Superbouncing is one of the most iconic and beloved glitches in Halo 2 history. This exploit allows players to launch themselves to incredible heights by exploiting terrain flaws and crouching mechanics. Discovered shortly after the game's release in November 2004, superbouncing became a defining feature of Halo 2's multiplayer experience and spawned an entire community of dedicated "bouncers."

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What is Superbouncing?

Superbouncing is a physics exploit that causes players to be launched extremely high into the air when landing on specific points in the map geometry. The glitch works by:

1. Triggering a crouching glitch in certain low areas
2. Maintaining a "charged" state while moving
3. Landing precisely on polygon seams (the lines where map surfaces meet)

When executed correctly, the game's physics engine applies massive corrective force to the player, resulting in a dramatic vertical launch that can send players soaring above the entire map.

Platform Note: This glitch only works on the original Xbox version of Halo 2 and Halo 2 Vista (with specific settings). It was effectively patched in the PC version and behaves differently in the Master Chief Collection due to framerate changes.

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History & Discovery

Superbouncing was discovered by the Halo community in late 2004, shortly after Halo 2's November 9th release. The first widely-known superbounce was found on Zanzibar - specifically the glass window area near the Camp Froman base entrance. This location became legendary because the polygon seam was easily accessible and the bounce was relatively consistent.

Timeline

• November 2004: Halo 2 releases; first bounces discovered accidentally
• December 2004 - 2005: Community rapidly catalogs bounce locations across all maps
• 2005-2007: "Bouncing crews" form; montage videos become popular
• 2010: Halo 2 removed from Xbox Live; bouncing continues offline
• 2014: Halo MCC releases with modified physics, changing bounce viability
• Present: Community tools like MCCBounceEnable restore classic bouncing

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How It Works

Step 1: Triggering the Crouch Glitch

The foundation of every superbounce is the crouching glitch. In certain areas of Halo 2 maps, there are spaces with low ceilings where:

• Players can enter while crouched
• The space is too short to stand up in
• Upon releasing the crouch button, the player remains crouched

This creates a desynchronization between the player's collision model and their visual state. The game thinks you should be standing, but the geometry forces you to remain crouched.

Finding Crouch Spots: Look for areas like:

• Slanted surfaces with narrow gaps underneath
• Spaces between structures and terrain
• Areas near ramps or angled geometry

Step 2: Maintaining the Charge

Once you've triggered the crouch glitch:

• Keep moving - stopping will reset your state
• Don't press crouch again - this cancels the charge
• Navigate to a landing spot while maintaining momentum

Step 3: Landing on Polygon Seams

The final step is landing on a polygon seam - the invisible lines where different surface polygons meet. These seams are everywhere in the map geometry.

Pro Tip: Press Start and enter your friends list, then back out. For a split second, you'll see the map's gridlines rendered. These lines show exactly where polygon seams are located.

When your charged model lands on a seam:

1. You briefly clip into the geometry
2. The game applies enormous force to push you out
3. This force launches you upward at high velocity

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Types of Bounces

Standard Super Bounces

The basic superbounce achieved by landing on a single polygon seam. Height varies based on the specific location and landing precision.

Monster Bounces

Monster bounces achieve significantly greater heights than standard bounces. They occur in two situations:

1. Multiple gridlines - Landing on an area where several polygon seams intersect, causing multiple collision corrections
2. V-shaped seams - Landing where gridlines form a narrow V pattern, creating a compound launch effect

The most famous monster bounces include:

• Headlong Monster - Launches players above the entire map
• Big Crane Bounce - Reaches the top of Headlong's crane
• X-Building - Named for the crossed struts where it's performed

Pressure Launches

A related but distinct technique where geometry pressure launches the player without clipping into the map. Most commonly seen on Relic and in later Halo games.

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Map-by-Map Guide

Zanzibar

The birthplace of superbouncing. Zanzibar features four documented bounce locations:

The Classic Window Bounce:

1. Crouch under the glass window near the base entrance (Camp Froman side)
2. Walk forward while looking down
3. Jump and angle toward the lower base area
4. Land on the polygon seam to bounce to the roof

This remains the easiest bounce to learn and is perfect for beginners.

Headlong

Perhaps the most popular map for superbouncing due to its vertical architecture and numerous bounce locations:

• Big Crane - Reach the top of the construction crane
• X-Building - Launch from the crossed support beams
• Monster Bounce - The highest bounce in the game
• Red Base Bounces - Multiple spots near the red team spawn

Lockout

A competitive favorite with several tactical bounces:

• BR Tower Bounce - Access the BR tower from below
• Sniper Tower - Gain the high ground advantage
• Library Roof - Reach areas normally inaccessible

Ascension

• Sniper Tower - Launch to the golden sniper vantage point
• Dish Area - Access the large satellite dish structure
• Tower Roof - Reach the highest accessible points

Other Maps

Documented bounces also exist on:

• Burial Mounds - Behind base structures
• Coagulation - Alcove bounces behind red/blue bases
• Sanctuary - Can escape the map boundaries
• Warlock - Base-specific bounces to the ceiling
• Turf - Various building access points
• Terminal - Access the famous "Secret Room"

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Advanced Techniques

Tapping

"Tapping" refers to in-air directional inputs performed before landing:

• Forward taps - Tap forward direction 1-3 times before landing
• Directional control - Influence where you land after the bounce

Chain Bounces

Advanced players can perform double, triple, or quad bounces by:

1. Landing from a bounce onto another polygon seam
2. Maintaining momentum between bounces
3. Using tapping to position for the next landing

Viewing Gridlines

The friends list trick to see gridlines is essential for finding new bounces:

1. Press Start during gameplay
2. Navigate to Friends List
3. Quickly back out
4. Grid pattern briefly appears on the map

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Technical Notes

Framerate Matters

Superbouncing behaves differently based on framerate:

| Region | Framerate | Notes | |--------|-----------|-------| | NTSC | 30 FPS | Standard bounce behavior | | PAL60 | 60 Hz | Similar to NTSC | | PAL50 | 50 Hz | Different bounce physics |

This is because collision detection occurs at different intervals depending on frame rate. A bounce that works in NTSC may not work in PAL50, and vice versa.

Halo 2 Vista

On PC (Halo 2 Vista), bounces require locking the framerate to 30 FPS using external tools like RivaTuner Statistics Server (RTSS) or NVIDIA Profile Inspector.

Project Cartographer: If using Project Cartographer (fan-run Halo 2 PC servers), create a game variant with "OGH2" in the name to automatically enable original Halo 2 physics and 30 tick rate—no external framerate locking needed.

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Superbouncing in MCC

The Master Chief Collection runs Halo 2 at 60 FPS, which fundamentally changes superbouncing:

• Many classic bounces no longer work at all
• Some bounces that do work are now fatal (you clip through and die)
• The famous Headlong red base/crane bounce drops players through the ground

Restoring Classic Bouncing

The community-created tool MCCBounceEnable can restore classic superbouncing:

• Alters the tick rate of Halo 2 Classic in MCC
• Uses memory pattern matching to work with game updates
• Requires anti-cheat to be disabled (custom games only)

Alternatively, creating a custom game variant named "OGH2" on Project Cartographer (the fan-run Halo 2 PC servers) enables original physics.

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Community & Culture

Superbouncing spawned a dedicated subculture within the Halo community:

Bouncing Crews

Groups of players who specialized in finding and documenting bounces, including:

• Creating tutorial videos and montages
• Cataloging every bounce on every map
• Competing to find the most difficult or highest bounces

Competitive Rules

While superbouncing is technically a glitch (not intentional design), the community developed its own ethics:

• Acceptable: Bouncing in custom games, montages, and private matches
• Frowned upon: Using bounces for unfair advantage in matchmaking
• Pre-2010: Microsoft could ban players caught bouncing in ranked games

An Art Form

Many in the community view superbouncing as an art:

"Whether intentional or accidental, superbouncing is an art." - Urban Dictionary

Bungie officially stated superbounces were unintentional, but the community embraced them as a beloved part of Halo 2's identity.

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Resources

Video Archives

• Complete Superjump Archive - Historical documentation at bouncefx.com
• MrJukes' Guide to Trick Jumping - Classic tutorial series hosted on Bungie.org
• Bounce Legacy - In-depth monster bounce tutorials

Community

• Discord Community - Active bouncing community continues to this day
• Se7enSins Forums - Historical bounce tutorials and discussions
• Halo Stunting Wiki - Technical documentation

Tools

• MCCBounceEnable (GitHub) - Restores classic bouncing in MCC
• Project Cartographer - Fan servers with OGH2 support

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See Also

• Trick Jumping
• Halo 2 Speedrunning
• Map Exploits