by a sniper. Recalled to Sword Base, Halsey shows Noble Team an ancient Forerunner artifact she believes is key to winning the war. Six, Carter, and Emile are entrusted with transporting the artificial intelligence Cortana, and the information she carries, to the UNSC ship Pillar of Autumn, while Jun is assigned to escort Halsey to Castle Base.
En route to the Autumn's dry dock, Carter is critically wounded; he rams his ship into a Covenant mobile assault platform, allowing Six and Emile to reach the shipyard where theAutumn is located. Emile takes control of a coilgun emplacement to defend the Autumn while Six fights through Covenant forces to get Cortana to Captain Jacob Keyes. When Emile is slain by Elites, Six remains behind to take Emile's place at the gun, ensuring the ship's escape. The game's closing scene is a recreation of the opening of Halo: Combat Evolved, in which the Pillar of Autumn discovers the franchise's titular Halo ringworld. The credits, and a message of thanks from Bungie, follow.
The post-credits scene puts the player in control of Noble Six's last stand against overwhelming Covenant forces. After sustaining heavy damage, Six leaves his or her shattered helmet on the ground, mirroring the game's opening scene, and is overwhelmed. Over thirty years later, the helmet remains on the grassy plains of a now-rejuvenated Reach. A narration by Halsey eulogizes Noble Team's sacrifice, which ultimately enables humanity's victory over the Covenant.
source: wikipedia
