Halo 5 (Xbox One)

Date Purchased: Dec 26, 2015
Date Completed: January 21, 2015
Price: Free (Christmas Gift)

 

Halo 5 was highly anticipated by many, but by the time I got around to playing it, the hype had died down and I’d come to the conclusion from various podcasts and outlets that game was underwhelming.  Going in with that in mind I was pleasantly surprised by Halo 5.  The game still featured too much “steel”, a criticism I had of Halo 4 as well.  I miss the sprawling landscapes of some older games, snow level, water level where the environments are rich and lush.  This game has some of that, but a lot of the time you’re playing on a space ship of some kind, that must be developer 343’s thing, whereas Bungie was much more keen on natural environments.  Destiny could back this up as well.   Again the Promethean’s prove themselves as a relatively boring enemy to fight (like Halo 4) but there are plenty Convenant here again which is nice.  The story is fine, not as dramatic as some others, but that came appreciated as it doesn’t require a Halo Bible to get through.  Graphically the game is impressive, although I’m not sure if it’s just the way the Prometheans animate or a game flaw, but it seemed they dropped some frames of animation time and again.   The sound is great as always, and from what I’ve played of multi, it holds up well.  Warzone is cool, but I had my the most fun in straight up Slayer.  If only this game had split screen it wold be a staple of the regular gaming get-togethers I have.  The lack of, will probably shelf this game for the long term.  It was a fun romp though, and if I ever do get through the pile and want to play some multi, I’ll pick it up.  Recommend.