PLEASE TELL ME THIS IS A SICK JOKE 343.

[Masonite]

Personally, I like the idea of "Spartan Ops" (though I think they should change the name of it because it sounds a bit misleading). From what I've heard about this possible feature it actually has a story-line to it. Which is definitely different from your run of the mill game with a similar feature (and not just call of duty, there are actually quite a few out there). Spartan points, eh. They could come up with a better name. To me "Spartan points" sounds like something a 9 year old would come up with for a school project.

 

Now let's talk about the multiplayer. Now, I've heard that they are making sprint default, but haven't heard whether they are going to decrease the normal walk speed (judging from Halo 3) to do so. I've also heard that the jump jets are going to come into play as well. So, by default everyone gets jump jets and sprint. I've HEARD that they are bringing back AA's, but didn't hear it from 343i, so I'm not sure what to make of it. I'll just leave AA's alone until they come out.

 

Another rumor going around is random weapon drops during multiplayer games. Now, there are a couple of negatives for this. First, call-outs will have to be rethought (which isn't so bad because a hardcore SWAT player has no idea where "shotgun" is in slayer games, making the callout useless). Secondly, players will not be able to memorize where their favorite weapons will spawn. Third, it adds a bit of randomness to the game, which detracts from skill (which some may say that that's not a bad thing, but be honest. If you put the time in the game to actually get good at it and got beat by someone who just bought the game because of a coincidence, it would piss you off).

 

All the negatives aside though, let's talk about the positives of random weapon drops. First, people won't be able to camp power weapons. I've never seen someone say "Oh hey, that's cool, that guy has had the rocket launcher the entire game!" in a sincere voice. Being totally honest, the only power weapons that take any sort of skill are snipers. If you aren't good with default weapons, then you shouldn't be taking the game seriously, let alone be in MLG. Secondly, it encourages callouts that can span across multiple gametypes. As I said previously, calling someone out based on a weapon spawn is half hazard at best. Third, it encourages map movement. The funnest and most satisfying games to win are when everyone is moving around the map, rather than taking a certain area and holding it with power weapons (in my own opinion at least. If you disagree, I respect your right to be wrong).

 

Now let's talk about the 1-50 ranking system based on wins and losses. Halo is mainly a team game. Having a ranking system based only off of wins and losses is all well and good if everyone around the world has 3 friends who can play with them whenever they so desire. If you are a lone wolf, and are very good, then you won't usually get paired with teammates who are also good. You will get paired with bad players to compensate for the good players on the other team. This makes it pure chance if you get a 50 without playing with friends. Also, that sort of system works in a way that allows A LOT of exploitation, which is difficult to counteract. I can practically see MLG people reading this plugging their ears and going "nanananannananana can't hear you", but the fact remains.

 

Last little thing, I know it's a bit cliche, but don't judge a book by it's cover. You can cry and complain all you want, but unless you've actually played the game you cannot accurately judge it. And if you've already played Halo 4, then you belong in prison, not on a forum.

Static weapon spawns encourage map movement because different weapons are distrutedd throughout the map and they have various spawn times. Random weapon spawns and times results in random map movement which makes the gametype prone to luck. Also, when you're above a certain skill level, you will realize that you can't just sit on the rocket spawn when they're about to come up because in a match full of knowledgable players, people are going to be pushing as a team to secure certain weapons, nading the area out, or keeping a line of sight on the spawn in order to bait it. Because the weapon spawns are predicatble, players shouldn't have any advantage over one another, but what's going to happen when drop pods with rockets start falling right next to the bad kids and they start going on sprees.

 

Also, unless you're socially retarded, it's easy to meet people of your skill level who will want to play ranked matches with you. People who blame not having a 50 on bad teammates are usually the egotistical kids who think that they're way better than they are. I also recall getting my first 50 in lone wolves because I didn't have too many good players on my friends list when I first bought an xbox. Earlier Halo matchmaking also matched loners and teams of two with other loners and teams of two, teams of three with teams of three, and teams of four with teams of four. The bad randoms on you're team should be compensated for overall by the bad randoms on the other team. In doubles for example, you're playing with one random and against two. Mathematically, If you're better than the kids of your current rank, you should be ranking up, although it will happen slower, but that's the chance you take for searching alone.

[SkullWarriors]

dude, do you want the same game over and over again? because that is what call of duty is like: the same thing over and over again, just a little polished and a few new guns. Halo has never been like call of duty and random weapon spawns sound fun! have you ever played firefight matchmaking? have you ever seen how the rocket launchers and target designaters drop down from a longsword and everyone goes scrambling for different supply drops not knowing what they are going to get a hold of? it's fun! Hoping for the best gun to be at the drop that you are running towards is a lot more fun then every player killing each other for a sword that spawns in the same place every time. and besides, change is good! And change is one thing call of duty can't do- not completely at least. Yes, everybody has memories of their first times playing halo, and yes, it sucks that they are going to be gone, but do you wanna be trapped in the past forever? move on, it's for the best.