One thing that should be done if the flood happens to return they need to be scary much more than what bungie had them… An example might be the creepy half dead Alien Humans from “Dead Space” they were terrifying I just hope the flood can get the same respect as they should…
The Flood in CE terrified me as a kid, especially on the level 343 Guilty Spark. Make them that scary, but for adults. 
> The Flood in CE terrified me as a kid, especially on the level 343 Guilty Spark. Make them that scary, but for adults.
Even playing Anniversary 10 years later I still get a chill up my spine.
> > The Flood in CE terrified me as a kid, especially on the level 343 Guilty Spark. Make them that scary, but for adults.
>
> Even playing Anniversary 10 years later I still get a chill up my spine.
That’s when you know they did their job right.
The scariness of the “zombies” in Halo: CE and Dead Space comes not from the enemies themselves, but the danger they present. Both games have health bars, so if an enemy deals too much damage to you, you’ll be close to death until you can find the next health pack. I don’t think the Flood in 2 or 3 are any more or less scary-looking than in CE or Dead Space.
> I don’t think the Flood in 2 or 3 are any more or less scary-looking than in CE or Dead Space.
Halo 2’s shield bar had a sort short-term similarity as infection forms instantly killed you if you had no shields.
H3 had the problem of making the flood super flimsy, especially against melee attacks. The thing in your face is not scary when punching it causes it to harmlessly turn into chunks and powder.
Rather than the scare factor, 343, in my opinion, needs to focus on making the Flood engaging. In Halo CE, they weren’t very fun to fight, mostly because of all the “stop and defend” sections in the Library. Still, during later levels like Two Betrayals and The Maw, I found the Flood to be a little more engaging.
In Halo 2, I absolutely hate the Flood levels because it’s mostly just “stop and defend” with very little variety. Halo 3 was much better, with very few stop and defend sections. The introduction of Pure Forms also added a nice bit of variety to the gameplay. Still, the Flood wasn’t that different than it had been in Halo CE or Halo 2 in terms of engagement. Halo 3 had the best Flood in terms of gameplay, but it was far from perfect.
343 needs to make the Flood (though really, all their enemies) more engaging, and introduce more variety in terms of the different Flood forms.
> Rather than the scare factor, 343, in my opinion, needs to focus on making the Flood engaging. In Halo CE, they weren’t very fun to fight, mostly because of all the “stop and defend” sections in the Library. Still, during later levels like Two Betrayals and The Maw, I found the Flood to be a little more engaging.
>
> In Halo 2, I absolutely hate the Flood levels because it’s mostly just “stop and defend” with very little variety. Halo 3 was much better, with very few stop and defend sections. The introduction of Pure Forms also added a nice bit of variety to the gameplay. Still, the Flood wasn’t that different than it had been in Halo CE or Halo 2 in terms of engagement. Halo 3 had the best Flood in terms of gameplay, but it was far from perfect.
>
> 343 needs to make the Flood (though really, all their enemies) more engaging, and introduce more variety in terms of the different Flood forms.
To be fair, Halo 2 had quite a few fast-paced “run-and-gun” Flood missions. Sure, The Oracle and Sacred Icon were pretty reminiscent of Halo: CE, and the gondola on Quarantine Zone was tortuous, the insane 3 way Flood-Covenant-Sentinel melee in Quarantine Zone was intense, especially with the addition of those highly erratic Flood in vehicles and the big Enforcers. As for High Charity, that was a fantastic mission. Dark, eerie, difficult, frustrating, terrifying, spooky… it got the atmosphere perfect, and it was a short mission so as to not prolong the agony. Halo 2 did a better job with the Flood, I think. Halo 3’s Flood were pathetic, colourful, not scary at all, and flimsy. They reminded me of gross plant monsters.
> To be fair, Halo 2 had quite a few fast-paced “run-and-gun” Flood missions. Sure, The Oracle and Sacred Icon were pretty reminiscent of Halo: CE, and the gondola on Quarantine Zone was tortuous, the insane 3 way Flood-Covenant-Sentinel melee in Quarantine Zone was intense, especially with the addition of those highly erratic Flood in vehicles and the big Enforcers. As for High Charity, that was a fantastic mission. Dark, eerie, difficult, frustrating, terrifying, spooky… it got the atmosphere perfect, and it was a short mission so as to not prolong the agony. Halo 2 did a better job with the Flood, I think. Halo 3’s Flood were pathetic, colourful, not scary at all, and flimsy. They reminded me of gross plant monsters.
I think what Halo 3 excelled in was the concept of the Flood in that you could witness real time mutations as well as the havoc they rent on the environment. To me wandering the Flood infestation of High Charity was terrifying in an apocalyptic sort of sense.
Unfortunately they lacked the movement and robustness that rendered them as horrifying as they were in Halo: CE, but if Halo 5 can achieve the conceptual atmosphere that Halo 3 had in addition to the factors described of its predecessors, I think a cultural icon could be born.
What also gave the Flood that scare factor in CE was that they weren’t even expected. You were just running and gunning aliens…and then you get a right hook out of nowhere that gives you a scary atmospheric level with some unknown scary as hell and awkwardly moving disfigured walking corpses running at you with their arms waving everywhere and they would not care if you blasted their arms off and just kept charging you. Buggers made me skip that level for weeks.
We won’t have that same scare factor in the next Halo, unless 343 do something with the Flood that we completely wouldn’t expect…also the atmosphere and level need to match. Like the level 343 Guilty Spark…creepy as hell surroundings/environment, the Covenant showing fear, shadows off in the distance, the fog, the sounds, the music, and the general “I want to get the **** out of here” feeling.
Edit: grammar mistakes
In my opinion Halo CE and Halo 3 did the best job with the flood in the original trilogy, but like already said in this thread it still wasn’t perfect. In Halo CE a lot of the levels with the Flood had repetitive environments that you would have to stay and fight for about five minutes or more before you got to advance. (I’m looking at you library) However they were still fun to fight. Although the battlefield would get a little boring the Flood in CE were very aggressive, and the literally “Flooded” you with hordes of enemies, and unless if you had a shotgun they were devastating at close range. In Halo 3 we got the opposite effect. The environment was always changing and it was unique. However the Flood weren’t nearly as aggressive, they didn’t seem to work together as well, and they were a joke when it came to fighting at close range. It wasn’t until levels like Cortana and Halo that they worked together effectively. But in the Cortana mission they seemed like the most passive Flood I’ve ever seen. So if you took the behavior, strengths, and weaknesses of the Halo CE Flood and add onto it and add the evolving battlefield from Halo 3 then 343 would have nailed the Flood on the head.
You know one thing I do know is that there is a -Yoink- load of spatan 4’s and if if any were infected they would be a -Yoink- to take down if the Spartans sheilds were still equpid! And the new gravemind could be the timeless one perhaps…
The Flood need to reflect the horror of the Precursors. If anyone here has read the Forerunner Saga, they will know the potential the Flood has to offer. The VARIATION potential will substantially grow.
Give the Flood a new look. Completely new. Instead of just brown, give them green skin with tears and rips where the Flood has changed that form (If human, give them red pulsating areas, like on the Spartan-IV flood holograms. Obviously the color and texture would change when an Elite gets infected, but you get the idea.)
Something like this serves as a good idea for WHY the Flood was so great from the beginning. The Flood is disturbing because it hits what’s called the “Uncanny Valley”.
The uncanny valley is a place where something that is familiar to you is taken and changed into something different, yet disturbing. It’s the fine line between “despicable monster” and “something that I know and am familiar with.” Examples include: Creepy little girls, dolls (you knew that was coming) and relatives that never seem to come out of their rooms.
Now, one of the finishing touches: Give some of the NEW Flood that are coming a more alien look similar to the Primordial. Why? Because the Primordial was a disturbing monster, and it wasn’t even in the uncanny valley.
As for gameplay, because the Primordial promised he would return to test humans in 100,000 years, the Flood are going to need to be smart now. The Flood we fought before were feral-stage. This time, they need to use tactics. Have a weaker form run off to lure the player into a trap of Flood. Make the Flood something to be feared, not something to plow through (Halo 3) like they’re nothing.
> The Flood need to reflect the horror of the Precursors. If anyone here has read the Forerunner Saga, they will know the potential the Flood has to offer. The VARIATION potential will substantially grow.
>
> Give the Flood a new look. Completely new. Instead of just brown, give them green skin with tears and rips where the Flood has changed that form (If human, give them red pulsating areas, like on the Spartan-IV flood holograms. Obviously the color and texture would change when an Elite gets infected, but you get the idea.)
>
> They need to give off this kind of sound effect (skip to 1:25) The sound of “There’s a creature out there, in that dark abyss, waiting for you.”
>
> Something like this serves as a good idea for WHY the Flood was so great from the beginning. The Flood is disturbing because it hits what’s called the “Uncanny Valley”.
>
> The uncanny valley is a place where something that is familiar to you is taken and changed into something different, yet disturbing. It’s the fine line between “despicable monster” and “something that I know and am familiar with.” Examples include: Creepy little girls, dolls (you knew that was coming) and relatives that never seem to come out of their rooms.
>
> This is another example of disturbing Flood art. (none of it being mine, but it helps guide to the point I’m going to make)
>
> Now, one of the finishing touches: Give some of the NEW Flood that are coming a more alien look similar to the Primordial. Why? Because the Primordial was a disturbing monster, and it wasn’t even in the uncanny valley.
>
> As for gameplay, because the Primordial promised he would return to test humans in 100,000 years, the Flood are going to need to be smart now. The Flood we fought before were feral-stage. This time, they need to use tactics. Have a weaker form run off to lure the player into a trap of Flood. Make the Flood something to be feared, not something to plow through (Halo 3) like they’re nothing.
Wow I actually love this comments! Nice
Thank you!
Another thing I believe could work for the Flood: have them infect someone we know, and have them keep those traits. That would work mostly the first time, but it would still have an impact. Imagine a Flood infected Admiral that you got to know, suddenly turn into a terror-monster that wants to consume, while also keeping those facial features.
It would really make the Flood less redundantly stale. Also, introduce new, disturbing Flood types. Flood that absorb people by touching them and morphing with them in an effort to create either A. a stronger combat form or B. the beginning of a proto-Gravemind. It would really give the Flood an edge in terms of disturbing things it could do to the A.I. (instead of the infection forms spinning into the chest in a cartoon fashion. Seriously, I imagine the Mario tunnel sound whenever I see that in Halo 3)
> Thank you!
>
>
> Another thing I believe could work for the Flood: have them infect someone we know, and have them keep those traits. That would work mostly the first time, but it would still have an impact. Imagine a Flood infected Admiral that you got to know, suddenly turn into a terror-monster that wants to consume, while also keeping those facial features.
>
> It would really make the Flood less redundantly stale. Also, introduce new, disturbing Flood types. Flood that absorb people by touching them and morphing with them in an effort to create either A. a stronger combat form or B. the beginning of a proto-Gravemind. It would really give the Flood an edge in terms of disturbing things it could do to the A.I. (instead of the infection forms spinning into the chest in a cartoon fashion. Seriously, I imagine the Mario tunnel sound whenever I see that in Halo 3)
Maybe have the little popcorn buggers rip open the chest and delve inside. Pretty much a reversing the Xenomorph evolution. Even make em go through the base of the neck right at the spine, that’s what almost happened to Chief in Halo:The Flood. Have em infect S-IVs that same way…these S-IV Combat Forms need to be very dangerous, sporadic, and maybe even twitchy.
> > Thank you!
> >
> >
> > Another thing I believe could work for the Flood: have them infect someone we know, and have them keep those traits. That would work mostly the first time, but it would still have an impact. Imagine a Flood infected Admiral that you got to know, suddenly turn into a terror-monster that wants to consume, while also keeping those facial features.
> >
> > It would really make the Flood less redundantly stale. Also, introduce new, disturbing Flood types. Flood that absorb people by touching them and morphing with them in an effort to create either A. a stronger combat form or B. the beginning of a proto-Gravemind. It would really give the Flood an edge in terms of disturbing things it could do to the A.I. (instead of the infection forms spinning into the chest in a cartoon fashion. Seriously, I imagine the Mario tunnel sound whenever I see that in Halo 3)
>
> Maybe have the little popcorn buggers rip open the chest and delve inside. Pretty much a reversing the Xenomorph evolution. Even make em go through the base of the neck right at the spine, that’s what almost happened to Chief in Halo:The Flood. Have em infect S-IVs that same way…these S-IV Combat Forms need to be very dangerous, sporadic, and maybe even twitchy.
Good idea! Have them infect S-IV’s when they get low on health (I’m an S-IV fan, so it’d be hard to watch, but hey, that’s part of the Flood)
I was reading how in the Forerunner novels, the airborne spores would infect Forerunners. That sounds cool if they could do that, but it would remove the need for the little squids.
Speaking of Infection Forms, remember that high pitched sound they would make in Halo: CE? That creeped me out, it reminded me of an underwater alien monster, and then never appeared again. The sound was only present in Halo: CE.
Also, give low pitched moans and growls in the background that would echo. It would give the player a sense of “something’s here, but where?!”
If anyone here has played Half-Life 2 and gone through Ravenholm, they’ll know what I mean (Though Flood beats headcrabs in terms of scariness)
> > > Thank you!
> > >
> > >
> > > Another thing I believe could work for the Flood: have them infect someone we know, and have them keep those traits. That would work mostly the first time, but it would still have an impact. Imagine a Flood infected Admiral that you got to know, suddenly turn into a terror-monster that wants to consume, while also keeping those facial features.
> > >
> > > It would really make the Flood less redundantly stale. Also, introduce new, disturbing Flood types. Flood that absorb people by touching them and morphing with them in an effort to create either A. a stronger combat form or B. the beginning of a proto-Gravemind. It would really give the Flood an edge in terms of disturbing things it could do to the A.I. (instead of the infection forms spinning into the chest in a cartoon fashion. Seriously, I imagine the Mario tunnel sound whenever I see that in Halo 3)
> >
> > Maybe have the little popcorn buggers rip open the chest and delve inside. Pretty much a reversing the Xenomorph evolution. Even make em go through the base of the neck right at the spine, that’s what almost happened to Chief in Halo:The Flood. Have em infect S-IVs that same way…these S-IV Combat Forms need to be very dangerous, sporadic, and maybe even twitchy.
>
> Good idea! Have them infect S-IV’s when they get low on health (I’m an S-IV fan, so it’d be hard to watch, but hey, that’s part of the Flood)
>
>
>
> I was reading how in the Forerunner novels, the airborne spores would infect Forerunners. That sounds cool if they could do that, but it would remove the need for the little squids.
>
> Speaking of Infection Forms, remember that high pitched sound they would make in Halo: CE? That creeped me out, it reminded me of an underwater alien monster, and then never appeared again. The sound was only present in Halo: CE.
>
>
> Also, give low pitched moans and growls in the background that would echo. It would give the player a sense of “something’s here, but where?!”
>
> If anyone here has played Half-Life 2 and gone through Ravenholm, they’ll know what I mean (Though Flood beats headcrabs in terms of scariness)
Flood Sounds. Any these sound like it. I think the sound you’re referring to is either in 2 or 3. Also I think I might be wrong about this, but didn’t those forerunners not have a filter…or something like that. I remember Spark mentioning Chief made a good choice with his armor as it would be beneficial when The Flood would convert the atmosphere.
> > > > Thank you!
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > Another thing I believe could work for the Flood: have them infect someone we know, and have them keep those traits. That would work mostly the first time, but it would still have an impact. Imagine a Flood infected Admiral that you got to know, suddenly turn into a terror-monster that wants to consume, while also keeping those facial features.
> > > >
> > > > It would really make the Flood less redundantly stale. Also, introduce new, disturbing Flood types. Flood that absorb people by touching them and morphing with them in an effort to create either A. a stronger combat form or B. the beginning of a proto-Gravemind. It would really give the Flood an edge in terms of disturbing things it could do to the A.I. (instead of the infection forms spinning into the chest in a cartoon fashion. Seriously, I imagine the Mario tunnel sound whenever I see that in Halo 3)
> > >
> > > Maybe have the little popcorn buggers rip open the chest and delve inside. Pretty much a reversing the Xenomorph evolution. Even make em go through the base of the neck right at the spine, that’s what almost happened to Chief in Halo:The Flood. Have em infect S-IVs that same way…these S-IV Combat Forms need to be very dangerous, sporadic, and maybe even twitchy.
> >
> > Good idea! Have them infect S-IV’s when they get low on health (I’m an S-IV fan, so it’d be hard to watch, but hey, that’s part of the Flood)
> >
> >
> >
> > I was reading how in the Forerunner novels, the airborne spores would infect Forerunners. That sounds cool if they could do that, but it would remove the need for the little squids.
> >
> > Speaking of Infection Forms, remember that high pitched sound they would make in Halo: CE? That creeped me out, it reminded me of an underwater alien monster, and then never appeared again. The sound was only present in Halo: CE.
> >
> >
> > Also, give low pitched moans and growls in the background that would echo. It would give the player a sense of “something’s here, but where?!”
> >
> > If anyone here has played Half-Life 2 and gone through Ravenholm, they’ll know what I mean (Though Flood beats headcrabs in terms of scariness)
>
> Flood Sounds. Any these sound like it. I think the sound you’re referring to is either in 2 or 3. Also I think I might be wrong about this, but didn’t those forerunners not have a filter…or something like that. I remember Spark mentioning Chief made a good choice with his armor as it would be beneficial when The Flood would convert the atmosphere.
Those sounds RIGHT at the beginning of the video! Thank you for that!
If the Flood are coming back, they need to be upgraded.
The Combat Forms should have behaviors that reflect their host`s species. Marines would be basic fighters, not too easy or hard. Elites should be quick and agile. Their shields would make them more durable compared to their Human brethren. If Brutes return then they should be fierce. They would berserk and take a lot of damage due to their large size.
The Pure Forms need a lot of work. I am fine in what we had in Halo 3, they should return. We just need more though. There should be bigger and more deadly units. An example would be the cut Juggernaut, that would be cool. Halopedia shows many more examples of cut material that would be awesome to see as well. Overall, just add more challenging and terrifying Forms.