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[orthodoxy1095]

That leak is...well interesting.

Cortana silliness was to be expected I guess. I wonder if this really is an elaborate plot to get her a physical EDI-esque body.

 

[Jellycrackers]

I think the Cortana-focused storyline is okay, as long as it's well executed. I would prefer that over stuff like bringing in the Iso-Didact or Primordial or something else that would just confuse people who only play the games.

If Cortana's motivations are spelled out well enough and explained to be reasonable, I think it's a really good move. Wahrer and I talked about it and decided that we would rather Halo 6 (or whatever game ends this arc) not have a happy ending for Chief and Cortana, as that would go against the whole "Humanizing chief" theme that Halo 4 started. I wouldn't mind seeing an emotional ending of chief putting Cortana down, and rejoining Blue Team, his human brothers and sisters, rather than just isolating himself with an AI again.

 

[greenleafcm]

That leak is...well interesting.

Cortana silliness was to be expected I guess. I wonder if this really is an elaborate plot to get her a physical EDI-esque body.

I just threw-up in my mouth a little bit...this new turn of events is ridiculous enough, if 343i is seriously going that route then they truly don't deserve to be running the Halo franchise.

(tbh though I guess it wouldn't be a total shock...you ever heard Kiki Wolfkill talk about Cortana? She totally sounds like she reads/writes Chief/Cortana fanfic in her spare time.)

 

[orthodoxy1095]

I just threw-up in my mouth a little bit...this new turn of events is ridiculous enough, if 343i is seriously going that route then they truly don't deserve to be running the Halo franchise.

(tbh though I guess it wouldn't be a total shock...you ever heard Kiki Wolfkill talk about Cortana? She totally sounds like she reads/writes Chief/Cortana fanfic in her spare time.)

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

 

[Sodding_Gamer]

I just threw-up in my mouth a little bit...this new turn of events is ridiculous enough, if 343i is seriously going that route then they truly don't deserve to be running the Halo franchise.

(tbh though I guess it wouldn't be a total shock...you ever heard Kiki Wolfkill talk about Cortana? She totally sounds like she reads/writes Chief/Cortana fanfic in her spare time.)

I don't consider myself a halo nut by any means but from that leak, if true, I'm quite happy with the direction.

But for all the people disappointed in the story direction, I'd love to hear what you would of done differently? Like honestly I'm really intrigued as to what some die hard fans here would of wanted the story to head towards instead. I don't know enough about Halo apart from just playing the games. Never read any of the lore/books and stuff so I have a very limited knowledge about the backstories and that.

 

[rrc1594]

I don't consider myself a halo nut by any means but from that leak, if true, I'm quite happy with the direction.

But for all the people disappointed in the story direction, I'd love to hear what you would of done differently? Like honestly I'm really intrigued as to what some die hard fans here would of wanted the story to head towards instead. I don't know enough about Halo apart from just playing the games. Never read any of the lore/books and stuff so I have a very limited knowledge about the backstories and that.

Me personally with the way they been expanding the Halo Universe, this just so small like they could of did something much bigger.

 

[Sodding_Gamer]

Me personally with the way they been expanding the Halo Universe, this just so small like they could of did something much bigger.

Yeah I can get that. But big things mean repercussions for the rest of the universe. Maybe 343i just aren't comfortable with such big changes just yet maybe? I dunno!

Edit: although saying that Halo 4 made some radical changes aha.

 

[greenleafcm]

I don't consider myself a halo nut by any means but from that leak, if true, I'm quite happy with the direction.

But for all the people disappointed in the story direction, I'd love to hear what you would of done differently? Like honestly I'm really intrigued as to what some die hard fans here would of wanted the story to head towards instead. I don't know enough about Halo apart from just playing the games. Never read any of the lore/books and stuff so I have a very limited knowledge about the backstories and that.

A lot of people thought that this game would reintroduce the Flood as a primary antagonist. And that the Guardians were devices meant to activate in the event of a major impending Flood resurgence. It's hard to explain the true nature of the Flood in a few words, but suffice to say they're the corrupted remnants of an ancient race that predate the Forerunners that were basically Gods and created all life in the galaxy (universe?), called the Precursors. Their overall scheme is to "test" their creations to see which lifeform is worthy of attaining The Mantle - basically the philosophy that it is the responsibility of one sentient race to guide and protect all others. But since being turned into the Flood, now they simply seek to destroy/assimilate all life. I think that would've been a much better plotline. It would bring in a lot of deep stuff from the EU, but I think it could still be explained well enough in the game for all fans to understand it (since everyone who has played knows at least a little about the Flood).

 

[Jellycrackers]

A lot of people thought that this game would reintroduce the Flood as a primary antagonist. And that the Guardians were devices meant to activate in the event of a major impending Flood resurgence. It's hard to explain the true nature of the Flood in a few words, but suffice to say they're the corrupted remnants of an ancient race that predate the Forerunners that were basically Gods and created all life in the galaxy (universe?), called the Precursors. Their overall scheme is to "test" their creations to see which lifeform is worthy of attaining The Mantle - basically the philosophy that it is the responsibility of one sentient race to guide and protect all others. But since being turned into the Flood, now they simply seek to destroy/assimilate all life. I think that would've been a much better plotline. It would bring in a lot of deep stuff from the EU, but I think it could still be explained well enough in the game for all fans to understand it (since everyone who has played knows at least a little about the Flood).

If the leaked plot is true, the shot of the Halo ring with Cortana humming a tune makes me think she's going to free the flood that are trapped in the remaining Halo rings. If she is seeking "unity" like the Primordial/gravemind was in the Forerunner Saga, then that would be one way to achieve it.

 

[Sodding_Gamer]

A lot of people thought that this game would reintroduce the Flood as a primary antagonist. And that the Guardians were devices meant to activate in the event of a major impending Flood resurgence. It's hard to explain the true nature of the Flood in a few words, but suffice to say they're the corrupted remnants of an ancient race that predate the Forerunners that were basically Gods and created all life in the galaxy (universe?), called the Precursors. Their overall scheme is to "test" their creations to see which lifeform is worthy of attaining The Mantle - basically the philosophy that it is the responsibility of one sentient race to guide and protect all others. But since being turned into the Flood, now they simply seek to destroy/assimilate all life. I think that would've been a much better plotline. It would bring in a lot of deep stuff from the EU, but I think it could still be explained well enough in the game for all fans to understand it (since everyone who has played knows at least a little about the Flood).

Ahh interesting! Yeah that does sound pretty cool to be honest.

If the leaked plot is true, the shot of the Halo ring with Cortana humming a tune makes me think she's going to free the flood that are trapped in the remaining Halo rings. If she is seeking "unity" like the Primordial/gravemind was in the Forerunner Saga, then that would be one way to achieve it.

Hmm saving that plot point for the final arc of the trilogy wouldn't be a bad idea.

 

[CassidyIzABeast]

This is where the story was going as far back as Halo 3 so I'm not surprised.

Cortana talked about rampancy, Johnson told Chief to never let her go and he took the blame for Miranda's death, obvious attachment shown between Chief and Cortana during the don't make a girl a promise if you know you can't keep it scene from H2, 343 GS constantly referring to Chief as reclaimer.

 

[Tovarisc]

A lot of people thought that this game would reintroduce the Flood as a primary antagonist. And that the Guardians were devices meant to activate in the event of a major impending Flood resurgence. It's hard to explain the true nature of the Flood in a few words, but suffice to say they're the corrupted remnants of an ancient race that predate the Forerunners that were basically Gods and created all life in the galaxy (universe?), called the Precursors. Their overall scheme is to "test" their creations to see which lifeform is worthy of attaining The Mantle - basically the philosophy that it is the responsibility of one sentient race to guide and protect all others. But since being turned into the Flood, now they simply seek to destroy/assimilate all life. I think that would've been a much better plotline. It would bring in a lot of deep stuff from the EU, but I think it could still be explained well enough in the game for all fans to understand it (since everyone who has played knows at least a little about the Flood).

Kinda makes you hope for deep Halo RPG that can take tens of hours fleshing out world and storylines to players, without need to read 10+ EU books and fanfic to understand universe of the Halo. One thing that Mass Effect series did well, games themselves really fleshed out the world and EU books didn't feel like mandatory read to keep up.

 

[Gozer the Gozerian]

I don't consider myself a halo nut by any means but from that leak, if true, I'm quite happy with the direction.

But for all the people disappointed in the story direction, I'd love to hear what you would of done differently? Like honestly I'm really intrigued as to what some die hard fans here would of wanted the story to head towards instead. I don't know enough about Halo apart from just playing the games. Never read any of the lore/books and stuff so I have a very limited knowledge about the backstories and that.

Have only sorta payed attention to the overarching story since 343 took over, but it's interesting, because the whole Cortana rampancy and her becoming an antagonist are things I had originally hoped this trilogy would focus on. When Halo 4 and the surrounding novels started getting all weird with the Ancient Aliens stuff, Didact, primordial etc. etc. I completely lost interest. So I'm definitely excited to see what Halo 5 is apparently focused on.

BUT (and this impression might change depending on how it's handled in the game), it does seem like a major U-turn from everything that Halo 4 and its novels were building to, up to this point, with all the aforementioned Iso/Didact/Librarian/stuff I don't understand.

I seem to remember the reaction from other casual fans to all these plot threads in Halo 4 being one of confusion and wtf? So that makes me wonder if they tweaked their original story arc plans, making Halo 5 more Cortana centric, based on peoples reactions to 4.

 

[DATABASE DATABASE]

A lot of people thought that this game would reintroduce the Flood as a primary antagonist. And that the Guardians were devices meant to activate in the event of a major impending Flood resurgence. It's hard to explain the true nature of the Flood in a few words, but suffice to say they're the corrupted remnants of an ancient race that predate the Forerunners that were basically Gods and created all life in the galaxy (universe?), called the Precursors. Their overall scheme is to "test" their creations to see which lifeform is worthy of attaining The Mantle - basically the philosophy that it is the responsibility of one sentient race to guide and protect all others. But since being turned into the Flood, now they simply seek to destroy/assimilate all life. I think that would've been a much better plotline. It would bring in a lot of deep stuff from the EU, but I think it could still be explained well enough in the game for all fans to understand it (since everyone who has played knows at least a little about the Flood).

It's way too early for that. Present day humanity wouldn't stand a chance if the Flood/Precursors came back now. They'd need more than 5 Guardians to win that war

Then again, I thought the Didact would wipe the floor with humanity if he showed up. We know how that turned out. >_>

 

[greenleafcm]

It's way too early for that. Present day humanity wouldn't stand a chance if the Flood/Precursors came back now. They'd need more than 5 Guardians to win that war

Just saying, that's what people were thinking. I still like it better than the "lol Cortana is alive but now she's evil!" thing they've got going on now. As someone who never liked the character, more of her is the last thing I wanted in this game.

 

[Sodding_Gamer]

Have only sorta payed attention to the overarching story since 343 took over, but it's interesting, because the whole Cortana rampancy and her becoming an antagonist are things I had originally hoped this trilogy would focus on. When Halo 4 and the surrounding novels started getting all weird with the Ancient Aliens stuff, Didact, primordial etc. etc. I completely lost interest. So I'm definitely excited to see what Halo 5 is apparently focused on.

BUT (and this impression might chance depending on how it's handled in the game), it does seem like a major U-turn from everything that Halo 4 and its novels were building to, up to this point, with all the aforementioned Iso/Didact/Librarian/stuff I don't understand.

I seem to remember the reaction from other casual fans to all these plot threads in Halo 4 being one of confusion and wtf? So that makes me wonder if they tweaked their original story arc plans, making Halo 5 more Cortana centric, based on peoples reactions to 4.

You could be right there. I was one of those people when Halo 4 came out. As I had only played Halo 3 before (I played Halo 2 mp with my bro as a kid but that was it) so it's only now after going through the MCC collection and doing a bit of reading on here that I understand a bit more what's going on. But yeah definitely when Halo 4 came out I had no idea what was going on in the story.

And interestingly enough, it was only really Cortana that kept me playing through Halo 4. I really liked the way she was portrayed. The cut scenes, dialogue and voice acting were much better than the previous Halo games I found. That is just my opinion of course! But I can understand after playing Halo 1-4 over the weekend why some people didn't like 4.

 

[greenleafcm]

Then again, I thought the Didact would wipe the floor with humanity if he showed up. We know how that turned out. >_>

Lol, no kidding.

 

[greenleafcm]

I'm just glad this came to my attention before I went and picked up my preorder. Saved me from making a serious $250 mistake.

 

[CassidyIzABeast]

Then again, I thought the Didact would wipe the floor with humanity if he showed up. We know how that turned out. >_>

Well he did kill 6 million in New Phoenix with the composer.

 

[Tovarisc]

Well he did kill 6 million in New Phoenix with the composer.

When compared to what Covenant did during war against humanity then what Didact did is in minor league. I think at this point even humanity has grown to expect one colony here and there getting fully wiped out every now and then.

 

[Welfare]

When compared to what Covenant did during war against humanity then what Didact did is in minor league. I think at this point even humanity has grown to expect one colony here and there getting fully wiped out every now and then.

Covenant were in a war with Humanity for decades. Didact took the Composer and started to fuck Earth's shit in like a few days.

 

[piccio_ssl]

i've heard that 3 missions will not have combat at all

 

[Primethius]

i've heard that 3 missions will not have combat at all

Where from?

 

[orthodoxy1095]

i've heard that 3 missions will not have combat at all

Source, proof, etc?

I'm just glad this came to my attention before I went and picked up my preorder. Saved me from making a serious $250 mistake.

I wouldn't cancel a preorder until we get confirmation on that leak you gave us.

 

[piccio_ssl]

Where from?

everyeye.it forum ( italian )
the sources are the owner of the site ( huge halo fan ) and a user that is very close to the series ( italian tournament if i'm not wrong )

here the forum page
LINK

post #8035 and #8037

 

[greenleafcm]

i've heard that 3 missions will not have combat at all

They announced this officially as well in Saturday's canon fodder on Halo Waypoint.

 

[greenleafcm]

I wouldn't cancel a preorder until we get confirmation on that leak you gave us.

I won't name names, but I was contacted by another source via PM after I initially posted the leak and they confirmed that the information was accurate.

 

[cartoon_soldier]

Spoiler sounds good to me.

 

[CassidyIzABeast]

In fact, a few of the chapters will introduce something quite new when it comes to typical Halo campaigns in the form of non-combat exploration spaces. These particular chapters will give you a chance to catch a breath, but also to explore, to look, and to listen. More than perhaps any other campaign in Halo history, there is story to be found to those willing to look and listen – whether that be to your squadmates themselves, or perhaps to other characters that are scattered throughout the environment. These non-combat chapters give players the chance to advance the story while not necessarily needing to simultaneously advance on the enemy. Plus, one of them in particular introduces one of the most excellent Unggoy in Halo history. Trust me.

I'm not mad at that

 

[Markoman]

I'm just glad this came to my attention before I went and picked up my preorder. Saved me from making a serious $250 mistake.

Thanks for sharing as I'm in the same boat. In case that Halo 5 turned out really great I was going to buy a One just for this game. Sadly, after having watched all the gameplay videos and hearing the story leaks I'll have to pass and wait.

 

[Johndoey]

Execution is 80% of the game, but holy fuck does that synopsis sound terrible. I can't wait for Cortana to suddenly understand the error of her ways in Halo 6, make a heroic sacrifice, and then have Chief either die or subsequently fuck off to parts unknown.

 

[TheOddOne]

I'm all for AIs gone rogue. Shodan that itch.

 

[orthodoxy1095]

I won't name names, but I was contacted by another source via PM after I initially posted the leak and they confirmed that the information was accurate.

Damnnnnnnnnnnnnn

 

[greenleafcm]

Execution is 80% of the game, but holy fuck does that synopsis sound terrible. I can't wait for Cortana to suddenly understand the error of her ways in Halo 6, make a heroic sacrifice, and then have Chief either die or subsequently fuck off to parts unknown.

Yup. There's like, so many better directions they could have gone with this it's insane. I'm sure some crazy Cortana fans will be elated though - because literally this is every piss-poor fanfic writer's dream come true. I bet the Chief will be finding a way to save her in the next game, get her a body, and then they can finally have the full-on Oedipus Complex relationship so many people have always wanted them to have...

 

[TheXbox]

So Cortana goes full Mendicant Bias? Okay, whatever. I guess they could pull it off. That summary reads like absolute shit, though. And fuck a cliffhanger ending, Jesus. If anyone franchise should've learned its lesson...

 

[Tovarisc]

Yup. There's like, so many better directions they could have gone with this it's insane. I'm sure some crazy Cortana fans will be elated though - because literally this is every piss-poor fanfic writer's dream come true. I bet the Chief will be finding a way to save her in the next game, get her a body, and then they can finally have the full on Oedipus Complex relationship so many people have always wanted them to have...

Getting some major EDI [Mass Effect 3] flashbacks here.

 

[minolta1034]

Whether it is true or not I think it is silly to pass judgement on the games story without actually experiencing it. Compressing what I assume to be a 10-15 hour campaign down into two paragraphs is not going to provide you with a full understanding of the games plot.

EDIT: Reading a few more replies I am surprised anyone thought Cortana would not come back, or that her "sacrifice" was actually a death scene in 4. They have been pushing Cortana's return since 2013 so nobody should be surprised: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEYbite01Ak

 

[Sodding_Gamer]

Whether it is true or not I think it is silly to pass judgement on the games story without actually experiencing it. Compressing what I assume to be a 10-15 hour campaign down into two paragraphs is not going to provide you with a full understanding of the games plot.

Agreed. Whittling any games story down to a few paragraphs will make it sound shit, no matter how you write it lol.

 

[greenleafcm]

Getting some major EDI [Mass Effect 3] flashbacks here.

At least EDI wasn't a physical, mental, or emotional mirror of Joker's mother though (not that that made their relationship any less uncomfortable). But good god, with Cortana's origins in mind this is just so much worse. I can't wait to see how people try to defend that Cortana's obsession/relationship with the Chief is so "healthy" after this game comes out.

 

[Xzilerate1690]

I like it. That ending is a great callback to the original/dropped story of Halo: CE.

 

[khaois]

At least EDI wasn't a physical, mental, or emotional mirror of Joker's mother though (not that that made their relationship any less uncomfortable). But good god, with Cortana's origins in mind this is just so much worse. I can't wait to see how people try to defend that Cortana's obsession/relationship with the Chief is so "healthy" after this game comes out.

I'll always support and love these characters and their relationship. I've loved them since I was a kid when I first played Halo. Cortana became my all time favorite AI character and so far I've enjoyed what 343 has done with her. If they continue to focus on her and chief then that'll be awesome imo.

 

[TwoDurans]

That spoiler sounds absolutely dumb. So out of character for Cortana, and hell even Chief. Why wouldn't he stop her? We're talking about the guy who refused to fire a Halo ring (which admittedly would have killed everyone) to stop a plague that would wipe out everything. At least if the ring fired it would have given life a chance, instead of all life becoming Flood.

He can't justify killing to save lives, so why would he allow Cortana to do that?

 

[Tovarisc]

At least EDI wasn't a physical, mental, or emotional mirror of Joker's mother though (not that that made their relationship any less uncomfortable). But good god, with Cortana's origins in mind this is just so much worse. I can't wait to see how people try to defend that Cortana's obsession/relationship with the Chief is so "healthy" after this comes out.

I mean, how people apparently just now are realizing how fucked up and twisted relationship between Cortana/Halsey and John is?

John has always been Halsey's favorite out of all Spartan 2's and I would say she sees him as her son. Sure she looks after all Spartan 2's and doesn't want them to be demonized now after Covenant war, but John has always been her favorite. I think she would do anything just to guarantee John's survival at the end.

Then we have Cortana, AI that is basically perfect copy of Haley's persona and always shown that she really likes John. That "liking" just has evolved over time into what could be said to be love[?] at the end of H4. Joking around, showing a lot care and worry towards John and that infamous "Don't make a girl a promise you can't keep" -line that suggests a lot when it comes to how she sees John.

They also have John showing more emotion towards Cortana than at beginning on franchise. She isn't just AI designed to aid him in combat anymore, they show him as having deeper feelings for AI, for Cortana... for Halsey. Do they want paint picture where player is supposed to feel that John has fallen in love with Cortana, with a woman she is based upon?

That dynamic between three of them is all kinds of weird and twisted when you really think about it and how game developers are dropping all those [not so subtle] hints about feelings between Cortana and John. Did community want deeper emotional connection between the two, or from where it's coming from?

Am I making fanfic here? Not sure, but H3 and H4 weren't subtle about how relationship between John and Cortana evolved.

 

[BossDarkseid]

I like it. That ending is a great callback to the original/dropped story of Halo: CE.

???

 

[khaois]

I mean, how people apparently just now are realizing how fucked up and twisted relationship between Cortana/Halsey and John is?

John has always been Halsey's favorite out of all Spartan 2's and I would say she sees him as her son. Sure she looks after all Spartan 2's and doesn't want them to be demonized now after Covenant war, but John has always been her favorite. I think she would do anything just to guarantee John's survival at the end.

Then we have Cortana, AI that is basically perfect copy of Haley's persona and always shown that she really likes John. That "liking" just has evolved over time into what could be said to be love[?] at the end of H4. Joking around, showing a lot care and worry towards John and that infamous "Don't make a girl a promise you can't keep" -line that suggests a lot when it comes to how she sees John.

They also have John showing more emotion towards Cortana than at beginning on franchise. She isn't just AI designed to aid him in combat anymore, they show him as having deeper feelings for AI, for Cortana... for Halsey. Do they want paint picture where player is supposed to feel that John has fallen in love with Cortana, with a woman she is based upon?

That dynamic between three of them is all kinds of weird and twisted when you really think about it and how game developers are dropping all those [not so subtle] hints about feelings between Cortana and John. Did community want deeper emotional connection between the two, or from where it's coming from?

Am I making fanfic here? Not sure, but H3 and H4 weren't subtle about how relationship between John and Cortana evolved.

It doesn't matter how Halsey sees John. John doesn't see her as his mother nor does he see Cortana has his mother (this was mentioned in The Flood book). And Cortana doesn't view herself as Halsey. She sees herself as a completely different person. Human Weakness goes into a lot of detail about this.

 

[Saucycarpdog]

Wait, so everything chief does is for cortana? I like her and all but after seeing her halo 4 version I was kinda glad we might never see her again. She didn't feel like the real cortana.

 

[Ashura_MX]

That's a very pedestrian plot if true.

 

[CassidyIzABeast]

Wait, so everything chief does is for cortana? I like her and all but after seeing her halo 4 version I was kinda glad we might never see her again. She didn't feel like the real cortana.

That's rampancy for ya.

 

[FunkyPajamas]

It seems like fake to me but I could be wrong, of course.

I'll say that I've wanted Cortana to go rampant for a while, and it's bothered me how they hinted at it before but never actually did anything with it. If she's going rampant and then they turn her into a sucky villain and on top of that they cure her rampancy with the domain then I probably won't like it, though it does depend on the execution as some of you have said.

Admittedly, Cortana being cured of rampancy by accessing the domain kind of makes sense. It is a huge neural network with all of the knowledge of the galaxy in it. She might have found something to extend AI lifespan. I don't remember: was rampancy ever mentioned in regards to Ancillas in the Forerunner trilogy?

That's rampancy for ya.

I think he meant DD saggy boobs.

 

[Trup1aya]

So rampancy is cured just like that? I hope there's more to it than that.

assuming those spoilers are true, of course

Makes sense to me, rampancy is basically the what happens when AI run out of space to store their knowledge... The Domain is a remedy to that situation...