'alo 'alo 4: The Inevitable Verdict

(If you don't get the reference, Wikipedia search ''alo 'alo. You're welcome.)

Having finished the game last week, I can confirm that Halo 4 is the ultimate in fan service. Sure, the single player gets off to an all too familiar and slightly tired start and things only begin to pick up after you've encountered humanity's new antagonists, The Prometheans, and played with their toys, but the game is crammed to bursting point with familiar set pieces borrowed from previous Halo games. 

Even the plot is a blast from the past; the Master Chief and Cortana's isolation on the Forerunner planet of Requiem with only the crew of the Infinity for company harks back to their unscheduled excursion to the first Halo ring with the Pillar of Autumn in the series' debut, and is surely an intentional choice by 343 Industries, the series' new custodians following Bungie's 'it's not you, it's me' conversation with Microsoft. 343 have gone on record as saying that with Halo 4 they wanted to recreate the wonder of exploring a strange, alien world that made the original Halo so magical, and they've certainly succeed in this regard, as your adventure on Requiem takes you from beautiful vistas to dense jungles to aerial views of Forerunner structures that defy the laws of physics, and pulse with the promise of forbidden knowledge.

Multiplayer is more of the same, albeit with added Call of Duty-apring perks and killstreaks.  My only gripes here are with the inclusion of the SAW, a small machine gun that is frustratingly effective at short range and feels somewhat out of place in an arsenal of 23rd century weaponry, and the lack of a Firefight mode. Overall, however, this is a very strong first showing from 343. There are some attempts to graft in mainstream FPS staples such as quicktime events (i.e. 'press A not to die' moments), and the aforementioned perks systems, but I feel these should be taken as more of a sign of the times than an attempt by 343 or Microsoft to dilute the Halo formula. In short; great first showing guys! Next stop; Halo 5 for a launch window next gen Xbox game - you heard it here first.