My thoughts-
Problems with how Grapple-shot is currently utilised within the sandbox:
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As a default ability, Grapple-shot will act as a get out of jail free card. This will remove thought/skill and intensity from gameplay. For example:-Before going into a combat scenario you will always be aware that you can exit, so less thought goes into how to safely approach the engagement.
-During combat, you will always be able to close the distance between you and a difficult enemy (could be a tank/wraith/brute chieftain etc), thus removing the challenge and the intensity of that scenario. -
It will change how gameplay scenarios play out. Just imagine prior engagements in halo 1,2 and 3, especially those involving tanks, chieftains, hunters etc. And try to understand just how quickly so many of those encounters would be over with just a click of a grapple shot, and how short and un-fun that would have made those games. The grapple-shot will necessitate that gameplay is designed differently than in the games we love, in order to be fun, or many enemy engagements will be over within seconds. - The physics of the ability don’t allow the player to suspend disbelief. This is a fancy way of saying they don’t make sense as far as physics is concerned, but as many people will point out, loads of things in halo don’t make sense in this way. My point is anything physics breaking done in a game universe, needs to allow the player to be willfully ignorant of its non-sensical nature. - It will change the feel of being the master-chief. OG master chief was always somewhat grounded, at least as the gameplay was concerned, you couldn’t do anything vastly different than a regular marine, you could just do everything better. You felt like you were in the same lane as them, just way ahead. The constant availability of this equipment would push you out of that lane.!!!SUGGESTED CHANGES!!!: Make the Grapple-shot a one-use pickup, and make it a piece of banished tech. How this solves the problems above in order:
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As you will only occasionally have this ability, you will not go into every combat scenario with a get-out card. But you could make the conscious choice to store it and deploy it later in a hard part of the level/world, or on a specific enemy. This parallels sandbox mechanics in heavy weapons or halo 3 equipment. You pick it up, you ask yourself what is the best use of this equipment and then you deploy it. Such as picking up a rocket launcher in Halo CE, finding the biggest badest target around and then reserving the ammo for specifically shooting that target. - Not all engagements with enemies will involve the grapple-shot. As a pickup, 343 has way more control over when and where you use the hook. Allowing them to place it in certain areas where it could be fun and leave it out of areas where it would make gameplay boring. To use the rocket launcher comparison again: You would typically only be provided with one when you were expected to fight larger enemies or large groups of enemies because having it during small encounters would be OP, removing any intensity in those encounters. - Making it a piece of banished equipment will allow players to suspend disbelief on how it works. It could have some sort of energy cord and some sort of alien-looking energy source on the arm. Winding in the grapple could cause the energy source to overload and it’s one use to be spent. The cord could even look weaker the further it is thrust out, to show the player it has limited distance. - Being able to utilise enemy equipment has always been part of the master-chiefs resume. And since it is not a constant ability you will feel like a super-soldier who occasionally gets his hands on enemy tech, rather than feeling like some wholly different/new type of soldier.How this change will affect gameplay positively:
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Enhanced Grapple-shot encounters. Since grapple shot encounters will be chosen by 343i, those specific environments will be enhanced/designed for this piece of equipment This environment could have lots of verticality for example, or lots of fusion coils, enemies, very open terrain or very specific terrain or literally whatever cool stuff they can think of. When you pick up a grapple-shot you will get the feeling of “now I get to use the grapple-shot, what cool thing can I do now with the sandbox at this point in the game”. - Regular gameplay will be preserved, This will allow players to experience traditional engagements with enemies and all the difficulty that goes with it. This will encourage good use of the weapons/equipment sandbox’s and re-focus on the players positioning and angle of attack, to take on each enemy encounter. - Variety is the spice of life. Waffles, for example, I love them, they taste awesome, but I only eat them occasionally. Not because I am being weight-conscious, but because if I eat them every day they will become mundane. Grapple-shot is similar is this way, it can be an awesome thing for the sand-box, if given to players sparingly it will be tonnes of fun. Whilst if it is not and it can be constantly used, its charms will wear off and it will become mundane, this point is especially prevalent in a game that is meant to be fun for the next ten years. - It will be more gratifying to the player. Having one use of a piece of equipment, psychologically speaking means that you now have to actively think a lot about how you are going to use it, and successfully pulling this off is very gratifying for the player. Again psychologically speaking having an infinite supply of something removes enthusiasm for each individual use, as each individual use matters less. - This adds replayability. Removing the ability to use it all the time means you will choose and experiment with different ways to deploy it over several playthroughs. Choosing which encounters you use it for. Whereas if you can always use it, you will use it for all encounters, removing choice, repercussions and replayability. - Brings the community together. I think this will solve many complaints people have with the grapple-shot, whilst still allowing it to shine and create new awesome gameplay. Thus bringing new and old players together, which can only be healthy for Halo.Bonus point: 343i is obviously trying to bring something new to halo, which I am very happy about. But for this game to have legs, it’s “new” needs to be more than movement mechanics. Shift the focus off what new things can we provide the player to combat the environment, to what new environments/enemy encounters/world mechanics/game modes can we throw against the player for them to solve with what they have. Overcoming new problems/combat puzzles is buckets more fun than solving old ones faster. These new problems will inspire new solutions, aka new sandbox items that can be added in post-launch, to keep the game new and interesting. Halo Infinite has great potential in this way.
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Imagine being scouted in the open world by some banshees, only to be attacked moments later by brute drop pods. - Or you stay too long in an enemy encounter, so the banished redeploy hunters to your position. - Being able to interact with forerunner devices throughout the world would also be great sandbox gameplay. For example, you are trying to escape pursuit, you encounter a light bridge and disable it once traversing over it. Thus stopping the pursuit.Please feel free to discuss and counter my points. Maybe someone at 343 will take notice.