I have decided to talk about some things that have been on my mind for some time.
I don’t really ever post in forums, but I figured I’d talk about a few, well… a lot of things.
Some of you won’t like what I have to say, and most won’t read it all, but I’m sure some of you will.
I bring up a lot of different things, and I explain some stuff more than needed maybe, but whatever its my post right? Might want to get comfortable, this might take a while. =)
A Very Special thanks to 343 at the bottom of this novel.
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Meet your average Reach player that thinks they know what’s best for Halo:This is just one example I pulled, there are posts like these all over…
(A comment from 343 forums I read: Name deleted in kindness so he doesn’t have to go into hiding forever),
"Your TU sucks! I know you want to, “Get people ready for the CE anniversary” but why change Halo: Reach? I like Reach the way it was and I will like CE A the way it will be but don’t try to make one game into another."
"There is a good reason that bungie left the op pistol out of every other halo game made, it makes the multiplayer way to unbalanced. Its fine for the anniversary edition but not for reach which was VERY WELL BALANCED before the TU. This gives me serious doubts about 343s ability to handle the franchise well. Prove me wrong please. "
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Reach is dying thanks to his so called “balanced” gameplay.
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Halo Reach was very well balanced before the beta update?.. Lol, what a joke… we don’t need people like this having ANY input into the new multiplayer changes. They just don’t have the experience to know what works and what doesn’t. That one comment, saying Reach was balanced from the start, shows how they do not have a clue.
Now I’m not saying at all I know what is best for everyone, but I have been around long enough to know what works to make a fair and balanced Halo competitive multiplayer experience, and what keeps people coming back to play. (In my opinion)
Bungie listened to the casual gamers like this player above to help make reach more fun for the less skilled/bad players, and it failed (Obviously). More skilled players of previous Halo games got tired of being killed or trading kills with people so obviously lacking any real awareness, aim, or skill that they move on to other games and left halo. Things like double melee, rifle bloom, jet pack, armor lock, and camo, give the lower ranked players of Halo 2-3 a way to compete against players who can aim, strafe, and otherwise destroy them. (Good player beats Bad player) becomes (Good player equal to Bad player)
But what they didn’t think about apparently was the fact that casual gamers don’t care about the game, they move on to other games. They can’t compete with the more hardcore players who practice more/play more because they:
(a.) Don’t care if they get better, and/or have no desire to get better.
(b.) Maybe want to get better but only are limited to gaming one night a week or weekends etc…
(c.) Just play to shoot teammates who take “their” weapon of choice or jump off maps/team kill to annoy people.
(d.) Don’t have the mental thought processes to outsmart/trick an enemy/lure/bait and switch etc…
I could do a list of a-z then 1-1000 of different reasons why they can’t and shouldn’t be able to compete with the more hardcore players. But I’m sure you know the players I’m talking about with just those 4 examples, and you know how any serious battle ends up with a hardcore player vs a casual player in previous Halos. In Halo 2-3 one skilled player could easily beat a team of 4 or even 8 lower leveled players.
If you were good, you were almost invincible. Being a skilled player meant that lower levels either had to get lucky (random nade, catch you with shields off etc) or hide to wait for an assination to catch them by suprise to ever be able to kill them. To have a fair battle you had to play someone else who was up at your skill level, if someone cheated to get up to a high level, it was obvious because they would show it. True Skill always could be seen when playing with/against someone.
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So I wonder who came up with Jet packs? Camo? Armor Lock? Any guesses? Sure, I know a new Halo game always will need new additions but people who couldn’t rely on basic needed skills to compete, came to Bungie forums and poured their ideas out for new ways to make it more fair for them. Bungie listened and added in these new “armor abilitys” to change the game up, took out all serious ranking systems and just threw everyone together into games.
Eventually many skilled players left Reach and either went back to H3 or to another game. They had no good ranking system to show skill anymore, and they were tired of players who obviously were less skilled at Halo, but were able to use these cheap new tactics to kill them in order to try to make the game more fair/even for all.
Obviously skilled players will still put up better numbers, but people that would have never killed them once in a previous Halo game, now have the tools to slow down/change gameplay, and get kills they don’t deserve.
But what Bungie didn’t realize was that the people who bought their map packs, who kept the numbers up in the playlists each day, who didn’t post on forums because they were too busy playing their game to bother with such things, were the hardcore gamers, the ones who kept Halo alive.
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Bungie took advice from low level casual gamers, ones who spent more time complaining on the forums about the game than actually playing it to get better, and gave them ideas for easier ways for them to get kills trying to get a bigger population for Halo. But Bungie forgot that casual gamers will always be just that, casual. Halo 2 and 3 thrived by having many ranked playlists, and a VERY competitive population of gamers who came back everyday to try to just win a few games and get their favorite ranked level up a number or two. Casual gamers do not have the experience to give advice for changes in gameplay, that is where Bungie failed with Reach.
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*343 TAKES CONTROL OF HALO
343 already knows this is where Bungie made their mistake, and now 343 are off to a great start to bring back the players that made Halo one of the most competitive 1st person shooter games of all time.
I feel 343 knows what they are doing to try and bring back the competitive players, and that is by changing such things such as:
-Unskilled/Undeserved kills
-Spammed precision weapon bloom, which helps aid someone with the worst aim and gives them shots they don’t deserve to hit, and makes skilled players miss shots they should hit.
-The awful melee system with no bleedthrough, where any and all damage done to a shield with a weapon before hitting a melee is pointless unless you manage to break their shield with said weapon first.
(Example: I shoot someone 3 times with my DMR, during this he decides to just sprint and melee me. Now if I don’t just melee too, he’ll kill me with his 2nd melee before I can break his shield with my 4th shot and melee him. So 99.9% of the time, both of us kill each other with melee anyway and the shots I put into him before hand are rendered completely pointless)
-Noobish tactics (Armor lock spam, camo-snipe, jet pack-needler, etc)
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Now I want to talk a bit about the default 100% DMR bloom, but in order for me to give my opinion I should let you know a little about my experience with Halo so you know I have some idea on what I’m talking about, since I’ve been through it all first hand and been here to see Halo change and evolve over the years.
------9/13/2007- was my first game on this account in Halo 2------
(Halo 2): Total Games: 1480 | Total Kills: 13052 | Total Deaths: 7882 | Total Assists: 2820
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(Halo 3): Rank: General Grade 3 | Total Games (Matchmaking): 4651 | Custom Games: 4132 |
Highest Skill: 50 | Lifetime EXP: 3577 | EXP Penalties, (Lag outs): -22 |Total EXP 3555 |Total Kills: 73,702 Total Deaths: 50,316
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(Halo Reach Rank): Reclaimer (Rank = Time spent playing, nothing to do with skill) Total Games: 12,035 | Total Kills: 96,477 | Total Deaths: 66,959 | Assists: 20992 | Lifetime Credits: 18,683,852 |
48,404 Avg Credits Per Day
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*DMR CHANGES
Now to the DMR. My Favorite weapon to use, since it is the closest thing to the BR in Reach.
Total players killed with DMR in matchmaking: 53,703
Competitive DMR Kills(Non-Arena): 31,322
Competitive Deaths from DMR: 17,641
Thats a positive spread of 13,681, with a DMR kill death ratio of 1.78
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So we can safely say I’ve played with the DMR a little bit.
I also know that in close range fights (online,off host, normal playlist setting) the bloom acts in a way that was not intended.
There are a few problems with these battles, one being that pacing your shots at this range will ensure you hit your shots, but someone can fire as fast as possible without being very accurate and still win most of these fights anyway. This basically forces you to do the same thing in order to keep yourself on even ground against these people.
After the 3rd or so bullet it becomes a factor of luck for both people on if the shot will hit or not on the target, regardless how well you have the reticule on them. This makes for battles based on chance/luck/computer dice rolls for a hit or miss, and makes the winner of the fight basically random, regardless of skill. Especially once shields are broken, you could try and let the bloom shrink down to go for an accurate headshot, while your opponent continues to fire with full bloom and can easily get lucky and kill you before you are able to take an accurate shot.
The DMR default bloom takes all skill from close range battles and turns them into whoever has the better luck at that moment. Bloom only does its true job at long range, where you will always win long range paced shots vs someone spamming. But that is only at very long range. Anything other than that and you never know what the end result will be.
The New Title Update Beta playlist out now has added 2 possible fixes to this problem, one being no bloom at all, the other being 85% of the previous bloom. This allows your aimer to center faster and fire faster, more accurate shots at close range. If you crouch and fire the bloom will not leave the outer circle of the reticule, which fires from the center position every shot, which is exactly the same as no bloom.
*NO BLOOM SETTING
When this came out for custom games I thought it was the best thing that ever happened to bringing shot precision back to Halo. But after playing it in the playlist, the No Bloom gametype feels sloppy and unfinished, and it makes long range fights pretty much who sees who first, and zero bloom weapons have all pros but no cons.
The pistol in the no-bloom types should not be a starting weapon, put that thing as a pick up for gods sake. It’s all people will use, and I personally find it annoying as hell to use a primary weapon to get a few shots on someone only to have them turn and kill me with a secondary weapon before I can get enough shots out to kill them. Even if I don’t miss a single shot I’m still killed easy. Using any other weapon VS that monster at almost any distance, is certain death, and that ruins gameplay completely and renders almost all non-power weapons useless.
The No Bloom setting could possibly be ok, but only if they slowed down the fire rate a bit on the DMR somehow. It fires to fast to really use it effectively. No pistol secondary, or slow down the fire rate as well. Team shots are too overpowered at long distance with no bloom as well.
85% BLOOM SETTING
**THE PERFECT FIX (BEST SEEN SO FAR) **
The 85% bloom feels solid, and gives the dmr the accuracy it needs at close range without making every DMR vs DMR close encounter be based on a computer dice roll of hit or miss , while still keeping the purpose for bloom in long distance fights. (Like cross map DMR battles, where it was designed to help shot pacers win the fights over spammers)
85% Bloom has now made the winner of these battles the one with the better aim, but will not make it godly across big team maps like the no-bloom. Pacing is now only slightly slower than spamming, and the spammer has the disadvantage of possible misses of the head shot if they spam it to death. Pacing will always win now as long as you hit your shots against a spammer.
**I think a vast majority of people still have no idea that the 85% bloom setting even exists in the beta playlist as default for all game types other than the Zero Bloom. I think they believe there is the: (1) normal, old bloom thats in every other playlist, and the, (2) zero bloom gametypes. I think these people don’t notice the change with the quicker reset bloom, which is just lack of experience, because to difference is huge to someone like me who uses a DMR as their 1st choice weapon… I never have those moments after dying with this setting where I question what happened, or why my bullet didn’t hit. It also doesn’t reward people with poor aim who spam in the area around someone, because it doesn’t fully bloom till about 6-7 shots, instead of 3-4. **
This setting just feels right, it seems like the way the DMR and the bloom should have been made right from the start. Best thing so far to happen in Reach, as the normal bloom of the DMR was the main element that really took away from MLG, and all the close range DMR fights. Spam vs Pace? There was no right answer before, because either could win. Now accuracy and shot control win and it feels like playing on LAN for everyone.
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__*RANKED PLAYLISTS __
I am willing to bet that Halo CE will be released with multiple ranked playlists again, where you can go up or down in level, based on win/loss just like Halo 2 and 3 (Could be a 1-50 trueskill, or maybe something new, but I think 343 knows this is a must to bring back those who have left). Ranked playlists and winning game after game to get that next level, or play on their max level for the toughest challenge, was what Halo was all about for many people I knew. Also those same people I knew who have come to quit Halo Reach for the lack of true competition, and miss playing people at higher ranks that give good, close games everytime.
Reach multiplayer is a completely social playlist (Arena is ranked sure, but no one plays it hardly making the rating mean nothing. No one has ever taken it seriously like real ranked playlists. Also your division rank, which there is only 5 of them, isn’t even displayed anywhere except deep in your service record).
Bungie should have known that people only played social playlists to warm up, or beat up on some lower levels to take breaks from what most were really playing the game for, and that was for the challenge of just raising those levels up in all the different playlists striving toward person goals. Halo 2 and 3 both had more Ranked playlists than Social, and it was always a pretty accurate way to tell someones skill, just by rank and record.
You were your rank, and you were judged by your rank. It was fun, and for those of us who found friends that we still play with years down the road, we all had shared great moments of getting level 50’s, losing level 50’s, and really working together as a team playing games that actually meant something to everyone playing in them if you won or lost. Everyone had their levels riding on each game, and that made for better, harder games because everyone had something to lose if you lost, and something to gain when you won. Sure, it was just a number, but those close games at high levels still gave you this rush that nothing from Halo Reach has reproduced. Everyone had their highest skill in one or more playlist, and when you played it trying to level it up, I bet you tried harder and pushed for that win more than any game you have played in Reach.
With Halo reach, sadly you only rank up a main level. But losing games and ranking down in Halo 2-3 added a new challenge, more determination, and made it that much more fun and rewarding to win a few games and watch that level go back up.
People like a challenge, and like to play people at their own skill levels. A new skill based ranking system will ensure everyone to have fair, even, and challenging games when they hit their max skill. Then they are able to learn more, get better, and rank up to face better and better people.
*QUITTERS… AND HOW A RANKED SYSTEM HELPS PREVENT THEM FROM BEING ON YOUR TEAM
KEEPS THE QUITTERS, TEAM KILLERS AND GENERAL IDIOTS IN HALO PLAYING WITH EACH OTHER, INSTEAD OF BEING PUT ON YOUR TEAM.
Quitters are also a big issue that are ruining this game for me and many others. Having ranked systems put in will mean the quitters will stay at the bottom levels where they belong, and people who stay and win their games will rank up and will no longer have to deal with them, because people who finish and win games rank up, and get matched with teammates who are also there to win and play till the end. Quitters, and people you don’t want on your team anyways tend to stay around those level 1-10 ranks and never make it past there.
Do you remember quitters in Halo 3 above level 40? I bet not, because people stayed to fight for their level. Some people would quit when they realized things were hopeless for them, but that meant they lost xp and more than likely their level too. I also didn’t mind so much if they quit on the other team because that meant my level was going to go up, so people quitting out was a much better feeling then as well.
People in Reach seem to quit over the smallest things, either leaving me and a team mate alone, or leaving on the other team making us hunt for 1-2 guys hiding behind some trees somewhere. It seems 10 minute bans or whatever the penalty is now, isn’t really bothering the one who is quitting. The ones who have to suffer are the people having to finish a game the quitter ruined by leaving and making the rest of the game uneven, or turn into a hide and seek match.
In reach about 60-80% of the games I play (99.9% in BTB ), 1 or more players on the other team quit once they either get a few points behind, get angry over not getting a weapon they wanted, or quit before the game even starts when they see a higher rank on the other team and maybe(?) they ASSUME that a high level of SKILL is related to rank. Which is not true a large majority of the time… But people will continue to quit without hesitation right now in this game it seems because there is no real punishment to doing so.
I have no idea why people quit all the time in Halo reach, but these people should be facing other low levels in a good ranked system where they can have a closer match. Not put up against a full partied up team of 4 or 8 high levels VS 4or 8 players with no microphones that searched by themselves who shouldn’t even be facing them…
Seems they would rather quit because they don’t have the teamwork or communication needed to put up even a decent fight. They need to be paired up with people AT THEIR SKILL LEVEL, so they are able to trade a few kills back and forth and have a closer, more enjoyable fun game. So they can feel they did pretty well for their team, even if the team they were on and the team they were playing were at the bottom of the rating system, they would still enjoy it more than having 0 chance of winning. This would be a base level where they would start at (example being level 1-15 or so in Halo 3), and having good, close games and doing well in them gives people the motivation to improve. Leveling up means playing better people, and getting better teammates. Playing better people progressively makes you better, and you’ll learn new things as you level up and face better players. Eventually you will get to people who are as good as you, where you and your team must play your best together and communicate or you will lose your rank and have to play the slightly easier teams again to hopefully win and get your rank back that you lost.
Sure, there were some problems with the 1-50 ranking system, like people making new accounts to play at low levels so they could dominate the less skilled, or to level up accounts to max skill to sell the account etc… but this was just a part of the game we delt with, it added a new dimension and challenge once in a while while you were working on trying to get your level up, and you would often learn a thing or two from the better players. (I would get destroyed by people like this on a regular basis during ranked games when I started, high levels on low accounts helping friends level up etc)
But honestly, those new accounts people would buy to rank up was a lot of extra money for Microsoft in membership cards, who is now in control of Halo. More players, more accounts, more money for them. Microsoft likes more money last I checked, so I can’t see them NOT doing this
Different people play for different reasons, and everyone had fun in their own way, and that kept people coming back to play Halo. Ranking up wasn’t easy, and it shouldn’t be, because the challenge of winning that next game and getting a higher rank/skill level kept people coming back for more.
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If 343 is successful in making some of these key changes, it will bring skill back into what could soon again be a largely populated competitive game. All the ingredients for greatness are right there within Halo Reach, its just how you bring them together now is what counts.
If you have read to here go ahead and give yourself a cookie, you deserve it. Thank you for taking the time to read my random thoughts on Halo.
Special Thanks to 343 Industries,
I’ve been playing competitive Halo since Halo 2, around five years ago. Thank you for thinking about us, the ones that are sometimes too busy playing the game to come give our thoughts and feedback on changes to the game, or be bothered with forums with people who usually just argue like children in every other thread. (B.net)
Bungie didn’t think about us when they made Halo Reach.
They thought about money, and more customers, and what would bring them into the game.
They lost sight of what made their online multiplayer great in the first place=The Difficulty.
The multiplayer was hard in Halo 2 when I started online! I died tons and tons… but kept trying, and kept getting better. Eventually I could keep up with my friends who all did MLG in H2 and didn’t mind playing with a noob and teaching me a few things once in a while along the way.
Then they made it too easy to get kills in Reach, it was never supposed to be “easy”. That’s what made Halo so great, it took real skill to get decent. It may be harder now for people who got used to the easy kills, but getting good at something difficult makes it that much more rewarding and fun when you can master it.
The start of your first changes made after getting control of Halo Reach was for us, the ones who want a challenge, the ones who want multiplayer to be harder, not easier.
Thank you for changing a large part of the combat system that never allowed the competitive side of Halo Reach to ever truely exist in the first place.
The competitive players are here still. Many more I think will be back soon now.
It seems we were just waiting for you, we just didn’t know it till now.
Can’t wait to see what you have in store for us next year with Halo 4.
Based on the direction you are immediately taking with Reach, I think you’re going to teach Bungie how to make Halo the right way…
The way that they lost sight of.
The way that you 343i, obviously still see…
Thank you for bringing Halo, into Halo Reach.
OldNiteSe7eN
Anyone have comments? Taking all feedback positive and negative, I respect everyones opinion, and hope for more people to read this so more can be informed.
I agree with your main point, but there are few individual parts were I have differing opinions. One being the 85% bloom vs. no bloom. I personally prefer zero bloom for the fact that the speed seems perfect, it actually gives you time to survive, but not too much to be easy. It also allows for multikills with DMR, continuing the tradition of a useful utility weapon that Halo CE, 2 and 3 followed.
Another thing I have to mention is that your post wasn’t very interestng. I won’t start going into details, but you could have written more informatively. You were right at the random toughts part. Anyway, I’m not here to completely bash your post to the ground, most importantly for the fact that you put so much effort into it that it would be a shame for it to get wasted.
I just want to say that instead of talking about your feelings towards Halo, you should have went indepth on what actually makes bloom inconsistent or why exactly armor abilities are bad. Because currently it feels more like a typical mindless complaint stretched and written in civilized manner.
Mindless complaint brings into my mind one last thing that was bit off about your post. The people who complain on the forums aren’t the casuals nor the competitive. They are always the people who simply feel that the game wasn’t designed for them, they can be competitive or casual.
Well, hopefully my post doesn’t appear as an arrogant post because that wasn’t my intention. My only intention was to point out my opinion on the subject at hand. I hope this thread won’t get completely wasted. It really sucks when you write a 2+ posts long thread that no one reads.
This was a good read; I’ve been with Halo since the beginning too, and while I was never super-competitive, I’d definitely say I’m several steps above casual, that is to say, I know what works, and while armor abilities COULD work competitively, the fact that gameplay revolves around them doesn’t. Reach should really be fun for everyone, not just for one camp of gamer. So I think the recent update is definitely a step in the right direction. To the people that say Reach was balanced, I ask them just how much Halo they’ve played in the decade of its existence. Even my casual friends know there’s something wrong with it.
Just one question, how do you define Armor Lock noob? One who uses Armor Lock period? Or someone who tries to use it to get out of any pinch ever? Like their default response to getting shot at is to Lock as opposed to shoot back or avoid fire?
> This was a good read; I’ve been with Halo since the beginning too, and while I was never super-competitive, I’d definitely say I’m several steps above casual, that is to say, I know what works, and while armor abilities COULD work competitively, the fact that gameplay revolves around them doesn’t. Reach should really be fun for everyone, not just for one camp of gamer. So I think the recent update is definitely a step in the right direction. To the people that say Reach was balanced, I ask them just how much Halo they’ve played in the decade of its existence. Even my casual friends know there’s something wrong with it.
>
>
> Just one question, how do you define Armor Lock noob? One who uses Armor Lock period? Or someone who tries to use it to get out of any pinch ever? Like their default response to getting shot at is to Lock as opposed to shoot back or avoid fire?
People that use it the moment they’re shot once, exactly, like it’s their default reaction to anything happening to them.
Armor Lock has its place to counter vehicles in big team and in other gametypes with vehicles. Other than I don’t see how it’s useful for anyone.
> > This was a good read; I’ve been with Halo since the beginning too, and while I was never super-competitive, I’d definitely say I’m several steps above casual, that is to say, I know what works, and while armor abilities COULD work competitively, the fact that gameplay revolves around them doesn’t. Reach should really be fun for everyone, not just for one camp of gamer. So I think the recent update is definitely a step in the right direction. To the people that say Reach was balanced, I ask them just how much Halo they’ve played in the decade of its existence. Even my casual friends know there’s something wrong with it.
> >
> >
> > Just one question, how do you define Armor Lock noob? One who uses Armor Lock period? Or someone who tries to use it to get out of any pinch ever? Like their default response to getting shot at is to Lock as opposed to shoot back or avoid fire?
>
> People that use it the moment they’re shot once, exactly, like it’s their default reaction to anything happening to them.
>
> Armor Lock has its place to counter vehicles in big team and in other gametypes with vehicles. Other than I don’t see how it’s useful for anyone.
You know, this is one of the general opinions I disgree with. If you really need to counter a vehicle, you have a lot of options: all kinds of power weapons, Concussion Rifle, Grenades, even concentrated DMR fire. Armor Lock isn’t needed even in BTB, it’s just as bad in BTB as in any other playlist.
Armor Lock is something completely unnecessary in Reach. It has no place in the game.
I agree with everything you said, except for Bungie’s goal for Reach. They made it the game they wanted to play, and as odd as they are, not everyone shared their tastes. That, and they still had too little time.
Halo is in good hands now.
> > > This was a good read; I’ve been with Halo since the beginning too, and while I was never super-competitive, I’d definitely say I’m several steps above casual, that is to say, I know what works, and while armor abilities COULD work competitively, the fact that gameplay revolves around them doesn’t. Reach should really be fun for everyone, not just for one camp of gamer. So I think the recent update is definitely a step in the right direction. To the people that say Reach was balanced, I ask them just how much Halo they’ve played in the decade of its existence. Even my casual friends know there’s something wrong with it.
> > >
> > >
> > > Just one question, how do you define Armor Lock noob? One who uses Armor Lock period? Or someone who tries to use it to get out of any pinch ever? Like their default response to getting shot at is to Lock as opposed to shoot back or avoid fire?
> >
> > People that use it the moment they’re shot once, exactly, like it’s their default reaction to anything happening to them.
> >
> > Armor Lock has its place to counter vehicles in big team and in other gametypes with vehicles. Other than I don’t see how it’s useful for anyone.
>
> You know, this is one of the general opinions I disgree with. If you really need to counter a vehicle, you have a lot of options: all kinds of power weapons, Concussion Rifle, Grenades, even concentrated DMR fire. Armor Lock isn’t needed even in BTB, it’s just as bad in BTB as in any other playlist.
>
> Armor Lock is something completely unnecessary in Reach. It has no place in the game.
I just meant if it had to be anywhere, thats where it should be. I would rather have it gone as well.
Great post. The Ranking system really needs to make a return.
343i please read his paragraphs on the Ranking System.
This is what made Halo MatchMaking what it has always truly been.
Thanks for the support on bringing back ranked, it will solve many issues that reach has with quitters and poor teammates etc.
I agree with the points about bloom and Armor Abilities, and I’ve argued plenty for their nerfage over my time on these forums. I’m glad to see that 343 is fixing Reach instead of turning back the clock to Halo 3 and taking an easy way out. I don’t, however, agree with the necessity of bringing back TrueSkill (1-50). In its state in Halo 3, that system was essentially a linear progression system with the catch of losing progress based on losses. To make an analogy, take the time it takes to get from say, Major to Major Grade 1 (in Halo Reach) and your goal is to get all of the cR you need (solely from wins) and go all of the way without losing. Then you would have to do that fifty times over. That system was, essentially, a grind with the added possibility of a setback if you lose once. If a player is coming from the previous game, he shouldn’t have to play anywhere from fifty to a hundred games just for the game to tell him what he knew in the first place (and to actually be able to play with people his skill).
> Anyone have comments? Taking all feedback positive and negative, I respect everyones opinion, and hope for more people to read this so more can be informed.
I read the whole novel, and I am glad I did. It felt like reading my own thoughts from a slightly different perspective. I am glad I am not the only competitive Halo 1, 2, and 3 player who thinks 85% bloom is a better balance than ZB as of right now. You make me optimistic of 343’s abilities to rebalance Reach, and bring Halo 4 back to how Halo is supposed to be. I wrote up my “initial impressions” of the TU Beta and the Arena matchmaking playlist. I would love your feedback on it.
http://halo.xbox.com/forums/games/f/7/t/22731.aspx?PageIndex=72
http://halo.xbox.com/forums/games/f/7/t/33965.aspx?PageIndex=3
I agree with you about how unbalanced Reach is. But Bungie made this all themselves. The armor abilities were all there ideas. Most everything else was there ideas as well. The only thing they wanted to do was go out with a bang make a game for casual and hardcore players, but still make it Good player > Bad player. They took a shot and messed up and they were trying to fix it. But because they were leaving they didn’t do all that much and handed it over to 343 who is now fixing everything. im not sure how well this will turn out and i love all the new ideas that are in reach (such as the jetpack) but id love to see it balanced and make it skill over luck.
> > > This was a good read; I’ve been with Halo since the beginning too, and while I was never super-competitive, I’d definitely say I’m several steps above casual, that is to say, I know what works, and while armor abilities COULD work competitively, the fact that gameplay revolves around them doesn’t. Reach should really be fun for everyone, not just for one camp of gamer. So I think the recent update is definitely a step in the right direction. To the people that say Reach was balanced, I ask them just how much Halo they’ve played in the decade of its existence. Even my casual friends know there’s something wrong with it.
> > >
> > >
> > > Just one question, how do you define Armor Lock noob? One who uses Armor Lock period? Or someone who tries to use it to get out of any pinch ever? Like their default response to getting shot at is to Lock as opposed to shoot back or avoid fire?
> >
> > People that use it the moment they’re shot once, exactly, like it’s their default reaction to anything happening to them.
> >
> > Armor Lock has its place to counter vehicles in big team and in other gametypes with vehicles. Other than I don’t see how it’s useful for anyone.
>
> You know, this is one of the general opinions I disgree with. If you really need to counter a vehicle, you have a lot of options: all kinds of power weapons, Concussion Rifle, Grenades, even concentrated DMR fire. Armor Lock isn’t needed even in BTB, it’s just as bad in BTB as in any other playlist.
>
> Armor Lock is something completely unnecessary in Reach. It has no place in the game.
That is not true it is not just supposed to counter vehicles. I can’t remember when they stated this but i believe it was in the Xbox Magazine. They said they wanted armor lock to be a way to keep the Skilled player alive. For example your a skilled player and make one momentary mistake so you use armor lock to stay alive. But because of the way they implemented it (no bleed through and just complete invulnerability) it became a noob weapon.
> > > This was a good read; I’ve been with Halo since the beginning too, and while I was never super-competitive, I’d definitely say I’m several steps above casual, that is to say, I know what works, and while armor abilities COULD work competitively, the fact that gameplay revolves around them doesn’t. Reach should really be fun for everyone, not just for one camp of gamer. So I think the recent update is definitely a step in the right direction. To the people that say Reach was balanced, I ask them just how much Halo they’ve played in the decade of its existence. Even my casual friends know there’s something wrong with it.
> > >
> > >
> > > Just one question, how do you define Armor Lock noob? One who uses Armor Lock period? Or someone who tries to use it to get out of any pinch ever? Like their default response to getting shot at is to Lock as opposed to shoot back or avoid fire?
> >
> > People that use it the moment they’re shot once, exactly, like it’s their default reaction to anything happening to them.
> >
> > Armor Lock has its place to counter vehicles in big team and in other gametypes with vehicles. Other than I don’t see how it’s useful for anyone.
>
> You know, this is one of the general opinions I disgree with. If you really need to counter a vehicle, you have a lot of options: all kinds of power weapons, Concussion Rifle, Grenades, even concentrated DMR fire. Armor Lock isn’t needed even in BTB, it’s just as bad in BTB as in any other playlist.
>
> Armor Lock is something completely unnecessary in Reach. It has no place in the game.
That is not true it is not just supposed to counter vehicles. I can’t remember when they stated this but i believe it was in the Xbox Magazine. They said they wanted armor lock to be a way to keep the Skilled player alive. For example your a skilled player and make one momentary mistake so you use armor lock to stay alive. But because of the way they implemented it (no bleed through and just complete invulnerability) it became a noob weapon.
sorry for double post my comp messed up