Halo Discussion thread

[Overdoziz]

The Sniper Rifle looks like I can warm up my meals in it.

[Duff]

Over, gratz on Inheritor. When the heck did that happen, rofl. Decided to stalk you on halo.xbox.com and was like, skull helmet o.O

 

Nice work man.

[Ginger_Warrior]

I can't be the only one playing H4. So, what do we make of it?

 

IGN gave it 98/100 but so far I'm really struggling to find the justification for giving a score that high. That's not to say Halo isn't a good game; it is. But having seen a score like that, I got really excited and, if the truth must be told, it's left me feeling slightly disappointed, because if I put my hand on my heart, I can't say Halo 4 is a great game.

 

The campaign itself was interesting, and it had an engaging plot to it, but only after you put the controller down and spent some time thinking about it. Something which you didn't get much of a chance to do because the campaign was quite plainly structured of firefights punctuated by checkpoints, with no significant breathing space in between, despite there being no real sense of urgency in the the plot convincing you that you needed to be moving so quickly. They did a fantastic job of fleshing out Cortana's personality so you felt a genuine and heartfelt emotional connection with her, but I didn't get the same feeling from Chief. Maybe that was intentional, and for spoiler reasons, I won't elaborate on that possibility. What was very definite in my mind, however, was that 343i doesn't have that same ability of Bungie's to script good story-telling. From my experience on H3 and Reach, there were quiet sections between battles, which provided an opportunity for the game to explain the situation in a relatively calm environment via AI allies or Cortana etc. Those moments simply didn't exist in H4, except the Mammoth level.

 

After the campaign, I went on Spartan Ops. This was probably the feature that excited me personally most about H4. There's plenty of potential in this game mode, and I'll have to wait until the next chapters come out to get a real picture of it. My only criticism in what was an otherwise thoroughly enjoyable playthrough was that it's too easy, even on the default Heroic difficulty setting; four Spartans can deal with firefights quite easily unless there's a curveball or two thrown their way. I'm hoping those twists will come in later sessions.

 

MM (War Games) is the one I'm most ambivalent about. On the one hand, it's a massive improvement from Reach. AAs are more like useful add-ons than game changers, which is about the level they should be at. In fact, I've seen a lot of players forgo buying them altogether, they're that minor. Grenades are nerfed, which was a much needed change from Reach where half the game could be spent ducking and diving between a frag-fest, and even if you couldn't hit a donkey's ass with a DMR, you could do alright with a sticky or two. The loadouts have been well-balanced, even if the age-old BR "overpowered" problem has obviously reared up again.

 

On the other hand... Halo is meant to be a more tactical FPS, something more like BF than CoD. So why give an AA that lets people see through walls at an enemy guarding a chokepoint with a shotgun/scattershot/sword? Why make the weapons spawn at semi-random locations across the map, and then point to where they are on the HUD just in case you're really thick? Why allow people to load the traditional power weapons out of the ordnance? Map and weapon control were key features of Halo gameplay--it isn't now, which leaves me asking what the keys to matchmaking victory are in the new Reclaimer era Halo. So far, from what I've seen, it's which team's members can jump the most unpredictably whilst still firing headshots. The now-instant spawns and lack of consistent spawn points also mean that you can kill someone, check their body for ammo/weapons, and be shot at by that same player, and any of his/her teammates who happened to die at a similar time, within a few seconds of killing them. That problem's made worse by the relatively easy nature of killing players; it's simply not that hard to shoot for the head on this game compared to other Halo titles, and with four bursts of the BR, they're gone without giving them much of a chance to retaliate.

 

Which, even if it is a good MM experience still, doesn't feel like Halo at all.

 

Eurogamer gave it 8/10. Now, that's a score I can find much more justification for.

[jasignhagj]

The justification for a 98/100 must be a decent sum of cash. I played some of the multi player a couple weeks ago, and while it was fun, it didn't feel like Halo.

[Ginger_Warrior]

The justification for a 98/100 must be a decent sum of cash. I played some of the multi player a couple weeks ago, and while it was fun, it didn't feel like Halo.

Re: IGN--Did you catch up on the shitstorm surrounding Eurogamer and Robert Florence? If you never read a games article again, please make this your last one. Absolutely fascinating editorial on the cozy relationship between journalists and the games industry itself.

 

Re: Multiplayer--A lot of people are saying, "Just because it has loadouts doesn't make it CoD." I could counter that by saying, "Just because it has shields doesn't make it Halo." My perception might be down to lack of map familiarity. People are only just finding their feet in this new world, so maybe the chaos is a result of that rather than design.

[sarg1010]

Maybe it's just me, but dear lord this campaign can be really freaking tough sometimes. The Prometheans take so many shots to take down. >.<

[Ginger_Warrior]

Maybe it's just me, but dear lord this campaign can be really freaking tough sometimes. The Prometheans take so many shots to take down. >.<

It's not you, people are saying legendary mode on this game is one of the most frustrating things they've ever done. You definitely can't run in with a shotgun and hope for the best now.

[sarg1010]

I'm only playing on Heroic for my first playthrough, and I dread facing even just one Knight/pair of Hunters, mostly because I know I'm going to burn through a lot of ammo to kill them.

[RpgGamer]

I feel like every trace of Bungie possible to remove was in fact removed. The sounds, the music, the announcer. Overall still a fun game though. Helmets are ugly as sin though.

[Ginger_Warrior]

So I've played it a bit more and Big Team Slayer's definitely the way to go at the moment if you struggle with how frantic normal slayer is. Spawns a reasonable distance apart, meaning instant spawns don't make any real difference, much more focus on good, disciplined headshotting, which in my opinion, is what Halo should be all about. So instead of three people spawning at the same time and rushing the other team through, it's generally much more balanced and the team with the best players usually comes out on top.

 

I still stand by my opinion on normal slayer though. The maps are too small for instant spawns, except for that big map with the vehicles. You kill somebody, you try and get into cover or loot their ammo, and they're revenge firing on you within one or two seconds of you killing them. CoD has near-instant spawning too--their maps are also far bigger. It also means all the action gets centered around one point only, which is a sign of pretty awful map design and is a chronic problem on symmetrical maps, unless you make efforts to address it like having three levels (On Reach, you had Countdown and Zealot--both have three levels, and outside of MLG, Zealot has four). On Haven, the action point is top centre and the bit below, only two levels. Barely any action around the ring. The problem's compounded even more by the lifts coming from the bottom ring. Everyone can get in easily, but it's almost impossible to get out and into cover again.

[Poppet]

Eww, the Binary Rifle in campaign is just like the Beam Rifle in 2 and 3.

 

I've been doing the solo Legendary campaign, feels like they really toned down the damage you take from everything. Don't get why people are having such a hard time with Knights though.

[sarg1010]

Their shields are pretty strong, they can teleport away (and almost always will), and their shields regenerate pretty damn quickly it seems. Along with the swarms of crawlers/those flying things that accompany them a lot... raaaather difficult.

[Poppet]

They have literally no damage output.

 

Too much of the time the challenge isn't not dieing, more along the lines of just having ammo to kill them with. Which isn't hard given their generous weapon drops.

[Vezon Dash]

I have personally been enjoying my playthrough of Halo 4. The thing that really gets me are the cut-scenes. The animation is just so damn realistic.

[michel555555]

Just finished halo 4 and loved it. Few issues though. What the heck are numbers 5 and 6 supposed to be like now... They said they were supposed to be linked together in a new trilogy but the story for 4 just sort of ends. And loved the story for number 4 but it relied entirely on having read Thursday War in order to get any back story into what the covenant was doing on Requiem. Then saying the librarian was dead when guilty spark said that he found where she was in the forrunner book trilogy.

 

I would have made the trilogy to be the first one focus more on the reason for the covenants search for Requiem and end with releasing the diadact.

Then diadacts search for the second ark where the Librarian was supposed to be so he can get his revenge and where we meet our old friend guilty spark.

Then finally a war on onyx where humans and the Arbiter team up to stop the diadact and then all of humanities dirty little secrets come out about oni trying to wipe them out.

 

Ah well hopefully the diadact is still alive somehow and they can do this.

[Vezon Dash]

I have never played the Halo, Halo 2, or Halo 3 campaigns, but I understood what was going on... =/

 

I highly doubt that Halo 5/6 will be about MC.

[michel555555]

Also wasn't Dr Halsey supposed to have been in confinement aboard the Infinity? They could have answered the question of whether a A.I. created from a living human could have been cured of rampancy.

[Ouchy]

Just finished halo 4 and loved it. Few issues though. What the heck are numbers 5 and 6 supposed to be like now... They said they were supposed to be linked together in a new trilogy but the story for 4 just sort of ends. And loved the story for number 4 but it relied entirely on having read Thursday War in order to get any back story into what the covenant was doing on Requiem. Then saying the librarian was dead when guilty spark said that he found where she was in the forrunner book trilogy.

 

I would have made the trilogy to be the first one focus more on the reason for the covenants search for Requiem and end with releasing the diadact.

Then diadacts search for the second ark where the Librarian was supposed to be so he can get his revenge and where we meet our old friend guilty spark.

Then finally a war on onyx where humans and the Arbiter team up to stop the diadact and then all of humanities dirty little secrets come out about oni trying to wipe them out.

 

Ah well hopefully the diadact is still alive somehow and they can do this.

 

343 Guilty Spark was killed in the last level of Halo 3 by Chief with the Spartan Laser. Remember?

My opinion about the next two in the trilogy is that they will focus on Chief's internal conflict of man-or-machine, and on cortana and the Didact (permitting that neither of them are actually dead).

[michel555555]

Just finished halo 4 and loved it. Few issues though. What the heck are numbers 5 and 6 supposed to be like now... They said they were supposed to be linked together in a new trilogy but the story for 4 just sort of ends. And loved the story for number 4 but it relied entirely on having read Thursday War in order to get any back story into what the covenant was doing on Requiem. Then saying the librarian was dead when guilty spark said that he found where she was in the forrunner book trilogy.

 

I would have made the trilogy to be the first one focus more on the reason for the covenants search for Requiem and end with releasing the diadact.

Then diadacts search for the second ark where the Librarian was supposed to be so he can get his revenge and where we meet our old friend guilty spark.

Then finally a war on onyx where humans and the Arbiter team up to stop the diadact and then all of humanities dirty little secrets come out about oni trying to wipe them out.

 

Ah well hopefully the diadact is still alive somehow and they can do this.

 

343 Guilty Spark was killed in the last level of Halo 3 by Chief with the Spartan Laser. Remember?

My opinion about the next two in the trilogy is that they will focus on Chief's internal conflict of man-or-machine, and on cortana and the Didact (permitting that neither of them are actually dead).

spoilers

[hide]

If you read the first 2 books of the forerunner trilogy it turns out that he survives the laser but was badly damaged and picked up by another UNSC ship for study. Then Guilty spark reveals the true history of the halos and humans, how the moniters were made, and how the forerunners war with the humans and later the flood started. He then manages to hijack the ship and begins his search for where the Librarian is supposed to be on a second Arc.

Looking foreward to number 3 to find out what actually made the diadact resort to making the prometheans.

[/hide]

[Ouchy]

Just finished halo 4 and loved it. Few issues though. What the heck are numbers 5 and 6 supposed to be like now... They said they were supposed to be linked together in a new trilogy but the story for 4 just sort of ends. And loved the story for number 4 but it relied entirely on having read Thursday War in order to get any back story into what the covenant was doing on Requiem. Then saying the librarian was dead when guilty spark said that he found where she was in the forrunner book trilogy.

 

I would have made the trilogy to be the first one focus more on the reason for the covenants search for Requiem and end with releasing the diadact.

Then diadacts search for the second ark where the Librarian was supposed to be so he can get his revenge and where we meet our old friend guilty spark.

Then finally a war on onyx where humans and the Arbiter team up to stop the diadact and then all of humanities dirty little secrets come out about oni trying to wipe them out.

 

Ah well hopefully the diadact is still alive somehow and they can do this.

 

343 Guilty Spark was killed in the last level of Halo 3 by Chief with the Spartan Laser. Remember?

My opinion about the next two in the trilogy is that they will focus on Chief's internal conflict of man-or-machine, and on cortana and the Didact (permitting that neither of them are actually dead).

spoilers

[hide]

If you read the first 2 books of the forerunner trilogy it turns out that he survives the laser but was badly damaged and picked up by another UNSC ship for study. Then Guilty spark reveals the true history of the halos and humans, how the moniters were made, and how the forerunners war with the humans and later the flood started. He then manages to hijack the ship and begins his search for where the Librarian is supposed to be on a second Arc.

Looking foreward to number 3 to find out what actually made the diadact resort to making the prometheans.

[/hide]

 

Clearly your Halo lore is greater than mine :P

[michel555555]

 

Just got it on DVD and I am so praying that they are going to be making a lot more! It's a little boring at first just following the training of some marines but its so worth it in the end to see chief go hand to hand with a hunter!

[Ouchy]

Halo 4 is on the verge of being unplayable for me. Every time it keeps connecting me with shitty hosts so I am literally unable to play. Just now I somehow got teleported from one side of the map to the other because of lag.

[Dizzle229]

I'm doing suspiciously well (just started playing, and my k/d r is just under 3). Still, going to stop playing for a while, since I only seem to get the same two maps. EVER.

[Duff]

Uhh, so they're releasing a Halo Master Chief Collection, which has Halo, Halo 2, Halo 3, and Halo 4, along with working multiplayers for every single one of them (including all 100+ maps from all four Halo games). You'll swap to the corresponding game engine according to what map you play on. They've also remade Halo 2 much like they did Halo for the anniversary.

 

In short, all four Master-Chief-oriented Halo games are on one disc for the Xbox One, where you can play any level of any game in any order. And it's only $60.

 

I highly recommend looking at the media briefing. The Halo announcement begins about an hour and 20 minutes into it. I kinda just want to buy an Xbox One just for the collection.

[Dizzle229]

Uhh, so they're releasing a Halo Master Chief Collection, which has Halo, Halo 2, Halo 3, and Halo 4, along with working multiplayers for every single one of them (including all 100+ maps from all four Halo games). You'll swap to the corresponding game engine according to what map you play on. They've also remade Halo 2 much like they did Halo for the anniversary.

 

In short, all four Master-Chief-oriented Halo games are on one disc for the Xbox One, where you can play any level of any game in any order. And it's only $60.

 

I highly recommend looking at the media briefing. The Halo announcement begins about an hour and 20 minutes into it. I kinda just want to buy an Xbox One just for the collection.

That sounds pretty cool, it'd be worth it just for the revival of Halo 3 custom games.