5/5 ★ – TheBlazeCoderer's review of Halo 3.

Re-played on Xbox One with the Master Chief Collection So ends the trilogy, and what a beautiful ending it is. If I really wanted to, I would stop my series replay here. This trilogy stands on its own and arguably holds 2 of the best games in the entire series, so why continue? Well, I’m looking to figure that out myself. But let’s focus on this game, and it’s feats. - The story is scaled down but yet feels even larger in scope. We no longer play as Covenant, which is sad and definitely hurts the game, but instead we get a far more focused story. We follow the Chief, who has lost Cortana. To fill this void, we now have the Arbiter, who supports you throughout most of the campaign. Because of this, I found myself becoming very connected to Thel, as I do with all the bot comrades the games have. I go out of my way to save Thel, even when he can’t die. Although I feel the relationship of the two is probably underdeveloped story wise, I still feel an incredible connection between the two, and it’s amazing - The score is wonderful, feeling the most epic out of all the games yet. It’s used wonderfully throughout the story and cutscenes, absolutely elevating every scene. They highlight a specific piano note throughout the score, and it really makes for a new feel. Such a small change and yet it does so much - Gameplay has seen very little changes, but it’s probably the best of the trilogy. The game runs incredibly well (I think the best out of any Halo game) and you can feel it. This is probably the easiest game so far, but that is no detriment. You kinda need these easy games to go through in a series like this, and it makes the story all the more engaging when you’re focusing less on the gameplay. - The ending is hauntingly beautiful. While I wouldn’t have liked if the Chief’s story ended here, it does make for a really compelling ending for him and Cortana. - The game is gorgeous, not only running smoothly but also just looking very good, dare I say better than Halo 2A. This is the art style I want for this series, where it’s gritty but not too gritty. Reach becomes too gritty and 4 loses the Halo feel almost entirely. But this game captures a really great balance that I can’t help but admire, although I do have to say, I feel the model for Chief was better in Halo 2, if far less detailed. Unlike with CE and 2, I really don’t have many standout thoughts about 3. My opinion of it really hasn’t changed (although I do think that the gap between it and 2 is significantly smaller). It’s just a very beautiful game that I know I love. Now I’m moving on Halo 3: ODST, a game which I find to be very overlooked and underappreciated. I can’t wait to revisit it and see how my thoughts have changed.