my brother bought this game with his birthday money and we have spent countless hours playing it, both on our own and together.
first off i would like to say that i have not played the online multiplayer of this game as i don't have xbox live.
campaign: the campaign is original and captivating. this game is effectively a prequel to the original halo game, halo: combat evolved. you play as part of noble team, a team of spartans sent to the planet reach to fight the covenent. it is paramount that you beat the covenent as reach is the last line of defence before earth.
in halo 3 you fought mainly brutes but halo reach brings the comeback of elites. they were allies for some portions of halo 3 but now they are your nemesis. equipped with armor abilities that make the battle that little bit harder, though you do have upgrades of your own scattered across reach, show the elites advantage from the start. there is a new armory allowing you to customise the appearance of your spartan and a whole host of different weaponry to try to get you by.
there is the obligatory 4 difficulties. easy - the enemies practically die for you. normal - smack in the middle, not too easy but not particularly challenging either. heroic - i have not been able to play the game on my own at any higher difficulty on my own, burn through enough ammo and with a modicum of patience you can succeed at this difficulty. legendary - what is different about halo reach to its predecessors is that if you play this co-op there are more enemies to defeat. the only advantage co-op gives you is the ability to spawn on your team-mate when you inevitably die.
firefight: firefight was an amazing addition in halo 3 odst and it has been included in reach as well. it sees you pit yourself against waves of oncoming covenent to see who can last the longest.
forge: forge allows you to create a map of your own. with ready made maps that you can tweak by adding or removing weapons, vehicles and a long list of other things. or the magnificent forgeworld which allows you to place entire bulidings and build a map from scratch.
graphics: as with halo 3 and halo 3 odst before it the graphics are stunning. open world vistas that really draw you into the landscape and bring the cutscenes to life.
audio: again, as with previous games, this has a brilliant soundtrack that immerse you in the action and in some ways place you on reach, dmr in hand and a elite sprinting towards you brandishing an energy sword.
well worthy of the five stars and the money my brother paid for it days after release.