Funnily enough, 'Dawn' is my favorite level of the campaign (which isn't saying much). As the start of a new trilogy, it has strong thematic ties to 'Pillar of Autumn' from CE. Waking up in a confined play space, repelling alien boarders, seeking escape and ending up on an mysterious artificial world. That's precisely how I would have started out, to help acclimate new and veteran players alike.

Halo 4 starts very strongly . . . but it's all downhill from there. CE's second level sets clear objectives for the player: (1) Investigate the ring world, (2) keep it out of Covenant hands. Both of which serve to encourage exploration and combat. H4's second level motivates you to escape and fix Cortana. They constantly reinforce the idea that you need to hurry up, get out, warn Infinity, Requiem is not a place you want to be.

Contrast that with Halo, the one place in the universe where you needed to be.