Sprint, ahhh, sprint. The most fervently hated topic on waypoint, largely because no real discussion ever comes of it. So who wants another sprint discussion? Nobody, that’s who!
Anyway, here’s another sprint discussion.
I wanted to take a bit of time and try to come to a conclusive answer on this mechanic. Thus far we’ve had debates on how sprint changes Halo, but very little has been said on how or why those changes are good or bad. Largely because quantifying “good” change is next to impossible, everyone has different tastes and everyone has different appreciations for different styles or mechanics. Thus a conclusion really can’t be reached. That said, I want to approach this from the perspective of game design, and what I (personally) believe revolves around good design.
Like any art, there really aren’t any rules, just suggestions, so bare with me.
To start off, why is sprint in the game? From what we've heard from 343i, and what we can extrapolate from their previously released design goals (look up "Spartan in a wheelchair" to see them) sprints purpose is Immersion and Market Accessibility. Of course, it also plays a roll in Spartan Charge and Slide, but as those could be just as easily tagged onto thruster, I'm going to ignore them.
Now, what *is* sprint? *"Well it's running, you numpty. Duh."- Random person number 2.* Sprint, as it exists in games, is the concept of "Movement at a risk" applied to an individual. It's the meaningful choice between greater map mobility or some other, negative alternative, which in this case happens to be the lack of ability to maneuver and shoot. Of course there are a few other mechanics tagged onto sprint to bandage some of its problems, noticeably the charge time in which you can get shot out of, and the shield regen delay. These were introduced to punish players for using sprint as a means of escape. Given the plethora of mobility options and the fact that sprint is infinite, however, and I'm not sure how particularly effective these countermeasures are.
Next off, how exactly does sprint impact the game? Well the first obvious answer is that map scaling increases. Hallways are elongated to account for sprint. While it's true you cross the map faster with sprint, the time roughly evens with older games out when you consider all the non-sprint time that's going to go into the average match, largely because someone feels the need to fill your rear with lead every now and again. However, this increase in map size has some adverse affects. For starters, weapon ranges must increase to compensate for the longer lines of sight. This could also be the reason for the introduction of standard ADS. Grenade explosion radius must also increase to account for the depth of cover, leading to the mini-nuke problem we've seen in both Reach and Halo 5 (Though one could argue Reach's mini-nukes were paying homage to CE's). It also means that walking time (you know, walking, that thing you do in between bouts of marathoning) is longer than in previous games, in turn necessitating the use of sprint, and here we're drawing to one of my less favourable aspects of the mechanic.
Sprint is a necessary mechanic. Not because of some arbitrary year based requirement (looking at you commonly regurgitated nonsensical posts) but because during gameplay, you are effectively forced to use it. Sprint has its fair share of advantages, gaining map and weapon control chief among them. If you don't use sprint, you risk giving your opponents an edge in positioning and weapons, you won't make it to your teammate before they're gunned down, you won't cut off the flagnum (etc.) It's very much an integral part of the game, and my problem with that is for a mechanic with so much focus... it's not very deep. Now in other shooters, sprint being a primary mechanic is fine. Games like CoD, Battlefield, Battlefront etc all mesh well with the mechanic because it's *punishing.* The kill times in those games are absurd, near instant, and sprinting at a bad time almost assures death. In Halo we have the luxury of taking fights, we have all these other supplemental movement mechanics that give us a variety of ways to disengage or alleviate the situation. Being caught sprinting isn't punishing, and thus the meaningful choice between sprinting and not sprinting is null. We've essentially implemented a mechanic with no real depth or player value for the sake of immersion.
What's the other chief downside to sprint? It restricts player movement. I know that comes with the territory, but what it means that our maximum mobility is essentially locked to one, non-combat oriented direction and scenario. When certain jumps or paths on the map are designed for sprint, they become largely inaccessible at the most key times in the match, the times when they would make the gameplay the most interesting; during combat. And so a great deal of depth is lost there too because sprint, rather than supplementing the players available movement options, effectively restricts it.
I could tag on the whole "running away" argument again, or the "interrupts gameplay with bouts of running" argument for the sake of it, but I think I've gotten my point across well enough as it stands. Sprint as a mechanic has no real value to the gameplay, it just sort of forces its way in there instead of being another tool at the players disposal.
The concept behind sprint, movement at a risk, is fine. But that concept is something we've had in Halo since day one. Vehicles, Man Cannons, Teleporters, Speed Boosts etc. have been an integral part of the Halo experience for a while. All of these combine increased mobility with increased vulnerability, without inhibiting (but instead supplementing) the flow of gameplay. However those are applied to map design, what are some examples of this idea applied to the player? Well for starters, grenade jumps. You trade health for jump distance, and without introducing a new mechanic in the process. What else?
How about the thruster pack? I've been saying it since before Halo 5 released, but thruster could easily replace sprint as the default movement mechanic. Thruster increases player velocity, but it's omni directional, it can be used in combat, and most importantly, it gives the player *a new way to think about the game.* There's a new meaningful decision beyond "to use or not to use." The use of thruster mid-air allows players to redirect their trajectory, giving them a number of new pathing options that otherwise would have been almost completely impossible in past games, and it does so without the various negatives that sprint can introduce. And it's not a mandatory mechanic, you're not obligated to use it like you are with sprint, it's a tool to supplement the players play rather than being an integral part of it. Wide variety of options, new strategies and ideas, overall interesting? That's a mechanic with depth, and the latter quality is something sprint severely lacks.
This way Halo is still changing, but it's changing in a way that benefits the gameplay, rather than inhibiting it for the sake of change.
To wrap this all up, there are no universal mechanics in game design. Immersion is all well and good, but not when it comes at the cost of gameplay. A balance needs to be struck.
I've got more to say but I'm all out of room, so have a good day everybody.