Halo 5: Guardians (Xbox One)

UNDOUBTEDLY Xbox's most important franchise, Halo returns with the first game built from the ground up for the Xbox One.

But with Halo 5: Guardians, Washington developer 343 Industries finds itself with a point to prove.

Last year's Master Chief Collection featured a multiplayer mode that was almost unplayable for a long period after release.

And the news that split-screen was being removed for the first time in the series has led to the studio coming under fire from their increasingly divided fanbase.

Especially with original Halo creator Bungie releasing a direct competitor in Destiny.

So with these question marks hanging over the launch of Halo 5, can the sci-fi shooter make a return to form?

In short, yes.

While the single-player is enjoyable, the online multiplayer mode is an amazing experience.

Gone are the load-outs and different abilities from Halo 4 with the game going back to its roots and what made it successful in the first place.

It feels balanced as a result.

Split into two categories, Arena provides traditional game types such as Slayer and Capture the Flag.

Whereas Warzone mixes everything in the Halo sandbox together to create massive conflicts between opposing teams and vehicles while also adding computer-controlled enemies to the mix.

It’s great fun and unlike anything else on the market and the news that future DLC maps are to be free is very welcome.

The gameplay feels faster than ever with rocksteady 60frames per second output and the introduction of abilities like 'boost' and 'clamber' make moving around the levels a real joy.

It’s a good job too, as the areas which you’ll fight in are among the biggest in the series.

Multiple paths can be opened using shoulder charge to smash through walls and vents.

And the vertical space gives ample opportunity to unleash another satisfying new ability – the ground pound to crash down on top of enemies below.

For the first time in the series the campaign has been built for co-op and it shows.

While playing in single player gives you leadership of a squad you can direct by pressing up on the D-pad.

The mechanic could have been fleshed out a little more and the AI (artificial intelligence) is inconsistent, but it's generally a welcome addition.

In contrast to the friendly AI, the enemies are as strong as ever.

Several have been given significant upgrades, especially the Hunters.

343 have also addressed criticism of the Prometheans introduced in Halo 4. For example Knights now have weak points that you systematically dismantle. They are no longer hulking bullet sponges.

The game's weapons have been balanced to perfection – no longer do you find yourself having to backtrack to find ammo for a particular gun.

They’re all up to the task at hand once you’ve got used to their quirks.

As for the plot, the Halo games are now part of an ever-expanding universe building a background of distrust and conflict within the United Nations Space Command and its shadowy Office of Naval Intelligence.

The game starts strongly in this regard, but while series altering events occur over the campaign's eight to 12 hours, 343 don’t do a particularly good job of telling the actual story.

Instead it seems to be trying to emulate the style of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back in setting up a sequel. However, the gameplay and multiplayer more than make up for this and are well worth your time.

RATING

CAMPAIGN: 7/10

MULTIPLAYER: 9/10

DAVID HETHERINGTON