Den of Geek revisits Halo: Ghosts of Onyx and its influence on the upcoming Halo 5: Guardians.
Ghosts of Onyxis one of the most highly-regarded books in theHalofranchise.
Unlike any other video game expanded universe,Halohad the advantage of being the most successful game in history.
And fans wouldnt hesitate to revisit the universe any way they could.
That book was calledGhosts of Onyx, and its influence onHalo 5: Guardiansis undeniable.
Its discovery beneath what humans thought was a naturally made planet rocked human understanding of Forerunner capabilities.
Onyx itself remains important in several books, and a third shield world makes an appearance inHalo Wars.
The other half of the book is concerned with Kurt-051s secret mission to train the next generation of Spartans.
Kurt was a quintessential Spartan, in part because of his heroic death.
Blue Teams characterization doesnt entail much more than could be gleaned from reading their descriptions inHalo 5material.
Linda is a quiet sniper, her equipment described in loving detail.
She enters a Zen no-thought state to focus before taking her deadly shots.
Fred is a tactful leader, a serious and quiet man.
Shes also the one who first welcomes the Spartan-IIIs to Blue Team.
Speaking of ties,Ghosts of Onyxdoes very well in showing how different generations of Spartans work together.
Interestingly enough, there is one character that is indirectly at the center of the teams differing philosophies.
(She also, delightfully, modifies a Shaw-Fujikawa drivethe Halo universes version of a hyperdrivewith a spork.)
As a novel,Ghosts of Onyxsucceeds at some aspects, but is less than stellar in others.
He was essentially in the wrong place at the wrong time.
The Spartans themselves are limited by their own nature.
Theyre usually too focused to relax and express more personality.
Megan Crouse is a staff writer.
