Just finished this game yesterday. First of all, as for the series itself, I really liked the first, thought the second was good - didn't quite match up to the first for me though - and thought the third was just okay.
For me, Reach had a lot to live up to, especially with all the hype and reviews praising it, and overall I think it mostly succeeded. I mostly liked all the levels expect for the whole space mission (the flying and ship itself) and there were a lot of great moments (a lot of intense firefights and well done set pieces, jetpacks, and the whole ending was awesome). Speaking of the ending, I was always wondering when I'd see something like that in a game - if there was something like that in another game I can't recall it at the moment.
And wow those visuals were really stunning at times (fantastic art direction, lighting, atmospherics and environments). I think they're seriously underrated.
Best game in the series for me since the first. Makes me wish I had an 360 (for live and because I barely had time to finish the game itself) because despite having fun playing alone, I was really wishing I had an some non AI partners for the vehicle sections.
