I just finished the Halo 4 campaign yesterday and decided to give myself a day to sit back a decide what I thought about it. I also really felt I wanted to share it with anyone who has finished it well. This is strictly my opinion and I’m not expecting anyone else to feel the same. Spoiler Alert…
I wish I could shake everyone at 343’s hand because I thought they did an amazing job. Immediately I was amazed by how gorgeous the game looked and then by how great it sounded and felt. I constantly had moments where I would stop and just look at the scenery which was pretty spectacular. Very reminiscent of my first time seeing the first Halo ring. A few reminiscent moments actually. All of them good.
As for the story it was also very well done. While short I thought it did a good job of covering what was going on. Though I wish they would’ve expanded on a few things some more. Overall I’m glad Halo is still one of the few FPS’s out there that still values a good story and universe. The opening with Halsey was really cool. I wish they would’ve elaborated more on why the Elites and Humans are at each other’s throat again when I thought we just had this great new alliance at the end of Halo 3. What’s Arbie got to say about this? I suspect they will touch more on that in the upcoming Halo games but I was kinda hoping to know more from this one. Unless its in the books then I just need to read those. The final battle with the Didact was somewhat lackluster but I never really cared for him anyway. Plus I feel like he’s coming back. It was cool to see Lasky after FuD and the new Spartans. Would’ve been nice to see humanity be able to be a little more effective in combat though. Eveytime I see them they’re dead or getting defeated. I thought they were supposed to be the military might this time around. Especially with new Spartans. The story was excellent though.
However, what I really remembered after playing the game was Cortana and MC. I thought MC was the best in this game. He had moments where it showed he was indeed human but he never lost he Chiefly appeal. Always remaining a -Yoink!- just the way he should be. His dialogue with Cortana was perfect for him and above expectations for her.
And Cortana… In the other Halo games I saw her as the nice lady responsible for telling MC what to do and where to go. But now… outstanding. 343 went far beyond how well I thought they could do. They put a great amount of effort into portraying Cortana with a great human element that allowed me to really get attached to her character. The more the game went on the more I sympathized with Cortana and wanted to save her. I had to save her. The voice actor, writers, animators, everyone came together to make her character the best part of an already amazing game. And that’s what caused me to nearly shed man tears when she said her goodbye…
Excuse me, I had to pause after writing that last part just because of how good it is. But damn, 343. You can’t make Cortana one of my favorite characters and then take her away from me. We have to get her back in Halo 5. I mean that. Her and Chief were too great working together this time around to not do it again… sigh Imma go play Spartan Ops now.
TLDR; The game looks, sounds, and feels amazing. The story is short but accomplishes what it needed to do. Maybe just a few questions I was expecting answers to. Chief is at his best. And Cortana was done spectacularly.
If you read all this then thank you. Feel free to leave feed back on your thoughts, if you agreed/disagreed. Or just to make fun of me for liking Cortana. It’s all good.