My streak of playing and finishing a Halo game each weekend has finally ended. I still did manage to play some Halo though. However, since I was hanging out with my friends S and C and co-op only supports 2 players, we tried out the multiplayer slayer game in Halo 3.
I was quite intimidated going into it, because the two of them have played Halo for years. I knew they were much better than me, but I decided to give it a try anyway. While I have improved, I still got my butt kicked. After a while it stops being fun when you are always the one who loses, although I did manage to barely beat S once.
It was funny to play with them though, because they have also played against each other many times and know what to expect from each other. They are then ready to counter the other player’s usual tactics. On the other hand, I am still new and unpredictable and really managed to keep them on their toes. It also helped that I haven’t really settled into a play style and so I can be very adaptable. As S said, “The best swordsman in the world doesn’t need to fear the second best swordsman in the world; no, the person for him to be afraid of is some ignorant antagonist who has never had a sword in his hand before; he doesn’t do the thing he ought to do, and so the expert isn’t prepared for him.” – Mark Twain.
Although I am proud of my efforts, I don’t think I’ll be playing with them much again. It isn’t much fun to always be the loser. If I were to play again, I would much rather play with people closer to my skill level and/or experience. I also don’t think I want to play again at all. I prefer co-op a lot more over competitive play, especially when I would otherwise be getting destroyed!