10 Video Game Sequel Baits That Went Nowhere

10. Master Chief Without Cortana - Halo 4

The prevailing plot point of the Halo series has been the partnership between Master Chief and Cortana.

Halo 3 really hammered home the concept of rampancy - the idea that after around seven years of function, AI in the Halo universe essentially thinks itself to death, which is basically as metal as anything an AI has ever done.

Throughout Halo 4, Master Chief is obsessed with getting off of the planet Requiem and back to Earth - not for his benefit, but to return to Cortana to her creator Dr Halsey in hopes of prolonging her life.

The game ends with Cortana’s heroic self-sacrifice, toppling an ancient alien God too powerful for the Chief to deal with on his own. The final cutscenes are heart-breaking, as the usually stoic Chief contemplates his own humanity and morality in the wake of her death.

The set-up for Halo 5 was delicious. Amongst anything else, we might finally see Chief evolve as a character now that his partner is gone for good.

Except Halo 5: Guardians took the coward’s way out and Master Chief’s story is entirely about following the ghost of Cortana that has ascended into a Forerunner afterlife and, in the most contrived and generic way possible, is set up as a villain.

Talk about turning a great thing into a franchise-tanking turd.