Making Halo 5 a must have

[RanDum Phantom]

 

 

A tl;dr will be in the first reply

 

I am going to start off explaining myself:

I love Halo (like many others) and have had it be a part of my life growing up since Halo 1.

 

I want the Xbox One to do well because I belive it has innovative ideas and games that I want.

 

I (and I assume many others) bought an Xbox 360 almost solely for Halo 3, even after Gears of War became big. Halo 3 is ranked up with some of the most highly respected games that I consider masterpieces on their own and most of those contain a significant nostalgia factor now.

 

Halo 5 can be the next Halo to make people want to buy a console just to play it.

 

Examining the previous Halo games:

 

Halo was revolutionary and introduced great aspects to the industry. I won't need to say much else here, except that the maps for multiplayer were expansive, and had a certain element of awe in their design that helped to make th overall experience fun and enjoyable.

 

Halo 2 refined many things and introduced fun weapons and dual wielding which made firefights a little more creative in some instances. The only got some balancing issues wrong with the sword and it's infinite use and the rocket launcher in some cases.

 

Halo 3 was the first Halo on that gen of consoles and offered such a complete experience, it was a must have and must play. I still play it every now and then.

 

Halo 3: ODST introduced firefight, which had some great potential, but was still fun in it's own right. The campaign was interesting and fresh, even if it was short.

 

Halo Reach got some improvements right and some things lost their magic, but the Forge in this game and Forge World, when combined with custom games made some of the best elements of the franchise (and ones that were key to Halo 3's success) even better.

 

Halo 4. I don't have much to say here. Spartan Ops is a good idea, but the execution could have been better. Lack of features from previous games still haunts this one.

 

Finally, what I have to say:

 

Halo 5 will need to replicate the strategy that made Halo 3 into the classic it is (regardless of your opinion on it).

 

This means:

1. Forge needs to not be changed, but given the necessary resources to allow creativity
2. Campaign needs to be hearty and satisfying
3. Multiplayer needs to be flexible, varied, and have lasting appeal.
4. Custom Games need to be given the love they deserve
5. Overall package should be so complete, people need to feel like they get more than their money's worth

Case 1: Forge

 

Reach made the improvements that allowed so much creativity, that Halo once again found itself being surprised by the community (after the Foundry creations in Halo 3)

 

The only problem people had with it in Reach is that Forge World was all that was viable for their ambition and the pallet became monotonous.

 

Shortly after Reach came out, and people started diving into Forge World, I created a few threads about a Forge DLC that could expand upon things much like Foundry or Sandbox did as DLC for Halo 3.

 

A 3 Legged Goat (a prominent member of the Bungie forum community) had a thread pinned athat discussed a "Forge City" map. I had an idea to bring diversity to the environment.

 

Here's on of my threads: http://www.bungie.net/en-US/Forum/Post?id=2628012

 

The community loved ideas like those. But, Halo Reach came and went, and Halo 4 never picked up on those ideas either. Halo 4 was limited in Forging Spaces until Forge Island. That may have come a little bit too late, however.

 

Ever since Halo 2, custom games have been a major part of the Halo experience, and Halo 4 also lacked in that department.

 

Forge Solution:

 

Maps like Forge Halo and Forge City would be enough to satisfy most people (I assume) and another generic Forge World type map would be great as well, but not prioritized.

 

Case 2: Campaign

 

The problem with Halo Reach's campaign was the lack of memorable or amazing set pieces and encounters.

 

Halo 1 had mystery, and the surprise of the Flood, while 2 had some great moments, both cinematic and fun.

Halo 3 had epic enouncters and a wide variety of gameplay.

They all had a good story, but the original trilogy is what should be looked at for the overall gameplay and experience.

 

Another element of all Halos is the enemies. The original trilogy and ODST had a wide raneg of enemies and encounters. Halo 5 did an amazing thing with people from Retro sutios (Metroid Prime makers, that franchise considered to be Masterpieces and some of the best games ever made) to use their acclaimed ability to make fun enemies and combat mechanics to design enemies that were fun to face.

 

However, Halo 5 didn't have many different enemies or new things. Fighting the same 3 types of enemies for 75% of the game can be tiresome.

 

Bosses are another part of Halo games that are underwhelming. The final boss in Halo 4, Guilt Spark in Halo 3, and the final boss in Halo 2 were all less than stellar. No offense. I suggest taking a que from Retro studios again and look at the Metroid Prime series which has some of the mst acclaimed and well respected bosses and boss fights.

 

Campaign Solution:

 

All Halo 5 has to do, is provide sections of gameplay utilizing many different aspects of gameplay. Flying sections, driving, exploring, combat (long, short, large scale, small scale). It always helps to have diverse environments, too. The story is something that 343i is doing great with, but the campaign should be a decent length, and have a lot of replayability.

 

I would suggest not having the skulls unlocked from the get-go, as that was always a fun experience. The more hidden things in the campaign, the better and more replayable it will be.

 

Keep the enemies varied, or at least the way you fight them. Gunts can fill many rolls, from close quarters combat to sniping duels. But, the Forerunners in 5, while great to fight, became too repetitive in their use and how you fought them. Maybe a look at the Half Life series in how fights aren't all the same and never play out like other ones (due to combinations of different enemies, environments, and weapons the player has).

 

If there are going to be bosses, I suggest taking a look at how Metroid Prime bosses play out, or even taking a look at Shadow of the Colossus (another game heralded as a masterpiece)

 

Case 3: Multiplayer

 

Regardless of gameplay, the maps and gamemodes are their own thing. Halo always has had great modes and maps. This is not much of an issue. Is it too much to ask for Valhala and Blood Gulch in the same game? Halo 3 had plenty of great BTB maps, and Reach added great BTB forge maps into matchmaking.

 

I would love to see tons of great maps from Halo 1 and 2 make a return. I would also at least like seeing Sandtrap (complete with Elephants) back again. Spire was a great Reach map that would be fun to play at again.

 

More importantly, the weapons and vehicles are really what breathes life into multiplayer. I felt like Halo 4 was lacking in vehicular gameplay in Halo 4, partially due to map design, but also due to the over abundance of the Mechs, which are cool in their own right.

 

I also felt like the Forerunner weapons were too over powered, and this might not have been an issue without classes. I fell like the overall weapon pallet seemed less diverse than the other Halo games and this was made even more noticable with the focus on drops and having about half the loadout be too similar and be able to be spawned with.

 

I personally think Dual Wielding opened up great possibilities, developer wise. The SMG was the Dual Wield equivalent of the Assault Rifle, but singled, it was faster and better for close range, but not for long ranged. Dual Wielded, it was amazing for close range, but the recoil was so out of hand (rightfully so) that medium range was tough. This was a good balance. I also think this type of balancing could be applied to the plasma rifle and plasma repeater (or what ever gun they have like it).

 

I still belive the DMR, BR, AR, Covenant Carbine, and Needle Rifle can all co-exist even wihtout being weapons to spawn with (if you can't tell, I think the Halo games are more fun without custom classes)

 

Multiplayer Solutions:

 

Weapons could be more plentiful (more different weapons) as long as they are balanced.

 

Maps should be a main focus, I'm fine with them bringing great maps back.

 

Gamemodes should be varied.

 

Case 4: Custom Games

 

Here we go:

Bring back the customization options of Halo Reach, for all game modes. In the case of Infection, bring back the old options and a new one to choose whether or not to play as the new flood model from Halo 4.

 

Bring back VIP, alongside Race.

 

Don't overlook the biggest part of the community from Halo 3 and Reach that may have been lost with Halo 4.

 

This seems simple, but this is all that is needed. This is a very important one though.

 

Case 5: Overall

 

I'm just going to fire off how I think things should be for this game:

Firefight (with customization options from before) alongside Spartan Ops.

 

Spartan Ops should probably be less repetitive, and more story focused/built around unique or highly replayable encounters and objectives.

 

If the Flood can be in the multiplayer (Halo 4 infection) then I don't see why there can't be Flood options for Firefight. (Some waves could just be flood enemies or mixed..etc.)

 

Theater is great, just bring back the much appreciated and fun ability to use it for Campaign as well.

 

Forge in general should have a much higher budget constraint considering the new hardware's capabilities (and even use of the cloud loading features to enhance this more) and the pallet should be varied for all maps (Sandbox pallet + Forge Island pallet + Foundry pallet, with some new things...or the ability to change the look of items, at least...why not btoh actually?)

 

Bring back almost all weapons and vehicles, at least for Forge. I think fan favorite, the Brute Shot should return. If multiplayer is a simulation (and most likely Firefight, then.) why not have brute weaponry in the even that some like could come up in the future? (Besides, wasn't the Spiker in Halo 4?)

 

Co-op for the Campaign should go no where, as this is a major draw to the series.

 

Split Screen and Split Screen online are also as defining characteristics of the magic of Halo (and appeal for purchase) as any character in the Campaign.

 

Speaking of that, I'd like more traditional looking Halo armor, but that is just my view. Master Chief was almost unrecognizable in 4 most of the time, and not as cool. (IMO, obviously)

 

All of these things would ensure great sales numbers for Halo 5, as it is already what many were hoping for for Halo 4. It can't hurt to give your audience what they want.

 

Thank you for your time, please comment with any ideas/additions you have, or any criticisms. If this get's enough attention, 343i may have a look at it.

Reserved

SO, I guess you can't edit posts.

 

That sucks majorly, and it combined my "reserved" post with the OP.

 

Not very good ideas for a forum.

 

anyways:

 

TL;DR

 

Custom Games need their options back,

Campaign needs that epicness back,

Multiplayer needs good weapon variety and good maps,

Forge needs spaces to forge at and a wide ranging pallet,

Firefight should be back alongside Spartan Ops

 

If you really want to know details, read the OP.

[Buns]

Well this was a mouthful to read so I'll do that at a later date.
Thank you for including a TL;DR very nice of you. You actually can edit post not sure why you wrote that. The option is in the lower left. 
Anywho I'll give you my reply
Custom Games has a variety of options just as before. The only issue I have is lack of custom power up which did hurt the variety of potential minigames. Other then that custom games have just as much if not more options like Reach.
Campaign was good it had a variety of missions, it was mostly linear while it wasn't as amazing as previous Halo's. Lore wise Halo 4 did an AMAZING job. Read the books or know the backstory and you will catch my drift. 
Multiplayer has good weapons(I mean we now have 4 different Marksman rifles and all have their own unique playstyle and are finally balanced. 4 is 2 more then the ones from Halo 3) A very important thing I want to remind you is that Halo is an ARENA shooter at its core. Adding a variety of weapons would not only be difficult to balance but would slowly tear away at Halo being the only good arena shooter out there. While it can be done and it most likely will it shouldn't be the prime focus. 
I would love Firefight to return it was an amazing past time for Halo and chances are it will come back *knock on wood*
I don't think you know this but Halo 4 was pushing to the xbox to its limits. A lot of things got cut not to mention this was 343i's FIRST game as a COMPANY. Regardless if they were experience it doesn't change the fact it was a company's FIRST game. Let's give them props for doing such a good job.
Before I conclude this post I would like to add that the reason Forge World couldn't be put into the game is because a map that large as a forge canvas would crash the 360 like it was nothing. I am sure we will see larger canvases in the next game. 

[RanDum Phantom]

Well this was a mouthful to read so I'll do that at a later date.

Thank you for including a TL;DR very nice of you. You actually can edit post not sure why you wrote that. The option is in the lower left. 

Anywho I'll give you my reply

Custom Games has a variety of options just as before. The only issue I have is lack of custom power up which did hurt the variety of potential minigames. Other then that custom games have just as much if not more options like Reach.

Campaign was good it had a variety of missions, it was mostly linear while it wasn't as amazing as previous Halo's. Lore wise Halo 4 did an AMAZING job. Read the books or know the backstory and you will catch my drift. 

Multiplayer has good weapons(I mean we now have 4 different Marksman rifles and all have their own unique playstyle and are finally balanced. 4 is 2 more then the ones from Halo 3) A very important thing I want to remind you is that Halo is an ARENA shooter at its core. Adding a variety of weapons would not only be difficult to balance but would slowly tear away at Halo being the only good arena shooter out there. While it can be done and it most likely will it shouldn't be the prime focus. 

I would love Firefight to return it was an amazing past time for Halo and chances are it will come back *knock on wood*

I don't think you know this but Halo 4 was pushing to the xbox to its limits. A lot of things got cut not to mention this was 343i's FIRST game as a COMPANY. Regardless if they were experience it doesn't change the fact it was a company's FIRST game. Let's give them props for doing such a good job.

Before I conclude this post I would like to add that the reason Forge World couldn't be put into the game is because a map that large as a forge canvas would crash the 360 like it was nothing. I am sure we will see larger canvases in the next game. 

Firstly, thank you for pointing out that I can edit posts. Much appreciated. But, now I must go through everything.

 

Halo 4 is more of a class based shooter, and took away from the Arena Shooter aspects that made the franchise acclaimed. Reach started the trend but 4 continued it.

 

I mean a diversity of weapons. As you said, there are now 4 precision rifles. This is not beneficial, though it isn't bad. That being said, the variety in weapons is lacking in 4.

 

Loadouts are killing things. It is not Halo-like and not arena-like either. Spawning with the boltshot, plasma pistol and/or plasma grenades are killing the formula and balance. The boltshot is a power weapon. Plasma Pistols mean vehicle combat is stunted, majorly. Plasma grenades hurt both regular gameplay and vehicular gameplay.

 

Also, these suggestions are for the new Halo, Halo 5. It is a game coming out for the Xbox One with very different (less, much less) limitations. Also, Forge Halo was suggested to Bungie during Halo Reach's run and planned to work as DLC for that game on the Xbox 360. The size isn't bigger than Forge World's overall size, and is not an issue.

 

Halo 4 is what it is, and I don't want to change it.

 

If you look at the population numbers of who is playing it, Halo 3 is more popular than both Reach and Halo 4. In fact, Halo 4 has been the least popular in terms of people playing the game, experiencing the most extreme drop in players of the whole series just a month after Halo 4 was released. Halo 3 didn't drop from the top 10 on xbox live until 3 years after it was released. Also, it is still ver popular today, more popular than Halo 4, currently.

 

The story was fine, I enjoyed it, and I know the back story so it was great seeing more elements explored in the games hemselves. However, the set pieces and lack of variety in combat engagements made the campaign less enjoyable. Also, I beat the Campaign in 4.5 hours on my first play through. I even explored and found a few collectibles and was not playing on easy. A speed run on easy is very doable in 1 not-so-long sitting. The length and impact of the campaign were much less than previous Halo games.

 

I love Halo 4, but it changed the arena style gameplay that we all loved and was too much of a departure from what makes Halo, well, Halo.

 

What we need is innovation, not redefinition. Halo 4 doesn;t have the options to make 75% of the custom games that were made on Reach, and can't make most of what was made in Halo 3, either.

 

Bring back Race, VIP, Infection options so we can make the Duck Hunt, Pacman, or any of the great Custom Games we all know and love in the custom games community.

 

PS: Forge World worked fine on the 360, so why wouldn't any other Forge World-like map?

 

343 did a great job, but they need to focus on making things as good as they can, not changing things. CoD is not a good place to take a que from. CoD is dying, Ghosts is critically and commercially a let down, and the public opinion's already low view of CoD is only being strengthened by the poor state of the game.

 

Halo 3's sandbox of weapons, if really less than Halo 4's, proves that it was a great game moreso. Less weapons, yet more diverse and allowing a wider variety of fun, and still all balanced to a T.

 

That is part of what makes Halo exciting, not a ton of weapons that all perform similarly.

 

Halo and arena games are respected for their "equal starts" in a match. Halo 4 almost eliminated that completely. People don't play Halo 4 much anymore and that is a major reason.

 

I want Halo 5 to be the best yet, and I am only relaying the views of the majority of Halo players that have been there since before day 1. This is what needs to happen. I know I won't be buying Halo 5 if the gameplay isn't very "Halo"

 

PSS: Also, the game wasn't in MLG circulation, proving it isn't balanced. Nothing against 343, but refined gameplay is always going to be for the better. And personal ordinance ruined map control and the need to move to weapon spawns, which also disintegrates mcuh of what makes Halo, Halo.

 

 

Thank you for your time, I hope you enjoyed the read(s)

 

Oh, and PSSS: Even 343 understands and has acknowledged the major ammounts of the community and their calling out of the lack of options in custom games for Halo 4.

 

They understand, but they did nothng but promise things will be better.

 

The majority of players see the problems.

 

Here is a new thread, with a link to older, popular threads, to remind 343 of the problems everyone, 343 included, saw as a problem: https://forums.halowaypoint.com/yaf_postst222407_Custom-Games-Need-To-Be-Complete.aspx

 

Don't be so quick to say there were no problems with Halo 4. 4 was good, but not as good as it easily could have and should have been.