Halo‘s Frank O’Connor Reacts to Criticism of Halo 5

Halo's franchise director also told us what Halo 6 would be about

Halo 5‘s campaign didn’t exactly work for me, this much I’ve written. Not in snobbery. I don’t hate popular done-over-and-over-again things in principle, any more than I hate baseball, chess, or the Tour de France. As Stephen King put it in his National Book Awards acceptance speech, you “don’t get social or academic brownie points for deliberately staying out of touch with your own culture.”

But popular doesn’t entail safe, and Halo 5‘s story, despite what I’m sure comprises an unfathomable amount of developmental work, feels too much like kicking back in the easy chair and putting your feet by the fire. Characters end the game as they began it. Even the twist at the end just feels like a tee-up for Halo 6.

Halo franchise development director Frank O’Connor graciously engaged some of my criticisms after I’d finished the game. Here’s what he told me:

[ZaWarudo]

I liked it but the problem i had with it is that a lot of the campaign story stuff requires knowledge of the Halo lore and tie-in stories.

[Paytaa]

I'm very into the Halo lore so the story was really good in my eyes with the exception of a few things like character development in-game was poor.

I wish they made the campaign more grounded in the sense that someone who's not familiar with the EU could get what's going on. Hopefully they understand this during Halo 6's development.

[-Foxtrot]

It's kind of like

"Have you read the novels and see other forms of transmedia for Halos giant Universe...just so you can understand Halo 5"

"Not really"

"Great well have fun

"...but...I said no"

"Let us know what you think"

"But..."

[Gazondaily]

Yeah they always do this. For me, a fan of the lore, its great. For everyone else, they just stick a middle finger up for some reason.

Im finding the campaign to actually be a lot of fun but I'm playing it cooperatively.

[Roccetarius]

I really, really hate it when games are compromised, in order to make someone not playing a game in a series understand it. But then again, some people are just there to jump into the latest software released.

Books are something else entirely, because it's easier to put actions into words, compared to actually make the game look like what happens in it.

tldr - don't compromise the continuity of the game for new players.

Oh, and i thought the game was sub-par compared to previous entries, and i still think ODST's campaign hit more home.

[FriedGoat]

The continuity of the game was compromised by the books. Remember when Master Chief was the last spartan?? Oh wait, the books changed it.

I prefer the game to have its own story created by the original people who knew where it was going. Halo 4 and 5 are games for those who are into the lore created by 11 different writers, in my eyes its a mistake as I found the story in 4 confusing an convoluted.

[Unspoken]

@Fox
Hmm, I assume you have the same feeling when you only watch the 3rd movie in any trilogy.

Like if you only saw Return of the Jedi, Matrix Revolutions, The Bourne Ultimatum, The Dark Knight Rises, The Return of the King...

Or an even a better comparison, you decide to catch the last couple of episodes of a television series or Anime.

I mean, who simply watches the last show of Game of Thrones season 1 and becomes so frustrated when they don't understand what's going on that they swear off the show completely instead of trying to figure out what's going on by watching the rest of the series.

[FriedGoat]

Unspoken, that is a ridiculous analogy, We're talking about two different mediums here.

I played all the games, you know? 1-3, ODST, Reach.
I could not have played anymore halo if I tried, yet I don't know what the hell is going on in 4.

I shouldn't have to read the books. The game is not based on the book, the books are based on the game.

Should I go watch the Hitman movie to get clued up on the story for the new Hitman game? No, because it would be stupid to expect anyone to do that.

[Unspoken]

Why not? Movies that were spawned from books left out vasts amounts of information but hit key elements of the story. The comparison is valid.

I wouldn't have had to play any of the titles you listed to understand what was transpiring in 4. I don't think anyone expects to know the entirety of any universe by playing a single game, and the latest installment at that. Halo 4 even had a short series to tie in events that were not directly impacting Chief called Spartan Ops, which helped explain and transition into Halo 5.

Halo has always tied all of their content, from live action trailers and shows to CGI shorts. This is one of the reasons it was so attractive and enthralling to me. You wouldn't even have to touch the books but simply watch cutscenes and additional "televised" content to be able to piece it together. Having MCC remastered for Xbox One gave players an opportunity to fill in their gaps with knowledge and lore before embarking on Halo 5. Included with the game was Nightfall, a series that could be watched directly on the console, and The Fall of Reach came with Halo 5.

Regardless, all of it could be watched on YouTube.

If the complaint was specifically about character development and interactions or relatability, the genre, or game type, then I totally understand. It just might not be their cup of tea. But to claim it wasn't cohesive because they felt they shouldn't have to read the books to know what was going on, when so much content is easily accessible and presented to the player, is asinine.

[UnHoly_One]

I have no problem with spin off books or anything like that, but when a franchise starts as a game, it needs to stand on it's own and not require any knowledge outside of the games.

Gears did the same thing and it kind of ruined it for me. Gears 1, fine. Gears 2, fine. Then Gears 3 came along and there were characters I've never seen before being treated as if we know their entire back story.

That is unforgivable, in my opinion.

[kaizokuspy]

This is exactly why halo 5 guardians does not deserve an 8 9 or 10. It should sit at a 75. Not only does it alienate new gamers coming to halo, it requires those who actually played halo from the beginning (us and many others) to read the books. Here's the problem: If reading was my preferred medium of entertainment I wouldn't be playing games for the story now would I? So I should go to the bookstore, buy halo boos, read them, all just so halo 4 and halo 5 can make sense? Get real.... one of the most iconic things in the series is that Chief IS the last spartan. You took that away from him in halo 5. He is no longer special and 343 ruined an iconic character from my childhood.

No longer the last spartan, painting him as a traitor....Doesn't make any sense. Even in the books. Doesn't make sense as chief through gameplay and story, always honored chain of command. Lol not anymore and we can all agree that hey, he should go after cortana...but here's the thing. Halo 4 and 5 praises this one is for you:

Cortanas situation could have been written many different ways to be enticing and exciting without painting the chief as a traitor. The halo 5 story fell flat and am extremely disappointed. Halo is not evolving anymore. It's dwvolving into being a multiplayer only driven game like cod and we just sit here accepting 9/10 as if it were gospel. Maybe if and when we review games, we have the balls to give it a real review and score like the lower scores reflect the game as a whole. Not just the multiplayer parts. Idk, I'm just salty. Multiplayer in halo 5 is great, but I started halo 1 when it was single player, when campaign mattered, when multiplayer was just a feature and not expected to go anywhere. That story was great, and in halo 4, and more so now in 5, the story makes no god damn sense without dlc in the form of God damn books. Shame on all you gamers who are fools not to see that.

[Allsystemgamer]

@unspoken

No you're are so wrong.

Not watching a previous movie is not the same thing as forcing someone to read a book released 5 years ago they had no clue even existed to get information on VITAL characters in the story.

Movies without any vital information regarding characters always fail. That and most movies do a great job at being stand alone. You can watch any one of the star wars movies and tell the characters apart because they make references and explain them in subtle but effective ways.

In halo 4 and 5 they DONT explain anything and just expect you to kno what the hell is going on. That's not good story telling at all.

For example. No one is going to know who blue team is or why chief works with them. If they've only played the games they will think it's out of character because hey just appear and boom he has a team. How is the gamer supposed to care unless they know who they are? No introduction. "Same characters need no introduction" because you can tell who they are right away. Like Darth Vader. Instant villain. Blue team, unless you know who they are is just another 3 Spartans.

You absolutely can not make something assuming people know the other media forms. I study film in school and work in the industry. The first thing they teach you about story telling is characterization and progression, halo 5 of which has none. We learn Transmedia and they start every single class with "Transmedia is to enhance". It's there to make people want to go see or play the game more, not be used as vital information if you didn't read this tiny little paragraph amongst a sea of words.

Even if you read Halo: The Fall of Reach, it's so well done it doesn't need to be a halo novel. It give back story to who the chief is as a character and how he go to halo. The first game you already know you're important, the last Spartan, the last hope for humanity and it's Chiefs adventure.

So without reading the books or anything. Explain to me. Who is blue team?

[Magnes]

Spoiler at the end of my comment btw:

My problem with the story is here we have a chance to finally play as Blue team together in all its glory. Then 343 says nope here is another team you may or may not care about if you do good if not tuff we are about to cram them down your throat for 80% of the game. Oh I almost forgot remember the fond memories you had of Chief and Cortana well forget it she is now the Galactic villain "Have fun"!!

[boodi]

the campaign story is somewhat high minded , but i can't see it's bad as someone wanted to pict it .. foremost can be used to expand nicely the halo universe in the next installments ..

i still prefer the original halo story grip , but i acually liked the new cut and i see that it can drive new horizons ; it's not bad at all

the game is a blast , the only thing I miss is more linkage between cutscenes and gameplay , i.e. makin possible to play the beginning launch scene - from launch - or part of other later scenes would have been amazing if not mind blowing

but i speak on top of a 9/10 game , that imo is an absolutely deserved score for a very well built game and game package ...

"We’ve got people who love playing campaign but skip all the cinematics. We’ve got people who only play multiplayer. We have so many constituents to appease, that it’s always a careful balance and a fine line to walk."

it's super hard to innovate and deliver on all fronts .
IMO
they did an outstanding and remarkable job

[otherZinc]

@Frank O'Connor,

Fantastic Game, best in the series!

Played on Heroic Mode, absolutely marvelous gameplay!

The ending was great. Halo 6 is my most anticipated title!

In a few hours, I'm playing it over on Legendary. This weekend, I'll Campaign Co-op with my 13 year old daughter on Heroic Difficulty.

Thanks for a fantastic game, bring on:
Halo Wars 2!

[Why o why]

Seems halo can do no wrong in your eyes but I just came here to +1 ya on gaming with your daughter. Quality parenting

[PistolsAtDawn]

That does seem to be the unifying factor between loving it, and just thinking it's ok/not liking it. If you have kept in touch with the Halo universe outside JUST the games, chances are that you love Halo 5's campaign ...if not, chances are that you're missing some things that others are excited about.

This is why so far based on the reviews I've read, this is the only real thing I can see as a "legit" criticism of the game... the rest just seems nit-picky to me. For some reason this game also tends to get hit for things that other games get a pass on (like being an "annual" game....I've NEVER seen a game take a hit on a review for being an "annual" game before...even when it ACTUALLY is). It's almost like some reviews are just looking for something to hit it on.....thankfully most reviews are pretty fair and give it a great score.

[dmeador]

Unfortunately I've read about 8 Halo books including forerunner trilogy, and I give the story a 6/10. There is just so little to it, and you feel like there is no reason to complete each mission. I read the reviews and felt the same way, so hoped I would really like it because of that, but until the last 2-3 missions, things were very bland.

Locke was a very poor choice, and without spoilers, they could have made characters motivation (and therefore the players) MUCH stronger

[kenwonobi]

Halo is supposed to have a straight up aliens attack. Master chief kills them story. It shouldn't be so difficult to figure it out. The fact that 343 jumbled up the story is a mess.

[Benchm4rk]

And yet if 343 did that every game people would complain that it is the same thing over and over. At least they are trying to innovate the game a bit.

[81BX]

@zawarudo
I dont understand how that is a problem? Who in the expects to jump into halo 5 without any prior knowledge and understand what is happening? I certainly dont go to the movies and watch the second part of something and expect to be spoon fed the information from the 1st one. Im with you on liking the story. Im playing through again with my friends but they skip past the cut scenes and ask me 100 questions.... lol what are friends for, right?

[3-4-5]

Don't care about the campaign...never played Halo for that.

To me...for me......Team Slayer multiplayer IS Halo and that got this soooooo right.

Most of the people I've seen talk crap about it seem to be of the younger crowd.

I've been playing Halo since CE.....Halo 5 IS Halo...it feels like Halo, shoots like Halo, controls like Halo & sounds like Halo.

Halo 5 IS as Halo as you can get in a Halo game and I just don't understand why people are actively fighting that.

If Halo 3 was just like Halo 2....everyone would have complained.

If Reach was just like Halo 3....everyone would have complained....and so on.

Halo 5 is a GREAT multiplayer game with what appears to be a decent campaign.

* The multiplayer is only going to get better with 18+ FREE maps, + Forge + BTB on the way.

So as good as the multiplayer is, it can only get better.

* If that upsets you, you need to get a life.

[ape007]

mp so far is just AMAZING, very well designed/balanced, so fun to play, new mechanics added a whole new layer, the halo gameplay + the 60FPS = MAGIC

played 2 campaign levels, very good so far, i liked that they brought back the trademark humorous/witty covenant voice overs, it now truly feels like halo

sites that gave it a 6 or a 7 are literally delusional, you'll find the same reviewer give soma or everyone goes to rapture a 9, LoL

[343_Guilty_Spark]

I don't have a problem with it because the games deal with a Universe, multiple characters and multiple storylines. Yes you kind of needed to be already invested in the lore and you probably should have played all the previous games. It's not much different than Star Wars. A causal person going to see Star Wars 7 most likely won't know anything. Also for the people complaining about the lack of Story they did include the additional Fall of Reach Animated Series...I mean what else do you want them to do.

[Benchm4rk]

Its ok. The same people that complain about not having a clue what is going on in Halo 4 probably never even bothered to find the terminals and watch videos for them. They explain all you need to know.

[escott013]

I think the campaign was pretty good, *however* it should have had MUCH more time playing as Master Chief...not just 3 stinking missions...and the ending was very interesting, but underwhelming in my honest opinion.
Other than that, I really enjoyed it. I was able to play it from start to finish without stopping and I stayed engaged in what was happening, but again, it's really a shame that it ended the way it did. It was kind of interesting, but it was like "That's it?!"

[Benchm4rk]

I feel like this is 343's Halo 2. Dual protagonist storyline, ends on a cliffhanger (albeit not as big as Halo 2's) and having the last mission as Arbiter/Locke. Halo 2 set up Arbiter as a great character and he fought at your side in Halo 3 but Halo 3 was all Chief. Im hoping Halo 6 goes the same way and Locke is relegated to being a side character and we play as Chief the whole time

[escott013]

@Benchm4rk, I completely agree with your observation about it being 343's Halo 2.
Let's hope they make Halo 6 all Chief gameplay.

[DJustinUNCHAIND]

5+ games in.

Duh!

[ShadowNextGen]

I've only played the games and haven't read any of the novels or anything...and I found the story very straightforward and easy to understand.

[escott013]

Lucky for you, there is now an animated version of The Fall of Reach novel so you can learn all about the history of Chief and Blue Team.

[Ashunderfire86]

They clearly made this Halo for multiplayer, but the campaign was the worst in the series. I will play the campaign again for the fun factor and coop play, but you got to admit they could of done better. The problems with the campaign is the repetitive boss fights of the same enemy over and over again for like 5 times. It made me feel like 343 ran out of ideas to make more variety of enemy bosses! We got 3 version of the same boss at the end that made the game more frustrating, and the storyline was the weakest one. The campaign have some good moments like that (spoiler free no worries) coming down from the sky moment, which I can't spoil is the highlight of the game wow! It is the closest we will ever get to that Locke team sliding down the snowy mountain cutscene you wish was playable. You have the multiple path ways through the battlefield where all 4 players go through to reach the same point(another highlight). One thing to take note is that there are only 12 missions, not 15 missions as stated. Those 3 missions are nothing but fake rpg open world like hubs, where you talk to 2 npcs then mission complete! Not joking. One of those hubs you revisit to do the same thing? I wish these hubs were not apart of the missions. All Halos before this had all full level missions, so what is the point of these hubs? I see this game as an 8.5 for the best multiplayer in the series,but the campaign is a bit lackluster.

Plus alot of people need to take note of this, and I hope the developers fix this, which is the low framerate from a distance issue. I notice this issue in both single and multiplayer. Yes the game is smooth in 60fps, but the enemy and player walking animations look weird, wonky, and downright ugly! Its like those animations are moving in 30fps, and while the whole game world is in 60fps at the same time. The problem is up close also. The only other game I can think of that had this problem, was Dark Souls 2 back when it was for PS3/360/PC.

[Unspoken]

I agree they needed to flesh out the reasoning for some of the decisions they made, such as the reappearing Warden.

It seems like they were trying to cram so much information in the time space they had, I'm sure scenes were cut from the game.

I liked the idea of the explorable hubs and wished they would expand on it with more dialogue options by speaking to other NPC's, ala Mass Effect style, and add options to configure your Spartan armor and weapons while there, making each individual Spartan more unique and specialized.

Having different setups/abilities so you can tackle each mission in a new way would be an amazing experience, especially with a team. The assets are already in the game and alluded to with the vast variety of Spartan equipment. Give us access to all of that extra content.

[KingKionic]

At the end of the campaign when i beat it my instant reaction was the game was the best campaign.

Frank is right you cant please everyone.

But i dont see how any of the halo`s from 1-4 is touching halo 5.

Its just not possible even the places you go and the traversal through the enviornments.

Even the story really takes the halo series to the next level.

People need to get that the whole covenant and flood stuff is lower level.

We are on a whole different journey now. Stuff went down in this game i tell ya.

[Ashunderfire86]

Halo 3 to this day is the best campaign in the series. How can you say no to that epic Scrab boss fight or those huge vehicle battles Halo is know for? Halo 3 had 11 full missions with no hub levels posed as missions for Halo 5! Play Halo 3 again and tell if you still think Halo 5 is the best campaign in the series. Man if Halo 3 was built from the ground up for Xbox One it would of blow Halo 5 out of the water, in terms of scale. Yes Halo 5 has the best level design in the series, but the campaign is lackluster at best.

[KingKionic]

Dude...i dont even wanna spoil the campaign of halo 5...

But you and me both know there was a covenant boss in the game that made the scrab look tiny in comparison.

When it was revealed and the scale was notice...it was mind blowing...even getting inside it.

Halo 5 campaign is just overall far,vastly, beyond halo 3.

I have nothing else to say about this.

[TheBurger29]

@KionicWarlord222
That was not on the level of the scarab battles.

[Allsystemgamer]

@warlord

It was a literally copy of the scarab just "bigger". That's not exciting at all. Especially since you're basically in and out of it. Atleast in halo 3 you could attempt to shoot it's legs to lower it or find some way of boarding it to take it down quicker needless to say it was more fun than the one in halo 5

[dmeador]

@Ashunderfire86 That was exactly what I thought after a beat Halo 5. Halo 3 had such an epic story and clear reason/understanding what would happen if you fail. With 5 if you failed then... what? Chief would do what he wanted to do, and I didn't even have a reason to fight when I was MC until the last few missions. Even then it was fuzzy on what the characters failure meant for the human race

@KionicWarlord222 That boss battle was extremely disappointing. At no point did I feel it was a threat, and it was straight up a set piece. What makes Halo so fun is you will never have the same battle twice. Every enemy reacts its own way. But that was just a piece of ground with a bunch of turrets.

[ape007]

halo 3 campaign is excellent but the best halo campaign without a doubt was halo combat evolved

still didn't beat halo 5 campaign

[Ashunderfire86]

That big covenant boss was a joke compared to the Scarab Boss. That thing was stationary the whole time with turrets: All you had to do is going inside on boom he is dead in 3 mins. The Warden was a repetitive mess appearing 5 to 8 times during the campaign, doing the same thing everytime. then close to the end you had to face 3 versions of him doing the same BS. That right there makes me feel like 343 ran out o ideas. I seen other shooters do a better job with boss fights than this. For those that disagree, don't tell me you didn't think that was repetitive. At times Warden boss fights makes up the whole level.

[Allsystemgamer]

Yea the warden is so frustrating on legendary man. Don't do it solo like I did.

[Benchm4rk]

@Allsystemgamer

I found him easy on legendary. When you fight 3 of them take a incineration cannon and scattershot with you. Charging your incineration cannon and hitting him will stun him then move behind him and scattershot his back til he dies. Rinse and repeat

[dmeador]

Not even close man. The level design was pretty fun, but 3 dominates it in every way.

[escott013]

I agree that the environments were amazing. To be on Sanghelios was awesome and Genesis was such a beautiful planet.
I also agree that the story is on a much more personal level and it spices things up.
But I don't think it was the best one, but it's up there.

[littletad]

As a long Halo fan, I can safely admit that this was the best Halo thus far. Not in terms of story, but as a whole package, it's an amazing game. 60fps makes a big difference, and it was a welcomed trait that I'm glad 343 studios committed to. Story wise, it's better than all but the first game. I don't think any entry in the series will repeat the magic of being a lone survivor and feeling the adrenaline of being the last spartan. The series is in safe hands, no doubt, and most of the negative reviews from major gaming sites are simply taking shots for more generated view counts. Gaming journalism is no longer something you can trust when it comes to honest reviews. Read user reviews and play the games for yourself to find out whether a game is great or not. Just my opinion.

[iistuii]

Yep, it's really good, I enjoyed the campaign & it's much better coop, it's smooth, it's coop is just as smooth & the mp is the best it's ever been. It has scored really well on reviews, but I don't give a toss either way as after playing through all the others I was never gonna miss this out on this one. Roll on Halo 6 I say..

[TwoForce]

Well, Halo 5 is a great game, but not the best in my opinion. People do know their taste, but it depends on who like this game or not. Let me tell you this, you can't please everyone in many ways. Troll people or fanboy, they do play game but they have their own opinion even they do piss you off. Even that some people are not big fan of Halo or Uncharted, they want to play and have fun their own game.

[TripC50]

The gameplay was great. The story sucked a big one. The whole time while playing as Locke I was like. "Who cares about this guy." They should of had the Arbiter hunt down the chief. Or better yet imagine if the arbiter had a son or daughter and he/she hunted the chief. That would have been sooooooo much better than lame Locke.

[iistuii]

The gameplay was great I agree, but to be honest when I was playing with either character, I forgot who I was playing as. I was having so much fun shooting, I had a helmet on & a gun in my hand, who am I now, I forget, but let me shoot some more, that was me anyway..

[PhucSeeker]

This! I've played all halo games and i didn't get an ounce of story out of those games. But shooting in Halo games was so much fun that i don't even need the story.

And with halo 5's campaign, the run-n-gun is better than ever. Though teammates AI can be a pain in the ass at times (especially on Legendary). So bring a few friends along and have a blast.

[gamer7804]

I watched the tv series and the movie, but have read none of the books. Some of the stuff goes over my head like who team members are, but so far i get the majority of the story. Sure they could have explained things better but its still really fun.

[optimus]

Him saying that 6 will focus on making the story "more human" is simply telling me that he also didn't think the story in 5 was that great...even though the games are connected, they should each stand on their own merits and not depend on other sources like short series, and books to make them more enjoyable or at least understandable...

I don't buy the books or watch the shows or episodes. The game should make me want to go out and seek those things but this halo 5 made me not want to do that... It's not like it's impossible for 343 ind. To tell a good story and execute it since i was so immersed in halo 4 which i find to be one of the best in the series...

All is not lost though as i'm willing to bet they are going to expand the campaign through some lengthy dlc with some master chief episodes...i just hope it ends up being free.

[UserNameIsNotTaken]

Yeah, saying the next sequel will have "more X" is saying that the current game has 'Less X".
I really am enjoying the Multiplayer :]

[isa_scout]

Great interview. Maybe I'm in the minority but I love Halo 5s campaign. I still think Halo 4 is the best Halo campaign I've played, but Halo 5 is right up there.343 has done a much better job of making Chief the confused,emotional, loyal soldier he was in The Fall of Reach novel.

[maybelovehate]

Halo 4 was most excellent indeed. Not done with 5 yet but I am enjoying it so far.

[Sciurus_vulgaris]

There really wasn't much wrong with the campaign, it had the best set pieces in the series. My main issues with it are the redundant Warden fights and the story (too many new characters).

[700p]

Actually a lot of people enjoyed halo 5 campaign. Its just the minority more outspoken about it.

[Godz Kastro]

I've been gaming forever and I must say Halo 5 is one of the best games I have EVER played. Hands down. I couldn't believe how good the game turned out.

If the game didn't turn out good I may have started a slow, sad decline with the franchise. Man, so glad my expectations weren't high. I can't wait to see what 343 has in store for us as well as the coalition. MS knows how to put a team together to take care of their top franchises. Not since Destiny have there been so many people playing one game all day every day.

Long live the chief!

[Trekster_Gamer]

There is soo much whining.

I loved the story, it really is taking Halo in a new direction. All reviews and opinion pieces aside it comes down to sales. TBH the ratings users submit on XBL live tell the tale more than anything else for me.

[HaMM4R]

Am I the only one who felt massively disappointed with halo 5? The core gameplay is amazing as is the music, but the campaign was short and lacked any sort of depth, the ending was awful and we weren't given what they had promised. 8-12 hours on normal? Where on earth did that number come from? I finished it in 6 hours and 11 minutes on heroic and was treated to the worst ending in halo since halo 2.

On the multiplayer as I say the gameplay is amazing but my god is there a lack of content.21 maps on launch 343? Really? There are only 6 original arena maps if you're not counting the few remixes and forge maps and only 3 original warzone maps. I feel I've been pretty mislead as a consumer. There is a lack of social playlists, making the only way to experience the arena gameplay a competitive one, which I personally don't enjoy. Where are the social playlists? Where are the medium sized maps like high ground, Valhalla, blood gulch style maps, you know some of the most popular in the series? Where are all the modes? Warzone is absolutely amazing, but where is standard BTB with medium sized maps? Where is infection? Where is king of the hill? Where is team doubles? Where is oddball? And some people will say, oh well they'll be coming when forge finally hits which is fair enough but there isn't enough content in the base game to really keep me interested until December. I've only logged 10 hours collectively over the multiplayer and I'm already starting to lose interest due to the massive massive massive lack of day one content.

I surely can't be the only one feeling like this right? The core gameplay is so amazing, there just isn't any where near enough variety to show it off, and the fact they've said things like 21 maps at launch and an 8-12 hour campaign is so misleading its almost criminal.

[SlyFoxC]

i agree man. I havent finished the game, im playing on legendary first time through, but my friend called me up yesterday saying "If anyone bitches about the length of The Order ever again I will stab them" He said he finished the game around the 5 hour mark on normal. i died a little bit....the shooting is fun but when you get online you can put an entire clip into someone, and then some pistol shots and they are still alive and come up and bash you once and you are dead. I think im going to stay away from the 4v4 (another thing im pissed about) and focus on Warzone.

Over all to me, this is a Rebranding of Halo.

Halo 5 - 7/10

[Ashunderfire86]

I agree for the most part. I do think that Halo 5 has the best multiplayer, even before they add more content in the game. The story and the campaign was lackluster at best, compared to Halo 3 and 4. The Warden fights repetitive fights at times are the whole level, and those pointless hub areas pose as missions, for the so called 15 missions 343 talks about. All you do is talk to 2 npcs and get an achievement for the next level! What? One of them you revisit to do the same thing! What? All Halos including Reach never had that crap, so why even include them as missions? Technically there are really only 12 full missions, which is a Halo standard, but 343 stop the false advisement!

[HaMM4R]

Yeah don't get me wrong, what is there is excellent, its just there isn't enough of it and arena is just too competitive for my personal tastes. Social playlists please 343.

[kotaku77]

I'm a huge fan of Bungie halo games. I've played this one yesterday over friends house, and feels good! It's a good game, definitely not Call of Halo. Best 343 has ever done in my opinion, and the best I've seen so far on the Xbox1. The game is not perfect and I haven't played all the campaign, but I've only one criticism really: We wanted to play together. But like this guy says: You can't please everyone.

I find 1 thing extremely weird: Already talking about Halo 6?!!!!??

[Deeke]

Halo 5's campaign is incredibly broken. The AI system is immeasurably bad, making singleplayer or Legendary just sadistic punishment. 343 Industries should be embarrassed about how bad this game's singleplayer campaign is, which makes up half of the actual content.

I've never been so frustrated in any Halo game; a game shouldn't be hard because you literally have to fight with terrible broken mechanics in order to progress.

[isa_scout]

Yeah, team A.I. is some of the worst I've seen in any game ever. I couldn't count how many times I've yelled, "Buck, I'm right here just F***ing HEAL ME!!!" My brother and I laughed so hard when we both went down and Buck and Tanaka(team AI) just ran next to us shooting the ground and jumping into a column. It's extra frustrating when playing on legendary especially.

[Benchm4rk]

I finished the Campaign Solo on Legendary and found it to be the easiest of all the campaigns. Your teams AI is really bad at times but I didn't feel that impacted on my ability to finish the game at all.

[UNKLE]

The BEST HALO game was HALO1 and HALO3.

[Bobafret]

Frank, here is some advice: Stop reacting.

[fluxmulder]

Why is Time magazine reviewing games?

[maybelovehate]

They review books and movies too. Have for a very long time. They cover all things.

[kenwonobi]

Well metacritic has the game sitting at 85. That's decent score. A little disappointing seeing as it's the first major Halo on a next generation console. It probably should have blown people away. I guess after about 7 Halo games you got to step up the formula and not just keep pumping out the same exact game time after time since Halo part one. Then at that Halo part one still has the best campaign and story.

[iNFAMOUZ1]

remove locke and you got yourself a great campaign again and ill buy it again

[IraqCombatVet]

Here's an idea.

Use those Hub missions where you have the ability to talk to characters to learn more about them and access terminals like Halo 4 to get more lore about the universe.

This way it's optional for those who want to learn more. Can't believe the devs missed that opportunity. I thought it up in a matter of minutes.

[optimus]

Funny thing is when you find and play the intel audios they give you a bit of backstory BUT it fades away the minute you walk away from the terminal which is stupid. I'm being shot at! I can't stick around to listen to some clip. "ain't nobody got time for that!"

They should have taken a page from the batman arkham games and let you listen to whatever you find at any time. Not to mention that when you do find intel in halo 5 and you end up dying you have to go back and retrieve the intel yet again.

[Bobafret]

I usually clear the area and then go back to listen or explore.

[Benchm4rk]

Pretty sure you can re listen to the intel through the menu system once you have found them

@iraqcombatvet

When I played those hub missions I couldn't help think that maybe 343 were dipping there feet in a Destiny style public space for a future Halo or even just changing the way they deliver missions to you. They could have a huge hub with dozens of NPC's. Talking to different ones to take on the next mission and they could have other NPC's to customize your Spartan for MP and stuff.

[NeoGamer232]

Next game, 343 should do a summary of events that put the context around the game. A short 3-5 min video would probably do fine.

[yakumba]

Love this game so far, wonder if it will bring some content on glitchbay.net/ :P

[00]

343 just need to plainly get better writers.

[Ginpachi-sama]

Im enjoying the mp havent touched the sp yet but i still like the halo 3 mp more but halo 5 is the best fps mp game on next gen so far i dont see that changing any time soon

[Godz Kastro]

I'm sorry but I disagree. I am 37 and originally purchased an Xbox for halo. I played the living crap out of 2/3. I liked 4 but but not as much as the others.

However 5 is simply amazing. The opening cinematic and level are sooooo good. I was ready to start giving up on halo until this masterpeice.

[leeeroythe3rd]

It's comical the angle of criticism that halo 5 is taking. Grass roots smear campaign. Game is solid and fun both in single player and multiplayer. This is just an attack on Microsoft pre holiday to devalue big lineup.

It would be funny to see the sony fan response if you wrote a truthful article about the "system sellar" bloodborne being inaccessible to the average gamer due to difficult and thus it's a bad game... we all know the reaponse

[sullynathan]

What you shouldn't be doing is requiring the player to go to other media to understand the story of the main one. You failed by doing that.

[DivineAssault]

I hate when a games campaign is skimped on to make MP the core focus. They shouldnt expect anyone to have any knowledge of the series other than the main 1-4 prequels. Story and the campaign should be #1 or at the very least equal to the MP..

[PistolsAtDawn]

So.... haven't finished he campaign yet, but I can already tell that anyone saying its "the worst Halo Campaign yet" (esp since when they say that they even usually admit the ending is good...and leaves you wanting Halo 6)...does not share the same opinion as me. It's not bland/boring, it's well written and engaging. So far it's shaping up to be may favorite campaign ever....true I will have to finish it to know for sure....but it's headed that direction so far.

I did read the Halo books...not all of them, but Fall of Reach was one of them...even without it, it's a great story and you can understand it, but it's probably better if you do read it...or at least watch the series they gave you for free. I'm sorry, of course everyone is entitled to their opinion, but the more I read some of the criticisms, the more I think people are nit-picking and actively looking for something to complain about....at least everyone agrees that the gameplay across MP and SP is top notch.

[WDBII]

If you aren't lazy you will get on youtube and watch a summary that would catch you up on what you have missed. This game has been around too long for a "let's take a look back" moment

[ape007]

one word can sum up my MP time with halo 5....AMAZING

[bananaboats]

overall 343 did an amazing job with this Halo. My only complaint was the ending to the story, they could've made a better cliff hanger but as far as the pvp goes, WOW is all I can say. I never was a fan of Halo pvp before this, I always played Halo for the story but damn Warzone has me addicted and those req packs are a very nice touch.