As soon as I got this game I jumped in to MP and immediately noticed it didn’t feel right. No matter how I adjusted my sensitivity it didn’t feel anything like the beta and it didn’t ‘click’ like the other Halo games have for me in the past. I did some testing today and I think I understand why these controls at times feel sluggish, erratic and overall clunky in general. I’d also like to point out that these problems either didn’t exist in the beta or weren’t nearly as prevalent (thanks “PRO” team).
The first noticeable difference is the massive amount of acceleration you experience aiming at high speeds. It seems the speed at which you aim has been broken into percentages and separated by deadzones. Basically if you start your aiming speed at 0% (not moving) and increase it to around 50-60% it feels smooth, but after that a deadzone kicks in and doesn’t stop until your aiming speed is about 70%. This is called a velocity jump, essentially once you hit the deadzone your aiming speed stops increasing until you’re pushing the stick hard enough to reach 70%, at which it begins to accelerate normally again. I believe there is another deadzone around 80% that holds you there until you hit 100% aiming speed. Lets break it down to make it a bit clearer.
Aiming Speeds (we’ll round up)
0-60% - No issues
61-70% - The first deadzone, once you hit 61% aiming speed you’re locked there until you move the stick far enough to hit 70%. You never use the percentages in between, the velocity simply jumps over them.
71-80% - No issues - 81-100% - The second deadzone, functions just at I described the first one.Please note: I don’t think these numbers are 100% accurate, but you get the point I’m trying to make.
What’s worse is these deadzone percentages seem to function differently when it comes to horizontal vs vertical aiming. I’ve also noticed an insane drop in aiming speed when in close quarters combat and an equally insane increase when it comes to turning while sprinting.
I’ve read that 343 has addressed these complaints and said the mechanics are operating as designed and that is downright embarrassing for them to say. There are major issues here that need to be addressed and not brushed off as some sort of “learning curve” that we’re supposed to get used to.
EDIT 2: I’d like to share with everyone this thread created by user Smash the Nerds. He put a lot of effort in to his testing of Halo 5’s deadzones and his post is a solid read with tons of valuable information.
Glad to see I’m not going crazy. I always just ‘click’ with every Halo game - including the Beta - but in the full release, it just doesn’t feel natural to me and I feel like I’m trying to undo over 10 years worth of muscle memory when it comes to aiming.
This really needs to be addressed. It was no where close to what the beta was. It was snappy smooth I loved it. Now my aim goes from smooth to whacky in no time.
Have you ever updated your controller’s software? I had similar issues on a game about 8 months ago. I didd an update and I immediately noticed an improvement and so did my mp scores.
I’ve had to raise my sensitivity higher than I’ve used in the past. I also find myself hip firing more because aiming, at least at close to mid range, puts you at a disadvantage.
I 100% agree with OP. This is an issue with aim acceleration and dead zone. NOT aim assist and it’s NOT acceptable. It’s a constant battle with your self and and makes the competition not fun. I can see how rookies might not notice this as much as they were generally not used to fine reticle control. Unfortunatly, if I a unable to make those fine movements, I will only continue to be frustrated. And with battlefront and fallout only a couple weeks away, I hope 343 realizes what a problem this is. When you do get a kill it almost always feels like you were lucky and that’s not how a competitive shooter is supposed to be
Agree with you OP. I thought it was just me, maybe my time away from shooters had done me in a bit. But I’m like 20-30 matches in and just can’t get the hang of it. Dying so stupidly because I can’t land what once was an easy (or at least not so difficult) head shot at mid to long range. I guess the issue is as you suggested, it makes perfect sense to me… glad I’m not alone here.
There is only one deadzone, the initial deadzone. When the game goes from registering no input, to some input.
What you are describing is the look acceleration. Its something every halo game has had. I believe the reason people are noticing it more now is because of the larger deadzones, its not kicking in and ramping up as soon as it usually does.
If they just lower the size of the deadzones, I think the aiming will go back to feeling more in line with what people expect from a halo game.
Huh funny. A friend of mine came to try the game and he said the it felt robotic and not smooth like past halo games. I told him he was crazy and probaby it was him not being used to 60fps. Guess he was right then.
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> Odd. I am not having any problems? Maybe it will just take a while for you to get used to it, it feels great to me.
nope not a matter of getting used to it. played all the halos and every FPS out there and this is a mechanic problem. feels great to you probably because youre not used to fast aiming or requiring precision. those of us that rely on the ability to fine tune our aiming in intense firefights suffer. 343i needs to jump on this issue or at least make a statement acknowledging issues. I agree with the op.
there is something definitely off about the aiming. I noticed it right away and it just didnt feel halo like or natural at all. Honestly i got a headache after awhile, and not from 60 fps cause i have played many games at 60 fps. Its like im moving the sticks and my brain is expecting something than what is happening on screen and im getting this dissonance. I cranked it all the way to 10 and it still didnt feel right, and i never played halo at max sensitivity, usually around the 5 area.