It's sometimes difficult to choose which game in a new console's lineup can serve as the "killer app", but Halo is probably the Xbox game which comes closest to being just that. While originally developed by Bungie as a multiplayer PC and Macintosh FPS of epic proportions, Halo very well may prove to be the Xbox's GoldenEye.

Halo is not your typical first person shooter. In fact, I actually prefer to not even call it a FPS at all. You play from a first person point of view, pick up weapons and kill enemies, but that's where the similarities to your run-of-the-mill FPS ends. Halo is strictly a story driven action/adventure game that incorporates some of the better FPS elements into it. The game most easily comparable would be Half-Life, but even that just pales to the overall scope and vision of Halo.

You play as Master Chief, the last human "super-soldier" remaining from an experimental military program. The Master Chief looks a bit like the Space Marine from Doom, but frequently comes off as being more similar to Duke Nukem thanks to the fact that he actually has some personality. The Covenant, a hostile group of aliens, is causing all sorts of havoc for humankind, and it is up to you to help hunt them down along with uncovering the mystery that is Halo. The story is played out in real-time cut scenes, all of which feature voiceovers for each every character.

As with other Xbox games the visuals are both crisp and clear and even look great with a standard composite AV connection. Halo does appear very much like your standard FPS at first glance, though after some play time the game's beauty and high production values shine through. The first level, which takes place on a rather boring looking space carrier is not what I would call a good representation of the game's visuals. Upon entering the very next scene, which is set on the alien wilderness covered surface of Halo, the graphics jump up a bit higher on the scale. The surface is alive with well rendered and near photo-realistic textured vegetation and landscapes, and the entire environment is very organic and lush. You frequently move from sterile, claustrophobic indoor areas to expansive outdoor levels, and the contrast between the two works well.

Bungie used plenty of interesting visual techniques besides just pretty textures and solid polygonal models. Motion blur, environment mapping, particle effects and bump mapping, although used sparingly, are put to good effect. The only real negative in regards to the graphics is the occasional dip in framerate when the action gets heavy. The framerate is usually locked in at 30fps, but in rare instances it can drop into the 20s for a second or two. It usually does not affect the gameplay and is not much of a concern. Of course 60fps would have been preferred, but maybe we will see that in the inevitable sequel.

Besides the beautifully orchestrated motion-picture style soundtrack and the assorted ambient background noises, come very good character voiceovers. The acting is somewhat better than average, and the story is played out pretty naturally, but that is not even what I consider to be the best aspect of the audio (and one of the best aspects of the game itself). As the Master Chief, you are always part of a larger contingent of various soldiers, officers, and other assorted characters, and everyone is constantly speaking to you, each other, or even the enemy. I was shocked at how dynamic the chatter is and especially at the fact that they very rarely repeat the same phrase twice. In order to get anywhere in some of the missions it is more or less required to listen to what others are saying, both to yourself and each other. If you happen to end up wandering around without any direction the game seems to subtly give you a reminder, but to make good progression good listening comprehension is a plus.

Halo does not support any kind of keyboard/mouse control scheme, and you can only use the Xbox controller to play the game. It takes some getting used to, but the default setup is pretty intuitive. Navigating the environments and performing more advanced maneuvers such as the good old circle-strafe was thankfully not a problem. When controlling one of the many vehicles you can gain control of, the game also follows the standard control scheme. Holding up moves you forward, and in order to turn, you must "look" in that direction. It is definitely a bit disorienting at first and I would have personally preferred a more standard driving/flying scheme for those game segments.

You can only hold two weapons at a time along with two types of grenades. Weapons and ammo are obtained usually from fallen comrades or even The Covenant themselves. There are not as many firearms as found in some modern first person shooters, which may be seen as a negative, but each type serves its purpose well. A sniper rifle/Covenant plasma gun combo seems to work best for me in most situations.

Like mentioned above, you are always part of a squad of some sorts. The AI of your fellow soldiers is excellent, and they believe it or not can hold their own when taking on the enemy squads. While you cannot control or order them about in any way, they often will bark out orders, assemble in different positions, and strategize to take out the enemy. This can go on with or without you as part of that group. Heading up the squad seems to yield much better results, however.

The missions are very varied, and again unlike you usual FPS, do not center on flipping switches to open a doorway. Objectives include rescue operations, clearing areas of enemies so a dropship can land, steal enemy vehicles, etc. Completing major objectives can sometimes take up to several minutes at a time, but the reward is that they frequently progress the storyline and activate a cut scene.

The heart of the game is the Campaign Mode, but I'm sure there will also be plenty of gamers who will spend hours with the many multiplayer modes available. Even though split-screen is your only option, Bungie packed in a ton of tried and true FPS multiplayer modes, complete with a ton of configurable options for each. Deathmatch, co-op, team play; you name it, it has been included.

Halo contains everything that makes a great videogame, great. Excellent visuals, some of the best videogame audio yet, a cool storyline and theme, and plenty of replayability and challenge. If for some reason you can't stand first person shooters then it may be difficult to convince you otherwise that Halo is more than just Quake with a storyline. Along with Dead Or Alive 3, Halo is one of those Xbox games you should definitely pick up at launch.