Some good points. I think I'd like to do a full and comprehensive run-through of Myth, Marathon and Halo (the Bungie games solely, not any other extended media) to see if I can fully compare the core similarities in the universes.
I'd also like to point out that in Bungie's Halo games, we solely know only one time-frame, and that's 2552 and 2553. All other times and dates are largely influenced by Microsoft's writers. So I'd disregard all of those. Marathon is based in 2794, by which time, the Chief is definitely dead. I think the theory holds up further.
I think I'll save this for the V2 thread later.
Posted by: homocidalham
Posted by: cortana 5
Actually, my theory separates the universes, but ties them together at the same time. Think of Halo and Marathon as spokes on a wheel. They're not the same spoke, but they are connected at the center by Bungie and the historical connection between the swords.
I've read the theory (as well as pretty muc heverything on M.B.Org/Story), I loved it, and I fully accept common themes, motifs, and ideas. However, because of a single comment by Matt Soell, we know that Marathon and Myth are causally connected (though, other than a few shaky guesses, we haven't the faintest clue how). PID shares enough common names (and the roles of those names) with Marathon that it's probably on the same timeline. Halo's only concrete connection seems to be the marathon logo, which is likely just a visual nod.
In other words, swords are more like the number 7 or Rampancy: They appear, but they don't seem to form a much larger metaverse. I really love that Bungie does explore coherent (and often quite lofty) ideas, but there is a part of me that really wants more of the actual contingencies of the Bungieverse explored.
Edit: Also, it's worth pointing out that Myth is filled with swords. The little logo on the far right of the Universe banner also adds to this (pretty sure that's a logo of sorts relating to Myth).
[Edited on 12.02.2011 9:07 PM PST]