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Halo |OT14| They call it Halo

F

FyreWulff

Member
StalkerUKCG said:
Can the UI Not get patched post launched?
what happened to that "we want to do more with Title Updates" stuff that was touted per launch?
Click to expand...

They can technically patch anything they want to, especially since they don't have to worry about cross-version compatibility.

But this is the same multibajillions dollar corporation that put the smallest amount of people on the Reach TU after the game made them money hand over fist. They openly stated numerous times that the TU work rested on the shoulders of Greg Herman. And it shows; they didn't fix any actual bugs in the game itself. Their priorities with the Reach TU were "Sell more copies of Halo Anniversary", "Sell more DLC" and "Sell more Windows Phones". And blatantly use Reach as their testbed for Halo 4 ideas - just about every single change they did to Reach reappeared in Halo 4 in just about the same form.

I mean hell, you make it so you can add new weapon modifier hooks to the scripting engine.. then decide these hooks can only change the RoF of one gun and the bloom of 3 different guns at the same time?

I get tired of "we don't have enough manpower/bandwidth/time" when your parent company has the money to have enough manpower and bandwidth. I mean fuck, they bought Rare for 375 million dollars and just sit on all the IPs they got for that money. Don't know why they're so stingy when it comes to Halo.
 
S

Speedy Blue Dude

Banned
There is no way Halo 4 is the best selling game in the Halo Franchise when it sold less opening month in America and the UK. Doesn't Halo 3 have like 15 million copies sold? No way Halo 4 is already above and beyond that.
 
T

TheOddOne

Member
xxjuicesxx said:
I love Blizzard. The shit they pull off.
Click to expand...
Blizzard: "Hey, what if we turn our game into a service and actually add stuff that compliments the competitive aspect, maybe it will do something for us!"

Gamers: "I love you Blizzard, have my babies."

Activision: "We getting that paper, son."
 
B

BigShow36

Member
StalkerUKCG said:
Because its ridiculous. Why have skill ranks if we can only view them in an external app.
Click to expand...

Exactly. Why not just go to HaloTracker right now and look up stats? You lose something when you force players to engage an entirely different medium to view the stats and ranking. For someone like me, who would like to have rankings but doesn't care enough sit there with an open computer monitor next to me to research other players while I play games, it's worthless.
 
B

Blinding

Member
xxjuicesxx said:
Lets go Buffalo.
Click to expand...

Seeing how horrible the Canes defense is, I'm okay with this.

I'm not buying the boosting reasoning at all, I think the original plan was to not include a ranking system at all so they didn't put support for one in-game. And with how horrible Waypoint's UI is CSR isn't enticing enough for me to come back.
 
H

heckfu

Banned
I have the pharmacy to myself for 30-45 minutes and put on a Marty-themed Pandora channel (hospital doesn't allow the superior Spotify) and it's realllllly really good.
 
L

Latvian Hitman

Member
TheOddOne said:
jj3iotQb3wETW.png


whywhywhywhy.gif
Click to expand...

Yeah. Best-selling and soon to be least populated. I hope they don't have designs on selling much DLC after the first three map packs are done. They managed to rook a bunch of us into buying that up front before the game released. The party's pretty much over after May hits.
 
S

Slightly Live

Dirty tag dodger
TheOddOne said:
jj3iotQb3wETW.png


whywhywhywhy.gif
Click to expand...

I'm a 100% sure Halo is going to be the most front loaded Halo title in the franchise history.

It might have outsold every other Halo title in day 1/month 1 sales, but will it still be in the top 5 in the Live activity charts for it's 1 year anniversary? How about second? Third?

Halo 3's DLC was so popular that a Microsoft executive was quoted saying that even after a year of being on sale, one of the DLC packs continued to sell thousands of copies per day. Will Halo 4's DLC be selling thousands per day after a month? Two months?

What's really funny, is that, despite the majority of folks here easily having multiple explanations about why Halo 4 has disappointed them, and, despite the game not seemingly having the legs of Reach, never mind Halo 3, the initial sales explosion is enough to make the Microsoft suits think 343 did a perfect job. Unlocks, perks, killstreaks and all this crap is here to stay.

This time next year, no one is going to be playing Halo 4. And the funny thing is, Microsoft have already planned it out. Their DLC strategy doesn't even stretch beyond the initial first year. Just like COD.
 
T

The Henery

Member
FyreWulff said:
They can technically patch anything they want to, especially since they don't have to worry about cross-version compatibility.

But this is the same multibajillions dollar corporation that put the smallest amount of people on the Reach TU after the game made them money hand over fist. They openly stated numerous times that the TU work rested on the shoulders of Greg Herman. And it shows; they didn't fix any actual bugs in the game itself. Their priorities with the Reach TU were "Sell more copies of Halo Anniversary", "Sell more DLC" and "Sell more Windows Phones". And blatantly use Reach as their testbed for Halo 4 ideas - just about every single change they did to Reach reappeared in Halo 4 in just about the same form.

I mean hell, you make it so you can add new weapon modifier hooks to the scripting engine.. then decide these hooks can only change the RoF of one gun and the bloom of 3 different guns at the same time?

I get tired of "we don't have enough manpower/bandwidth/time" when your parent company has the money to have enough manpower and bandwidth. I mean fuck, they bought Rare for 375 million dollars and just sit on all the IPs they got for that money. Don't know why they're so stingy when it comes to Halo.
Click to expand...

Something in last nights bulletin

The 343 War Games team has been hard at work on new playlist content, DLC maps, and other such goodies. We are incredibly excited for our upcoming DLC announcement, but until then we have some other updates to share with you.
Click to expand...

What do they mean by this? Because the DLC is already announced. Maybe I'm reading too much into it but I wouldn't be surprised if the upcoming TU had elements to it (other than just achievements) that are paywalled behind the February DLC pack. Like the Anniversary Pistol and the Extraction gametype, I envisage 'And now, after carefully collated feedback from the community, 343 is excited to announce the arrival of the new Halo 4 Classic gametype (brought to you by KFC). Red X's, a respawn timer, fixed weapon spawns and no sprint. Play it in MM with your friends, only in the Majestic Playlist. See you on the battlefield!'
 
F

FyreWulff

Member
It's the reason Season Passes have gotten so popular. You sell all your DLC up front, and you still get the money even if they decide to trade in the game later, rather than hoping they're still playing months down the road.
 
A

Alchemical

Neo Member
The Henery said:
[...] Maybe I'm reading too much into it but I wouldn't be surprised if the upcoming TU had elements to it (other than just achievements) that are paywalled behind the February DLC pack. [...]'
Click to expand...

Holy shit this would suck. You may well be right though. Based on my impressions of the way they marketed the DLC etc. with this game, I would not be surprised. The very notion that something like this is not outside the realms of possibility is a sad one indeed. :(
 
F

FyreWulff

Member
Alchemical said:
Holy shit this would suck. You may well be right though. Based on my impressions of the way they marketed the DLC etc. with this game, I would not be surprised. The very notion that something like this is not outside the realms of possibility is a sad one indeed. :(
Click to expand...

Wars: Paywalled gametypes that were patched into the core game. The DLC just acts as a software key that unlocks them.
Reach: Halo 1 gametype requires owning Anniversary DLC and only appears on Anniversary maps in matchmaking even though the functionality exists in Reach globally and works on every map.
4: Extraction behind Crimson Map Pack Paywall even though it's a gametype on the disc

Microsoft(tm)
 
G

Gordon

Member
FyreWulff said:
Wars: Paywalled gametypes that were patched into the core game. The DLC just acts as a software key that unlocks them.
Reach: Halo 1 gametype requires owning Anniversary DLC and only appears on Anniversary maps in matchmaking even though the functionality exists in Reach globally and works on every map.
4: Extraction behind Crimson Map Pack Paywall even though it's a gametype on the disc

Microsoft(tm)
Click to expand...

safet.gif
 
B

Blueblur1

Member
FyreWulff said:
Wars: Paywalled gametypes that were patched into the core game. The DLC just acts as a software key that unlocks them.
Reach: Halo 1 gametype requires owning Anniversary DLC and only appears on Anniversary maps in matchmaking even though the functionality exists in Reach globally and works on every map.
4: Extraction behind Crimson Map Pack Paywall even though it's a gametype on the disc

Microsoft(tm)
Click to expand...
Microsoft is definitely at fault. I don't doubt that they have a muzzle on 343. I'm sure it was the same with Bungie but Bungie was as forthcoming as they wanted to be (except where it probably would be have been disgustingly inappropriate and would have resulted in huge problems). I doubt Microsoft wanted Bungie to publicize the whole Halo 3 map pack playlist mess but Bungie put that info out there anyway. Being a direct subsidiary, I doubt 343 can even dream of saying everything that's on their mind.

Because of that I have no hope for Halo after Halo 5. I'll move onto Destiny like Ghaleon and many others will.
 
D

darthbob

Member
Blueblur1 said:
Microsoft is definitely at fault. I don't doubt that they have a muzzle on 343. I'm sure it was the same with Bungie but Bungie was as forthcoming as they wanted to be (except where it probably would be have been disgustingly inappropriate and would have resulted in huge problems). I doubt Microsoft wanted Bungie to publicize the whole Halo 3 map pack playlist mess but Bungie put that info out there anyway. Being a direct subsidiary, I doubt 343 can even dream of saying everything that's on their mind.

Because of that I have no hope for Halo after Halo 5. I'll move onto Destiny like Ghaleon and many others will.
Click to expand...

Well, bye.
 
E

enzo_gt

tagged by Blackace
FyreWulff said:
Wars: Paywalled gametypes that were patched into the core game. The DLC just acts as a software key that unlocks them.
Reach: Halo 1 gametype requires owning Anniversary DLC and only appears on Anniversary maps in matchmaking even though the functionality exists in Reach globally and works on every map.
4: Extraction behind Crimson Map Pack Paywall even though it's a gametype on the disc

Microsoft(tm)
Click to expand...
What's the issue here? That's like saying because a game is capable of having DLC, all DLC should be free for it because the functionality is there. You paid for a specific gametype created for the Anniversary package that did not exist previously. Work was put in, as small or as large, and that work was sold in a package. I don't understand why you are entitled to it.
 
G

Ghazi

Member
Halo 4 went gold nearly a month before release date, imagine what they could've done with that time with or without a beta.
 
F

FyreWulff

Member
enzo_gt said:
What's the issue here? That's like saying because a game is capable of having DLC, all DLC should be free for it because the functionality is there. You paid for a specific gametype created for the Anniversary package that did not exist previously. Work was put in, as small or as large, and that work was sold in a package. I don't understand why you are entitled to it.
Click to expand...

The fact that I can save the gametype and use it in customs? And the functionality existed in Reach for almost two months before Anniversary came out, but it was held back for who knows what reason?

The fact that we have the Halo 1 gametype and Blood Gulch in the same goddamn Halo game but you can't play Halo 1 Slayer on Blood Gulch because of a pointless paywall? They could have easily added Anniversary Slayer or Anniversary CTF on Blood Gulch as a voting option in regular BTB.
 
H

Havok

Member
Not really sure how a multiplayer game ships in 2012 without idler detection. If a guy isn't moving at the start of a game and still isn't moving two minutes later (much less eight full minutes later, like my experience just now), fucking boot him and find someone else. Unacceptable.

I guess that would require a JIP system that actually found people to fill in spots - we had a spot open for a full ten minutes (at which point the game ended, spot still unfilled) after I had to boot a betraying asshole.

Matches like these make me really bitter.

--

Interested to see where CSR is implemented in terms of playlists. If it's global and you're being ranked in the clusterfuck guest-filled matches that I seem to magically gravitate towards, then it's a totally worthless metric and might as well just be called BPR.
 
F

Fracas

#fuckonami
Havok said:
Not really sure how a multiplayer game ships in 2012 without idler detection. If a guy isn't moving at the start of a game and still isn't moving two minutes later (much less eight full minutes later, like my experience just now), fucking boot him and find someone else. Unacceptable.

I guess that would require a JIP system that actually found people to fill in spots - we had a spot open for a full ten minutes after I had to boot a betraying asshole.

Matches like these make me really bitter.
Click to expand...

Been having issues with idlers the last few days as well.

As for the bolded, no idea if it's a common ocurrence, but if a player leaves a match I'm in, the spot is likely to never be filled. Had several games start and end with uneven teams, without anyone joining.
 
J

J10

Banned
TheOhrenberger said:
Well it's better than nothing. I know that's not a good excuse for why they weren't in Halo 4 to start with, but I'd rather have them implemented through waypoint only than not have them at all.
Click to expand...

It's probably worth noting that players had been asking about the ranks situation for months leading up to release, and they were pokerfaced about it until the game was already going out the door before openly admitting that it hadn't been a development priority. It now appears as an afterthought, especially in the wake of a competing shooter offering features that fans on Halo forums had been clamoring for.

I think the stance that "it's better than nothing" is kind of what makes the Halo community feel like a gaming ghetto at the moment. Previous games had met players' expectations a lot better.
 
T

The Librarian

Banned
From the Polygon article:
When Chris Butcher says that, of all the things that get Jones' goat, his rarest, most acute annoyance is reserved for the accolades heaped on Marty O'Donnell, easily the most singularly identifiable member of the team, this is when it clicks into place: Jones is a communist. Not, perhaps, in the McCarthy sense, but Jason Jones is a man who believes in team above all else, and that spirit has infused everything he's touched.
Click to expand...
I'm only posting this here because I'm completely lost as to what the author is trying to say. Is the word "communist" here a metaphor? Or is he being literal?
 
J

J10

Banned
Havok said:
Not really sure how a multiplayer game ships in 2012 without idler detection. If a guy isn't moving at the start of a game and still isn't moving two minutes later (much less eight full minutes later, like my experience just now), fucking boot him and find someone else. Unacceptable.

I guess that would require a JIP system that actually found people to fill in spots - we had a spot open for a full ten minutes (at which point the game ended, spot still unfilled) after I had to boot a betraying asshole.

Matches like these make me really bitter.

--

Interested to see where CSR is implemented in terms of playlists. If it's global and you're being ranked in the clusterfuck guest-filled matches that I seem to magically gravitate towards, then it's a totally worthless metric and might as well just be called BPR.
Click to expand...

The JiP situation is likely only going to get worse as populations continue to decline. I feel bad for people still playing this game holding out hope that it'll get better. I hope InfinityCTF and Grifball are awesome.
 
P

Plywood

NeoGAF's smiling token!
TheOhrenberger said:
Well it's better than nothing. I know that's not a good excuse for why they weren't in Halo 4 to start with, but I'd rather have them implemented through waypoint only than not have them at all.
Click to expand...
Don't you think it's an incredibly lousy and large waste of the apparently ever-limited time and resources that this franchise has, to work on implementing a system which will only be viewed by an incredibly small percentage of its already dwindling player base?
 
J

J10

Banned
Dax01 said:
From the Polygon article:

What is he trying to say? Is the word "communist" here a metaphor? Or is he being literal?
Click to expand...

He's noting that Jones holds the team's collective achievements in higher regard than the achievements of any single individual on the staff.
 
H

Havok

Member
monsterfracas said:
Been having issues with idlers the last few days as well.

As for the bolded, no idea if it's a common ocurrence, but if a player leaves a match I'm in, the spot is likely to never be filled. Had several games start and end with uneven teams, without anyone joining.
Click to expand...
I had at least one idler two games in a row, which was enough to get me to stop for the night. I think I have more DNFs in Halo 4 than every other Halo game combined, after just a couple of months. Part of it is joining games in progress where the enemy team is just steamrolling/spawn killing my clueless teammates, part of it is sheer frustration, part of it is just apathy.

I think the number of times that an open spot in one of my matches has been filled within five minutes could be counted on two hands. It just doesn't work for me, though I know that's not representative since folks like NullPointer say it does for them. Occasionally we'll be down by two or three, they'll be down by one, and they'll get the teammate.

When I have a reasonably full party (3+), I can have fun and brute force the idiocy away, but alone or with just one other, it's impossible to play for any sort of long stretch. Just sick of being matched up against 2.0 K/D SR-130's (which is a hair higher than me, but in the ballpark of my stat level at this point), then looking at my teammates and seeing a bunch of 0.7 SR45's with a guest attached.
 
B

BlueScrote

Member
Dax01 said:
From the Polygon article:

I'm only posting this here because I'm completely lost as to what the author is trying to say. Is the word "communist" here a metaphor? Or is he being literal?
Click to expand...

He means that the fruits of the Country (accolades for Bungie's games) belong to the whole team, not a single individual on the team.

The tone of the article seems to indicate that Marty is withdrawn from the rest of team whereas everyone else (sans one loud guy) is out in the same area.
 
L

Latvian Hitman

Member
Plywood said:
Don't you think it's an incredibly lousy and large waste of the apparently ever-limited time and resources that this franchise has, to work on implementing a system which will only be viewed by an incredibly small percentage of its already dwindling player base?
Click to expand...

Not to mention the fact that we should be fully expecting CSR to be broken at launch in some way or another. You know- just to make it that much more worthless.
 
FUNKNOWN iXi

FUNKNOWN iXi

Member
Slightly Live said:
I'm a 100% sure Halo is going to be the most front loaded Halo title in the franchise history.

It might have outsold every other Halo title in day 1/month 1 sales, but will it still be in the top 5 in the Live activity charts for it's 1 year anniversary? How about second? Third?

Halo 3's DLC was so popular that a Microsoft executive was quoted saying that even after a year of being on sale, one of the DLC packs continued to sell thousands of copies per day. Will Halo 4's DLC be selling thousands per day after a month? Two months?

What's really funny, is that, despite the majority of folks here easily having multiple explanations about why Halo 4 has disappointed them, and, despite the game not seemingly having the legs of Reach, never mind Halo 3, the initial sales explosion is enough to make the Microsoft suits think 343 did a perfect job. Unlocks, perks, killstreaks and all this crap is here to stay.

This time next year, no one is going to be playing Halo 4. And the funny thing is, Microsoft have already planned it out. Their DLC strategy doesn't even stretch beyond the initial first year. Just like COD.
Click to expand...

They think because of the numbers that they're doing something right when in reality people are buying the name. Honestly, what's $60 to a Halo fan or even someone remotely interested in Halo? The person who doesn't care for Halo will justify that $60 with the other features in the game when compared to other games on the market, so it's a cycle of shit. It feels like most of this franchise is run on cold hard statistics instead of the X factor and what Halo REALLY means to the players.........


Fucking shit man, seriously just give me Halo 1 with new maps and the features of the later Halo games and you've got the most console-competitive shooter that's very friendly for casual players.

RIP H1 Hog Wars.

monsterfracas said:
As for the bolded, no idea if it's a common ocurrence, but if a player leaves a match I'm in, the spot is likely to never be filled. Had several games start and end with uneven teams, without anyone joining.
Click to expand...

It seems like in good games those spots never fill up but in games with the worst players around I'll have several guests join my team lol

Seriously, I can't stress enough how much I don't care about winning in this game. Halo 3 wasn't even a competitively viable game in my eyes but at least that shit got HECTIC!
 
T

The Librarian

Banned
BlueScrote said:
He means that the fruits of the Country (accolades for Bungie's games) belong to the whole team, not a single individual on the team.

The tone of the article seems to indicate that Marty is withdrawn from the rest of team whereas everyone else (sans one loud guy) is out in the same area.
Click to expand...

Oh okay, thanks. It's a shame JJ is so shy. I'd really love to see an interview that picks his brain apart, or really just to get to know more about the guy.
 
FUNKNOWN iXi

FUNKNOWN iXi

Member
MerkinMax said:
Man, landing the perfect head on collision, flying 100ft in the air flipping end over end and landing it was so fun. Or getting flipped and making the mad dash to flip the hog over and get back in before being splattered. Good times.
Click to expand...

Yuuup, I loved playing Hog Wars on BG, everyone Camo with Plasma Pistols but you can only splatter and melee. The Hogs don't respawn so then if you died (you only get 2 lives) you'd have to sneak your way back to an enemy guarding your empty Hog B]

Right before a head on collision though if you pressed down on the joystick it dips your nose slightly, so going into a collision like that can make you go under the other Hog and send them flying hahah.. Hog Wars metagame.

strx said:
Halo 4: Better than nothing
Click to expand...

Halo: Wait for the next one™
 
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