Armor Abilities are not random or lucky.

Games Other Halo
1

I am here to state that IMO, Halo Reach AAs to not add any amount of randomness
or luck in the game.

Isn’t the definition of randomness in a video game something the player (or his human
enemies) cannot control, such as the roll of a dice.

What most people think is that AAs ad a randomness of 1-5 making each game random. I
would say it’s not true. Since the 1-5 choice is determend by a player it does not
count as randomness. The players pick it perposely as a strategy to how he will win the
game. So therefore, it’s not random since players can control it, unlike a
diceroll, which is random and is something a player cannot control.

So AAs are simply a starting move, a way you decide to move at the start of the
game.

But you can’t control what other people pick, does that make it random?

No, of course not, you can’t control what other people do in any other game either. In
a game of Uno (card game) you can’t control which card your enimies put down. If the
player across from you could put down 3 of his 7 cards that doesn’t make it a random
chance of 1-3. The player chooses which card he would like to play to what ever
best fits his strategy.

And like all First-Person-Shooters, you can’t control were your enemy moves around the
map, does that make it random?

In Halo Reach on the map Countdown, you can go to 1 of 3 power weapons, the sword, the
shotgun, and concusion rifle. If another player goes to one of these three weapons, is
that a random chance of 1 in 3? No, the player simply decided to go that way.

Like I said, randomness is something that cannot be determend by any player, and
therefore adds luck to the game.

So AAs are just the first step to a game in Halo Reach, each player chooses his AA to
whatever strategy best fits his needs.

It would be random if:

The computer made you start with a random AA, it’s like a diceroll because you can’t
decide which one you want, it just gives one to you.

It’s not random because:

Players get to choose the outcome, just like the player chooses which hallway he wants
to go through, or which weapons he has.

The only things that are random:

>Spawns

>Bloom

>Which team you are on. (Or which side of the map you start on)

Now I’m not trying to say all of the AAs are equal, some like AL alow noobs to beat
pros and are OP. But that doesn’t add luck or randomness.

So for Halo 4: Try to make sure that you know that these thinks add randomness and luck
to the game before you judge them, the rule of thumb is: If it’s controlled by the
player, it’s not random, and is not lucky.

2

The spawns aren’t completely random, they spawn you as close to your teammates as possible and far enough away from the enemy that they wont kill you instantly (although this doesn’t always happen).

3

Spawns and bloom isn’t random. You can control how much spread the bullets have and spawning has an option where you can select the location.

4

Ya to me it was never a question of randomness… it just gave some players an upper edge they shouldn’t have.

5

When the other player you are fighting had a choice of 5 different abilities to work with, it’s a roll of the dice for YOU. because there’s a 1 in 5 chance he has the ability he needs in that situation.

The reason it’s random isn’t because of which Armour Ability YOU choose, but which armour ability your OPPONENT chooses, which you have NO control over.

6

> When the other player you are fighting had a choice of 5 different abilities to work with, it’s a roll of the dice for YOU. because there’s a 1 in 5 chance he has the ability he needs in that situation.
>
> The reason it’s random isn’t because of which Armour Ability YOU choose, but which armour ability your OPPONENT chooses, which you have NO control over.

Well said.

7

I agree. I like Armor Abilities give you different ways to play the game, like the jetpack on Sword Base. Bloom is also not luck since you have to pace it.

8

I don’t get how you say AA’s aren’t random because the player chooses it and then turn around and say bloom is random (which is chosen by the player).

9

bloom made randomness. AA’s gave players more chance at living over others at spawn.

10

> When the other player you are fighting had a choice of 5 different abilities to work with, it’s a roll of the dice for YOU. because there’s a 1 in 5 chance he has the ability he needs in that situation.
>
> The reason it’s random isn’t because of which Armour Ability YOU choose, but which armour ability your OPPONENT chooses, which you have NO control over.

I said it’s not random if any players chose that.

Can you control were your opponent moves in a game of chess?

No!

Does that make it random?

No!

11

You’re horribly wrong, OP.

And i actually lol’d at your comparison of Reach with Uno. If there’s any game that is almost completely based on luck, it is Uno, because you can’t beat your opponent if he randomly draws better cards than you.

I don’t expect you to understand highly competitive play, but believe me when I say you can predict the enemy’s actions. In classic Halo, that is.

If you hold the top on reflection in Reach, you can be damn sure they will try to gain top control by using one of the hallways or the elevator. So you lock down all three ways of getting there. When the power weapons spawn, you will know for sure they are going to be used against you, so you fight over them, even leaving your position of power if necessary.

In a match with armor abilities on spawn, however, you can never be 100% sure of their actions. When you have the entire map locked down on reflection, someone can just jetpack right up that balcony. Or you have control of rockets, only for them to be bounced off by armor lock, rewarding the player that didn’t go through the trouble of getting rockets instead of the one that did.

Or you look down the shotgun ramp, see nobody coming up, decide to quickly help out your teammates on the balcony and then return to the ramp, assuming it is safe, only for there to be a camo guy or two who managed to sneak up to you.

All of this causes uncertainty of what is going to happen, even if you are in an advantage. It brings inconsistency into the game, while competitive games are supposed to be consistent. If I out-DMR my opponent when he is far away from cover, he should die. Not press a button and live. If my team has locked down the large walkway on boardwalk from the sniper tower, i expect people to come in through the two or entrances to that area. Not just jetpack up there at a random spot.

All Armor abilities are overpowered, it’s how they are designed. Why else add armor abilities if they don’t give advantages? However, an advantage over another player should never be given on spawn/respawn, because that player has not earned it.

PS: Ever heard of spawn trapping? Spawns, if done correctly, are predictable. They are actually calculated based on what is happening on the map. Every spawn point that has an enemy near it gets negative points, every teammate near it gives it positive points. You are going to spawn by your teammates most of the time because of this.
On MLG sanctuary, if you outslay your opponents at their sniper hut, you can be damn sure they will spawn at their rocks.

Bloom is random in a way, but it is still player controlled. If you pace perfectly, you don’t even have to deal with it.
There’s nothing you can do in Reach in order to not deal with AA’s, however.

12

> > When the other player you are fighting had a choice of 5 different abilities to work with, it’s a roll of the dice for YOU. because there’s a 1 in 5 chance he has the ability he needs in that situation.
> >
> > The reason it’s random isn’t because of which Armour Ability YOU choose, but which armour ability your OPPONENT chooses, which you have NO control over.
>
> I said it’s not random if any players chose that.
>
> Can you control were your opponent moves in a game of chess?
>
> No!
>
> Does that make it random?
>
> No!

There’s a difference. In Chess they are making moves reacting to your moves, and vice versa. Armour Abilities are effectively a gamble. Chess is a purely mathematical game, every action opens and closes doors for the other player, you can control them by leaving certain doors open and closing others. You can’t control what AA the enemy picks in Reach.

Not only that it IS random even though you are “choosing” it because when you are prompted at the AA screen you have NO IDEA what kind of fights are coming up, or which ability will help you the most, so you pick based on your favourite, and hope that the combat events you come into lean in your AA’s favour and not theirs.

AND there is no way to know what AA an enemy has without seeing his back, which the vast majority of the time will NOT be in your line of sight. Unless of course it’s a jetpack.

Still random.

13

i agree. some people just dont like change.

14

> > When the other player you are fighting had a choice of 5 different abilities to work with, it’s a roll of the dice for YOU. because there’s a 1 in 5 chance he has the ability he needs in that situation.
> >
> > The reason it’s random isn’t because of which Armour Ability YOU choose, but which armour ability your OPPONENT chooses, which you have NO control over.
>
> I said it’s not random if any players chose that.
>
> Can you control were your opponent moves in a game of chess?
>
> No!
>
> Does that make it random?
>
> No!

Terrible comparison imo.

Can you control if your opponent strafes in Halo?

No!

Does that make it random?

No!

More like

Can you control if your opponent turns a piece invinsible in chess?

No!

Does that make it random?

YES!

15

> > > When the other player you are fighting had a choice of 5 different abilities to work with, it’s a roll of the dice for YOU. because there’s a 1 in 5 chance he has the ability he needs in that situation.
> > >
> > > The reason it’s random isn’t because of which Armour Ability YOU choose, but which armour ability your OPPONENT chooses, which you have NO control over.
> >
> > I said it’s not random if any players chose that.
> >
> > Can you control were your opponent moves in a game of chess?
> >
> > No!
> >
> > Does that make it random?
> >
> > No!
>
> There’s a difference. In Chess they are making moves reacting to your moves, and vice versa. Armour Abilities are effectively a gamble. Chess is a purely mathematical game, every action opens and closes doors for the other player, you can control them by leaving certain doors open and closing others. You can’t control what AA the enemy picks in Reach.
>
> Not only that it IS random even though you are “choosing” it because when you are prompted at the AA screen you have NO IDEA what kind of fights are coming up, or which ability will help you the most, so you pick based on your favourite, and hope that the combat events you come into lean in your AA’s favour and not theirs.
>
> AND there is no way to know what AA an enemy has without seeing his back, which the vast majority of the time will NOT be in your line of sight. Unless of course it’s a jetpack.
>
> Still random.

Now you are just stating the differences between chess and halo. I get that they are
2 different games, but I was using chess as a background.

Like I said, your opponent is choosing the AA, the computer doesn’t give him
a random one. If it did it would be truly random. Anything not controlled by any
player is a chance of luck to win.

16

> Terrible comparison imo.
>
> Can you control if your opponent strafes in Halo?
>
> No!
>
> Does that make it random?
>
> No!
>
> More like
>
> Can you control if your opponent turns a piece invinsible in chess?
>
> No!
>
> Does that make it random?
>
> YES!

Well if your opponents piece turn invinsible all by itself then it would be random.

But if your opponent used his turn to make his piece invinsible it wouldn’t be random.

Though it would be extremely OP.

17

> Now you are just stating the differences between chess and halo. I get that they are
> 2 different games, but I was using chess as a background.
>
> Like I said, your opponent is choosing the AA, the computer doesn’t give him
> a random one. If it did it would be truly random. Anything not controlled by any
> player is a chance of luck to win.

You don’t have to repeat the same thing over and over again.

We’ve read it, and we know you’re missing the point. The point is that you can predict your enemy in certain ways. In Halo 3, you were 100% sure that people couldn’t just fly up to you. Or turn invisible or invincible out of nowhere.
In Reach, you aren’t. And that causes frustration, because consistency is lost.

Please do read my post above and adress my arguments.

18

> > Terrible comparison imo.
> >
> > Can you control if your opponent strafes in Halo?
> >
> > No!
> >
> > Does that make it random?
> >
> > No!
> >
> > More like
> >
> > Can you control if your opponent turns a piece invinsible in chess?
> >
> > No!
> >
> > Does that make it random?
> >
> > YES!
>
> Well if your opponents piece turn invinsible all by itself then it would be random.
>
> But if your opponent used his turn to make his piece invinsible it wouldn’t be random.
>
> Though it would be extremely OP.

But now imagine if every piece had a random ability(like AAs)
,so whenever you try to take out one of his pieces you never know if it’ll go invinsible,invisible, sprint away, fly over your piece, etc…
The point i’m trying to make is that yes you choose your own ability but when it comes down to a 1v1 battle it’s completely random whos ability is gonna give them the upper hand.

19

its not that reach AAs were random OP its that they weren’t balanced. they took over game play. in certain situations, one AA would completely destroy the “skill” or “clutch” factor that has always been in halo. in my opinion armor abilities should not control gameplay, but they should add a layer of depth to it. hopefully halo 4 will accomplish this.

20

This post has been edited by a moderator. Please do not flame or attack other members.

*Original post. Click at your own discretion.

Prime example of someone who has no idea what he’s talking about.

People hate AAs because they make games unbalanced, and that’s a fact.

See? Now you’re wrong. AAs aren’t random or lucky, but they’re unbalanced. And you? You can’t even understand a simple argument.