Halo 5 Sustain: 117 Award, Double EXP, Action Sack

Games Halo 5: Guardians
1

Greetings everyone, this is a letter that I have put together & sent to 343 Industries.

I would love to hear your feedback and how you feel about these recommendations.

This is my first time posting a thread in the Halo community for a long time, so I look forward to hearing your responses.

Thank you :slight_smile:

To Whom It May Concern,

I would like to provide input and feedback to promote growth and stability for the online population of Halo 5: Guardians; in preparation for Halo: Infinite. In this letter, I will be providing my charity, service & story; this is me stepping up as Spartan 117 for my fellow Halo community.

Regarding feedback and interaction with the Halo community currently, I believe you have done a fantastic job, especially with the revival of Halo: The Master Chief Collection & the final product of Halo 5: Guardians.

Between the two, I can understand why Halo MCC would be your current priority, however my goal here is to communicate simple suggestions & methods to gain an increase of the current population for Halo 5.

<:// 117 AWARD & 152 AWARD (double EXP weekends for every playlist) \:>
The ‘152 Award’ for Halo 5 is a great initiative for new and old players to return to the game, however to attain level 152 takes great time and a great amount of EXP to be obtained. Two ideas I had regarding this would be:

  • Provide a 117 Award for new and current players (easier to attain) - Make each weekend Double EXP for quicker attainment of 152 (for current players)Having another award addition to Halo 5, would create a spike in marketing and create a spark of interest for those who have, and have not played Halo 5. Adding the Double EXP would promote a boost in activity on the game due to the announcement, and for those looking to attain 152 before Halo Infinite.

<:// SOCIAL ARENA: Action Sack (permanent addition) \:>
Halo 5 is a very fast paced & competitive game, it’s the reason why players continue to play and why others move on to other games. I feel that there can be simple adjustments made to the matchmaking playlists, to balance the competitive and social environment; working with its smaller population.

The current recreational playlists are:

  • Quickplay (competitive) - Super Fiesta Party (MAIN) - Big Team Super Fiesta - Infection - Social Arena’s Weekly Rotating Playlist*
  • Warzone Heroic FirefightRanked Arena holds much of the current population, and the main way for players to wind down is to play in the Social Arena. I’ve found that new, lower skilled or recreational players will tend to stay in Social Arena or browse Custom Games.

Regarding the Social Arena, I’ve found a majority of players will spend their time in Super Fiesta Party (due to familiarity and smaller party size) whilst other playlists – excluding Quick Play - will rely on peak times to have a consistency of match made games; Big Team Super Fiesta is a great example of this.

Since Super Fiesta Party is the most played, a lot of the highly skilled players will come to this playlist to relax, thus making these games very fast paced and competitive for lower skilled players.

Providing the permanent addition of Action Sack, this would create a more reliable space for all players to wind down and relax; enhancing their current experience of Halo 5.

IN REGARDS TO SERVERS*
I can understand that you may be limited by how many playlists you can provide for matchmaking in Halo 5, as you are maintaining multiple games.

An amendment I would suggest would be:

SOCIAL ARENA
Quick Play
Big Team Battle
Super Fiesta Party
Big Team Super Fiesta
Action Sack ( + )
Infection
*Rotating Playlist

RANKED ARENA
Slayer
Team Arena
Solo/Duo Queue
Team Arena
2v2 Competitive
SWAT
Elimination
**No Rotating Playlist ( - )

The Ranked Arena Rotating Playlist could be moved to Social Arena, thus providing more options for the Social Arena Rotating Playlist.

FURTHER ADDITIONS* From what I have seen there is a lot of variety of maps and game types in most playlists, which can tend to exclude maps that don’t normally appear in the algorithm. I can go further into detail regarding this in another email, so I can keep this letter as short as possible.

<:// SOCIAL ARENA ROTATION (public poll via Halo Waypoint Forums) \:>

To promote more interaction with the Halo community, I would suggest providing a public poll to choose a Social Arena Playlist for the week, or week of each month.

An example of this would be:

WEEK BY WEEK
April Week 3 Vote:

  • Snipers - Triple Team - Rock N Rail - Castle Wars’Snipers Chosen’

April Week 4 Vote:

  • Triple Team - Rock N Rail - Castle Wars - Roaming KingWEEK OF EACH MONTH
    What would you like to play in April?

  • Triple Team - Rock N Rail - Castle Wars - Roaming King - Snipers - Grifball Playlists<strong>Decided by majority votes from 1st - 4th*</strong>
    The only downside of this addition would be the weekly maintenance of posting & then declaring the results of the polls; the same can be said for the monthly. With that all being said, I do believe that this would be a great idea, because again, it would provide more interaction with the Halo 5 community.

If you have any further enquiries or questions, I will be more than happy to answer. I have been sitting on these ideas for quite some time & I am glad that I am finally sharing them. I feel that these small amendments and changes, will create a great change, to provide more reason for people to return and continue to play Halo 5.

I first embarked the Halo online multiplayer upon the release of Halo: 3. It was on Halo 3 that I had one of the most memorable and enjoyable experiences to date & I believe a lot can be taken away from what was successful about that game.

I am very passionate about Halo, and I would love to help create & recreate the same enjoyable experiences that I once had & have continued to have.

In conclusion, I believe that the recommendations I have made would be a simple way of providing necessary maintenance for the Halo 5 community. I feel that these changes would create a boost in the population, as well as create a further sustained number of players playing.

Thank you for taking the time to read my letter, I really appreciate you hearing what I had to say.

Kind regards,
GG Panda GG

2

Double exp weekends wouldnt work since people who hit 152 will start complaining, and sadly 343 has got no plans on supporting new things or improvements into h5.
Most focus is on infinite now and mcc gets the attention it deserved after the first few disastrous years.

3

> 2533275003965470;2:
> Double exp weekends wouldnt work since people who hit 152 will start complaining

I understand where you are coming from & I can understand how some people would feel regarding this.

Making it double EXP weekends wouldn’t make it super easy to attain 152, it would just give people more of a chance to attain before the release of Halo Infinite.

Unfortunately you’re not going to please everyone in the community, as long as it’s a majority over the minority I believe it be a positive outcome.

> and sadly 343 has got no plans on supporting new things or improvements into h5.
> Most focus is on infinite now and mcc gets the attention it deserved after the first few disastrous years.

This is something that I had already taken into consideration, hence why I have provided small and simple amendments regarding matchmaking playlists; not anything new so to speak.

Implementing another award for Halo 5 players in Infinite wouldn’t be as hard as adding in the award for 152. I know that 343’s resources are limited and their mind is not on Halo 5, hence why I’m bringing it to their attention providing simple methods.

This is something I have thought through and stand by & I understand there may not be an outcome, but that doesn’t mean I won’t try.

Thank you, I do appreciate the feedback :slight_smile:

4

> 2533275003965470;2:
> Double exp weekends wouldnt work since people who hit 152 will start complaining, and sadly 343 has got no plans on supporting new things or improvements into h5.
> Most focus is on infinite now and mcc gets the attention it deserved after the first few disastrous years.

People are going to complain regardless, and honestly a double XP boost during specific times wouldn’t drastically increase the number of 152s or anything. There are currently under 4,000 people who are at that rank, and the Halo 5 population is dwindling as it is.

5

> 2533275003965470;2:
> Double exp weekends wouldnt work since people who hit 152 will start complaining, and sadly 343 has got no plans on supporting new things or improvements into h5.
> Most focus is on infinite now and mcc gets the attention it deserved after the first few disastrous years.

Who’s complaining about double xp weekend? I certainly don’t care and it would make a better experience for a lot of players.

6

Thanks for responding Monterey & Cirque

I’ve also updated the title of the thread to explain the content***

7

While I appreciate your enthusiasm and your attempts to make Halo 5 better, this will unfortunately go nowhere.

  1. 343 doesn’t care about Halo 5, and haven’t for some time. This is the saddest and worst part, since H5 is a newest game in the franchise. They haven’t updated 5 in years and are putting all their resources into Infinite (which I understand) and MCC (which infuriates me someone who is trying to complete everything in 5 before Infinite comes out. So they’re not going to be adding any content (rewards or customization). They can’t even be bothered to fix the problem the game already has, let alone add new content.

  2. Double XP will do nothing but upset the Halo faithful who are already well on their way to 152 or have earned it already. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again (not sure why we keep circling around this topic when we know they’re not going to do anything about it), double xp is only good for the band wagoners who want to hit 152 before Halo 5 becomes a ghost town when Infinite releases… lessening the exclusiveness and meaning behind the reward in the first place. 343 already offers double xp everyone weekend in featured playlists in both area and twice a month in warzone… The shouldn’t and hopefully won’t make it permanent or change the way it works. All you have to do is play… that’s it… rotate through the game types (I do), and take breaks.

  3. Changing around the playlists is actually a good idea and I would agree with you that it needs to change… however, first off, see #1. Second, changing the playlists will change the population of certain game types and make them virtually unplayable… so at the end of the day, while I agree with your theory and solution… in the long run, it’d actually make Halo 5 worse.

All in all, I like where you’re going with this. I like the theory behind and even some of the solutions… I think it’s too little too late, and I think some of the solutions would actually be worse in the long run. Just should have come up with these ideas a couple years ago when the population was better.

8

I don’t really see the need for Double XP weekends when there are Double XP playlists in rotation 24/7 and rotate each week for variety.

Global Double XP events already exist. Making them a special occasion instead of a weekly handout.

As a 152 player who spent many many many hours playing I like your enthusiasm but making it easier for people to get the same reward as me isn’t really a fair balance in my opinion.

9

> 2542657289641224;7:
> 2) Double XP will do nothing but upset the Halo faithful who are already well on their way to 152 or have earned it already. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again (not sure why we keep circling around this topic when we know they’re not going to do anything about it), double xp is only good for the band wagoners who want to hit 152 before Halo 5 becomes a ghost town when Infinite releases… lessening the exclusiveness and meaning behind the reward in the first place. 343 already offers double xp everyone weekend in featured playlists in both area and twice a month in warzone… The shouldn’t and hopefully won’t make it permanent or change the way it works. All you have to do is play… that’s it… rotate through the game types (I do), and take breaks.

Its a bit silly to call anyone who grinds enough to get 152 a bandwagoner, even if they did it exclusively with double XP events. The reward would stay exclusive even if they tripled XP from here on out due to the sheer amount of grinding it takes, and the fact that it is nearly impossible unless you already have a substantial amount of time under your belt.

Like it or not, the 152 grind is pretty much the only thing keeping the game from being a ghost town already. I definitely understand wanting the reward to not seem cheapened by a lot of people getting it, but it is EXTREMELY unlikely that weekend double xp would do much more than help out those who are already going to be unlocking it anyways. I know it has little impact on me, as I have already planned out my entire grind to hit 152 before the end of August.

10

I seriously doubt that 343 will put anymore effort into Halo 5 at this point. The game is dying and Infinite is on the horizon.

11

I’d like for double xp to make my grind easier but I don’t see it happening, even if it would fix some of the population issues and bottlenecking into WZFF. Getting Action Sack as permanent and dropping the ranked rotational would be even more appreciated however

12

> 2806037446402987;9:
> > 2542657289641224;7:
> > 2) Double XP will do nothing but upset the Halo faithful who are already well on their way to 152 or have earned it already. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again (not sure why we keep circling around this topic when we know they’re not going to do anything about it), double xp is only good for the band wagoners who want to hit 152 before Halo 5 becomes a ghost town when Infinite releases… lessening the exclusiveness and meaning behind the reward in the first place. 343 already offers double xp everyone weekend in featured playlists in both area and twice a month in warzone… The shouldn’t and hopefully won’t make it permanent or change the way it works. All you have to do is play… that’s it… rotate through the game types (I do), and take breaks.
>
> Its a bit silly to call anyone who grinds enough to get 152 a bandwagoner, even if they did it exclusively with double XP events. The reward would stay exclusive even if they tripled XP from here on out due to the sheer amount of grinding it takes, and the fact that it is nearly impossible unless you already have a substantial amount of time under your belt.
>
> Like it or not, the 152 grind is pretty much the only thing keeping the game from being a ghost town already. I definitely understand wanting the reward to not seem cheapened by a lot of people getting it, but it is EXTREMELY unlikely that weekend double xp would do much more than help out those who are already going to be unlocking it anyways. I know it has little impact on me, as I have already planned out my entire grind to hit 152 before the end of August.

Ok… use me as an example… at approximately 32 million xp, I’m at 38 (almost 39) days playtime. I should hit 152 at rough the 65-70 day playtime range. Offering any sort of double xp event (outside of the normal planned weekend featured playlist or holiday event offered by 343) would significantly shorten the amount of playtime needed. Even if it’s just the weekend, you don’t think people will spam that double xp all day saturday and sunday to get that double xp, in addition to their normal playtime during the week to make their lives easier?

And for the record (feel free to do some research on my other posts on the subject), I’m not calling anyone grinding to 152 a bandwagoner. I’m specifically talking about those who heard about the reward last fall and picked the game up for the first time and think they can make it. I’m specifically talking about the people who saw Master Chief for the time when he was introduced to Fornite (December ish??) and picked the game up for the first and think they have a shot at making 152 before Infinite release… Those are the same people who are here in the forums complaining that the grind is too hard and they need double, or triple xp to make the grind easier (I’ve seen people want as much as 5x xp for the record). So yes… when you see some players who grinded for 152 when Halo 5 first came out and they made 152 without featured playlists on the weekends, without special holiday events, it does cheapen the reward when you know that there will be some people out there who did it in 8 or 9 months because 343 (and the loudest voices who whined for it) gave out double xp like candy. It doesn’t mean as much, especially to those who earned the hard way.

I think there’s more than just the grind keeping the game afloat. The graphics are solid and some of the types are pretty good too. I think what’s hurting the game the most at this point is 343s lack of attention to. Lack of regular updates, problems with connecting to the servers… lag issues… all these things (and a few others) are driving people away more than anything else I think. Adding more rewards and making it easier to finish the xp grind will turn it into Halo 4 all over again, and you’ll have the Halo faithful complaining that they made it too easy… leave it the way it is and just play the game. I’ve always said, if people spent their time playing the game instead of coming on here begging for double or triple xp, they’d be farther ahead… but here we are…

13

> 2542657289641224;12:
> > 2806037446402987;9:
> > > 2542657289641224;7:
> > > 2) Double XP will do nothing but upset the Halo faithful who are already well on their way to 152 or have earned it already. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again (not sure why we keep circling around this topic when we know they’re not going to do anything about it), double xp is only good for the band wagoners who want to hit 152 before Halo 5 becomes a ghost town when Infinite releases… lessening the exclusiveness and meaning behind the reward in the first place. 343 already offers double xp everyone weekend in featured playlists in both area and twice a month in warzone… The shouldn’t and hopefully won’t make it permanent or change the way it works. All you have to do is play… that’s it… rotate through the game types (I do), and take breaks.
> >
> > Its a bit silly to call anyone who grinds enough to get 152 a bandwagoner, even if they did it exclusively with double XP events. The reward would stay exclusive even if they tripled XP from here on out due to the sheer amount of grinding it takes, and the fact that it is nearly impossible unless you already have a substantial amount of time under your belt.
> >
> > Like it or not, the 152 grind is pretty much the only thing keeping the game from being a ghost town already. I definitely understand wanting the reward to not seem cheapened by a lot of people getting it, but it is EXTREMELY unlikely that weekend double xp would do much more than help out those who are already going to be unlocking it anyways. I know it has little impact on me, as I have already planned out my entire grind to hit 152 before the end of August.
>
> Ok… use me as an example… at approximately 32 million xp, I’m at 38 (almost 39) days playtime. I should hit 152 at rough the 65-70 day playtime range. Offering any sort of double xp event (outside of the normal planned weekend featured playlist or holiday event offered by 343) would significantly shorten the amount of playtime needed. Even if it’s just the weekend, you don’t think people will spam that double xp all day saturday and sunday to get that double xp, in addition to their normal playtime during the week to make their lives easier?
>
> And for the record (feel free to do some research on my other posts on the subject), I’m not calling anyone grinding to 152 a bandwagoner. I’m specifically talking about those who heard about the reward last fall and picked the game up for the first time and think they can make it. I’m specifically talking about the people who saw Master Chief for the time when he was introduced to Fornite (December ish??) and picked the game up for the first and think they have a shot at making 152 before Infinite release… Those are the same people who are here in the forums complaining that the grind is too hard and they need double, or triple xp to make the grind easier (I’ve seen people want as much as 5x xp for the record). So yes… when you see some players who grinded for 152 when Halo 5 first came out and they made 152 without featured playlists on the weekends, without special holiday events, it does cheapen the reward when you know that there will be some people out there who did it in 8 or 9 months because 343 (and the loudest voices who whined for it) gave out double xp like candy. It doesn’t mean as much, especially to those who earned the hard way.
>
> I think there’s more than just the grind keeping the game afloat. The graphics are solid and some of the types are pretty good too. I think what’s hurting the game the most at this point is 343s lack of attention to. Lack of regular updates, problems with connecting to the servers… lag issues… all these things (and a few others) are driving people away more than anything else I think. Adding more rewards and making it easier to finish the xp grind will turn it into Halo 4 all over again, and you’ll have the Halo faithful complaining that they made it too easy… leave it the way it is and just play the game. I’ve always said, if people spent their time playing the game instead of coming on here begging for double or triple xp, they’d be farther ahead… but here we are…

I agree, sadly I was one of the first to hit 152, I grinded my heart out for an emblem nonetheless, not knowing anything about the new reward. And I wish everyone luck getting to 152, but I agree that alot are complaining when most people who hit 152 did it without complaining and just playing the game and not expecting double xp weekends.

14

> 2535419263744226;13:
> > 2542657289641224;12:
> > > 2806037446402987;9:
> > > > 2542657289641224;7:
> > > > 2) Double XP will do nothing but upset the Halo faithful who are already well on their way to 152 or have earned it already. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again (not sure why we keep circling around this topic when we know they’re not going to do anything about it), double xp is only good for the band wagoners who want to hit 152 before Halo 5 becomes a ghost town when Infinite releases… lessening the exclusiveness and meaning behind the reward in the first place. 343 already offers double xp everyone weekend in featured playlists in both area and twice a month in warzone… The shouldn’t and hopefully won’t make it permanent or change the way it works. All you have to do is play… that’s it… rotate through the game types (I do), and take breaks.
> > >
> > > Its a bit silly to call anyone who grinds enough to get 152 a bandwagoner, even if they did it exclusively with double XP events. The reward would stay exclusive even if they tripled XP from here on out due to the sheer amount of grinding it takes, and the fact that it is nearly impossible unless you already have a substantial amount of time under your belt.
> > >
> > > Like it or not, the 152 grind is pretty much the only thing keeping the game from being a ghost town already. I definitely understand wanting the reward to not seem cheapened by a lot of people getting it, but it is EXTREMELY unlikely that weekend double xp would do much more than help out those who are already going to be unlocking it anyways. I know it has little impact on me, as I have already planned out my entire grind to hit 152 before the end of August.
> >
> > Ok… use me as an example… at approximately 32 million xp, I’m at 38 (almost 39) days playtime. I should hit 152 at rough the 65-70 day playtime range. Offering any sort of double xp event (outside of the normal planned weekend featured playlist or holiday event offered by 343) would significantly shorten the amount of playtime needed. Even if it’s just the weekend, you don’t think people will spam that double xp all day saturday and sunday to get that double xp, in addition to their normal playtime during the week to make their lives easier?
> >
> > And for the record (feel free to do some research on my other posts on the subject), I’m not calling anyone grinding to 152 a bandwagoner. I’m specifically talking about those who heard about the reward last fall and picked the game up for the first time and think they can make it. I’m specifically talking about the people who saw Master Chief for the time when he was introduced to Fornite (December ish??) and picked the game up for the first and think they have a shot at making 152 before Infinite release… Those are the same people who are here in the forums complaining that the grind is too hard and they need double, or triple xp to make the grind easier (I’ve seen people want as much as 5x xp for the record). So yes… when you see some players who grinded for 152 when Halo 5 first came out and they made 152 without featured playlists on the weekends, without special holiday events, it does cheapen the reward when you know that there will be some people out there who did it in 8 or 9 months because 343 (and the loudest voices who whined for it) gave out double xp like candy. It doesn’t mean as much, especially to those who earned the hard way.
> >
> > I think there’s more than just the grind keeping the game afloat. The graphics are solid and some of the types are pretty good too. I think what’s hurting the game the most at this point is 343s lack of attention to. Lack of regular updates, problems with connecting to the servers… lag issues… all these things (and a few others) are driving people away more than anything else I think. Adding more rewards and making it easier to finish the xp grind will turn it into Halo 4 all over again, and you’ll have the Halo faithful complaining that they made it too easy… leave it the way it is and just play the game. I’ve always said, if people spent their time playing the game instead of coming on here begging for double or triple xp, they’d be farther ahead… but here we are…
>
> I agree, sadly I was one of the first to hit 152, I grinded my heart out for an emblem nonetheless, not knowing anything about the new reward. And I wish everyone luck getting to 152, but I agree that alot are complaining when most people who hit 152 did it without complaining and just playing the game and not expecting double xp weekends.

And that’s exactly how it should be. You want the reward, gotta put the time in, no shortcuts. I know there’s going to be some variances because of gametypes and different xp payouts and boosts… but to make it as easy as some here keep suggesting 343 should… it’s almost embarrassing…

15

Thank you all for your responses and feedback.

Prewojo
TheDonCJG
Mongerty
Durandal v2
legend777666
X 1NF1NI7Y

I would like to ask that we keep this as civil as possible, as this is regarding the greater good for the community & boosting it’s population; creating a better and more enjoyable experience for everyone.

I have read thoroughly through what you all have said and these are the conclusions that I have come to.

<:// 117 AWARD & 152 AWARD : FEEDBACK \:>

152 AWARD

I can understand where everyone is coming from regarding the 152 Award. After reading what you all had to say, I would have to personally say that I do agree & I feel that it’s reasonable for you to feel the way that you do. I can see how it would effect the outcome of the 152 Award, to those who have worked very hard to get it & to those that still are grinding to earn it. Leaving the EXP as it is, would make 152 more exclusive, which I now feel would be for the better.

As you have mentioned, there are already double EXP playlists, so I can see where you are all coming from. My initial goal for the double EXP was to boost the population, however I can see how this could change the value of the award itself. Thank you all very much for leaving in depth responses, it’s because of this that I came to this conclusion.

117 AWARD ( ! )

Reading the responses regarding ‘other awards’ I simply do not agree. Firstly, this would not be an addition to Halo 5, this would be an addition to Halo Infinite. Adding this as another reward for Halo 5 players would increase the population, as well as activity in matchmaking. I do not see the harm in encouraging more players onto the game, as this will be creating a positive impact for 343 and the Halo 5 community.

The 152 award would remain more exclusive and more rewarding to attain. Introducing the 117 award would involve more of the community, increase the population & create another task to complete before the release of infinite; those who may not be able to attain 152.

<:// SOCIAL ARENA: Action Sack : FEEDBACK \:>

I will quote my original points again, I feel that they need to be readdressed. I believe it’s not the lack of updates / game faults that are pushing people away, it’s the lack of a balanced competitive & social atmosphere:

> - Halo 5 is a very fast paced & competitive game, it’s the reason why players continue to play and why others move on to other games. I feel that there can be simple adjustments made to the matchmaking playlists, to balance the competitive and social environment; working with its smaller population.
>
> - Since Super Fiesta Party is the most played, a lot of the highly skilled players will come to this playlist to relax, thus making these games very fast paced and competitive for lower skilled players.
>
> - Providing the permanent addition of Action Sack, this would create a more reliable space for all players to wind down and relax; enhancing their current experience of Halo 5.

From what I have read, there are those that agree and feel that this would be a good amendment. I understand that it could change the population of certain gametypes, but this is why I’ve made the amendment of taking out the Ranked Rotating Playlist; due to limited servers & population.

Again, this wouldn’t be a great update to make, as it would be equal effort to changing the rotating playlists each week. I have made the suggestions that I have in order to create less work for those at 343, as I can fully understand that they have their hands tied with more important matters.

<:// FINAL CONCLUSION & FEEDBACK \:>

I will be repeating some points I have already made, but it’s due to other points being repeated.

I am already aware that 343 have not made any updates to Halo 5 in a very long time. I can understand why, hence why I am suggesting small and simple amendments to create a greater impact & provide sustainability for the current Halo 5 population.

The changes I have suggested do not require much action to be made on Halo 5, simply the rotation of playlists & creating another award for Halo Infinite.

I understand that Halo 5 may be a dying game, but it doesn’t mean that it’s remaining population is not important. Creating an increase in population would create more guaranteed players to download or purchase Halo Infinite, especially for those who have attained the 152 or the 117 Award.

In conclusion, my focuses here are now the 117 Award & the permanent addition of Action Sack, which includes removing the Ranked Rotating Playlist.

I really appreciate all of your input & feedback. Thank you all for taking interest and taking part in the thread, it is very much appreciated.

16

In my opinion, it’s essential to maintain a high value for the SR152 reward as reaching the final rank should be a sign of pure dedication, not anything that should be given out for free. Double XP Weekends would probably give the opposite effect by devaluing the reward for everyone who have dedicated the time to obtain the Mantle emblem and the symbol for the final rank and it would also pretty much half the effort for everyone else.

On the other hand, it doesn’t really matter for me if 343 Industries gives an exclusive reward in Halo Infinite for reaching a specific rank in Halo 5. For me, the important part is the journey and the bragging rights from reaching a specific rank.

17

> 2535469120778295;16:
> In my opinion, it’s essential to maintain a high value for the SR152 reward as reaching the final rank should be a sign of pure dedication, not anything that should be given out for free. Double XP Weekends would probably give the opposite effect by devaluing the reward for everyone who have dedicated the time to obtain the Mantle emblem and the symbol for the final rank and it would also pretty much half the effort for everyone else.
>
> On the other hand, it doesn’t really matter for me if 343 Industries gives an exclusive reward in Halo Infinite for reaching a specific rank in Halo 5. For me, the important part is the journey and the bragging rights.

I am usually quite sympathetic to the argument against devaluing challenges, I was one of the sadists pushing 343 to fix the LASO checkpoint share glitch as soon as possible. I also believe that they should remove the solo affect of the iron skull though so I guess maybe that puts me in a bit of a middle ground.

That being said, I just cant imagine Double XP weekends making such a difference as to actually devalue the achievement of 152, It’s biggest benefit is probably just moral as the grind will feel slightly less tedious but in all actuality I cant imagine it would cut the time down by even 5%. Individuals that would see anything more than that reduced would be individuals who can literally only play on the weekends or once a week (adults with lower incomes specifically) and such people are already so disadvantaged that such a leveling mechanic would be justified imo especially because it is measuring a similar level of dedication and sacrifice (I am more impressed by a 152 who had to balance family/work then by someone who was just a student when the game first came out.). In either system in order to get 152 an individual is putting more than a month of gaming time into Halo 5 and sacrificing a large section of their budget of personal free time and that should be what we are measuring.

I am fairly indifferent on the matter as I will get 152 regardless and like I said I just don’t see it making that much of a difference for me, I will still play mostly on the weekdays. I just think that the devaluation argument is given the scale of the challenge and who the benefit is actually directed towards.

18

> 2533274841519598;17:
> > 2535469120778295;16:
> > In my opinion, it’s essential to maintain a high value for the SR152 reward as reaching the final rank should be a sign of pure dedication, not anything that should be given out for free. Double XP Weekends would probably give the opposite effect by devaluing the reward for everyone who have dedicated the time to obtain the Mantle emblem and the symbol for the final rank and it would also pretty much half the effort for everyone else.
> >
> > On the other hand, it doesn’t really matter for me if 343 Industries gives an exclusive reward in Halo Infinite for reaching a specific rank in Halo 5. For me, the important part is the journey and the bragging rights.
>
> That being said, I just cant imagine Double XP weekends making such a difference as to actually devalue the achievement of 152, It’s biggest benefit is probably just moral as the grind will feel slightly less tedious but in all actuality I cant imagine it would cut the time down by even 5%. Individuals that would see anything more than that reduced would be individuals who can literally only play on the weekends or once a week (adults with lower incomes specifically) and such people are already so disadvantaged that such a leveling mechanic would be justified imo especially because it is measuring a similar level of dedication and sacrifice (I am more impressed by a 152 who had to balance family/work then by someone who was just a student when the game first came out.). In either system in order to get 152 an individual is putting more than a month of gaming time into Halo 5 and sacrificing a large section of their budget of personal free time and that should be what we are measuring.
>
> I am fairly indifferent on the matter as I will get 152 regardless and like I said I just don’t see it making that much of a difference for me, I will still play mostly on the weekdays. I just think that the devaluation argument is given the scale of the challenge and who the benefit is actually directed towards.

To calculate the total xp increase from double xp weekends, I will make 2 major assumptions which may probably be incorrect. The first assumption is that 50% of the xp is collected from boost when double xp isn’t active and the second assumption is that the player distributes the time evenly between the different days of the week and we state that the total amount of xp collected from a normal week (without double xp weekend) constitutes to 1 unit of xp.

If we instead replace the Saturday and Sunday with double xp, the none boost xp from these 2 days will be doubles and it will mean that the total xp from one week will constitute to around 1.14 units for xp collected from one week of playing and this is a 14% increase. If we instead assume that the Friday is also included in the double xp weekend, then you will collect around 1.21 units of xp which is a 21% increase. Both of these increases are pretty substantial and the proportional increase will be even more substantial for playlists where a smaller proportion of the xp is collected from boosts.

19

> 2535469120778295;18:
> > 2533274841519598;17:
> > > 2535469120778295;16:
> > > In my opinion, it’s essential to maintain a high value for the SR152 reward as reaching the final rank should be a sign of pure dedication, not anything that should be given out for free. Double XP Weekends would probably give the opposite effect by devaluing the reward for everyone who have dedicated the time to obtain the Mantle emblem and the symbol for the final rank and it would also pretty much half the effort for everyone else.
> > >
> > > On the other hand, it doesn’t really matter for me if 343 Industries gives an exclusive reward in Halo Infinite for reaching a specific rank in Halo 5. For me, the important part is the journey and the bragging rights.
> >
> > That being said, I just cant imagine Double XP weekends making such a difference as to actually devalue the achievement of 152, It’s biggest benefit is probably just moral as the grind will feel slightly less tedious but in all actuality I cant imagine it would cut the time down by even 5%. Individuals that would see anything more than that reduced would be individuals who can literally only play on the weekends or once a week (adults with lower incomes specifically) and such people are already so disadvantaged that such a leveling mechanic would be justified imo especially because it is measuring a similar level of dedication and sacrifice (I am more impressed by a 152 who had to balance family/work then by someone who was just a student when the game first came out.). In either system in order to get 152 an individual is putting more than a month of gaming time into Halo 5 and sacrificing a large section of their budget of personal free time and that should be what we are measuring.
> >
> > I am fairly indifferent on the matter as I will get 152 regardless and like I said I just don’t see it making that much of a difference for me, I will still play mostly on the weekdays. I just think that the devaluation argument is given the scale of the challenge and who the benefit is actually directed towards.
>
> To calculate the total xp increase from double xp weekends, I will make 2 major assumptions which may probably be incorrect. The first assumption is that 50% of the xp is collected from boost when double xp isn’t active and the second assumption is that the player distributes the time evenly between the different days of the week and we state that the total amount of xp collected from a normal week (without double xp weekend) constitutes to 1 unit of xp.
>
> If we instead replace the Saturday and Sunday with double xp, the none boost xp from these 2 days will be doubles and it will mean that the total xp from one week will constitute to around 1.14 units for xp collected from one week of playing and this is a 14% increase. If we instead assume that the Friday is also included in the double xp weekend, then you will collect around 1.21 units of xp which is a 21% increase. Both of these increases are pretty substantial and the proportional increase will be even more substantial for playlists where a smaller proportion of the xp is collected from boosts.

A third assumption here is that the journey begins for all at the beginning. The controversial participants in double xp weekend will not be new players under the rank of 100 as the number of them that are just now considering going to 152 is probably single digits to be honest, I would imagine that a majority of the population that would take advantage of the double xp for 152 in any meaningful way are already at minimum already 10% of the way there in these final months leading up to infinite.

I think your other two assumptions are fair, I average between 35-55% of xp coming from boosts depending on boost and match although people who are really good at grinding with a squad can get that number higher by using high grade boosts on warzone and then destroying the core as quick as possible. I wish I knew the population specs of weekdays vs weekends but everyone I am grinding with is grinding evenly throughout the week.

A fourth consideration I would add as well is what prompted the thread in the first place and that is that the state of the game has changed since the road to 152 was first announced. The population is lower, the game/servers less tended to and the appeal has been much diminished. Grinding to 152 is to a degree a bigger ask now because the time between matches take longer and the time spent in them are against significantly more difficult and dedicated opponents. 5-10 minutes between matches are spent searching for me now a days compared to when the game first came out I was buggered if I wanted more than 2. I can still find matches very quickly I i stick to WZFF but for the sake of my mental health I just can’t exclusively do H5 FF as its just not all my vibe and I can’t imagine it is for most either (nothing against it per se, but it is a tad repetitive if we are being honest.).Taking the highest estimate of 20% would indeed be significant but also only brings the rank down to being one-third the way done with 151 which is still hella exclusive and worth a similar brag considering the other context.

Double XP weekends could in theory bring some love back to arena, keep a few more players on a little longer and generally give a small moral boost to those still grinding. I sympathize slightly more with the arguments for it than against it, but either way I am still mostly indifferent because I also see these benefits being proposed as negligible with double xp weekends for very much the same reasons that it will be negligible in devaluing the challenge of 152; it’s just too little of a feature too late and it will affect to few people.

20

Greetings everyone, I am bumping this post to receive further feedback regarding the points made in this thread.

I will be creating a new thread where I will be bringing up:

  • 117 Award
  • Action Sack (permanent playlist)

I can understand the points made regarding the devaluing of the 152 Award, hence why I will not be bringing it back up; people have mentioned the double EXP playlists that already exist, so there is already a form of double EXP.

Thank you all very much for your input, it is great to receive in depth and constructive feedback.