It’s obvious that 343 has done a lot of course correcting in Infinite to make the series appeal to older fans. One aspect, at least for me, that seems to have not gone far enough is the weapon audio, particularly covenant weapons.
While I don’t think they’re absolutely bad, I don’t necessarily understand the need to constantly reinvent the wheel with how the audio sounds. Covenant weapons sound wholly incongruent with their legacy counterparts. Throughout Halo 1 - Reach, weapon sounds remained consistent and identifiable, leading them to become part of the identity of the world, specifically the sounds of the covenant weapons.
Now, they’re kind of unrecognizable. I believe this video of the evolution of the plasma pistol best showcases what I mean. Halo 5: Guardians - Plasma Pistol Comparisons (Halo 1-5) - YouTube
It’s like If Disney had taken the opportunity to change how lightsabers and blasters sound in the new Star Wars and took things into new directions. Creatively, they’d have every right but ultimately it just doesn’t sound right. Is it a dealbreaker? No, but I had hoped to hear a bit more familiar sounds in the multiplayer preview match that dropped today, but was kind of disappointed.