For my 500th post I wanted to do something special. So, I decided to write a letter to 343i thanking them for their marvelous creation, Halo 4. I hope they will get a chance to read this letter so they can get some feedback. I don’t care what anyone says about my post, I just want to say “Thank You” to 343i. If you decide to read the whole thing, be aware that it is very lengthy.
Dear 343i,
After playing Halo 4 for about 3 months, I am writing to you today to notify you of how appreciative I am of your masterpiece. I have been a fan since Halo: CE and I have played all the Halos, enjoying every single one along the way. Even though Bungie no longer has possession of the Halo franchise, I am extremely grateful that you willingly took the reins from them and created a game that I will enjoy for years to come. I can imagine that it isn’t just a walk in the park when you are creating a new Halo for a willing fan base, but even though Halo 4 is just now entering the Halo family, I would have to arguably say that you gave it your best effort and you nailed it.
Like many others, I too was skeptical about your possession of Halo, but since I witnessed how you took Halo: CE Anniversary into much care, I knew from that day forward you would deliver a promising experience. And a promising experience you certainly delivered. Halo 4 is so much different from the other Halo’s, yet through all the new features you have implemented into Halo 4, it still holds that Halo feel. That feeling that no other game can deliver and that is why I have been addicted to Halo 4 since its release date.
However, as much as I love Halo 4, there are some unfortunate issues I would like to address to you and I hope you find the time to take these issues into very deep consideration. I love almost all of the new weapons you have created for Halo 4, but there is one weapon that most certainly needs to be dealt with. That weapon is the Boltshot. I have thought long and hard about this weapon and I believe something needs to happen to it. I don’t think that it is fair to have a shotgun in the load out menu and, trust me when I say this, the Boltshot can indeed beat the original shotgun in a battle of close range combat. I strongly believe that this weapon needs to be decreased in power so that it is not abused and used more than the actual shotgun. That is the only major thing I see wrong in Halo 4. The more minor things I see about Halo 4 include some of the vehicles and the join-in-progress system. I think you have done an excellent job in developing the vehicles, but at the same time, I believe some of them deserve more abilities and/or disabilities than they have now. My first suggestion is to modify the Ghost so that it has slightly less health or perhaps a reduction in damage from the plasma cannons, because at the moment the Ghost seems slightly overpowered. My second suggestion is an upgrade to the Warthog health, because it seems to be easily destroyed by the Plasma Pistol/Plasma Grenades combo. My third suggestion is to upgrade the Banshee because it seems much weaker and much slower than the Halo: Reach Banshee. I believe that the Banshee should either have more mobility or a health increase, because at the moment, the Banshee is like the Warthog of the air. I believe it can be destroyed too easily and thus I think that it should be upgraded in some perspective. I have no other complaints about the other vehicles. They seem to be balanced very well and I ask that you do not modify them in any way, shape or form. The last thing I want to address is the join-in-progress system. Like others, I have had many unfortunate events of joining games where I have been on the losing team in a game of 800-300. I am not saying that you should remove the join-in progress system, but what I am saying, is that I think everyone should be allowed to join games that are almost even in score, giving the players a fair chance to win more games.
While Halo 4 is certainly not perfect, it definitely has features that make it beautifully unique from the other Halos. Personally, I love what you have done with Halo 4 as a whole and with all the new features Halo 4 has to offer, I will personally declare that Halo 4 is the best out of the series. I had always been worried that Halo 4 would turn out to be some sort of COD impersonator, but I have come to realize that even with all the similar features to COD, Halo 4 does not even come close to impersonating COD. I have grown very fond of all the new features that have been implemented into the game giving Halo 4 a fresh, new, experience that was never available in the other Halos. The campaign is undoubtedly one of the best and I am amazed at how the relationship between the Master Chief and Cortana is revealed like never before in the face of yet another new enemy. Truly the campaign is something that just cannot be missed. The new Spartan Ops gives Halo 4 an absolutely breathtaking twist coming from the familiar surroundings of Firefight. I love the ability to play as my own Spartan through spine-tingling missions and see the world of Halo like never before. The load outs, armor setups, and stances are absolutely superb and the ability to customize everything just the way I want it is absolutely phenomenal. In addition to many of the new weapons that have been introduced, I am extremely happy to see all of my favorite weapons returning from the past Halos, such as the DMR, Battle Rifle, Beam Rifle and Covenant Carbine. All of the weapons, excluding the Boltshot, seem to be equally weighted and each one has its own advantages and disadvantages which makes Halo 4 even more spectacular. The specializations you have given us make leveling up actually worth the trip considering it is now possible to unlock special abilities with each new rank. I think that the ordnance drops are an excellent idea for slayer, because now we can finally earn power weapons and power ups without having to wait for them to spawn. The maps you have created are just something beyond what I think is mentally possible and they are extremely fun to compete on. The positives of Halo 4 are just outstanding and it is easy to see that the time you guys put into Halo 4 has proven its point.
In conclusion, 343i, I think you are an amazing developer who has made an absolutely astonishing Halo game. Taking the reins from Bungie and producing Halo 4 was something that very few developers would attempt, but you took up the challenge and you did an outstanding job with Halo 4. I know that Halo 4 is not perfect and I know that you have made some minor mistakes. However, I know that you will learn from past experiences in Halo 4 and I know that you will make Halo 4 a better game than it already is. I am no longer in doubt that you do indeed care about the Halo franchise and fan base, and I believe that you will be doing amazing things for Halo in the future. I cannot wait to see what you guys have in store for Halo 5 and 6 and I cannot wait to see what you will do here in Halo 4. Both ways, I will be here supporting you guys all the way! Keep up the good work 343i!
Sincerely,
Spartan I043
