Pro players are who they asked to help make Infinite, so does that mean the balance is their fault then? Sidekick is a “good” weapon but it is boring. They removed secondary fire weapons aside from the Ravager, and abilities are lame after the more diverse sets in 4 and Reach.
I don’t think you actually understand how much input the pro scene had. It was far less than they wanted.
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It’s along the lines that it forces that player to be static on the map.
But everyone else tends to keep moving.
We all have nostalgic hopes of teams going to and fro with the bubble - but in the end it’s easier to ignore that player and take on other opponents (where you now have the numbers advantage).
Not to say clever (and co-ordinated) teams didn’t find effective uses for it. Personally I’m a big fan. And I’m sure we can find new roles for it the upcoming Forge. Especially with scripting.
I think the drop shield could use a bit of buff - but it’s better for game flow than the bubble shield.
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And that staticness (is that a word???) comes from the players want the most protection which comes from the inside.
The most protection a drop wall offer is when standing directly behind it. That player would also be static, would they not? Of course the key difference is that both players can still shoot at each other and the wall will be destroyed eventually.
This bring up the question about the Reach Drop Shield. It’s also destructible, though not as flimsy as the Drop Wall. The only time we saw this was when it was an armor ability, intrinsically tied to your spartan rather than the environment. Maybe it deserves a 2nd shot as an equipment piece?
That’s one to look at it. Another is that the player who dropped it just influenced the map traversal of the enemy team, potentially forcing them into a less desirable position.
Which brings make to my original question. How is it better for map flow? Is it because it has less of an effect? The Drop Wall is undeniably the weaker item (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing), but it also leaves a much smaller impact. Don’t we want items that have a presence. Ya know a “We NEED to get that when it spawns!” not a “Eh, grab it if you can” item?
I’ve been on both sides of situations where someone drops a drop wall mid-gunfight and the attacker doesn’t change their game plan at all. They just keep firing, hoping for chip damage. No strategy whatsoever. I’ve seen the wall be destroyed before even deploying. I’ve been kill through the wall because it doesn’t block a full BR burst.
So, game flow. Is a slow pace always bad? Isn’t it sometimes ok to slowdown and defend a point?
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Don’t get me wrong. I loved the bubble shield!
The difference is that I can counter the drop wall. It breaks down quickly (especially if we have more than one player shooting it). I can destroy it with one shot. I can throw grenades over the top. And so on.
Someone in the bubble shield? Just not worth the effort - so I’ll move on and fight someone else.
Would I love it if people came and contested me in my bubble shield. Yes. It could lead to some crazy happenings. But after a while people just stopped interacting with them.
If you wanted to take on the person inside you would just sit back and wait for the bubble shield to go. Usually after collecting a couple of grenades to chuck in time with the despawn.
Could the current drop wall be buffed a bit? Yep. And probably needs it.
Could the old bubble shield be reintroduced with a heavy nerf. Again, probably. But you get to the point where it is no longer what people remember and they then don’t want it anyway. 
Sometimes. But the game has changed from Halo 3. It more about flow around the map then specifically defending a point.
I think the best thing would be to give us back the bubble in Forge. With some tuneable parameters. And let the community play around with it.
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We’re on the same page with this. I could tell you were a fan from the start.
And what about the player behind the wall? Everything you mention helps the attacker, not the defender. Sure they have to initial protection of the panels, but as use said, they can be destroyed very easily. Many times the defender comes out by the skin of their teeth. Sure the wall did it’s job (kept you alive), but maybe people would like equipment that’s a little better than “almost died”.
I may have mentioned in another comment (not addressed to you) that the Drop Wall has a lot in common with the Regen Field. And I think that would be a more effective item. Both allow players to fire back, the generator can be destroyed, etc. The main difference is that the Regen Field doesn’t lose it’s primary advantage after a second of sustained fire (unless the attacker fires a precise shot at the generator, which is arguably more skillful than just obliterating the whole thing). Also the regen field was more effective against small arms but weak to high DPS and 1-shot kill guns.
Finally, if you push into a regen field, you gain the same benefits of your enemy, not the determining factor is how has the better guns for the situation. A dynamic interaction.
Perhaps, but it depends on the situation. I won’t get into the semantics though.
Yeah, good old fashioned sticky grenade two-stepping would be nice.
They could make the wall a little bigger make it harder to bounce nades around it. Or let me drop 2 at once.
Maybe, but Infinite isn’t the same game. Things are gonna behave differently. We still have the AR, but it’s not that peashooter from the Bungie era.
My idea to reintroduce the Bubble shield to Halo would be to combine aspects of the Bubble Shield, Drop Shield and Drop Wall. Spherical protection, but the hexes can be destroyed with some effort, and the defender can shoot out of the shield.
But does it always have to be like that? Can’t it be a little different every few matches?
I forgot to mention this in my last reply so I’m glad you brought it up again. With that Shroud Screen thing 343 mentioned in the roadmap, do you think it may be possible to script is as a bubble shield, but one you can’t see through? That could be the nerf you’re looking for.
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Oh thank god. It only effects the 1%.
True. It’s well recorded that a lot of the advice the pros gave was ignored.
Subjectively, I see this as a win.
Well, you’re right that a lot of the advice was ignored. Which has lead to the state of the game being what it is. NOT GOOD.
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… ‘power equipment.’ Like a power weapon, but equipment.
Was pro advice ignored? Sure (just like a lot of other community feedback).
Is the state of the game not good? Absolutely.
But the former didn’t cause the latter. This game is in a poor state from basically everything except the gameplay. In general the gameplay is regarded as good, with only minor tweaks being requested.
The pro team is not there to give input on career and battle pass progression, or execution on the live service model. Their purpose is to advise on gameplay mechanics and balancing.
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I’m pretty sure they use that exact term when you explore the live fire training zone during the tutorial. They use it in the context of Overshields and and Camo. I could see the Bubble Shield being set on a long timer with HUD announcements.
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Yeah no I know, it’s just that… Had 343i listened to 'em better about the sandbox? A lot of these fine tunings wouldn’t be needed. Glad they’re coming though.
Nor to give advice on coding and network management.
I never said anything about a Bubble Shield being vased on how good I am. I just know this is iconic Halo equipment and would provide good gameplay for intelligently using it when needed, not just to camp inside. Balance it by it only working for 6 seconds and you only get 2 of it. Also it would be cool to see it pop up in about %50 of Maps but only %38 of Game Modes, just a thought my friend.
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I actually had to go look back on Youtube for the Drop Shield because it has been so long since Reach. Only problem is Drop Shield seems too similar to the Drop Wall and would probably steal the spotlight from it.
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I didn’t mean to reply to you about that, I agree drop wall seems like the closest to what they wanted in a “temporary but destroyable” cover piece. My personal use case being mainly BTB, the drop wall is even less likely to survive when you have extra guns acting as suppressive fire. Nothing even needs to be accurate since friendly fire on grenades is off, they spam those things down hallways like nobodies business and two ARs shreds panels in seconds. It’s not very good at being a decisive part of that battle dance if it doesn’t affect a 2v1 like the old abilities.
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good point. at the moment, it’s basically a power weapon counter that can be destroyed by any weapon and has a cooldown longer than the reload on a rocket launcher.
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I like the drop shield more than the bubble shield. It is way more balanced. But I can see the the other side, maybe.
There was a halfway point already in the Regen Emitter from 3 and the Dropshield equipment from Reach. I personally feel most equipment in Infinite is less interesting. The Jetpack has consistently been my favourite mobility enhancer and though it overlaps with grapple and such is “unnecessary”
that does not really explain the loss of the Trip Mines, Power Drains, Flashbang, Autoturret or any of the other offensive styles.
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