On a related note, I remember Grim coming on here and talking about how it can be difficult to try to maintain a cohesive universe when so many cooks are trying to bring their own recipes to the same pot that once had a perfect recipe, and it made me realize that there have to be a number of folks over at 343i who were fans of Halo, and have had to watch it devolve all around them because of higher ups and folks who ruin what were once great things about the franchise, whether that's art direction, character designs, mechanics, levels, etc., while trying to maintain the love that they had intact, even if that means that they have to make some dumb decisions and contrived excuses.

I feel for them, and wonder if one day we can get a Reach-style overhaul/reboot that sets as high a standard as that did...