Playing a game of CTF against a competent team in Halo 4 is… excruciating.
Firstly, we have the painfully long flag reset times. This, I would venture to say, is an understandable mistake on 343’s part. Most mediocre players will spend 95% of their time in a flag game running at the opposing flag and trying to pick it up, however what 343 did not understand is that this should not work against a competent team, EVER. I’ve played teams in Halo 4 who simply run at our flag and move it several feet before dying… until it is all the way across the map. Such laughably awful strategies should not be rewarded, and it is frustrating to watch when they are. Halving the flag reset time would solve this problem.
Next we have… ugh the boltshot. I’ve been playing since the release of Halo CE and the boltshot has my vote for the most poorly implemented feature in any Halo game. The weapon itself isn’t bad, but starting with a gun that overpowers a shotgun (a power weapon) 80% of the time is… mind-blowingly stupid. That gun (along with another error I will mention later) allows a team to make their base impenetrable on maps such as Solace or Adrift.
Compounding the boltshot problem is the distinct lack of power weapons on any map in CTF. I played a game of CTF the other day in which a single SAW was all that dropped during the entire 15 minute game. It’s like 343 implemented ordnance drops… and then forgot slayer wasn’t the only playlist. How on Earth is anyone supposed to break a base set-up (consisting of boltshots) without a power weapon? And I’m not talking about this random drop nonsense. There needs to be time-able weapons on the map so that a defending base set-up can actually be overcome.
CTF used to be one of my favorite game types and it stands, at this point in time, as the victim of a massacre. These are not a problems that casual, or mediocre player would necessarily be aware of, but they need to be fixed, purely because it will lead to a smoother, less aggravating gaming experience for everyone.