What Needs To Change In Halo 5

[A6ENT of CHA0S]

I started this forum to get a better understanding of exactly what people want done differently in the next Halo title. Any opinions that you have, please share and respect the ideas and opinions of others. Sorry for needing to say that, but we are on the internet...

 

For me, personally, Halo 4 was a great game. However, I couldn't help but think how far it is detracting from the winning formula of previous titles. There are a few things I would like to see return, and a few things that should be left behind, in my opinion.

1. I would like to see Brutes make a return. They provided a barbaric enemy with an arsenal of weapons and vehicles that helped to make Halo 3 the game that it's praised for being. Brute Shot, Spiker, Mauler, Spike Grenades, Brute Choppers, and even Incendiary Grenades gave the game more variety.

2. Dual-wielding... Do I really need to say more?

3. I would like to see a new Covenant vehicle, or rather, a reiteration of one we never had the real pleasure of facing. The Locust (exclusive to Halo Wars) was a quadrupedal mobile mining platform used as a weapon, similarly to the Scarab, but on a smaller scale. I think it would make a perfect counterpart for the UNSC's Mantis.

4. Many may think this next one is a step back, but I view it as a step closer to home: Getting rid of loadouts... Reach tried many new things, such as armor abilities and loadouts. However, Halo 4 took it even further. I like the idea of armor abilities, but think that they should be an item to pick up on a map, rather than something at spawn. In the "Golden Age" of Halo, everyone started with the same kit and then had to go out of their way to find something better. Halo 4 does the opposite, granting you the option to choose a DMR for long range and plasma grenades to defeat vehicles immediately at spawn. Many will argue that it is fair, because everyone has the choice to use these things, but that's not the only issue. Halo players used to scavenge weapons on the battlefield to survive in multiplayer, but now can just spawn with a N00B combo, or more recently the Tryhard combo (DMR and Boltshot). The additions to the sandbox are great. The method of acquiring them is not.

5. I think Halo 4 had a big improvement on Armor Abilities. The one thing that I question is the Hardlight Shield. While an improvement of the abused Armor Lock, it still does little but postpone inevitable deaths in most cases. My idea is that, rather than an Armor Ability, this type of defensive device should take the form of a "weapon" e.g. the Jackals' Point Defense Gauntlet. Using it as a dual-wielded weapon, similar to the flag in Halo 4's CTF, it could be used while fighting back.

[Sova]

Similar to your loadouts comment, I'd suggest even going as far to take out sprint. This also made the "golden age" halo games far superior because you had to make smarter decisions about where you went. Also, Sprinting is just clunky and annoying.

[A6ENT of CHA0S]

That is a good point. In Halo 4 and Reach, Sprint may have sped up the gameplay a bit, but that was never a significant problem in the previous games. The exclusion of Sprint could also make the Thruster Pack armor ability (or whatever would be the equivalent of it in the games to come) more of a valuable ability. Having armor abilities set on the map like Halo 3's equipment would make people look upon them as an actual enhancement, rather than a standard-issue kit. They would learn to use them in more effective ways. Not to mention, if a map could be dominated by something like Jetpack, the solution would be easy: don't place Jetpacks on the map.

[wildfire C]

Interesting ideas about the armor abilities but if they are "pick ups" we will end up with people camping on there spawns so i think keep the AA's how they are it works and sprinting adds a level of desperation to the game i think, "I have to get there to help" or "get me the hell out of here" sorta feelings come out when using sprint and if a map can be dominated by an AA, you have it as well so whats the problem really

[A6ENT of CHA0S]

How is camping at AA spawns any different than what people have been doing for all of the Halo games? It means that they can become points of interest that teams will want to control, just like a Rocket Launcher or Sniper spawn. Besides, I envision the maps having more than just one or two armor abilities, but that really would depend on the layout. I do understand what you mean by the desperation aspect that Sprint brings, but that has really always been there. Its just easier to evade danger now. As for everyone using a dominating AA, everyone having it doesn't make it any less problematic. Imagine everyone just jetpacking above the map for every skirmish in a match. It not only would result in the map being relatively pointless, but also makes gameplay bland. This is a rare case, but I have seen it happen... even on maps that originally didn't even have AAs e.g. Battle Canyon ( Halo CEA )

[Tietokone]

For campaign, I want more variety. Halo 4 was mostly just the basic combat scenario: there's 5-25 enemies, a mid-sized area to fight. I want that, but I also want big battles, where you can drive a warthog in one direction for 5 minutes, guns blazing. And small, bleak hallways with a couple of guards who you need to take down quietly. And more aggressive A.I. Only prometheans advance slightly, Covies just stand in one spot waiting for you. And allies that are more complex, SW: Republic Commando style.

 

For multiplayer they should bring back Invasion and elites, as well as support for the competetive community. They've supported it post launch but they should have supported it from the start. And get rid of weapon drops. I'm tired of that "thump" noise I hear in every match. Loadouts are fine in some gametypes, like Invasion or Flood, but not in CTF, especially if it's supposed to be competetive. Unless they are actually balanced well, but I'm not a good judge on that type of stuff.

[A6ENT of CHA0S]

@ Tietokone I agree that the Promethean threat (whatever form they may take in the next game) wasn't agressive enough. It's one of the reasons I'd like to see the Brutes return. In addition to being agressive enemies in the Campaign, it would be great to play as them in a spiritual successor to Invasion. Loadouts should definitely not be in competitive gametypes, but like you said, they can be fine in some. I would love to see Invasion re-envisioned more along the lines of Gears of War's "OverRun" mode. The more I think about a team who can work up to being larger threats like Brute Chieftains to take an objective, the more I want it to become a reality. I'm not suggesting for 343i to make a "carbon-copy", but to work on that concept and make it work for Halo matchmaking. It would make for an awesome gametype.

 

[ForgeMonitor]

I agree with what you guys are saying. As far as the AIs go, they need to be more aggressive. The one thing I hated about the Prometheans was that they (particularly the Knights) always hung back with Light Rifles, Incineration Cannons, or Binary Rifles. I shouldn't be disintegrated just for poking my head out of cover. The Brutes, on the other hand, forced you out with Gravity Hammers, Spikers, and Brute Shots, truly visceral weapons. Push them too hard and they'd throw down a bubble shield--no harm, no foul. While I'm not necessarily advocating a return of the Brutes (though that would be great), I do think that the AI need to be more aggressive and interactive; it will make the campaign more tense and exciting.

[A6ENT of CHA0S]

You know, the more I think about it, the more I can't understand why 343i made the changes that they did in Halo 4. Halo: Reach started those changes, namely loadouts, and wasn't nearly as acclaimed as the previous games... So why did 343i continue those deviations from a winning formula and take the "innovations" to new heights (I say "innovations" because it wasn't really innovative, just concepts inspired by CoD). To me, a proper analog is that Bungie took an awesome motorcycle that they had built from scratch, then added a sidecar before selling it to 343i. 343i then decided that the sidecar needed to be a two-seater. It was unnecessary changes that, while had a few good aspects that can be used, tarnished the fluid and near-flawless (my opinion) gameplay mechanics with too much clutter.

[Tietokone]

@ A6ENT MA1NE The loadouts can make for interesting custom games, so they are a good addition, but there should also be a "classic" or competetive option. If you make a custom gametype without loadouts etc, and a well balanced map, Halo 4 can be good for competetive gameplay (at least I think so), but that gametype should be built in, not a custom made one. And it should of course have its own playlist(s). I think the divided playlists like in Halo 3 would be a really good way to make it so you could play how you wanted. To use your parable, you should be able to take the two-seater off when you want to. You don't always need or want it.

[spartan123]

They should get rid of ordinance drops and instead make amor drops where people can call in one armor ability only once every game. This can be done by acquiring enough points, similar to ordinance drops, and just placing the reticle on the ground to call them in. The armor drop itself is a metal platform six-feet in diameter that the player presses x to step onto. Different parts of the platform move and shift, assembling around specific parts of the player (depending on the armor ability) transformer-style. So if you called in thruster pack (legs), metal clamps close around your feet and begin attaching the armor ability to them. 

[A6ENT of CHA0S]

They should get rid of ordinance drops and instead make amor drops where people can call in one armor ability only once every game. This can be done by acquiring enough points, similar to ordinance drops, and just placing the reticle on the ground to call them in. The armor drop itself is a metal platform six-feet in diameter that the player presses x to step onto. Different parts of the platform move and shift, assembling around specific parts of the player (depending on the armor ability) transformer-style. So if you called in thruster pack (legs), metal clamps close around your feet and begin attaching the armor ability to them. 

Why the once-per-match limit? Also, how long would you consider such a process of applying Armor Abilities "Ironman-style" to take? A lengthy animation of putting on an attachment may not be the best idea. It might even seem like a hassle to some players. It would certainly be a window of vulnerability. I must admit, 343i did their best while implementing ordinance, its simple and it works: you pick what you want, it drops down almost immediately, you pick it up. It just wasn't a good idea in regard to promoting competitive play...

 

So, is anyone else going to repopulate Halo 3 on the weekend of Bungie Day 2013 (July 7th)? I'm certainly going to do my part in showing 343i that the ageless multiplayer experience of Halo, not to mention the kind of gameplay that was immensely popular and didn't see massive population drops months after release, has always been right in front of them. After all, there 's only one thing that Microsoft will listen to: numbers (usually money, but still).

[-Legendary-]

No on the back of removal of sprint i found it really frustrating on maps like sandtrap where there'd be no vehicles left and you get to the point you want to only to et sniped i think they should keep sprint, remove ordinance however keep it classic remember the rush for the sword or that extra bot of ammo from BR's left on the map that's halo leave ordinance for dominion or an option in CG  

[A6ENT of CHA0S]

I can understand that once you've been able to sprint, it makes little sense to lose that ability. I suppose that's one thing that may need to remain as a game mechanic, although the way Halo has handled movement in the past had always seemed fine to me. It doesn't take away any of the competitive aspects to how the game should play, unlike ordinance or loadouts.

[Noble118]

I think that halo needs to take all of the vehicles from halo wars and use them. Also they should make armor abilities 5 or 10 use items that you find around the map, so then you cant just spam them.