: I always said to myself that I'd do a review of Halo 4, and it never
: happened. So I'm making up for that by doing a review of Halo 5! I've had
: one play through on Heroic, and then sat on it for a few days to let it
: digest. I feel now the time is right to shamefully voice my opinions!

: It's important to note that all of the below applies to campaign only, as I
: have no real desire to play Halo multiplayer any more.

: The biggest disappoint of the entire game for me was probably actually the
: music. The sound effects were big, and bold, and much more visceral than
: in previous games, which I like. But the actual music was very
: forgettable, and this is the first Halo game that I can say that about.
: I'm not sure why the lead composer was changed between H4 and H5, but it's
: a mistake in my eyes. H4 had a great score, one that felt much like Halo
: but also sad and mysterious which was a great fit with the story they were
: telling. H5 seems almost directionless, and although the music fits the
: action on the screen as you'd expect it would, it doesn't really enhance
: what's going on or make you feel more engaged in it.

You opinion on this is interesting. While I have dramatically improved my estimation of Davidge's score on listening to the OST, I thought that it was a shame the game ignored previous themes when they could have worked, and from a technical standpoint was pretty badly mixed (I didn't realize "Arrival" was actually in the game because it's so quiet at the end of shutdown.)

In comparison, I think Jinnouchi's score might be a little too bombastic in places and occasionally lean too heavily on the old themes, but it does a better job meshing with what came before in the series (even as it carries forward some of the themes I really liked from the previous game, including the "main theme" for lack of a better word, and the Mantis track.)

Have you listened to the soundtrack on its own? It might be a case of how the music works for you in isolation versus in the game (I've spent a lot more time with the former listening case, and as for the latter my speaker setup is rather poor or I'm usually playing on very quiet volumes often.)

: It's a real shame that Jul is killed off in the opening level, as he was a
: character that had the depth and motivations to be a really worthwhile
: antagonist. Likewise the Didact, and given the complexities of his
: character he needed more than one game to come into his own. Both had far
: more mileage left in them, and it feels like they've just been pushed
: aside so that we can trade one villain for another. I can buy that
: whatever Halsey discovered in the Absolute Record was enough for her to
: give up on her quest for revenge to rejoin the UNSC and save humanity, but
: there's literally no pay-off for the events of Spartan Ops. Does it seem
: to matter that she was shot and loses an arm? That she wanted revenge? No
: - all this is forgotten. It's already been noted on these forums but
: Cortana's 'death' in H4 loses any kind of meaning now that she's returned
: - the entire emotional journey that the Chief, and us, went on is now
: worthless.

I don't agree Cortana returning makes her death worthless in the previous game, any more than Star Trek III made Star Trek II worthless because Spock came back. The emotional beats rang true, and they have a different resonance now that probably Chief and a lot of people wish Cortana had actually died.

Agree that I wish Jul got a bit more time to shine. He's one of my favorite characters from the K5 trilogy and 343's stewardship in general.

: However, Cortana now believes
: that it is the role of the Created to inherit the Mantle? Sounds like
: she's still a little rampant to me. Where did this idea come from? The
: Warden? He is but a puppet in this story, by defeating him Cortana shows
: that she truly believes in this idea, not that it's one he's fed her. I
: feel her motivation isn't properly explored, and that leads me to struggle
: with Cortana 'being evil' as a valid plot device.

I think that "Human Weakness" and "Origins", as well as Halsey's own way of thinking, give compelling evidence why Cortana would believe that stewardship of the Mantle should fall to the AI. By my reckoning she convinced the Warden of her plan, but the Warden couldn't abide her connection to Chief.

: There are so many characters in play right now that I'm hoping Halo 6 will go
: down the route that Gears of War 3 did; utilise the entire cast in
: different situations. Mix the teams up, I'd love to see missions where the
: Twos fight along side the Fours, and get Palmer and the Arbiter involved
: too. Give all the characters more gameplay time, that's the best way to
: learn about them and play to what appear to be 343i's strengths:
: Characters.

I definitely agree this would be cool, and a way to handle the sprawling universe.

Really enjoyed reading your take.