343 taking up a monumental task. How can the new and old be balanced?

Games Other Halo
1

Hello everyone,

At this point in time I can’t even begin to imagine how 343 is going to balance the OLD and the NEW. There is no doubt that every halo has been released with some good additions. I’ll mainly be focusing on Halo 3 and Reach since Halo 3 seems to generally follow the original halo formula whereas in Reach, halo was radically changed (GOOD and BAD).
I can’t help think that no matter what direction 343 chooses, a massive amount of fans will be displeased. If they choose to continue to innovate in the direction of Reach (armour abilities, etc.), fans of classic halo will be extremely upset and the fan base may shrink further. BUT if 343 chooses to go classic (no AAs, no bloom, no special abilities) I feel that an equally large portion of the fan base will be upset. You may be thinking, “argh I hate AAs” but just think about all those awesome gametypes and maps that have been based on AAs, particularly with reference to the jetpack. They would all be lost… On the other hand, there’s armour lock and bloom which just suck -Yoink-…

So here’s what I’m thinking for Halo 4:

  • Bring back the BR. As much as I love the DMR, the BR is simply fantastic. It sports a pretty unique fighting style that is only found in halo. The three shot burst + ROF cap + spread + small scope + perfect kill time = skillfull and fun utility weapon. I think if the BR was brought back a good amount of players would rejoin Halo.

  • A faster strafing speed when compared to Reach. The strafing lag in Reach kinda ruins the fun of DMR fights.

  • Compromise between 3 and Reach jump height

  • NO 3 SHOT KILL gun like the CE magnum. It was overpowered in CE and it’s overpowered in the anniversary gametype. It was fun for a while but I found myself enjoying TU gametypes more than classic.

  • -Yoink- the Reach grenades! Halo 3 grenades MUST return!! The bouncing, the blast radius, the power was so perfectly balanced - loved it.

  • Some sort of new ability or equipment. A lot of you will disagree with this but I think it’s imperative that we get something really fresh and “halo formula breaking”. AAs work in some ways but fail hard in others. 343 has to find a way to add a new mechanic that is original and FUN!

Discuss the points above and propose a “halo formula-breaking” mechanic.

2

-Armor abilities- No, no, and no again.
Maybe if they were exclusive to custom games. Personally, I’d prefer an equipment type approach as in halo 3. It added some new strategy, and didn’t disturb the general flow of the game. Unlike Reach, where the armor abilities turned it into a cockstorm.
Stick at least somewhat with the original Halo formula and i’m fairly sure they will succeed.

Other than that I pretty much agree with what you’ve said.

3

Just use equipment or base it off of that system. AAs were kind of unbalanced…just don’t eliminate that aspect. but ultimately i want to see where they take gameplay and everything else.They seem to have their heads screwed on better than Bungie did w/ Reach(They called Reach their ‘swan song’.More like a really bad exit.)

343,show us what u can do

4

Wat halo 2 was the best mutiplayer of all of them go with that imo.

5

The main things I’m looking for in Halo 4 are the lack of bloom, a numerical ranking system (1-50, etc), and a weapon similar to the BR and carbine. A
As for armor abilities, I think I’d be ok if they kept sprint and holograms. Also, they should bring back some equipment, so that there is something else beside weapons to fight over, such as bubble shield and regenerator.

As for grenades, I want at least 4 grenade options, including plasmas and regulars.