United Gamer Online (UGO)

by Mike Krumboltz
Microsoft's Halo video game franchise hasn't been around as long as Donkey Kong or Pac-Man, but it's already had a huge impact. That's thanks, in large part, to the franchise's sweet visuals and cutting-edge gameplay. One wonders if Halo would have been as big a success had it been released back in the early '80s, when the Atari 2600 was the game console of choice.

One guy decided to do more than just wonder. Ed Fries, former vice president of Microsoft’s Game Publishing Division, programmed an old-school version of the beloved game that features blocky graphics, deliberately basic sound effects, and simplified movements. And yet it's still recognizable as "Halo."

The game, called "Halo 2600," made its debut at the recent Classic Gaming Expo, where cartridges (nice!) of the game were given away to lucky recipients. But, thankfully, you needn't be one of the lucky few to experience this low-tech shooter. The good people at Code Mystics have hosted the game, and it is playable for free within your browser. You can check it out here.

Curious gamers eager to see what their favorite franchise is like in old-school form pushed web lookups on "halo 2600" up over 614% in one day. Related lookups on "play halo 2600" also roared to life. As it turns out, playing the game is quite straightforward. Use your arrow keys to move Master Chief and hit the space bar to shoot. Avoid the bad guys, and see how far you can get. What could be simpler?

The game can't match "Halo 3" for visual beauty, but it is instantly accessible and offers old-school gamers something very rare: an opportunity to play a favorite franchise in a way that's both new and old, both surreal and familar.