If sprint is still a default ability. Which I expect it will be. But I don't think it necessarily needs to be if the default movement speed is fast enough. Halo worked fine without sprint at all in the past, after all.

: And get rid of the clutter! I don't care if you do hurt some graphic
: designer's delicate feelings.

Actually, I forgot to mention HUD customization. In my Ultimate Halo Game article, I stated:

Regardless of their HUD type or whether they’re playing Campaign or multiplayer, I’d give the player the ability to further customize certain aspects of the HUD, such as the color and opacity of its various widgets. I’d also give the player the option to place the crosshair in the center of the screen; the crosshair’s placement in every game after the original (about a third to two-fifths up from the bottom) is a complaint I’ve heard from a few people, so I think it’d be nice if the player could choose whether to center the crosshair (this would of course slightly alter the height of their “camera,” putting the center of their FOV when facing straight forward a bit closer to the ground). Options would also exist for adding details from Halo 3 like curvature and a translucent visor outline or details from Halo 4 like subtle parallax movement when in motion, the ability the see parts of the inside of the helmet, or the various little non-functional highlights that make H4′s HUD look more like a jet fighter pilot’s HUD. Finally, I would likely give players the option to have the HUD use Covenant text when playing as an Elite.

I love options. Well, except for custom loadouts and other things that muck up competitive MP balance.

: No.
: Absolutely not.
: Melee BELONGS on a bumper. Would you put "Fire weapon" or
: "Throw Grenade" on the B button?

Heretic. Melee was originally on B by default and stayed that way all the way to ODST, but Bungie fell from the One True Path and put that on Recon, a non-default layout, and those heathens at 343I followed in their footsteps.

: Challenge accepted.

Say bye to your liver.

: Honestly, I think that the enemies in Reach are a pretty good place to start
: if we're making The Greatest Halo Game Of All Time. I loved the Elites
: because they were mobile, smart, and dangerous.
: So, take the Reach enemies and incorporate these changes: Elites: • Modify
: the melee. The punch is powerful, but no longer an instant-kill. At the
: very least, it breaks your shields.
: • The kick does less damage, but pushes the player back a few meters.
: • No more precognition. If you're halfway across the map with a sniper rifle
: and you are settling the crosshairs on an Elite's head, it shouldn't
: immediately sense your presence.

: Grunts
: • Bring back the T-42 plasma cannon from Halo 2.
: • Keep them silly and speaking English. They aren't just cannon fodder,
: they're comic relief.

Sounds good to me.

: Brutes
: • I think that a compromise between the Halo 3 Brutes and the Reach Brutes
: would be great.
: • Reach-style Brutes should be uncoordinated and operate somewhat
: independently of each other.
: • Halo 3 style Brutes should emphasize and improve the Brute Pack. Fire and
: maneuver, coordinated grenade volleys, the whole shebang.

I say have the Brutes keep their behaviors from Halo 2/3 (berserker rages, pack-based AI), but don't have their armor work like it does in Halo 3. I like the whole "give them no shields but a bunch of health and helmet that protects against headshots" thing more than I do the "it's like shields, but doesn't regenerate when popped" thing.

: Skirmishers
: • Pretty please?

I like them. Don't understand all the hate.

: Drones
: • The only improvement from Reach that I can think of is to make them more
: prone to landing.

Yep.

: I don't care in the slightest about Multiplayer, but some people are going to
: want to be able to edit loadouts for custom games. If you mention this
: later, apologies.

Actually, in my article I do mention allowing players to customize loadouts in customs and Firefight. Just not in Matchmaking.

: Interesting.
: You stated elsewhere that animals with such bizarrely different physiology
: wouldn't even be in the same genus.
: How radically can congenital defects change a person's skeletal structure?

They don't. I used "mutant" as a pejorative, not as a biological term. But I think you know that and are just joshing me.

: The Hell it is.

: Halo 5: Open with the Master Chief clad in armor that is a direct
: interpretation of the Mark VI. Never acknowledge the abomination from Halo
: 4 ever again.
: Problem solved.

Were it so easy. Looks like the Chief's retconned armor is just what Mark VI looks like now. :(

: Earth first! We'll log the other planets later!

The pines can be replaced, and their sacrifice will not be in vain, for they will live forever as a full-color, 30-page, 4-½" × 7" manual that will be appreciated for years to come.