Betrayal: Destroying a Legend

Ok, 343.  I gave you a week.  You know what?  Halo: The Master Chief Collection is still broken.  And now, so is my heart.

I remember quite vividly watching the undergrads carrying in their TVs and Xboxes to play Halo:CE while camping out for basketball tickets overnight.  Long satisfied with my PS2, I knew I needed to play Halo 2 and purchased an Xbox for that reason alone.

I waited for the midnight launch, bought the metallic box edition, and played Halo 2 for hours and hours, late into the night.  Not once did I regret a next day's sleep deprivation one bit because I loved Halo.

 

I waited for the midnight launch at my favorite independent game shop for Halo 3.  I bought the special edition with the Master Chief helmet and bought six BAWLS energy drinks for the late night sessions ahead.  I couldn't wait to "finish the fight."  I get goosebumps thinking about taking down the scarab with friends in co-op.   I remember taking a picture of the title screen on my old Motorola, the first smart phone I ever had, so I could use it for the phone's background wallpaper.

I downloaded the Halo theme DLC for Guitar Hero.  Steve Vai was my ringtone.  My Playstation Vita's lock screen is Master Chief.

I loved Halo Wars and played it even after Ensemble folded.  I smile when someone mentions "All units" and wish for a sequel despite Forge's demise.

I have Halo Action Clix and a Halo Reach stocking cap from the midnight launch.  I played through ODST and brought my nephews to GameStop for their first midnight launch for Halo 4.  They received inflatable spartan helmets for swag.  I have the Halo 4 UNSC controller with the blue-lit guide button.  I own Halo Spartan Assault for my Windows phone -- and Xbox One.

I read The Fall of Reach and the first book of the Forerunner saga.  I own Halo Legends in HD via Xbox Video and Forward Unto Dawn.  I watched the Remastering of a Legend and used the Halo Channel to watch the first two episodes of Nightfall, the Halo Wars Harvest storyline, and the Spartan Ops chapter intros.

I have a small collection of Halo series Xbox Live Avatar figures and sport my Master Chief helmeted avatar as my Twitter profile pic.  I wanted to name our new cat John-117, but my wife vetoed that option.  She did get me the Halo 4 soundtrack as a stocking stuffer for Christmas.

I purchased and pre-loaded Halo: The Master Chief Collection and as recently as this past week, pondered placing the Halo special edition wireless Astro A50 headset on my birthday wishlist.  And I waited for the patch, could barely think of anything else during the day save the chance to jump online tonight.  The result?  It's past my bedtime and the only thing that can make me feel better is to vent about my frustration, anger, and sadness.  MCC was supposed to stir the nostalgia of an unforgettable,  literally life-changing game and series.  The tantalizing glimpses of a few games together with friends and the white-knuckled, tense moments of evading the Flood in campaign serve only to emphasize even more how much this unfinished product has failed to deliver.

I will play, but at this point,  I am not even sure what or when or whether I can... at least the way I was led to believe I could.  It feels like a downright betrayal and I wish I could boot the player from my team.  I don't know that anything will restore complete faith in the franchise,  but please, please, please just fix the game already.