Some ideas for Forge 3.0

Games Other Halo
1

Forge is an important part of Halo now, the ability for players to create and share their own maps infinitely expands the value and lifespan of the game. When I go into a custom game, people are almost always playing on a forged map. Don’t get me wrong, the default maps are great, but they get boring after a while, and that’s where community maps really shine because of the constant creation of them.
Forge still could use some work though, as there are things it is still severely lacking. Here’s some ideas I had to improve it for Halo 4, which are from the standpoint of someone who uses forge in a serious fashion to make Competitive Slayer, and Arena maps, not from the standpoint of a 3 year old who makes half–Yoinked!- infection maps and calls it a masterpiece.

~Lights:
The selection of lights in Reach was fantastic, and really made distinguishing bases a lot easier. However, it was a huge drawback that they only gave you the option to use 2 of them. Halo 3 could even handle 4 light, yet somehow Reach couldn’t. If Reach can handle 4 FX orbs layered, it can handle at least 4 lights. Most symmetrical arena maps have 4 bases, so 4 lights really would come in handy. Also, the flashing lights were a cool idea, but we need more than just a red and yellow flashing. We need a blue at the least.

~Corners:
A big problem with the pieces in forge 2.0 is the corners. With most pieces, when you put them together in a fashion like 1 for a floor, and the 2nd for a wall, you get a little gap in the middle of them. When trying to create an indoor map, this really breaks the feel. It sucks when you can see the blue light of the ocean emanating through all the cracks of your map. A simple solution is to make the edges of the objects (such as blocks) come to a perfect corner, or point rather than the slightly curved edges they have now.

~Mo’ Blocks:
We need a bigger selection of Block pieces to place on the map. Currently we have 1x1 up to 5x5. Where’s the 8x8? the 10x10? the 20x20 ect…
Also, we need a 3rd dimension. I can’t tell you how many times I could’ve used a 2x2x2, or a 4x1x1. Blocks are the main pieces used in building a good map, as they define the physical shape of the map. These should receive the most focus of all the pieces.
Also, the community could really benefit from Triangle, and Circle blocks, not just the square blocks we currently have.

~Forge World 2.0:
Forge World was an epic idea, though poorly executed IMO. Most areas in the map are not that great for forging. What Fore World should be in Halo 4 is just a large open ocean with a background in the distance. That’s it. Focus less on the map and put more resources into the actual forging objects. for the ground, give a few selections of ground objects. These would come in Grass, Rock, Metal ect… and would be about 100x100x1 in size.

~Walls, Floors, and Ceilings. Oh my!
The biggest problem with current forge is the lack of good Wall, Floor, and Ceiling pieces. People are stuck using “wall coliseums” for everything. These look ugly as crap. We need a large Block 100x100x1. ONE THAT DOES NOT SHIFT WHEN YOU SAVE AND EXIT THE MAP. I cannot stress that enough.

2

Agreed.
I can’t say how much I’ve had to use wall coliseums for walls, floors, roof etc.
I really bugs me.
also, more of a forge budget & more quantity per piece, I can’t stress how much I’ve ran out of pieces on forge.

3

Also, it would be nice to be able to “group” objects together, kinda like you do in Microsoft Office with drawing objects. That way, you could group objects together and move them all at once, rotate them together, or change their colors or spawn properties together. When designing maps, especially symmetrical ones, this would come in really handy.

4

Here is a list of what I want:

Note: As a forger I think that Halo: Reach has a great forge.
I am trying to help you by making this list, so please help me add to it.
Here is everything I have come up with so far:

>Give us more scenery items along with the usual structure-only items. In Halo 3, we had things like turret cases and computers. While they were cool and all, we really don’t have that many scenery items. You need scenery to set up the environment of your map. All Forge World maps generally look the same and it’s getting old.

>Have an editor that lets you cut into any made piece. Could be called ‘sculptor’ or something.

> Under the “Natural” catagory in Forge World, it is filled with rocks. Tall rock, slanty rock, tiny rock, whatever kind of rock your heart desires. But what about something like trees/bushes? Clouds, rivers? Think about it.

> Only two lights on that gigantic map? Come on. Really? We could use 4 in Halo 3.

> Special FX: The only ones I really use are Juicy and Next Gen, because the others just make it hard to play the game and hurt my eyes. I don’t see why anybody would want to use something like Nova besides taking pictures.

> What if, along with lighting effects, we could put an orb into the map that caused music to play in gameplay? Nothing like some good old epic Halo music to get your blood pumping in a match.

> Dead bodies. This idea has been tossed around a bit, but it would be cool. Especially for creepy infection maps.

> Foliage- Placing trees and flowers would add a nice touch. Placeable grass is a must.

> Pelican/Spirit/Phantom dropships. Maps like Forge World are definitely large enough to accomodate them. Also crashed versions of these ships for scenery purposes. Maybe even some Sabre/Longsword/Seraph wreckage. In fact wreckage for every vehicle.

> Ammo boxes. I miss them. I don’t like putting a gun on a map just so players can get ammo. It makes no sense. Give us rocket ammo boxes, .50 cal boxes, and whatever kinds of ammo boxes we may need.

> Shield doors/solid doors with switches, and gravity lifts with switches. To turn them off/open them. Switches could be seperate items, or could come with the door free.

> Breakable windows and objects. Stuff we can interact with.

> Unique object shapes (circle, triangle,pyramid, etc.)

> Weather FX. Great idea. We should be able to choose from night and day (free) anyway. But we should also be able to put on rain, lightning, and severe weather. Not talking about tornadoes and stuff but you get the point.

>Moving Pieces- platforms that move back and forth

>Weapon Holders- Fixed weapons are no fun

>Water Levels- Place water to any level that you wish

>New FX- Something like CE graphics effect

>Skins- Every object should have skins to help differentiate
them and provide real scenery

>Custom Shield doors- Keep what you don’t want out

> Ability to place Callout Zones- Small hill-like objects that provide a callout on the side of the screen like in matchmaking.

>Ability to place soft walls- Instead of death barriers, these invisible walls prevent any player from going past.

>Every Thus-far featured weapon- Even if it is not in Halo 4

>Ability to place equipment from Halo 3

>Sound effects- ex. You go around a corner in infection and hear a flood scream

>Cameras- Allows the user to place cameras around the map and they will show live footage back on a screen somewhere else on a map

>Variable Vehicle Options- Speed options and gravity options for vehicles

>Super High Playspace- The ability to make a skyscraper would be nice

>Elevators- Making your skyscraper climbable would be nice

>Water Vehicles- A boat or two

>A space map- Comes with flyable spacecraft

>Trait hill zones- Hill zone that alters a players traits. ex. a low gravity area or an area where movement is slowed by wind.

> Improved snap and grid system- The systems are a bit buggy. I think it would be cool if we could alter the scale of an adjustment. For example, I should be able to move a block an inch at a time or twelve feet at a time.

>Ability to plot a trajectory for large sky vehicles to land (like a planned and timed airdrop)

>Scripted Wildlife- Have a fish or bird fly/swim past you at a certain point

>Timed Decay- Similar to the H3 map isolation on which the scenery became “Floodier” over time

>Ability to place AI- Create a Forged Firefight Map

>Gigantic pieces- I want a piece that can cover all of forge world so as to act like a visible barrier

> PC capability- I think there should be a version of forge released for PC if anyone would be willing to pay a little extra to buy it. The PC would allow people to make more intricate maps and maybe even custom pieces. It would be even better if we could port these to the xbox for fun custom games.

> Copy & Paste function- would cut the time in making symmetrical maps in half.
>Every piece should be destructible to an extent

>Ability to port maps from Halo:Reach or Halo 3

>Customized signs- Write your own message

>Place artificial Hazards- Like the train on Terminal

>Fire

>Destructible Elephant

>Be able to swim/ no armor ability needed to use sprint.
I like the idea, but what if Sprint, Swim, and Jetpack were the only armor abilities? I think I would like that, and you might even be able to customize them to be default.

>I dont know if this is possible but it would be cool if it was, anyway there should be something called a vehicle zone. in the center of this zone, is a control terminal that can be changed to a certain type of vehicle controls like drivable or flyable. Any forge piece placed inside this zone will be treated like a vehicle and would be able to be driven. This way you can make your own cars or ships and you would be able to drive them via the control terminal.

>Roads- I would like to be able to have a realistic setting if possible.

> Paint tool- Self-explanatory. Be able to paint a unique design onto an object

>Temperature effects- Maybe it would be cool if you could alter the temperature on a map. Maybe if you had a low temperature then the water could freeze. Maybe with a high enough temperature metals would be more flexible. Who knows?

>Man cannons with fixed landing points that would always be the same

> Ladders- My favorite thing about Halo CE.

> Custom Lights- the ability to make a custom-colored light. I think it would also be cool if the light could be represented in different ways. Maybe spotlights or a strobe light would be cool. I think it could be great if there was the option to turn on electricity and then hit a switch to turn on the lights (like Black Ops)

THAT’S IT! I know it is extremely ambitious, but I think that 343 can still do it in the year that they have left. It would be easier to implement PC editing and port options, but it probably won’t happen.
Thanks for reading,
Ratermelon416

5

Wow! if they put all of this stuff in forge 343i may have to put forge and custom games on a seprate disk…

6

Yes, I agree with you 100%

7

I agree with you.

"SWITCHES"

Other things that would make Forge 3.0 great would be “SWITCHES”.

These could be used to open doors or gates or even an elevator.

Think of the gate in Halo 3 High Ground, or Halo 2 Zanzibar.

This creates an objective that can turn the tide of battle when activated.

You could have a switch when activated, opens a door to a room, which has a vehcicle or heavy weapons, or the Flag.

You could also have it that the switch could be toggled again to close the door. Or have two sitched linked to the same door/gate/elevator, one opens and one can close.

This creates many possibilities that would be lots of fun.

Even have a switch linked to two doors/gate/elevator etc. If you switch it, it may open the door, but close another or vice versa.

I would really like to see this.

And another is a Spiral Staircase that can be 1 - 4 levels high, which only has a rail to stop you from falling off, but allows you to be shot at, when going up or down.

8

i agree with yah!

9

Another Switch,

To activate a bridge, like in Halo CE level Halo.

This would be sweet to have this as an option in Forge. Activating a bridge, may allow you to drive a warthog into a base or another area.

Switched are a must for Forge 3.0

10

> Here is a list of what I want:
>
> Note: As a forger I think that Halo: Reach has a great forge.
> I am trying to help you by making this list, so please help me add to it.
> Here is everything I have come up with so far:
>
> >Give us more scenery items along with the usual structure-only items. In Halo 3, we had things like turret cases and computers. While they were cool and all, we really don’t have that many scenery items. You need scenery to set up the environment of your map. All Forge World maps generally look the same and it’s getting old.
>
> >Have an editor that lets you cut into any made piece. Could be called ‘sculptor’ or something.
>
> > Under the “Natural” catagory in Forge World, it is filled with rocks. Tall rock, slanty rock, tiny rock, whatever kind of rock your heart desires. But what about something like trees/bushes? Clouds, rivers? Think about it.
>
> > Only two lights on that gigantic map? Come on. Really? We could use 4 in Halo 3.
>
> > Special FX: The only ones I really use are Juicy and Next Gen, because the others just make it hard to play the game and hurt my eyes. I don’t see why anybody would want to use something like Nova besides taking pictures.
>
> > What if, along with lighting effects, we could put an orb into the map that caused music to play in gameplay? Nothing like some good old epic Halo music to get your blood pumping in a match.
>
> > Dead bodies. This idea has been tossed around a bit, but it would be cool. Especially for creepy infection maps.
>
> > Foliage- Placing trees and flowers would add a nice touch. Placeable grass is a must.
>
> > Pelican/Spirit/Phantom dropships. Maps like Forge World are definitely large enough to accomodate them. Also crashed versions of these ships for scenery purposes. Maybe even some Sabre/Longsword/Seraph wreckage. In fact wreckage for every vehicle.
>
> > Ammo boxes. I miss them. I don’t like putting a gun on a map just so players can get ammo. It makes no sense. Give us rocket ammo boxes, .50 cal boxes, and whatever kinds of ammo boxes we may need.
>
> > Shield doors/solid doors with switches, and gravity lifts with switches. To turn them off/open them. Switches could be seperate items, or could come with the door free.
>
> > Breakable windows and objects. Stuff we can interact with.
>
> > Unique object shapes (circle, triangle,pyramid, etc.)
>
> > Weather FX. Great idea. We should be able to choose from night and day (free) anyway. But we should also be able to put on rain, lightning, and severe weather. Not talking about tornadoes and stuff but you get the point.
>
> >Moving Pieces- platforms that move back and forth
>
> >Weapon Holders- Fixed weapons are no fun
>
> >Water Levels- Place water to any level that you wish
>
> >New FX- Something like CE graphics effect
>
> >Skins- Every object should have skins to help differentiate
> them and provide real scenery
>
> >Custom Shield doors- Keep what you don’t want out
>
> > Ability to place Callout Zones- Small hill-like objects that provide a callout on the side of the screen like in matchmaking.
>
> >Ability to place soft walls- Instead of death barriers, these invisible walls prevent any player from going past.
>
> >Every Thus-far featured weapon- Even if it is not in Halo 4
>
> >Ability to place equipment from Halo 3
>
> >Sound effects- ex. You go around a corner in infection and hear a flood scream
>
> >Cameras- Allows the user to place cameras around the map and they will show live footage back on a screen somewhere else on a map
>
> >Variable Vehicle Options- Speed options and gravity options for vehicles
>
> >Super High Playspace- The ability to make a skyscraper would be nice
>
> >Elevators- Making your skyscraper climbable would be nice
>
> >Water Vehicles- A boat or two
>
> >A space map- Comes with flyable spacecraft
>
> >Trait hill zones- Hill zone that alters a players traits. ex. a low gravity area or an area where movement is slowed by wind.
>
> > Improved snap and grid system- The systems are a bit buggy. I think it would be cool if we could alter the scale of an adjustment. For example, I should be able to move a block an inch at a time or twelve feet at a time.
>
> >Ability to plot a trajectory for large sky vehicles to land (like a planned and timed airdrop)
>
> >Scripted Wildlife- Have a fish or bird fly/swim past you at a certain point
>
> >Timed Decay- Similar to the H3 map isolation on which the scenery became “Floodier” over time
>
> >Ability to place AI- Create a Forged Firefight Map
>
> >Gigantic pieces- I want a piece that can cover all of forge world so as to act like a visible barrier
>
> > PC capability- I think there should be a version of forge released for PC if anyone would be willing to pay a little extra to buy it. The PC would allow people to make more intricate maps and maybe even custom pieces. It would be even better if we could port these to the xbox for fun custom games.
>
> > Copy & Paste function- would cut the time in making symmetrical maps in half.
> >Every piece should be destructible to an extent
>
> >Ability to port maps from Halo:Reach or Halo 3
>
> >Customized signs- Write your own message
>
> >Place artificial Hazards- Like the train on Terminal
>
> >Fire
>
> >Destructible Elephant
>
> >Be able to swim/ no armor ability needed to use sprint.
> I like the idea, but what if Sprint, Swim, and Jetpack were the only armor abilities? I think I would like that, and you might even be able to customize them to be default.
>
> >I dont know if this is possible but it would be cool if it was, anyway there should be something called a vehicle zone. in the center of this zone, is a control terminal that can be changed to a certain type of vehicle controls like drivable or flyable. Any forge piece placed inside this zone will be treated like a vehicle and would be able to be driven. This way you can make your own cars or ships and you would be able to drive them via the control terminal.
>
> >Roads- I would like to be able to have a realistic setting if possible.
>
> > Paint tool- Self-explanatory. Be able to paint a unique design onto an object
>
> >Temperature effects- Maybe it would be cool if you could alter the temperature on a map. Maybe if you had a low temperature then the water could freeze. Maybe with a high enough temperature metals would be more flexible. Who knows?
>
> >Man cannons with fixed landing points that would always be the same
>
> > Ladders- My favorite thing about Halo CE.
>
> > Custom Lights- the ability to make a custom-colored light. I think it would also be cool if the light could be represented in different ways. Maybe spotlights or a strobe light would be cool. I think it could be great if there was the option to turn on electricity and then hit a switch to turn on the lights (like Black Ops)
>
> THAT’S IT! I know it is extremely ambitious, but I think that 343 can still do it in the year that they have left. It would be easier to implement PC editing and port options, but it probably won’t happen.
> Thanks for reading,
> Ratermelon416

>This

11

Object snapping and different forging enviroments are my biggest wishes

12

please make it like cryengine 2 or far cry 2 map editor :smiley:

13

Link forge maps together at least in view, so if some crazy -Yoink- is going on in one map and it is visible to another map in theory, they could see it as part of the background.

14

I’d like a better option for rotating pieces into place. Like if we could select which axis to rotate, then move the thumbstick accordingly, instead of the painstaking and time-consuming method we have now.

15

> Here is a list of what I want:
>
> Note: As a forger I think that Halo: Reach has a great forge.
> I am trying to help you by making this list, so please help me add to it.
> Here is everything I have come up with so far:
>
> >All the stuff this guy said.
>
> Thanks for reading,
> Ratermelon416

Some of this is extremely unrealistic to ever happen in Halo, but most of what you said is gold. Even if it has to be put onto another disc just to work, I think the Halo community and even non-Halo players would be ecstatic.

Another function you could add would be like marines or ODSTs, like in firefight, but put them into maps. Perhaps even enemies as well. AI controlled Pelicans or Phantoms/Spirits.

You could design entire missions out of things like these. I was thinking also, you could give all the water object trait the same to lava. Coursing lava, if the temp is hot, you have stuff you don’t want to go near, if the temp is too cold you have solid rock.

16

I think the biggest issues are to lower the lag (especially with merged parts) & add more color options. I know color might seem secondary but for the love of God, no more gray!!

Switches would be pretty darn cool though. Lots of other good ideas here.

17

  • I’d like to be able to play as enemy characters in custom games. Imagine being the flood for infection gametype, or playing slayer with grunts vs spartans.

  • We should be able to control weapon attributes more accurately. Grenade strength (kill radius), bloom speed, reload weapon times, clip sizes, overheating times, sword lunge distances, etc. This way MLG players can completely control their game and not be able to blame bungie or 343 anymore! They can create an everlasting completely balanced game (that’s why starcraft almost never needs a remake, because its fairly balanced).

  • I would love to have halokarts, there’s a mariokart fan in everyone. It would make racing cool, cuz I’m not that interested in just driving around…sorry. A miniature ghost would be pretty cool, ad some oil slicks and weapons to pick up at checkpoints and I’m in!

  • Another forge tool for racing maps would be a boost track that significantly speeds up your vehicle.

  • areas on forge with flat lava, like their massive seas. We need to die differently when we jump off a map, drowning gets old. Green acid pits would be cool too.

  • New environment walls. A colloseum wall that looks like sand, grass, snow, etc. Can be used as flooring to spice things up. All blocks should be themed too. So stone elements should be returned to us for building on sand maps, etc.

  • Custom soundtracks would be amazing to install on maps, just don’t know if that’s too good to be true. Imagine playing infection with haunting soundtrack scoring, Indiana Jones, Halo music for slayer matches!

  • Destructable forge pieces. Other than vehicles! Windows would be a great start,

  • Water based vehicles, boats, hovercrafts?

  • customizable team specific softkill boundaries. This way the infected can roam areas where spartans can’t. Perhaps under water.

  • Small-Medium-Large-XLarge singular rooms to forge in. This would give us a bigger budget right? It would cut out the unused space in forgeworld.

  • Custom Labels for locations on the map (for call outs). Tool could be used similar to “spawn area” or “soft Kill” zone; mapping large or small sections.

18

Geometry editing. Enough said.

19

> Here is a list of what I want:
>
> Some of this is extremely unrealistic to ever happen in Halo, but most of what you said is gold. Even if it has to be put onto another disc just to work, I think the Halo community and even non-Halo players would be ecstatic.
>
> Another function you could add would be like marines or ODSTs, like in firefight, but put them into maps. Perhaps even enemies as well. AI controlled Pelicans or Phantoms/Spirits.
>
> You could design entire missions out of things like these. I was thinking also, you could give all the water object trait the same to lava. Coursing lava, if the temp is hot, you have stuff you don’t want to go near, if the temp is too cold you have solid rock.

I hadn’t thought of custom campaign, but that would give any game infinite replay value. I have seen it on Halo PC, but it seems like lag would always be an issue. That would be amazing

20

I have 3 requests for forge 3.0

  1. Forgable firefight

2)Forgable firefight

3)Forgable firefight