First off, I want to say that Halo 4 is the most fundamentally sound Halo game since H2. The core mechanics, physics, and balance of the game are very respectable but there needs to be some minor improvements. I don’t think that it would be too much to say that at this point in time, Matchmaking is just not making the cut. I realize we are less than two months into the game but these ideas should be considered in a title update.
-Ranks. Visible ranks.
We want to be able to look at somebody’s Gamertag in the pre-game lobby and immediately start to size up our opponents. H3 did it well where you could see a person’s skill rank and how much they played the playlist. Competition is what drives Halo. It’s what makes us want to come back day after day and pick up where he left off. Right now, there is no motivation to play every day. (And just so you know, ranks on Waypoint, if not visible from in the game, do not solve this problem. People want immediate, tangible results after every game so they know where they stand.)
-Camouflage
It is a privilege to have camouflage, not a right. What I mean by this is that camo has no basis in being an armor ability, something that one can spawn with. I’m not saying get rid of it completely, but make it into a personal ordinance and put it along side the overshield, damage boost, and speed boost. And please fix the camo glitch already. Players can do it at will and it is not simply happenstance.
-Big Team Battle
I think BTB is the best in H4 than any other Halo game. This is an opinion widely held and evidenced by the markedly high population of the BTB playlist. The playlist needs to include objective gametypes. It should not consist of just Infinity Slayer. We should see a healthy dosage of CTF, Dominion, and Extraction (for the love of God, NOT Oddball or KOTH) included. Many maps are paralyzed by the effectiveness of the DMR at long ranges. Including an objective on the map would entice many to keep the pace of play moving and might encourage players to avoid long-winded stalemates.
This is not an advertisement, but the folks over at bigteambattle.net and a few of the French BTB communities have the idea of where BTB should be headed.
-Instant Respawn
It’s not game-breaking in Slayer modes, but there absolutely needs to be a respawn timer in all objective modes. In many instances, it becomes beneficial to die and respawn in a better position than it would be to kill your opponent. Without a timer, there is no incentive to finish off teammates’ kills and the amount of teamwork required to win the game is diminished.
-Oddball
The idea of being able to throw the ball to your teammates is a disastrous one. Plain and simple. Couple this idea with instant respawn and the entire gametype is unplayable. Why bother trying to kill the Oddball carrier when he can just throw it across the map to a teammate who is fresh off respawn?
As another suggestion, if you are the oddball or flag holder your left hand almost completely covers the radar. I find this annoying.
-DMR
I am of the personal opinion that the DMR should be removed from Matchmaking completely in favor of the BR. However, I understand that probably won’t ever happen so I’ll just bring up some points about it. Quite simply, the DMR rapes. It is just too good a weapon. It is extremely effective at close, middle, and long ranges. I love using the BR; it truly feels great! But why would I ever use it when the DMR just straight out-classes it in every regard?
The DMR is a hit or miss weapon, just like the BR. However, unlike the DMR, not all hits are created equal on the BR. Some hits are better than others because of its spread. This introduces an aspect of skill where the better your shots are, the better your result. In a DMR battle, it makes it harder to win your battle if you don’t have the first shot. In a BR battle, it is more possible to come from behind in a battle to win if you have superior shot accuracy.
-Boltshot
It doesn’t need to be removed, but it should not be able to be charged at all. You should never be able to spawn with a weapon that is a one shot kill. Having the 8 or 10, whatever it is, bullets in the clip being fired individually would solve the problem.
-Maps
We want to see some community maps in Matchmaking. Also, what’s wrong with Ascent, Impact, and Ravine? Why were they not included in Matchmaking yet they come standard to all players on the disc?
-Regicide/FFA
Halo 4 is a terrible game when you are trying to play by yourself. Great in teams, but awful by yourself. Sadly, Regicide does not fill that void. Regicide is a fantastic gametype for Team Regicide. But FFA Regicide is a whole bunch of malarkey. It simply does not work. It’s annoying having the waypoint on top of your head when you don’t have teammates there to protect you. Remove Regicide and implement an FFA Slayer playlist.
-Join In Progress
This goes hand in hand with my above statements. I think we can all agree that we enjoy when teammates are brought into the game, but we hate being the teammate that gets dropped into the game. Normally I’d just say remove it altogether, but at the very least, include an option from within the game that allows you to toggle whether or not you’d like to be tossed into a game in progress.
Along the same lines, parties should never be split. If I wanted to play against my friends I’d go play them in a custom game. I search with a full party so that I can play with them and hopefully match other parties of equal size.
-Backing Out
As soon as you get locked into a game, you should not be able to back out. Currently, people do this to avoid playing good teams, such as myself, and it wastes time and eliminates any good chances of getting meaningful games. This is especially annoying in BTB and in the challenge playlists where people are playing for score.
-Descoping
For the 3 Rifles in this game, you should automatically be descoped if you are shot while being scoped in. I find that it is very tolerable that you aren’t descoped when using the BR or DMR et al., but not being descoped while you carry a rifle gives you a huge, unfair advantage.
-Toggle Options
As I understand it, many core ideas cannot be toggled. For instance, you cannot turn off sprint and you cannot drop the flag once it is picked up. Many people like vanilla Halo and would like to have this option for custom games even if it is not implemented into Matchmaking.
Those are just some of my ideas that I feel could improve this game. Please respond with feedback of your own or criticisms of what I’ve brought forth!