Halo 4's User Interface

Games Other Halo
1

I’m a fan of Halo 4

It has it’s ups and downs compared to other installments in the series but one thing that really irks me is the interface.

It seems like every Halo the UI would get progressively better, more engaging and more options.

Halo CE had only a few options as it was the first Halo game and had no LIVE support. Only changing your color, controls, and a few gametype options was cool for a game of it’s time.

Halo 2 was a really big upgrade from the original with more customization more options and stats in the pre game and postgame menus, and you also have to account for the fact that it had to have it’s own interface for friends, text input, and messages for LIVE.

Halo 3 basically built onto what Halo 2 did. The 360’s LIVE interface took over alot of the things that were needed to be developed from scratch for Halo 2. Halo 3 had more options in custom games and matchmaking, but overall didn’t change the formula too much.

Halo Reach built upon what was done with Halo 3 but added in exciting menu music, more stats to see, more customization with armor, and options for just about everything.

I’m not sure what it is but the other Halo interfaces were clean and fluid. Halo 4’s UI just seems bland to me and the matchmaking menus get really boring. The loading screen is one thing that I’ve never liked for some reason. Just a big UNSC eagle spinning (Even though the previous loading screens weren’t really exciting either this one just seems kinda generic)

I can’t really explain it there’s just something about it that I don’t like, It seems like it took a step backward to me.

You guys got anything to add?

2

Surprising I liked Reach’s UI, it felt really sleek and easy to understand. If 343 should have taken something from Reach it should have been the UI. Instead it seems like they took the guy who designed Waypoint and stuck him building the Halo 4 menus; which in theory works fine but in real life it didn’t.

Take a look at this:

https://forums.halowaypoint.com/yaf_postsm2159547_Halo-4-UI-Design-Concept.aspx

3

I’d agree that Reach defiantly had the best interface out of all of them, but it should of because it was the collective work of all the games before it.

I’m not bashing Halo 4, just saying they took a step backward with the menus and defiantly could improve with the next installment.

EDIT: Thanks for the link! The UI in that thread is more of what I was expecting out of this game.

4

It’s missing simple things like:
No way to see who’s in a party with one another.
Can’t see the status of the game your friends are playing.
The lobby party limit can’t be changed whilst ppl are in the party.

When you are Searching for a game and go back to the playlist menu to select a different playlist it moves down one in the list… Annoying if matchmaking is struggling to find a game so you back out and then reselect the playlist oh but wait why am I in btb instead of regular slayer… etc
There are more but you get the drift. The UI fails to provide the basic functions we’ve come to expect from previous halo titles. The visual side of it is very basic which i wouldnt mind so much because it should make it fast to navigate but it doesn’t.