I was really having a great time with the beta in the first week. I liked all of the mobility related abilities and thought and still think sprint is very well balanced when compared to Halo 4. I played about 6 hours in the first week considering I was also playing Sunset Overdrive at the same time. I enjoyed everything I played. At the end of this week though I do not feel as jazzed. Nothing has changed with how I use my abilities, or my sensitivity, or anything for that. I like Eden, but not Regret. My issue isn’t in the maps though. My issue is how this game plays with BR starts. Wait hold on those angry comments can wait please read what else I have to say. In Halo 2 and 3 I preferred BR starts to AR starts. The SMG has been worthless until H5:G, and the AR didn’t get to have any true balance of power until Halo 4, and that didn’t matter due to custom classes. I preferred BR since people actually had a viable weapon. In all of the titles since Halo 2 the BR has always been the most well rounded weapon, and the only one that was worth your time until you picked up a power weapon.
Things changed with H5:G though. When I first heard that week 1 of H5:G would be AR start I was a little disappointed, but didn’t care too much as I knew there were 2 more weeks of game coming at me. What really surprised me was how good the AR was in H5:G. Yes it’s a little overpowered, but that can be fixed. BR’s aren’t doing it for me though. Why I asked myself, why is the weapon I’ve gone to all the time since Halo 2 become my greatest enemy? I’m not doing bad, I like the feel of the weapon, it actually kills in 4 shots as opposed to that pre Halo 4 update 5 shot bull****. So whats my problem? It’s that BR’s are causing a huge problem in the gameplay.
Matches go a little something like this. Red team goes to red base, blue team goes to top catwalk. They all basically stay in those 2 areas and shoot at each other in an old-fashioned spaghetti western style. You get 3 body shots in on a spartan and now you’re moving in for the 4th headshot. What happens after that? Your enemy thrusters into cover. This has always been what I’ve loathed about BR starts. Western style shootouts where each team takes one end of the map and stay in that area for 5 minutes and shoot it out, and everytime you’re about to get a kill a guy goes behind a wall, or goes down a ramp, or finds some convenient cover. I would blame this on thrusters if it wasn’t for the fact that this crap didn’t happen when you had a BR back in week 1.
My other issue is how I never minded those shootouts until now. Mobility in Halo has always been it’s most boring aspect. You walk, jump, and crouch… woo. Now we can walk, sprint, jump, crouch, slide, thrust, clamber, and combo a bunch of those together like a cybernetic ninja. BR start throws all that out the bag as people are too content with taking a spot and plainly shooting.
So what do I propose? Do what Halo’s needed since Halo: Reach. Have an official AR start playlist, and a BR start playlist. The community is pretty well divided on this issue, and this is the more than obvious solution. I really want this as BR start seems to content to ignore the new mobility features and people escape death way too easily. But people like this challenge. I find it annoying. I like the mobility and AR encourages this as you need to get in closer, and knowing how to maneuver well is just as important as knowing how to strafe now. Knowing how to climb the map, or clear large gaps is what makes H5:G feel like H5:G and I really like how it feels. BR starts for me really makes the game feel like Halo 2 or 3, and frankly I’ve already played Halo 2 and 3. Plus 3 will always be the best, don’t hate me.
Please in the comments express your ideas and thoughts regarding if you like AR starts or BR starts in H5:G, and whether or not you want a separate playlist for them
Also please be respectful. No complaining, cursing, or insulting to any Users/343i/Microsoft. You will be reported. Please be kind to others. Thank you.