One of THE most frustrating things in Reach (and also H2 and H3) for me - and probably many others - is the lack of support for those players who spent good money on map packs.
In order not to drive away people who don’t own DLC and don’t plan on buying it, Bungie/343i/Microsoft’s policy is to not make any DLC mandatory for regular playlists unless this DLC happens to be free, as it was the case with a couple of map (packs) in H2 and H3. This in turn means that if you bought DLC, your chances of ever playing on new maps are quite low because if you’re matched with even only a single person who doesn’t have the map pack(s), the new maps won’t show up.
Now, I do understand that policy to some degree - it’s still a business, after all. But there’s another solution: a search filter.
What I propose for future Halo games is a search filter not unlike the ones we already have in Reach, i.e. where you can choose to be matched with people whose games are the same language as yours, or have a good connection, or a comparable skill rank. This DLC search filter would have three settings you can change at will: All, Any, and Off.
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If set to All, you will only be matched with players who have all the map pack(s) you have, regardless of how long it takes to find enough players to start a match (it’ll still be reasonably quick except maybe for playlists that generally suffer from low population). So if this filter already was in Reach and you had the Noble and Defiant map packs but not Anniversary, you’ll get matched only with people who also have the Noble and Defiant DLC; whether or not you get matched with people who also have the Anniversary maps depends on their DLC setting.
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If set to Any, you will be matched with people who have at least one of the map packs you have. It basically searches for people who have one or more DLC in common and matches them together.
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If set to Off, the filter is off (duh) and matchmaking works exactly like it does in Reach now, i.e. completely ignoring who has what DLC.
Since it’s very unlikely that (future) DLC is every going to be mandatory in Halo, this is the best solution to this whole issue. People without DLC can keep on playing like they can in Reach, and those who want to play on DLC maps more often (or even all the time) can do so without being restricted to only a couple of DLC-required playlists.
Is there a reason this filter can’t be implemented now in Reach?
343i has said that they aren’t going to change the UI for Reach. Don’t know if that type of thing is under the UI category, but it would definitely be a good thing for Halo 4.
> Is there a reason this filter can’t be implemented now in Reach?
UI changes need title updates, 343i aren’t willing to do any more title updates for Reach as they are busy on Halo 4.
> > Is there a reason this filter can’t be implemented now in Reach?
>
> UI changes need title updates, 343i aren’t willing to do any more title updates for Reach as they are busy on Halo 4.
So what are you saying is that they are busy making yet another game without first fixing the issues of the major game right now? yeah, such a trusty game company it is…
I don’t see it get implemented so late, but I would like to see it in Halo 4
> > > Is there a reason this filter can’t be implemented now in Reach?
> >
> > UI changes need title updates, 343i aren’t willing to do any more title updates for Reach as they are busy on Halo 4.
>
> So what are you saying is that they are busy making yet another game without first fixing the issues of the major game right now? yeah, such a trusty game company it is…
You don’t understand in the slightest.
Reach, as of now, is the fifth most played game on Xbox LIVE, if it had huge issues that needed addressed, people would stop playing it and something would be done to draw these players back in.
Money is ALWAYS going to go to the newest game, even if it is development, and considering how close Halo 4 is, this is the case.
Reach already does this automatically, although 343 has control over how much DLC ownership is weighted while it’s searching. Although if it’s going to be the heighest weighted parameter, you might as well make the playlist DLC required at that point.
> I don’t see it get implemented so late, but I would like to see it in Halo 4
It won’t get implemented in Reach - it’s too late for that. And I didn’t ask about that filter (or a similar device) being added to Reach. Instead I’d kiss 343i’s feet if Halo 4 and other future Halo games had this filter.
> Reach already does this automatically, although 343 has control over how much DLC ownership is weighted while it’s searching. Although if it’s going to be the heighest weighted parameter, you might as well make the playlist DLC required at that point.
No offense meant, but I simply don’t believe that. I bought Noble and Defiant map packs the day they were released (had to wait for Christmas for Anniversary, though). Yet I can still count the number of games I’ve played on DLC maps outside of DLC-specific playlists with my fingers. A shame, really, since I very much like the DLC maps and prefer them over Reach’s default maps.
Also, this filter has the huge bonus that not a single playlist would ever require DLC. People without any DLC at all can play all playlist, yet at the same time those using the filter can play in the very same playlists and still get to play on DLC maps most or even all the time if they wish to do so. It kills two birds with one stone and is a win-win for everyone.
They already do that. Players aren’t going to buy garbage DLC.