Every time I saw a close-up of Master Chief, I sat admiring the textures in his suit. Graphics have improved, and 343 must be squeezing every little bit of computational power possible from the Xbox 360 by now. Levels are still big, with massive alien structures, and the attention to detail is better than ever. Nothing's changed in that respect since 343 Industries has taken the helm. When Bungie made the Halo games, every game was an epic sci-fi battle to save humanity.

Between Cortana, the God-like Forerunners, the Covenant, and the Promethean armies, Master Chief may have just a couple of small items to take care of before he calls his mum to let her know he's alive. It's been hinted at in Halo lore for some time, but now the Prometheans are threatening humanity. Worse, there's a new enemy on the horizon: the Prometheans. The Covenant are back, and even more fanatical. As the Chief's companion points out early in the game, things have changed a lot in four years. But it would be a very boring game if that were as simple as it sounds.

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