With the return of Halo 2 there is a chance we will see the return of clans. If clans do return, their activity will likely be monitored by 343i for future games. However, do we really want a system that was used 10 years ago??? Now is our chance to make decisions that will impact the future of the Halo franchise.
”Because the seeds of our future, are sown in Halo’s past
Halo 2 clans allowed for something that Halo games have since limited – the ability to join communities of gamers that share common interests on their xbox. That is why we are all here on this forum right? We share a common interest. Gamers would join clans either to be in a competitive group, just to be social on the internet, etc. It defied what most games of its time were doing. But this system allowed for only 100 players and was limited by the technology and systematics of its time. Today we need something more.
Divisions – Infinity / Infantry
I personally would be calling it Infinity Divisions simply to keep with what Halo 4 started in with a story arc for multiplayer. By joining a division, you would be joining a Spartan Infantry Division on board Infinity. A division would be relatable to clans in that it would be a group of people that share some sort of common interest. Here’s more to the story of Infinity Divisions…
Connectivity
The internet is much more complex than it was in 2004. There was a limited amount of connectivity between Halo 2 and the internet.
There is no better hub for Divisions than Halo Waypoint! Division stats, member information, a group forum could all be directly connected to Waypoint!
Another integral feature would be the ability to upload saved films directly to youtube and be able to access clan videos from a central page on waypoint. Youtube uploads is essential in the year 2014 and there is no better outlet for putting saved films on.
For users with Kinect, video chat for clans could be an insanely precious tool.
Social Media
Social Media has become an integral part of modern society. And I’d bet you the majority of people playing Xbox have social media. Make it so that people’s social media accounts link to their Waypoint account so clan members can interact beyond the game. Perhaps even Instagram could be used for pictures and smaller saved film uploads.
In-game Aspects
As you can see there is a lot of cool ways to make Divisions work in a way that allows users to share their experiences with each other. But then there are some in-game aspects.
As a Division of the UNSC Infinity, you would create a Division name and your goal would be to represent your division throughout Halo 5 on board Infinity multiplayer. Administrators (Officers) in ranking would have as much control of the group as they wanted and could give other people powers as they pleased (either in-game or from Halo Waypoint).
You’re commanding officers would be in control of:
Division privacy – some division could be open for “Public Enrollment” while others could be “Secret / ONI Classified”
Group aspects – group logo, the Halo Waypoint page, any other related social media.
You’re ability to be a moderator on the Division’s forum.
Armor Control – when playing with/representing your Division in matchmaking, every player can have the option to toggle between their main armor permutation and their assigned armor permutation from their commanding officer.
I also believe that it should be ok for players to join multiple Divisions because some people have multiple interests; plus the idea is there are public groups. If there had to be a cap on the number of Divisions you could join, maybe like five or ten?
Lastly, there should be no player cap for Divisions. Theoretically, there could be an infinitely large division. However, the likeliness of players joining that Division would significantly decrease because it could be too overwhelming. Some players may prefer smaller, private clans. But that’s what is so great – there are options.
Gameplay
Now that the idea of a Division has been established, we can talk about how Divisions can play each other.
Matchmaking in Halo 2 originally contained a “Clanmatch” playlist in which clans could go in and play each other. A “Clanmatch” playlist would be really cool -especially early on in the game’s lifespan when enough players would utilize the tool. However, after a short amount of time, the playlist was removed due to having a small amount of utilization. I’m not sure if this is the answer.
I think a better solution would be in the game lobby to check off some option allowing matchmaking to “Search for other Divisions ONLY”. It may take longer to find a game, but if Divisions are looking for a competitive game where they can verse other Divisions, then this maybe the way to go.
A special matchmaking forum on Waypoint for Divisions to communicate between could also work.
Another option possibility comes if Halo 5 bring back Firefight / Spartan ops. If Firefight returns, then their data of different Divisions could be displayed on a Waypoint leaderboard-type service (same for War Games). If Spartan Ops returns, it would be cool if peoples’ Infinity Divisions actually impacted how the story progressed (I’m not really sure how this would go about. But I’m sure it could work in some fashion).
This is definitely a lot to take in and it’s been discussed many times in the past. But with the way the world has changed – we don’t need clans. We need more. I believe Infinity Divisions could do that and then some. I will leave room for editing as well. Please don’t just agree or disagree. Tell me what you think works and what doesn’t work. Add suggestions to things I haven’t even thought of yet. Now is the time to talk about this (It might even be too late for Halo 5! But we can try right?)