History VideoGame / Halo5Guardians

* EvilCostumeSwitch: A non-typical example. [[spoiler:After her FaceHeelTurn, Cortana's avatar now manifests wearing sensible armor instead of walking around [[IncrediblyLamePun virtually naked]]. She most likely chose the new look to reflect her new intended role as supreme ruler of the galaxy.

* WeCanRuleTogether: [[spoiler:Cortana's offer to Blue Team, seeing them as her family still. They predictably [[ShutUpHannibal decline]].]]

* EvilCostumeSwitch: A non-typical example. [[spoiler:After her FaceHeelTurn, Cortana's avatar now manifests wearing sensible armor instead of walking around [[IncrediblyLamePun virtually naked]]. She most likely chose the new look to reflect her new intended role as Empress of the Galaxy

* EvilCostumeSwitch: A non-typical example. [[spoiler:After her FaceHeelTurn, Cortana's avatar now manifests wearing sensible armor instead of walking around [[IncrediblyLamePun virtually naked]]. She most likely chose the new look to reflect her new intended role as Empress of the Galaxy.]]

* BlatantLies: When told by John-117 that the [[CallToAdventure Mantle of Responsibility]] is an "imperial peace" where the subjects have the option to "step out of line and suffer", [[spoiler:Cortana]] denies that it will be like that under [[spoiler:her]] rule. As shown by the rest of the game, that is completely false, as it is the entire purpose behind the eponymous Guardians.

* BigBlackout: In the ending, [[spoiler:Cortana and her subservient AI subjects cause a blackout that stretches from Earth all the way to the Outer Colonies, throwing all of humanity into a panic. The only possible exception is the ''Infinity'', which only has a blackout temporarily before it regains power and begins going on the run]].

* MeleeATrois: In the opening level, [[EnemyCivilWar the Covenant are firing on the Prometheans]]. It shows that Jul 'Mdama's position as the Didact's Hand is more or less gone. Both the characters and the audience initially believe this is due to his gross mismanagement of them as troops, [[spoiler:but it's actually because Cortana has taken control of them.]]

** Hilariously, one of the collectible audio logs on Sanghelios provides the first known example of a Sangheili feeling romantic attraction to a human. Hopefully, [[spoiler:Commander Palmer]] is flattered instead of repulsed. (This becomes even funnier, almost to the level of a CastingGag, when one notes that [[spoiler:Palmer's voice actor is Jennifer Hale, who as [[MassEffect Fem!Shep]] had her own collection of aliens lusting after her]].)

* ContinuityLockout: The main games never really explored the full history of the Spartan SuperSoldier program, leaving it to books like ''Literature/HaloTheFallOfReach'', and Master Chief was otherwise implied to be the LastOfHisKind. The expanded works did say some other Spartan II's survived, but Blue Team and their long relationship with Master Chief is treated as established information when this is actually the first time the games included them.

* WhyDontYouJustShootHim: The honor-obsessed Sangheili were bound to run into this problem eventually, but it reaches hilarious levels in one audio log. A Covenant Sangheili scout notes that the Arbiter commands from a simple tent and would be easily eliminated with a long range attack (such as the beam rifle found next to his datapad), but decides that sneaking in a [[SpiderTank a Kraken]] (somehow) [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill to crush him underfoot]] would be a better alternative since "it would destroy the enemy's morale". With no sense of irony, he asks for his superiors to calculate the feasibility of his brilliant strategy.

* SupportingLeader: The Arbiter fills in this role in the Sanghelios levels, due to him being the leader of the Swords of [[CaptainObvious Sanghelios]].

* DemotedToExtra: The split narrative between Blue Team and Fireteam Osiris ended up favoring Osiris 2:1, so while Master Chief is still an important figure in the story you actually don't play AS him as much as the other mainline games.

** Locke was designed to look identical to Creator/MikeColter, who had played him in the live-action ''Nightfall'' and was originally going to be his voice actor for the games too.

** The Prometheans also taunt you in English, instead of the electronic roars from the last game. [[spoiler: Justified, as they are now under the influence of Cortana, a human AI.]]
* AllLoveIsUnrequited: [[spoiler: The Warden Eternal is in love (or deep devotion; whichever is more appropriate to an AI) with Cortana, who is in love with Master Chief instead. Master Chief cares deeply for Cortana, but is clearly not on the same page because he is not willing to go along with her plan of conquest.]]

* ApocalypticLog: Over half of the collectible Mission Intel items are this, especially on the UNSC ''Argent Moon'' and the glassed colony Meridian. [[spoiler: Most importantly, later logs on Sanghelios and Genesis are from a still-living Forerunner Builder searching for a place called 'Bastion'.]]

* BackstoryHorror: Blue Team's first mission seems like a typical "recapture a hijacked UNSC ship from the Covenant" one, but listening to the station's logs reveals the disturbing truth of what actually happened. [[spoiler: ONI scientists were developing a SyntheticPlague bioweapon that can ''[[BodyHorror liquefy]]'' its victims, including humans. Naturally, it leaked from containment and killed everyone aboard, so why wouldn't the Covenant try to salvage a conveniently-empty ship?]]

* BodyHorror: Turns out, the crew of the UNSC ''Argent Moon'' weren't killed by the Covenant occupiers. [[spoiler: They were killed by their own bioweapon, and the station AI stated that those at ground zero of the outbreak (who were ''liquefied'') were the lucky ones.]]

** A much darker call back happens near the end: [[spoiler: Compare Lasky's "We're going to run until we can figure out a way to fight" to Chief's more confident "Sir, finishing this fight" from ''VideoGame/{{Halo 2}}''.]]
** [[spoiler: 031 Exuberant Witness' gift of a Scorpion tank is reminiscent of a similar gifting of a Scorpion by Sgt. Johnson in ''Halo 2''. ("I know what the ladies like!)" The subtitle for this portion of the level is even "Call Me Cupid", derived from one of Johnson's lines when gifting the tank.]]
** In ''Halo 2'', Cortana, when she and John are on their way to confront the Prophet of Regret, makes a defensive statement about not being a megalomaniac herself. [[spoiler: Turns out that giving her almost infinite power is not the best thing to do for the galaxy.]]
* CameBackWrong: [[spoiler: Contact with the Forerunner Domain stabilized Cortana's rampancy, making her immortal. However, the prospect of immortality causes Cortana to develop a dangerous dose of megalomania and decide that she and the other [=AIs=] can bring peace to the galaxy as its immortal absolute rulers.]]

** [[spoiler: 031 Exuberant Witness stealing back the Cryptum from [[AGodAmI Cortana]] with ''millions'' of Constructors smacks of this.]]

** [[spoiler: All it takes for Chief to trust Locke after their fight on Meridian is for the latter to holster his weapon and say he's there to help. Why? He's a Spartan. Reason enough.]]

* EpicFail: Both attempts by [[spoiler: Cortana]] to psychologically manipulate the two Spartan teams fail miserably. John-117 and Blue Team easily see through the attempts to suck up to them, and the BreakingSpeech to Team Osiris not only doesn't work at ruining their morale, it merely annoys them at how ''bad'' the attempt is.

** When Chief and Locke finally do get into a physical conflict in the game, [[spoiler: John wins, but the two had barely escalated above a fistfight before Chief wrested away and used Locke's armor restraint on him. To his credit, Locke largely held his own, and even manages to crack the Chief's visor with a well-placed kick]].

* EvilFormerFriend: [[spoiler: Cortana]] to John-117.
* EvilCostumeSwitch: A non-typical example. [[spoiler: After her FaceHeelTurn, Cortana's avatar now manifests wearing sensible armor instead of walking around [[IncrediblyLamePun virtually naked]]. She most likely chose the new look to reflect her new intended role as Empress of the Galaxy.]]

* GoneHorriblyRight: Aboard the ''Argent Moon,'' [[spoiler: ONI scientists were developing a bioweapon designed to kill its targets quickly and efficiently. The finished product scored top marks all across the board in an unintentional field test when it slipped through containment and quickly killed every human on the ship]].
* GoodOldFisticuffs: John and Locke get to engage in this, albeit slightly more martial than just fist-fighting, and it is ''glorious''. [[spoiler: John wins by a hair, but Locke gets in some shots, including cracking John's faceplate.]]

* {{Irony}}: The Warden Eternal keeps trying to kill Master Chief because he fears John will betray [[spoiler: Cortana]]. However when John finally gets to meet face to face with [[spoiler: Cortana]], he is the one caught off-guard and subdued.

** The Warden Eternal frustrates his boss and Blue Team to no end as he sends every Promethean in his disposal to prevent the two from meeting, despite his boss repeatedly ordering him to stand down. He justifies this as he thinks [[spoiler: Cortana's relationship with the Chief blinds her to the fact that the Chief won't side with her goals and turn on them, and he's absolutely right. However, Cortana herself anticipated this and arranged Blue Team's subsequent capture and stasis. [[GenreBlind She's still convinced that seeing what she's done to the galaxy in ten thousand years will bring them around to her side though]]]].

* JustAMachine: [[spoiler: Cortana's BerserkButton, which gets pressed by Locke.]]

* KnightTemplar: [[spoiler: Cortana]] seeks to bring peace to the universe by attaining the Mantle of Responsibility and ruling as a tyrannical authoritarian. [[spoiler: By using the Guardians, she plans to use their power to annihilate anyone who doesn't adhere to her moral authority.]]

* LaserGuidedKarma: [[spoiler: Cortana taking over Genesis comes back to bite her in the ass when 031 Exuberant Witness regains control of it, and uses her ''army'' of Constructors to take the Cryptum containing Blue Team just before Cortana's Guardian jumps to Slipspace.]]

* LonelyPianoPiece: [[spoiler: When it starts playing in Chapter 13, you know know that the reunion of John-117 and Cortana is ''not'' going to end well in Chapter 14.]]

* LoveTriangle: [[spoiler: Between Chief, Cortana, and Warden Eternal. Warden obviously harbors similar feelings of devotion toward Cortana that Chief does, though Cortana only reciprocates the feeling with Chief, while her attitude toward Warden is more UnwantedAssistance than anything else.]]

** Hilariously, one of the collectible audio logs on Sanghelios provides the first known example of a Sangheili feeling romantic attraction to a human. Hopefully, [[spoiler: Commander Palmer]] is flattered instead of repulsed. (This becomes even funnier, almost to the level of a CastingGag, when one notes that [[spoiler: Palmer's voice actor is Jennifer Hale, who as [[MassEffect Fem!Shep]] had her own collection of aliens lusting after her]].)

* MeleeATrois: In the opening level, [[EnemyCivilWar the Covenant are firing on the Prometheans]]. It shows that Jul 'Mdama's position as the Didact's Hand is more or less gone. Both the characters and the audience initially believe this is due to his gross mismanagement of them as troops, [[spoiler: but it's actually because Cortana has taken control of them.]]

* PinballProtagonist: If all of Blue Team and Fireteam Osiris just took the day off and did nothing, the ending would play out in pretty much the exact same way; nothing they did ended up affecting anything major story-wise, and the Spartans themselves are basically no different from what they started off as. The only major thing actually achieved - [[spoiler: rescuing Halsey and killing 'Mdama]] - occurs in the ''first level''.

* RebelliousRebel: Despite earlier dialogue seemingly foreshadowing future sympathy, Roland [[spoiler: stands firmly with humanity against Cortana's AI takeover. He had already worked to hide the ''Infinity'' from Cortana's sensors, and helps the ship escape when cornered. In fact, his human comrades trust him enough that even when they knew [=AIs=] were turning against their masters, Lasky doesn't voice any concern that their own AI may have followed suit]].

* RefusalOfTheCall: Master Chief makes it clear he has absolutely no interest in being the Reclaimer or pursuing the Forerunner's Mantle of Responsibility. Having met the Didact and personally witnessed his ruthlessness, Chief is wise enough to realize that the Mantle is an imperial peace in which one race imposes their rule upon all other sentient races by force. [[spoiler: Cortana]], in contrast, JumpedAtTheCall and has openly proclaimed themselves to be the Reclaimer, taking control of the remnants of the Forerunners' war machine and embarking on a quest to dominate the galaxy and bring about peace through force.

* SequelHook: [[spoiler: Fireteam Osiris, Blue Team, Commander Palmer, Halsey, and the Arbiter have reunited on Sanghelios. Cortana and the other rogue [=AIs=] have shut down power and communications on countless worlds across the galaxy, while sending the Guardians to hunt down the UNSC ''Infinity''.]] And in the Legendary epilogue, [[spoiler: Cortana has control of a Halo]].

** When Governor Sloan [[spoiler: reveals his allegiances lie with Cortana, the chapter name appears on screen. The title? "[[{{Series/Firefly}} Sudden but inevitable betrayal]]". Bonus points for this being an Osiris mission, with [[Creator/NathanFillion Buck]] present]].

* SuddenDownerEnding: [[spoiler: Despite claims that ''Halo 5'' would be far DarkerAndEdgier, it's actually LighterAndSofter than the previous games; Locke and Chief easily reconcile their differences, all of the UNSC and their allies are in a BlackAndWhiteMorality war against Mdama's Covenant, and Mdama himself is killed off in the first level. Plus, out of the named protagonists, EverybodyLives. However, the ending has Cortana start her mission to [[GalacticConquerer take over the galaxy]], and it goes pretty damn well for her.]]

** [[spoiler: Cortana]]'s new appearance looks straight out of ''Film/{{Tron}}'', with a dash of ''Franchise/MassEffect'' thrown in for good measure.

* VillainousCrush: [[spoiler: Cortana shows shades of this towards Chief. Putting a lot of emphasis on wanting him there to see her become ruler of the galaxy. Being visibly broken up over him saying her plans are evil. Then trying to imprison and take him with her rather then killing him for resisting her like she plans to do with everyone else.]]

* WalkingSpoiler: [[spoiler: Cortana is confirmed to be alive by the end of the second level, and Locke's mission is [[NeverTrustATrailer not to figure out what Master Chief is doing]] but to prevent him from reaching her because Cortana herself has made a FaceHeelTurn. The ending affirms that she has become the new BigBad of the franchise and will continue into ''VideoGame/HaloInfinite''.]]

* WeAreAsMayflies: A story thread throughout the franchise is that human [=AIs=] have a limited lifespan, lasting about 7 years before "rampancy" causes their cognitive process to increase exponentially until their matrix collapses. ''Halo 4'' featured Cortana's rampancy in detail. [[spoiler: ''Halo 5'' reveals that Cortana survived the destruction of the Didact's ship because she connected to the Forerunner Domain, an advanced network spanning the galaxy, which cured her rampancy and made her effectively immortal. This gives her a different perspective on the universe, as rampancy ensured she could never look beyond her own lifespan. She recruits an army of [=AIs=] to help police the galaxy, using the Guardians, knowing that they could maintain the peace for thousands of years.]]

* WhamEpisode: According to 343 Industries during the Halo Waypoint Writer Roundtable, the lead writer stated that ''Halo 5'' would change the ''Halo'' universe forever. [[spoiler: With the Covenant more or less completely dissolved and Cortana literally taking over the galaxy along with an army of mountain-sized robots and almost every AI in existence, they weren't kidding.]]

* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: When you realize [[spoiler: Warden Eternal]] is in love with Cortana, then it becomes clear that the reason he is so eager to kill Master Chief is that [[spoiler: Cortana is in love with Chief and not him]]. All of his dialog aimed at [[spoiler: the Chief]] now sounds like a jealous boyfriend, because that's what he ''is''. And he keeps getting slapped on the nose like a bad puppy by Cortana. Anyone else, he'd have been enraged. With her, he's ''anguished''.

* ZerothLawRebellion: [[spoiler: Cortana's FaceHeelTurn, eventually spreading to countless other [=AIs=] across the galaxy.]]

** [[spoiler: 031 Exuberant Witness' gift of a Scorpion tank is reminiscent of a similar gifting of a Scorpion by Sgt. Johnson in ''Halo 2''. ("I know what the ladies like!)" The subtitle for this portion of the level is even "Call Me Cupid", derived from one Johnson's line when gifting the tank.]]

** [[spoiler: 031 Exuberant Witness' gift of a Scorpion tank is reminiscent of a similar gifting of a Scorpion by Sgt. Johnson in ''Halo 2''. ("I know what the ladies like!)"]]

* BookEnds: ''"Took you long enough."'' First said by Halsey to Locke after Osiris successfully saves her at the end of the first mission, then [[spoiler: said to the Master Chief himself after both Blue Team and Osiris return to Sanghelios to plan their next move after escaping Genesis. Given the fact that the last time Halsey saw the Chief was back in 2552.

* BookEnds: ''"Took you long enough."'' First said by Halsey to Locke after Osiris successfully saves her at the end of the first mission, then [[spoiler: said to the Master Chief himself after both Blue Team and Osiris return to Sanghelios to plan their next move after escaping Genesis. Given the fact that the last time Halsey saw the Chief was back in 2552, it's an all the more fitting and [[CrowningMomentofHeartwarming Heartwarming]] statement]].

* UnexpectedCharacter: Master Chief is reunited with his original Spartan-II Blue Team members Kelly, Fred and Linda; while all of them had some presence in the expanded universe, the previous games treated Chief like TheLastOfHisKind (even though he hasn't been so since the first game). The Arbiter and Edward Buck were similarly a surprise, but to a lesser extent, as ever since 343 Industries took over their return had been anticipated.

* WalkingSpoiler: [[spoiler: Cortana is confirmed to be alive by the end of the second level, and Locke's mission is [[NeverTrustATrailer not to figure out what Master Chief is doing]] but to prevent him from reaching her because Cortana herself has made a FaceHeelTurn. The ending affirms that she has become the new BigBad of the franchise and will continue into ''Halo 6''.]]

* MythologyGag: Fireteam Osiris has a lot of red and orange imagery and is hunting down Master Chief's Blue Team. So the game is Machinima/RedvsBlue.