Music

Games Halo Infinite
1

So, I recently have come across a couple of music tracks made by the community inspired by the original halo trilogy tracks, and basically what ive been hearing is quite concerning at least in my opinion. My personal opinion is that halo 2 has the best soundtracks, followed by halo 1. There is this richness to it I cant describe. Each halo has their own interesting and amazing soundtracks… but I want to highlight the following.

I really really really really do not want to see soundtracks return. I want to see elements of them, perhaps atmosphere, mood, tone and instruments. As for patterns… used sparingly if returning. But I dont want a simple remix of what we already have. Halo 4 introduced a 117 theme, i liked that very much (not the whole song… just the certain trumpet dooo dooooooo… do do do do doooo :stuck_out_tongue: )
I like those if you can capture a certain moment with that kind of innovation. But it also shouldnt be soo alienated from other halos . So , im about to take a jab at a couple of halos. :stuck_out_tongue:
First halo 3 so that yall dont think i have nostalga goggles on. Halo 3’s soundtrack often remixed and recycled alot of halo 2’s . I didnt really like that.
Halo 2’s soundtrack used guitar… which while at the moment sounded pretty awsome… didnt work well with me over the years.
Halo 4’s soundtrack with the electric percussions at times threw me off a bit.

Halo reach was pretty good. the music fit the theme
was original. But i guess it lacked the bad -Yoink- of masterchief theme .

Halo 5 id say is on point. but i feel like it needs somehow to be more rememberable… hard for it to be rememberable with a poor campagn. But that is the sort of direction I like. Halo infinite trailer was reassuring from the aspect that they arent going to go too far from the original. But id hate for them to go hard on the remixing of orignal tracks.
Your opinions?
(also i havent mentioned halo CE… but thats mainly because it kind of set the standard. I cant think of a halo CE soundtrack i dont like… all of them are pretty rememberable and i can listen to for hours… not sure if that is nostalga or not… imo i think its rich)

2

I both agree and disagree.

I agree that it should be enough that motif’s return for particular moments. Such as the Halo chant for the title card, the classic Arbiter melody if he shows up in a scene, 117 for a dramatic scene when the Chief stands in defiance or something. And I agree that having a soundtrack full of Bungie era-esque new tracks would be amazing. Heck I want Zeta Halo to have it’s own distinct monk chant, like Delta Halo had in Halo 2.

But… I’m a sucker for new versions of old tracks and my inner child would love full remixes in there too. Doom 2016 went the route of only bringing back motif’s from 1 and 2 and that worked a lot. But at the same time I also really appreciate Eternal having 3 fully remixed classic songs in it… At the very least a re-recorded version of the Halo theme song should be playing during the climax of the game. And aside from that maybe it would be a good time to remix some tracks that never got more love in the past, like Covenant Dance, and the entire Reach OST… This Armour from Halo 4. Idk I’m conflicted, Halo 5 was the only OST I wasn’t too fond of in the main shooter series and the fact that the only remix in it was hot garbage only made it worse.

3

> 2533274810177460;2:
> I both agree and disagree.
>
> I agree that it should be enough that motif’s return for particular moments. Such as the Halo chant for the title card, the classic Arbiter melody if he shows up in a scene, 117 for a dramatic scene when the Chief stands in defiance or something. And I agree that having a soundtrack full of Bungie era-esque new tracks would be amazing. Heck I want Zeta Halo to have it’s own distinct monk chant, like Delta Halo had in Halo 2.
>
> But… I’m a sucker for new versions of old tracks and my inner child would love full remixes in there too. Doom 2016 went the route of only bringing back motif’s from 1 and 2 and that worked a lot. But at the same time I also really appreciate Eternal having 3 fully remixed classic songs in it… At the very least a re-recorded version of the Halo theme song should be playing during the climax of the game. And aside from that maybe it would be a good time to remix some tracks that never got more love in the past, like Covenant Dance, and the entire Reach OST… This Armour from Halo 4. Idk I’m conflicted, Halo 5 was the only OST I wasn’t too fond of in the main shooter series and the fact that the only remix in it was hot garbage only made it worse.

Fortunately it seems we are going to revisit reach… so that might be great oppurtunity to revisit the reach soundtrack.
Unfortunately, the covanant have been scrapped. and the covanant dance theme is unlikely to return without the covanant. And if you are thinking about the banshied… they have their own unique soundtrack theme. But still there are other old soundtracks that have potential… for example… if the flood return, then we know the flood theme from halo ce.
Im not entirely against remixes… but I still would like for them to make new peices and incorporate old pieces. Having the familiar is important i agree. However, take that familiar and bring it to new heights.

As for halo 5 , there are some soundtracks that i think are not related to any past soundtracks that I could say is distinctly halo-esque , completely new and fresh, and still got my attention. Like Kamchatka, Scavangers, Blue Team, The Light is Green…
I mean arguambly you might say they incorporate some elements of past halo soundtracks… but I think that is necessary to capture the identity. There are so many ways to recall halo now… unique to halo… and as soon as you hear them you know what it is.
The main thing I want is for that familiarity to remain, just like you do… but also to establish new.
If you hear the halo 1 monks… you know what it is
if you hear the halo 2 reclaimer theme … you know what it is also known as warthog run theme lol
If you hear the halo 3 never forget theme piano pattern , you know what it is…
I could go on. Halo 5, although i have praised its soundtrack, I do acknowledge it hasnt really defined a new theme as much as the previous have. I mean technically they could have tried to set one for locke… but you know how poorly locke has been recieved .

4

I’m listening to the tracks you’ve listed.

Kamchatka sounds like the Halo 4 style in a few ways, but mainly it reminds me of Mass Effect 2/3. Definitely doesn’t fit Bungie era.

Scavengers feels like it mixes ODST with Halo 4 and… Perfect Dark? And I typed that before 117’s motif popped in lol.

Blue Team is very clearly Halo 4 inspired, combining Green and Blue with 117.

The Light is Green does feel like classic Halo Trilogy for the first bit, yeah. But as soon as the main melody kicks in all I hear is Halo 5.

You know what I’d love to hear come back at some point? The chanting from Nemesis in Halo 4. (r.i.p. Didact, 343 did you dirty and you should have come back at some point)

5

I’m glad someone finally decided to discuss this. (TL;DR at bottom, apologies for rant, I’ve just really thought this out)

I’ve recently been playing Myth & Myth II (Bungie’s games before Halo), and it made me realize what was lacking from the new Halo soundtracks. Halo’s OST was an extension of Martin’s previous work on Myth, which is why there’s choirs, orchestras, etc. in the manner that they are (listen to “Into The Breach” Myth II OST, and “Siege of Madrigal” Myth OST). What was never realized was that Halo’s OST was essentially a mix between sci-fi, religious, and medieval themes; 343 opted instead to ignore Myth’s OST, probably because nobody would ever think of that. If Martin had not done such brilliant work on Myth’s OST, it’s unlikely that he would have anything to build off of for Halo, and I’m sure the OST would be far different. Then and therefore, if one wants a truly Halo OST (including Infinite’s composers) they must iterate off of design ideas shown in Myth’s OST.

That said, I still think that there should be newer iterations of older Halo songs, but there should still be plenty of room for new songs. Halo 5’s soundtrack was forgettable because they felt too far fetched from previous Halos, only seemed to be inspired by typical sci-fi aspects (yes, even the strings, which were more reminiscent of Star Wars), and played very dully instead of fleshing out as environment action got more intense (Martin’s scores had “layers” which would add as battles got more intense and vice verse).

What I really want from Infinite is a similar design philosophy of Halo 2/3’s work, maybe even some of Reach’s, and if I was making the music for it I’d definitely take a look at Myth’s.

But I understand what you’re saying, and totally agree that constant rehashes wouldn’t be a good idea. The reason that Halo 3’s OST is so similar is that it was essentially a Halo 2 Part 2, and Halo was never envisioned as a trilogy. It’s really the design philosophy that should be sought after. But in Infinite’s trailers so far, the music has been brilliant, and I especially liked the music at the beginning of the 2019 trailer, which sounded original and genuine.

TL;DR Original Halo trilogy drew from Myth’s OST, which is where I would draw inspiration for Infinite. Design philosophy from original trilogy should be drawn as well.

6

I fully agree with that. The religious and medieval aspect of the themes have certainly gone missing… even from the story. And that is something I really truly miss. It’s interesting i was never able to recognize or pin that. I guess I would have previously said it was somewhat goth lol. But religious and medieval certainly is fitting.

The trailer music I think especially captures the sci-fi wonder and romance some what between cortona and chief. (I don’t know what to call it … friends in distress? I know it’s kinda not romance but I feel like the music has a sort of relationship resolve aspect)

I think I realize that in halo 5 what I appreciate is that it seems polished… like it could potentially come from a movie? maybe due to modern technology lol. But it certainly is missing those themes you mentioned.

7

I wouldn’t mind having a mix of older music scores from the previous games (Halo 1 - 3, Reach and Halo 4), as well as some new music for the upcoming Infinite game. A blend of old and new style themes and background anthems for certain scenes/battles.

8

I enjoy songs from every Halo game. Halo 1 set the standard, like you said, and it gives the impression that it was a military sci-fi shooter. I don’t share your later thoughts about Halo 2, as I find Halo 2’s soundtrack to be just… awesome. It’s mainly because I’m a fan of rock music. It’s not just the songs with guitar, but with piano or violin. Halo 3 comes a close second behind Halo 2 as my favorite soundtrack, but it’s equally as fun to listen to. Halo Reach’s music definitely fit in with the military sounds, and Halo 4, while not being my favorite, still has some memorable and good songs. Halo 5 honestly is my least favorite, but I did like how it brought back songs from previous Halo games that Halo 4 didn’t. ODST has some amazing music that fits the somber atmosphere, I remember specifically the songs that play during Mombasa Streets. Halo Wars has some of my favorite tracks, and I’m not even good at that game.

9

> 2533274974350131;8:
> I enjoy songs from every Halo game. Halo 1 set the standard, like you said, and it gives the impression that it was a military sci-fi shooter. I don’t share your later thoughts about Halo 2, as I find Halo 2’s soundtrack to be just… awesome. It’s mainly because I’m a fan of rock music. It’s not just the songs with guitar, but with piano or violin. Halo 3 comes a close second behind Halo 2 as my favorite soundtrack, but it’s equally as fun to listen to. Halo Reach’s music definitely fit in with the military sounds, and Halo 4, while not being my favorite, still has some memorable and good songs. Halo 5 honestly is my least favorite, but I did like how it brought back songs from previous Halo games that Halo 4 didn’t. ODST has some amazing music that fits the somber atmosphere, I remember specifically the songs that play during Mombasa Streets. Halo Wars has some of my favorite tracks, and I’m not even good at that game.

: P
maybe I stated it in a weird way, but halo 2’s soundtracks are my favorite. There were some times where the rock fit especially “blow me away”… and id say at the beginning opening the game that was especially fitting. Reclaimer including rock also helped add variety to the tune and capitalized on the awsome as you have mentioned. (but what i was getting at is I can listen to it for extended periods of time now that ive grown and start to find it Noisy? im not sure if thats the right term… but yea)

Its not that halo 2 has my favorite soundtrack of all halos. I just think halo 2 added a good variety of rememorable , unique, and iconic tunes that set it apart. Playing halo 2… you hear the soundtrack play… its familiar… but its also new. That is exactly what i want from a soundtrack that carries the identity ‘halo’.

It almost has this mythical aspect to it that I love. Halo 1 also had plenty of that, but I think 2 expanded upon it.
feel free to disagree but thats my opinion (not that you do disagree lol)

10

I don’t really get how Halo 2 is simply known for the electric guitar. It only appeared in 4 songs, and was never written by Marty. It came from Steve Vai (a legend), Incubus, and Breaking Benjamin. And the rest of the soundtrack is gorgeous.

Rock Anthem for Saving the World, and a little bit of Truth and Reconciliation Suite in Halo CE featured electric guitar as well. And that actually WAS written by Marty. So it’s a bit messed up to say electric doesn’t fit into Halo when it’s been there all along.