{"id":339,"date":"2021-10-14T14:55:03","date_gmt":"2021-10-14T14:55:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/engadget.vip\/?p=339"},"modified":"2021-10-14T14:55:03","modified_gmt":"2021-10-14T14:55:03","slug":"halo-reach-pc-technical-review-reaching-for-the-stars-but-not-quite-getting-there","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/engadget.vip\/?p=339","title":{"rendered":"Halo: Reach PC technical review \u2013 Reaching for the stars but not quite getting there"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>

Halo: Reach<\/em> is the first game released as part of Halo: The Master Chief Collection<\/em>. It\u2019s also the first time that it makes its way to PCs, touting 4K UHD support and unlimited framerates\/no FPS cap. But, there are a few issues that mar Halo: Reach<\/em>\u2018s recent PC launch, including the wonky audio. Let\u2019s delve further with our technical review.<\/p>\n

Note:<\/strong> Here\u2019s what Halo: The Master Chief Collection<\/em>\u2018s main menu looks like. Only Halo: Reach<\/em> is available for now, but other games will be unlocked later on. You can also check out our official review of Halo: Reach<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\"Halo<\/p>\n

System Requirements<\/h2>\n

Minimum:<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  • OS: Windows 7<\/li>\n
  • Processor: AMD Phenom II X4 960T; Intel i3550<\/li>\n
  • Memory: 8 GB RAM<\/li>\n
  • Graphics: AMD HD 6850; NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450<\/li>\n
  • DirectX: Version 11<\/li>\n
  • Storage: 20 GB available space<\/li>\n
  • Additional Notes: Direct3D feature Level 11.1<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Recommended:<\/strong><\/p>\n

      \n
    • OS: Windows 10<\/li>\n
    • Processor: AMD FX-4100 ; Intel i7-870<\/li>\n
    • Memory: 8 GB RAM<\/li>\n
    • Graphics: AMD Radeon R7 360 ; NVIDIA GTX 560 TI<\/li>\n
    • DirectX: Version 11<\/li>\n
    • Storage: 20 GB available space<\/li>\n
    • Additional Notes: Direct3D feature Level 11.1<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      Author\u2019s:<\/strong><\/p>\n

        \n
      • OS: Windows 10 (64-bit)<\/li>\n
      • Processor: Intel Core i7-7700 4.2 GHz<\/li>\n
      • Memory: 16GB RAM<\/li>\n
      • Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 Ti (8 GB)<\/li>\n
      • DirectX: Version 12<\/li>\n
      • Storage: Samsung SSD 800 EVO 500 GB<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        My rig\u2019s specs are significantly better than what\u2019s recommended, so running Halo: Reach<\/em> shouldn\u2019t be a problem. Normally, we\u2019ll discuss the graphics options and comparisons already just like in other technical reviews. However, we\u2019ll need to look into how signing in works first.<\/p>\n

        \"Halo<\/p>\n

        Halo: Reach, Microsoft, and Xbox Live<\/h2>\n

        It\u2019s worth noting that Halo: Reach<\/em> \u2014 and likely all other games in Halo: The Master Chief Collection<\/em> \u2014 will require you to sign in with a Microsoft account first even if you made your purchase via Steam. In my case, I haven\u2019t used an Xbox Live account in a very long time. I was actually quite surprised that one of my emails was already in use (apparently I had created an account using that email ages ago).<\/p>\n

        I was assigned a random, generic gamertag, one which was completely different from anything resembling my Steam ID. I had to download the Xbox Companion app for Windows just so I could switch to the gamertag I preferred. Still, you won\u2019t need an Xbox Live subscription just to play, so don\u2019t worry about that.<\/p>\n

        If you check Halo: Reach<\/em>\u2018s Career options, the only options related to your ID which you can change in-game are:<\/p>\n

          \n
        • Player ID \u2013 a three-character abbreviation that appears in multiplayer matches<\/li>\n
        • Clan Tag \u2013 the default is simply \u201cUNSC\u201d<\/li>\n
        • Nameplate \u2013 a bordered flair for your tag<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

          \"Hre<\/p>\n

          Graphics Settings<\/h2>\n

          Moving on, let\u2019s take a look at Halo: Reach<\/em>\u2018s graphics settings for PC. You\u2019ll see below that there are only a few options that you can change. These include resolution, v-sync, framerate cap, gamma\/brightness, and the field of view (FOV) when you\u2019re on-foot or in a vehicle. You can also change the HUD elements to be centered or on the edges of your screen if you have an ultrawide display.<\/p>\n

          \"Hre<\/p>\n

          Not seen in the screenshot are your graphics quality settings. You don\u2019t actually have detailed customization options in Halo: Reach<\/em>. Instead, what you\u2019ll have are three presets:<\/p>\n

            \n
          • Performance \u2013 lowers graphics quality to improve performance; anisotropic filtering x0<\/li>\n
          • Original \u2013 the default, middle-ground setting; anisotropic filtering x2<\/li>\n
          • Enhanced \u2013 increases visual detail at the cost of performance; anisotropic filtering x8<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

            The omission of additional graphics\/visual settings is quite a surprise indeed. After all, many PC players might be excited at the idea of being able to toggle or tweak different settings (ie. post-processing, texture detail, shadow quality, and more) to their liking.<\/p>\n

            Graphics Comparisons<\/h2>\n

            I\u2019ve selected three sets of images looking at various graphics presets. I\u2019ve also added 1080p screenshots in case you want to see what Halo: Reach<\/em> looks like if you downscale from 4K UHD. As usual, click on each image for a larger view.<\/p>\n

            Spartan armor close-up<\/strong><\/p>\n

            \"Halo<\/p>\n

            Enhanced preset @ 4K UHD<\/p>\n

            \"Halo<\/p>\n

            Original preset @ 4K UHD<\/p>\n

            \"Halo<\/p>\n

            Performance preset @ 4K UHD<\/p>\n

            \"Halo<\/p>\n

            Enhanced preset @ 1080p<\/p>\n

            Landing zone<\/strong><\/p>\n

            \"Halo<\/p>\n

            Enhanced preset @ 4K UHD<\/p>\n

            \"Halo<\/p>\n

            Original preset @ 4K UHD<\/p>\n

            \"Halo<\/p>\n

            Performance preset @ 4K UHD<\/p>\n

            \"Halo<\/p>\n

            Enhanced preset @ 1080p<\/p>\n

            Fire special effects and terrain<\/strong><\/p>\n

            \"Halo<\/p>\n

            Enhanced preset @ 4K UHD<\/p>\n

            \"Halo<\/p>\n

            Original preset @ 4K UHD<\/p>\n

            \"Halo<\/p>\n

            Performance preset @ 4K UHD<\/p>\n

            \"Halo<\/p>\n

            Enhanced preset @ 1080p<\/p>\n

            Halo: Reach<\/em>, even when using the Enhanced preset in 4K UHD, looks slightly outdated. That doesn\u2019t mean it looks terrible. Truth be told, a game that came out in 2010 would look like it\u2019s not up to snuff compared to FPS titles in more recent years. You\u2019ll notice jagged and sharper edges when lowering your graphics preset, with draw distance taking a hit, and 1080p resolution just doesn\u2019t cut it anymore.<\/p>\n

            Performance<\/h2>\n

            In terms of performance, this is where Halo: Reach<\/em> excels with a couple of major caveats which I\u2019ll get to later. Using 4K UHD resolution, Enhanced preset, unlimited framerates, and V-sync turned off, I was able to get over 120 FPS. Of course, if I lower the settings or downscale to 1080p, I\u2019d see slight framerate bumps, but that\u2019d be unnecessary. Getting 120+ FPS in shooters is more than enough. There are, of course, a few drops especially during hectic firefights. The good thing is that these framerate drops won\u2019t be too egregious.<\/p>\n

            As for the major caveats, these would be screen tearing, animation, movement, and mouse controls. If I so much as use the unlimited framerates option (with V-sync disabled), I\u2019d notice quite a bit of screen tearing going on. As for mouse controls, there\u2019s something janky as well. The same can be said when it comes to movement and animations. I thought I was one of the few experiencing this until other Steam users posted about the problem. It\u2019s as if animations and aiming aren\u2019t smoothened out past 60 FPS, so anything above that would make the game look and feel weird.<\/p>\n

            Overall, while the game tells you that you\u2019re getting 120-140 FPS or higher, something is still amiss. Other current-day FPS titles such as Destiny 2<\/em> don\u2019t lead to the same issue, which is why this is perplexing to see in a remastered game from 2010. If you do want these issues resolved, it\u2019s better to just enable V-sync and stick to the 60 FPS cap. This also means that you\u2019re not experiencing one of Halo: Reach<\/em>\u2018s touted new additions.<\/p>\n

            Control settings<\/h2>\n

            Here, you\u2019ll see the control settings for a mouse and keyboard setup:<\/p>\n

            \"Hre<\/p>\n

            \"Hre<\/p>\n

            These are just some of the keybindings that you can change:<\/p>\n

            \"Hre<\/p>\n

            The funny thing here is that you won\u2019t be able to change the keybindings for text chat (J) and push-to-talk (V). If you\u2019ve gotten used to modern shooters that let you do that, then Halo: Reach<\/em> would seem odd.<\/p>\n

            Here are the gamepad settings and the controller layouts:<\/p>\n

            \"Hre<\/p>\n

            \"Hre<\/p>\n

            The controller presets will feel familiar to long-time Halo<\/em> players. You\u2019ve got options such as \u201cBumper Jumper,\u201d \u201cZoom and Shoot,\u201d \u201cRecon,\u201d and more. There\u2019s also an additional option for aiming control. You can toggle that between \u201cClassic, \u201cwhich would make it feel as though you\u2019re playing an old Halo<\/em> game on the Xbox console, or \u201cModern,\u201d where aiming would be more akin to current-day shooters.<\/p>\n

            I would advise using a gamepad for a first-person shooter if you\u2019re playing on a PC. A mouse and keyboard setup is definitely more optimal. If you do want a layout that allows you to zoom in with the left trigger and fire with the right trigger, only the \u201cZoom and Shoot\u201d preset lets you do that. Again, this is yet another oddity in Halo: Reach<\/em> \u2014 to have but one preset that resembles today\u2019s FPS games.<\/p>\n

            Gameplay, network, and accessibility settings<\/h2>\n

            There aren\u2019t that many settings for these three panels. Your gameplay options basically boil down to crosshair position and invite notifications. I guess checking Halo: Reach<\/em>\u2018s credits also count. I\u2019m surprised that there\u2019s no means of further customizing or disabling your HUD layout herein.<\/p>\n

            \"Hre<\/p>\n

            Halo Reach<\/em>\u2018s network options provide a choice of picking Xbox Live or LAN. You probably aren\u2019t doing LAN parties anytime soon and you\u2019ll be playing online anyway, so just pick the former. Meanwhile, the relay setting masks your IP address from untrusted connections when turned on and unmasked when turned off.<\/p>\n

            On a personal note, it seems Halo: Reach<\/em> relies on connection or region-based matchmaking. You\u2019re unable to select a particular region you\u2019d want to fall under. Since I\u2019m from the Philippines, I ended up in the Southeast Asia queue. That won\u2019t cause problems with latency, but it can take a while for some games to start if the player population is lacking.<\/p>\n

            \"Hre<\/p>\n

            As for the accessibility settings, you can enable subtitles here as well as text-to-speech and speech-to-text. You can also change the game\u2019s language from English to German, Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, and several others. By the way, the subtitles only work for cutscenes. They don\u2019t work for in-combat dialogue or squad banter.<\/p>\n

            \"Hre<\/p>\n

            Audio settings or \u201cIn space, no one can hear this game\u201d<\/h2>\n

            Audio settings have to be discussed in detail since Halo: Reach<\/em> (and the entire Halo<\/em> franchise) predominantly hinges on delivering a multiplayer experience like no other. Knowing that communication is important, the odd choice here is that you\u2019ve only got a smattering of options and not much else. In fact, the game is set to push-to-talk mode solely, and there doesn\u2019t seem to be a way to disable that or change it to plain voice activity similar to Discord.<\/p>\n

            Another problem has to be addressed here, and that\u2019s Halo: Reach<\/em> currently has bugged audio. Even with the effects volume maxed out, guns will often feel muted or a lot quieter than all the other stuff going on. You don\u2019t necessarily feel the impact or adrenaline rush of pulse-pounding gunfire and explosions because you\u2019d hardly hear them over the soaring music or multiplayer commentary.<\/p>\n

            I\u2019m hoping this gets fixed soon enough. The Halo<\/em> franchise has been known for its soaring soundtracks and action-packed moments. Unfortunately, you\u2019re not going to be fully immersed in the action if your Spartan soldiers and Covenant aliens sound like they\u2019re all shooting BB guns at each other.<\/p>\n

            \"Hre<\/p>\n

            Halo: Reach isn\u2019t quite reaching for the stars just yet<\/h2>\n

            The use of graphics presets only, with no means of changing various options (motion blur, texture detail, post-processing, anti-aliasing, and others) will, no doubt, disappoint PC players. Likewise, the touted uncapped framerates can lead to screen tearing, very janky mouse scrolling, aiming, and movement animations. It\u2019s much better to stick to a capped 60 FPS setting, but you\u2019d be foregoing one of the remastered title\u2019s features.<\/p>\n

            Perhaps the biggest flaw in Halo: Reach<\/em> at the moment is the bugged audio. Gunfire, explosions, and other effects are too muted and hard to hear. It\u2019s as though you\u2019re running straight into the action, and yet it\u2019s just a pantomime that\u2019s playing before your eyes. Here\u2019s to hoping that many of these problems do get fixed soon.<\/p>\n

            This isn\u2019t just Halo: Reach<\/em>\u2018s first foray into gaming PCs everywhere. As mentioned, it\u2019s also the game that\u2019d kickstart Halo: The Master Chief Collection<\/em>, showing everyone what remastered versions of brilliant classics would be like. Sadly, from a technical standpoint alone, it seems Halo: Reach<\/em> isn\u2019t quite reaching for the stars just yet.<\/p>\n

            \n

            Halo: Reach<\/em> is available via the Microsoft Windows Store and Steam. It\u2019s also part of the Xbox Game Pass for PC. You can also check out our official review of how everything from the technical aspect, to the campaign and multiplayer, mesh together.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

            Halo: Reach is the first game released as part of Halo: The Master Chief Collection. It\u2019s also the first time that it makes its way to PCs, touting 4K UHD support and unlimited framerates\/no FPS cap. But, there are a few issues that mar Halo: Reach\u2018s recent PC launch, including the wonky audio. Let\u2019s delve […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":340,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[467,468,469],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/engadget.vip\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/339"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/engadget.vip\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/engadget.vip\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/engadget.vip\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/engadget.vip\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=339"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/engadget.vip\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/339\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/engadget.vip\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/340"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/engadget.vip\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=339"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/engadget.vip\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=339"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/engadget.vip\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=339"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}