I would like to start off by saying I want to share my voice and want everyone else to share theirs more. I’ve read some really great ideas and comments for what Halo and the community ate going through. I’d like to share some ideas as to further spur the think tank that is our hopes for Halo’s future.
Dual wielding is first on my list. We have seen dual wielding change the gaming environment forever when it was introduced in Halo 2. Although it lasted for only 2 games, the second being Halo 3, there is no doubt that the most groundbreaking Halo games can be remembered in part by this dual wielding mechanic. But was it loved and is it missed? For the most part I feel I’m in the majority that says yes to both of these questions. If Halo is to stick to the route it’s going down now, is there a place for dual wielding? I’m up for suggestions to this question, as should 343i. My two cents are we can see it work by limiting other abilities. Perhaps when dual wielding, we cannot make use of sprint, clambering, and debatably thrusts, of course along with the loss of grenade usage. This would also bring back a hefty amount of crouch-jumping, which is now partially obsolete.
Another great idea would be to create a “Classic Mode” or setting for Halo. This would take away spartan abilities, clambering, sprinting, and the people who complain about Halo as it stands. This feature would give the community 2 games in one, by how different Halo plays in these two contrasts.
Second to last on my list is the way the story could further progress without going stale. In many forums I see people hoping for more back story for the Forerunners and the comeback of the Flood and Brutes. I, for one, fully enjoy these ideas. However, I feel for how long Microsoft wants wants Halo to keep going, they’ll need to expand their horizons past the current Halo galaxy. A new empire in another galaxy or a savage interspecies terrorist faction would breathe new life of wonder (anything with new character models and new guns, basically). So many ideas come to mind, but all basically trace back to the previous generalizations I have above. It is to be noted that many developers shy away from having more that 3 enemy factions in fear of losing depth in such faction development. However, I feel that this causes the Halo universe to lose depth. We should go back to a focus on the main characters and return to meaninglessly shooting aliens. This does not mean we cannot have deep lore and character within the enemies we would be fighting. This would only push the sense of mystery back into the franchise that has been systematically overwritten by deep explanations that most of the time (arguably of course) are either redundant or too hefty in detail. Essentially, I’m trying to bring back mystery and wonder to the forefront of Halo with these suggestions (which I gather is what the community and I want).
Lastly, I think the world is better without the various and seperate spartan abilities first introduced in Halo Reach. However, I feel there is a place for the type of Halo 3 equipment moving forward in this series. It’s absolutely not necessary, but has proven to add a specific oomph to the sandbox effects in Halo 3 and Halo 3: ODST.
Also Halo 3’s fileshare should come back!
What do you think and what are some ideas that you have on Halo’s potential?