Particularly the rectangle with lights/buttons in the middle of the chest is a huge design cue that makes it feel almost identical to Reach’s Mark V B in the mind’s eye. When I put the two side by side I can see a lot of differences, but it’s really strikingly similar by itself. I like that they are taking notes from Reach’s armor design philosophy, but this seems less like note-taking and more like directly copy-pasting a feature that’s unique and also creating a sort of anachronism where 7 seems like an evolution of 5 rather than 6.
The original Mark VII concept art had less of this going on and more of its own vibe which I liked a lot better https://i.imgur.com/gQVgZjr.jpg
While the in-engine Mark VII render has more of a Mark V B mixed with Mark VI vibe and it’s a bit too minimalist and cheap looking https://i.imgur.com/ftKLixV.png
Best shot of Mark V B I could find on Google, not ideal https://i.imgur.com/mpzZ2QK.png
