‘Halo 5’ Launch Trailer Isn’t Going To Take Master Chief Alive
Halo 5: Guardians went gold last week, which means the game is finished and was sent out to production facilities for disks to be created. 343 Industries and Microsoft celebrated the milestone with a launch trailer released Monday that will get the blood pumping for fans of the series, with fast-paced action, a confrontation between Master Chief and Spartan Locke, and questions surrounding ONI.
The new, nearly three-minute Halo 5 video is billed as a “gameplay trailer,” but it most features footage from in-game cutscenes with maybe a minute of actual gameplay. The good news is that there is nothing that falls within the realm of spoiler material. A confrontation between Master Chief and Spartan Locke has been hyped from the beginning, so the brief scene between the two here isn’t particularly shocking or revealing.
Speaking of spoilers, Eurogamer reports that Halo 5 spoilers are being posted already. The problem with the game going gold and going into production is that some retailers have already sold copies they have received well before the official October 27 launch. Those that don’t want to have any of the game’s plot or ending spoiled should be on the lookout when browsing social media and other forums.
As for the trailer itself, 343 Industries makes the interesting decision to open with Dr. Catherine Halsey, the creator of the Spartan program that created Master Chief and the rest. She has an ominous warning for Spartan Locke that his employer, ONI, is not to be trusted. A human civil war between colonists and the United Earth Government was ongoing prior to the Covenant-Human war, and has been re-brewing since Master Chief and the Arbiter effectively ended the latter. Could we be seeing the seeds being planted of a new civil war based on ONI’s under-handed control and manipulation of the human population?
Another interesting aspect to the trailer is the use of alternative rock band Muse’s “Knights of Cydonia” to overlay the heavy action through the bulk of the trailer. It’s a definite change of pace from Marty O’Donnell’s signature orchestral music, accompanied by guitar and the electronic-themed sound track from Halo 4. It’s also not part of the Halo 5 original sound track.
The use of the Muse song will likely be a big part of the marketing push going forward and is meant to appeal to the mass market. The lyrics of the song do fit with the theme of Master Chief going rogue and his conflict with Spartan Locke hunting him, however. That’s particularly true of the following set of lyrics.
“No one’s going to take me alive
Time has come to make things right
You and I must fight for our rights
You and I must fight to survive”
The reaction to the use of “Knights of Cydonia” has been somewhat mixed among the Halo fan base so far, with some not liking the change from the traditional Halo music and others enjoying how the song’s galloping pace and lyrics fit the theme of Halo 5.
Halo 5: Guardians is set for an October 27 release for the Xbox One. The campaign will support four-player co-operative play online, with no support for local couch co-op, as previously reported by the Inquisitr. 343 Industries is making a concerted push into competitive eSports with the title via a dedicated Arena multiplayer mode that guarantees equal starts and set weapon spawn. Additionally, an all-new 12 versus 12 versus AI mode called WarZone is being added that is the non-competitive “fun” mode. Additional modes and maps will be added after launch.
The game will be supported post-launch, with free DLC maps through at least June, 2016. The free maps will be supported by micro-transactions for REQ Packs, as detailed here at the Inquisitr.
What did you think of the Halo 5 gameplay launch trailer and the use of Muse’s “Knights of Cydonia” as the theme song? Sound off in the comments below.
[Images via Xbox YouTube Channel]
