It's Been a Few Years, Right?

Games Other Halo
1

I know how the Halo community works. New game announced, excitement, game comes out, and then a flood of whining. Happened with ODST, happened with Reach, happened with Halo 4. So I left for a little while, eventually returning to the Bungie forums (and, good Lord, #Destiny has become a monster. But that’s what happens when a well-respected gamedev announces a new game and then says nothing about it for a year). And now, as I return to Waypoint, I notice that I might’ve missed a bit. So just give me a quick heads-up: does everybody and their mother still hate Reach like the Antichrist?

EDIT: Actually, how many people are still playing it? Think I might go back later.

2

> does everybody and their mother still hate Reach like the Antichrist?
>
> EDIT: Actually, how many people are still playing it? Think I might go back later.

Some people.

EDIT: Last time I checked, Halo: Reach had a larger population than Halo 4.

3

> > does everybody and their mother still hate Reach like the Antichrist?
>
> Some people.

Shame. Never quite understood why. It had its flaws, but it wasn’t a bad game.

4

I always liked Halo Reach. It was fun for me and reminded me of Halo CE a bit which is my favorite halo game. Also all the new weapons were really unique and creative.

5

Some people may still play, but there is enough altogether that every playlist gets people, and you don’t have to wait for a long time. Even if the playlist has less than 200, odds are you’ll get a match within a minute.

Forums are forums, I never follow them, thus why I never heard about any hate on Halo: Reach when I played a lot back in the day. I play here and there now.

But right now, it’s sad on Halo: Reach - because you can hardly even play your DLC maps. Grr…

6

You’ll never believe this, but despite all the complaints, Reach actually has more players on a daily basis than Halo 4.

Reach peaks at around 21,000 players at one time each, where as Halo 4 barely gets 15,000.

Normally when a new Halo game comes out, everyone moves to the new game and doesn’t look back. This time, the Halo fans that are left are pretty much split between the two latest games in the series, and Reach is actually winning.

Me? I always thought Reach was the greatest Halo game of all time. Having finally gotten bored Halo 4, I must say it’s good to be back.

7

> > > does everybody and their mother still hate Reach like the Antichrist?
> >
> > Some people.
>
> Shame. Never quite understood why. It had its flaws, but it wasn’t a bad game.

Halo 4 has made people appreciate Reach much more now, myself included.

8

Bnet still hates Reach, but not nearly as much as back in the days of the Reach forum. All the hate from the gaming community in general toward Reach seems to have latched onto Halo 4, and quite frankly it’s pretty justified.

But I digress. Reach actually has a really good population for a game of its age, and it even beats Halo 4’s daily peak frequently now. Most of that daily peak resides in vanilla Reach, but I can still find games in TU and (sometimes) MLG regularly.

9

> Bnet still hates Reach, but not nearly as much as back in the days of the Reach forum. All the hate from the gaming community in general toward Reach seems to have latched onto Halo 4, and quite frankly it’s pretty justified.
>
> But I digress. Reach actually has a really good population for a game of its age, and it even beats Halo 4’s daily peak frequently now. Most of that daily peak resides in vanilla Reach, but I can still find games in TU and (sometimes) MLG regularly.

Man, I remember the Bungie.net forums… so many “I Hate Reach” threads, people posting long farewells talking about how they were moving on to Call of Duty, or… what the hell. Saw quite a few before Halo 4’s release talking about how 343i was gonna save Halo, and that Halo 4 was going be 10x better than Reach… and I defended reach against most of it. I thought it was a great game from the start.

I guess those complainers are now eating their words.

EDIT: BTW, I just saw this pole on the Bungie.net forums asking people what their favorite Halo game was. Halo 3’s leading with 9 votes, Reach is in second with 8.

Halo:Combat Evolved, Halo 2, and Halo 3 have a couple votes apiece, but Halo 4 is in dead last with 0.

Last time I was in the Reach forum on the old Bnet (right before Halo 4 came out), it would’ve been Reach in last. So that’s big change.

I’m just baffled. After everything that was said about Reach, it is actually the preferred game over Halo 4. That’s just priceless :slight_smile:

10

You know, I just got trashed in a thread over on the “Halo Xbox One” area for saying that every Halo game since Halo 2 has gone through a hazing period that usually ends when the next title is released, then it’s the new game’s turn and the older one is now remembered fondly. Repeat.

The counter argument was something about my flawed logic where I was lumping a dramatic shift in Halo core mechanics with a simple “I preferred Halo 2 over Halo 3” … which, I suppose is valid, but you guys seem to be reaffirming this pattern, which I think is the same pattern, it’s just gotten … well, exaggerated as the game has evolved.

Personally, I’ve never played a Halo game I didn’t like.

11

> You know, I just got trashed in a thread over on the “Halo Xbox One” area for saying that every Halo game since Halo 2 has gone through a hazing period that usually ends when the next title is released, then it’s the new game’s turn and the older one is now remembered fondly. Repeat.
>
> The counter argument was something about my flawed logic where I was lumping a dramatic shift in Halo core mechanics with a simple “I preferred Halo 2 over Halo 3” … which, I suppose is valid, but you guys seem to be reaffirming this pattern, which I think is the same pattern, it’s just gotten … well, exaggerated as the game has evolved.
>
>
> <mark>Personally, I’ve never played a Halo game I didn’t like.</mark>

Halo 4 is different than previous games. The biggest problem in the game by far, and the reason I can’t enjoy playing it any more, is the lag. The servers for Halo are by far the worst of any Halo game, and it’s hard to enjoy when you have black screens literally every single game.

To top that off, your only alternative is solo Spartan Ops; which I’ve already played through a few dozen times, enough for it to finally get boring. Forced skulls do not compel me to try Spartan Ops again; if anything, that’s my cue to avoid Spartan Ops until 343i turns them off. The lack of customization options really detracts from the replay value.

Then of course, I mentioned the issues with sound effects. Driving the Warthog isn’t as much fun when it sounds like an RC car, and the same goes for firing the BR when it sounds like a cheap airsoft gun. 343i should’ve just kept the sound effects from Halo:Reach for all of the weapons and vehicles. There was no need to change them.

Hell, the Ghost has used the same SFX from Halo 2 to Halo:Reach, and it sounded perfect; why change it? I can’t enjoy driving the Ghost in Halo 4 because of that stupid pattering sound the guns make.

I defended Halo 4 at first; I thought 343i did a pretty good job for their first game. But the game itself wore me down over time, and I started playing less and less. Then I decided to try playing Reach again, for old times sake; and I saw how large a population it had despite Halo 4. I jumped right into matchmaking, and I had fun in Halo multiplayer for the first time in months, and I haven’t looked back since.

12

> > You know, I just got trashed in a thread over on the “Halo Xbox One” area for saying that every Halo game since Halo 2 has gone through a hazing period that usually ends when the next title is released, then it’s the new game’s turn and the older one is now remembered fondly. Repeat.
> >
> > The counter argument was something about my flawed logic where I was lumping a dramatic shift in Halo core mechanics with a simple “I preferred Halo 2 over Halo 3” … which, I suppose is valid, but you guys seem to be reaffirming this pattern, which I think is the same pattern, it’s just gotten … well, exaggerated as the game has evolved.
> >
> >
> > <mark>Personally, I’ve never played a Halo game I didn’t like.</mark>
>
> Halo 4 is different than previous games. <mark>The biggest problem in the game by far, and the reason I can’t enjoy playing it any more, is the lag.</mark> The servers for Halo are by far the worst of any Halo game, and it’s hard to enjoy when you have black screens literally every single game.
>
> To top that off, your only alternative is solo Spartan Ops; which I’ve already played through a few dozen times, enough for it to finally get boring. Forced skulls do not compel me to try Spartan Ops again; if anything, that’s my cue to avoid Spartan Ops until 343i turns them off. The lack of customization options really detracts from the replay value.
>
> Then of course, I mentioned the issues with sound effects. Driving the Warthog isn’t as much fun when it sounds like an RC car, and the same goes for firing the BR when it sounds like a cheap airsoft gun. 343i should’ve just kept the sound effects from Halo:Reach for all of the weapons and vehicles. There was no need to change them.
>
> Hell, the Ghost has used the same SFX from Halo 2 to Halo:Reach, and it sounded perfect; why change it? I can’t enjoy driving the Ghost in Halo 4 because of that stupid pattering sound the guns make.
>
> I defended Halo 4 at first; I thought 343i did a pretty good job for their first game. But the game itself wore me down over time, and I started playing less and less. Then I decided to try playing Reach again, for old times sake; and I saw how large a population it had despite Halo 4. I jumped right into matchmaking, and I had fun in Halo multiplayer for the first time in months, and I haven’t looked back since.

I hear ya. I’ve actually been playing CEA more than Halo 4. Lag has been ridiculous lately for Halo 3, Reach, and Halo 4 … to the extent that I’m thinking it may be my internet and not so much the servers. Or both, probably.

13

> Some people may still play, but there is enough altogether that every playlist gets people, and you don’t have to wait for a long time. Even if the playlist has less than 200, odds are you’ll get a match within a minute.
>
> But right now, it’s sad on Halo: Reach - because you can hardly even play your DLC maps. Grr…

You may get a match easily, but more often than not you’re playing on a laggy Mexican host who has dial-up. Man, I am sick and tired of that nonsense. It could be fixed in 30 minutes, too.

And I haven’t even SEEN one of my bought-and-paid-for DLC maps in forever. That really twists my -Yoink!-, let me tell you.

After spending a ton of money on XBL Gold, super high speed internet, Reach and every DLC available for it I still can’t get a decent match without some ridiculous lag most times or play on the maps I bought. It’s just stupid and I feel totally robbed. Robbed so badly that I haven’t even bothered wasting more money on H4. It’s just not worth it to me.

14

> > > You know, I just got trashed in a thread over on the “Halo Xbox One” area for saying that every Halo game since Halo 2 has gone through a hazing period that usually ends when the next title is released, then it’s the new game’s turn and the older one is now remembered fondly. Repeat.
> > >
> > > The counter argument was something about my flawed logic where I was lumping a dramatic shift in Halo core mechanics with a simple “I preferred Halo 2 over Halo 3” … which, I suppose is valid, but you guys seem to be reaffirming this pattern, which I think is the same pattern, it’s just gotten … well, exaggerated as the game has evolved.
> > >
> > >
> > > <mark>Personally, I’ve never played a Halo game I didn’t like.</mark>
> >
> > Halo 4 is different than previous games. <mark>The biggest problem in the game by far, and the reason I can’t enjoy playing it any more, is the lag.</mark> The servers for Halo are by far the worst of any Halo game, and it’s hard to enjoy when you have black screens literally every single game.
> >
> > To top that off, your only alternative is solo Spartan Ops; which I’ve already played through a few dozen times, enough for it to finally get boring. Forced skulls do not compel me to try Spartan Ops again; if anything, that’s my cue to avoid Spartan Ops until 343i turns them off. The lack of customization options really detracts from the replay value.
> >
> > Then of course, I mentioned the issues with sound effects. Driving the Warthog isn’t as much fun when it sounds like an RC car, and the same goes for firing the BR when it sounds like a cheap airsoft gun. 343i should’ve just kept the sound effects from Halo:Reach for all of the weapons and vehicles. There was no need to change them.
> >
> > Hell, the Ghost has used the same SFX from Halo 2 to Halo:Reach, and it sounded perfect; why change it? I can’t enjoy driving the Ghost in Halo 4 because of that stupid pattering sound the guns make.
> >
> > I defended Halo 4 at first; I thought 343i did a pretty good job for their first game. But the game itself wore me down over time, and I started playing less and less. Then I decided to try playing Reach again, for old times sake; and I saw how large a population it had despite Halo 4. I jumped right into matchmaking, and I had fun in Halo multiplayer for the first time in months, and I haven’t looked back since.
>
> I hear ya. I’ve actually been playing CEA more than Halo 4. Lag has been ridiculous lately for Halo 3, Reach, and Halo 4 … to the extent that I’m thinking it may be my internet and not so much the servers. Or both, probably.

If you’re having problems with all of those games, then it’s most likely your own internet. Lag is a nightmare in Halo 4 (especially in Spartan Ops and Campaign), but Halo:Reach has proven to be a far more stable matchmaking experience since I came back a week ago.

I think Halo 3 is all right too, but I haven’t played the multiplayer recently so I can’t say how good it is compared to Halo 4 and Reach.

I think Join-In-Progress is a big part of Halo 4’s problem; people dropping in and dropping out so often surely puts a strain on the servers (not to mention JIP encourages quitting), and the cause of most of the black screens.

That doesn’t explain the lag in Spartan Ops though, as I’m pretty sure Spartan Ops doesn’t have Join-In-Progress.

Thankfully, Firefight in Halo:Reach does not suffer from the same amount of lag as Spartan Ops; I had pretty stable game on Installation 04 the other day with almost no lag. But every time I try Spartan Ops co-op… just forget it. It’s completely unplayable.

15

I never had a problem with Reach to begin with. The only part I don’t like about Reach is Armor Lock, and also nowadays its so hard to play on a DLC map. But other than that, I thought it was alright. As for Halo 4, I never thought it was a terrible game. I liked the Campaign, and as for Spartan Ops, it was a neat concept, but 343 didn’t execute it well. The multiplayer wasn’t bad, it just didn’t have a “Halo” feel to it. Like it didn’t have the same atmosphere as 2 or 3 had.

Btw, I usually almost never get lag when I play 3, and most of the time its good for Reach. Can’t really say that much for 4 though cause its been awhile since I’ve played it.

16

> Normally when a new Halo game comes out, everyone moves to the new game and doesn’t look back. This time, the Halo fans that are left are pretty much split between the two latest games in the series, and Reach is actually winning.

Halo 3 is getting a larger population than Halo 4 on occasion still as well

17

> You’ll never believe this, but despite all the complaints, Reach actually has more players on a daily basis than Halo 4.
>
> Reach peaks at around 21,000 players at one time each, where as Halo 4 barely gets 15,000.
>
> Normally when a new Halo game comes out, everyone moves to the new game and doesn’t look back. This time, the Halo fans that are left are pretty much split between the two latest games in the series, and Reach is actually winning.
>
> Me? I always thought Reach was the greatest Halo game of all time. Having finally gotten bored Halo 4, I must say it’s good to be back.

I preferred Halo 2 and 3, but Reach and 4 were quite good as well.

My humble opinion is that these are the best Halo games by gamemode:

Campaign: Halo 2.
Matchmaking: Halo 3.
Firefight: Halo Reach.
Forge: Tie between Halo Reach and Halo 4.