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[Stinkles]

I think the difference between me and you Bobs is that I can see clear value in the Limited Edition as a complete package. From conversations we've had, it's clear that the DLC and Digital Content doesn't appeal to you and you've mentioned that you aren't fond of the packaging, so everything seems to be hinging on the briefing packet. I think this is made quite clear by the bolded above. If you can't find value in the overall package then perhaps the Standard Edition + War Games Pass is a better choice and will probably give you more bang for your buck?



.

Which is why both options will be available.

 

[Stinkles]

I wholeheartedly agree with you, kylej (god help me). I don't buy the argument that was made a while back that stated the xbox bundle was meant for people who were not absolute fans of Halo. .

That was not the argument, the argument, and it's not really an argument but an indisputable economic fact, is that bundled special edition consoles are - in the vast majority, - being sold to first time consumers, and by extension, not hardcore Halo collectors. The economics of even being able to offer an LE console mean that we can't make them in small enough numbers to create something solely for collectors - and the LE, Ragnaork and Bobs protests aside, is actually too expensive to bundle with it - all of that content and packaging - including the map pass - have to be paid for internally - including some licensing and royalties and so on.

I have explained this a few times and I am not suggesting it's a perfect solution. Far from it, because for some collectors it presents an annoying hurdle. But it's either the way it's done generally today, or we have to price it so high that neither constituency would pay for it. The margins on consoles and in particular special editions, are not big enough to absorb extraneous costs.

I wish it were not that way, but that's the practical reality and has nothing to do with some venal or mean spirited decision anywhere in the chain.

 

[Omni]

Wait.

If the map pass is $30 and the standard edition of Halo 4 is $100 here in Australia, what's the point if the LE is also $130 and you get more? Unless of course the map pass isn't available here.

 

[Stinkles]

Wait.

If the map pass is $30 and the standard edition of Halo 4 is $100 here in Australia, what's the point if the LE is also $130 and you get more? Unless of course the map pass isn't available here.

If that's the case, it's a rare instance of the Australian dollar working in your favor on game stuff, so I say hooray. But I can't look at Aussie retail right now so do not take that as confirmation.

 

[Myyke]

Wait.

If the map pass is $30 and the standard edition of Halo 4 is $100 here in Australia, what's the point if the LE is also $130 and you get more? Unless of course the map pass isn't available here.

It's a bonus for having to put up with surprise Drop Bear attacks.

 

[ElzarTheBam]

It's a bonus for having to put up with surprise Drop Bear attacks.

And spiders that eat birds, BIRDS!

 

[Shadders]

And Castlemaine XXXX.

Bleurgh

 

[reggie]

.

 

[TheOddOne]

Hey Elzar, lookie what I got in Team Fortress 2:

Sleeping Dogs custom heavy minigun. Got it by random.

343 should do some custom skins for Halo 4 in TF2.

Spoiler

A man can dream

.

 

[Hey You]

Wait.

If the map pass is $30 and the standard edition of Halo 4 is $100 here in Australia, what's the point if the LE is also $130 and you get more? Unless of course the map pass isn't available here.

$100?!? Damn, you Aussies do have it rough.

 

[Omni]

If that's the case, it's a rare instance of the Australian dollar working in your favor on game stuff, so I say hooray. But I can't look at Aussie retail right now so do not take that as confirmation.

Oooh okay. I'm sticking to the LE anyway, I was just curious.

If you're buying games at $100 these days you're doing it wrong, really, really wrong.

Oh? The RRP of most new console games is ~$99AUD. PC games are always cheaper, of course.

I guess I could import, but then I'd be paying lots on posting just to get it on time...

 

[ncsuDuncan]

My initial reaction to the sword/sprint news from the bulleting was pretty negative. The more I think about it though, the more it makes sense in the context of Halo 4's gunplay.

This isn't Reach, where a sword/sprint combo without slowdown is supremely annoying when you already have to deal with slow kill times and bloom. This is Halo 4, where the Battle Rifle reigns supreme and running around with a melee-only weapon is pretty risky.

I'm guessing 343 tried giving the sword the normal slowdown but found it made the power weapon too frustrating and useless when faced with opponents that can always spawn with strong ranged weapons.

 

[ElzarTheBam]

Hey Elzar, lookie what I got in Team Fortress 2:

http://i.minus.com/jbaWfe1SgXiC8h.png[IMG]

Sleeping Dogs custom heavy minigun. Got it by random.

343 should do some custom skins for Halo 4 in TF2. [spoiler] A man can dream [/spoiler].[/QUOTE]

Nice, cool. On that note, I'm enjoying the 'gritty' story in SD, and listening to the Chinese music, some of it's good.

 

[Tha Robbertster]

Hey Elzar, lookie what I got in Team Fortress 2:

http://i.minus.com/jbaWfe1SgXiC8h.png[IMG]

Sleeping Dogs custom heavy minigun. Got it by random.

343 should do some custom skins for Halo 4 in TF2. [spoiler] A man can dream [/spoiler].[/QUOTE]

They should ad a hat that looks like the FOTUS armor. That way, you can be a unicorn in TF2 too!

 

[reggie]

.

 

[Nando13]

... working in your favor on game stuff

Same here in Spain... L. E. are usually REALLY expensive.

 

[Beckx]

So if you don't frequent HBO - Hedgemony is doing a series of comic book covers featuring the new Spartan armors from Halo 4.

He knew my fondness for Oceanic and drew this - it completely captures the 70s adventure cartoon feel & the reason why I've loved the armor from the first moment I saw it. Check out his other covers while you're there - CIO was the first.

So pumped. Can't wait to wear this in game. Need to know how to unlock it!

 

[TheOddOne]

They should ad a hat that looks like the FOTUS armor. That way, you can be a unicorn in TF2 too!

The assets are going to stupid Xbawse avatars already, why not do them in TF2? What the fuck you doin' MS? Smh.

 

[wwm0nkey]

My initial reaction to the sword/sprint news from the bulleting was pretty negative. The more I think about it though, the more it makes sense in the context of Halo 4's gunplay.

This isn't Reach, where a sword/sprint combo without slowdown is supremely annoying when you already have to deal with slow kill times and bloom. This is Halo 4, where the Battle Rifle reigns supreme and running around with a melee-only weapon is pretty risky.

I'm guessing 343 tried giving the sword the normal slowdown but found it made the power weapon too frustrating and useless when faced with opponents that can always spawn with strong ranged weapons.

Yeah I think when people hear news or changes to the game they are still thinking about them in the context of Halo: Reach, which Halo 4 is not.

 

[AllIsOneIsNone]

The sword lunge has been shortened correct? And now that everyone has sprint, sword/sprint isn't as bad as it was in Reach.

 

[Talents]

My initial reaction to the sword/sprint news from the bulleting was pretty negative. The more I think about it though, the more it makes sense in the context of Halo 4's gunplay.

This isn't Reach, where a sword/sprint combo without slowdown is supremely annoying when you already have to deal with slow kill times and bloom. This is Halo 4, where the Battle Rifle reigns supreme and running around with a melee-only weapon is pretty risky.

I'm guessing 343 tried giving the sword the normal slowdown but found it made the power weapon too frustrating and useless when faced with opponents that can always spawn with strong ranged weapons.

You'd have to be a pretty big scrub to run around with a sword, you're not exactly supposed to rush people from half way across the map with the sword, you're supposed to wait for them to come to you.

 

[GrimBrother One]

- awesome comic stuff -

Best part is I don't have to buy the season pass as well in order to view the Scanner and Strider covers when he gets to those... ;-)

 

[squidhands]

As someone who is buying both the the Console and the Limited Edition, this would have been ideal for me and I think it would have been a good chance for 343/Microsoft to go the extra mile for the hardcore fans, but I wasn't exactly surprised when it turned out this way;

Halo 3 Console came with Halo 3 Standard Edition
Halo Reach Console came with Halo Reach Standard Edition
Modern Warfare 3 console came with MW3 Standard Edition
Gears of War 3 console came with Gears of War 3 Standard Edition

I'm not completely surprised either, but it still doesn't make it right in my humble opinion.

I reckon this is more cost effective for MS and other publishers, Collector Editions don't have very good value for publishers, IIRC, but retaillers like them since they draw in people.

This is true, but there needs to be less of a sense that all a huge corporation desires from its consumers is money. "Devoted fans, here's something for you. REALLY devoted fans, here's something REALLY special for you. It may be at somewhat of a profit loss to us, but in the long run it could lead you to not question and hate us for future price hikes so much."

This is probably why I don't work in finance or marketing, lol

That was not the argument, the argument, and it's not really an argument but an indisputable economic fact, is that bundled special edition consoles are - in the vast majority, - being sold to first time consumers, and by extension, not hardcore Halo collectors. The economics of even being able to offer an LE console mean that we can't make them in small enough numbers to create something solely for collectors - and the LE, Ragnaork and Bobs protests aside, is actually too expensive to bundle with it - all of that content and packaging - including the map pass - have to be paid for internally - including some licensing and royalties and so on.

I have explained this a few times and I am not suggesting it's a perfect solution. Far from it, because for some collectors it presents an annoying hurdle. But it's either the way it's done generally today, or we have to price it so high that neither constituency would pay for it. The margins on consoles and in particular special editions, are not big enough to absorb extraneous costs.

I wish it were not that way, but that's the practical reality and has nothing to do with some venal or mean spirited decision anywhere in the chain.

Thanks for this (though I'm very curious to know how many standard console bundles are bought by first timers, and how that number compares to the special edition bundles). It certainly does feel (to me, anyway) like a slight toward the true collector, who are usually willing to part with large sums of money for what they feel is a compelling deal.

I have more to say on the matter, but I have to get back to work. bleh

 

[Hypertrooper]

So if you don't frequent HBO - Hedgemony is doing a series of comic book covers featuring the new Spartan armors from Halo 4.

He knew my fondness for Oceanic and drew this - it completely captures the 70s adventure cartoon feel & the reason why I've loved the armor from the first moment I saw it. Check out his other covers while you're there - CIO was the first.

So pumped. Can't wait to wear this in game. Need to know how to unlock it!

Neat. I made a joke about Japanese Tentacle porn when I saw the rough sketch at twitter today. But nice.

 

[Karl2177]

My initial reaction to the sword/sprint news from the bulleting was pretty negative. The more I think about it though, the more it makes sense in the context of Halo 4's gunplay.

This isn't Reach, where a sword/sprint combo without slowdown is supremely annoying when you already have to deal with slow kill times and bloom. This is Halo 4, where the Battle Rifle reigns supreme and running around with a melee-only weapon is pretty risky.

I'm guessing 343 tried giving the sword the normal slowdown but found it made the power weapon too frustrating and useless when faced with opponents that can always spawn with strong ranged weapons.

Is a power weapon not meant to be risky? It has a guaranteed 10 kills in it. Just because you fought to pick it up, doesn't mean that you shouldn't have to fight for the next 10 kills.

I can understand the gunplay perspective, but both math and anecdotal evidence shows that it isn't right. Both Ghaleon and Steely said that they went on Sword Sprees with it. Math-wise the rate at which you lose shields < your forward rate - opponent backward rate. And you shouldn't be whipping the sword out when you're at a distance.

 

[AllIsOneIsNone]

Is a power weapon not meant to be risky? It has a guaranteed 10 kills in it. Just because you fought to pick it up, doesn't mean that you shouldn't have to fight for the next 10 kills.

I can understand the gunplay perspective, but both math and anecdotal evidence shows that it isn't right. Both Ghaleon and Steely said that they went on Sword Sprees with it. Math-wise the rate at which you lose shields < your forward rate - opponent backward rate. And you shouldn't be whipping the sword out when you're at a distance.

There are a lot of weapons that can counter the sword in Halo 4. 2 shotguns, that promethean pistol shotgun is probably pretty good, the concussion rifle, the rocket launcher. The levels are generally bigger now because of sprint so it'll be harder to flank someone/pop out of nowhere in most maps; there are a million reasons why it's not that cheap (for a power weapon) if you think about it.

 

[Skilotonn]

That hopefully is a misunderstanding, because it would make no sense for the LE Season Pass code to not come with the same things that a Marketplace purchase wouldn't.

And about the argument of getting the regular version + season pass vs. LE version, it shouldn't have to be said that that only goes for places that stick to standard prices - Europe luckily doesn't fall into that, and better yet, I can get the LE for much cheaper for pre-order right now, cheaper/max on-par for the cheapest online price for the regular + season pass.

 

[blamite]

That hopefully is a misunderstanding, because it would make no sense for the LE Season Pass code to not come with the same things that a Marketplace purchase wouldn't.

Yeah, it would make sense for the LE to come with a code for the same pass that's on the marketplace, helmets and all. I really don't understand why they'd to it any other way. Granted, I wouldn't be that surprised if they made a separate, helmetless version of the pass to put in the LE, but it really wouldn't make any sense to do that.

 

[Hydranockz]

Is a power weapon not meant to be risky? It has a guaranteed 10 kills in it. Just because you fought to pick it up, doesn't mean that you shouldn't have to fight for the next 10 kills.

I can understand the gunplay perspective, but both math and anecdotal evidence shows that it isn't right. Both Ghaleon and Steely said that they went on Sword Sprees with it. Math-wise the rate at which you lose shields < your forward rate - opponent backward rate. And you shouldn't be whipping the sword out when you're at a distance.

They aren't guaranteed kills. There have been far too many times where the person I sword ends up killing me too, somehow. How many people get more than 5 kills with a sword anyway? Sure you never miss, but the sitaution you put yourself in doesn't help your spree. It can often lead to killing one or two peeps but then getting stuck in the open going for the third while you get picked off.

People will absolutely tear up with it though but that same thing can be applied to Rockets and Snipers too. Over said it only has 4 things of ammo but that doesn't translate to 4 kills. You can't get a 2-for-1 with a sword which is definitely something that needs saying.

 

[Hypertrooper]

OXM UK has a contest: Play Halo 4 and meet 343i!

 

[thezerofire]

I just got around to reading the bulletin. So if I get the LE, I don't get the helmets that come with the War Games pass?

never mind, I think I skipped over the middle section of that table

 

[Woorloog]

Still no Covenant Weapon Sounds video?

EDIT Fuck LE War Games Maps Pass not having the helmets.

 

[Sofa King]

I just got around to reading the bulletin. So if I get the LE, I don't get the helmets that come with the War Games pass?

never mind, I think I skipped over the middle section of that table

I have read nothing on here that disputes the BS Angel tweets that say you don't get the helmets for the DLC pass with the LE. Since Frankie has been hanging around lately, it would be nice if he would confirm this detail

 

[Woorloog]

I have read nothing on here that disputes the BS Angel tweets that say you don't get the helmets for the DLC pass with the LE. Since Frankie has been hanging around lately, it would be nice if he would confirm this detail

BS Angel Waypoint post:

The LE does not come with the War Games Map Pass armor and emblem DLC. The content is different and unique to each SKU. So the LE comes with the Prime armor skin, Prime weapon skin, Prime emblem, Recruit armor avatar costume, and Cryo-Tube avatar prop, and the standalone Halo 4 War Games Map Pass comes with the Scanner helmet, Strider helmet, and Falcon emblem. I know that's not good news for the completionists amongst you, which is why we're brainstorming ways to make those items available in the (distant) future.

On this page
https://forums.halo.xbox.com/yaf_postst114410p3_The-Halo-Bulletin--9-19-12.aspx

Don't think that needs any more confirmation.

 

[Zoso Achilles]

Sword sprees are going to be so fun and easy in infinity slayer. Sword + speed boost? Yeah, you're screwed. Sword with sprint, thrusters, and overshield? You might as well put the controller down and walk away, instant sword spree.

 

[Tashi]

Let's hope matchmaking does its job and matches you guys against other sword pros

 

[feel]

if they're really having content exclusive to the Season Pass knowing that a bunch of LE nerds will toss them the extra $25 just for it, that's shady as hell...

 

[GhaleonEB]

My initial reaction to the sword/sprint news from the bulleting was pretty negative. The more I think about it though, the more it makes sense in the context of Halo 4's gunplay.

This isn't Reach, where a sword/sprint combo without slowdown is supremely annoying when you already have to deal with slow kill times and bloom. This is Halo 4, where the Battle Rifle reigns supreme and running around with a melee-only weapon is pretty risky.

I'm guessing 343 tried giving the sword the normal slowdown but found it made the power weapon too frustrating and useless when faced with opponents that can always spawn with strong ranged weapons.

Yeah, that makes sense, and would be the iteration path to carving out an exception to the slowdown when getting shot while sprinting rule. Against that, I have my very limited experience going on a sword tear, though that had as much to do with me comboing it with unlimited sprint and the thruster pack as anything.

In the end, I think it will play out much as you've said. Base player speed is quicker and inertia less compared to Reach, which will help player reaction time to seeing someone with a sword. And both due to the lack of bloom and the firing rate of the weapons, kill times are faster than with Reach. So they may well balance out better than we're thinking based on anecdotal experiences and text. It's a fine line between creating a sword that operates as a power weapon, and something that feels cheap as it did in Reach. We'll find out soon enough.

 

[ncsuDuncan]

Sword sprees are going to be so fun and easy in infinity slayer. Sword + speed boost? Yeah, you're screwed. Sword with sprint, thrusters, and overshield? You might as well put the controller down and walk away, instant sword spree.

Sword is rare.
Ordnance drops are (moderately) rare.

I don't think we're going to see sword + speed boost combos very often.

 

[Beckx]

Sword sprees are going to be so fun and easy in infinity slayer. Sword + speed boost? Yeah, you're screwed. Sword with sprint, thrusters, and overshield? You might as well put the controller down and walk away, instant sword spree.

Let's hope matchmaking does its job and matches you guys against other sword pros

This sounds like one of those TheoryHalo situations where we're betting off waiting til Nov to see whether that perfect storm of power weapon, ready AA, and power up is frequent enough to worry about.

 

[Fracas]

Sword sprees are going to be so fun and easy in infinity slayer. Sword + speed boost? Yeah, you're screwed. Sword with sprint, thrusters, and overshield? You might as well put the controller down and walk away, instant sword spree.

The sword sounds so OP.

Spoiler

inb4 "but fracas, you haven't played it"

 

[Omni]

Sword sprees are going to be so fun and easy in infinity slayer. Sword + speed boost? Yeah, you're screwed. Sword with sprint, thrusters, and overshield? You might as well put the controller down and walk away, instant sword spree.

 

[Karl2177]

They aren't guaranteed kills. There have been far too many times where the person I sword ends up killing me too, somehow. How many people get more than 5 kills with a sword anyway? Sure you never miss, but the sitaution you put yourself in doesn't help your spree. It can often lead to killing one or two peeps but then getting stuck in the open going for the third while you get picked off.

People will absolutely tear up with it though but that same thing can be applied to Rockets and Snipers too. Over said it only has 4 things of ammo but that doesn't translate to 4 kills. You can't get a 2-for-1 with a sword which is definitely something that needs saying.

It's 10 guaranteed kills. You can't "miss" with the sword in the sense that ammo is decreased and no one is effected. Plus you can swordsassinate and not have it decrease ammo.

You have 0 guaranteed kills in that rocket, but depending on how many players are in the game and how much ammunition is initially in it you have the potential for more. Lets say the rocket starts with 4 shots and there are 4 players per team. The rocket has 0 guaranteed kills, but potential for 16. Sword has a guaranteed 10, but potential for the score limit.

It's about being smart with weapons, not derping around with them in the open.

 

[Woorloog]

Somehow i find Overshielded Sword guy more frightening than Speed Boosted one.
The latter i can still kill before he gets to me, depending on my gear... the former i cannot most likely.

 

[ArchedThunder]

BS Angel Waypoint post:


On this page
https://forums.halo.xbox.com/yaf_postst114410p3_The-Halo-Bulletin--9-19-12.aspx

Don't think that needs any more confirmation.

Seriously how dumb are they? Why would you NOT include those helmets in the LE season pass? There is still time to change that but obviously they don't want to.

 

[Zeouterlimits]

BS Angel Waypoint post:
On this page
https://forums.halo.xbox.com/yaf_postst114410p3_The-Halo-Bulletin--9-19-12.aspx

Don't think that needs any more confirmation.

Putting aside the Special Edition console for a moment, this strikes me as particularly crazy.
Why the season passes are different in any way is also odd.

 

[Hypertrooper]

Tomorrow ends the press embargo for Halo 4!

 

[ncsuDuncan]

I wish we could just go back to Halo 2 and Halo 3 where the sword guy ran slower than everyone else, couldn't pick up overshield, and only had ammo for four kills.

 

[Gui_PT]

Tomorrow ends the press embargo for Halo 4!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4rJAw-fuYHk

 

[CyReN]

Tomorrow ends the press embargo for Halo 4!

TON of online coverage worldwide tomorrow will be a under statement tomorrow.