Halo: Reach: Final Verdict

The Good: New weapons, like the Needle Rifle and the Focus Rifle, kick ass. New armor abilities, like the Jet Pack and Armor Lock, kick even more ass. Reach's multi-player offers engaging maps, varied gametypes, and an addictive, challenge-fueled ranking system. Plus, even I have to admit that single-player's Mission V and Mission X (the midpoint and endpoint of the game's campaign, respectively) are entirely memorable.
 
The Bad: The rest of the single-player campaign is completely forgettable. In short, a half-dozen helmeted soldiers identifiable only by the colors of their uniforms and the diversity of their accents stage a contest in the midst of an alien invasion to see who can die the most laughable death. It's five hours of been-here-done-this padded with (or "punctuated by", if you're feeling generous) a few random vehicle segments like a bare-bones dogfight in space. Mercifully, though, Reach's multi-player has only a few minor flaws, such as the occasional failed host migration and a match-selection voting system that could use a couple of tweaks.
 
The Stand-out Moment: Soaring into the sky with the aid of a Jet Pack for the first time.
 
The Final Verdict: 9.0 (out of 10)