With each game, a studio learns something or creates a tool/feature that works well. Halo was built atop the FPS innovations that Marathon presented (dual-wielding, limited weapons, etc) and Myth's community. Halo's throwbacks to Marathon should come to us with no surprise. As SonicJohn mentioned in his thread, Bungie has learned a ton from the Halo series, especially from ODST and Reach. I hope they utilize those lessons. [quote][b]Posted by:[/b] spartan120 [quote][b]Posted by:[/b] cortana 5 Same reason they stopped Marathon... Sort of. They also feared beating a dead horse by making Marathon 4. They missed that boat for Halo, though. The thing about this formula is that you can basically go anywhere with it. It just provides help with creating a story. Like I said in the OP, I agree that it is possible that this formula is true, but won't be followed because the studio has changed so much. [/quote] I'm just in the process of re-reading this [I've read the original in the Universe forum a while ago]. You're onto something quite interesting and this definitely has merit. Bungie is a creature of habit in many ways [not that that is a bad thing]. Perhaps we might be looking at some sort of extended universe that- like Halo borrowed from Marathon- borrows from Halo [i]and[/i] Marathon etc, whilst not being directly linked to either. Bungie said they were done with Halo, and I believe them, but the Universe they created was multifaceted and incorporated many aspects of the extended Bungie lore itself. Whilst this is all speculation, why can't it be said that Bungie will do the same for a new universe. I do agree with you about beating dead horses though. 343 and Microsoft don't see it yet, but Halo is just about ready to be put out to pasture. They'll find out about patting a burning dog sure enough. Whatever they do, I'm very excited to see where Bungie goes next, and I'm sure that whatever their next venture is, it'll soak up countless hours of my life I'll never be able to get back [and probably wouldn't want to]. Threads such as this are a staple of this community and it is this dedication of the few that inspires the many, both the developers and the community. Good stuff [b]cortana 5[/b]. [/quote]