So some people (namely a few friends) say Halo 5 doesn’t “feel” like Halo. What does that mean? Halo still has its old guns and a variety of new guns. The “smart scope” thing is weird, but not too different from regular zoom. Sprint is well… sprint. And I for one actually enjoy the new “Spartan Abilities”. They make Spartans feel like an actual professional juggernaut.
The biggest change to the “feel” I find is the heavy emphasis on competitive gameplay. It feels like 90% of the game is dedicated to a simply play-to-win style. I feel as though Halo lost its unique brand of chaotic fun that was offered in it basic form; and then enhanced beyond reason by the community. The introduction of Forge helped bring this concept back, but was still lacking.
What do you guys think? Is the “feel” of Halo still there? What exactly is this “feel” anyway?
I understand what you’re saying. But one can still have classic, original Halo fun in custom games once Forgers finish their maps!
I think that Halo feel is unique to the player. It’s something you took away from playing the game. What stuck with you. For some people, it was the competitiveness of Halo 2 and 3. For others, it was the atmosphere and art-style of CE-H3. For some, it was the chaotic, casual fun of joining your friends online for customs or Invasion and Action Sack in Reach and Halo 4. For me, and I’m sure many others, it was all of the above. Halo has a lot to offer and it means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. That’s why it’s hard for 343 to cater to everybody.
I consider it to be the atmosphere of the game or at least how the environment is set up. I think they went a little too wild to show us new locations that doesn’t look like they would fit in the Halo universe, especially those UNSC based maps that overstates their welcome.
I’m also just mainly talking about multiplayer maps as they’ve actually done a good job with the environments in the campaign. Despite how lacking the story was, it felt like I was in the Halo universe
> Is the “feel” of Halo still there?
Where to even -Yoinking!- begin…
Short answer 343I is more concerned with pushing their own vision of Halo than staying true to what defined Halo in the past. What is that vision? Make the gameplay as hybridized with the modern shooter as possible without completely destroying it. Then make the aesthetics as cliche sci-fi as you can get. Seriously, glowing skull robots and floating monoliths? That’s the best you can come up with?
Halo 5 isn’t a true “return to the roots” by any means, and they’ve made it pretty clear they have no intention of actually doing so. Sure, they removed most of the terrible additions from Arena, but only because of fan outrage, and even then they made sure to implement some equally terrible additions to make up for it. Rather than abandoning these ideas completely though, they stubbornly quarantine them in the Warzone gamemode, where they are free to fester and grow under careful observation. Mark my words though, a containment breach is inevitable.
> What exactly is this “feel” anyway?
When you destroy someone with the perfect combination of strafe and shot leading.
When vehicles are exploding all over the battlefield instead of collecting dust at the base.
When orchestra and rock mix and blaze in the background.
When you’re killing cultist aliens inside of old temples.
When maps are something you interact with seamlessly during combat, and not something you have to wade through by constantly sprinting and climbing.