8. Halo 4

Zack: Halo 4 in a lot of ways is a small evolution upon the Halo formula that original devs Bungie had created and perfected. Yet, it also works better than Halo 5 precisely because it sticks mostly to what Halo does best and brings the narrative focus back to Cortana and Chief. Sure, the villain isn’t great and Spartan Ops sucks (holy shit those missions were way too long) but the multiplayer and main campaign felt like more Halo Reach or Halo 3, just now you could sprint. Pretty good mix, in my opinion.

Ari: I’ve long maintained that Halo 4 is the best Halo game, certainly my personal favorite, what with its unexpectedly intimate story and rip-roaring multiplayer (Haven being a top-tier Halo map to this day). New enemy classes and weapons were a delight after years of using the same tools against the same enemies. Also: the music! Holy hell, the music. But I fully recognize the fringe nature of loving Halo 4, and shall choose a different hill to perish on.