Are you really dumb for this. Everything created by man is because man takes what they see around us and draw inspiration . Without it, halo would have never existed . I may have no clue what games are similar to halo back then . If try shut things out. You try write a story . No matter what you there will be story almost exactly like yours. Similar. If they were all too different , we wouldn't have genre now wouldn't we?

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/Culture's_orbital3.jpg I direct you to Orbitals, from the Culture novels by Ian Banks. Novels which Bungie have stated themselves to have been influenced by.

Alien enemies, drivable vehicles, long open-area levels, and carry limits were already being used in other first person shooters. Halo, to me, was like Rainbow Six, Goldeneye, and Half Life all rolled up into one. It didn't seem as original as you are making it out to be. Combining the best of these was very appealing, especially with the new physics engine available on a console. Rainbow Six - Carry limits with tactical prep and execution Goldeneye - Drivable vehicle Half Life - combined shield and health system (Even Doom had this)

Quake says hi so does marathon. Halos big bother