With the beginning of a new trilogy, and the fact that Halo 4 begins almost 5 years after Halo 3 and the end of the Human-Covenant War, it makes sense that vehicles, ships, weapons etc will be upgraded.
However, in the beginning of Halo 4, Forward Unto Dawn looks very different to how it did at the end of Halo 3, it doesn’t look like a Frigate, we all know what a frigate looks like in Halo, as for 8 years it has looked like In Amber Clad and Forward Unto Dawn, now suddenly in Halo 4, a Frigate no longer looks like a Frigate.
I have no issue with changing things going forward, as with the end of the war, vehicles etc. are decomissioned and updated, but I don’t think 343 should mess with how things have always looked in Halo. The new Pelican is fine, as it’s replaced the older Pelican versions shown in Reach to Halo 3. But Forward Unto Dawn looked different without a story explanation, it bugs me.
One more thing, in the Prologue why did the Spartans all look like Chief does in Halo 4, when none of them would have looked like that? They would have likely worn Mark V armour as Chief was one of the few to receive Mark VI, which in any case weren’t upgraded like Chief’s.
I find it odd that 343 would worry about making sure MC looked right in Halo Anniversary, but change him so radically with a crappy explanation in Halo 4, and make the other Spartans look different to how they actually did, too many inconsistencies for me.
Basically, if 343 wants to put it’s own artistic vision on Halo, do it from 2552 onwards, don’t go back in the Halo timeline and change things, as it doesn’t look right.