Last time - Halo, but it’s television - https://www.filmtracks.com/scoreboard/forum.cgi?read=143106

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What’s next? Who the heck knows? The Halo franchise exists in a weird limbo, even with Microsoft rebranding 343 Industries as Halo Studios in October 2024. The company originally said Halo Infinite could be supported with campaign updates for a decade, but 343 boss Bonnie Ross left the company less than a year after the game’s release and campaign updates were paused soon after, reportedly because the game was missing internal profitability targets and its proprietary gaming engine was difficult to develop on (thought multiplayer updates have continued, including some that just launched this week). Microsoft looks set to announce what the next entry is at its October 2025 e-sports event; whispers of the in-development Halo 7 being a reboot linger throughout the internet.

With regards to the scores, does a potential reboot mean the newly-christened Halo Studios will finally abandon the Bungie musical legacy? Only time will tell. The Halo Infinite score was a step in the right direction, but we can’t forget that the company’s first post-Bungie game originally was set to omit any obvious quotes of legacy themes. It remains to be seen if Microsoft can be trusted as a capable steward of the franchise’s music, a remarkable thing to say since they’ve been in charge of it for longer than Bungie was (1999-2010 vs. 2011-2025). I’m suspicious, but I’ll be happy to be wrong.

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Final rankings:

*
25. Halo Wars 2: Awakening the Nightmare (Trifon/White tracks)
24. Halo Wars 2 (Trifon/White tracks)

*½
23. Halo Legends: The Package
22. Halo Infinite (multiplayer seasons 2-5)

**
21. Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn
20. Halo Infinite (multiplayer season 1)
19. Halo Season 1

**½
18. Halo Legends: The Duel
17. Halo Wars
16. Halo: The Fall of Reach
15. Halo: Spartan Strike
14. Halo 4 (Davidge tracks)

***
13. Halo Wars 2: Awakening the Nightmare (Haab tracks)
12. Halo: Spartan Assault
11. Halo Wars 2 (Haab tracks)
10. Halo 5: Guardians

***½
9. Halo Infinite (arcade music aka 8-bit Beats for Saving the Universe)
8. Halo: Combat Evolved
7. Halo 4 (Jinnouchi tracks)

****
6. Halo Legends (legacy theme arrangements)
5. Halo Infinite (campaign)
4. Halo: Reach
3. Halo 2

****½
2. Halo 3
1. Halo 3: ODST

Really enjoyed this rundown! It's interesting to look at the spread of scores for this franchise's music and recall your thoughts on each one. A lot of strong, iconic highlights, some effective mediocrity and some choices that perhaps shouldn't have made the album. Your musings on the future are also interesting, who's to say what Microsoft will do (kinda hoping the reboot button isn't pressed though). This was such a fun series, I found your writings insightful and a lot of fun to read!

> It's interesting to look at the spread of scores for this franchise's music and recall your thoughts on each one.

Spread is the right word. Almost hit every star rating - and without half stars I would have as I’d round up ODST. My boss told me a few weeks ago she was occasionally listening to the music of series despite never playing the games (without knowing I was in the midst of this) and I replied it really does run the gamut of quality.

> This was such a fun series, I found your writings insightful and a lot of fun to read!

Thanks! I enjoyed your responses!