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Ok, so today, I've decided to compare the two of the biggest FPS games from 2012: Halo 4 and Black Ops 2. I love both of these games, and I wanted to review both of them, so I decided to pit them against each other! Let's begin.
Halo 4 vs Black Ops 2
Campaign
Halo 4: Almost five years after the events of Halo 3, the Master Chief saga continues as John-117 tries to find a way back to Earth before his A.I. Cortana loses herself Rampancy, which is basically robot insanity. During this quest, John will also have to fight The Didact, who plans to use the Composer, a device that turns living beings into digital forms, on Earth. I don't think it's as long as some of the other Halo games have been, but it is long enough. The Halo 4 story is epic, just like it's predecessors, and is a fitting continuation to the tale of Master Chief. I found it weird how some of the characters didn't seem to respect Master Chief as much as other UNSC (United Nations Space Command) characters did in the other games, but it was refreshing to see someone oppose Master Chief in an argument. But even though the Campaign is pretty amazing, you'll probably only replay it once on Legendary, when you're trying to get the Mark VI armor for multiplayer.
Black Ops 2: "The story takes place across two separate arcs, one recounting events in the 1980s, and the other following characters in the year 2025. Whilst it continues the saga of certain main characters introduced in the original Black Ops, both arcs take place several decades after the conclusion of the first game." -The Call of Duty Wiki
In the 1980s arc, Alex Mason and Frank Woods track down Raul Menendez, the main antagonist of the game. In the 2025 arc, Alex's son, David Mason, is put to a similar task, and attempts to figure out Menendez's plan while visiting an old Frank Woods to ask him about what happened in the 80s. The story is rather good for a Call of Duty game, and the option to choose what weapons you go into the missions with was pretty cool. If you wanted to, you unlock the 2025 Mini-gun, then go into a mission that takes place in the 80s and annihilate all of the enemies. What's really cool, however, is that fact that you can change the story through a few key choices, and get different endings. This adds some definite replayability if you're interested in seeing all the different endings for yourself.
Conclusion: While Halo 4 has a better story, Black Ops 2's campaign was more unique overall with the ability to choose what weapons to spawn in with and the ability to change the ending. One point to Black Ops 2!
Multiplayer
(Oh, if you're unfamiliar with FPS games, just know that usually the online portion of multiplayer has a leveling system.)
Halo 4: Halo 4's multiplayer has to be the best of the franchise so far. It borrows elements from Halo Reach, like the ability to customize almost everything on your Spartan, armor abilities, but has the feel of Halo 3. It also borrows the custom class idea from Call of Duty, and while it isn't as deep, it's more than enough. You can choose if you want a primary weapon and a secondary weapon or two primary weapons. You can choose your grenades and your armor ability. You can also select a Support Package and a Tactical Package, which give you things like extra ammo, unlimited sprint, or at a certain point, extra XP. There's even the occasional Ordnance drop, which could give you a speed boost, or a Rocket Launcher. At last, you can play with Call of Duty controls, but if you're a Halo vet like me, you'll be going with the Recon setup, which is the classic Halo setup. Also, instead of sprinting being an armor ability like it is in Halo Reach, it is now something you can do normally. The guns remain as balanced as ever, but you still have to make sure you have the best gun for the situation. Long range? Go with a sniper or one of the precision rifles. Medium to short range? Go with a assault rifle or a shotgun. There are plenty modes to play online or offline, with classics like Team Slayer and Capture the Flag, or new ones like Dominion and Heavies. If you're an FPS fan, you won't be disappointed, and you'll certainly be coming back for more. I left this game alone for a while because of Black Ops 2, but two years later, I find myself enjoying this game more.
Black Ops 2: Well, as you might've guessed, it's pretty much like the other Call of Duty games. Custom classes, fast-paced action, and scorestreaks. Notice how it says scorestreaks, meaning you get them based on score, not based on kills. However, killing is the main way to get them, and they do reset when you die. For those you unfamiliar with Call of Duty, read the spoiler before continuing:
This time around, the custom classes are based on a Pick 10 system, where every single item is worth one point. You could go knife only and stack up on perks, or you could put a bunch of stuff on your primary weapon and have less perks. There are also Wildcards, which can give you things like additional perks, more lethal grenades, or a second primary weapon. However, the wildcard itself does cost a point, so keep that in mind. Making classes with the Pick 10 system can be tricky at times, but it's interesting to see what you can come up with. Like other Call of Duty games, the guns aren't very balanced. You can pretty much use any gun in any situation if you're skilled enough, and there are times where you get into a match dominated by people camping, using shotguns, or both. It is a great deal of fun, though. There are classic game modes that pretty much every Call of Duty game has like Team Deathmatch and Domination, but also game types returning from the original Black Ops like Gun Game and Sticks and Stones. My complaint is that similar to other CODs, the game focuses on your Kill/Death ratio a bit too much, and it's hard to relax and have a good time unless you're doing good. I enjoyed this game for about a year, but now I just come back to it when my friends are wanting me to join, or when I'm bored. But if you get hooked, you will be for a good while.
Conclusion: You can't go wrong with either, but I prefer Halo 4. With Black Ops 2, there's too much focus on your K/D ratio, and you will be angry if you don't have more kills than deaths. With Halo, it doesn't even tell you how much you've died, and you can still have a lot of fun even if you're not doing that great. One point to Halo 4!
Other Modes
Halo 4: In Halo 4, there are two alternate modes you can jump into: Forge and Spartan Ops. In Forge, you make edits to an existing multiplayer map. This seems kind of boring, and it can be if you choose a map that doesn't give you much options. But if you choose a good map, you could make some serious edits, or make a map of your own inside of the map you're on...mapception. Anyways, it's a lot of fun. This mode was first featured in Halo 3, and made a return in Halo Reach, improved. In Halo 4, it's better than ever. It has all the features that Halo Reach Forge did, but now you can lock down objects you don't accidentally move them, and you can duplicate objects with a push of a button. You can also turn on magnets, which help you align objects almost perfect. The "Phased" and "Fixed" physics options return from Halo Reach, allowing you to place an object inside of another object or have it not fall when you place it in mid-air. Being able to make your own arenas and place weapons/vehicles of your choosing is more fun than it sounds, and can keep you occupied for hours, whether you're trying to make something serious or trying to kill your friends in hilarious ways. Now it's time to talk about the other mode...Spartan Ops. Oh boy. In Halo Reach, there was this thing called Firefight, where you fight waves of Covenant alone or with friends. You could decide what enemies came at you, what weapons you had, and how long it lasted. You could even play as an Elite, and try to kill your friends playing as Spartans. It was really fun, and felt like a unique mode. Then, in Halo 4, they added Spartan Ops. You know what Spartan Ops is? It's like Campaign, but the missions are shorter, lamer, and the story isn't very interesting. You play as your multiplayer Spartan, who is a part of Spartan IV squad called Crimson. When I play this mode, it's when I'm alone, and I want the experience that it gives you. It gives you a good chunk of experience, and helps a lot when you're trying to level up your multiplayer guy. But it is worth nothing more. Each mission is pretty much the same thing, but occasional you'll get epic moments that are different. However, in my opinion, it's not worth going through the mode just to play those few epic moments. There isn't really any reward besides the XP no matter what difficulty you're on, which just adds to the worthlessness of the mode. Even though it is a separate mode, it just feels like a dumb extension of the Campaign. Well, at least the extension of it is free. Perhaps the extension is better, but seeing as I haven't gotten to that, I wouldn't know. But I doubt it would change my mind.
Black Ops 2: The only additional mode Black Ops 2 has is Zombies, which has multiple modes inside of it...so technically it has multiple additional modes. The main mode is Zombies (duh), where you can play with up to three friends and try to survive wave and wave of hungry zombies. There is Grief, where two teams of four have to fight against zombies while deciding if they want to work together or mess with the other team. Finally, there is Turned, a DLC mode where you try to stay human for as long as possible to get points while fighting off your friends, who are zombies, and want to kill you so they become human. The main attraction here is Zombies, which is tons of fun. You start out with 500 points, and a pistol. As you kill zombies you get more points, which can buy you perks that help you survive the apocalypse, weapons, equipment, or even an upgrade to your gun that'll insure you'll be able to kill zombies as they become more resistant as the round get higher and higher. With four friends and a good strategy, Zombies can be really fun. The default Zombie maps are okay, but if you want more Zombies (and you will), every Black Ops 2 DLC pack except the first one is definitely worth the buy. The new maps add new interesting gimmicks and perks, and are miles above the default maps, which are technically one big map to begin with.
Conclusion: Halo 4 was really close, but Spartan Ops ruined it. Even if Firefight had been in Spartan Ops' place, Zombies is way more fun than any of the extra modes Halo has had other the years. Don't get me wrong, Forge and Firefight are amazing, but Zombies is better. Another point to Black Ops 2!
For the following categories, I will no longer put the two games in different paragraphs, seeing as the explanations are much shorter.
Graphics
Halo 4 definitely takes the cake here. It looks more realistic, especially in cutscenes, and looks really nice for a 360 game. It is beautiful. Black Ops 2 isn't that bad either, but I find it weird that the less-realistic game has more realistic graphics. Another point to Halo 4!
Sound
Again, Halo 4 steals the show. I enjoy the sounds of the UNSC Assault Rifle especially, but maybe that's because I use it a lot. The alien sounds of the Covenant also got a bit of a upgrade, but I'd say it's less noticeable. The Forerunner weapons sound pretty cool to, seeming more foreign the Covenant weapons do. Or maybe that's just because I'm used to Covenant weapons at this point. Of course, the campaign soundtrack is great, but not as great without Martin O'Donnell working his magic. To sum up Black Ops 2, most of the sounds aren't really memorable, except for the perk jingles and enemy noises from Zombies. A third point to Halo 4!
Final Conclusion
We end this battle with three points for Halo 4, and two points for Black Ops 2. While Zombies is the better extra mode, and Black Ops 2 Campaign was a more unique experience, Halo 4 offers better sound, graphics, and multiplayer. And even though it didn't get a point for it, Halo 4's story was better. Personally, I think both games are worth buying, but if you're on a low budget, get Halo 4, seeing as you don't need DLC to get the complete experience (though it doesn't hurt).
Winner: Halo 4
Thank you for reading this! It took me about two hours to type up. If you just scrolled down to see the winner, I would like if you did take the time to read the whole thing, as you will understand the Final Conclusion more. If you guys have any comments/questions, send me a PM.
Halo 4 vs Black Ops 2
Campaign
Halo 4: Almost five years after the events of Halo 3, the Master Chief saga continues as John-117 tries to find a way back to Earth before his A.I. Cortana loses herself Rampancy, which is basically robot insanity. During this quest, John will also have to fight The Didact, who plans to use the Composer, a device that turns living beings into digital forms, on Earth. I don't think it's as long as some of the other Halo games have been, but it is long enough. The Halo 4 story is epic, just like it's predecessors, and is a fitting continuation to the tale of Master Chief. I found it weird how some of the characters didn't seem to respect Master Chief as much as other UNSC (United Nations Space Command) characters did in the other games, but it was refreshing to see someone oppose Master Chief in an argument. But even though the Campaign is pretty amazing, you'll probably only replay it once on Legendary, when you're trying to get the Mark VI armor for multiplayer.
Black Ops 2: "The story takes place across two separate arcs, one recounting events in the 1980s, and the other following characters in the year 2025. Whilst it continues the saga of certain main characters introduced in the original Black Ops, both arcs take place several decades after the conclusion of the first game." -The Call of Duty Wiki
In the 1980s arc, Alex Mason and Frank Woods track down Raul Menendez, the main antagonist of the game. In the 2025 arc, Alex's son, David Mason, is put to a similar task, and attempts to figure out Menendez's plan while visiting an old Frank Woods to ask him about what happened in the 80s. The story is rather good for a Call of Duty game, and the option to choose what weapons you go into the missions with was pretty cool. If you wanted to, you unlock the 2025 Mini-gun, then go into a mission that takes place in the 80s and annihilate all of the enemies. What's really cool, however, is that fact that you can change the story through a few key choices, and get different endings. This adds some definite replayability if you're interested in seeing all the different endings for yourself.
Conclusion: While Halo 4 has a better story, Black Ops 2's campaign was more unique overall with the ability to choose what weapons to spawn in with and the ability to change the ending. One point to Black Ops 2!
Multiplayer
(Oh, if you're unfamiliar with FPS games, just know that usually the online portion of multiplayer has a leveling system.)
Halo 4: Halo 4's multiplayer has to be the best of the franchise so far. It borrows elements from Halo Reach, like the ability to customize almost everything on your Spartan, armor abilities, but has the feel of Halo 3. It also borrows the custom class idea from Call of Duty, and while it isn't as deep, it's more than enough. You can choose if you want a primary weapon and a secondary weapon or two primary weapons. You can choose your grenades and your armor ability. You can also select a Support Package and a Tactical Package, which give you things like extra ammo, unlimited sprint, or at a certain point, extra XP. There's even the occasional Ordnance drop, which could give you a speed boost, or a Rocket Launcher. At last, you can play with Call of Duty controls, but if you're a Halo vet like me, you'll be going with the Recon setup, which is the classic Halo setup. Also, instead of sprinting being an armor ability like it is in Halo Reach, it is now something you can do normally. The guns remain as balanced as ever, but you still have to make sure you have the best gun for the situation. Long range? Go with a sniper or one of the precision rifles. Medium to short range? Go with a assault rifle or a shotgun. There are plenty modes to play online or offline, with classics like Team Slayer and Capture the Flag, or new ones like Dominion and Heavies. If you're an FPS fan, you won't be disappointed, and you'll certainly be coming back for more. I left this game alone for a while because of Black Ops 2, but two years later, I find myself enjoying this game more.
Black Ops 2: Well, as you might've guessed, it's pretty much like the other Call of Duty games. Custom classes, fast-paced action, and scorestreaks. Notice how it says scorestreaks, meaning you get them based on score, not based on kills. However, killing is the main way to get them, and they do reset when you die. For those you unfamiliar with Call of Duty, read the spoiler before continuing:
This time around, the custom classes are based on a Pick 10 system, where every single item is worth one point. You could go knife only and stack up on perks, or you could put a bunch of stuff on your primary weapon and have less perks. There are also Wildcards, which can give you things like additional perks, more lethal grenades, or a second primary weapon. However, the wildcard itself does cost a point, so keep that in mind. Making classes with the Pick 10 system can be tricky at times, but it's interesting to see what you can come up with. Like other Call of Duty games, the guns aren't very balanced. You can pretty much use any gun in any situation if you're skilled enough, and there are times where you get into a match dominated by people camping, using shotguns, or both. It is a great deal of fun, though. There are classic game modes that pretty much every Call of Duty game has like Team Deathmatch and Domination, but also game types returning from the original Black Ops like Gun Game and Sticks and Stones. My complaint is that similar to other CODs, the game focuses on your Kill/Death ratio a bit too much, and it's hard to relax and have a good time unless you're doing good. I enjoyed this game for about a year, but now I just come back to it when my friends are wanting me to join, or when I'm bored. But if you get hooked, you will be for a good while.
Conclusion: You can't go wrong with either, but I prefer Halo 4. With Black Ops 2, there's too much focus on your K/D ratio, and you will be angry if you don't have more kills than deaths. With Halo, it doesn't even tell you how much you've died, and you can still have a lot of fun even if you're not doing that great. One point to Halo 4!
Other Modes
Halo 4: In Halo 4, there are two alternate modes you can jump into: Forge and Spartan Ops. In Forge, you make edits to an existing multiplayer map. This seems kind of boring, and it can be if you choose a map that doesn't give you much options. But if you choose a good map, you could make some serious edits, or make a map of your own inside of the map you're on...mapception. Anyways, it's a lot of fun. This mode was first featured in Halo 3, and made a return in Halo Reach, improved. In Halo 4, it's better than ever. It has all the features that Halo Reach Forge did, but now you can lock down objects you don't accidentally move them, and you can duplicate objects with a push of a button. You can also turn on magnets, which help you align objects almost perfect. The "Phased" and "Fixed" physics options return from Halo Reach, allowing you to place an object inside of another object or have it not fall when you place it in mid-air. Being able to make your own arenas and place weapons/vehicles of your choosing is more fun than it sounds, and can keep you occupied for hours, whether you're trying to make something serious or trying to kill your friends in hilarious ways. Now it's time to talk about the other mode...Spartan Ops. Oh boy. In Halo Reach, there was this thing called Firefight, where you fight waves of Covenant alone or with friends. You could decide what enemies came at you, what weapons you had, and how long it lasted. You could even play as an Elite, and try to kill your friends playing as Spartans. It was really fun, and felt like a unique mode. Then, in Halo 4, they added Spartan Ops. You know what Spartan Ops is? It's like Campaign, but the missions are shorter, lamer, and the story isn't very interesting. You play as your multiplayer Spartan, who is a part of Spartan IV squad called Crimson. When I play this mode, it's when I'm alone, and I want the experience that it gives you. It gives you a good chunk of experience, and helps a lot when you're trying to level up your multiplayer guy. But it is worth nothing more. Each mission is pretty much the same thing, but occasional you'll get epic moments that are different. However, in my opinion, it's not worth going through the mode just to play those few epic moments. There isn't really any reward besides the XP no matter what difficulty you're on, which just adds to the worthlessness of the mode. Even though it is a separate mode, it just feels like a dumb extension of the Campaign. Well, at least the extension of it is free. Perhaps the extension is better, but seeing as I haven't gotten to that, I wouldn't know. But I doubt it would change my mind.
Black Ops 2: The only additional mode Black Ops 2 has is Zombies, which has multiple modes inside of it...so technically it has multiple additional modes. The main mode is Zombies (duh), where you can play with up to three friends and try to survive wave and wave of hungry zombies. There is Grief, where two teams of four have to fight against zombies while deciding if they want to work together or mess with the other team. Finally, there is Turned, a DLC mode where you try to stay human for as long as possible to get points while fighting off your friends, who are zombies, and want to kill you so they become human. The main attraction here is Zombies, which is tons of fun. You start out with 500 points, and a pistol. As you kill zombies you get more points, which can buy you perks that help you survive the apocalypse, weapons, equipment, or even an upgrade to your gun that'll insure you'll be able to kill zombies as they become more resistant as the round get higher and higher. With four friends and a good strategy, Zombies can be really fun. The default Zombie maps are okay, but if you want more Zombies (and you will), every Black Ops 2 DLC pack except the first one is definitely worth the buy. The new maps add new interesting gimmicks and perks, and are miles above the default maps, which are technically one big map to begin with.
Conclusion: Halo 4 was really close, but Spartan Ops ruined it. Even if Firefight had been in Spartan Ops' place, Zombies is way more fun than any of the extra modes Halo has had other the years. Don't get me wrong, Forge and Firefight are amazing, but Zombies is better. Another point to Black Ops 2!
For the following categories, I will no longer put the two games in different paragraphs, seeing as the explanations are much shorter.
Graphics
Halo 4 definitely takes the cake here. It looks more realistic, especially in cutscenes, and looks really nice for a 360 game. It is beautiful. Black Ops 2 isn't that bad either, but I find it weird that the less-realistic game has more realistic graphics. Another point to Halo 4!
Sound
Again, Halo 4 steals the show. I enjoy the sounds of the UNSC Assault Rifle especially, but maybe that's because I use it a lot. The alien sounds of the Covenant also got a bit of a upgrade, but I'd say it's less noticeable. The Forerunner weapons sound pretty cool to, seeming more foreign the Covenant weapons do. Or maybe that's just because I'm used to Covenant weapons at this point. Of course, the campaign soundtrack is great, but not as great without Martin O'Donnell working his magic. To sum up Black Ops 2, most of the sounds aren't really memorable, except for the perk jingles and enemy noises from Zombies. A third point to Halo 4!
Final Conclusion
We end this battle with three points for Halo 4, and two points for Black Ops 2. While Zombies is the better extra mode, and Black Ops 2 Campaign was a more unique experience, Halo 4 offers better sound, graphics, and multiplayer. And even though it didn't get a point for it, Halo 4's story was better. Personally, I think both games are worth buying, but if you're on a low budget, get Halo 4, seeing as you don't need DLC to get the complete experience (though it doesn't hurt).
Winner: Halo 4
Thank you for reading this! It took me about two hours to type up. If you just scrolled down to see the winner, I would like if you did take the time to read the whole thing, as you will understand the Final Conclusion more. If you guys have any comments/questions, send me a PM.