The main issue with what you just said was that campaign isnt included. We got Halo 2 15 years ago that had a campaign, amazing multiplayer, nice playlists, customizable nametags with lots of options, cool progression ranking system, all for 60$… The campaign alone is 60$…
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So my point was really focused on core experience, and I noted their are quite a few ways to get some extra customization options unlocked…for cheap.
Yeah Halo 2 launched with a campaign and multiplayer package for $60. But that core experience wasn’t without its faults either. Such as having to pay for Xbox live to play online.
The barrier for entry is low in infinite. Those griping about the game pass method and having such an issue with not owning the game (really just the campaign), should just purchase it lol. Do you also not own the multiplayer…?
The most constructive comment I’ve ever seen. It’s not coping lmao. It’s informing. If you want to throw money at something without looking at your options before-hand, be my guest.
I don’t think the possibility of jumping around the hurdles justifies the hurdles being there
The biggest hurdle of all, a $60 price tag, isn’t there. That argument is like going to the grocery store and having a 90% off coupon in your pocket, but complaining because it’s too much work to pull it out.
We have a completely different profit strategy with infinite, it isn’t surprising that the community is struggling to accept it.
We use to have a buffet; you pay to enter, but then get to take as much as you want.
Now we have something else (a food truck maybe?) Where you have to pay for every little cosmetic.
So by your own analogy…it isn’t completely free.
Well, it’s perceived value people are complaining about. So before, you got the campaign and multiplayer all for $60. Now, you get just the campaign, but multiplayer is free. However, you got all of the customization options for free before, but now, a lot of it is locked behind a paywall. Game pass also doesn’t give you the same value, because you can’t keep the game. People want to buy it and have it. So there is not as much solid return on investment for this system as before
Honestly, Infinite feels like a ramshackle carnival. Admission is free and there are some small rides anyone can ride for free. But if you literally want to do anything else it has a cost. $20 for a corn dog. $10 for temporary tattoos. Oh, and some of the ride aren’t done being built but once they make more money they’ll get around to that.
Previous carnivals did have an admission fee, but once that was paid you were all set.
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Until they dropped the map packs, and if you don’t pay your Xbox live service fee you’re getting kicked out of that carnival lol.
For me:
Core experience > cosmetics
I can’t speak for everyone. But I have restraint from the store. A helmet or shoulder pad doesn’t make or break the game for me.
And somehow those map packs were a lot cheaper than $20 for one set of armor and some emblems. A set you actually can’t wear unless less you by the premium pass. Can’t wear a thing you paid for unless you shelled out additional cash. Now, not requiring live is definitely a step up, Yet Microsoft and 343 would be liars if they feel needing to charge $8 for colors is needed to keep the game running.
Either way, they could easily make things worth the time of non-premium players, but that’s free for you. But let’s not kid ourselves here, there are costs involved.
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I highly recommend that. I got the campaign with GP (I would have bought it anyway) and it’s decent IMO. I think it’s worth the $60 but that is subject to opinion.
Honestly the one way to drive prices down is to hold on buying things from the store. If you think it’s expensive don’t buy it.
The way I look at it is, everything I have purchased so far is now the benchmark for future purchases. I expect the next chapter to cost another $60 but if I’m going to buy it, it needs to be at least as good as what we just received. Same goes for BP. I’m not buying any colors unless that color can be used on every core, until then I will wait and use what I unlock in BP
Fast forward to the future though, new content (maps, modes, etc) are free.
I’m fine with the monetization swap here. I’d rather get core content free and have the option to pay for a skin, rather than the reverse. It seems like you’d rather have the player base pay for gameplay options. That’s your prerogative.
You forget Halo has had a history of putting a major emphasis on player expression since Halo 2, which reached its peak in Halo Reach when Noble 6 was made, a player blanks late thats also seeable in multiplayer and campaign
Then along came Halo 4 which canonised the multiplayer spartan as Fireteams Crimson in Spartan Ops, a story arc (while debatable in quality) carried on Halo 4’s story.
Infinite has done this again by canonising the player spartan as one of the IV’s in reserve while Infinity & Chief are MIA as established in the academy. 343 wouldn’t go to the effort if cosmetics mattered little in halo, they do and its been that way since Halo 3 onwards, so severely limiting player expression and monetising it the whole mile feels like a slap in the face.
especially for a FTP game where other examples exist in this same genre of game that prove a good monetisational compromise can exist for something as simple as changing your colour. (hint hint, Its Warframe.)
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Halo has been more about the gameplay loop than cosmetic appearance.
Warframe charges for weapon and character slots. Which limit your leveling progression. Not to mention the amount of colors they also have locked behind premium currency. Idk, it’s a little pay to progress in that game.
Weapons that you can grind for & Platinum that you can trade for to use on said currency, the middleman in otherwords is there for warframe between player and developer, unlike Halo Infinite however, which has no middleman, no bones thrown to those who don’t wanna cough up excessively, even compared to other shooters like apex Halo is very stingy.
The colours itself being colour pallets, with the dignity to at least allow free application of said colours (once you buy em, plus theres event pallets you can get for free too) on the frames, ships(rail jack & orbiter), necramechs (mini summonable mechs) the weapons (all weapons) the K-drive (Hoverboard) & The Archwing (space combat fighter-esque wings) hell even the space Mom now.
compare that to say, I spend 75 plat on a colour pallet via either trading or buying that plat, which I can use forever on literally everything, compared to buying a coating for ONE ARMOUR CORE for 700-2000 credits, I can tell which one is by far the better deal.
and since halo used to allow colour customisation freely, this Destiny-esque shader system was the worst way to go, it would’ve been more accepted however if the coatings were universal, like their clear Destiny inspiration, instead thats not the case, its more akin to skins for a character, which is wrong, especially since were not playing as “Characters” were a character with “multiple suits.”
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yea I’m sure games are cheap when you don’t actually own them lol
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At least content in halo infinite is readily available once you do unlock it lol. Warframe will have you waiting 3 days to build a prime (luckily you can pay premium to build it faster). Maybe you filled up your warframe slots? Cough up some premium and you can collect that frame you did all that grinding for lol. There’s literally a paywall at every step in warframe.
Customization isn’t the most important thing in halo, it doesn’t need to get this deep. I don’t recall much customization being in Halo CE…I guess that game did fine?
Do you really own anything these days? If you lose access to your Microsoft account there go your digital purchases. If you really want to “own” the game go buy it physically. I’m not worried about “owning” campaign. I’m more concerned with playing it. Which I have…for less than $60.