: I think you're getting caught up in the minutia while I was speaking more to
: the bigger picture, the precedent of mood and tone that the cinematic
: sets. Perhaps I'm not being clear or blunt enough. The point of the scene
: is to show the Spartan IVs embarking on a dangerous mission, except there
: is no danger. There is no danger because the covenant military is little
: more than a speedbump on their downhill slide. As Cody mentioned earlier
: in the thread, why not just have them snowboard down the damn thing?

: Or maybe we just want different things, Dave. I really enjoyed the portrayal
: of the Spartans in the previous games and novels because while they were
: incredible, there was a sense of gravitas to the action -- the Spartans
: were still human and still made mistakes. I thought they were badasses
: because they displayed heroism in the face of true danger. Fireteam Osiris
: are a group of high-school bullies pushing over an army of toddlers;
: they're shown to be so outmatched that the Spartans are literally running
: through them. I don't find that heroic or badass.

: I find that dreadfully boring.

Yeah, I think I have multiple opinions from different perspective :P
1) As a game trailer (well, cinematic preview), this was great. It had energy, it was pretty exciting. This is also a very surfacy opinion.
2) I give it props for putting the Spartan abilities known in the games into a practical, real-world (snicker) environment. Seeing the characters we play make use of the abilities that are love-it-or-hate-it shows how they have viable potential in combat situations, and really do enhance the overall capabilities of the soldiers. I loved seeing the natural use of thrusters for quick maneuvering and speedy advancement in a proper context, for example (as opposed to the relatively clunky and awkward limited movement mechanics from videogame-play).
3) From a story standpoint, this feels like a stepping stone between the previous portrayal of Spartan IV's and the characters of Osiris being of more focus and development; somewhere between Halo 4 and Halo Reach. See discussion earlier in the thread about character development. Glad to not see any 'dudebro' attitudes.
4) Thinking deeper the video, it is very 'superhero'-like in its portrayal of the Spartans, cinematically there doesn't feel to be any real challenge or threat to the spartans. They are simply mowing through with no flaws or weaknesses or mistakes. Sure that might be reasonable for the concept of the soldier, but the perception is lopsided. We see capabilities, but not because of a contender or real danger, just because of lots and lots of noise.

I can see why people don't like the video, and I can also see ways to really enjoy the video. I really do hope that the 'good' ways are steps in the right direction for Halo 5 and its campaign and storytelling. And I hope that the not-so-good issues really are because we don't have the whole picture and aren't yet immersed in the story unfolding. I hope. I want there to at least be a reason for the existence of things that don't sit quite right. Otherwise it just feel sloppy.

When playing the game, I want to see this cinematic and feel much more a part of it, much more immersed and entranced by it and its believability, than just now watching it in a small window on my screen. :P