: I feel like the believability..feasibility..I don't know, the realism? of the
: events and content of Halo have moved much more towards fantasy sci-fi
: than when it was first introduced. Like, in Halo 1, it was a gritty
: human-kind, fighting against a powerful alien foe, and while a classic
: sci-fi setting, the mystery of Forerunner architecture and looming
: murmurs of ancient civilizations somehow made it feel more..real life.. or
: something like that.

: With the introduction of the Didact, and more tangible answers to the
: mysteries of Forerunner existence, it almost feels like we're moving into
: a complete fantasy realm of wild sci-fi content; over-the-top characters
: and designs and action... as opposed to a relatively muted, human-centric
: vision of the future.

: There's less, in my opinion, that's separating Halo now from other science
: fiction stories and universes... it's harder to imagine, say, the
: characters from I Love Bees (yeah I'm saying it again :) - who were
: depicted VERY realistically, believably, human, living in the Halo 4
: universe.

: Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I dislike where Halo is going - I still
: love my Haloverse :)... but I think this is one way that Halo has lost (or
: changed) that 'magic' that was around when it first launched; when we
: first discovered the Flood, when we first looked out over the landscape
: that was a Halo ring. Things have just become far too organic, bright,
: colourful, flashy, compared to those moments.

: Maybe it'll never return to that state... *shrug* But I miss it. =/

Totally agree, and probably my biggest issue with 343i's story and art direction: Forerunners.

Thankfully, the two studio's approaches and intents are so disparate that I can enjoy the originals still as they were, mysteries intact. 343i's story is just a similar or alternate universe. A 'what if'. I do not believe owning an IP grants you the power to make a story ring true.

Some mysteries should never be solved. Wonder, excitement, danger is found in questions, curiosity and the dark and obscure. Answers do not usually require your imagination. They shine a spotlight on something, disconnecting it from all that it could have been, which will always be greater than the thing itself.

Sometimes I think 343i was flawed before it get off the ground because of its purpose. Being locked in the Haloverse forever in every arm of its extension doesn't sound like a healthy environment for storytelling. The stories will be artificially extended, answers will be needed, elements of mystery will constantly be destroyed to create two lesser mysteries. I truly think the best thing 343i might need is to make non-Halo games as well so as to gain perspective and learn new ideas to apply back to Halo.