I'm going to miss you Martie...
Halo's audio was always the best, this new guy has HUGE shoes to fill.
Looks like I'll only be playing competitive playlists in H4; if I end up hating it, I'll at least play the campaign. I owe the series that much. Bungie is currently developing another sci-fi shooter, one separate from Halo, so if H4 tanks I can look forward to that.
343 has huge expectations; Halo fans are usually more mature, and more critical than CoD fans. Instant respawns, killcams, and custom loadouts are not something that I want to have, but if they're optional in MP I guess I can deal.
This new enemy shouldn't take Halo in a whole new direction; Right now I think they're probably Forerunner in origin, but introducing another faction into the game is not what fans want to hear about. What happened to the Covenant? Is the Arbiter still alive? Did we really save Earth? Are there forerunners still alive, presumably in one of the Arks?
Halo 1-3 was full of biblical metaphors, great audio, stunning visuals, and skill based gameplay.
343, you better get this right.