Core Play was the best way to experience the fullness of what Halo 5 has to offer in a 4v4 setting. With Oddball, CTF, Strongholds, and the occasional Slayer, Core Play was the best of the social playlists. With its map, mode, and placed weapon variety, it was the defining playlist for objective game modes.
Currently, the closest thing offered is Team Arena, which is ranked-only. This means that most of the time, players are shooting magnums, and if they aren’t, they’re using another precision weapon. Placed weapons like the Storm Rifle and Needler have been replaced with battle rifles and similar weapons. There’s little variety in Team Arena; even the game modes are stale, since you mostly get Slayer, and (as far as I remember from earlier play), you don’t get Oddball, and the map rotation is also lacking.
It seems that novelty playlists are preferred these days, such as the current Rock’n’Rail or the previous Roaming King. These are decent and fun game modes, but they are extremely narrow in focus, and don’t offer the freshness of rotating objective modes. Once you play the flavor of the week a few dozen times, you want to get back into the regular gameplay. The problem is, that’s hard to find in the currently available playlists.
The game really needs a playlist that captures the full spirit of Halo 5’s gameplay. The Core Play and Social Arena playlists did this wonderfully, and since their removal, the game has become stale and difficult to enjoy. As a player, I’d spend most of my time in the 4v4 Core Play, breaking it up with occasional BTB matches, infection games, or Warzone fights. Without a playlist that offers the core H5 experience, my interest in the game dies out more and more each day. I want the fast-paced, objective-oriented game modes like CTF and Oddball, without having to endure the lengthy Big Team Battle games. The quickness of 4v4 objective games, and the tense focus on the goal at hand made these games especially fun to play.
I hope that the developers read these forums and consider our feedback. I’ve noticed dozens of posts here in recent months complaining about the staleness of the game and dwindling interest. I remember being greatly excited when Core Play was announced, and I was deeply saddened when it was taken down. I hope that the developers will read our posts here and consider bringing back a playlist that represents all the defining aspects of Halo 5. That’s what we’ve been longing for, and I think such a playlist would greatly improve the health and longevity of Halo 5.
Thanks for reading! I’d ask that any comments be kept level-headed and civil; I want this to be a serious and focused discussion of the state of the game. Thank you!
