I was one of the lucky ones that had the opportunity to play Halo 4 at RTX in Austin, TX. First, let me point out the fact that I was not a fan of Reach and stopped playing the game around last month completely. But, when I played Halo 4 for the first time, something felt nostalgic and familiar. If I had to compare Halo 4 to other games, I would have to say
45% Halo 2
40% Halo 3
10% Halo Reach
5% CoD
The core gameplay from Halo 4 was similar to that of Halo 2/3. The kill times were fast, game pace was especially fast, the battle rifle was powerful at mid range, and it just felt like the original trilogy.
I was able to play a couple of games of Halo 4, one on the map Haven, two on Adrift, and one on Longbow. All of the maps were nice, and I would say Haven really has a nice, competitive feel to it, like Narrows.
Of course in Halo 4 there are Armor Abilities (like Reach), and perks you can choose from. But even with these additions in Halo 4, the game IS DOMINATED by Gun play, unlike in Reach where it was dominated by Armor Abilities. Sprint was default in Halo 4, but it felt a lot more smoother and I liked it (IKR). When you got shot, you slowed down dramatically and made it hard for you to continue to sprint. Also, you BARELY NOTICE the perks as you are absorbed in the fast game pace.
Strafing in Halo 4 is WAY MUCH better than Reach's. I threw in a few battles with my Gandhi hop and my not so well SK Strafe. I would even go as far as saying strafing in Halo 4 is far more effective than any other Halo game. Jump height and movement speed are all up to H3's level, but when you jump you don't feel floaty like in H3.
In Halo 4, there was also a DMR, but it wasn't that effective in close range combat like Reach. It was highly effective in long range battles and worked nice on the Map Longbow.
The armor abilities (more still to come) in Halo 4 are not final, but I can explain the ones I know.
1. Promethean Vision is OP in it's current stage, but it's not as OP as the MLG players make it to be. I still use my radar 90% of the time, but it's nice to use promethean vision to see what weapon/positioning the opponent has. And yes, it's pretty much CONFIRMED that it's going to be toned down when I talked to Jay.
2. Hardlight shield is the replacement for Armor Lock, but it's way much easier to defeat. All you do is throw a grenade and he is dead. Or you could melee him in the back or the side of his body. Also, your health doesn't regenerate while In hardlight shield
3. Thruster pack is kind of like Evade, but it's much less powerful. Only one burst.
4. Hologram is just like Reach
Now what really worried me going into H4 was the Perks (Tactical Package and Support Upgrades), but it's not bad at all. These perks make such a minimal impact on the game, and it only helps you in your given environment. No rage, no balance problems, just beneficial to you.
Overall, the game feels well, and MUCH BETTER THAN Reach. If I was to tell you which game you would need to practice to prepare for H4, it would Halo 3 (if you have XBOX Connect hooked up, play Halo 2 with Halo 3.)
The game is phenomenal, and talking to some of the 343 members, the balance is only going to get much better.
For right now, Halo will be back, and in a big way.
[Edited on 07.11.2012 4:14 PM PDT]