So I am a big halo fan, been playing the first one since its release on its pc, brought the original Xbox for second, and 360 for third. However I felt pretty let down by the third installment, and the multiplayer didn't really entice me. Reach and wars had decent storytelling so they were the ones I've enjoyed, but for some odd reason I find myself being skeptical about 4, so not sure whether to get it or not. What do you guys think of it? Please do try to limit storyline spoilers, I ask before chances are I would only get it for single player, both third and reach I did not enjoy in terms of multiplayer and found myself preferring cod mp. But how long is the story, how engaging is it etc

I got it for free, well i got my entire xbox bundle for free recently

"internet deals ftw"

And i yet have to play multiplayer on it, but the single player portion of the game is quite good, the controls are quite tight, although it feels dated compared to cod, but then again halo isn't cod.

It's a great game regardless.

Yes, buy.

I can tell you it is definitely worth the money even for the Campaign alone. The story telling, voice acting, level/character/weapon design, atmosphere, sound effects etc. is flawless. True definition of eye candy.

I really think you should give the multiplayer a shot as well though. It is more fast-paced than previous titles, and therefore more similar to the CoD multiplayer.

Im sorry but if your a big Halo fan, you shouldn't be skeptical at all. Best for me was the story and how it actively integrates the game with both the Karen Traviss novels and Forerunner Trilogy.

That's where the difference lies. I think as a fan, I've become too detached with the franchise as it has slowly deteriorated from what it was before, Halo 3 storyline was meh, with nothing spectacular that had me on the edge of my seat, which both CE and 2 had managed to accomplish, and if anything I am not sure why but the multiplayer seems to have lost its appeal completely.

What are the Spartan Ops?

In all honesty, I think Bungie quality has deteriorated with each iteration, with Reach being a slight exception which still had me slightly interested in the story, but the rest have progressively gotten worse to me in terms of storytelling and the appeal of multiplayer. The fact that 343 has taken over still has me at a distance seeing as I've practically avoided any storyline trailers other than the FUD live series (which somehow loosely relate to the Halo 4 story)

The underlined portions alone let you know that if you are a fan of the series you should at least give it a chance. Maybe the change of developers and vision for the series is exactly what you needed.

You should at least give it a rent to be sure.

Hm I think a rent it will definitely be, and if it as good as people hype it up to be, then I'll likely pick it up afterwards for the MP segment of the game. But then again, most rent services include having to play the game intensively, which I failed to do lately as I still have ACIII and Blops2 lying on a shelf, along with Skyrim and Dead Island. So I was thinking of maybe picking it up on a sale instead.

If you have such a large backlog then sure, wait it out. These games tend to get bundled, discounted, etc... not too long after release due to retailers ordering large quantities.

I have an extensive backlog myself of ~10-12 titles. I need to slow my purchasing.

the video walkthrough I watched was about 5hours for the campaign, probably played on a lower difficulty

the graphics are very good, with only some low res textures on the Pelican for example - that said the alien buildings got a bit boring toward the end, but the first one was very impressive

as I haven't played the game myself I can't say much about the gameplay
mission objectives didn't look very varied though, often it's inserting cortana here, pushing a button there,mark some target for the mammoth or kill shield batteries to power down a shield

the story was quite good, although MC himself was pretty bland, cortana was way more interesting, but personally I think it takes a bit away from the drama that she looks like she was practically naked all the time