The Spartan armors were once utilitarian, distinct, and could be identified at a glance.

Then... Halo 4 happened, with it's "more jaggies, less visor! FOOTURE" garbage artstyle that mostly only affected the Spartans, but also made the Elites look a pinch more generic and difficult to tell apart...

Now they've gone Full Retard™ on the Elites...

Hopefully this isn't a sign of what's to come in Halo 5, and hopefully these were only early-build placeholders (they look like zbrush fanart), but part of me knows that's just wishful thinking.