On DMR-bloom versus submachinegun-bloom...

Games Other Halo
1

I had a “discussion” (read: argument) with one of my friends about DMR-bloom and how it’s supposed to either make the game more realistic or not.

Here’s what it boiled down to: He thought DMR bloom realistically modeled the reduction in accuracy experienced by shooters during prolonged rapid fire due to a combination of barrel heating and shooter’s ability to re-aim between shots; I thought it was a poorly-executed attempt to do just that what he said. It would make sense to see the retical bloom for SMG fire because there is little time to re-aim between shots when they’re fired 10x/second. However, this does not require the barrel-heating variable to be a valid concept. Also, barrel-heating would only significantly affect the accuracy of a DMR after more than a full mag of rounds and only over 100m+ ranges.

For the DMR, there is no reason for the bloom to be steadily increasing with time during a prolonged burst because those shots are occurring very, very slowly. A SPARTAN can reset their sights on target very quickly, so the DMR “bloom” should not grow continuously with time, but rather bloom out only slightly to a maxima during repeat semi-auto fire, and then reset immediately after ceasing fire. If you look carefully at the model for the DMR you’ll notice it has a selector-switch for Safe, Semi, and Full auto settings. Alas, the game programmers decided to disable the full-auto setting [a lost opportunity for an excellent self-defense option during CQB], and that would have been the only reason to tag an expanding-bloom feature on the DMR in the first place.

I would very much look forward to a bloomless DMR when fired semi-auto and a blooming DMR when fired on full-auto… but I might have to settle with just one of the two. If you want an expanding bloom on the DMR, then make it only happen after prolonged periods of mag-after-mag fire that would cause barrel warpage due to overheating.

That’s why I sold my ROMAK III (PSL, SSG-97) sniper rifle. It was an awesome rifle chambered in 7.62x54R, based on the RPK machine gun but lengthened and fitted with a thumbhole stock and 3-9 x 40 scope, however the barrel was so thin and long that overheating affected its accuracy beyond 100m after 25 rounds or so. But, notice, the key term here is: “after 25 rounds.”

Now that I think about it… the DMR is roughly equal to a 7.62x51 NATO or a 7.62x54R in terms of power, and I was able to fire my ROMAK III much faster than a SPARTAN is able to fire the DMR. Heck, anyone I know can shoot a M1 Garand or a Springfield M1A faster than a SPARTAN can shoot an equivalent gun. Honestly, if a shielded Elite was charging me with a sword and all I had was a semi-auto .30 cal battlerifle, I’d be pulling that trigger much faster than the SPARTANs seem capable of. Maybe I’m just more combat-capable than a cyborg supersoldier…

2

tl;dr.

Bloom is more realistic than zero bloom. Either way, it’s a video game. Halo isn’t intended to be realistic to begin with.

3

Then why is if considered Sci-Fi? If it was ungrounded from reality it’d just be fantasy fiction. There is supposed to be a science theme to the Halo saga, punctuated heavily with fantasy and god-like technologies.

I agree, there’s no explanation for how the Covenant project self-sustaining magnetic fields that keep blazing-hot plasma tucked into neat balls until they hit their target, but they could try to make the ballistic weapons realistic enough. Although there may not be any real-world plasma weapons to model the Covenant equipment after, there is plenty of data available to properly model a common, cartridge-fed .30 caliber rifle. You kinda have to admit that the real-world Kel-Tec RFB carbine is just pretty much just as “modern” as the Halo DMR [which is supposedly 100+ years more technologically advanced than today’s weapons], so there’s no excuse to incorrectly model the Halo ballistic weapons.

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> Then why is if considered Sci-Fi? If it was ungrounded from reality it’s just be fantasy fiction. There is supposed to be a science theme to the Halo saga, punctuated heavily with fantasy and god-like technologies.
>
> I agree, there’s no explanation for how the Covenant project self-sustaining magnetic fields that keep blazing-hot plasma tucked into neat balls until they hit their target, but they could try to make the ballistic weapons realistic enough. Although there may not be any real-world plasma weapons to model the Covenant equipment after, there is plenty of data available to properly model a common, cartridge-fed .30 caliber rifle. You kinda have to admit that the real-world Kel-Tec RFB carbine is just pretty much just as “modern” as the Halo DMR [which is supposedly 100+ years more technologically advanced than today’s weapons], so there’s no excuse to incorrectly model the Halo ballistic weapons.

Still, it’s science fiction. Just because there’s the possibility of the human weapons being grounded in realism, doesn’t mean they’re suppose to. In other words, just because they’re similar to real-life human weapons, and you can compare them to real-life human weapons, doesn’t mean you’re suppose to compare them to real-life weapons. Human weapons in Halo are based off real-world weapons, however they’re not a reflection of the actual weapon they’re based off. They’re not “incorrectly modeled”, for no weapon in Halo has a direct relation to real-world weapons. Again, they’re based off real weapons. Not intended to be taken as reflections of them.

5

So the alloys used in the Halo Universe to construct weapon barrels have such a high coefficient of thermal expansion that short-range accuracy is thrown off by the heat generated by two or more rounds? With engineering that crappy, the UNSC deserves to lose this war…

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> So the alloys used in the Halo Universe to construct weapon barrels have such a high coefficient of thermal expansion that short-range accuracy is thrown off by the heat generated by two or more rounds? With engineering that crappy, the UNSC deserves to lose this war…

Guess so. But it’s not intended to be realistic, so it can happen!

7

Bloom in Halo realistically mimics the lore’s use of weapons for a Spartan. It is also a video-game mechanic used for decades to cause weapons to function in ways the programmer intends a weapon to behave.

The recoil damper system will need time to reset after every shot in the AR, BR and DMR (hell Sniper too). This damper system is a cushion of the barrel to bounce of off when fired to absorb some of the recoil. The recoil on a titanium based weapon is actually high as it is lighter and therefore more susceptible to Newton’s law of equal and opposite actions. A heavy barrel and very cushion’y damper system are needed to make a light material rifle more long-range worthy.

There is also heat applied to the barrel which causes barrel warp. Though titanium is strong, heat still warps the barrel and its rifling-grooves in the most minute ways so that its precision, not accuracy, is sacrificed when shooting too fast. Real world riflemen/women know they have to account for cold and hot shots on their weapons. It’s part of their skill. And again, a heavy barrel/heavier weapon will reduce recoil.

Then there is how the shields work. The rifle still sits kinda floaty on the the suit. Even when butted up, the weapon isn’t as precise with each rapid fired shot. For a Spartan, yes they can reset much faster than humans, but it’s still an effect that afflicts the weapon.
When crouching, the weapon is butted up against the shoulder more tightly. This helps reduce the bloom effect as the weapon is less floaty and therefore more precise.

It’s not like the weapon ever looses accuracy, it looses precision when rapid fired.

It just so happens, like many things in Halo, lore explanations and game-play mechanics go hand in hand. Much like the dual layer of hydro-static gel in the Mk.VI suit (that is surprisingly less bulky with 2 layers) allows for no fall damage from great heights.

What’s messed up, game-play to lore wise, is that the AR and especially SMGs, in the hands of a Spartan, are laser-like weapons. The spread seen in game is much^7 times more influential than a Spartan should experience.