The Effect of Micro-transactions on Halo

Games Halo 5: Guardians
1

We are coming up on the anniversary of Halo 5, which of course included micro-transactions in its multiplayer modes to unlock all sorts of goodies, including Warzone weapons and vehicles, etc.

I was just curious as to how the community feels about the use of Micro-Transactions and the effect, if any, they have had on the game play experience and the Halo community, after a year.

Are you a fan of them? Do you wish they would disappear off the face of the earth? Don’t care either way?

I want to know how it has affected your experience with Halo.

2

They don’t really affect anything with me. Whenever someone complains, I’m just like Meh. It’s just another microtransaction in another game

3

I have not seen any effects in the game. When the month of mythic came, I did see more PB’s, but no big deal.

4

Half the time I completely forget that you can even buy REQ packs.

At least this way I won’t have to deal with buying maps or being locked out of gamemodes because I didn’t have said maps.

So overall, Microtransactions as they are, are doing pretty good for me.

5

It’s the way of gaming right now…like it or not

6

I think their biggest effect would be shifting 343’s incentives from “make a good Halo game” to “make people want to buy req packs”. I think a good example of this is how unreasonably difficult WZFF can be, and almost impossible to win without spamming lots of heavy vehicles.

Another example is how, until recently, BTB was an afterthought for 343 because they wanted everyone to go to Warzone and be more likely to buy req packs. I think Halo 5 would have launched with BTB and possibly even BTB Heavies if 343 didn’t have that incentive to make people want to buy req packs.

On the other hand, having paid DLC map packs splits the community (this was a big problem in Reach, if I remember correctly) so it can be argued that microtransactions are better…

7

> 2533274873873545;5:
> It’s the way of gaming right now…like it or not

Unfortunately yes. Halo might not be dying but simply following the path of modern gaming standards.

8

I don’t like how just about everything related to customization is tied to REQ packs.

9

> 2727626560040591;8:
> I don’t like how just about everything related to customization is tied to REQ packs.

Yea, I wish they’d balance incentive based customs with REQ-based customs

10

Some good observations so far! Some additional questions I have would be for someone who has purchased some REQ packs. Do you feel like it was worth the extra money you invested in the game? How did it improve your experience with the game?

11

I have not purchase any REQ packs with real cash. Can’t justify paying for something that I don’t know what I’m going to get. Very similar to gambling.

12

> 2533274825766482;10:
> Some additional questions I have would be for someone who has purchased some REQ packs. Do you feel like it was worth the extra money you invested in the game?

When I was new to Halo 5, there was some kind of “championship series” thing going on, and they were offering a $10 req pack with Athlon Champion armor. It also came with an emblem and HCS contender weapon skins. I didn’t know much about it, except that the money from it went to a prize pool or something.

At the time, I was in need of new armor. I looked at the Athlon Champion armor and my first thought was “wow I would look just like a Nascar if I put that on”. So I bought it and it was the only armor I wore for a long time. Was it worth the extra money? Not really but I guess whoever won the championship was happy.

> 2533274825766482;10:
> How did it improve your experience with the game?

It allowed me to look like a Nascar. Otherwise, it didn’t. And it also bothers me that it didn’t give me the HCS contender battle rifle skin because why have the assault rifle and magnum but not the battle rifle? I’m not about to buy those other “pro league” packs.

13

I find the whole req system to be ridiculous. But, not for the reasons that seem so common on this forum. I never really felt it was P2W in the literal sense, but I don’t even need to beat that dead horse to dislike reqs.

It’s not that I like the idea of MTs, but I could at least live with them if they were done right… and IMO… H5 absolutely slaughtered the deployment of its MT system.

Removing weapons/vehicles from the maps is ridiculous. They weren’t removed for the sake of game play and changing things up on that front, they were removed to support the req system. I’d be willing to bet that AI bosses weren’t added to WZ because somebody thought it’d be a great idea. I think they had to come up with something to promote movement to and through certain areas of the maps since there weren’t weapons/vehicles spawning anywhere to make people want to go there. Not to mention that no weapon/vehicle spawns mean a lot fewer conflict zones where both teams have something to fight over, therefor something had to be added to promote that. I’m not saying I hate the idea of bosses spawning and sure, it gives the game type a twist, but I don’t see them as some cool new idea to revolutionize a game type. They were added as a compensatory measure.

I’d rather fight to acquire, or help acquire a power weapon or vehicle on the map and then use it to capture bases or even kill spawned AI than to piss around building up enough points to get my own, even if it means I get them less often. That just feels unnatural to me. Out of place.

Not to mention getting reqs (not the earning part, the retrieving part) feels like the biggest waste of time… an intrusive, interruptive aspect of having to bounce around in a bloated menu and decide, then choose a req. I mean, yeah, you could just let yourself get killed and take care of it while waiting to respawn… but that’s pretty counterproductive. So the alternative is to interrupt what you’re doing and scamper off to a req station, which is wasting time, just to waste more time in a menu. And just think… the better you do… the more often you get to do that.

Don’t know about anyone else, but that just seems silly to me. The whole system just intrudes upon and interrupts WZ in a way that doesn’t feel natural at all. I have/had no interest in arena when H5 launched. WZ got old for me and fast. I waited in hopes that BTB would be enough to keep me around… it wasn’t. I haven’t bothered to come back since and the MT/req system is one of the reasons why, even if it seems like a bit of an indirect one.

I really looked forward to WZ and I thought it had tons of potential, but the reqs just don’t fit for me at all. It just feels like the game type was built around the req system rather than the req system being built to compliment the game type.

14

I don’t have too much of an issue with micro-transactions in Halo 5. As a whole, I do not like the idea of micro-transactions in games but they haven’t had too much of a negative effect on Halo other than some of the community constantly complaining about them on here. There is nothing exclusive for the people that pay for Req packs, the items are still obtainable with the in-game currency and the items are either cosmetic or exclusive to Warzone, making the ‘pay to win’ comment more or less obsolete as a win or loss in Warzone has no real effect on the reputation of a player and Warzone is there to be fun and relaxed.

I would however start to have an issue with them if they started having micro-transactions for things in the game that were exclusive and gave an advantage to the players that paid for them.

15

It would be great to actually know which armor you unlock, that’s why hellioskrill, nightfall, and Achilles armor’s sets are so special.

16

I want that extra bit of content but i don’t want to pay money for it.

17

I am that gamer who refuses to buy DLC after the initial release. I hate it. It’s the reason I will likely never experience destiny. I want to spend my money on a game and that’s it, never in the game.

Halo 5 I have been able to play everything, anything added to the game, all maps all without ever spending a dime after my initial purchase.

If the req system is in place for halo 6 (it will be) I would be glad to see it come back instead of paid dlc. But… The req system needs to be implemented differently.

First and foremost the req system cannot be used to fund the devs playing catch up. Halo 6 needs to launch with way more content than 5 did. A lot of the free dlc felt like patches And filling in the blanks instead of dlc. Use the funding for improving and adding to the game. Not finishing the half started project.

There needs to be at least 10 unlockables armor sets that unlock through commendations. You can deliver these in a req pack. But achievement based armor is something I miss.

I like the progression for use system. I like that ReQs are only Warzone applicable. As long as we have a solid complete arena playlist Outsife of the req system I say bring it on.

I’ve paid 60 bucks for well over a month of total mp playtime without any content lockouts. That’s due largely to the req system. IMO it should be coming back. But fine tuned.

18

> 2727626560040591;8:
> I don’t like how just about everything related to customization is tied to REQ packs.

Pretty much this. I don’t mind armor reskins being put in req packs, as long as legendary/ultra rare base armors are unlocked through commendations or achievements, which isn’t the case. I like how we earn emblems. I’d also like a mythic certification (for a LOT of req points). After grinding forever, you can use this certification to unlock a mythic armor, helmet, or weapon.

19

> 2535473635314008;17:
> I am that gamer who refuses to buy DLC after the initial release. I hate it. It’s the reason I will likely never experience destiny. I want to spend my money on a game and that’s it, never in the game.
>
> Halo 5 I have been able to play everything, anything added to the game, all maps all without ever spending a dime after my initial purchase.
>
> If the req system is in place for halo 6 (it will be) I would be glad to see it come back instead of paid dlc. But… The req system needs to be implemented differently.
>
> First and foremost the req system cannot be used to fund the devs playing catch up. Halo 6 needs to launch with way more content than 5 did. A lot of the free dlc felt like patches And filling in the blanks instead of dlc. Use the funding for improving and adding to the game. Not finishing the half started project.
>
> There needs to be at least 10 unlockables armor sets that unlock through commendations. You can deliver these in a req pack. But achievement based armor is something I miss.
>
> I like the progression for use system. I like that ReQs are only Warzone applicable. As long as we have a solid complete arena playlist Outsife of the req system I say bring it on.
>
> I’ve paid 60 bucks for well over a month of total mp playtime without any content lockouts. That’s due largely to the req system. IMO it should be coming back. But fine tuned.

Agreed. I completely dislike the REQ system, especially since I don’t like Warzone and all the skins and armor are locked behind 1015 Arena games for a gold pack. What I want for H6 is all Mythic armors are achievement/commendation based, everything else is in the REQ system. Have very nice looking skins tied to commendations as well, and common-legendary in the REQ system. That’s how I want it.

20

It’s garbage.