Hey there Community,
I’d like to create a concentrated place to hear about your criticism and opinions regarding the latest installment of the halo franchise, Halo 5: Guardians and maybe discuss about what’s positive and negative about the game we all loved (and still do) for years.
I kindly ask everyone to keep spoilers at a minimum, because I’d like everyone to be able to participate in this discussion without risking their own experience story-wise.
BTW: SORRY, this turned out way longer than it should… if you’re only interested in a short form, you can have a look at my list and the very last paragraph.
So, I’ll add a list here as a spoiler and go deeper in detail later on.
Visuals, Designs & Audio:
- well designed levels
- beautiful visuals and effects
- matching atmosphere most of the time
- different areas that progress and feel different but match the scheme
- good sounds and soundtracks (ofc, it’s halo!)
- matching voices and voiceacting (really like the new arbiter, he’s a total badass)
- can’t pin it down, but there’s something missing visually that tells you “yup, this is halo!” from time to time
- some level parts feel just like fillers
- nothing really rememberable (except one or two parts)
- I don’t like the promethean / forerunner style overall. it has nothing special you identify them with (no “personality”) except clinical heaven-like light
- promethean / forerunner levels feel all the same (pure forerunner levels)
- no dark, creepy, dirty levels (due to the lack of flood)
Models (races, vehicles):
- good looking and natural feeling weapons (most of them)
- alliance race modells are like I imagined them (especially elites look really good imho)
- spartan IV designs (armor etc) are really good (slimer and more agile looking than the II’s)
- alliance vehicles & structures feel a little off it’s style, not like the alliances we know
- missing the “classic” alliance violet tone
- wraith main cannon way too high (blocks view & aim), vehicle to “slim”
- too much rune-stuff on the banshees
- ghosts look a little off
- scorpion looks way too different
- the pelican looks too slim and different
- rocket launcher…
- that new MP… give us back the halo 3 / odst MP!
- the “slim style” of many vehicles
Gameplay:
- awesome intigrated coop with teams
- faster paced but still “halo-ish”
- smooth gameplay
- like sprinting, climbing and dashing (with exceptions later)
- weapon behavior feels natural and good most of the time (like most changes)
- most vehicles behave intuitive and are easy to control
- too many enemy waves (feels like grinding your way through)
- not enough objective based missions (it’s mostly fighting your way to the end or defend smth)
- master chief gameplay (explained later)
AI & difficulty:
- legendary feels like legendary
- enemies act like used to in halo
- you can figure out multiple ways to fight enemies
- ability to command your teams
- commanding is pretty intuitive
- friendly AI acts pretty “dumb” if you don’t tell them what to do
- friendly AI feels a little useless, at least on legendary (the only real benefit is the “ress” ability and using them as a distraction)
Logical flaws:
- master chief’s MKVI Armor never had thrusters as far as I know
What I missed:
- drones (those annoying bas… bugs!)
-------- FLOOD! (Yes! I want them back with all the creepy, disgusting flood stuff! I doubt they are already gone…)
Resumé: So, I’d like to go more in detail on a few points now.
I like the idea of having your team to aid you in battle. But in the halo games, the master chief was more or less the “lone wolf” type of guy. I know, in the books he was also brilliant as a squad leader and tactician on the battlefield and fought many battles with his comrades, but I’m not quite sure how I like it in the game.
It always was cortana and chief saving the galaxy.
The atmosphere is awesome, but it feels a little different from what halo was to me. Allthough giving the game a new, modern look is good imho, I think the alliance vehicles and structures changed too much.
And the armors fit pretty well for the Spartan IV’s, because they are like “mass produced” spartans, with cheaper, lighter armors, but the master chief had an old MKVI armor, which is bigger and doesn’t look as “agile” as the newer ones.
Also, what I don’t get is the armor related change in gameplay on the chiefs end. As I remember, he didn’t have thrusters on his armor. You could easily give him a normal “dodge” thing instead of the dash what would cause differences gameplay wise for team blue and osiris. He is bigger, stronger and faster than Locke, but Locke has his armor assisting him a little more. I really like the sprinting and climbing tho. Spartans are super soldiers and in the books they aren’t clumsy & slow like in the early halo games. It fits as it is and I imagined spartans like this.
And I really have to say, I miss the flood. THEY are the great thread to the galaxy. They forced the forerunners to create the halos, as a desperate attempt of stoping the flood. How can they disappear like this? Also, I really dislike the forerunner parts of the game and can’t get into it. I don’t like the prometheans as enemies… the conflict between the human race and the alliance plus the flood should be the center again imho.
All in all I like halo 5, but it could be improved in a few ways to become more halo-ish again. I really want to know where this new story brings us, especially when you saw the legendary ending, allthough I don’t like where it SEEMS to be heading.
Long thread short: 343i needs to stay true to the halo style and keep that in mind with all the new stuff and ideas.