It's time for me to break my silence.

Games Halo: The Master Chief Collection
1

Hello forum readers!

I am a diehard Halo fan and player. Like many, I have invested a large portion of my life into Halo, dating all the way back to CE on Xbox. I read the novels, watch the shows/movies, attend events and collect figures and statues. In fact, there is a 6FT Halo 2 Master Chief statue in my living room as we speak. I am no stranger to the Halo Universe.

For the last 4 weeks, I have been reading endless threads and absorbing the conversations around MCC while I pondered my own experience. I have decided that I have had enough time to wrap my mind around what has been going on and it’s time to break my silence and share my thoughts. I will try to do so briefly.

Like many of you I waited in line at a midnight launch for MCC. I was at a Microsoft store where they streamed Halo Fest, let us play the game from 10-Mindight, did raffles and gave out tons of swag to the attendees. The hype was nuts. I was excited to go home stay up all night with my wife (Who is an avid Halo 4 MP vet) and take her on her first run through as much Halo Campaign as possible all of Tuesday. We both had taken off work Tuesday, 11/11, for the event. We also purchased a second Xbox One so we could play on separate screens in the same room, which was the setup during our Halo 4 MP days on the 360 during 2012-13. We are serious about our Halo.

We each experienced a 12 hour install time, including the day one update. Which factoring in driving home from the event and prepping our systems means we did not gain access to the full game until 2PM on launch day. In and of itself, that means that the vacation days were not necessary at all. We were also plagued by the inability to play any matchmaking. Which no longer comes as a surprise considering how many others suffered the same. We even tried to play the coop campaign. However, that was a wash as well. In solo mode, everything worked fine. As soon as we were together however, which ever of us was not hosting, suffered intolerable lag and frame rate issues. On a connection pulling down 105Mbps and putting up 15, that shouldn’t have been happening. By the end of the day we were simply exhausted and disappointed of it, just like many of the fan’s tweets we were reading, videos we were watching, and Xbox live friends we were chatting with.

On Wednesday I spent most of the work day monitoring these discussion boards and trying to figure out what went wrong. Since then, I have tried a few matches here and there. Our campaign progress is the same and after a few dropped sessions we have not tried in about 2 weeks. I have been able to get into some matches this weekend, which is great progress for me, but the unstable nature of the connection and the lag I experience is not enough to keep me trying past 1 or 2 matches. And even after playing a little today on 12/6, nearly 4 weeks since launch, after the third user downloadable patch, (and who knows how many backend ones), I have finally come to my conclusions about the MCC.

I have read what Phil, Bonnie, Frank, and other’s at 343 have had to say. I have read fan’s cries of sorrow and rage. I have read loyalists who continue to say, “Just give it time.” After all this, I have decided that no matter what my emotional roller coaster of feelings were, nothing I say or feel will change what is happening at 343 or Microsoft.

I was mad, and entitled to start thinking, “How could they do this to ME? I have been around since the beginning! Surely this is a one day deal.”

I was sad and confused which prompted me to think, “I can’t believe I’m not playing Halo right now. Will I have to wait to play until Halo 5?”

I was even optimistic at one point after Bonnie’s letter broke. “See? They are hurting too, I know they care, they’re sorry. They’ll fix it soon. They’re Halo!”

At this point, here and now. I am simply “Hopeful”. I have all the faith in the world that 343 and Microsoft will come together, the lights will come on and there will be a fix that brings this version of Halo to the same reliability and fun that Halo 2 had in 2004. I am still sad that I can’t internally justify pouring time into a game that I am not enjoying. But I do believe it won’t be forever.

I am not going to tell any of you how to feel. None of you are wrong. You are simply processing your feelings towards a franchise that you believe in, in a way that helps you cope with what’s going on. I will however ask something of anyone who has made it to the bottom of this post. Please join me in having “hope”. We’re all Halo fans, we ALL want the game to be the very best that it can be. Since we cannot physically help improve the experience ourselves, all we have, is hope.

Please share your thoughts with me below. I look forward to reading them. If you want to play any Xbox One or 360 games with me, (maybe even Halo some day) my gamertag is DarkSnip3r TJ.

Have a good night everyone and thanks for taking the time to read this and join me in HOPE for the future of MCC.

2

yeah im the same way kinda ive been seeing lots of hate towards 343 but I keep saying why when we know that at some point in the near future we are going to have an epic game its done the game is out and made just not working but it will work and be amazing also I don’t know if im lucky but I get a game about every 5 to 8 mins still kinda long but not unplayable

3

> 2533274808207025;2:
> yeah im the same way kinda ive been seeing lots of hate towards 343 but I keep saying why when we know that at some point in the near future we are going to have an epic game its done the game is out and made just not working but it will work and be amazing also I don’t know if im lucky but I get a game about every 5 to 8 mins still kinda long but not unplayable

Glad to hear your experience has been improving. Thanks for the positive comments!

4

Good post mate. I love Halo as well and sad to see MCC shipped so unpolished. At least the game continues to get the support it deserves however.

5

> 2533274811430050;4:
> Good post mate. I love Halo as well and sad to see MCC shipped so unpolished. At least the game continues to get the support it deserves however.

Couldn’t agree more. Part of the hope I am talking about goes along with the expectation that Halo has limitless resources with Microsoft at it’s back.

6

I have to agree. All I can do at this point is hope they can actually fix it. Previously I was furious, and from time to time I get upset; how could this even happen? This game had everything going for it but it managed to have so many problems, and even ignoring those take a bunch of ridiculous steps backwards. But now, more than ever, all I can do is hope that things get fixed and hope that we’re at the end of the lowest point in Halo history - that things will get better and better and that they’ll fix this game because they just have to.

So right now, I’m more sad than anything. That that this was allowed to happen, and that I’ll have to likely wait for months until it’s playable.

7

> 2533274917567491;6:
> I have to agree. All I can do at this point is hope they can actually fix it. Previously I was furious, and from time to time I get upset; how could this even happen? This game had everything going for it but it managed to have so many problems, and even ignoring those take a bunch of ridiculous steps backwards. But now, more than ever, all I can do is hope that things get fixed and hope that we’re at the end of the lowest point in Halo history - that things will get better and better and that they’ll fix this game because they just have to.
>
> So right now, I’m more sad than anything. That that this was allowed to happen, and that I’ll have to likely wait for months until it’s playable.

I definitely fluctuate as well. My occasional sadness comes not out of aggression towards Halo or 343, but rather it comes from the same place as when you watch a close friend go through something terrible and there is nothing you can do to help except be there and hope it gets better.

8

Man, this post describes exactly how I feel about the game.
I admidditaly used to be one of those people who kept telling people to give it time, but quickly realized doing such was a dumb move. People have a right to be upset.
Even though I am mad, and sad at how the way this game turned out ( it was a beautiful idea, just crashed and burned at the start like a Pelican), I’m still gonna try and stay optimistic. Or, rather a better word, would be hopeful.
These things WILL be fixed. And if what we’ve heard on the Halo Bullitin about it getting fixed as quickly as they can, and how they even DELAYED one of the games just to fix these problems…it certainly seems like these frustrating things will be over and done with very soon.
All we can do is just wait till the next update.

9

> 2533274831928820;8:
> Man, this post describes exactly how I feel about the game.
> I admidditaly used to be one of those people who kept telling people to give it time, but quickly realized doing such was a dumb move. People have a right to be upset.
> Even though I am mad, and sad at how the way this game turned out ( it was a beautiful idea, just crashed and burned at the start like a Pelican), I’m still gonna try and stay optimistic. Or, rather a better word, would be hopeful.
> These things WILL be fixed. And if what we’ve heard on the Halo Bullitin about it getting fixed as quickly as they can, and how they even DELAYED one of the games just to fix these problems…it certainly seems like these frustrating things will be over and done with very soon.
> All we can do is just wait till the next update.

Thanks for a thoughtful reply! I love the Pelican reference. I completely agree that the transparency on the part of the dev and the obvious commitments they have made to making this right, means it’s only a matter of time.

10

It’s a little heartbreaking what’s happened to this game … and a lot of people who are coming across as in-denial or naive or overly hopeful or aggressively defensive (or as those of you with a limited vocabulary would call them: “fanboys”) I think they just want nothing more than for this game to be fixed.

And that sure beats the pants off of just sitting back in your pile of spite while you pock-mark these forums with cheeky little remarks ranging from the non-constructive to the blatantly insulting to the not-so-clever little puns (“3fail3bola” … look, I just combined the two most popular into one; come on guys, it’s been three weeks and I haven’t even been trying! You call yourselves clever?)

Then of course there’s the “just play campaign” people vs. the “matchmaking is all that matters” people … they’re now two feuding groups, as if playing both is “unclean” … as if we need anymore subdivisions. Apparently liking all Halo games puts you in a minority. You have to pick one game as the best, a close second, then hate on the rest, but there’s got to be one that you hate far beyond any other; one that you hate as much as you like your favorite. Doesn’t matter which, just randomly insert the games into that formula and you’re ready to argue.

Anyway, OP, there’s constructive criticism and then there’s hate-spamming. I think closely following these threads is bad for one’s mental health and should be avoided. Trust me, I’ve been closely following them all along and it’s depressing as hell. The negativity is like a cancer … and that cancer suddenly just got diabetes.

11

I hoped it would work after patch #3…

12

> 2533274883669557;10:
> It’s a little heartbreaking what’s happened to this game … and a lot of people who are coming across as in-denial or naive or overly hopeful or aggressively defensive (or as those of you with a limited vocabulary would call them: “fanboys”) I think they just want nothing more than for this game to be fixed.
>
> And that sure beats the pants off of just sitting back in your pile of spite while you pock-mark these forums with cheeky little remarks ranging from the non-constructive to the blatantly insulting to the not-so-clever little puns (“3fail3bola” … look, I just combined the two most popular into one; come on guys, it’s been three weeks and I haven’t even been trying! You call yourselves clever?)
>
> Then of course there’s the “just play campaign” people vs. the “matchmaking is all that matters” people … they’re now two feuding groups, as if playing both is “unclean” … as if we need anymore subdivisions. Apparently liking all Halo games puts you in a minority. You have to pick one game as the best, a close second, then hate on the rest, but there’s got to be one that you hate far beyond any other; one that you hate as much as you like your favorite. Doesn’t matter which, just randomly insert the games into that formula and you’re ready to argue.
>
> Anyway, OP, there’s constructive criticism and then there’s hate-spamming. I think closely following these threads is bad for one’s mental health and should be avoided. Trust me, I’ve been closely following them all along and it’s depressing as hell. The negativity is like a cancer … and that cancer suddenly just got diabetes.

Wow! It’s pretty clear you have some strong feelings yourself. I can definitely relate to you with the depressing nature of many of the threads. That’s actually what prompted me to add something that hopefully comes across as constructive and brings something to the table that we all (or at least most of us) can agree on.

13

> 2533274792065063;11:
> I hoped it would work after patch #3…

I’m right there with you! We’re definitely allowed to be sad, but personally, I’m going to keep hoping for a fix. Even if Halo doesn’t get that much tray time right now, I know it will some day.

14

> 2533274800444943;12:
> > 2533274883669557;10:
> > It’s a little heartbreaking what’s happened to this game … and a lot of people who are coming across as in-denial or naive or overly hopeful or aggressively defensive (or as those of you with a limited vocabulary would call them: “fanboys”) I think they just want nothing more than for this game to be fixed.
> >
> > And that sure beats the pants off of just sitting back in your pile of spite while you pock-mark these forums with cheeky little remarks ranging from the non-constructive to the blatantly insulting to the not-so-clever little puns (“3fail3bola” … look, I just combined the two most popular into one; come on guys, it’s been three weeks and I haven’t even been trying! You call yourselves clever?)
> >
> > Then of course there’s the “just play campaign” people vs. the “matchmaking is all that matters” people … they’re now two feuding groups, as if playing both is “unclean” … as if we need anymore subdivisions. Apparently liking all Halo games puts you in a minority. You have to pick one game as the best, a close second, then hate on the rest, but there’s got to be one that you hate far beyond any other; one that you hate as much as you like your favorite. Doesn’t matter which, just randomly insert the games into that formula and you’re ready to argue.
> >
> > Anyway, OP, there’s constructive criticism and then there’s hate-spamming. I think closely following these threads is bad for one’s mental health and should be avoided. Trust me, I’ve been closely following them all along and it’s depressing as hell. The negativity is like a cancer … and that cancer suddenly just got diabetes.
>
>
> Wow! It’s pretty clear you have some strong feelings yourself. I can definitely relate to you with the depressing nature of many of the threads. That’s actually what prompted me to add something that hopefully comes across as constructive and brings something to the table that we all (or at least most of us) can agree on.

Well, both sides are correct and right to feel the way they do … it’s just that it’s gotten out of control. Things are supposed to have equal and opposite reactions and these people (on both sides) are reacting as if their civil liberties are being violated. I stand firmly with the “Take It Down a Notch” folks.

That said, I’ve played this game nearly every day since launch. I’ve been incredibly pleased at times and disappointed as well. Being able to just hop into every single multiplayer map at 1080p 60fps (even solo in customs) is just incredible. It’s like having a personal archive of awesomeness. But at the same time, not being able to realize this game’s full potential is saddening.

But as a sane, rational person (as far as I know) I’m not going to threaten lawsuits or immediately return the game since I am familiar with this current trend of releasing broken games (not that I agree with it, it’s incredibly unprofessional) but I know it’ll be sorted. To what extent? I have no idea. But it will improve. Or else I’ve over-estimated Microsoft’s need for Halo.

15

Honestly, after the first patch it worked well for me.

Though, after the third patch, it seems to be working almost smoothly. While I have urged patience in the past, I’m not particularly advocating it totally at this point.

The only thing that makes me mad about the situations is the total lack of tact in some of the other posts and trends, like “343bola lololol” or “343 did this on purpose, they’re the worst hurr hurrrrrr” or something else along those lines. There is a line that has been crossed an innumerable amount of times throughout this ordeal. From some of the more vocal ones plainly hurling expletives directly to the moderating staff (who are volunteers, I might add), to some people actually wishing members of the dev team would get fired/get cancer.

In the end, though, everyone has a right to be sad, mad, or just plain blind with rage. I just wish some people would have even a inkling of understanding on their part. Instead of making up conspiracy theories and lambasting 343 for their development decisions.

Development decisions, that is, with the gameplay itself, the matchmaking system was obviously flawed, so that I exclude from it. I meant more in the sense of them using Halo PC and Halo 2 Vista as the base. Or Halo 2 Anniversary being built off of the Halo 4 engine. The latter development decision was probably the best one. They couldn’t have included all the new stuff with Halo 2’s engine. I mean mostly in relation to the advances to the rendering system, and the underlying customization of the gametype code. Oh, and Forge.

16

> 2533274883669557;14:
> > 2533274800444943;12:
> > > 2533274883669557;10:
> > > It’s a little heartbreaking what’s happened to this game … and a lot of people who are coming across as in-denial or naive or overly hopeful or aggressively defensive (or as those of you with a limited vocabulary would call them: “fanboys”) I think they just want nothing more than for this game to be fixed.
> > >
> > > And that sure beats the pants off of just sitting back in your pile of spite while you pock-mark these forums with cheeky little remarks ranging from the non-constructive to the blatantly insulting to the not-so-clever little puns (“3fail3bola” … look, I just combined the two most popular into one; come on guys, it’s been three weeks and I haven’t even been trying! You call yourselves clever?)
> > >
> > > Then of course there’s the “just play campaign” people vs. the “matchmaking is all that matters” people … they’re now two feuding groups, as if playing both is “unclean” … as if we need anymore subdivisions. Apparently liking all Halo games puts you in a minority. You have to pick one game as the best, a close second, then hate on the rest, but there’s got to be one that you hate far beyond any other; one that you hate as much as you like your favorite. Doesn’t matter which, just randomly insert the games into that formula and you’re ready to argue.
> > >
> > > Anyway, OP, there’s constructive criticism and then there’s hate-spamming. I think closely following these threads is bad for one’s mental health and should be avoided. Trust me, I’ve been closely following them all along and it’s depressing as hell. The negativity is like a cancer … and that cancer suddenly just got diabetes.
> >
> >
> >
> > Wow! It’s pretty clear you have some strong feelings yourself. I can definitely relate to you with the depressing nature of many of the threads. That’s actually what prompted me to add something that hopefully comes across as constructive and brings something to the table that we all (or at least most of us) can agree on.
>
>
> Well, both sides are correct and right to feel the way they do … it’s just that it’s gotten out of control. Things are supposed to have equal and opposite reactions and these people (on both sides) are reacting as if their civil liberties are being violated. I stand firmly with the “Take It Down a Notch” folks.
>
> That said, I’ve played this game nearly every day since launch. I’ve been incredibly pleased at times and disappointed as well. Being able to just hop into every single multiplayer map at 1080p 60fps (even solo in customs) is just incredible. It’s like having a personal archive of awesomeness. But at the same time, not being able to realize this game’s full potential is saddening.
>
> But as a sane, rational person (as far as I know) I’m not going to threaten lawsuits or immediately return the game since I am familiar with this current trend of releasing broken games (not that I agree with it, it’s incredibly unprofessional) but I know it’ll be sorted. To what extent? I have no idea. But it will improve. Or else I’ve over-estimated Microsoft’s need for Halo.

Totally agree. It has the most incredible potential of any game I have ever played. This reply is thoughtful and definitely rational. Cheers to you, may there be more players on this thread with the same attitude.

17

> 2533274826920712;15:
> Honestly, after the first patch it worked well for me.
>
> Though, after the third patch, it seems to be working almost smoothly. While I have urged patience in the past, I’m not particularly advocating it totally at this point.
>
> The only thing that makes me mad about the situations is the total lack of tact in some of the other posts and trends, like “343bola lololol” or “343 did this on purpose, they’re the worst hurr hurrrrrr” or something else along those lines. There is a line that has been crossed an innumerable amount of times throughout this ordeal. From some of the more vocal ones plainly hurling expletives directly to the moderating staff (who are volunteers, I might add), to some people actually wishing members of the dev team would get fired/get cancer.
>
> In the end, though, everyone has a right to be sad, mad, or just plain blind with rage. I just wish some people would have even a inkling of understanding on their part. Instead of making up conspiracy theories and lambasting 343 for their development decisions.
>
> Development decisions, that is, with the gameplay itself, the matchmaking system was obviously flawed, so that I exclude from it. I meant more in the sense of them using Halo PC and Halo 2 Vista as the base. Or Halo 2 Anniversary being built off of the Halo 4 engine. The latter development decision was probably the best one. They couldn’t have included all the new stuff with Halo 2’s engine. I mean mostly in relation to the advances to the rendering system, and the underlying customization of the gametype code. Oh, and Forge.

Congratulations on your near smooth experience. You are definitely one of the lucky ones. I am genuinely happy for you and at the same time sad that I have to congratulate you on something that I wish for all of us.

It’s definitely refreshing to see this thread bringing out more people who are not simply throwing inappropriate blind explicative posts around. That was my intent. I agree that there were definitely some good, and some not as good decisions made through the dev cycle, and some of them may have contributed to the result we have been faced with since launch. All we can do now is wait and hope for smooth sailing for everyone.

18

I can relate to the co-op issues. I toughed it out through Pillar of Autumn and Halo before finally saying forget it at Truth and Reconciliation until something is done about co-op lag. It’s highly disappointing to experience that. I do feel hopeful, as you do. I can’t imagine such a large and meaningful project remaining broken. It’s been nearly a month now, but I don’t think that’s long enough to throw in the towel. Four games on one disc with different graphics engines must be very complex to deal with. Thank you for the positive post.

19

I am a loyalist, fanboy, etc call me whatever you may…

Truth is, although 343 releases disappointment after disappointment, I am hopeful.

I will still hold on to this game until it gets fixed because its the reason I bought the game in the first place…

To play the series I have been playing since I was 8 years old (21 now)… I just hope they fix it soon because It really does have so many issues.

20

I have undergone much of what you described above. I had the sad realization that I am just not enjoying Halo anymore in the MCC.

So my options are to go back to the 360 with 2000 players, string this along hoping they will make it right (and make some other changes like removing Halo 4 into it’s own BTB playlist), or just quit gaming (which also makes me sad).

I’m 35, married with a son and a successful business. I always thought, “I am a part of the gaming generation” and that I would play video games in the old folks Home one day many years from now, lol. Seriously.

But I have been going from SUPER excited, to annoyed, to angry, to hateful to hopeful and possibly creeping up on hopeless. I was posting things for awhile thinking that 343 would see how mad we were and do something and I now know that either they do’t care or they just can’t fix it in a timely fashion.

Either way, if something doesn’t get better soon, I just dont know what I am going to do.