What Grinds My Gears About Halo 4

Games Other Halo
1

Here’s some of my Halo street cred: I’ve gotten every Halo Achievement to date as well as achieving the highest level in every Halo game.

With that said, I know Halo. And this is what I believe is wrong with Halo 4:

  1. No 6v6 playlist - not even Dominion any more… which is a gametype commendation. I’d really be chapped if I hadn’t finished it already.

  2. Backing Out - I generally have a decent team running with me but it takes us 20 mins to actually play a game because everyone backs out when they see our k/d / lvl. What ever happened to manning up and sticking through a game? If you backed out of a Halo 3 ranked game, for any reason, your lvl dropped.

  3. Balanced Weapons - An assault rifle at slightly closer than mid-range can consistently beat a what would be perfect 4 shot BR. Also, insta-kill boltshot on spawn? At least make it like the Mauler where you needed a shot and a whack, adding a touch of skill to the kill. 2 shot BR with damage boost? Get out.

  4. Horrible Host Selection - If someone isn’t in North America, $10 says they’re host. Then they quit out and it gives host to the person who is most likely to quit out next… and so on.

  5. The Indestructible Mongoose - It’s as strong as a Mantis. Honestly, to get a “vehicle destroyed” medal on a mongoose is virtually impossible.

  6. Unreal Commendation Expectations - I had a friend just spend 20+ hours on killing Crawler Snipers. One example out of 20.

  7. Missing Game Types - Mainly Assault, 1 Flag and Territories… but for these game types we would need unbalanced, non-symmetrical maps which are few and far between lately.

  8. Gametype Ranking System - Everyone needs to get on their computer/phone/tablet to find out what their rank is in a certain playlist… Just throw it up there. Although it might make people back out faster if they see a bunch of flaming 50’s…

  9. Plasma Grenade Magnetism - I’ve been on the giving and receiving end of a stick that shouldn’t have happened. Skill should be rewarded, not luck.

  10. Invisibility - This, like overshield, should be a powerup not a loadout. How fun was it to be the only invis person in Halo 3? Ragnarok is permanently scarred due to 8v8 invis.

  11. Broken Thruster Pack - It eats bullets and can be used to negate a stick.

Aside from my personal gripes, I really enjoy Halo 4. I still play it quite frequently and can’t wait until the next Halo comes out! Cheers!

2

> 3. Balanced Weapons - Again, we’re catering to scrubs when we let an assault rifle at mid range consistently beat a what would be perfect 4 shot BR. Also, insta-kill boltshot on spawn? At least make it like the Mauler where you needed a shot and a whack, adding a touch of skill to the kill. 2 shot BR with damage boost? Get out.

This is the only part I disagree with. First, the Assault Rifle is fine. If you are losing to one at mid range with a BR you totally deserve those deaths. Second, your suggestion to re-balance the Boltshot wouldn’t do anything but make it a ridiculously UP Plasma Pistol. Third, having a damage boost is supposed to make whatever weapon you have into a power weapon. What’s the problem?

3

> Here’s some of my Halo street cred: I’ve gotten every Halo Achievement to date as well as achieving the highest level in every Halo game.
>
> With that said, I know Halo. And this is what I believe is wrong with Halo 4:
>
> 1. No 6v6 playlist - not even Dominion any more… which is a gametype commendation. I’d really be chapped if I hadn’t finished it already.
>
> <mark>2. Backing Out - I generally have a decent team running with me but it takes us 20 mins to actually play a game because everyone backs out when they see our k/d / lvl. What ever happened to manning up and sticking through a game? If you backed out of a Halo 3 ranked game, for any reason, your lvl dropped. We’re catering to children here…</mark>
>
> 3. Balanced Weapons - Again, we’re catering to scrubs when we let an assault rifle at mid range consistently beat a what would be perfect 4 shot BR. Also, insta-kill boltshot on spawn? At least make it like the Mauler where you needed a shot and a whack, adding a touch of skill to the kill. 2 shot BR with damage boost? Get out.
>
> <mark>4. Horrible Host Selection - If someone isn’t in North America, $10 says they’re host. Then they quit out and it gives host to the person who is most likely to quit out next… and so on.</mark>
>
> 5. The Indestructible Mongoose - It’s as strong as a Mantis. Honestly, to get a “vehicle destroyed” medal on a mongoose is virtually impossible.
>
> 6. Unreal Commendation Expectations - I had a friend just spend 20+ hours on killing Crawler Snipers. One example out of 20.
>
> 7. Missing Game Types - Mainly Assault, 1 Flag and Territories… but for these game types we would need unbalanced, non-symmetrical maps and since children need things to be fair, symmetrical maps are all we get.
>
> 8. Gametype Ranking System - Everyone needs to get on their computer/phone/tablet to find out what their rank is in a certain playlist… Just throw it up there. Although it might make people back out faster if they see a bunch of flaming 50’s…
>
> 9. Plasma Grenade Magnetism - Catering to children again. I remember when a stick was hard to get and gave major bragging rights over friends.
>
> Aside from my personal gripes, I really enjoy Halo 4. I still play it quite frequently and can’t wait until the next Halo comes out! Cheers!

These are my biggest issues. It’s hard as well for my team to find a match when 99.9% of the time everyone will quite. Then when we finally find a game against a solid team, the host is horrible. I’ll be black screened for the first 30 seconds of the game :confused:

4

> > 3. Balanced Weapons - Again, we’re catering to scrubs when we let an assault rifle at mid range consistently beat a what would be perfect 4 shot BR. Also, insta-kill boltshot on spawn? At least make it like the Mauler where you needed a shot and a whack, adding a touch of skill to the kill. 2 shot BR with damage boost? Get out.
>
> This is the only part I disagree with. First, the Assault Rifle is fine. If you are losing to one at mid range with a BR you totally deserve those deaths. Second, your suggestion to re-balance the Boltshot wouldn’t do anything but make it a ridiculously UP Plasma Pistol. Third, having a damage boost is supposed to make whatever weapon you have into a power weapon. What’s the problem?

you just said exactly what i wanted to.

good job sir.

5

I may have been over-zealous with the AR>BR. However, if host has AR you’re done. The 2 shot BR reference was because the DMR and Light Rifle are 3 shot kills with damage boost. A 2 shot BR just seems pretty OP. I’m not talking about a major overhaul of the damage of each weapon, just slight changes.

6

I am guilty of backing out but tbh I like the feature and would like it to return to social playlists in Halo 5. Assuming there is JIP to compliment it. I especially like it with Halo 4’s current state of matchmaking where I seem to be matched with full teams of try hards and stat padders regardless of my CSR and how many players I am playing with.

I think the problem occurs when the playlists which are more competitive have people backing out. When I go into a competitive playlist like Team Slayer, I don’t back out because I’m looking for a competitive experience. When playing casually I play playlists like Ricochet and want to have fun. Should I be faced with a team of 4 players who are likely better skilled than I am (and certainly the crap teammates I get matched with) then I feel justified to back out. JIP will fill in for me.

7

> Here’s some of my Halo street cred: I’ve gotten every Halo Achievement to date as well as achieving the highest level in every Halo game.
>
> With that said, I know Halo. And this is what I believe is wrong with Halo 4:
>
> 1. No 6v6 playlist - not even Dominion any more… which is a gametype commendation. I’d really be chapped if I hadn’t finished it already.
>
> 2. Backing Out - I generally have a decent team running with me but it takes us 20 mins to actually play a game because everyone backs out when they see our k/d / lvl. What ever happened to manning up and sticking through a game? If you backed out of a Halo 3 ranked game, for any reason, your lvl dropped. We’re catering to children here…
>
> 3. Balanced Weapons - Again, we’re catering to scrubs when we let an assault rifle at mid range consistently beat a what would be perfect 4 shot BR. Also, insta-kill boltshot on spawn? At least make it like the Mauler where you needed a shot and a whack, adding a touch of skill to the kill. 2 shot BR with damage boost? Get out.
>
> 4. Horrible Host Selection - If someone isn’t in North America, $10 says they’re host. Then they quit out and it gives host to the person who is most likely to quit out next… and so on.
>
> 5. The Indestructible Mongoose - It’s as strong as a Mantis. Honestly, to get a “vehicle destroyed” medal on a mongoose is virtually impossible.
>
> 6. Unreal Commendation Expectations - I had a friend just spend 20+ hours on killing Crawler Snipers. One example out of 20.
>
> 7. Missing Game Types - Mainly Assault, 1 Flag and Territories… but for these game types we would need unbalanced, non-symmetrical maps and since children need things to be fair, symmetrical maps are all we get.
>
> 8. Gametype Ranking System - Everyone needs to get on their computer/phone/tablet to find out what their rank is in a certain playlist… Just throw it up there. Although it might make people back out faster if they see a bunch of flaming 50’s…
>
> 9. Plasma Grenade Magnetism - Catering to children again. I remember when a stick was hard to get and gave major bragging rights over friends.
>
> Aside from my personal gripes, I really enjoy Halo 4. I still play it quite frequently and can’t wait until the next Halo comes out! Cheers!

First off on your “Street cred”, lol. Achievements aren’t jack, and literally every single “Hard achievement” can be boosted or has some cheap trick to obtain it (Hey guys, we left you TWO Rocket Launchers with 999 ammo each!). More power to you, but it honestly doesn’t add to your credibility at all.

2 - How exactly is the game catering to children? You can literally back out in every single game ever created, it is called the power button. There isn’t anything 343 can do about quitters.

3 - As somebody pointed out, if you’re losing to AR at mid range that is your own fault. If somebody ambushes me with an AR, I can survive if I 4sk, or if I miss and get a 5sk I die in the process. I’ve never died from an AR ambush when I pulled off a 4sk, much less at MID RANGE. As far as damage boost, yeah, that’s the point of calling in ordnance, they’re supposed to help you.

5/6 - I could not agree more.

7 - “Since children need things to be fair”. You’re joking right? Do you honestly take pride in a win where you had an unfair advantage? Casuals demand things be unfair, that’s why they use coin flip weapons like the AR and the Sword. That’s why when H4 came out people always voted for Exile, in hopes that they’d get the superior blue team spawn, and would instantly quit when they saw that they were on red team.
If you consider yourself to be even slightly competitive, you should demand a level playing field so that the winner is determined BY SKILL.
Wanting things to be unfair so you can win with inferior skill is honestly lame.

8- The game is still as competitive as you want it to be. If you want to play casually, you can. If you want to play competitively, you can. The CSR does not need to be shown in game to make it more competitive, as actual competitive players know full well where they stand. And as you already realize, it exacerbates the problem you had with #2.

9 - I honestly haven’t noticed this, perhaps you’re somebody who likes to get way too close to your opponent and it is easy for them to stick you as a result of this. In H3 I literally saw Plasmas change trajectory mid air in order to stick players, I haven’t witnessed this even once in H4.
Here’s a tip for you, from a fellow CSR 50.
When playing against newbs, they will use the following 3 tactics on a regular basis:
A) AR Rush/Melee combo
B) Sticky grenades
C) Camping corners

Those are the 3 tactics which newbs use once they realize they have no chance of out BRing you. Keep your distance from them to mitigate their AR and Stickies, and then you won’t have to complain on forums.

Adapt and overcome TC, adapt and overcome.

8

Yeah, I guess a quick remedy would be the Halo 3 type division of Ranked and Social Playlists. And even if backing out was still an option, at least count it as a loss in ranked.

I also feel that Join In Progress should be an option that you can turn on or off. 80% of the times I JIP are when someone backs out right before they’re about to lose a match. Thanks for joining, here’s your loss.

9

> These are my biggest issues. It’s hard as well for my team to find a match when 99.9% of the time everyone will quite. Then when we finally find a game against a solid team, the host is horrible. I’ll be black screened for the first 30 seconds of the game :confused:

I backed out against you a couple days ago. I saw your k/d, and when I tried to look at service records, it took over a second to load each one. I also saw you were in party chat.

Just like on the playground, I never picked fights where it was 4v1. Backing out FTW

10

I know Achievements don’t equal skill, I’m just pointing out that I’ve played my fair share of Halo.

a) Much less people would back out if it wasn’t an in-game option.
b) AR’s munch. I’m just talking about turning down the automatic damage a touch. Just a personal opinion. 2 shot BR as opposed to a 3 shot DMR with damage boost seems OP. Personally, just turn it down a touch.
c) I personally like the variety in maps, both symmetrical and non-symmetrical. In Halo 3, High Ground and Zanzibar were awesome. I just like the idea, in some maps, of holding the high ground for an advantage, or fighting an uphill battle to get it back.
d) CSR in game is an easy fix for a simple inconvenience.
e) Plasmas definitely change trajectory in H4. I get stuck and can stick ppl way more in H4 than any Halo game thus far.

Thanks for the tips on beating scrubs… Do you have a youtube channel I cna learn from too?

11

> That’s why when H4 came out people always voted for Exile, in hopes that they’d get the superior blue team spawn, and would instantly quit when they saw that they were on red team.

And now red team spawn is OP. The blue team spawning is atrocious (out in the middle of an open field) and has lead to many of my sniper overkills. Incineration cannon spawns in easy reach of red team spawn and their base offers way more accessible cover.

12

> I may have been over-zealous with the AR>BR. However, if host has AR you’re done. The 2 shot BR reference was because the DMR and Light Rifle are 3 shot kills with damage boost. A 2 shot BR just seems pretty OP. I’m not talking about a major overhaul of the damage of each weapon, just slight changes.

Maybe, but with the BR you need to land all 6 bullets, don’t you?

13

Could be. I guess I’ve never landed just 4 or 5.

14

> e) Plasmas definitely change trajectory in H4. I get stuck and can stick ppl way more in H4 than any Halo game thus far.

Fileshare or Youtube it and I will recognize this point, because again I’ve not seen this happen even once and I saw it happen dozens of times in H3.

15

> > I may have been over-zealous with the AR>BR. However, if host has AR you’re done. The 2 shot BR reference was because the DMR and Light Rifle are 3 shot kills with damage boost. A 2 shot BR just seems pretty OP. I’m not talking about a major overhaul of the damage of each weapon, just slight changes.
>
> Maybe, but with the BR you need to land all 6 bullets, don’t you?

I just confirmed it in a custom game, yes you need to land all 6.

16

> > e) Plasmas definitely change trajectory in H4. I get stuck and can stick ppl way more in H4 than any Halo game thus far.
>
> Fileshare or Youtube it and I will recognize this point, because again I’ve not seen this happen even once and I saw it happen dozens of times in H3.

Check out 0:15, 0:52, 2:21, and maybe even 3:12. I realize these aren’t the greatest examples but this was just the first random sticky grenade montage I looked up.

http://youtu.be/i_wRl_QFfc4

17

> > > e) Plasmas definitely change trajectory in H4. I get stuck and can stick ppl way more in H4 than any Halo game thus far.
> >
> > Fileshare or Youtube it and I will recognize this point, because again I’ve not seen this happen even once and I saw it happen dozens of times in H3.
>
> Check out 0:15, 0:52, 2:21, and maybe even 3:12. I realize these aren’t the greatest examples but this was just the first random sticky grenade montage I looked up.
>
> http://youtu.be/i_wRl_QFfc4

I believe we have different ideas on this issue. To me (And the rest of you let me know if you agree or if you think I’m full of it) that those appear to be the plasma actually sticking, and the game doesn’t recognize it until a split second later due to the lag. Notice how each person is actually in the grenade path. That’s more of a connectivity issue.

In other words, those grenades are flying to the target, getting stuck, flying past, and then the game realizes that they were in fact stuck so they return to where they were stuck. So the trajectory change isn’t due to aim assist, it is due to the system correcting the grenade which wasn’t supposed to fly past the opponent because it was actually a stick.

What I’m saying is back in H3, there were times where grenades changed trajectory before reaching their intended target, sticking people that were not in the trajectory at all.

Sorry if it seems like I’m being stubborn or refusing to admit I was wrong, I fully admit my mistakes when I make them, but I really do not consider those to be the same.

At any rate I’ve been a bit rude in this thread and you’ve responded well and are trying to have an honest conversation, so I appreciate that and apologize for my earlier snippiness.

18

> > 3. Balanced Weapons - Again, we’re catering to scrubs when we let an assault rifle at mid range consistently beat a what would be perfect 4 shot BR. Also, insta-kill boltshot on spawn? At least make it like the Mauler where you needed a shot and a whack, adding a touch of skill to the kill. 2 shot BR with damage boost? Get out.
>
> This is the only part I disagree with. First, the Assault Rifle is fine. If you are losing to one at mid range with a BR you totally deserve those deaths. Second, your suggestion to re-balance the Boltshot <mark>wouldn’t do anything but make it a ridiculously UP Plasma Pistol</mark>. Third, having a damage boost is supposed to make whatever weapon you have into a power weapon. What’s the problem?

Not exactly. The Boltshot would actually be better than the Plasma Pistol at depleting shields since the charge time is quicker. But it would still only be good for close range and wouldn’t lock on to targets. It would also still be incapable of EMP blasting vehicles, so the PP is better there…

Being able to spawn with a one-hit-kill weapon is absolutely absurd. They either need to nerf it again or remove it as a starting weapon. I personally think the best choice is to just remove the Boltshot completely, along with most of the current versions of Promethean weapons because they are mostly completely pointless.

19

  1. backing out has been hindered by the JiP system aswell as there being next to no quit penalty

  2. as a new zealander reach allowed me to play consistent local games, h3 MM gametypes were often quite poor however it was once in a blue moon that you found a local game. despite reach also having meh mm gametypes i could only find local games with the good connection filter, h4 taken a step back and has really killed the nz/aus scene by not allowing us to have good connection games.

  3. who cares about poxy commendations? i think a better complaint is to make the commendation/reward system more efficient by rewarding longevity and rare occuring play, it shouldn’t have a cap it should just show an accumulation and reward you at milestones. it’s cool that you want to 100% things however it’s multiplayer and it shouldn’t be easy to 100% as it should be there to reward longevity. as for the mongoose it doesn’t help that there is no static weapon spawns as it removes most capability to destroy vehicles, loadouts are now there to completely unbalance BTB by allowing vehicle disablers and destroyers off spawn.

  4. yeah the unreal ones need to go, however you’re coming from the PoV that they need to be completed, should we just decrease the longevity of any form of progression for certain people to 100%? why not as i mentioned before have a milestone system where the amount total doesn’t have a cap and can be viewed from the service record to allow people to see how many kills they have with a weapon and just reward them at certain milestones? (except the PP or other weapons that don’t have good kill potential, do damage accumulation or something)

  5. yeah and weapons, vehicles and maps that have a solid and effective design too

  6. tbh just a good user interface and an effective ranking system (progression and ranked) in general

  7. again this could be broadened to magnetism and aim-assist in general.

S 000 DeM

> Second, your suggestion to re-balance the Boltshot wouldn’t do anything but make it a ridiculously UP Plasma Pistol

the plasma pistol shouldn’t be a loadout weapon, though neither should a mauler, the point of the mauler is that it was 2-shot kill and created a combo, the problem with the boltshot is that it is just a shotgun with slightly less range and more spread. in h3 the mauler and PP both had there effective uses so i don’t see your analogy outside of loadouts which is obvious.

> Third, having a damage boost is supposed to make whatever weapon you have into a power weapon. What’s the problem?

many things

  1. while it is a neat feature in the game, the reason why it doesn’t work competitively (not mlg just anything which pits 2 somewhat equally skilled opponents (teams) who have a desire to win) is because it takes what the overshield does (empowers the player) but allows that player to use it passively, the reason why the OS was effective was because in order for it to be effective players had to play aggressively (risk/reward) with damage boost you can stalemate or shift the game heavily in your favour by forcing the other team to play defensively which then allows your teammates to push into them and give you guys a 5v4 in damage output not effective health, which creates completely different scenarios and balance.

  2. the personal ordnance system allows for many things and getting this is one of the most overpowered things in the game in useful hands, PoDs ruin balance by giving random and unreadable shifts in the game and while it works in your favour, it works in the detriment and frustration of 4, 7 or 8 others (depending on 4v4, ffa or btb)

  3. the problem with it is that utility weapons are really easy to shoot and have a lot of ammo which allows for higher kill potential if you collapse and pressure the other team properly, in comparison to power weapons which have limited ammo and are harder to use.

  4. also thanks to PoD what if they already have a power weapon?

20

> Here’s a tip for you, from a fellow CSR 50.
> When playing against newbs, they will use the following 3 tactics on a regular basis:
> A) AR Rush/Melee combo
> B) Sticky grenades
> C) Camping corners
>
> Those are the 3 tactics which newbs use once they realize they have no chance of out BRing you.

What else can they do?

Skill matching is seriously broken if noobs are thrown into the grinder against 50s. There should be a strict selectable pre-game option to narrow the skill matching spread so the game is fun for everyone - even if it takes longer to get a game. Otherwise, pitting 50s against noobs just erodes the population.