Halo Reach First Playthrough (via MCC)
3I've saved what many seem to regard as the strongest in the franchise for last in my MCC first playthroughs.
It's pretty remarkable how each of the 4 Halo games on the X360 each manages to have a rather unique aesthetic. Halo 4 was very flashy but also in some ways very bland; Reach manages to be flashy in a few places while also feeling quite a bit more detailed - and also less repetitive than, say, the city hub in ODST.
I also vastly preferred Reach's method of storytelling over ODST's - even if ultimately, Reach's is sort of the opposite in some ways. It's far more cohesive throughout, rather than giving you whiplash and leaving you constantly wondering where it's going. Then again, you also kind of know where it's going, since this is a prequel. But it's still neat to see how this comes full circle.
I will say that playing Reach has me very slightly regretting how hard I came down on the crux of Halo 4's plot, although I still don't think Halo 4's plot held much water.
Reach seems like it could have very fittingly been the end point for the series, letting it end with Bungie. (It's all the more surprising to me that 4 was included in MCC.) But of course, everyone's going to want more Halo, and Microsoft's going to want more money, and so Halo 4 and beyond have happened, for better or for worse. I have no way of playing 5, and I'm not particularly interested in forking over money for Infinite's campaign considering it hasn't gone over particularly well.
Having now played the entirety of MCC, I can certainly see why the series garners a lot of respect. For my part, I reckon I'll continue to remain more partial to 90s id shooters.