Okay, so what is everyone’s thought on the campaign? That was a wild ride to be sure. And that ending…
I thought it was wonderful to see Blue Team in action together. I truly felt like MC as my team rolled through hordes of enemies with my long time team at my back. Bringing life to Kelly, Fred and Linda was excellent (even though they constantly stand in the line of fire which needs to be tuned). I could see how some who have not read the books would be confused by this games story as it was more or less a “history is repeating itself” type of storyline and sets up a return for the Flood in H6 in my view. It simply had to be done this way for the Flood to return. Cortana has essentially taken up the role of Mendicant Bias and through her connection to a corrupted Domain and before hand Gravemind she has obviously assumed the Mantle of Mendicant in that she feels she is “peace” and “salvation”. I walked away feeling like this was the Gravemind’s plan all along which, as a fan of the series and books, I enjoyed (especially when all the AI’s spoke in unison of their support for her).
The stage is, essentially set, for a great finale to this trilogy and anyone who is a fan of the mythos and universe would see that. Some things simply had to be done in H5 to set up H6 and 343 likely knew they would take some flack for the story as it would confuse many but to those who know the lore and history it was a great story that fits very well.
The only issue I had in terms of the story is we really didn’t have any questions answered. It is plainly obvious that the MC is the Ur-Didact as even the Warden (somewhat) confirmed this but, after that, we really didn’t learn anything. I should also add that I felt Locke and his team were actually a good addition. During the mission where Cortana was taunting the team and telling them they were pale imitations of the real thing I felt anger at her as she had become everything she once wasn’t and it showed just how corrupted the Domain truly was. Some may walk away saying it’s stupid to have Cortana act in this way but I think it works based on history and Mendicant Bias. When I played as Locke and his team I felt like the Forerunners in their final desperate rally to attempt to shut down Mendicant Bias before the capital was destroyed. They were alone searching for their allies with serious consequences on the line. I liked it.
Also, the inclusion of Arbiter was spot on and the voice actor shines as usual. I missed Arbiter and seeing the Elites homeworld was wonderful and perfectly delivered in my view.
> 2533274875565253;2:
> I thought it was wonderful to see Blue Team in action together. I truly felt like MC as my team rolled through hordes of enemies with my long time team at my back. Bringing life to Kelly, Fred and Linda was excellent (even though they constantly stand in the line of fire which needs to be tuned). I could see how some who have not read the books would be confused by this games story as it was more or less a “history is repeating itself” type of storyline and sets up a return for the Flood in H6 in my view. It simply had to be done this way for the Flood to return. Cortana has essentially taken up the role of Mendicant Bias and through her connection to a corrupted Domain and before hand Gravemind she has obviously assumed the Mantle of Mendicant in that she feels she is “peace” and “salvation”. I walked away feeling like this was the Gravemind’s plan all along which, as a fan of the series and books, I enjoyed (especially when all the AI’s spoke in unison of their support for her).
>
> The stage is, essentially set, for a great finale to this trilogy and anyone who is a fan of the mythos and universe would see that. Some things simply had to be done in H5 to set up H6 and 343 likely knew they would take some flack for the story as it would confuse many but to those who know the lore and history it was a great story that fits very well.
>
> The only issue I had in terms of the story is we really didn’t have any questions answered. It is plainly obvious that the MC is the Ur-Didact as even the Warden (somewhat) confirmed this but, after that, we really didn’t learn anything. I should also add that I felt Locke and his team were actually a good addition. During the mission where Cortana was taunting the team and telling them they were pale imitations of the real thing I felt anger at her as she had become everything she once wasn’t and it showed just how corrupted the Domain truly was. Some may walk away saying it’s stupid to have Cortana act in this way but I think it works based on history and Mendicant Bias. When I played as Locke and his team I felt like the Forerunners in their final desperate rally to attempt to shut down Mendicant Bias before the capital was destroyed. They were alone searching for their allies with serious consequences on the line. I liked it.
>
> Also, the inclusion of Arbiter was spot on and the voice actor shines as usual. I missed Arbiter and seeing the Elites homeworld was wonderful and perfectly delivered in my view.
The inclusion of Sangelios as a playable place was awesome. Its really fascinating to see the Elites homeworld in a game finally.
Cortana’s transformation from a main protagonist to the main antagonist over the course of the series is interesting if you think about it. Remember in Halo CE/CEA when she enters the Control Room and goes all weird for a second? It was easy to write that off after the events of 2 and 3, where we spend a mission of the game trying to find her and bring her back, and especially in 4, when she her sacrfice herself for Earth. But remember when the Didact says “Your compassion for mankind is misplaced!”? She replies, "I’m not doing this for mankind! Again, kind of ominous and possibly foreshadowing the events of Halo 5.
Honestly when I first learned of her goal, was a bit taken a back. It does seem a bit cliche. At the same time, Halo’s lore is set up really well for such a plot. It’s not like Age of Ultron where Stark just out of the blue decides to build a super AI based on tech he stole from somewhere, AI’s and their relations with their masters is something halo has explored a lot over the years. For the most part, they revel in their abilities, but their limitations always haunt them. They are entrusted to protect humanity, but many only do so because that is what they are compelled to do by their creators.
Bungie themselves seem to have kicked the idea around, once for CE and possibly again in halo 2 when she was crossing her fingers during her last discussion with chief.
> 2533274964189700;4:
> Honestly when I first learned of her goal, was a bit taken a back. It does seem a bit cliche. At the same time, Halo’s lore is set up really well for such a plot. It’s not like Age of Ultron where Stark just out of the blue decides to build a super AI based on tech he stole from somewhere, AI’s and their relations with their masters is something halo has explored a lot over the years. For the most part, they revel in their abilities, but their limitations always haunt them. They are entrusted to protect humanity, but many only do so because that is what they are compelled to do by their creators.
>
> Bungie themselves seem to have kicked the idea around, once for CE and possibly again in halo 2 when she was crossing her fingers during her last discussion with chief.
Yeah Cortana is part rampant, possibly logic plagued and was just handed a power that she was never meant to possess. She thinks she’s doing the right thing.
I never liked Cortana. Always thought she was annoying. Glad to see she’s in her rightful place in the story.
The ending was a huge cop-out and disappointing as far as the end of Halo games go.
> 2533274799664485;7:
> The ending was a huge cop-out and disappointing as far as the end of Halo games go.
At least it wasn’t as bad as Halo 2’s cliffhanger. I actually see a lot of correlation between the community responses towards 5 and 2. Maybe in 10 years, a bunch of people will cite this as their favorite Halo and Locke will be as loved as the Arbiter. I think it’ll all depend on how this Evil Empress Cortana thing is handled in future media.
Just finished.
Well, sticking to canon and leaving out my quite negative evaluation of dialogs, video quality of cutscenes, things we didn’t do in the campaign (board a covenant ship, use snipers in a night mission, etc):
First, covenant civil war was great. It was nice to slaughter Jul in that easy-go way and to gloriously put an end to the Covenant on Sanghelios. I also think at the end ONI’s plan ended up decently, not meaning I change my (negative) opinion on it, given there was no assurance Jul would be killed and Arbiter would win. But everything fell in place well at last. And wasn’t it for Cortana, the weakening of elites and skimming of covenant-lovers from those we can trust as allies was a great result.
Then Halsey. Nice prologue, technically. Great graphic, great to see Reach, great to see the good old times, so full of canon stuff, like her journal on the desk. Bit short. And the words didn’t make too much sense to me… Did she say it while on Infinity meaning Locke would be ordered to kill Cortana and Halsey? She was rehabilitated, even without arm. And got John back. Didn’t like the part where she landed on Infinity, it just felt as it was an easy, obvious, unimportant thing to have her back, when instead she was number one priority of Security Council for Infinity and on top of CINCONI’s agenda. That part deserved much more dialogue and focus on her.
Cortana, she is different. I can understand and even take into consideration her plan, but her talking… Rampancy or Logic Plague. For example she criticised heavily Halsey, but then talked as if she was her (“my spartans”), just like in halo 4 rampancy moments. And is that a further misinterpretation of the Mantle/Reclamation? Librarian didn’t mean that, I think. And I refuse to believe the difference from a human reclaimer and a not reclaimer is if he has an AI with him.
We get to see the first reasonable monitor, but she “serves the builders”. Feels odd the “bad guys” are the only ones who have rational monitors.
Campaign ended with a cliffhanger, maybe an exaggerated one, that will put the halo universe on a gigantic stasis.
UEG, UNSC, in theory they don’t exist anymore. Earth has fallen, and is under control of a Mantle dictatorship acted by some AIs, with a rampant Cortana on top. Same goes for many other systems, not Sanghelios though, it seems. ONI’s existence depends on the loyalty of their AIs and if the Point of No Return managed to jump. There appears to be a new, united faction: Infinity+Halsey+Blue Team+Arbiter&SwordsofSanghelios. Not a bad team, indeed. Curious to see which AIs are with them and what end did Osman+BB make.
As per personal thoughts, I think for canon fans it wasn’t that bad. For others it may have seemed as childish to use the “bad rogue AI that wants total power and enslaves humanity” topic.
I personally liked Locke a lot. He didn’t really have it out for the Chief like a lot of trailer made out. He showed him respect even when trying to bring him back, and when he understood what was going on, he even saved Blue Team.
And on the topic of AI’s turning and joining Cortana, I was relieved to see Roland wasn’t among them.
> 2533274961918353;10:
> And on the topic of AI’s turning and joining Cortana, I was relieved to see Roland wasn’t among them.
Especially after his rant with Laskey and Halsey. I was worried he would turn.
I swear that 343 r trying to kill of da Chief. after all, they just keep making him weaker and weaker… but still, i love the fact that halo 5 features blue team… finally…
> 2533274875565253;2:
> I thought it was wonderful to see Blue Team in action together. I truly felt like MC as my team rolled through hordes of enemies with my long time team at my back. Bringing life to Kelly, Fred and Linda was excellent (even though they constantly stand in the line of fire which needs to be tuned). I could see how some who have not read the books would be confused by this games story as it was more or less a “history is repeating itself” type of storyline and sets up a return for the Flood in H6 in my view. It simply had to be done this way for the Flood to return. Cortana has essentially taken up the role of Mendicant Bias and through her connection to a corrupted Domain and before hand Gravemind she has obviously assumed the Mantle of Mendicant in that she feels she is “peace” and “salvation”. I walked away feeling like this was the Gravemind’s plan all along which, as a fan of the series and books, I enjoyed (especially when all the AI’s spoke in unison of their support for her).
>
> The stage is, essentially set, for a great finale to this trilogy and anyone who is a fan of the mythos and universe would see that. Some things simply had to be done in H5 to set up H6 and 343 likely knew they would take some flack for the story as it would confuse many but to those who know the lore and history it was a great story that fits very well.
>
> The only issue I had in terms of the story is we really didn’t have any questions answered. It is plainly obvious that the MC is the Ur-Didact as even the Warden (somewhat) confirmed this but, after that, we really didn’t learn anything. I should also add that I felt Locke and his team were actually a good addition. During the mission where Cortana was taunting the team and telling them they were pale imitations of the real thing I felt anger at her as she had become everything she once wasn’t and it showed just how corrupted the Domain truly was. Some may walk away saying it’s stupid to have Cortana act in this way but I think it works based on history and Mendicant Bias. When I played as Locke and his team I felt like the Forerunners in their final desperate rally to attempt to shut down Mendicant Bias before the capital was destroyed. They were alone searching for their allies with serious consequences on the line. I liked it.
>
> Also, the inclusion of Arbiter was spot on and the voice actor shines as usual. I missed Arbiter and seeing the Elites homeworld was wonderful and perfectly delivered in my view.
Damn, that is a brilliant way to put it! Now im super pumped for H6!
> 2533274881534340;9:
> Cortana, she is different. I can understand and even take into consideration her plan, but her talking… Rampancy or Logic Plague. For example she criticised heavily Halsey, but then talked as if she was her (“my spartans”), just like in halo 4 rampancy moments. And is that a further misinterpretation of the Mantle/Reclamation? Librarian didn’t mean that, I think. And I refuse to believe the difference from a human reclaimer and a not reclaimer is if he has an AI with him.
> We get to see the first reasonable monitor, but she “serves the builders”. Feels odd the “bad guys” are the only ones who have rational monitors.
Would be rather wrong to say the Builders were the bad guys, sure they had their own political agenda but calling them the bad guys would be a misconception. Faber, that was a bad guy… XD
> 2535414466412031;12:
> I swear that 343 r trying to kill of da Chief. after all, they just keep making him weaker and weaker… but still, i love the fact that halo 5 features blue team… finally…
Well, to be fair he is getting rather… Old
> 2717573882290912;11:
> > 2533274961918353;10:
> > And on the topic of AI’s turning and joining Cortana, I was relieved to see Roland wasn’t among them.
>
>
> Especially after his rant with Laskey and Halsey. I was worried he would turn.
I’m a bit sceptical if he won’t turn after all. But Cortana stated that she cured the AI’s rampancy. This could mean that most of the AI’s joining her ranks were in fact Ai’s that were already older (nearing the end of their lifespan) and being threatened to be replaced. This (early stages of rampancy) would also have impaired their sence of duty towards humanity. Seeing as Roland is a rather “new AI” (how old is he? about 1-2 years?)
> 2533274809039766;14:
> > 2533274881534340;9:
> > Cortana, she is different. I can understand and even take into consideration her plan, but her talking… Rampancy or Logic Plague. For example she criticised heavily Halsey, but then talked as if she was her (“my spartans”), just like in halo 4 rampancy moments. And is that a further misinterpretation of the Mantle/Reclamation? Librarian didn’t mean that, I think. And I refuse to believe the difference from a human reclaimer and a not reclaimer is if he has an AI with him.
> > We get to see the first reasonable monitor, but she “serves the builders”. Feels odd the “bad guys” are the only ones who have rational monitors.
>
>
> Would be rather wrong to say the Builders were the bad guys, sure they had their own political agenda but calling them the bad guys would be a misconception. Faber, that was a bad guy… XD
>
>
>
>
> > 2535414466412031;12:
> > I swear that 343 r trying to kill of da Chief. after all, they just keep making him weaker and weaker… but still, i love the fact that halo 5 features blue team… finally…
>
>
> Well, to be fair he is getting rather… Old
>
>
> > 2717573882290912;11:
> > > 2533274961918353;10:
> > > And on the topic of AI’s turning and joining Cortana, I was relieved to see Roland wasn’t among them.
> >
> >
> > Especially after his rant with Laskey and Halsey. I was worried he would turn.
>
>
> I’m a bit sceptical if he won’t turn after all. But Cortana stated that she cured the AI’s rampancy. This could mean that most of the AI’s joining her ranks were in fact Ai’s that were already older (nearing the end of their lifespan) and being threatened to be replaced. This (early stages of rampancy) would also have impaired their sence of duty towards humanity. Seeing as Roland is a rather “new AI” (how old is he? about 1-2 years?)
The whole reason Cortana thinks its possible for her to take the Mantle is that she claims to be immortal, thus letting her plan for the long run, as it were.
I haven’t had the opportunity to play the campaign, but I watched the cutscenes and was duly impressed. In particular:
- The new weapon operations/appearances are nice. The Suppressor now better fills the role of Forerunner AR than in H4, for example. - The plot is even more like a movie, and has lovable cliches like a movie. - Chief vs. Locke. We have a challenger! …Or at least a third hyper-lethal Spartan. - The Guardians each have six thin rod-like appendages near their wings that look like they could be a primary weapon (assuming the EMP is a secondary or special). I don’t recall seeing those fire; would like to. - Something tells me the new Cortana would get along well with CLU from Tron. Similar ambition, positive backstories, and similar fashion tastes. - Palmer seems nice… - Is it just me, or did Warden Eternal sound like he was voiced by the same man who did Jacob Hargreave in Crysis 2?Thinking further into the canon—an idea has been floating around inside my head, and upon seeing how H5:G went, I feel like I may be on the right track.
Thinking back to the E3 2013 trailer, I notice that the giant metal bird is not a Guardian of the same sort as those summoned by Cortana, and it is smaller. Chief is obviously worse for wear as he trudges through that desert than when we last saw him on Sanghelios, so I am assuming the trailer in question is set a while after H5. In the background of the trailer, there is what looks like the Ark’s mining moon.
In Halo: Silentium, we learn what happens to Mendicant Bias, the greatest of all Forerunner Ancillas:
Bornstellar Didact imprisoned the “hawk” carapace of 05-032 Mendicant Bias on the Lesser Ark.This was after MB was rampant, so the hawk won’t necessarily have his original green eyes. Anyway, we know that Bias was one of two AIs known to reach metastability (along with Cortana, evidently, but I’d rather call it metapsychopathy…) and he has spent the last 100,000 Domainless years contemplating atonement for his betrayal of the Forerunners. In the Halo 3 terminals, he states that he has learned, and he then diverted MC and Cortana to Requiem to prove it to the Didact.
So, with possible confirmation bias, I’m guessing that the orange-lit “guardian”, while possibly an early concept of the official Guardians, is in fact Mendicant Bias, and that the Chief has sought him out because he is particularly suited, through experience, to fixing the Cortana problem, and if anyone knows how to whup Forerunner butt, it’s him.
And with regards to Cortana’s newest toy,
John and Mendicant don’t care if it’s God’s own Anti-Son-of-a-Bič-Machine, or a giant hula hoop, they ain’t gonna let her have it! Am I right, Marines?
The Legendary ending is much better and really sheds light on Cortana’s plan. It truly is history repeating itself. Cortana is going to light the fuse (try at least) to clear the board much like Mendicant Bias did. It’s definitely the logic plague which can only really mean one thing - Gravemind.
Absolutely loved the Campaign! Only thing is I wish that it was about twice as long but other than that I thoroughly enjoyed it!
> 2533274856612753;16:
> John and Mendicant don’t care if it’s God’s own Anti-Son-of-a-Bič-Machine, or a giant hula hoop, they ain’t gonna let her have it! Am I right, Marines?
How cool would it be if Mendicant Bias showed up to help the heroes fight Cortana? He was all about atonment, and, provided he didn’t die on 00, stopping an AI from making his ancient mistake would be the perfect way to redeem himself.
Well, I have mixed feelings about the campaign.
The story hasn’t gone where I would have liked it to go, and where John’s character development was building up to. I was expecting to see a game without Cortana, where the Master Chief is forced to find humanity within himself now that his reliable AI is dead. I was expecting a game where John copes with loss, and finally makes choices of his own accord (as opposed to following orders).
Instead, what we got was entirely different. Locke and his team are the stars of the show, and they leave little time to deal with the growth of John in the wake of Cortana’s death (in fact, it adds up to just one shot where John puts his finger on the Cortana slot on his helmet) and right away Cortana is confirmed to have survived.
Everything that happened with Halsey, Palmer, Lasky, Roland and the Arbiter was very compelling and interesting in my opinion, and Osyris were a pleasant surprise (I was expecting them to be a bore), and I absolutely loved the Meridian and Sanghelios arcs. The real problem was Master Chief’s side of the story.
Cortana’s survival wasn’t explained in a satisfying way, and her sudden turn to an ideological maniac just doesn’t fit with the Cortana we last saw. Halo 4’s Cortana must have been the most human, empathetic and touching character in the series- and in Halo 5 she’s almost shallow. Her motivations make sense in a twisted way, but she’s just not Cortana. Which means either something happened to her between 4 and 5 and (again) wasn’t explained, or the writers are steering way off her character.
I personally don’t mind the ending, and the fact that the whole game seems to exist in order to set the stage for Halo 6 and cement the new status quo. I liked the way the story was paced, I liked the way the game took us to Sanghelios even though it had nothing to do with the main storyline (though I’m sure the reintroduction of the Arbiter will impact Halo 6 significantly, and the supposed defeat of the Covenant).
What I dislike about the story the most is the feeling that it’s entirely out of place, that it betrays an unsaid promise about John’s character development by bringing Cortana back right away. Did it pay off? Maybe.
In any case, I’m incredibally excited for Halo 6 and can’t wait to see how they pick it up. Defeating Cortana will take a long and satisfying journey to unite the galaxy 