(This is a re-post of a thread I created on B.net months ago which in lieu of the upcoming TU I felt was appropriate to bring to the new ship)
Tl;Dr at bottom.
I’ve been considering this for quite a while now, and had thought about reserving judgement until after Reach got a title update in the hope that Bungie address some of the issues I feel are plaguing this game.
I’m not throwing the rattle out of the pram and screaming like an infant. I’d like to think that my judgement is fairly measured, and that I have given Reach a fair chance.
I have several problems with this game, the one that’s bothered me most since the launch has been the actual core mechanics of the game. What I mean is this:
Movement mechanics do not feel like a Halo game.
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Movement speed is greatly decreased, and given the size of most of the maps this makes the game feel sluggish, even when using sprint.
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Jump height is greatly decreased. This is something that has really sucked some of the fun out of Halo. No more trick jumping. No more can we jump over a boosting Ghost, and no longer can we jump to avoid grenade damage.
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These two factors accompanied with fall damage, while some people believe these to be minor issues, really -Yoink!- the feel of Reach for me.
Weaponry issues.
Although these could be easily fixed, I really don’t think Bungie are going to do much about it.
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Reticule bloom does not punish spammers nearly enough. This results in mid-range DMR battles having a somewhat random outcome, and can be quite frustrating.
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Grenades are much heavier in Reach, and do not bounce nearly enough. The blast radius is also much too high, given that jump height has been reduced so far, and this is what makes our new grenades mini-nukes.
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Plasma repeater has been severely nerfed from the Beta, and is now a limp noodle. It is NOT a sufficient replacement for an AR. Overheats to quickly in my opinion.
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Focus rifle has also been severely nerfed since the Beta, and is no replacement for a sniper rifle. This can lead to very unbalanced gameplay in Invasion Slayer, as I’m sure many of you know. I can’t be the only person who thinks that it’s a dismal jump back from the beam rifle.
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Energy sword is one that really has been destroyed by Reach. It is ridiculous that the sword can be blocked by melee strikes, not to mention the fact that whoever is wielding the sword will take damage when this happens. Anyone saying the sword was OP and needed to be like this, I invite you to look at the gravity hammer, which cannot be blocked at all.
One of the more fun aspects of the sword were the duels, which have cruelly been watered down so that if two sword users clash a few times, both of them will die. Gone are the days of tapping B at just the right moment to try and out-time your enemy at the end of a battle lasting 20 clashes or more.
- Sniper rifle is far too easy to use. I think anyone who spent the time perfecting their sniping technique in previous Halo games will agree with me here. A good sniper was an extremely valuable asset to a team in previous games, but in Reach any clown can pick up a rifle and go on a rampage.
Armour Abilities NEED to be pickups!
I can’t stress this enough. It seems to me that this is one of the things that has sucked a lot of the fun and teamwork out of Reach. Halo 3 had it perfect with the equipment pickups, I don’t think that AAs should be a spawning option, with the possible exception of sprint.
Controlling equipment was a key part of Halo gameplay, and one that I sorely miss in Reach. I won’t harp on about it, but I feel that if these were placed strategically on the maps, we would see much more team oriented gameplay in many of the playlists.
Bungie has RUINED vehicle combat
Remember when hearing the whoosh of a Banshee going airborne would make a team panic, run for cover and desperately look for a method to take it out? Not any more! Anyone with a few friends who are coordinated at all can take it down in a matter of seconds with concentrated DMR fire. Same goes for the Warthog.
I can understand the changes Bungie made to the tanks, because with movement being so slow they’d be unbelievably OP, as we’ve already witnessed on Haemorrhage. However I think vehicle combat doesn’t play anywhere near as large a role as it should have in this game.
I’m hoping that Bungie will see fit to buff the Banshee and Warthog.
The map pack is good, but doesn’t compare to past Halos
I honestly don’t think the maps in Reach are much good. There are a few that are fun to play, but my heart sinks whenever I see some of the atrocities come up in matchmaking.
This is only my opinion of course, but I feel the main culprits are Asylum, Pinnacle, The Cage (pet hate), Haemorrhage. Basically Forgeworld maps are hideous, and they aren’t fun to play on.
So…
For any of you who read the entire post, you have my thanks. I hope you agree with at least some of what I’ve said here. I’ve played Reach a lot since it came out, I’m an avid Halo fan and I’ve been around since CE was first released. I’ve had a hell of a lot of fun playing these games over the past decade, and it saddens me to see what it’s turned into.
For the meantime, I’ve gone back to playing Halo 3, and I was amazed at how much more fun it is than Reach. I’d like anyone who’s read this far to understand that I’m not bashing the game, I just feel it needs some TLC so that it can be the powerhouse we all geared ourselves up for during the Beta.
Having said all of that:
inb4Reachisfine
inb4crymoar
inb4coolstorybro
inb4wewontmissyou
inb4Reachisfun
Tl;Dr - Core gameplay aspects need serious consideration before Reach can be considered a good, balanced Halo game. I’ve gone back to Halo 3 until said updates occur, for the simple reason that it’s actually fun to play.
Please understand that this is not a “REACH SUCKS” thread, and I am not a whiner. I really want to love this game, but it could be so much better than what it is now.
Constructive input only, please.
Please 343i, recognise what needs to be addressed, and BRING BACK HALO!
