Burnout Due to Diminishing Returns in Progression(Along with thoughts on Challenges)

Games Halo Infinite
, , , ,
1

So, in my experience playing the multiplayer so far, I’ve enjoyed the gameplay like crazy, but one small thing in the back of my head makes it feel tedious.

-Passive Progression as it stands right now(12/23/21).

When I play any game, be it warzone, League, Halo, CoD Zombies, etc., It’s usually when I get home from work or on the weekends with lots of free time; I intend on playing a lot of matches/rounds of said game.
The issues I’m having with the passive XP in Halo, as it stands right now, is that 5 or so games in, the bottleneck of XP of 50xp per match grossly disincentivises me to keep playing. The feeling is bad enough that I’m not even inticed to come back the next day due to the knowledge that the reward psychology of the game right now doesn’t let me be satisfied while playing as much as I would actually want to, which would be for dozens of matches, each one as rewarding as the last, not in just user experience but in the passive rewards recieved in game for those matches.

tl;dr: Passive XP with diminishing returns makes me not want to play at all, outweighing the intrinsic value of playing the game in which I love.

-Challenges.

I’ve tried my best to do the challenges, but really to no avail. There are multiple reasons for this, one of them being with the nature of said challenges, but that is something I am well aware that is being worked on, so I won’t go on about that too much.
One thing I would highly hope to see in the future though, is to be able to pull up your current challenges in-game so it’s easier to keep track of all the challenges as we go. Personally, I have a ton of trouble remembering all of them while focusing on actually playing the game.

*tl;dr: Looking forward to changes regarding challenge types. I hope that we can, one day, be able to view and track challenges mid-match; I can’t seem to remember what all my current challenges are for the life of me.

Throw-away ideas:
-Adopt a traditional xp system based on match score to incentivize playing objectives with challenges being just really nice bonuses to the core reward system. (Passive score-based XP being the core, challenges being just bonus).

-Rework challenge system away from the XP limited challenge system from Apex Legends and move toward more original and open ended ideas, such as each battle pass having a long laundry list of specific challenges that players can choose which challenges they want to work toward. (Break away from limited “active challenge” system. I’m not really gonna buy rerolls for the chance of getting another tedious challenge that I’m not gonna work for).

-This one is way out there, but just a throw away idea anyway. Maybe per battle pass, have a few specifically difficult challenges that will reward special significantly enticing rewards. This is me thinking back to Halo 3 when I spent weeks to months trying to get a splatter with a mongoose in Ranked Free For All to get a silly elite helmet or something. I ended up getting said splatter right after giving up and one of my grandes hit a parked mongoose, which flew through the air and landed on someone, completing the challenge. That was extremely rewarding to me.

Closing Note:
I am gonna be that adult whale idiot who will likely end up buying every battle pass and DLC, but a big exception to that is my rule with any battle pass: if I don’t see myself being able to complete any battle pass at a reasonable rate while playing the game as I see fit, then I probably won’t buy it.

Even if this isn’t really listened to or anything, that’s fine. I have some initial faith in this dev team so far with what they’ve done so far and what they intend on doing along with how much they have listened to community feedback so far. Be sure to leave documentation in your source code!

With Love!
Jacob Incubus

2 Likes
2

So on the other end of things…I actually completed the battle pass faster than expected. Late November I was at level 100. (I did buy the bundle with 25 levels…although I didn’t really need to do that lol)

I was popping xp boosts a lot though, and the battle pass gives them out pretty generously. When you sit down for your first game of the day, pop an xp boost. Off your first match alone that’s 600xp. I also found myself more likely to use the boosts on Tuesdays as soon as the challenges reset, as the first few challenges are generally easier to complete. I was definitely gaining multiple levels per day.

Now the pass is done, and I’ll be waiting for about 5 months for the next :joy:

2 Likes
3

I think I’m feeling burnout, but moreso because I completed the battlepass as of yesterday and am completely frustrated with the state of ranked matchmaking.

I would love a change to have performance based XP progression outside of the pass, that never really ends but gives you the “next thing” to work toward, whether it be a cosmetic, accolade or a rank.

1 Like
4

I might just be a bit jaded with the whole challenge system in general, I guess. Just not being able to just sit down to play dozens of matches a day and be consistently rewarded for performance. In general, being cornered into objectives that I need to go out of my way to complete just doesn’t feel rewarding to me personally.

Say I’ve gotten that “complete a match” XP challenge to 50xp per game and I want to play the game normally, that next match has very low extrinsic value compared to all the previous matches in that play session.

I wish I could just bite the bullet and focus on challenges or just ignore progression all together and play the game, but reward psychology just burns me out when I’m cut off my IV drip of dopamine points. Personally the less I have to think about progression, the better, that way I can just focus on enjoying playing the game, you know?

Of course, I’m not saying you’re wrong. I’m just stating how my way of enjoying the game is grossly disincentivized by the current system.

1 Like
5

Yeah, would be nice to have a XP level system outside the battle passes. Imagine maybe exclusive rewards at rediculous thresholds that, if seen, scream “goodness, my guy plays this game a lot.”

1 Like
6

Yep I get it. I think the game would benefit from some additional progression alongside the battle pass (which I think is on the way?).

Playing ranked does keep me motivated to play, especially after all challenges are completed. But I also understand the competitive play isn’t for everyone.

You’re right though, the games current state is a little dry with progression.

1 Like
7

I think, generally, my main hope is one day I’d be able to just play Halo all weekend and just turn off my brain without feeling punished by the progression system for doing so.

8

I COMPLETELY agree with this post… After I reach that cap for experience gain, I’m about done playing because it feels as though my effort isn’t rewarded.

For example; if I kick -Yoink!-, and carry my team then I should be receiving more than 50XP for that match. I feel like there should be more experience given, based off of how well you play, not just IF you play. That would give more incentive to try to get better and/or play more often.