XP, Ranking, and Unlockables in Infinite

Games Halo Infinite
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I’m sure it’s mostly too late to impact Infinite’s ranking, xp, or unlocking system in any tangible way, but this idea came to me this morning, so I wanted to express it here.
Let me know if you have any thoughts regarding this in how it could be improved or any inherent flaws with it.

I feel you can take bits from 3, Reach, and 5 and come up with a system that rewards players of all types for all types of gaming.

To begin, I suggest a global XP system. This XP system ties into all modes through Achievements (permanent, across various types), Challenges (daily, weekly, and monthly across various types), Commendations (Weapon, Vehicle, Enemy, Game-Mode, Multiplayer, and Rank) and Skill-based (matchmaking only). The XP gained this way is permanent; it isn’t a bank to spend on items like in Reach. It is rather just a total of all XP gained.

I’m also proposing a two-pronged ranking system, very similar to Halo 3’s in appearance. They are:

  • A number (skill-based) rank. This is the rank that can be reset with seasons, etc. This is the one used for matchmaking and bragging rights amongst the competitive scene. This rank is playlist-specific and is viewable by all players. As it moves upward or downward in number, it is an indication to the player that they are either progressing or regressing in their skill at that time. - A military rank. This rank is actually a combination of rank and class. The rank is achieved by completing Rank Commendations and by reaching top class in the previous rank. The class (bronze, silver, and gold, possibly more) is achieved by gaining additional predetermined XP above the last class. This rank (rank and class) is viewable by all across all modes (or possibly only within matchmaking).I propose that unlocking items (armor, skins, emblems, etc.) is mostly done through the global XP system, where as you gain XP you unlock more items. For a smaller percentage of items, they are unlocked by completing Commendations (including Rank Commendations) as well as for achieving ranks (both numbered and military). This will allow for all players, independent of skill, opportunity to unlock a majority of the unlockable items. This also provides goals for those who want to feel rewarded for both time invested and skill, respectively.

To help illustrate my proposed ranking system, here’s a brief scenario. Spartan A is a silver 1st Lieutenant with all but one Rank Commendation completed. He gains enough additional XP to then become a gold 1st Lieutenant. He is now just some additional XP and one Rank Commendation away from ranking up to a bronze Captain.

So, to summarize:

  • Unlockables from the XP system show your commitment to the game, but aren’t limited by your amount of skill. - Your rank number (and the items unlocked by reaching specific rank number thresholds) gives a numerical indication of your current skill in the particular playlist. - Your military rank (and the items unlocked from them and the Rank Commendations) show both your dedication in time played (XP) and your ability to perform skilled tasks (Rank Commendations) across all matchmade playlists.I have purposefully left out the idea of monetization (REQ packs/points, etc) from this discussion. While I’m sure their inclusion in any capacity would at the very least amend my suggestions here, I have no perfect solution to their inclusion, so I felt it better to describe what I feel would be a good system without them, and then discussions could be had as to how to incorporate them into the system.
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Agreed wholeheartedly. Especially having two components again to represent time and skill spent in the game (XP and rank). IMO this was very successful in H3 - so adding in challenges and commendations to the mix as shown in H5 would make it feel even more fulfilling. This should appease the casual gamer and the competitive.

As long as the item unlocks aren’t a drudgery as they were in Reach, I would be ok with having to unlock armor although I tend to lean more towards the majority of armor being available at the beginning with more exclusive variants and skins able to be unlocked to Commendations/Ranks/Achivements/etc similar to H3. Halo has been around long enough that people have attached themselves to specific variants and emblems. I know for me it can be frustrating when I can’t make my Halo character look how I’ve looked in previous iterations. I.e. - Having to luck into getting a Scout helmet in H5 from a REQ pack.

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> 2533274791806080;2:
> Agreed wholeheartedly. Especially having two components again to represent time and skill spent in the game (XP and rank). IMO this was very successful in H3 - so adding in challenges and commendations to the mix as shown in H5 would make it feel even more fulfilling. This should appease the casual gamer and the competitive.
>
> As long as the item unlocks aren’t a drudgery as they were in Reach, I would be ok with having to unlock armor although I tend to lean more towards the majority of armor being available at the beginning with more exclusive variants and skins able to be unlocked to Commendations/Ranks/Achivements/etc similar to H3. Halo has been around long enough that people have attached themselves to specific variants and emblems. I know for me it can be frustrating when I can’t make my Halo character look how I’ve looked in previous iterations. I.e. - Having to luck into getting a Scout helmet in H5 from a REQ pack.

I very much can see that concern. You don’t want to have so much content locked behind achievements/time/skill that there’s nothing of substance there for anyone who just picks up the game. Especially with the re-inclusion of split-screen, I imagine that making Spartans on-the-fly for LAN (or at least couch party-ups) will be more prevalent.

I’d think something like 60-70% of all Spartan customization items are available out-of-box. The remaining ones are rare or specific items that the only people who would want said items already know enough about the Halo franchise that they’ve bought the game and hopefully therefore spend time in it to unlock them.

[Someone within] 343i has stated that Infinite’s customization options will be pleasing to anyone who liked Reach’s take on it. I take from that statement that we will have a lot of items potentially available to us. I hope that there are enough of those items unlocked at start to give us something to play with.

The one big exception to not locking a majority of items behind in-game actions is if those required actions are extremely basic. Things such as “Complete [Mission] on any difficulty”, or “Finish an online matchmade game”, or “Customize a Spartan” are acceptable actions to have items locked behind. They essentially are lures to diving into the game, while still not really requiring any excess time or skill.

Again, just my thoughts though.