For more on Halo 4, check out our full Halo 4 review. Or, for more of the best Xbox 360 games for a 10 year old, why not try our Family Game Finder
The latest in the long-running Halo series, Halo 4 marks the beginning of a new trilogy, and the return of Master Chief, the series' long-time protagonist. A sci-fi themed first person shooter like the previous games, Halo 4 continues the story of the previous games, as Master Chief discovers a long lost alien race, known as the Forerunners, and the war wages on between humanity and the Covenant.
In terms of accessibility, there's little in the way of tutorials in Halo - nothing really tells you how to fire, how to use grenades, or even how to run. Luckily, the controls are very similar to other first person shooters, so if you've played Call of Duty, Borderlands, Medal of Honour, or any one of a number of similar games, you should be in familiar territory here. It is worth bearing in mind, however, that this is a fair bit more difficult than previous entries in the series.
Fully voiced, and fully subtitled, there'll be no accessibility problems here - but the plot behind Halo 4 is confusing at best, with military jargon, and ill-defined sci-fi terms serving to confuse even those most experienced with the series. That said, an understanding of the story isn't necessary to play the game, and the objectives you have to complete are usually fairly clear.
However, the highlight of Halo, especially for families, is the co-operative mode. Letting you play through the entire story in split-screen (although sadly only up to two players can play on any one console), two people can play together on a sci-fi adventure. Giving you some extra help in the trickiest of fights, and letting you take full advantage of the multi-person vehicles (the warthog, an armoured jeep with a massive minigun strapped to the back on a rotating turret, is a particular favourite), Halo is at its best in split-screen co-op.
In terms of Questionable Content, Halo 4 is a bit of a mixed bag. For the most part, the game's rather tame - having played through the entire storyline, we didn't come across any swearing, and the violence in the game is, for the most part, fairly minor - enemies give out spurts of orange, or blue goo when shot at, rather than blood, while if your teammates get hit, they emit only a small puff of claret. However, there are one or two exceptions.
Should you go to melee attack an enemy from behind, you'll occasionally be treated to a fancy - but violent - animation, showing you "assassinating" them, which, in many cases, involves pulling out a dagger, and sticking it into them somewhere, either in their chest, or through the top of their head. Again, there's little in the way of blood, but you still see the game's hero stab someone in the head completely needlessly.
The game's single most violent part, however, comes courtesy of a cutscene later on in the game, where the game's villain fires a weapon. You're then treated to a close-up of the effects of this weapon on the face of a person, as it strips them of their layers of skin - first removing the top layer, showing you a collection of muscles, teeth, and eyes, before quickly removing that to leave behind a skeleton, which is in turn promptly vaporised. It's all over in the space of a second or two, but it's disturbing enough if you catch what happens.
Age Ratings
Format Reviewed: Xbox 360
