Lately, I've been getting sick of old school vs. new school arguments. For most people it's either 'this way' or 'that way', without any middle ground, or quite frankly ingenuity. After practically abandoning my 360 after the Halo 4 debacle, I was able to expose myself to additional games on the PC, and was inspired. That's not to say that I am simply copying ideas from other games just to apply them to Halo, rather I was able to come up with my own 'Halo spin' after seeing them. I give credit to Dino D-day and Natural Selection 2. Also I was inspired by situations I encountered in Halo 3 where I wished I could do something so simple but couldn't.
These are my ideas for a new Halo game (or quite frankly any game that wishes to replace it. Heed this warning 343 Industries!), and if you don't agree that's fine, just please present an alternative that hasn't been done to death already and quite frankly what I was trying to avoid in the first place. Also, if you find flaws (and think about it twice before posting it) I am more than willing to accept constructive criticism. Just saying "Oh that's stupid" or "It will never work" will not receive acknowledgement. Explain why the ideas wouldn't work and give an example situation. Now, without further delay, here we go.
1. Skill vs. Speed.
A. The Problem with Sprint
Sprint is probably one of the most talked to death subjects. Core players find it making the game too easy, and casuals say it needs to be in there because the game is not 'fast enough' otherwise. Here's what I think about it:
-Sprint takes away the 'aerial ballet' that used to be so common in Halo. This involved jumping to avoid danger, or to make epic airborne no-scopes. Why does Sprint take the 'aerial ballet' away? Because, rather than having to claw to someone to get the melee in, all one has to do is press the Sprint button and you win. If you jump in the air to avoid somebody attacking you, it's a death sentence if someone else is within Sprinting range. You just cannot stop someone from using sprint-double-melee against you, and often the best you can hope for is taking them with you, and even if that's not the case chances are they at least put one melee into you, thus making you a one-shot kill for the next person, which due to Halo 4's instant spawning mechanic could even be the same person you just killed trying to defend yourself. The only exception to this rule is another controversial subject from the inclusion of a weapon into Halo 4 called the 'Boltshot'. I have a feeling Sprint may be partly responsible for its rise in abuse, because how else are you going to stop a sprint-double-melee?
-The more common thing that more people recognize about Sprint is its ability to allow you to survive circumstances you normally wouldn't, and has replaced jumping as the primary form of evasion. Core players believe that it 'prevents consequences for tactical mistakes' because you can simply run away, and casuals believe it allows players to 'use cover more effectively'. Core players are correct in this regard, because it is obvious by Halo 4's multiplayer map designs that 343 had to compensate for the additional maneuverability for players by making the maps larger, and more empty. However, just removing it isn't necessarily the best way to go about this. The game DOES need new innovations, it's just that Sprint isn't innovative at all. It's following a trend, rather than making one as previous Halos have done.
B. My Solution, with some 'Finesse'
As I've mentioned earlier, I've had exposure to some PC games as of late. What does Dino D-day and Natural Selection have in common? The ability to sprint AND shoot at the same time, as well as do so either forwards OR backwards OR side-to-side. This alone solves the competitive issues that I've mentioned, but at the same time doesn't quite feel Halo-y enough. In those games you have a limited stamina bar, and stamina bars aren't my cup of tea. Halo is about strengths and weakness, and I think that while you should be able to sprint AND shoot at the same time, there needs to be a penalties AND buffs for doing so. I call the system I am about to introduce 'Finesse', and it shall be a direct replacement for 'Sprint'.
-'Finesse' has no limits on how often you can use it, BUT circumstances may make using it ill-advised, and it is only a little faster than standard speed.
-When in 'Finesse' mode, you cannot use 'Zoom' on your weapons.
-Depending on what your duel-wield combo is, such as two rocket launchers (I will discuss more on duel-wielding later), you may become encumbered and not be able to shoot and/or melee while using 'Finesse'. The same applies for Turrets.
-Whenever you jump while in 'Finesse' mode, you do a flip. This means that you cannot shoot, melee, use an armor ability, use equipment (more on that later), or throw a grenade during the first half of your jump, but you can get to higher places than you normally could, equal to about a grenade jump. This means you cannot simply abuse 'Finesse' to rush somebody airborne, and are likely to be killed trying to do so. Additionally, if you activate 'Finesse' while performing a standard jump, you roll to the ground before you continue running, thus preventing you from doing the same as aforementioned until you are on the ground. Note that 'Finesse' will have to be reactivated upon landing in any circumstance if you wish to continue to have its effects, as you are reset to standard maneuverability. You cannot flip more than once while in the air, so only after performing a standard jump or at the start of jumping while under the influence of 'Finesse' will you flip.
-You cannot crouch while in 'Finesse' mode, and instead roll when pressing down the left stick. However, every time you roll you disable 'Finesse' mode, and must once again enable it to again receive its effects, and be able to roll again. This makes you take your thumb off the right joystick, preventing you from aiming during successive rolls, and also makes it harder to spam rolls, making it not tactically sound after more than one roll.
-If you are close enough to a wall and jump while under the influence of 'Finesse', you will 'wall-run', and you can exit the wall run by jumping or going until its completion. If you press the jump button after immediately touching the wall, you can rebound at a an equal angle away from the wall as you have entered into it. This means you can run straight toward the wall, rebound off it and land behind an enemy that was following you. It can also set the stage for some awesome parkour and battle situations. Note that if you run an rebound off a wall close to a 90 degree angle, you will flip. If the degree of which you attempt a wall rebound is 15 degrees more or less than 90 degrees, there is no flip penalty.
-You cannot pick up weapons, grenades, equipment, or armor abilities on the ground while under the normal influence of 'Finesse', but you can catch them if they are flying through the air, or you can pick them up while in a roll.
-If you melee while under the influence of 'Finesse', you perform a flying and/or a spinning kick in the direction you are facing, depending on the direction you are facing and your movement direction and speed. This can be dodged, and it is especially humorous if you miss and fly off a cliff.
Now that I've turned a mechanic that broke the game into something most of us could now learn to love, are we having fun yet? Next I discuss Duel-Wielding, Equipment, and Armor Abilities.
2. Duel-Wielding/Equipment vs. Armor Abilities: Why Not BOTH?!?
A. Excuses, excuses. There's a D-pad, so USE it!
I never really understood why Duel-Wielding was removed from Halo from the onset of Reach and thereafter. For Reach the excuse was that they were Spartan II's, and incapable of Duel-Wielding. That's fine and all, but then there is no excuse for Halo 4, other than it didn't fit with the custom Loadouts 343 created. I didn't like how the custom Loadouts were implemented, and at that point I really was missing the Duel-Wielding ability. Equipment being replaced by Armor Abilities made a bit more sense, since both gave you some sort of benefit, but truthfully the Equipments' one-use nature made it mechanically different from Armor Abilities in every other way.
In the Halo series, the D-pad has been a mostly neglected set of controls. But the implementation of its use in Halo 4 as a means to select an 'Ordinance Drop' is a waste of potential in my opinion. This is what controls I would set it to do:
-Up (tap): Switch between throwing grenades and deploying Equipment. This means you can have both Equipment AND Armor Abilities!
-Up (Hold): Vision Mode Wheel. When used with right stick, you can select a different vision mode. Note that in multiplayer this is either disabled, the vision modes are limited, or the vision modes can only be accessed after picking them up off the map.
-Left and Right (tap): Switch grenades.
-Left (hold): Grenade Selection Wheel. Throw what you wanna throw, when you want to! Use with right stick.
-Right (hold): Grenade Swap. You can only carry 6 grenades, but there are already five grenade types. To only carry specific grenades, you can combine this with the right stick and pressing the melee button to drop grenades you don't want to replace them with the grenades nearby.
-Down (tap): Attachment Switch/Activation. Activates a flashlight or laser, or switches to an underslung weapon such as a grenade launcher. Note that these attachments come with the weapons you pick up, and these are only customizable in certain gametypes. You might be able to find attachments on the ground as well by themselves which you can then attach to your weapon. Note that there are only underslung weapons available, and not a million different scopes and muzzles. Weapons that have silencers and alternate scopes are treated as completely different weapons altogether, such as the ODST suppressed SMG, suppressed BR, and suppressed AR (AR should NEVER have a scope or zoom in capabilities. The mount isn't even there, and it's unfair).
-Down (hold): Alternate Action. In combination with different buttons, different actions can be done that can't be done normally due to there not being enough buttons on the controller. When combined with the reload/action button, you can toss your teammate a clip of ammo from your currently equipped weapon (directly from the gun if it's your last clip). If it is combined with If it is combined with the 'Finesse' (replacing Sprint) button, you drop you gun entirely. This can be done to give a teammate a weapon, or to drop all weapons for a machinima, humorlessly surrendering to the enemy team. If combined with the switch weapon button, you can bring up a 'swap wheel' that will easily allow you to pick up a weapon out of a pile of weapons below your within reaching distance, thus making it easy to get the weapon you want instead of awkwardly shuffling back and forth above several guns just so the prompt can pop up for the weapon that you actually want. If it's combined with the melee button, you can toss your weapon away like a grenade, opening a ton of new possibilities! There could be new combo medals that can only be achieved by teamwork, and sets up the stage for a whole new set of scenarios!
You may have noticed I've said nothing yet about Duel-wielding. That's because I have something special planned for it.
B. To Duel, or not to Duel: An Obvious Solution to a SIMPLE Problem
The button that Duel-Wielding used to be on has been taken over by Armor Abilities. Some believe that the two mechanics could never get along, but I offer a super-duper simple solution: make Duel-Wielding...an Armor Ability!
-Because it would use the same button as it once did in Halo 3, it would make core players and long-time fans feel right at home!
-To reload the dueled weapon, simply tap the left bumper like you've always had to in Halo 3.
-A special gadget on the lower back of your Spartan (where the Armor Ability normally is mounted) would reload small weapons with a cool animation!
-Because it's an Armor Ability, it would only make sense to buff it a little to be counted as an armor ability, and also become more true to the Halo lore I'll explain on my next point.
C. The Rules of Encumberment, and the Way of Weapons
I have come up with an entirely new set of Duel-Wielding mechanics that tie in directly with the 'Finesse' mechanic I mentioned earlier, and expand on what you can and cannot duel. Note that while I have put some weapons in categories that they may not normally belong to, I have done so in the pursuit of gameplay balance for Duel-Wielding. I also will talk about a few new guns and which weapons cannot be duel wielded. Forgive me if I forget any.
-Whatever the combination, you cannot zoom while Duel-Wielding.
-For most combinations, you would be able to melee by pressing in the right stick, which would normally be used for zoom. But because you can't zoom while dueling, it frees it up for this function. (I have something special planned for duel Energy Swords!)
-One-Handed Weapons: These function exactly the same way as before, and do not affect your abilities to use 'Finesse'. Includes Magnum (and all UNSC pistols), Plasma Pistol and Plasma Rifle (both Elite and Brute types), SMG's (both standard and ODST), Spiker, Energy Sword(New! Will cover it in a bit!), Machete(Yep! Doesn't insta-kill, but allows you to parry a Energy Sword and melees twice as fast as normal; will discuss later!), and Mauler. (Note how I did NOT include the Boltshot!)
-Two-Handed Primary Weapons: These function a bit different, mostly because of the penalty applied to them. You cannot reload them while Duel-Wielding, you lower and cannot fire any primary weapons you are carrying while dueling them with another weapon while in 'Finesse' mode, and of course you still can't zoom. Additionally, when fired they have a separate 'kick' from the other weapon you are dueling. This means that your crosshairs for each of your dueled weapons would stop overlapping each other, and the crosshairs for the primary weapons you are firing would begin to climb upwards from the center of the screen, resulting in a possible two arcs of fire. To prevent this deviation, you would have either pace your shots, or carry two of the same weapon and fire them at the same time. Note that the crosshairs would still climb the screen, and you would have to look downwards to keep the primary weapons on target. You would also have to deal with the possible kick from any one-handed weapons you are dueling the primary with, which may make your entire POV climb upward, especially in the case of the SMG. These include the AR, BR, Carbine, Plasma Repeater, Storm Rifle, DMR, Light Rifle, Suppressor, Scattergun, Needler, Sticky Detonator, Grenade Launcher...and the Boltshot!
-Heavy Weapons: In addition to the penalties given to the two-handed primary weapons, you cannot melee while dueling it unless your other dueled weapon is a one-handed weapon. Also, you cannot roll or wall run at all while using 'Finesse' while they are dueled, and you are forced to still flip when you jump. You can still rebound off a wall, but still can't fire any heavy weapons while under the influence of 'Finesse'. These include the Rocket Launcher, the Spartan Laser, Fuel Rod Cannon, Plasma Launcher, Fuel Rod Launcher (functions like a mortar, was featured in Halo Custom Edition for the PC and looks similar to the Fuel Rod cannon, but uses energy instead of a clip), Railgun, and the Concussion Rifle.
-Non-Duel-Wieldable Weapons: These are weapons that can NEVER be Duel-Wielded, as either their shear size, kickback, awkwardness, or plain over-poweredness prevents them from being so. These include the Gravity Hammer, SAW, Brute Shot (has small buff over Halo 3's version), Sniper Rifle, Beam Rifle, Focus Rifle, Binary Rifle, Drop Designator (Gives ordinance drops! Has a limited number of uses, and a cooldown time. Can be individually configured to carry either specific drops, random drops, or a combination of the two. Be prepared to engage in a high stakes game of keep-a-way! Not that this is more of a team-based weapon, because it takes up a weapon slot and so using it just for yourself would likely be a waste. Drop some gifts for your teammates instead! Availible in UNSC and Covenant skins), Target Designator (comes in many flavors, all deliciously destructive, though each are survivable provided the proper steps are taken. Available in UNSC and Covenant skins, and are individually configurable), Incinerator Cannon, Flamethrower (has two versions. The regular version looks like the one from Halo 1, fires directly where you aim, and does not have 'sticky' fire that attaches itself to surfaces; the turret version does, has a longer range, and has a firing arc. The turret version can be found either on the ground, or mounted on Warthogs!), all turrets, and...the Golf Club!
-Special Condition Weapons: These are weapons that can either be Duel-Wielded or not, and either have a nerf, buff, or special ability while doing so. These include the Energy Sword, Machete, Gravity Hammer, Brute Shot, SAW, and Shotgun.
a. Brute Shot, Gravity Hammer, and the SAW cannot be fired or swung while in a wall run. The Shotgun can only be fired once in a wall run, as it cannot be pumped while wall running..
b. The Energy Sword would have different physics than in previous Halos. Left trigger wouldn't change, and neither would the right trigger (although a lunge might miss like in Halo Reach), but if you hold both triggers together, it becomes a Block. Blocks protect the head from gunfire, and do not affect movement speed. They also easy protection against sword, Machete, and Gravity Hammer lunges, stunning your opponent briefly, but only partially protect against a normal melee attack from any weapon with no stunning effect, with the sword being the most damaging by stripping your shields completely. Gravity Hammer lunges also strip your shield completely upon a block, but at least you survive. All other weapons that someone melees you with cut your shields in half the first strike, strip them the next, and kills you the third. The 'parrying' effect that happened in Halo 3 only happens when both parties attempt a lunge or a regular melee at the same time, with the exception being a Gravity Hammer, which must be blocked and has no parrying effect. Non-melee weapons cannot parry a lunge anymore, but can parry a normal melee, at the sacrifice of the user's shields. When Energy Swords are Duel-Wielded, both triggers become lunges, and can deal damage twice as fast with no stun penalty for being blocked. Also, if you press in the zoom button (right stick), you can outward slice with both swords at once, which gives a far wider 180 degree horizontal strike, able to hit multiple targets at once with an additional 'knock-back' bonus. While in a wall run, you can only lunge. Also, there is a slight extra delay for a swing, lunge, horizontal strike, or block when using one sword or dueled swords when under the influence of 'Finesse'. That means rushing into a melee fight is not a good idea, as the one who isn't under the influence of 'Finesse' is at a first-strike advantage.
c. The Machete has the same rules as the Energy sword, but unless it is a duel-wielded horizontal strike and the target is directly in front of you, it will not be a one-hit kill, and requires two, although they are twice as fast as a regular melee. When paired with an Energy Sword, the damage output is different depending on which weapon you lunge with.
d. The Gravity Hammer has the ability to slam straight downwards on a target while the wielder is airborne. The damage output and knockback is increased the higher in the air you are when you use this attack. This is engaged using the zoom button (right stick). This attack nerfs fall damage as well, allowing you to survive heights that otherwise would have turned your Spartan into a broken mess. This is due to the gravity effects cushioning your fall. Note that using this ability can drain the Hammer's battery far greater than a normal strike, and the amount it drains it by is relative to the height from which it is performed. If you don't have enough battery to use this attack successfully, you will likely pancake, and the effects of the attack will be reduced upon those for which it was targeted. It is possible to destroy vehicles with this method, even a Scorpion tank if the attack is performed from a high enough point. There is also a brief period after this attack where your Spartan has to pull the weapon from out of the ground, or whomever was unfortunate enough to receive the direct impact. WAAA-BOOOOM! Team Rocket blasts off again!
e. The Shotgun, when dueled, pumps slower than normal, resulting in a reduced fire rate. The Spartan is only still able to pump it via an animation where he/she rests the weapon pointing upwards onto the top of their shoulder, pumps it, and then drops it back into their hand. This same animation can be used with Shotgun-wielding Flood, since they only use one arm to hold a weapon.
D. Giving Abilities a Disability, Empowering Equipment, and Vice-Versa
As we are well aware, since the advent of Equipment and Armor Abilities, their has been both refreshment and aggravation in the Halo series. The refreshment comes from fun tools such as the Jet pack, power drain, and the bubble shield; and the aggravation comes from stuff like OP armor lock, BS Promethean vision, and the useless flashy-thingy from Halo 3 no one likes or cares to remember. The point is, these are balance issues that need solving, rather than lazily removing these things out of the complaints of forum-flooding noobs. Here are my suggestions for equipment that seems OP, under-powered, or plain just not done right, as well as an alternate means of getting them. I will also add new stuff, and you can assume the stuff I don't mention is fine the way it is.
-Armor Lock: To the despair and salvation of noobs everywhere, this ability was often abused mid-combat, resulting in an awkward pause in the action. This ability is supposed to be used against being run over or blown up, but it was often engaged whenever the shields were stripped or in a melee struggle to instantly strip their opponent's shields and melee once. The problem with Armor Lock is people could use it more than once a charge, and if they had a full charge they could stay in Armor Lock until their shields began to recharge. Additionally, whenever a person was in armor lock they had a freely rotating third-person view, meaning it was very hard to sneak up on an armor locker, and they got an overview of their situation before coming out of armor lock. I myself didn't really encounter a situation where my opponent won simply because of armor lock, except when there was hacks that allowed you to move while it was deployed. I learned quickly not to engage in melee combat with someone whom you didn't know for sure what ability they had, and did the same when piloting a vehicle, taking my time to see if it was safe to splatter or not. However, it was still annoying in long range DMR fights, where my opponent would go into Armor Lock just because they were losing. Often it didn't change the outcome one-on-one, but if he had friends I had just wasted my clip and announced my location.
Anyway, I would prevent most of these things and buff it in other areas by:
a. You can only use Armor Lock only once a charge, regardless of how long or little you stay in it. After use, you must wait until it is fully charged again.
b. You cannot recharge your shields while in Armor Lock. It will pause the recharge time, and you would have to wait the remaining time even after exiting Armor Lock. This means it would not really help you too much in a normal engagement, unless the engagement completely ends before you come out of Armor Lock. It can only be tactically used to prevent instant death or harm by explosions and splatters, nothing else. If you are one headshot away from death going into Armor Lock, you will still be one headshot away from death when you come out of it, and still have to wait for your shields to recharge.
c. There is no third-person camera. You're pretty much blind until you come out of the Armor Lock.
d. Armor Lock CAN now be deployed while in mid-air. However, if you deploy it in mid-air, you may be launched like Team Rocket and die by flying out of the map, if the explosion is powerful enough and hits in the right place. Also, if you come out of Armor Lock too soon after being hit by such an explosion, an slam into a wall, you might get injured or even splattered. When in midair, your Spartan crosses their arms in front of their face and tucks themselves in. The EMP effect is still active, and you may use Armor Lock in a similar way to the Gravity Hammer special attack I mentioned earlier, and do a sort of Matrix agent slam on an unwary Warthog. It's not nearly as powerful as the Gravity Hammer attack is, and will likely only cause the Hog to be damaged and flip over, but not destroyed. However, Armor Lock can allow you to survive a fall from any height, provided there is no kill barrier, whereas the Gravity Hammer only softens a fall.
-Promethean Vision: As if Armor Lock wasn't noobish enough, Promethean Vision is like a hack. There really is no hard counter to it for anybody but someone with active camouflage behind a wall, and when paired with the Boltshot or nearly any power weapon it's completely unfair. Being revealed on radar is just not enough of a balance, as not even all game modes have a radar to begin with, and it really doesn't make up for the xray vision the user has. Instead of a wall hack, I would prefer if it was used like a sonar on a submarine, and it 'clicks' its effect outwards to take a still image of whatever is hidden behind things or is in plain site. That way it can't be used to line up a rocket launcher shot from behind the safety of a wall just to pop out, fire, and hit a Warthog going at full speed, blissfully unaware of their imminent, and completely unfair, doom. That is unless of coarse the user is unusually highly skilled and can predict the movement of the Warthog from a single still image. Then it ain't as unfair so much as it is cool! More importantly, it can't be used to land the Bull**** (Boltshot) kill so easily. Can use two clicks immediately before recharge, or the clicks can be paced so it doesn't need to recharge as often.
-Active Camouflage: Now, some may not like what I'm about to say, but I don't think it's effective enough. Why? Because of the radar scrambling. While it hides your actual location, it alerts everyone in the vicinity that someone is using Active Camouflage, thus negating its primary function of hiding you from detection. Instead of scrambling the radar, I suggest that it actually cuts your shield resistance in half while in use. That way Active Camouflage can be used to better sneak around, but if you're discovered you're pretty much done for. I compare this to how enemies in campaign use Active Camouflage, as their shields were always weaker. Additionally, it does not hide you from radar, and so you must be vigilant and stay crouched when enemies are nearby. Be careful, because you can still get ambushed by someone who is hiding from radar by crouching! Since the radar scrambling effect is no longer paired with the Active Camouflage ability, the Scrambler once again can be its own equipment.
-Bubble 'Shields': I would like a return to the health system of Halo Reach, where you needed health packs for your secondary health. That way the Halo Reach version of the Bubble Shield can come back renamed 'Heal Sphere'. The reason being is because Halo 3's Bubble Shield would come back as well in all its bubbly goodness. Obviously, the Bubble Shield would be larger and invincible until it times out or the generator is destroyed, with no healing effect, whereas the 'Heal Sphere' would be smaller and have a healing effect but can be popped before it times out. You could have bubble-ception! Also, the 'Heal Sphere' can now be deployed mid-air, but the user holds onto it until they touch the ground, making it a shield that stays with you as you fly through the air, but it no longer can recharge on its own and can only be deployed 3 times; the Halo 3 Bubble Shield would be nerfed a little by making it only deploy after it touches the terrain or bounces off something. The 'Healing Sphere' can be refilled the same way ammunition is by running over another 'Healing Sphere' Armor Ability laying on the ground, or at an Equipment Rack.
-The Shield Regenerator: the Shield Regenerator from Halo 3 would be just that: a SHIELD regenerator, which does not affect your health, and only recharges your shields.
-Jet Pack: I think it should only have limited fuel, but you can stay in the air much longer and not have to come down before it's out, though you can't rise vertically indefinitely and you slowly glide downwards after reaching the peak of your flight. It can be refueled by running over another Jet Pack, running over a Boost Pack, or by refueling by standing near an Equipment Rack that has fuel.
-Teleport: This should be a one-use Equipment, often gained by assassinating a Promethean. Teleports you away to a maximum of 100 feet away, depending on how long you hold the grenade button after switching to it. There is a line that extends from the player that is only visible to the user, at the end of which is an arrow that points straight down. It indicates where you will teleport to.
-Boost Pack: It needs a buff for standard Spartans, and a nerf for Flood. Nuff said. Limited fuel, acquired by running over a Jet Pack or Boost Pack, or by visiting an Equipment Rack.
-Equipment Racks: While not something you can carry around, they are necessary to visit if you want to refill your ammo and swap your equipment. Can be configured to only supply certain ammunition and armor abilities, as well as how often and how much of it becomes available. This is a great way to stash stuff in style on a map, as well as a convenient place to pick up an Armor Ability, rather than have it sitting on the ground. Hold the reload button to interact with an Equipment Rack, and when you're done (or are interupted) simply move. Select the Armor Ability you want to swap or refill with the right stick. Switch to selecting an Equipment by pressing 'up' on the D-pad, and swap out your grenades by pressing left D-pad and selecting one of the grenade types you're carrying with right stick to deposit them, and press right D-pad to and use the right stick to select which grenades you'd like to withdraw. Ammo is received automatically if is it is available. If the Equipment Rack has a limited stock of ammo, you can add ammo from your current weapon by pressing down on the D-pad, one clip at a time.
(Reminder: AMMO AND FUEL EXPLODE! Don't be caught while refueling or reloading, don't walk by them, and please for the love of goodness don't take cover behind them!)
3. Zero-G-Wiz!
A. Promises, Promises
I understand there was no promise for zero-G combat in Halo 4, but dang it don't show a teaser trailer with what appears to be zero-G capabilities and then don't even bother to even consider it. While the Bubble Shield in Halo 3's teaser trailer is different from what we actually, at least we still got it. Instead the zero-G seemed to be completely sidelined, and all we got was the boost pack, which is practically useless, and one low-G environment. There may be the excuse that it wasn't in the budget, but it's not completely unfeasible, since I remember playing 007 Golden Eye for the N64 and they had zero-G. So what excuse does a modern game have? If they had spent more time and money on the game itself instead of the graphics, not only would there probably be more actual content, but zero-G could have easily been put into the game. Also, if so much focus wasn't put on the graphics, there wouldn't be nearly as many out-of-map glitches as there are now, because many of the extra textures and rocks they put into a map like Ragnarok have actually enabled people to glitch out of the map so easily. I myself found a way to glitch out, completely by accident! There's no excuse for a triple-A title, let alone a Halo game. But back to the main topic: the implementation of zero-G controls.
-How to enter a zero-G environment: Simply walk or jump into one. You either are or are not in zero-G. Sometimes an airlock or gravity unit can be activated.
-Controls: Since the jump button and the 'Finesse' (former Sprint) button cannot be used to perform their normal functions in zero-G, these will be used to help maneuver.
a. The right stick would still be used to look around like normal, but the left stick controls would change. Instead of strafing, you would roll clockwise or counter-clockwise. Instead of moving forward or backward, you would either move up or down. Clicking in the left stick would help you kill your momentum.
b. The jump button would be used to move forward, and the 'Finesse' button would be used to move backward.
c. If you do not manually kill your momentum, and let go of the controls, you would continue to float in the direction you were floating to begin with, i.e. for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. This makes you free to aim and shoot while moving, but as you can probably gather it is much harder to fight in zero-G.
-Side Effects: Firing a weapon DOES affect your trajectory, depending on what type of weapon it is. If it is a ballistic weapon, such as an AR, BR, or heaven forbid a SAW, it will have an effect on your movements when fired, slowing you down if traveling forward, and speeding you up when traveling backwards. Energy weapons, such as a Plasma Rifle or a Spartan Laser, do not affect your trajectory. (This explains why the Covenant stick with energy weapons most of the time, because many of their engagements were in space.) Each weapon should have a different effect on your ability to navigate the zero-G environment. This is either a good or bad thing depending on the situation. (Perhaps it may be advantageous to perform a strategic retreat by spraying a SAW and launching yourself backwards on purpose? Or maybe you're using a Gravity Hammer just for the lols!)
-Magnet Boots: If you are close enough to a surface, you can press in the left stick, the same one used to kill momentum, to latch to a surface. You can't walk on the surface, but it helps you get your bearings and can easily place you behind cover. You can stand or crouch, and you press the jump button to detach and move forward in the direction you are facing.
4. Conclusions
There' not much else I can think of at the moment to change the mechanics of the game, other than give enemies the same abilities if they're Elites or Brutes. It would also be cool to play as Elites or Brutes (I would like it if Brutes made a return, but they would be humbled by their near-extermination by the Elites. However, in multiplayer you could make game modes that specifically deal with the annihilation of the Brutes.) I don't really care about playing as Promethean, but I would like to play as Flood again, but this time have the ability to wield weapons. Also, it would help if Flood had a sort of charge-jump by holding the jump button. It would also be nice to have better spaceship controls.
I made this post to perhaps help 343 Industries get a better idea what innovative mechanics actually are, and to better forge their own path with the help of a dedicated fan rather than follow the trends of the competition. You don't have to copy other good games to make a good game, just make a good game. But if your focus is on profits rather than the enjoyment of the player, chances are you're going to actually lose your profits. Right now, I have zero plans on getting an Xbox One or Halo 5, and while there has been much controversy around Xbox One, the tipping point in my decision to not get one was really the failure of Halo 4 to please me, and a great many other Halo fans. I made this post, not in hopes of getting a job at 343 or making any money, but in hopes I would get to play a fun, fair, and legitimate Halo again. I fear that it may already be too late in development to change their ways now, but I don't want them to have the excuse that the fans didn't make it clear about what they wanted from a Halo game, because it's right here. It's always been clear regardless, they just have to listen to actual fans, the ones who've grown up playing Halo and made it their primary shooter. Do not listen to forum-flooding crybabies who simply lack skill and therefore call a game broken. Or those who just don't know what good game design is in terms of a competitive shooter. By listening to them, it has really broken the game, and driven away their primary customers.
343, please be careful to who you listen to on the forums. You must realize that true gamers typically don't visit forums, and for the most part their voices go unheard. I know this, because I never was on forums or Youtube videos leaving comments, because I was busy playing my favorite games! Now each and every one of my favorite titles have turned into something I loath, so therefore I have far more free time to voice my opinion. To whomever reads this, please leave your thoughts and if you like what I've suggested in terms of mechanics, please try to bring it to 343's attention, so we can perhaps have a good Halo again. At least in terms of mechanics.
