Halo Reach – should it be T-Teen?
I get lots of letters about Halo. They always go the same way. Start with a child or parent asking why it’s Rated M, end with the child or adult asking me if the game is okay. Asking how bad it is compared to Call of Duty: MW or Grand Theft Auto. I can’t answer all the questions and I’ve written enough about Halo 1-3… so naturally, here comes a new one. Here comes Halo Reach.
And once again I feel the ESRB has overdone it. Aside from incidental blood – most of it colorful and from aliens – there is nothing really offensive about Halo Reach. It’s just a bit bloodier than before. No prostitution, no drugs, no nudity, no bad language, no… just a bit of blood that on Television would be rated okay for teens, probably could fit during Prime Time, and in films would be rated PG-13. Better still, the blood is in one scene only.
There’s the argument right there. Does a bit of purple or red blood – and I mean blood, not gore – merit an M-rating? Is it worth parents drawing a line and teens looking to cross it?
Look parents – and please spread this link and quote me – Halo Reach is a fine game, a game your teen wants, and a game you can feel comfortable with them playing. It’s not bad, it’s not evil, it’s not even terribly Mature. If in doubt please check my credentials, check YouTube or the ESRB for more info.
Save the “you can’t HAVE that offensive game” for a game that really deserves it. They’re out there, they just aren’t called Halo.
September 18th, 2010 at 10:26 am
The fact that there’s no language descriptor is a little misleading, as there is some bad language in the campaign. Not that it’ll probably offend anyone, it’s pretty minor, basically on par with any other Halo game. And yes, this is 100% T-for-Teen material.
September 18th, 2010 at 3:21 pm
Thanks for your level-headed review. I’ll read more of your reviews, but I suspect you’re values re:gaming is on par with mine. My brother, who is uncle to my son, said the violence is not realistic, though I still have objection to annihilating another species, alien or not. I’ll allow him to use his Target gift card for this substantial $50-60 purchase.
September 18th, 2010 at 5:37 pm
this is definetly more violent than the other halo games. the new assasnations moves let you take your knife and stab and slit peoples throats.
September 18th, 2010 at 10:26 pm
Definitely should be T. I just finished the campaign this morning, and there are so many more violent, gory, titles out there. I’m convinced that the only reason the Halo games are rated M is because of precedent. By that, I mean because the first Halo game was rated M, the ESRB felt it necessary to rate all the others M as well. The original Halo was M, FOR ITS DAY. There was not quite as much violent content out in early two thousand, as we were just moving out of the 64-bit days, so I’m sure that comparatively, Halo: CE looked like a bloodbath, but now we’re at a point when games like Prototype, Fallout 3, and God of War have achieved massive commercial success, and the new Mortal Kombat game promises to take gore to the next level by pre-rendering the entrails of the fighters, so that they all come spilling out in gruesome fatalities. Halo: Reach is perfectly fine for the modern teenager. That’s just a fact.
September 19th, 2010 at 12:50 pm
@katbrain
Some of this is mincing words but “anihilation of a species” isn’t what your son will be doing any more than watching a movie about criminals means approving of the crimes. It’s fantasy. He’ll be killing aliens (killing is a bit much – de rezzing them?) that are trying to kill him. Think of it like tag or warplay with graphics. Like paintball with fake blood, cool bad guys and a story and setting – you might say.
September 19th, 2010 at 3:47 pm
Yes, the MODERN teenager. Because we know the MODERN teenager is so much more mature and capable of handling gore, violence and vulgarity (oh, and sex and nudity and drugs and alcohol) than teenagers of the past. At least let’s be clear about this: teenagers are not becoming MORE capable. Society (and parents I’d say), are becoming LESS capable. Tolerating, and even seeking, more violence and more gore, etc, becoming desensitized as a society to these things so that it takes more and more to shock us, does not make us MORE capable to handle things. It just means we’re idiots, unable or unwilling to control ourselves or our children. You may all laugh now.
September 19th, 2010 at 8:26 pm
@gamerdad
so what age would you recomend this game for
September 19th, 2010 at 10:40 pm
Mom won’t let me get this because she’s seen grand theft auto and thinks all rated m games are like this and I’m 13 and even had trouble geting cod mod. Warfare for ds
September 20th, 2010 at 8:36 am
I agree with your review, this game is okay for most children when it comes to offline play… When it comes to online play, the language used by other xbox live members is ridiculous and obscene, and most of it coming from teenagers too. I think it would be wise to keep children off of xbox live.
September 20th, 2010 at 2:54 pm
I have the same problem as Riley, I am 12 and my parents believe all m rated games are in appropriate and gorey
September 20th, 2010 at 8:53 pm
As a 16 year old I think this game is fine. Also, why do people always worry about people chatting online? You can turn off chatting with random people in every game in your account settings. That is what I do because frankly everyone is extremely annoying.
September 21st, 2010 at 4:26 pm
I believe this game should be T, but my mother wont listen to me, all my mother does is look at the letter she does not even look into the game, im 16 and stuck with following the ESRB rules since i started playing video games
September 22nd, 2010 at 12:31 pm
Thank you for your review of Halo Reach. In the UK it is a 16+ and my young teenage son has been on at me for this since it was first advertised. Usually, I restrict his gaming to age appropiate games and dvd’s, but having read your review and spoken to other gamers, I have decided to allow him this one. I do think it depends on your child individually and if they are mature in outlook and responsible enough to know what is acceptable behaviour in the real world, then gaming should’nt be a source of conflict in the home. I also plan to rain on his parade by learning how to play the blasted thing for myself!!! Cheers.
September 23rd, 2010 at 2:59 pm
I am a 7th grade teacher and an avid gamer. My game of choice has always been Halo over C.O.D. because the violence is not human on human. If by their teenage years a kid does not know the difference between fantasy violence and real then they do not need to be gaming at all. I am also starting a video gaming club at my school in order to promote more awareness about online gaming and ways to have fun while still being safe. I agree with Gamerdad that this really isnt overly violent and probably could be shown during primetime television.
September 27th, 2010 at 6:05 pm
I really appreciate this review gamerdad! I am 14 years old trying to convince my parents to let me get Halo Reach. They think just because it says “M” they automaticly think that its like Grand Theft Auto or C.O.D. All my friends parents let them play Halo so im just trying to join the group. My final verdict is that I DONT think that Halo should be rated “M”. Once again, thank you for the greastest video game review I have ever seen!
October 1st, 2010 at 5:52 pm
i agree halo reach should not be rated mature, and i dont feel that the assasnation mode makes it m you stab people in games that are teen just like mag!
October 2nd, 2010 at 10:11 am
Same Story As Most… Tweenager Whos friends all have halo 3 or Halo: Reach. My Mom Is The one i am trying to get to realize how harmless this game really is. (Thanks, GamerDad For this and the halo 3 review by the way) My Father on the other hand understands and let me purchase halo 3. But Sadly, I have divorsed parent and can’t get Halo on my Mother’s side. M=GTA or Gears to her. I will show her this review and hope for the best!
October 4th, 2010 at 7:14 pm
People are saying this is rated M because of assassinations. However, Uncharted 2′s stealth kills involved neck snapping and you could hear it snap, unlike Reach where the assassinations have no snap. I feel like Uncharted 2 and Reach should be rated the same.
October 5th, 2010 at 8:47 pm
As usual I’ve got to agree with you GD.
The real concern, if any, is the other people in matchmaking. But my, admittedly anecdota,l experience so far has been very good. Not one racial or homophobic epithet in the games I’ve played so far. And I have not bothered to use the tools to limit my exposure to such comments.
@mark s – ah yes the modern teenager. I suppose yours was the last generation to have been different from thier parents. I’m a scout leader and I have to say I’m constantly amazed by the things the kids share with me. You may not believe it but these kids are far more tuned to digital media than any of us geezers realize. I work in the media and it shocks me what they are doing with the tools at thier disposal. They understand it far better than we do.
But you are right in saying they are the same for a reason suspect you don’t really understand. They are basically good people. They know right from wrong and overall want to be a positive influence on the world.
They are also tired of “old folks” treating them like they don’t know anything.
Sound familiar?
October 16th, 2010 at 3:50 pm
thanks for the review, been trying to get my parents to let me get this game but they think that because its M rated im not allowed and that it will be like GTA or some other games that are M rated. I’ll deffinately show this to my parents.
October 19th, 2010 at 6:50 pm
i am 11 and my parents say no to all m games but i have seen r rated movies like kick ass were sombody gets blown up in a microwave and played t rated shooters and also m rated shooters at friends houses do u think i can play the game plz email answeres
October 20th, 2010 at 5:56 pm
lol
halo is rated m for violence and blood and langauge which is the same as lost planet rated t
October 21st, 2010 at 7:03 pm
The scientific research states that violent games have a negative impact on kids. So, you saying Halo doesn’t fall into the category of “violent game”? I watched my son play a demo and it looked very violent to me. Bottom line, at what age do you think it is OK for kids to play Halo Reach?
October 24th, 2010 at 8:58 pm
Iv played this game alot at my friends house we play team slayer and there is barely any blood at all the assationations aren’t that bad it happens so quick that if there was any blood you won’t notice and I recomend at least 13 but my friends brother is 11 and plays this and it didn’t seem to bother him but my parants think the same way you do and it realy annoys me because I think it should be rated t for teen
November 11th, 2010 at 11:44 am
Thanks for this review, and all these comments. Just yesterday, we had our Scouts meeting. This weekend is our planning campout, where we plan the next years campouts, meetings, etc. and we bring our Xbox’s and PS3′s and play multiplayer together between planning sessions and Saturday night. For the last 7 years (Since Halo: CE came out) our troop has been playing team slayer together every year for said campout. Now this year, our new scoutmaster who doesn’t like video games told us that we can bring games, sure, but no Halo, because it is too violent for us. Our youngest scout is 13. We tried to get him to change his mind with solid arguments, but it was a very one-sided conversation, he wouldn’t even listen to our arguments as to why we should be able to play, and because of this, almost half our troop isn’t showing up to plan the year. Because of this devastating fact, I am currently gathering quotes from sites and reviews to present to him the night of the campout, and hope that he acknoledges them without prejudice against games. Thanks a million.
Any quotes I have used have been credited to you, and again,
Thanks for the help,
Sincerely,
Tyler
November 30th, 2010 at 8:02 pm
To: Aaron
You said “I agree with your review, this game is okay for most children when it comes to offline play… When it comes to online play, the language used by other xbox live members is ridiculous and obscene, and most of it coming from teenagers too. I think it would be wise to keep children off of xbox live.”
You do entirely realize that because the teens on xbox live are constantly swearing, that the teen in question already KNOWS all of the words the others are using, right? It’s not like it makes a difference. I’d honestly bet if I went into a high school hallway now, I would hear more cuss words in one day then I would in the whole entirety of Call of Duty: Black Ops, Modern Warfare 2 and one combined. Averages include:
10-15 F-bombs
10-20 S-words
5-10 Damns (not very popular)
25-40 Ass
10-15 Bitch
As you can see, It’s pretty much an epidemic, pretty much unstoppable.
Therefore, any language you hear online is regular and is probably heard on a daily basis in school, so not getting a teenager a video games is NOT going to affect him on that standard.
November 30th, 2010 at 8:03 pm
To: AngryScout XD
Please refer to my above argument, and Halo in general has very little blood, and in the early ones, the blood is almost like spraypaint.
December 8th, 2010 at 4:20 am
It’s rated MA in Australia which is the highest rating you can get in this country. Try convincing your parents to let you buy this one over here.
December 12th, 2010 at 10:52 pm
for all the parents out there that are concerned about what their kids play, i would say that halo reach does not deserve the title as an M game. If only the parents would spend some time playing the game, maybe they would change their minds. In conclusion, I would say the appropriate age would be 14 and older.
December 12th, 2010 at 10:57 pm
Oh and I would also say that the younger then 14 year old group should avoid this game due to the fact that they may confuse this with real life situations. But that doesn’t go for all of them. Some may be mature enough to understand it.
December 14th, 2010 at 6:49 pm
I think it should be rated teen. I have a game (call of duty 3 for ps2) and it is rated teen for blood, vilonce and language. Halo Reach is rated M for Blood and vilonce.
December 17th, 2010 at 8:06 pm
Alright so I’m 13 and in a Christian family and everything and i REALLY like halo. I play it (although not as much as I want to) at my friends house and it is an amazing franchise. I had saved up 300$ so I could buy an XBOX 360 and some games, and I was hoping this would be one, but my parents think differently. They beleive that I can’t handle the language in this game. They are uncomfortable with the violence, but the language is bad. They also think that it was rated M for a reason and they won’t let me buy it until I’m quote on quote “Mature”. Somebody help!
December 18th, 2010 at 4:09 pm
hi I’m 12 and i have been trying to convince my parents (mostly my mom) to let me into the Halo franchise. This Christmas, i am doing enough chores to get an xbox 360 and i want to also get Halo: Reach with it. i myself have played halo 3 and have tried to convince my parents that halo is seriously not a M worthy game. But when my parents see the M on the box, they automatically think it is like GTA, GOW, COD, or some other very M game. Need help before Christmas!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Help!
December 18th, 2010 at 5:08 pm
I need help immediately!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Please…….
December 19th, 2010 at 8:17 pm
Halo should be rated T for teen. COD isn’t that bad either. Unfortunately, most parents do automatically think Grand Theft Auto when they see “M” In school you hear countless swears, and if a teenager can’t handle purple blood then they are half retarded.
December 25th, 2010 at 1:36 pm
You should buy this for your 14 year old the day after christmas.
It’s what any loving parent would do.
December 25th, 2010 at 5:57 pm
THIS GAME IS SO FUN. WHY ARE ALL MY LETTERS BIG? HOW DO I MEET MS. PAC MAN? I WANT TO PLAY PONG ON KINNECT. I ALSO RECCOMMEND SUPER MARIO FOR THE XBOX. I KNOW SOMEONE IN COLLEGE WHO LOVE VIDEO GAMES AND HE SAYS THAT HALO REACH IS THE BEST GAME EVER. I AM ONLY 14 BUT SOMETIMES MY DAD SWEARS AT ME AND ATTACKS ME WITH A MACHETE, SO THERE IS NOTHING IN THIS VIDEO GAME I HAVE NOT ALREADY SURVIVED. I AM GOING TO JOIN THE ARMY NOW BECAUSE I CAN. CAN I BRING MY ENERGY SWORD WITH ME? I HAVE TO GO BRUSH MY TEETH NOW. WHERE THE HELL IS MY PADDED HELMET?
December 30th, 2010 at 8:50 pm
to Gabe and any one who needs help
To your parents its like a movie series if the first on is pg the second on will be pg. In 2000 when halo 1 came out that was there standard of mature now its different but the first on was m so its eayer to just keep the m on the box it worked for m now i can play all the halos but no other m games and also say your mature enough to seperate fantasy from reality and your not gonna go arround killing aliens lol jk you cant kill aliens but im serious i did tat in good old 07 when halo 3 came out and now i can play all of them.
January 3rd, 2011 at 5:11 pm
Gamerdad is very right i do not think halo reach deserves an M rating im very much regretting renting left 4 dead and when my mom saw it she freaked and now she thinks all M rated games are innappropriate but i will show her this review and hope for the best. by the way my gamertag is L4Dmaniac17.
January 6th, 2011 at 3:25 am
I think that halo reach is a fairly violent game, but definately good for 12+, maybe 13+ if you have a problem with bad language.
I thought it was a terrible game because the esrb rating is M, and I have seen horrible games that are rated M like GTA, but this should definately not be M and I am happy for my 12 year old son to play it.
Good for teenagers.
January 7th, 2011 at 5:38 pm
I’m 14 and I love the halo games. When I told my mom I wanted to play she freaked out. So she borrowed a copy of odst from my friend. It sat on the counter for a while. Then she told me she told me she was going to watch me play. Afterwords she said it looked like first person star wars. But when I go to get reach. My mom and dad say it’s evil and it is m for a reason. I bought it and then my dad is making me do 2 weeks of extra homework. Please help.
January 8th, 2011 at 9:04 pm
Im in the same situation as pretty much all of you. Im almost 14 and even my mom says im pretty mature for my age. and yet, i still cant play anything with “m” on the cover. I play Reach at my friends house all the time, and its really not bad. Im allowed to play Star Wars Republic Commando and its T for strong language, strong blood and gore, and strong violence. Halo Reach is M for violence and blood. When my brother’s friend left the manual for Black Ops over, my dad freaked out. Help?
January 10th, 2011 at 1:01 pm
halo have no much core flood are the thing john carpenter same core and elites are predators i watched predator 2 hunter huh not even close halo should be rated teen
February 12th, 2011 at 12:58 pm
So, which game should i get? Halo 1, 2, 3, ODST, or Reach?
February 15th, 2011 at 7:53 pm
u should play through all off them if u can
February 24th, 2011 at 2:01 pm
Wow, thank you all for the comments. They have been amazingly helpful and baffling, depending on the comment. My son has been asking for Halo: Reach for some time now, so this gives me some information to start with. Other parents might also want to check out commonsensemedia.org for more parent reviews.
February 27th, 2011 at 10:47 pm
Thank you so much gamerdad. I am 13 and from the United States. I have been trying to convince my parents, “mostly my mom” that this game is not that harmful. When she hears “M” she thinks of sex and nudity. I still haven’t showed them this yet, so I’ll try tomorrow. But once again thank you so much!
March 6th, 2011 at 10:45 pm
My grandson is 8 and his dad on their visits are playing Halo…And he is buying him the toys also…. Please someone respond to 8 years and if they should be playing at that age.
March 8th, 2011 at 8:30 am
any halo game is OK trust me only kids under 9 shouldn’t be allowed play
but otherwise it is OK
March 15th, 2011 at 9:45 am
Halo Reach should be T but not for 11 year olds and down
March 18th, 2011 at 3:57 pm
Well for a while my mom wouldn’t let me even play teen games and now its not M. What she thinks is that the letter on the box is a guideline, what it is is a suggestion. So does the letter mean Ec games should not be played by teens? T s by adults? That’s my case. I do play at my friends houses, and to state some are younger than me that’s just sad. Plus I was reading a comic today that described a game with blood violence that was rated T.
March 27th, 2011 at 11:02 am
Golly! I have been trying and trying to get Halo Reach for so long. I have tried everything, commonsensemedia.org , I’ve tried showing them youtube videos of it, everything. None of it worked because they read an article about a teenager who killed his parents because of Halo. They aren’t budging. I just turned 13 in February and all of my friends have Halo Reach but I don’t, can you help me out?
April 4th, 2011 at 7:25 am
thank you making this site, my best friend has halo reach and iv played it, and i barly hear any swearing, we both think it should be rated teen. plus there only purple or blue blood from aliens which looks like bright spray paint. ( forge is awesome
April 8th, 2011 at 8:30 am
Dont know if any1 reads this still but something about assasination is it isnt required 1 u can just melee them like the old halo and still get the 1 hit and 2 ive played T games where u do much worse stabbing even in lord of the rings u flip them on their back and impale them in the stomach.
April 8th, 2011 at 4:12 pm
I have halo reach and the only reason its m is because the other ones were.
April 28th, 2011 at 9:16 pm
the only reason this game should be rated m is because of blood it is just as violent as a teen rated shooting game where you stab shoot and kill each other .
June 4th, 2011 at 9:40 am
Want a way to get Reach without having to go through all the mature parent stuff? Go to Xbox Marketplace and hit Buy on Halo: Reach. Press Microsoft Points. Then, get yourself 4800 MS Points, and buy it. Boom, you’re done.
Reach should definitely NOT be rated M. I think so, my friends think so, and just about everyone who’s played Reach thinks so. The blood is minimal, assassinations are optional, and most of the time its humans versus aliens.
June 4th, 2011 at 9:44 am
It’s not as violent as GTA (I HAVE played GTA at a friends ONCE, and THAT game deserves an M rating, hands down. People burning, foul foul language, prostitutes… THAT is what deserves an M or AO.) REACH is FAR from that level. And yes, I do know some basic HTML.
June 7th, 2011 at 10:00 pm
halo shouldnt be rated m i mean poeple say its cause of assanations but i have dark void there is a melee that has you guy knee the alien grap his jaw and fill him with lead from behind i mean that games teen and has more tags than halo for gods sakes
June 7th, 2011 at 10:06 pm
also blood splatters all over the screen and when you kill them you can kick there limbs around i mean come on bungie really!!!
June 8th, 2011 at 11:12 am
I deffinately agree that halo should be rated t. I am 13 and my parents dont let me play any m games. But I agree that I should not be aloud to play most such gta or codbo or homefront. But halo should really be rated t. When I was 7 most of my friends had most of the halo series.Thats only because a few didnt come out yet. This game is as harmless as brink or conduit 2.
June 8th, 2011 at 11:18 am
Me again. Just one more thing. If you have a kid 15 or lower playing halo dont let them get online. Unless they dont have a hedset. Just a tip. NO ONLINE. Dont talk to anyone online on halo. Otherwise it is fine.
June 10th, 2011 at 7:31 pm
even with blood just look not as much i remeber in Combat evolved if you have you shields up and get hit by a charged plasma pistol THATS a blood bath And in reach blood usally comes out when your shields are down and you only here the “colorful” language mostly heading to the covenat or how ever you spell i COD and GTA has language not even heard in Halo Plus even though you could accidently shoot a teammate the cpu marine will just get mad lowly or mildly and this is a Futureistic fantasy game obviously because you are fighting aliens not human VS human. Also i only recomened XBOX live with players you know and trust if you are atleast 13-15 years of and 16-17 years should be smart enough not to get mad at others and ignore there strange names so if your parents let you i’m happy for you to atleast play campaign offline so if you do get it good look with the new world!
June 11th, 2011 at 12:07 am
this is really a overdone rating my xbox is downloading the demo just new and i am afraid i will get in trouble …
that sucks
June 11th, 2011 at 6:54 pm
Dudes totally right but on thing only 13 and up I pen this game and it is 13 and up or should be
June 12th, 2011 at 8:30 pm
One more think this game is as harmless as brink Maby a bit less than brink
June 14th, 2011 at 6:55 pm
Hey gamerdad I asked my mom if I could get halo reach but she said no and I told here to take a look at this article I don’t think she did I am 13 by the way please help
June 18th, 2011 at 1:16 pm
Okay…you and the other four ‘real life’ parents we talked to have all convinced us that Halo is acceptable for our children. Thank you for the up front reviews and comments.
June 23rd, 2011 at 4:25 pm
i am 11. My dad thinks its a fine game. My mom not so much. But i finally got it. MY MOM WAS WRONG! Halo Reach rocks.
July 12th, 2011 at 4:58 pm
I discovered halo in grade 3 It is amazing. halo is more good than bad. Blood not so much
Assassinations only when behind player
Language no often
Reach great
Halo 3 great
July 13th, 2011 at 12:15 pm
i am 11 and my mom thinks halo is terible but now after watching me play it she let me play it.
July 13th, 2011 at 1:00 pm
i let my kids play it when they turned 11 they can only play firefight and forge not the missions they say damn it and stuff thats why. i also have a 9 year old and i also let him play it to be fair.
July 13th, 2011 at 1:01 pm
i let my kids play it when they turned 11 they can only play firefight and forge not the missions they say damn it and stuff thats why. i also have a 9 year old and i also let him play it to be fair.
July 22nd, 2011 at 12:16 am
Im 14 and my mom wont let me get any m games. She decides COMPLETELY based on the rating. Any time I ask for a game she asks, “What’s it rated?” My dad thinks the same. For her, M=drugs, sex, etc… She even thinks Just Cause 2 is more appropriate and that has drugs and profanity. I need help to convince her. I’ll show her this article.
August 8th, 2011 at 4:49 pm
Here is my problem, my mom i have basically persuaded to let me get halo Reach but it is my dad i have to worry about. The reason… simple it is rated M, once i sad GTA and he got all mad at me and stuff, my friend was over and he forced him home. I have the demo and the only “bad” word i hear is dam (off course it is the other one but you get the point). About the assassination they are not as bad as other games might have. I have also read that Halo Reach is more mild than a rated T game, and that the reason why it is rated M is because of the multiplayer mode where lots of people say bad words, however i have heard about double of that at school than on halo reach multiplayer, which you can mute (i know because i play at my friends house but now my dad won’t let me go to there house because the play halo and C.O.D). the blood isn’t really blood it is more like blue glow in the dark stuff, or purple spray paint. Finally i will show my dad this page and hopefully this will succeed and i will be playing halo. Who knows maybe i will get gold and will be able to play online.
August 12th, 2011 at 12:41 am
i think multiplyer should be mature but campaing should be teen
August 16th, 2011 at 1:51 pm
I’m so sick of my mom rejecting this game. Wheres the bad language, the drugs? Not to mention Iv’e played worse games (Black ops etc.) at my cousin’s house for hours, and I’m fine. I don’t even know what harm an M rated game could cause, let me guess, NONE. I dont understand why I woudn’t be able to handle it. I’m 11, and a pretty mature 11 year old at that. Respond and tell me what you think.
August 17th, 2011 at 8:00 pm
I agree im only eleven and my freind anthony sneeks it over when he stays the night but my dad wont let me have the game
August 20th, 2011 at 12:38 pm
I don’t have a XBOX but I have a ps3 I’m getting a XBOX my dad is thinking about letting me have it and I beat call of duty black ops campaign in two days but my mom doesn’t know I played black ops I’ll show my parents this blog
August 22nd, 2011 at 9:30 am
all my freind s can get call of duty black opps but not me
im sneaking it in no difreent from all the other fit person shooters
September 6th, 2011 at 11:59 pm
Should be a 12 cause im des[erate to play it but i cant cause im not 16/15 years old.
:(:(:(:(:(
September 11th, 2011 at 7:11 am
Listen guys im getting an Xbox 360 for my thirteenth birthday in March 2012 and my friends are planning to get me Halo 3 and Halo 3: ODST, so i won’t have any problems with convincing my parents to get them, but since my parents don’t know I like these tipe of games ill find it hard to get them to let me play it. By the way I live in Italy (im half Australian and half Italian) but my parents always read news about what happens to kids around the world that play violent games. I’ve played C.O.D. Black ops at my friends house for years and its not like I go around killing people or sware… i’m quite responsible and mature but I still don’t know if that’s gonna help… Please help me guys, tell me wat to say to my parents when i get the game.
P.S.: Don’t say stuff like the violence is not realistic or the blood looks fake or stuff like that cause it ain’t gonna help…just stuff i could say like the violence in the game won’t affect my behaviour. Please help!
September 13th, 2011 at 7:20 pm
I can play hal oand cod but my parents wont let me play any other m games even tame ones like borderlands
September 13th, 2011 at 7:21 pm
*halo
September 20th, 2011 at 12:59 pm
So you really think they would let me play?
October 9th, 2011 at 7:24 pm
Ok well I am 15 and am from the Uk and quite honestly some of the comments I have read above are very biased uneducated and single minded. I have the whole halo collection have played through each one and can say it’s not as bad as people say on this page for there is next to no cussing, little blood and a more fantasy styled combat compared to games like Call of Duty Black Ops which I have played through which involves torture, dismemberment, one occasion of playing Russian roulette, one occasion of watching someone die from necrosis and interrogating somebody by forcing glass shards into there mouth and punching them in the chin and lips. That all came from Call of Duty which I think deserves it’s 18+ rating while Halo has none of that it is more based on the gameplay factor of the player it doesn’t have gore, nudity and sex, drug abuse or genocide (like somebody said) or bad language I think it’s fun if I want a break from the big shooters because it’s quite comical in some ways and you don’t even see a knife in the assassinations also generally i just go on it to talk to friends and have a laugh or goof around on the map maker it’s allot of friendly fun and as for online play you can easily block or mute disruptive players and you can set up child accounts where parents can set who is spoken to online and what ratings the children are allowed to see. Also being a gamer I am quite successful academically and am not rude so games do not have negative effects on people don’t be gullible and listen to all these “scientific” study’s research the matter and make your own opinion. Also Halo’s narrative is quite interesting and has had many successful teen novels rote about it surly the books would be 18+ to if it was that dangerous.
So there is a totally mature response for the matter from a 15 year old gamer so unlike so and so’s very stereotypical comment about all gamers are immature they are not.
November 9th, 2011 at 3:14 am
I want to get this game with an XBox 360 because then I could get Halo Reach and Halo 3. I can’t get one now because I got a PS3 recently and my Mum says I can’t get it, BUT, I’ve got Assassin’s Creed, Assassin’s Creed II and Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood. They are both M Rated and MA15+ and AC2 has the f**k like, 5 dialogue times, plus 3 times in Italian and people randomly say things like “What the f**k?” in an Italian accent. I can’t get Halo Reach in Australia because my parents say oh, no it’s MA15+! WHAT GAMES DO THEY LET ME PLAY!!! They don’t care if I play The Witcher 2, Dragon Age II, Halo: Combat Evolved, Assassin’s Creed (all of them) Borderlands, CoD, [PROTOTYPE], and a whole bunch of MMA15+ games!!!
November 10th, 2011 at 8:45 pm
i have halo 3 and i’m am 10. it is fine hardly any blood or gore. there is no language also
November 10th, 2011 at 9:00 pm
Ive been trying to get a halo game since i was 6 but now im 11 and when reach came out it all came back to me so i need HELP PLEASE!!!11
November 13th, 2011 at 11:02 am
I got Halo 3 its fine only swears two or three times I getting Halo reach soon but my parents dunno what to do if they gonna not let me have it since a friend is giving it to me
November 14th, 2011 at 1:48 am
My son is 8yrs. old and he really wants halo reach for christmas. He has played it over at a friends house. I’m just not sure if he should have it. Any advice? Can anyone recommend any non-violent games that would be cool to an 8yr. old?
November 14th, 2011 at 2:12 pm
Ok look all who are below at least 12 should not play. My dad loves halo but my mom hates it. Cod is faaaaar worse and needs the M rating all the halos should be rated T not M. My mom is prejudiced against m games cause of GTA and GOW and those are worse and midnight launch of HALO COMBAT EVOLVED ANNIVERSARY TONITE WILL BE ON YOUTUBE
username:ascii211
November 14th, 2011 at 4:52 pm
yeah i’m almost 15 (i’m trying to get reach for my birthday) and my dad wants me to do all this research because he is positive that if i play one game of halo reach (which i already have), i will start murdering people in cold blood with my DMR and Magnum pistol. He just doesn’t get it. I’m sure he won’t approve of me commenting on this site, sure that i’ll get stalked and murdered or something, but if somebody could leave a really convincing comment that would be great. thanks for the review gamerdad, and all the parents that let their kids play (at the right age of course), because it shows that even parents can understand what teens find fun about Halo
December 13th, 2011 at 6:21 pm
thank you!
December 19th, 2011 at 2:48 pm
I’m also having this problem, I’m 10 and my mom thinks that rated M games are curse filled and inappropiate, But i must say, Online gaming doesnt have to be bad , you can go to settings and change it so you can only talk to friends, I do this. I also tell my mom ill turn off the sound and that usually works.
December 21st, 2011 at 11:03 am
im a christian and my mom says halo goes against our beliefs. God says Thiu shall not murder. i say to my mom that we kill animals and bugs every day and God lets us kill animals for food and clothing. BUT I CANT KILL SOMETHING THAT DOESNT EXIST!!!!!!
halo isnt that violent iv seen my friend play it. even if you run somebody over you theres no blood.. and the assasination happens so fast and u dont even hear a snap. when the spartans stab a victim blood doesnt even spew out all you see is some yellow static. plus u could always turn off the mic when ur online
December 22nd, 2011 at 9:56 am
Halo is a the least violent m game ever. I never let my kids play m games but this one is an exception.im the strictest parent out there I only let my kids watch 30 min of tv even on weekends. I played this game myself and it’s not violent. Ya there’s blood but it’s spray paint and the character doesn’t spew it out. It’s not a bloodbath. This should be rated t. Iv seen more violent t games. Let ur kids play this. If there mature enough I’d day 13+
December 30th, 2011 at 12:30 pm
I have played halo 3 odst before with cousins before and my mom was OK with it then i got halo reach and my mom was OK with it then my reach broke then my mom went to gamestop to get a new reach but the guy who works there said it was for m 17 and up then i realized gamestop is the worst because when i went to microcenter to buy a reach and the guys who worked there didn’t care i was 10 because it was m.if you want to go somewhere good to get a halo reach i prefer microcenter
January 5th, 2012 at 10:15 pm
I just don’t get it. Why is it rated “M”? Halo: Reach has next to no blood, and when there is it looks like the juice on Fruit Gusher commercials and isn’t red; if you fight aliensSOMETIMES blood will come out, and if it does its green or blue. The humans can bleed too, but only if you go by their dead unmoving body and shoot them a gazillion times. Besides, the humans are all in armour. You cant even see a guy dying because he has a “snowmobile” helmet (it looks like it) and armour on. You can’t see ONE INCH of some Spartans (the human supersoldiers that you play as) body, it’s only armour. That leads me to another point.
My mom doesn’t like any games that involve fighting, hunting or guns. Ive been playing games like this for as long as I could remember, but my mom now thinks that they are horrible and a disgrace to the world (my birth mother died and now I have a stepmother). Anyway, she hates these kinds of games and the assassination part in Halo is no exception to her. However, has she ever seen Halo Reach? NO. I play it at my cousins house whenever I go there and its my favourite game ever. Whenever the throutslitting (assassination) happens, all you see is your player coming up from behind and grabbing an alien, then a chime comes on that represents the cut and it’s over. No blood, no gore, the darn things head doesnt even fall off! I have no idea why this is calked Mature and why my mom thinks it’s terrible.
By a show of hands, how many 10-and-under kids play Halo Reach? Well I know that lots would be playing Halo if I asked this to people that I could actually see, not a computer. If your parents let u play, thats fine. But kids like you shouldn’t be playing. But for any kid/teen/adult/senior 10/11 and up, they should be able to play.
My thoughts: Halo can be bad, but if you are mature enough to see a bit of blood and fighting, you should be good to go and ready to play!
Rating:”T” or in other word 10 and up (10if you actually are ready for shooting games. If you arent, stick to Mario or something).
January 10th, 2012 at 9:59 am
I’m 13, 14 on saturday the 14th
but my parents wont let me get it 
I’ve played it at my friend’s and it’s really not that bad. My parents have always strictly followed the guidelines, when i was 11 i was allowed to play a 12 and even then, i got it for christmas, less than a month before my birthday. My mum says “that was a big mistake” I’m in a christian family and never swear at home (school is a different story :p) My mum said that she’ll “look into it” which is good, i’ll show her this. It doesn’t help that she watched a TV program or something about a boy who killed his parents and owned halo 3 (i mean, it’s probably nothalo that made him kill them, it was probably something that his parents did to him) Wow, i never write this much (this is longer than my R.S. Essay, LOL!) I’m going to ask my mum to get me a piece of paper that says “you are allowed to play Halo: Reach” 
i’ll tell you if it works or not (wish me luck) bye for now!
January 14th, 2012 at 10:09 am
January 18th, 2012 at 8:00 am
I’m 11 and have the same problem as most of u. My parents let me play black ops but not any Halo game. I’ll show this to my parents and hope for best
January 18th, 2012 at 7:53 pm
MY GRANDMA WONT LET MEH HAVE HALO:REACH AND I HAVE SPENT HOURS LOOKING UP RESEARCH AND SHE WONT EVEN LOOK AT IT WTF PLEASE HELP MEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!IM TURNING 12 JANUARY 21 2012 PLEASE HELPPP!!!!!!!!!!
January 18th, 2012 at 7:53 pm
she wont let me play any halo game!
January 18th, 2012 at 7:54 pm
she thinks that just becuase its rated m that i cant get it till im 17 >:U
January 18th, 2012 at 7:54 pm
>:O
January 18th, 2012 at 7:55 pm
RIDICULAS
January 18th, 2012 at 7:57 pm
just cuz she clikced on the add to cart button on the walmart website and then a thing popped up saying u must be 17 to purchase or somthin like that and so she thinks that i have to be 17 or somthin i think!!!!!!!
January 19th, 2012 at 7:28 pm
soo plis help me
January 25th, 2012 at 10:17 pm
Help me! My parents just think that any rated m game is bad, all they care about is the rating
) :
February 2nd, 2012 at 1:00 pm
Sir, I could not agree with you more. I first played Halo 2 when I was 13 (my parents were against violence, so i snuck it in my basement). It was the first shooter I had ever played, and I was shocked at how little the violence was compared to what I was expecting. It was just Battlefront with some food coloring splattered on the walls. It irritate’s me when I play games like TF2 or Gears of War at my friends house how little the gore factor is in comparison.
February 3rd, 2012 at 7:46 am
i am 15 i can play masss effect so i can play halo series too
February 9th, 2012 at 4:32 pm
OMG YES MY GRANDMA FINNALLY GOT ME HALO THREE ODST
February 15th, 2012 at 9:02 pm
Halo is not nearly as violent as Grand Theft Auto, Call of Duty: Black Ops, or Skyrim. You’re fighting aliens the whole time, and most of it is green, blue, purple, etc. And there is not very much human blood (only if you see the aliens attack your soldiers, or you shoot them). More language when you get to the middle/end of the game, but no F bombs. They say God’s name in vain, but very rarely. I personally think it should have been rated T, but it was probs M because of the blood being on the walls and stuff. It’s not that incredibly violent. It has the least amount of violence i’ve seen in any rated M game. Ok for 11 and 12 years olds. My 9 and 10 year old sisters play it.
February 15th, 2012 at 9:04 pm
And you don’t have to be 17 to play a rated M game. It’s up to the adult. In some places, you have to be a certain age to buy rated M games, but not play them. I repeat: HALO IS NOT THAT VIOLENT!!!
February 15th, 2012 at 9:06 pm
Btw I’m 13, and I started playing Halo when I was 11. But different families have different rules
February 15th, 2012 at 10:12 pm
I was about 9 when I first starting playing halo 1 and it wasn’t at all violent and hardly any swearing. It has an effect on your personality so just don’t play it too much. Other than that I agree
February 19th, 2012 at 12:37 pm
AND MY GRANDMA FINALLY GOT ME HALO REACH!!!!!:D but she wont let me go online and play D:
February 20th, 2012 at 8:34 am
I actually agree with Halo Person. It has effected my personality a little, so I try to limit it and other games. Unless I’m with my dad, I usually do 1 hour of violent games a week.
February 21st, 2012 at 10:56 am
I’m having major trouble getting just cause 2. My dad disapproved because of headshots being too bloody and violent, which i don’t get. I’ve gotten away with games like Skyrim and Halo Reach, so why wont he let me get this game? Please help! I’ve wanted this game FOREVER and need advice! (I am age 11)
February 26th, 2012 at 9:25 am
Parents said no but I’m confident that it will work this time
March 9th, 2012 at 10:21 pm
All who say it is for 14 and up i highly dissagree it isnt wether your age is its how mature you are sure im 11 but i get great grades and as reward i can get games like this as long as you keep up with your work you should be fine.Oh thx gamerdad i had to prove to my mother the game was good like many others she sometimes thinks m meens no but my dead is fine as long as im not showing any attitudes or ecsesive gaming so try wat i did maby better luck.
March 9th, 2012 at 10:22 pm
up obove were it says dead im ment dad.srry:P
March 10th, 2012 at 6:04 pm
GOT THE REACH
IM SO HAPPY IT IS SO FUN I LOVE FORAGER I BUILT A PLACE CALLED THE JUMP IT IS A HUGE JUMP THAT IS LIKE THE GRAN CANYON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I cant make the jump thow 
ima making a strait away to pick up speed. I highly think the game isnt bad in campaign they drop the f bomb like 1-2 times and they say sh__ like 6 times so not bad alien blood is blue marine is read cod has way more blood i think the game is great so get it if youre alowd ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh i think the age limit is 11-12 not bad at all should be rated t not m show this comment if youre parents think its bad.
March 25th, 2012 at 3:48 am
i can play mass effect halo wont be a problem to me
March 30th, 2012 at 12:09 pm
halo reach is only rated M since the creators dident want to feel limited when they made it
March 30th, 2012 at 7:55 pm
I am sincerley tired that my my mother thinks Halo Reach is bad. I just got in trouble for playing it today,and I think that GamerDad can convince my mom. Thank You Gamer dad! Even though i’m eleven I should play Halo Reah right guys! Me,GamerDad,My Dad,And you guys are smart.
April 13th, 2012 at 6:15 pm
Ok, all of you! It is not that parents don’t think that kids can handle language and violence. The problem is that none of that stuff is good for their minds and their spirits! It’s not good for anyone of any age, no matter how you argue it. As to the Scout leaders having video games at Scout camp, are you serious? Really?
May 22nd, 2012 at 4:06 pm
Ive tried everything but this and my dad gets angry whenever I true to persuade him. Please help I’m 11 and need help!
August 7th, 2012 at 6:45 pm
like the dude above me, im 11 but my parents just wont let me play halo! i’ve tried and tried, but it won’t work! all my freinds have got halo, i feel really left out! If my mum was like my dad, i bet i’d have it in no time! he is so easy to break. first he says no, the eventually he says: ok, ok, yes! i’m gonna try a trick, you guys could too! go online and type in: pegi 12 sign. go on images and copy and paste it onto microsoft word of whatever. compare it to a real pegi 12 and resize it until it’s just about right. print it off. go out and say your gonna buy something, but buy halo. on the way home, remove the plastic of the box and stck the pegi 12 over the 16. make sure you do it really neat so they don’t suspect anything. if your parents search the web to see if it really is a 12, just say: “that must be outdated, cos this is definatly 12!” hope i helped!
August 9th, 2012 at 11:47 pm
Im 12 and my mom is making me watch documentaries about slave abuse, barbarians, and extremely violent stuff in general. My dad has to see something first, but my mom always says
its a definite no just because its M. I tried to tell them i can turn off blood in Black Ops. Guess what, still no. My dad says maybe, and if i show him he’ll think its alright. The thing is, he says maybe to Black Ops but no to Reach because its M. What kind of logic is that?
August 10th, 2012 at 12:45 am
I just showed my dad Reach, and he was wondering why I want it. He says it’s just like games I have already. I can’t tell if he thinks it’s appropriate, but I think he does. All I did was show him a video of the campaign and tell him that the ESRB was being a lazyass when they rated it(using less cussing), so I’ll post on this forum if he lets me get it the next time I go to GameStop.
August 11th, 2012 at 6:40 am
For those of you who think black ops is inapropriate think again I’m 12 an my mom will let me get black ops because of the ability to turn down blood and gore and language.
August 26th, 2012 at 9:12 am
Hi, I have a (mostly) mature boy of 10 1/2 – desperately wants to play Halo Reach. What’s confusing is that the online version on xbox market (is M) whereas the DVD is rated MA 15+ at the shop (we can’t down load the live version) …. and he tells me they are the same. He’s not allowed to watch anything that is MA 15+ – but I understand how much he loves the story line and wants to play this game … UNDER PRESSURE CONSTANTLY…. he doesn’t play anything else that is MA 15+ (but I know he has at friends places as he hangs out with older boys)… so is there a difference between the M and MA15+ version? Advice gratefully received!
October 7th, 2012 at 7:24 pm
@gamerdad
Would you think this game could fit into the teen rating?
October 11th, 2012 at 5:01 pm
I’m a parent with a 16 year old and an 9 year old boy. Like every parent I am somewhat protective but certainly don’t want to be oppressive because my kids have to grow up and experience life for themselves – the good the bad, the boredom the fun. But games like Halo Reach and now Halo 4 do put me in a big adult quandry. It’s balancing the “well violence and bad language happen all the time and they’re exposed to so much worse already so what harm can it do?” versus the “if you immerse them in even more violence and allow them to be surrounded by even more bad language, especially in a game that is so incredibly addictive, then how is it possible they won’t be affected?”… That old chestnut!
My added dilemma is my 9 year old who adores his 16 year old brother and just wants to do everything the older one does. Whether I like it or not, I am not around to police every moment of TV, computer and game use and I know for sure that whatever bars I put up, somehow the kids will take a rebellious pleasure in trying to knock down – preferably without being caught. So then for me, it seems that to protect the younger from this environment, I simply have to prevent the older. It seems so unfair to the individual, I can imagine, but I keep reminding myself that we are a family not a group of separate “do what the hell I like and if you don’t like it that’s your problem” type individuals.
It’s SO difficult being a good parent because there are so many perspectives. And I did not study politics at school. Ahhhhh!!!!!…..
November 15th, 2012 at 6:43 pm
im 13 and my parents allowed me halo reach after 1.5 years of asking + it was my friend who gave it to me but it really depend if your child is mature or not now that halo 4 is come out my dad won’t let me buy it even if i have reach but it really depends on your child…
November 29th, 2012 at 6:04 am
I don’t have halo.i play halo4 at my friends house and there is no gore a little blood and no language .i think it should be rated T…stupid ESRB
January 5th, 2013 at 4:10 am
I am 14 years old and i agree, there is nothing wrong with this game.
March 19th, 2013 at 7:40 am
i also agree because the worst thing in the game is the assanations which isn’t that bad at all.