Halo 4 can be competitive

Games Other Halo
1

Just not how you’re used to.
While I agree Halo 4 has “transcended” into a “class based” shooter, Halo 4 still has potential to be competitive. Just not in the way you’re used to. I understand what the competitive community is concerned about, and they’re reasons are (For the most part) completely legitimate. What you must understand is that 3 years of development isn’t going to be turned around just like that. But what I see Halo 4 is doing is bringing up a new kind of competitive FPS to the table. Yes, balance is key. But who’s to say that everything isn’t balanced, or will be balanced?
Anyways, I’m going to bring the main point to the table.

Halo 4 is based off of teamwork. Wholly.
You must understand this, there is no more “truly” “balanced” FFA. Don’t expect that. What Halo 4 is doing is focusing on teamwork to be successful, and more than ever before in Halo. Without teamwork in this game, I’m sure you’re screwed. What I can see with these “armor mods” (Tactical, Support, and Specializations) is that they can all be used competitively and are meant to be used together, tactically. Think of it. Using the “rogue” armor mod to find the enemy, then one player distracts while another with “wet works” comes around and assassinates him. It’s still about outsmarting your opponent, only now “on a grander scale” This could allow for critical thinking and very in-depth team planning.

Halo 4 has potential. Lots of it. The only thing we should be concerned about now is overall balance of the game, like weapons, armor mods, AA’s, and such. Good maps wouldn’t hurt, either. The only thing I ask of the WHOLE community, not specifically the casuals or the competitive players, is to not whine about stuff and to critize it, if you must, in a way that will actually “help” the game balance and flow.

2

if there are ranked/mlg playlists i expect them to have either limited amounts of perks/loadouts or none at all

problem solved.

3

> if there are ranked/mlg playlists i expect them to have either limited amounts of perks/loadouts or none at all
>
> problem solved.

Yeah I guess this would be the best thing to do for a comptetetive enviroment.

4

> > if there are ranked/mlg playlists i expect them to have either limited amounts of perks/loadouts or none at all
> >
> > problem solved.
>
> Yeah I guess this would be the best thing to do for a comptetetive enviroment.

Although I completely agreed most of the NEW things added into HALO don’t belong in competitive game play - I would like to see how a few work out

Reach failed at making AA’s useable in Competitive game play – all we can do is hope for the best

5

but the people who the play the game more can create better claassse ruin the balance all together and preventing competitive play.

6

> > if there are ranked/mlg playlists i expect them to have either limited amounts of perks/loadouts or none at all
> >
> > problem solved.
>
> Yeah I guess this would be the best thing to do for a comptetetive enviroment.

Considering they completely reject change.

The game is still competitive. In fact more so in my eyes. I have to select load outs to better suit my team and our situation.

That’s more thought and skill then I ever put into Halo 3.

7

> Considering they completely reject change.

why do people try to make out that they’re/we’re rejecting the stuff purely because its change??? this isn’t true, we’re rejecting it because we think its bad for the game.

lets not forget that you have to rank up to unlock the stuff to use in your custom classes, this breaks competitive play because its always going to be un-balanced between the players, players gain and advantage over others because they’ve played the game more then them and because of this advantage it makes it easier to win even if they’re lesser skilled, this is counter intuitive to competitive play .

8

> Just not how you’re used to.
> While I agree Halo 4 has “transcended” into a “class based” shooter, Halo 4 still has potential to be competitive. Just not in the way you’re used to. I understand what the competitive community is concerned about, and they’re reasons are (For the most part) completely legitimate. What you must understand is that 3 years of development isn’t going to be turned around just like that. But what I see Halo 4 is doing is bringing up a new kind of competitive FPS to the table. Yes, balance is key. But who’s to say that everything isn’t balanced, or will be balanced?
> Anyways, I’m going to bring the main point to the table.
>
> Halo 4 is based off of teamwork. Wholly.
> You must understand this, there is no more “truly” “balanced” FFA. Don’t expect that. What Halo 4 is doing is focusing on teamwork to be successful, and <mark>more than ever before in Halo.</mark> Without teamwork in this game, I’m sure you’re screwed. What I can see with these “armor mods” (Tactical, Support, and Specializations) is that they can all be used competitively and are meant to be used together, tactically. Think of it. Using the “rogue” armor mod to find the enemy, then one player distracts while another with “wet works” comes around and assassinates him. It’s still about outsmarting your opponent, only now “on a grander scale” This could allow for critical thinking and very in-depth team planning.
>
> Halo 4 has potential. Lots of it. The only thing we should be concerned about now is overall balance of the game, like weapons, armor mods, AA’s, and such. Good maps wouldn’t hurt, either. The only thing I ask of the WHOLE community, not specifically the casuals or the competitive players, is to not whine about stuff and to critize it, if you must, in a way that will actually “help” the game balance and flow.

Agree? Yes

Highlighted? NO. HCE took far more teamwork than any other halo, and most likely 100000x more than h4 will. Remember that teamshooting is the lowest form of teamwork, the easiest.

9

I’m kinda over it now. I just want Halo to match me up with people of my skill and have a fun ranking system. Halo will never be as competitive as Pokemon.

10

> > > if there are ranked/mlg playlists i expect them to have either limited amounts of perks/loadouts or none at all
> > >
> > > problem solved.
> >
> > Yeah I guess this would be the best thing to do for a comptetetive enviroment.
>
> Considering they completely reject change.
>
> The game is still competitive. In fact more so in my eyes. I have to select load outs to better suit my team and our situation.
>
> That’s more thought and skill then I ever put into Halo 3.

Look at it like this. Say you choose ProVision or whatever it is. Thats a crutch, and reduces the skillgap because it accomplishes a job for you that used to take skill. How you ask?

Because now instead of having to locate an enemy by their last known position, various routes available, the time required to each, the motives for which area to move to, the likelyhood for each, and the thought patterns of the enemy, is all accomplished now by pressing X.

11

> > > if there are ranked/mlg playlists i expect them to have either limited amounts of perks/loadouts or none at all
> > >
> > > problem solved.
> >
> > Yeah I guess this would be the best thing to do for a comptetetive enviroment.
>
> Considering they completely reject change.
>
> The game is still competitive. In fact more so in my eyes. I have to select load outs to better suit my team and our situation.
>
> That’s more thought and skill then I ever put into Halo 3.

Please tell me how choosing an option in a menu requires skill.

You say the game is still competitive. If by competitive, you mean systematically unpredictable, then yes, it will be competitive, but that’s not most people’s definition of a competitive game.

Unpredictability should be limited to individual decision making, player movement and the teamwork resulting from the coordination of these decisions. Anything beyond this moves into an area of systematic unpredictability and that is simply not conducive towards competitive gameplay.

Predictability of outcome on a systematic level is absolutely crucial for any competitive environment.

Based on the official information we have so far, it cannot be argued that Specializations, Armor Abilities, Tactical Packages and Support Upgrades do not inherently introduce unpredictability into the gameplay on a core level.

As I’ve said before, you’ll largely never have a single clue what ability/specialization someone chose at the start of the game, or the last time they spawned… or went into the start menu… or picked up from their Ordnance Drop.

You’ll have to be prepared for the notion that your opponent could have:

more rounds of ammunition in their clip (Ammo Upgrade), more grenades (Grenadier), faster recharging shields (Shield Package), longer Sprint time (AA Efficiency), some combination of primary weapons off-spawn (Firepower Package), a more sensitive and expansive radar system (Sensor Upgrade) etc. etc. ad infinitum…

…and that any of these could be paired with any AA and Specialization, leading to a situation where you literally have not got the faintest idea how to gain an advantage over them until you engage them and even then, the battle could merely be decided by some invisible variable.

This essentially leads to a situation whereby the winning team (or the winner of any 1-on-1 encounter) is largely decided by what option they chose in a menu, what they had available to them in that menu (which in turn is determined by how long they’ve been playing the game and whether or not they spent more money on a souped-up version of the game). The outcome can thus never really be put down to individual or collective TrueSkill levels, because however skillful you or your teammates are, you’ll never know what you’re fighting against.

12

> > > > if there are ranked/mlg playlists i expect them to have either limited amounts of perks/loadouts or none at all
> > > >
> > > > problem solved.
> > >
> > > Yeah I guess this would be the best thing to do for a comptetetive enviroment.
> >
> > Considering they completely reject change.
> >
> > The game is still competitive. In fact more so in my eyes. I have to select load outs to better suit my team and our situation.
> >
> > That’s more thought and skill then I ever put into Halo 3.
>
> Please tell me how choosing an option in a menu requires skill.
>
> You say the game is still competitive. If by competitive, you mean systematically unpredictable, then yes, it will be competitive, but that’s not most people’s definition of a competitive game.
>
> Unpredictability should be limited to individual decision making, player movement and the teamwork resulting from the coordination of these decisions. Anything beyond this moves into an area of systematic unpredictability and that is simply not conducive towards competitive gameplay.
>
> Predictability of outcome on a systematic level is absolutely crucial for any competitive environment.
>
> Based on the official information we have so far, it cannot be argued that Specializations, Armor Abilities, Tactical Packages and Support Upgrades do not inherently introduce unpredictability into the gameplay on a core level.
>
> As I’ve said before, you’ll largely never have a single clue what ability/specialization someone chose at the start of the game, or the last time they spawned… or went into the start menu… or picked up from their Ordnance Drop.
>
> You’ll have to be prepared for the notion that your opponent could have:
>
> more rounds of ammunition in their clip (Ammo Upgrade), more grenades (Grenadier), faster recharging shields (Shield Package), longer Sprint time (AA Efficiency), some combination of primary weapons off-spawn (Firepower Package), a more sensitive and expansive radar system (Sensor Upgrade) etc. etc. ad infinitum…
>
> …and that any of these could be paired with any AA and Specialization, leading to a situation where you literally have not got the faintest idea how to gain an advantage over them until you engage them and even then, the battle could merely be decided by some invisible variable.
>
> This essentially leads to a situation whereby the winning team (or the winner of any 1-on-1 encounter) is largely decided by what option they chose in a menu, what they had available to them in that menu (which in turn is determined by how long they’ve been playing the game and whether or not they spent more money on a souped-up version of the game). The outcome can thus never really be put down to individual or collective TrueSkill levels, because however skillful you or your teammates are, you’ll never know what you’re fighting against.

Like I said, this is a different kind of competitiveness than what we’re used to. 343 wants to make class-based shooters into a competitive environment. The #1 thing that is important is that it’s balanced. Yes, I agree it’s quite the feat to balance it all out, but if they do, they will revolutionize competitive shooters and give halo a fresh breath. If implemented correctly, we should still get a balanced environment in where team choices is essential.

13

even if the loadout options are balanced, without proper ranking halo 4 will not be competitive.

14

> > > if there are ranked/mlg playlists i expect them to have either limited amounts of perks/loadouts or none at all
> > >
> > > problem solved.
> >
> > Yeah I guess this would be the best thing to do for a comptetetive enviroment.
>
> Considering they completely reject change.
>
> The game is still competitive. In fact more so in my eyes. I have to select load outs to better suit my team and our situation.
>
> That’s more thought and skill then I ever put into Halo 3.

Then you weren’t playing correctly. I won’t elaborate because people who are this blind to what Halo multiplayer truly is aren’t worth my time

15

> even if the loadout options are balanced, without proper ranking halo 4 will not be competitive.

I agree with you on this. However, I don’t think it should be 1-50, I think it’s time we take it to something new. I was thinking that maybe there could be something with BPR that takes everything in mind, then gives you a % and matches you with similar players. It wouldn’t hurt for it to be visible, either.

16

> > > > if there are ranked/mlg playlists i expect them to have either limited amounts of perks/loadouts or none at all
> > > >
> > > > problem solved.
> > >
> > > Yeah I guess this would be the best thing to do for a comptetetive enviroment.
> >
> > Considering they completely reject change.
> >
> > The game is still competitive. In fact more so in my eyes. I have to select load outs to better suit my team and our situation.
> >
> > That’s more thought and skill then I ever put into Halo 3.
>
> Then you weren’t playing correctly. I won’t elaborate because people who are this blind to what Halo multiplayer truly is aren’t worth my time

Because we should all think like you right? You are clearly the voice of the competitive community simply because you act like you are. If our opinions aren’t worth your “valuable” time then maybe you shouldn’t be here.

17

> > > > > if there are ranked/mlg playlists i expect them to have either limited amounts of perks/loadouts or none at all
> > > > >
> > > > > problem solved.
> > > >
> > > > Yeah I guess this would be the best thing to do for a comptetetive enviroment.
> > >
> > > Considering they completely reject change.
> > >
> > > The game is still competitive. In fact more so in my eyes. I have to select load outs to better suit my team and our situation.
> > >
> > > That’s more thought and skill then I ever put into Halo 3.
> >
> > Then you weren’t playing correctly. I won’t elaborate because people who are this blind to what Halo multiplayer truly is aren’t worth my time
>
> Because we should all think like you right? You are clearly the voice of the competitive community simply because you act like you are. If our opinions aren’t worth your “valuable” time then maybe you shouldn’t be here.

Dont put words in his mouth, he was strictly applying it to the situation the other guy presented, which he was very correct in. If you assume he means it to more, thats your fault, not his.

Also stop posting in that font.

18

While I appreciate your support Ostritch he embarrassed himself by admitting he was blind to what Halo MP is haha. Even if he didn’t mean to he did.

19

A more team-based game just means a less individual-skilled game, which means less skill needed in the game overall. Let me explain:

The skill in all games can be split into individual-skill and team-skill. Team-skill is based on person-to-person interaction which is outside of the game. It’s metagame. Individual skill, on the other hand, is entirely dependent on what the game allows. Therefore, when you limit individual skill, you reduce the total amount of skill in the game.

Halo 1 was more individual based, but that didn’t reduce the amount of team-skill in the game. Team skill is constant. Saying “increasing teamwork” is a cop out. You can introduce features to make teamwork easier, but saying the game is teamwork based just means there is less overall skill in the game. And you better have a good matchmaking system for this, or you’ll get horribly uneven matches like those in Reach’s MLG playlist.

20

> A more team-based game just means a less individual-skilled game, which means less skill needed in the game overall. Let me explain:
>
> The skill in all games can be split into individual-skill and team-skill. Team-skill is based on person-to-person interaction which is outside of the game. It’s metagame. Individual skill, on the other hand, is entirely dependent on how much the game allows inside the game. Therefore, when you limit individual skill, you reduce the total amount of skill in the game.
>
> Halo 1 was more individual based, but that didn’t reduce the amount of team-skill in the game. Team skill is constant. Saying “increasing teamwork” is a cop out. You can introduce features to make teamwork easier, but saying the game is teamwork based just means there is less overall skill in the game. And you better have a good matchmaking system for this, or you’ll get horribly uneven matches like those in Reach’s MLG playlist.

Not to mention in h1 there were many more kinds of teamwork, now kids think that teamshooting is the only form of teamwork, when its actually the lowest.