Bungie Studios releasing a Windows Vista version of Halo 2

Bungie Studios releasing a Windows Vista version of Halo 2

Bungie Studios is releasing a Windows Vista version of its first person shooter, Halo 2, still wildly popular after two years on the market. The game is slated to ship after the December release of the new Microsoft operating system. With the Xbox 360 release of Halo 3 slated for Fall 2007, you have to ask yourself, what’s the point? Why release the dated game on the PC platform around the same time the new version is being released? There are plenty of reasons to get this enhanced port. Halo 2 Vista supports a 16 multiplayer mode like the Xbox (although interplay between PC and Xbox is not possible) and overall gameplay is expected to be similar to the Xbox version. However, Bungie points to massive improvements in visuals. Halo 2 Vista will support DirectX 10, which brings with it nearly photorealistic enhancements. And the game will take advantage of next generation video cards and computer hardware.
The original Halo for PC was a disaster in part because of its diverse performance across varying hardware, something console games don’t worry about. Conformity to Vista should remedy the problem this time around. Mouse and keyboard support will be a definite plus and the Vista version boasts a map editor and exclusive levels. With all of these additions, gamers with the latest computer hardware, come this fall, may find themselves wanting to check out this new version of Halo 2.