IMO the worst aspect of this game is the music

Games Halo 5: Guardians
1

I’m going to be pretty harsh here. It sounds exactly like some generic Hollywood soundtrack that’s been in hundreds of movies before. No identity. Not memorable at all. Certain mind numbingly generic tracks just play over and over and over in the background in what seems like every mission. Music has always been the weakest aspect of movies, so making your video game soundtrack to emulate the movie style soundtrack is a really bad decision. It’s so uninspired. It’s fitting that the only track I’d say is great and memorable is when they just remixed the Halo theme.

It’s just noise in the background. Just like most movies. It doesn’t enhance the moment like a video game OST should (in fact with really good OSTs, the music alone MAKES the moment). You know how with a really good OST, you heavily associate each great track with the moment it plays? Like in the Silent Cartographer when the Rock Anthem for Saving the World part starts. Halo 5 doesn’t have those moments. Again the only one that qualifies is when the remixed Halo theme plays in the last Masterchief mission.

I’m just so disappointed with this game’s soundtrack. I really hope who ever composed it is not brought back. Even Halo 4’s OST was better. Sure it was a step down from previous games, but at least it had more of a unique sound and identity than Halo 5’s OST has.

People will be mad at me for bringing this up, but Undertale serves as a good example of a developer that gets the power of music in video games. He knew how important a great OST is to the final product. Undertale wouldn’t even be memorable without the music. Halo 5’s composer clearly did not understand this, and was content to just fill the background with generic noise. Video games aren’t movies nor should they try to act like movies.

I just feel very strongly about music in video games and I hate it when I hear really generic music that sounds like it was pumped out of the Hollywood soundtrack generator.

2

I would usually call most people fanbase trash for mentioning Undertale (lol nothing against Undertale I actually like the game the fanbase is just weird and also annoying because of the insertion of Undertale in everything) especially on this forum, but I won’t this time. You know, loud gun noises aren’t exactly the thing you hear in a RPG, especially one like Undertale. It would have been more of a valid point to compare background music from another FPS than a RPG.

And H5’s soundtrack is, in my opinion, a perfect blend of the older syle of Marty O’Donell (Insert The Composer joke here) and a newer, more modern style.

3

What kind of music would you prefer it to have?

4

I liked it. Individually, the tracks feel weak, but accompanied by the specific missions they play on in the campaign, they are very well designed, and set an accurate atmosphere for the time and place.

Comparing this idea to the tracks you suggested, like the one that plays on Silent Cartographer, the track really doesn’t fit in with the gameplay itself. You’re clearing out a relatively small Covenant camp with about 8 elites in total. Not exactly an epic challenge worthy of such a track. I think if tracks are setting the mood for the mission, they’re way better than making something insignificant feel like it determines life or death.

Seriously, though, nothing beat “117” on the final mission of Halo 4.

5

There are definitely good tracks in Halo 5. Some of the best ones are:

Light is Green
Kamchatka
Scavengers
Blue Team
Walk Softly
Advent
Osiris Suite Act 1
On Deck
Jameson Locke
Crypt

6

I personally enjoy the halo 5 soundtrack in some parts. No doubt that some of it feels very Hollywood blockbustery but halo 5 has its moments.

7

The music, in my opinion, is one of the better parts of the game. The worst aspect is the god-awful, dog -Yoink- story that 343 barfed out.

8

IMO Blue Team was probably the best use of Halo 5’s soundtrack. It was subtle, but there in the dark parts of the missions, and then it slowly ramps up on the Banshee and the 2nd Hunter portion.

> 2533274792951165;1:
> It’s just noise in the background. Just like most movies. It doesn’t enhance the moment like a video game OST should (in fact with really good OSTs, the music alone MAKES the moment). You know how with a really good OST, you heavily associate each great track with the moment it plays? Like in the Silent Cartographer when the Rock Anthem for Saving the World part starts. Halo 5 doesn’t have those moments. Again the only one that qualifies is when the remixed Halo theme plays in the last Masterchief mission.

For this part, I never felt anything from the Silent Cartographer. you were fighting the equivalent of a couple strike teams and an enemy camp that whole time. I mean the whole mission serves as a set up to the next mission, where that track would be better utilized.

9

> 2533274991067213;5:
> There are definitely good tracks in Halo 5. Some of the best ones are:
>
> Light is Green
> Kamchatka
> Scavengers
> Blue Team
> Walk Softly
> Advent
> Osiris Suite Act 1
> On Deck
> Jameson Locke
> Crypt

I also like Osiris Act 3, the one that plays during the Sunaion mission.

10

SLOW CLAP

Honestly the H4 OST better than H5?

hahahahahahaahahahah

Two words m8…

THE TRIALS

11

The halo 5 ost sounds amazing in each mission. And the stand alone ost has a few great tracks that can stand on their own. Idk how it sounds like a movie ost. I own every ost halo has ever had, with that said in my opinion the halo 5 ost is great. Its maybe not on par with 2 or 3, but definitely good.

12

Your opinion hurts me.
Personally I think the music is one the best parts of this game, in fact I think halo 5 has the same problem destiny has where sometimes the music outperforms the game in quality.

13

> 2535462360297076;10:
> SLOW CLAP
>
> Honestly the H4 OST better than H5?
>
> hahahahahahaahahahah
>
> Two words m8…
>
> THE TRIALS

one number m8
117

14

> 2533274991067213;5:
> There are definitely good tracks in Halo 5. Some of the best ones are:
>
> Light is Green
> Kamchatka
> Scavengers
> Blue Team
> Walk Softly
> Advent
> Osiris Suite Act 1
> On Deck
> Jameson Locke
> Crypt

The trials? I loved that one lol

15

I really couldn’t disagree more with those of you who are saying the soundtrack is great. We must just have opposite opinions on what makes a good video game soundtrack. To me, there nothing I heard in Halo 5 (again aside from The Trials) that I couldn’t hear by watching any number of forgotten Hollywood action movies. It doesn’t stick out, I don’t remember it, it’s serviceable background noise at best. Those of you who keep citing “The Trials” are proving my point. I already pointed out that The Trials is the best track in the game. Which, fittingly, is 50% a throwback to the classic Halo theme.

I just think music has a unique power in video games that cannot be matched by any other kind of media. It’s a shame to see a game underutilize that strength.

> 2533274833081329;8:
> IMO Blue Team was probably the best use of Halo 5’s soundtrack. It was subtle, but there in the dark parts of the missions, and then it slowly ramps up on the Banshee and the 2nd Hunter portion.
>
>
>
>
> > 2533274792951165;1:
> > It’s just noise in the background. Just like most movies. It doesn’t enhance the moment like a video game OST should (in fact with really good OSTs, the music alone MAKES the moment). You know how with a really good OST, you heavily associate each great track with the moment it plays? Like in the Silent Cartographer when the Rock Anthem for Saving the World part starts. Halo 5 doesn’t have those moments. Again the only one that qualifies is when the remixed Halo theme plays in the last Masterchief mission.
>
>
> For this part, I never felt anything from the Silent Cartographer. you were fighting the equivalent of a couple strike teams and an enemy camp that whole time. I mean the whole mission serves as a set up to the next mission, where that track would be better utilized.

Like I said, the music makes the moment more than the other way around. I’ve always looked forward to the end of that mission because of that music. It gets you pumped and make you feel like you can take on anything. For example, what would the Halo 3 warthog run be without the incredible slowly ramping up music in the background? It would certainly be far less memorable.

Since people are talking about “The Trials”, I’ll use that to prove this point too. There’s nothing super challenging about those fights in which that track plays, but the music defines and makes the moment regardless. I remember those rooms and those fights because such an amazing track is playing in the background. No way I would have any significant memory of those fights if it wasn’t for that track. Blue team is back and they won’t be stopped. The music makes you feel that. It would be just another couple of fights without the music (aside from the Warden’s speech which, again, is elevated by the music).

> 2535462360297076;10:
> SLOW CLAP
>
> Honestly the H4 OST better than H5?
>
> hahahahahahaahahahah
>
> Two words m8…
>
> THE TRIALS

I mentioned The Trials already, but I guess people are missing it because I didn’t mention it by name.

Halo 4’s Arrival alone is better than the entirety of Halo 5’s soundtrack (and it’s equal with The Trials), tbqh imo

16

> 2533274991067213;5:
> There are definitely good tracks in Halo 5. Some of the best ones ar
>
>
> > 2533274991067213;5:
> > There are definitely good tracks in Halo 5. Some of the best ones are:
> >
> > Light is Green
> > Kamchatka
> > Scavengers
> > Blue Team
> > Walk Softly
> > Advent
> > Osiris Suite Act 1
> > On Deck
> > Jameson Locke
> > Crypt

the music of halo 5, is not up to others halo

—Halo 3—
Finish the fight
Luck
Released
Out of Shadow
To Kill a Demon
This is the Hour
Follow Our Brothers
Farthest Outpost
Behold a Pale Horse
Three Gates
One Final Effort
Keep What You Steal
Greatest Journey
Roll Call
Never Forget
and all those memorable tracks…

not to mention the others ost

17

I honestly haven’t paid enough attention to it to even notice. Then again I haven’t played through the whole campaign yet either because I spend all of my time in Arena. lol

18

Forge and the Soundtrack were the only areas that 343 got it right 100%, we asked for the soundtrack to contain more of a Halo feel and we got that.

19

> 2535437652903765;7:
> The music, in my opinion, is one of the better parts of the game. The worst aspect is the god-awful, dog -Yoink- story that 343 barfed out.

Preach it brother!

20

That’s funny, I thought the soundtrack was almost the highlight of the campaign. It had great tension moments, seemed to be in the same family as the H4 soundtrack, and occasionally had a great throwback to older games.

But I respect your disagreement, and hope H6 will have a sound track that we both love!

My favorite gaming sound tracks of all time,
Halo CE
The entire Half-Life series
Red Dead Redemption