Before I begin, I want to state that this topic is hot here to bash H5.
I say that Halo is doomed because no matter what 343 does with H5, H6, or any future Halo games, the Halo franchise will never again be the top console shooter. Yes, 343 is to blame for this. And yes, it is because of how far they deviated from the series roots. They deviated in terms of gameplay, in terms of artistic design, and in terms of the playerbase they focused on.
When they took over the franchise, they did so with the intention of creating “their vision” of Halo. When you take over an existing franchise, you have an obligation to stay true to that franchise. By deviating to the extent that they did, they fractured the fanbase. There are essentially “two” Halos now. There’s classic Halo, and there’s new Halo. Though there is some overlap, the typical fan is either a fan of classic or is a fan of new. Even if 343 decided to pull a complete 180 and make the next Halo game truly cater to fans of classic Halo, they would then be turning their back on the fans of new Halo. They would be putting the same sour taste in those players’ mouths that they’ve already put in the mouths of classic Halo fans. In doing so, the series would be no better off for it. Yet with how drastic the differences are between classic and new, I believe an adequate middle ground does not truly exist, at least not one that would carve out a fanbse big enough from the two existing fanbases.
If 343 had stayed the course with H4 and continued the franchise in its original vision instead of steering it toward “their” vision, they would not have fractured the fanbase like they have. Because of this fracture and all of the dissent and debate it causes, Halo will never again be on top. At this point, there is no way to repair this split. It becomes a difficult question to ask ourselves, but at this point wouldn’t it be better to simply end the Halo franchise and start something new?
Nope - pining for a version of a game you think should be made, lamenting halo 4 like the rest of us and then declaring all is lost isn’t really accomplishing anything.
I’m a fan of the old - I think h5 is going to be great and that in many ways it has returned to it’s roots - it has the core elements that made halo 3 my favourite game of all time which is why I can say that. I doubt I’m alone.
I think it’s time to stop making grandiose statements about Halo’s future based on pent up feelings.
I don’t think the two sides are entirely irreconcilable.
Even assuming they are, I don’t think that necessarily means the franchise has to end completely. It’s not uncommon for franchises to branch off into new things. Mario started as a 2D Platformer, it’s now also a racing game, a boardgame, a 3D platformer, and so on. There could be Halo spinoffs that focus on realistic gameplay, or rather spinoffs that focus on the classic arena fundamentals.
> 2661949065475413;2:
> Halo dropped from the top when MLG dropped Halo Reach from the pro circuit. /Thread
Yes, it fell from the top when Bungie released a side-story to the main franchise. It wasn’t too late to redeem the franchise though. Yes, Reach experimented with some wacky gameplay mechanics. Those could have been completely scrapped for H4 though. Instead, 343 took the bad parts of Reach and ran with them for the next major installment in the series.
Halo doesn’t have to be the top console shooter to shine. Saying Halo is forever doomed is a bit pessimistic dont yah think. The situation is not dire to the point where the series should just be ended. Mind you that plenty of people are very excited in the continuation of Halo and for the upcoming Halo 5.
> 2811398874529013;5:
> > 2661949065475413;2:
> > Halo dropped from the top when MLG dropped Halo Reach from the pro circuit. /Thread
>
>
> Yes, it fell from the top when Bungie released a side-story to the main franchise. It wasn’t too late to redeem the franchise though. Yes, Reach experimented with some wacky gameplay mechanics. Those could have been completely scrapped for H4 though. Instead, 343 took the bad parts of Reach and ran with them for the next major installment in the series.
No, you are giving bungie way too much hope, remember, they made destiny and if they still had halo im sure halo 4 would have been in the same state destiny is in and it would have gotten worse from there.
Its funny how you think the fan base is any more split than it was when Halo 2 or 3 came out but now they’re grouped together as “classics”.
Want to know whats really changed? The quality of every other game. Back in the days of Halo 2 and even 3, there was barely anything else to take seriously online on the Xbox. That’s not the case anymore and will never be again. So just enjoy the game for what it is and quit acting like it’s some complete departure from the Halo style. No where else will you find a colorful, jumping, grenade chucking, multi-ton mass of metal holding down key points on the map to control weapon spawns and tactical locations or doing big jumps off a hill in a wart hog while being shot at by plasma flinging, purple/blue alien tanks and sleek, green bomb throwing Alien-like flying heads. Almost every single argument that tries to claim Halo isn’t Halo anymore makes the same mistake, they miss the forest for the trees. And yours is no different.
Apparently Halo manages to be “doomed” every year while still being the top exclusive title and the highest critically acclaimed shooter. As long as Halo is around, and there’s still at least one other guy left for me to play Slayer with, I’ll buy it and I’ll be playing it to the bitter end.
Oh well, Willky boy, thanks for the laugh in this thread and the last one.
If what you want is another Halo like Halo 2, no game can do Halo 2 like Halo 2 did. If 343 tried to make Halo 5 like Halo 2 as much as possible, Halo 2 would still be doing it better. Make sense? So if people think Halo 2 was the peak of Halo, then they’re not going to get much out of trying to make new Halos exactly like it.
> 2533274821174589;8:
> Halo doesn’t have to be the top console shooter to shine. Saying Halo is forever doomed is a bit pessimistic dont yah think. The situation is not dire to the point where the series should just be ended. Mind you that plenty of people are very excited in the continuation of Halo and for the upcoming Halo 5.
This.^
Admittedly we may never go back to the “glory days”. And that’s fine. If we focus too much on that, we’ll just be setting ourselves up for disappointment. We just need a halo game that can support a community. We don’t need to be King of the Shooters again.
Halo doesn’t need to be #1 and it doesn’t need to be 100% accepted by everyone on earth. Halo needs to feel like Halo and be fun to play for the many many fans that enjoy the franchise.
Guess what? 343 is accomplishing that. “Halo doomed?” No… “Halo fine.”