A lot changed after Halo Reach.

Bungie bowed out with its 2010 title & moved on to create a whole new IP with Activision. Microsoft still wanted more Halo titles so the responsibility of that was brought over to 343 Industries. A studio created specifically for Halo games & Halo games only. It was an interesting idea but one that held high expectations for this studio.

Simply put, the Bungie era of Halo is immensely iconic. It put Xbox on the map & completely transformed the FPS/multiplayer landscape. The campaigns & the soundtracks were all remembered fondly by fans and when Bungie wrapped up the storyline of the Chief so neatly, all that did was place even more pressure on 343. A small sequel hook was left in 3 but that's all there really was.

I don't envy 343 as a studio. Halo is a massively important franchise that can have catastrophic consequences if not handled correctly. If I was working there, I'd be shitting myself every single day. Halo fans are passionate as they are unfiltered. If it went wrong, it would be chaos.

Halo 4 if I had to describe it in one word is...frustrating. There's a lot here I respect with 343. I respect their courage to offer a new vision and straying off the Bungie path. From the moment 4 begins, everything is different. The art style has changed, Cortana got hot & Chief is now a hell of a lot more bulker. The biggest change of all however is Chief's dialogue. In the original games, Chief spoke a little bit but he was mostly a silent protagonist. Speaking only when necessary. In the first mission of 4, Chief speaks more here than in the entire trilogy. It's a jarring change that I think is a perfect example of 343's intentions when making this. They wanted to make more than just another Bungie style game. They wanted to make something truly new for the Halo universe & I respect that a ton. It's just a shame then that the new direction is overall littered with flaws.

Halo 4 tells two stories. Story A is the discovery of the Prometheans who are tied to The Forerunners. Story B is about Chief & Cortana's relationship as they both make a major discovery. I don't wanna go into spoilers but simply put, story B is without a doubt some of the absolute best writing that Halo has ever seen. It's emotional, bittersweet & the absolute saving grace for the boredom that is story A.

The Prometheans are just not that interesting of a new threat. At first, they're an interesting surprise. After fighting the covenant for 5 games straight, it's nice to see some new faces. The problem is however is that there's really nothing to them beyond their looks. They're annoying & when you have to fight wave after wave of them, they quickly become more tired than the enemies we've been fighting for hours prior. The covenant were so well designed & implemented into the original game but the Prometheans here just feel tossed in without much care.

Story A also has a central antagonist. The Didact who is an ancient forerunner warrior or whatever but honestly, he's completely worthless as a villain. You barely see him & half the time he's just locked up in a giant ball :/

When Halo 4 focuses on the smaller scale happenings, it's absolutely terrific. The problem though is that those small scale stories & moments are trapped in a generic sci-fi blockbuster story that's trying to set up the next seven games in the series. If Halo 4 was just a smaller game about Chief trying to make it back to earth with Cortana, I truly believe it would be the best in the series. Sadly, we didn't get that. The brief moments of it we got are fantastic but in the 4 hours it took me to beat this, I was mostly bored & wanting to get it over with. 343 are definitely capable of making a good Halo game. There's enough sprinkles of that quality here & there that proves it but ultimately, 4 is a major step down. It's not awful & it's definitely playable but it's a sign that the franchise was beginning to slip. Hopefully 5 will change that (judging by what I've heard about it though, I probably won't be happy 👀)

"Take my advice, Rookie. You ever fall for a woman? Make sure she's got balls."

ODST was a nice little change of pace! After playing as Chief for the last 3 games, it was nice to switch gears a little bit. Bungie wanted to get more experimental here and for most of it, I was totally on board with their new vision! The atmosphere of the city at night was incredibly well done and breaking it up with some more traditional Halo levels (while I wish they weren't there) were fun enough to be a safe inclusion.

Paying 60 bucks for this back in the day would be insane though. Even as someone who prefers shorter games, ODST's campaign is extremely short. It's longer than a lot of other DLCs sure but it's just not a full price game. It's a £25 or £40 game for sure.

All that said, I had a good time with it!! I'd love another Halo game that explores this idea way more someday.

This one is so much better than the first two it's not even funny.

Halo 3 is the end of the mainline Bungie trilogy and what a way to send it all off! This feels like the definitive Halo title almost immediately and it's campaign never lets go of that amazingly triumphant victory lap feeling.

It's silly to say but this truly felt like the "Endgame" of video games. It's the culmination of a storyline that took years to form and when everything comes together so neatly, it really does capture that feel of pure excitement & joy. The last mission had me on the edge of my dear and the ending done a really lovely job of bringing it all together in a neat little bow (while offering a possible jumping off point for a possible sequel)

Halo 3 is fantastic and the absolute peak of the series. After CE left me feeling cold, I was impressed by how much 2 did to improve upon the dated feel that the first one had attached to it. 3 improves more on what made 2 great while also feeling like a tighter & more rewarding experience overall. Halo finally clicked with me and I'm excited to check out the next games :))