I can put my finger on what's wrong.

Games Other Halo
1
  1. Matchmaking

Why is 343 deciding what I want to play? I should be able to view a SERVER LIST where I can join whatever gametype/map my heart desires. Instead we get stuck with the same old map/gametype rotations. With a SERVER LIST, we would be able to play the DLC that we paid for (and I mean ALL the DLC, not just whatever just came out).

  1. Unacceptable Network Issues

This is also a product of the matchmaking system. Quitting is being penalized? Must be because every time someone quits, it freezes the match. Come on! What the hell! Seriously, what was the budget for this game? Millions of dollars? And the end product HAS THE MATCH STALLING WHEN SOMEONE LEAVES?!

What else freezes the match? Oh, host migration. What a joke.

None of this would be an issue if 343 would take the high road and do like BF3 does: rent dedicated servers. Imagine: open Halo 4, open server list, choose a match. Boom! You’re in a game. No more waiting to be matched, no more “restarting search,” no more getting forced into a game you don’t want to play (because they thought it would be a great idea to remove the option to leave a match once it’s at the voting stage).

Earlier tonight I wanted to play some of the new DLC. But I happen to not be a huge fan of Ricochet. So I get thrust into a Ricochet match, only to have 2 people on my team quit, at which point it’s nearly impossible to win. And, of course, I don’t want to quit and be penalized.

The system is broken my friends.

  1. That’s it. Really. I’m not going to -Yoink- and moan about the gameplay, that’s not where the real problems are. The problem is accessibility. It’s as if there’s no one at the top with veto power to say "look everyone, great job on Halo 4, but we need to make the experience more seamless. Our CLIENTS shouldn’t be forced into matches they don’t want to play, neither should the matches that they’re forced into FREEZE when someone quits or lags out.

Where’s the money? Seriously, I can see how this is going to go from here. It’s as if no one wants to bring any improvement to the table. It’s like they know people are going to buy their game anyway, so let’s just stick with the same systems that made the franchise successful ALMOST A DECADE AGO and call it a day.

It’s 2013 for Christ’s sake, why are game devs still acting like Xbox Live is in its infancy? Why are we still using this stone-age matchmaking system when it’s been proven by EA/Dice that dedicated servers have a place on consoles?

I love this game, really. For the last week I’ve been giving it a chance nearly everyday. I want to be able to tolerate its flaws, but I don’t think I can anymore. I just dropped $15 for the Champions Bundle and I was sure this was going to help rekindle the fire, but I’m getting doubtful. Don’t get me wrong: the DLC is great. But I’d like to play other gametypes on these new maps. What about FFA King of the Hill on Vertigo? Team SWAT on Pitfall? Snipers on Pitfall? What about all the other DLC?

Oh, the reason we don’t get to play it is because no one bought it. So that’s the customers’ problem? Hell no! That’s 343’s problem. The customer should be able to play what he paid for. “Oh, well go play customs.” To hell with that! I don’t have any friends that play this game. And I’m pretty sure the majority of Halo players don’t have a party of friends playing with them at most times, either.

I pay for Xbox live Gold every year. I paid for Halo 4. I paid for all the DLC, like a good little boy. You have my money, 343, congratulations, enjoy it. Because that seems to be what this is all about.

Look I know it’s highly unlikely we’ll ever get a server list. Hell it’s highly unlikely anyone has read this far. But please 343, please give me my money’s worth. How about a playlist with ALL DLC, and not just the most recent pack? It’s so rare those maps come into the rotation. There’s maps that I PAID FOR that I haven’t even had the chance to play with other humans yet. For crying out loud.

Get your act together or I’m not buying Halo 5. And FFS don’t screw up Halo 3 PC as badly as Halo 2 Vista.

This has been, and will be, my first and last post. Hopefully someone will read this.

2

You speak the truth.

Give this man a cookie!

3

> It’s 2013 for Christ’s sake, why are game devs still acting like Xbox Live is in its infancy? Why are we still using this stone-age matchmaking system when it’s been proven by EA/Dice that dedicated servers have a place on consoles?

MS wants you to buy their products and they can put in the least amount of work. Dedicated servers cost extra and they just want to makes sure the game is functional online to a certain degree. Most players with high K/D would have a much lower K/D if it were dedicated servers. Especially the 3rd world countries with terrible internet like New Zealand and Australia.

4

I think they learned their lesson when Halo 4’s use of P2P matchmaking. They fixed the gameplay mechanics, and I enjoy it, but it’s so late in the game that finding matches is god awful! It would honestly be a waste of money trying to switch the system over to a dedicated server system.

On the other hand, however, Battlefield 3’s rise in popularity in comparison to Halo 4 (maybe even COD) might be why the Xbox One will strictly use dedicated servers for matchmaking. Hell, I started playing a lot more Battlefield 3 strictly because the experience is lag free for me as long as I stick to West US servers.

As long as 343 remembers the harsh lesson in gameplay mechanics they learned with this game (i.e. don’t be COD/BF, be Halo) and they make the networking as seamless as Microsoft is advertising for the Xbox One, then I have full confidence that Halo 5 could be the X1’s Halo:CE

5

I agree TC, it would also cut back on all the cheating.

Goes back into Theater mode and watches game just played
Me- 20 kills in Scorpion, enemy team tries to take me out but smart positioning and teammate support make their attempts futile.

Enemy A- Runs towards the Rocket spawn with Jetpack, the rockets are not up, nor are they due to respawn any time soon due to last time they were picked up
Blackscreen - Rockets have now respawned
Enemy A- Grabs the rockets
Blackscreen
Enemy A is now jet packing directly above me raining down rockets on me

Me - "You @)$#* cheater*

6

> > It’s 2013 for Christ’s sake, why are game devs still acting like Xbox Live is in its infancy? Why are we still using this stone-age matchmaking system when it’s been proven by EA/Dice that dedicated servers have a place on consoles?
>
> MS wants you to buy their products and they can put in the least amount of work. Dedicated servers cost extra and they just want to makes sure the game is functional online to a certain degree. Most players with high K/D would have a much lower K/D if it were dedicated servers. Especially the 3rd world countries with terrible internet like <mark>New Zealand and Australia.</mark>

Haha very funny. I live in Australia, and while our Internet might be slow compared to other countries, to me there is NO NOTICEABLE DIFFERENCE.

7

> > It’s 2013 for Christ’s sake, why are game devs still acting like Xbox Live is in its infancy? Why are we still using this stone-age matchmaking system when it’s been proven by EA/Dice that dedicated servers have a place on consoles?
>
> MS wants you to buy their products and they can put in the least amount of work. Dedicated servers cost extra and they just want to makes sure the game is functional online to a certain degree.

This is NOT good enough.

~$60 (Halo 4)
~$25 (War Games Map Pass)
~$10 (Champions Bundle)

That’s almost a hundred dollars for the whole package. That’s the price I pay when I expect QUALITY and STABILITY. Instead, we get inconsistent match performance, no way for the average customer to play the $35 dollars worth of DLC that they paid for, and we get penalized for leaving matches (again, likely because of the collateral damage to the connection).

Dedicated servers are just an idea. It’s not my job to figure out how, if it’s even possible, to fix the mess of an infrastructure that plagues this lovely game.

I dare say the Halo franchise has lost its ambition. The devs don’t seem to strive for excellence, but mediocrity. 343 appeared to be fully-staffed with young, inspired talent from the vidocs I’ve seen. It shows in the gameplay, sure, but what about the infrastructure that makes those gameplay experiences go off without a hitch?

It’s not too late to fix this game. It’s not even a year old.

Is this how long your games are designed to last, 343? A year? Not even?

Replay value cannot be attained solely through great gameplay and content. It depends on reliability and trust - trust, from the players, that the game will PROVIDE. It shouldn’t be an effort or a test of patience on the players’ part, it should be an easy, uncomplicated, efficient process of a) joining the map/gametype variant of your choice, b) being able to play through the match without black screens caused by people quitting (can’t get over how ridiculous this is) or host migration, and c) being able to do this OVER AND OVER AGAIN ALL DAY. This game has very little staying power. I’m finding it harder and harder to go at it for more than an hour or two.

As it is now, I’ll get a couple matches in a row (if I’m lucky) without a hitch. Then I’ll get a match that’s no fun because the other team quit. Then I’ll get a match of a gametype I’m not a fan of. Then I’ll get a good match. Then I’ll get owned by someone so out of my skill range that there’s really no competition. Then I’ll get YET ANOTHER black screen for one reason or the other. Then I’ll restart my search and look at the vote options, only to see the SAME FEW MAPS WE’VE ALL BEEN PLAYING SINCE NOVEMBER 2012. Then, I’ll grudgingly turn off my Xbox and go do something else.

No, at this point I’m not going to go play COD or BF3 or any other competing title. I’m a Halo fan. If anything, I’ll go play Halo PC - a game that, despite it’s -Yoink- netcode, enables the player to join a match within less than a minute of launching the game, and lets the player STAY in the match for as long as he desires (and, chances are, he’ll be staying a damn long time, since he was able to join a match of his choice, and not forced to play something that the majority of the strangers he is forced to play with have voted on).

See the problem?

8

OP, you do know that the next Halo game will have dedicated servers?

and its not possible to add such a feature to Halo 4 anymore, it would require a re-release of the game.

and for the game being broken, that is just because the game was rushed.

9

> 3rd world countries with terrible internet like New Zealand and Australia.

Last time I checked New Zealand and Australia weren’t third world countries.

10

> OP, you do know that the next Halo game will have dedicated servers?
>
> and its not possible to add such a feature to Halo 4 anymore, it would require a re-release of the game.
>
> and for the game being broken, that is just because the game was rushed.

Dedicated servers - they’re just going to use them for matchmaking, I’m sure. What they SHOULD do is rent them out to the community and leave it to them to extend the game’s lifetime. It would do a hell of a lot more good than having the same maps/gametypes come up in the same old playlists over and over again. Plus they could keep matchmaking for ranked play.

And I wouldn’t be so sure about it being to late to add these things to the game - BF3 didn’t support dedicated servers until a few months after release.

I’m not very hopeful, so prove me wrong 343

11

Halo is not Battlefield.

Dedicatet servers are great, but a Server list in Halo? That would make stop playing Halo. It would take out the last bit of competitive in it.

Operation Metro 24/7 I Operation Ragnarok 24/7

No way, I hope 343i dont even think about that.

12

> Halo is not Battlefield.
>
> Dedicatet servers are great, but a <mark>Server list in Halo?</mark> That would make stop playing Halo. It would take out the last bit of competitive in it.
>
> Operation Metro 24/7 I Operation Ragnarok 24/7
>
> No way, I hope 343i dont even think about that.

Turn up Halo PC or Costum Edition for a moment. Servers are not against competitiveness, server are FOR competitiveness. If you want to play competitively, just join a competitive server. There should be people whose are running them. If you don’t want then don’t join. You do not get randomly bad teammates or too powerful enemies if you choose the right server.

I played the living s(word) out of Battlefield 3, and that game is the best online experience that I have with the 360. As you can see, servers make wonders.

Why it would take the last bit of competitive? If nobody would play or host competitive servers, than it is just the proof, nobody wants to play competitive. Team Throwdown and Legendary Slayer are another good examples. They are made for competitive players, nor of them has +1000 players in a daily peak. Competitiveness is already dead IMO. Why do we beating a dead horse?

13

Just for custom games, then. Have you ever played halo pc? It works very well, it’s nice to have a server you can always join and the same regulars are on.

14

> > OP, you do know that the next Halo game will have dedicated servers?
> >
> > and its not possible to add such a feature to Halo 4 anymore, it would require a re-release of the game.
> >
> > and for the game being broken, that is just because the game was rushed.
>
> Dedicated servers - they’re just going to use them for matchmaking, I’m sure. <mark>What they SHOULD do is rent them out to the community</mark> and leave it to them to extend the game’s lifetime. It would do a hell of a lot more good than having the same maps/gametypes come up in the same old playlists over and over again. Plus they could keep matchmaking for ranked play.
>
> And I wouldn’t be so sure about it being to late to add these things to the game - BF3 didn’t support dedicated servers until a few months after release.
>
> I’m not very hopeful, so prove me wrong 343

Because that worked SO great in Battlefield (sarcasm)

15

> > Halo is not Battlefield.
> >
> > Dedicatet servers are great, but a <mark>Server list in Halo?</mark> That would make stop playing Halo. It would take out the last bit of competitive in it.
> >
> > Operation Metro 24/7 I Operation Ragnarok 24/7
> >
> > No way, I hope 343i dont even think about that.
>
> Turn up Halo PC or Costum Edition for a moment. Servers are not against competitiveness, server are FOR competitiveness. If you want to play competitively, just join a competitive server. There should be people whose are running them. If you don’t want then don’t join. You do not get randomly bad teammates or too powerful enemies if you choose the right server.
>
> I played the living s(word) out of Battlefield 3, and that game is the best online experience that I have with the 360. As you can see, servers make wonders.
>
> Why it would take the last bit of competitive? If nobody would play or host competitive servers, than it is just the proof, nobody wants to play competitive. Team Throwdown and Legendary Slayer are another good examples. They are made for competitive players, nor of them has +1000 players in a daily peak. Competitiveness is already dead IMO. Why do we beating a dead horse?

No, it wont work, it is not HALO dude. It will work for Lone Wolve players only but it can never be competitive.

I search 4 vs. 4 with my team and I want to beat some enemies I find on in Matchmaking.

I will play against the same 4 people on the same 1 or 2 maps all the time, and when one of them leaves? What happens then? No body will care abou winning a game.¨

In battlefield it is like searching for custom games. You can boost everything you want.

16

> > > Halo is not Battlefield.
> > >
> > > Dedicatet servers are great, but a <mark>Server list in Halo?</mark> That would make stop playing Halo. It would take out the last bit of competitive in it.
> > >
> > > Operation Metro 24/7 I Operation Ragnarok 24/7
> > >
> > > No way, I hope 343i dont even think about that.
> >
> > Turn up Halo PC or Costum Edition for a moment. Servers are not against competitiveness, server are FOR competitiveness. If you want to play competitively, just join a competitive server. There should be people whose are running them. If you don’t want then don’t join. You do not get randomly bad teammates or too powerful enemies if you choose the right server.
> >
> > I played the living s(word) out of Battlefield 3, and that game is the best online experience that I have with the 360. As you can see, servers make wonders.
> >
> > Why it would take the last bit of competitive? If nobody would play or host competitive servers, than it is just the proof, nobody wants to play competitive. Team Throwdown and Legendary Slayer are another good examples. They are made for competitive players, nor of them has +1000 players in a daily peak. Competitiveness is already dead IMO. Why do we beating a dead horse?
>
> No, it wont work, it is not HALO dude. It will work for Lone Wolve players only but it can never be competitive.
>
> I search 4 vs. 4 with my team and I want to beat some enemies I find on in Matchmaking.
>
> I will play against the same 4 people on the same 1 or 2 maps all the time, and when one of them leaves? What happens then? No body will care abou winning a game.¨
>
> In battlefield it is like searching for custom games. You can boost everything you want.

It would be really nice for custom games but the dead for MM.
Giving the servers to the players ruined BF3 for me.

17

quote]
Haha very funny. I live in Australia, and while our Internet might be slow compared to other countries, to me there is NO NOTICEABLE DIFFERENCE.
[/quote]
Good! Because to the rest of us with decent connections, ya’ll are all over the place, skipping and lagging away! :stuck_out_tongue:
I regularly dip out of matches with Australian or New Zealand players, simply because I refuse to be at the disadvantage of having achieved a better connection only to have people that are able to jump around shots and fling back and forth around the immediate battlefield to the point where I lose track of them visually and on radar. I can tell it’s not the run around, it’s lag. That’s why your in front of me with two shots left in you, then you’re behind me with full shields assinating me like a fool.

18

So dedicated servers for customs and P2P matchmaking for competitive, then.

Look, whether they add dedicated servers or not, matchmaking is a mess right now. The dedi’s are just a suggestion for a workaround. It’s beside the point. Something needs to be done about all the black screens, the availability of DLC in the playlists, etc. Halo 4 is a fun game, but it’s unstable and frustrating when it comes to just being able to get into a game and keep playing with the least amount of downtime as possible.

Dedi’s for matchmaking (not a server list, just matchmade games being hosted on a stable connection) and an all-DLC playlist would be a step in the right direction.

19

> > > It’s 2013 for Christ’s sake, why are game devs still acting like Xbox Live is in its infancy? Why are we still using this stone-age matchmaking system when it’s been proven by EA/Dice that dedicated servers have a place on consoles?
> >
> > MS wants you to buy their products and they can put in the least amount of work. Dedicated servers cost extra and they just want to makes sure the game is functional online to a certain degree. Most players with high K/D would have a much lower K/D if it were dedicated servers. Especially the 3rd world countries with terrible internet like <mark>New Zealand and Australia.</mark>
>
> Haha very funny. I live in Australia, and while our Internet might be slow compared to other countries, to me there is NO NOTICEABLE DIFFERENCE.

I’d second that.

H4 has horrible host selection methodology. They don’t pick the best connection as host per match, they use Host History. Net result is that any new players will pull host (no history) - where as the more games you play the less likely you ever become host again. A real account of this is ranted about here:

https://forums.halowaypoint.com/yaf_postsm2567780_Is-Halo-4-s-Netcode-Bogging-Down.aspx#post2567780

And before anyone chants the 343 mantra “It’s your connection” - it isn’t - nor was it for the 320,000 people that lefts Halo in the first month (120,000 in the first week):

http://halocharts.com/2013/playlists_halo4.php

20

> > > > Halo is not Battlefield.
> > > >
> > > > Dedicatet servers are great, but a <mark>Server list in Halo?</mark> That would make stop playing Halo. It would take out the last bit of competitive in it.
> > > >
> > > > Operation Metro 24/7 I Operation Ragnarok 24/7
> > > >
> > > > No way, I hope 343i dont even think about that.
> > >
> > > Turn up Halo PC or Costum Edition for a moment. Servers are not against competitiveness, server are FOR competitiveness. If you want to play competitively, just join a competitive server. There should be people whose are running them. If you don’t want then don’t join. You do not get randomly bad teammates or too powerful enemies if you choose the right server.
> > >
> > > I played the living s(word) out of Battlefield 3, and that game is the best online experience that I have with the 360. As you can see, servers make wonders.
> > >
> > > Why it would take the last bit of competitive? If nobody would play or host competitive servers, than it is just the proof, nobody wants to play competitive. Team Throwdown and Legendary Slayer are another good examples. They are made for competitive players, nor of them has +1000 players in a daily peak. Competitiveness is already dead IMO. Why do we beating a dead horse?
> >
> > No, it wont work, it is not HALO dude. It will work for Lone Wolve players only but it can never be competitive.
> >
> > I search 4 vs. 4 with my team and I want to beat some enemies I find on in Matchmaking.
> >
> > I will play against the same 4 people on the same 1 or 2 maps all the time, and when one of them leaves? What happens then? No body will care abou winning a game.¨
> >
> > In battlefield it is like searching for custom games. You can boost everything you want.
>
> It would be really nice for custom games but the dead for MM.
> Giving the servers to the players ruined BF3 for me.

My idea came from Halo PC (which were before Halo 2, Halo PC was the first true online multi-player Halo) and it worked well. The only bad thing was the net-code (Which has been fixed by fans, you can download a patch for it).

You can play competitively if there are others wants too. Default servers, or hosted servers one of them should run competitive game not? If there won’t be any competitive servers, than it’s just another proof, Competitive gaming is already dead. I know what you’re talking about, but all of your problems can be easily fixed via tweaking.

In BF3, there were 4 man squad, I don’t know what you’re talking about. There were not just only Lone Wolf players. If you even played BF3, I doubt that was long enough to understand it.