Halo 5 vehicular warfare

Games Halo 5: Guardians
1

I have been away from Halo for some time now, mainly because of its growng 4v4 style, but as the Xbox one is a new console, and extremely more powerful than its predecessor, I would like to quell some doubts and discuss aspects of vehicular warfare in Halo 5.

In olden days shooters tended to be enclosed in small arena maps due to lack of precessing power, the first Halo was a revolution to the genre by introducing heavy vehicle usage in a mainstream shooter. I am a BTB kind of guy, that thrives in expansive battlefields with heavy armour and air support, and as such, I have endured the ever diminishing maps of the newer Halos with the hope it was all due to weak hardware. Question is, now that we have a much more powerful console, will Halo 5 be as, again, expansive as ever, with newer, more powerful and more useful vehicles, or will it dwell in its 16 player misery? Is 4v4 arena only the only way forward for halo?

If you tanked through all this wall of text, this thread asks for your insight, and intel in this subject, and thanks you beforehand.

P.S. Those of you who were dreadfully heartbroken when space combat was cut from Halo Reach are also welcome to the fold.

2

Yes. yes. and yes. 343 definitely needs to cater to the BTB community a lot more in H5G. Although I don’t really favour BTB over slayer or team snipers I do occasionally jump into the playlist for a few fun moments with friends. they need to add more vehicles as well, I’m thinking the return of the hornet + 1 new UNSC flying vehicle, 2 covenant flying vehicles (lich or phantom?), 2 giant vehicles (Scarab/harvester and mammoth/elephant) and a whole lot of returning and brand new vehicles (kestrel, gungoose, wolverine etc…).

Thanks for the post! You reminded me how much I love BTB :smiley:

3

I’m hoping for 32v32 BTB game mode!

4

> 2728966917070542;3:
> I’m hoping for 32v32 BTB game mode!

With everyone spawning in tanks, or hornets, or other heavy vehicles/aircraft. Some of the most fun I’ve had in Halo was with the Race gametype…with everyone spawning in mongooses, or later, rocket warthogs. For a series with such an expansive sandbox of vehicles, the multiplayer is surprisingly light on them, and most of the BTB specific maps are usually far too large for the number of players, unless BTB Heavy is selected anyway.

5

I don’t think processing power is an issue–Forge World & Forge Islands are a prime example of how large they can make maps if they try. Disc space and internet connections are definitely an issue, however. Blu-ray should temporarily alleviate the disc space issue [aside from when a certain company tries to stuff four complete games and dlc onto one disc], but lag and poor connectivity are going to be problems for a long, long time.
I generally find that the smaller arena maps are far better designed and usually offer a better gameplay experience overall–for infantry battles, anyway. The standard infantry vs vehicle battles are fun, but lack a certain something. [Wait, where did that power weapon go? Oh great, I forgot to equip the plasma pistol in my loadouts again, etc, etc].
Halo has an impressive array of vehicles from the UNSC and the Covenant—small speedy vehicles, slower heavy vehicles, massive troop transports [Mammoth, Elephant, Scarab, Harvester] small aircraft, air carriers [Phantoms, Pelicans] and even spacecraft–from fighters to frigates. Even the Spartans/Elites themselves could be classified as vehicles if they spawn in with heavy weapons like the Rocket/Plasma/Fuel Rod Launchers or Spartan Lasers.
With this entire sandbox to draw on, and the many, many different epic air/ground/sea/space vehicle battles that could take place, it frustrates me that the majority of Halo matchmaking boils down to the BR/DMR/Pistol.

6

I would like to see 32vs32, with scarabs, hornets, tanks… XD
That would be awesome.

7

> 2533274857267069;6:
> I would like to see 32vs32, with scarabs, hornets, tanks… XD
> That would be awesome.

With Massive size maps that support 32v32

8

> 2533274857267069;6:
> I would like to see 32vs32, with scarabs, hornets, tanks… XD
> That would be awesome.

that wouldn’t be awesome, that would make Halo a cheap Battlefield-Copy

9

I feel like a separate halo game would be good for 32v32, a spin off like odst but bigger.

10

I am glad I am not alone in this, it is nice to see that big teams and maps are not yet forgotten.

Someone said that likes BTB, but for sniping, and I agree, while my best is at vehicles, sniping is great, and all the more satisfying in big maps with long lines of sight and burrowed enemies.

About ripping off Battlefield, by that logic Halo now rips CoD off, anyway, while I do not like comparing halo to other franchises, we do need a yardstick to measure the kind of game we want, and to get our point across, and BF is the perfect one - even though it has been shrinking as well.

I see the phantom has been brought up as well, and I totally agree, 32v32 gametype would allow not only tank mayhem, but also introduction of much desired vehicles to multiplayer, like the phantom, pelican and etc.

Having played Halo custom edition on PC, I can say that I found it to be the most enjoyable multiplayer experience in the franchise, because, even though it had insufficient players, the sheer size of the maps made by the community - some with around 3KM or 2MI corner to corner - ensured a lot of exploration and replayability, and its vehicles were so awesome - as the longsword for example - that it just felt more compelling, even when shorthanded.

I undestand that some folks like banging their heads against the wall in little boxes in 4v4, and they have a right to do so, but which of you can say, that after reading the books about Reach do not want something of the same “scope and scale” in the game? Once again thank you for your input.

11

> 2533274886490718;8:
> > 2533274857267069;6:
> > I would like to see 32vs32, with scarabs, hornets, tanks… XD
> > That would be awesome.
>
>
> that wouldn’t be awesome, that would make Halo a cheap Battlefield-Copy

It WOULD be awesome, and no, it really wouldn’t make Halo a cheap copy of anything. A lot of multiplayer games are only distinguished by minor gameplay or visual differences. I even remember at one point Halo MP was called a clone of an old PC game called Tribes. It’s not. Halo really stands out from amongst the crowd due to its comprehensive and engaging mythos, as well as its stubborn dedication to ensuring that everyone starts a match on an equal playing field. I seriously doubt that anyone thought “this is just like battlefield” when fighting against those Scarabs in Halo 3–or in any of the major vehicular battles of the Halo campaigns. It is those battles which really should be transferred to the multiplayer experience.

12

What about a flying vehicles only matchmaking option? Or a Tanks only? How about skirmish vehicle clash? I’d also like to see the Revenant and the Falcon make the comeback too