Disclaimer: I am not here to complain about the game or about its developers. In fact, I enjoy playing Halo 5: Guardians and 343 Industries has done some enjoyable things with it. I’m here just to give my opinions about the game over its two-year run and what I think should be changed or added in Halo 6. Your changes may be different than mine and that is perfectly fine.
WEAPONS
Over a 2-year run, weapon balancing has changed maybe about 2-3 times, and the end-result came out pretty good. When you take range out of the picture, no weapon is better than the other, which I believe is perfection when it comes to balancing weapons. Pistols (Magnum, Plasma Pistol and Boltshot) are great, Marksman Rifles (DMR, Battle Rifle, LightRifle, and Covenant Carbine) are on point, Automatic Weapons (Assault Rifle, SMG, Storm Rifle, Suppressor) are terrific, and the Power Weapons are, well, powerful. No issues there!
When it comes to the design of weapons and attachments, there are a few issues. A weapon that I believe is at the top of this list is the DMR. I’ve always felt, even since the beginning of Halo 5, that the Longshot Sight on the weapon is too far back and makes the weapon look awkward as does with other optical attachments. Another weapon that looks awkward is the shotgun. Now, I don’t want to sound like a jerk, but the weapon to me looks like a slab of metal with a pump under it; there are no visible iron sights on the weapon unlike Halo’s predecessors.
Now for attachments. In Halo 5, attachments were unveiled and used mostly during the various Warzone modes. My only issue is that there are some that are completely useless and should of never have been added to the game. Those attachments I believe are: Threat Marker, Sound Dampener, and Knight Blade.
Here is what they do:
Threat Marker: After firing on a target, the target is marked for only a few seconds.
Why we don’t need it: When you are firing on a target, you are already going to be fixated on him/her the entire time until you get that kill, making this useless.
Sound Dampener: Increases range, reduces signature
Why we don’t need it: If the range is increased, you are probably going to be farther away and not on your target’s motion sensor. You’re better off using a Long Barrel.
Knight Blade: Increases melee damage against vehicles.
Why we don’t need it: It will be difficult to try and melee a vehicle since it is very easy to run over enemies. You’re better off blowing them up.
VEHICLES
Vehicles are a cornerstone of the Halo experience and they still run solid today, but of course, a few issues here:
Splatters: It is too easy to run over enemies in Halo 5. You can be moving slowly and still run over enemies with ease.
Wasp: The Wasp was added very late into the game and to this day is still very fragile and underpowered. Later updates added variants that were marginally better but still just as easy to destroy.
Designs: A lot of the vehicles are very bulky as opposed to being sleek such as the Wraith and Banshee (compare with Halo: Reach).
COMBAT
Combat in Halo 5: Guardians is a big step up from its predecessor but still, there is one or two issues with it.
For one, in Multiplayer, you can only recharge your shields when you are not sprinting, making it easy for whoever is attacking you to swoop in and finish you off. I never really enjoyed this mechanic for obvious reasons (i.e. I want to live).
Spartan Charge and Ground Pound are cool additions to the game; however, it is annoying in multiplayer because people spam it on their own teammates, sometimes even kicking people off maps.
I have a love/hate relationship with Smart-Link on all weapons. There are still some weapons where it should be removed.
Here are some:
Energy Sword: Lunge-range is drastically increased when Linked.
Plasma Pistol: Overcharge bolt tracking range is increased when Linked.
Boltshot and Suppressor: Light bolts tracking range is increased when Linked.
Needler: Needle tracking range is increased when Linked.
GAMETYPES
Arena:
Having Arena segmented into two categories, Social and Ranked, is a solid idea and should be welcomed into the next game. It’s good because it separates the pro gamers versus the gamers that are there just to have a blast. My only addition would be to keep a permanent Classic playlist in both Ranked and Social, for those who want the original Halo experience (no Charge or Pound, but Sprint could stay). An issue with Arena are the maps. All the original maps are small and almost everything that came after that are Forge-made maps. Weapon placement is also an issue on these small maps sometimes too, such as most of them having Sniper Rifles instead of changing it up with other weapons.
Warzone:
Warzone is absolutely a blast. I like it because I really enjoy playing large games on large maps with many players. Should return in Halo 6.
Warzone Assault:
The Assault variant, I believe, is the successor to the very fun mode of Invasion from Halo: Reach. It has many problems, however.
Capturing Points: Capturing a base should be linked to the amount of people that are inside the capture zone. An example: 1 defender is hiding somewhere in the base. 10 attackers are inside trying to capture but can’t because it is contested.
Switching**Sides: There is no Defense-Offense switch after a match ends. Should be!
Sudden**Death: There is no time extension when you finally take over the base but the match time runs out.
Split-Screen: As we all know, split-screen should of course return because it is the premier way to play with your friends when their over.
REQUISITIONS****AND MICROTRANSACTIONS
If microtransactions are going to continue in Halo 6, the system that is used now should stay because it is a perfect balance between working for what you want and just paying for it, and I have done both.
I also love that duplicate REQ unlocks are not given to the player to try to entice you to just purchase a bunch of packs to get what you want.