If H2A had it's own multiplayer I doubt it would splinter the population. Long time fans are hanging out for a halo title on the X1 (pretty much all of the older fans hoping it's H2A and not halo 5), it's the only reason most haven't got a X1 yet. I would nearly frisbee titanfall if H2 classic multiplayer was confirmed at E3.
Back on topic, sorta.
I was watching a video on Easter Eggs in SOps and watching the Elites reminded me of one of the reasons I had to put down Traviss' books. The way they are presented lately is a joke, in 4 they are just cannon fodder/filler. I understand they kinda get the back seat due to the prometheans but even in Traviss' trilogy they are portrayed as a bunch of idiots that can't hold their own (I got frowned upon on waypoint for ranting about this awhile ago). I understand 343 are making way for new enemies and stuff but I think the elites are due some respect. At the moment they seem like generic bad guys of some child's cartoon that get their plans foiled every episode.
"Infinity crew those darn elites are at it again, uh oh".
To be fair, the Elites without names in-game aren't much better even in past titles. The whole theme of allies in Halo is that they can't feel like bigger badasses than you at their peak - it's the reason Marines died by the thousands at your side in Combat Evolved and -Elites- would never follow you for more than a single encounter or two in 3, Arbiter notwithstanding. The only time Elites specifically were consistently badass fighters were when they were during Arbiter missions in Halo 2. The big difference as enemies is that they were either relatively smart, slightly-better than you combatants (Combat Evolved, 2 in small engagements, Reach's lower ranks) or they had unbelievably OP advantages (2 on Legendary or in fights with multiple Elites, Reach's ranks beyond the Ultra, 4's constant Fuel Rod spamming).
I think it's more an issue that Bungie had some clever bastards working the AI, and developed deliberate counters to holes in their tactics in the last title. The most popular example is the 180 swing the Hunters got in later installments, but I honestly think the change that most promimently affected gameplay were Reach's hammer chieftans compared to the 3 / ODST AI. ODST Firefight was largely a showcase of throwing Halo 3's delicately-sprinkled enemy distributions and engagements out the window in favor of pushing the envelope and seeing how many big bads you could handle at once. More specifically, I'm talking about 3 / ODST's Hammer Chieftans. Their invincibility and CE Zealot-esque leaps were constant "oh shit" moments in Halo 3's infancy, but players learned about holes in their offense after having to deal with them in bulk due to Chieftan waves. The easiest way to kill them is to bait them into a forward lunge, sidestep to the left and backsmack them, preventing the need for Invincibility completely. The first time you try the same tactic in Reach, the Chieftan will wind up for a leap - and then completely throw you a curveball by doing a 360 degree swing, which has a hitbox extremely oriented towards the right of its abdomen,, meaning trying to pull an ODST will just cause you to fling yourself into its hammer immediately.
343 didn't have the same team with the ins and outs of the past game's AI, meaning they had to go for something more evocative of CE's AI - smarter than the average Russian, war-on-terror participant or drug cartel, but not smart enough to warrant equal footing in terms of equipment. That being said, it does feel like they were trying to cover their tracks in advance - certain potholes in the AI design (sword elites straight-up
stopping mid-charge, Hunters reverting to a dumber skill set) - in order to provide the illusion of intelligence once the enemies start being able to kill you in Halo 5.
Bungie's AI largely relied on establishing tactics, learning how to counter them, and then completely flipping those counters on their head in the sequels, culminating in Reach's mostly iron-clad AI defenses. It feels a little cheap making the jump straight from Reach to 4, so I honestly think we'll need to wait for a few more sequels to come out before we can really judge the AI. Note that if H2A is coming out this year, we may potentially be reverting back to Halo 2 AI levels, and 343 could be setting tactical benchmarks accordingly.
