That is all it is. Now if the campaign ends up being grossly too short for me, then I will call that out for sure. But so far so good.
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"Halo 5's Ads Lied to You" - Mitch Dyer, IGN
- Thread starter Kralamoonard
- Start date
That is all it is. Now if the campaign ends up being grossly too short for me, then I will call that out for sure. But so far so good.
SunBroDave
Member
Played it, beat it. The story wasn't what they were promising, hence the warnings from both IGN and myself to anyone who is buying it because they want to see the story that the trailers were promising.
Latvian Hitman
Member
Then I'll give you credit for being here from first-hand experience. If such a thing were the norm, I wouldn't have had to ask in the first place.
CamHostage
Member
Right, it'd be one thing if the ads were clearly ONI propaganda spoofs (as some are saying was the point of the marketing campaign,) with branding and signifying elements that shows them to possibly not be trusted or to be analyzed closer. But the ads are very straight-forward cinema, in the voices of the characters even.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rd8FWUCCZk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHQiYPiNVEE
Yes, it's curious that the "real" footage we're seeing directly contradict each other in the two variant trailers, but this is a video game ad, and video games can have multiple story paths or outcomes or just perspectives on events. (Halo doesn't really do that typically, but you don't know exactly what you're going to get or not get until you pay up and play the game. Or the two Spartans lying defeated in a spot could have been bookended events in the story. And even if neither were meant to be events from the gamei, the ad is still promising a showdown and a storyline of antagonism that apparently is not the real storyline.) Supposedly if you follow the hashtag and dig deep into the viral marketing website or blog or video series or whatever else is out there, you get some indicator of a larger ruse/conspiracy, but that's a lot to expect from somebody who is thinking of buying your product after a couple of cool commercials we all saw sitting on our asses watching TV.
Plus, even if misdirection is part of the lead-up, the product has to pay it off. I haven't watched any of the campaign streams, but early campaign level livestreams have been out there (as is the game now) and I haven't seen many "whoa, you got me Halo marketers!" posts or responses in threads. If the misdirection actually locked you in the experience and conspiracy even deeper because you invested in a story twist months before playing the game itself, that'd be something extraordinary, but none of the reviewers are giving it that kind of accolade; has that been anybody's experience with the game?
Alright then. I will not comment further on this until I complete the campaign for myself.
SunBroDave
Member
That's big of you guys. Can't tell you how many conversations go nowhere here due to blatant fanboyism. I just want everyone to be able to make an educated purchasing decision.
I'm shocked that they called you out saying that you didn't beat it so you can't say what it is, yet they themselves haven't beat it :O
Well, I generally like to give the benefit of the doubt and call a spade a spade. It just appears to be marketing and a non-issue for me so far and I jumped on it too early. But I naturally cannot say for certain until I finish the story.
On a side note, I can say that so far from a gameplay perspective, that playing Halo has never been better for me. But again, I'll wait and see on the story and if this 'lie' holds any water for me.
SunBroDave
Member
Absolutely, the gameplay totally holds up to the hype. That was never being called into question.
Latvian Hitman
Member
Not sure who "they" are, but I asked him a direct question and never really sounded off on the issue at hand at all specifically because I haven't played through it yet. 'Bout the only thing I did was comment on the whole concept of "calling out" a video game, of all things.
Kor of Memory
Member
Who didn't call out Destiny at launch?
JayhawkerStL
Banned
Well put. Watching the video of Mitch and Ryan whine about the marketing was kind of painful to watch. I have no problem with Mitch's disappointment that the story was not what he envisioned. I've been there in regards to books, films, and games. Sometimes that disconnect results in something even better, some times not. But it is not a problem, it is a normal part of the tension between marketing and development. Look at the marketing for Crimson Peak, which seems to have sold a different movie than what we got.
But if you've spent any amount of time consuming pop culture media, you had to know that the marketing was setting up a bait and switch, similar to the what you get in scenes of next week's episodes of popular TV. I mean, it's basically tope of marketing, and I think Ryan and Mitch do a real disservice to their audience by failing to understand that and creating some false premise for gamer rage. I guess it was a successful click bait article. Maybe I should do a story on how let down I am by the lack of substance in Mitch's revelation.
But it was well played by IGN.
NullPointer
Member
I've played a little over three hours so far, and got to mission seven and so far have zero issues with the marketing here.
Unless it all falls apart I don't get the fuss.
Unless it all falls apart I don't get the fuss.
Many. Generalizing like this creates an illusion of a decades-long series of intentional malicious deception that by and large doesn't exist.
OT: There's a subtle difference between what Kojima did with the MGS series and this; hiding things for story purposes is fine at times; misrepresenting the tone and nature of the plot content, if not maliciously but rather accidentally, sucks, but isn't really something to get all angry about. Seems like the latter was the case here, rather than trying to keep details under wraps, it was just done in an unhelpful way.
Bummer to hear about it, I was pretty enticed by the ominous marketing.
The marketing's sayings did not indicate the "true story" ironically. Their visual showcase did, however.
When I saw the "Hunt the Truth campaign" my initial impressions were:
1) "Oh, we're gonna spend a lot of the game playing as this Locke guy"
2) "So is the story just about Locke's revenge against MC?"
3) "Let's bet, MC's goal is not even part of the main plot"
and of course after early gameplay footage my impressions were:
4) "This is gonna be just like Halo 4 in terms of how un-Halo-y it feels"
and
5) "They're CoD-ifying this even further with 60fps appeal and lots of scripted FPS-cutscenes and set-pieces"
And it sounds like I was mostly right. I haven't played it. The only real upside is how the music has got a more halo feel going and the covenant speaks goofy english again which is great. Unfortuantely stuff like skull-faced sword-Promethian-that-came-out-of-Destiny character and Bioware-esque "Drinks are on me! -- throw it out the airlock" banter maybe makes this worse than Halo 4's writing which was pretty self-indulgent and dorky when it tried to be funny.
I just imagined saying that last paragraph in a Jesse Eisenberg voice.
When I saw the "Hunt the Truth campaign" my initial impressions were:
1) "Oh, we're gonna spend a lot of the game playing as this Locke guy"
2) "So is the story just about Locke's revenge against MC?"
3) "Let's bet, MC's goal is not even part of the main plot"
and of course after early gameplay footage my impressions were:
4) "This is gonna be just like Halo 4 in terms of how un-Halo-y it feels"
and
5) "They're CoD-ifying this even further with 60fps appeal and lots of scripted FPS-cutscenes and set-pieces"
And it sounds like I was mostly right. I haven't played it. The only real upside is how the music has got a more halo feel going and the covenant speaks goofy english again which is great. Unfortuantely stuff like skull-faced sword-Promethian-that-came-out-of-Destiny character and Bioware-esque "Drinks are on me! -- throw it out the airlock" banter maybe makes this worse than Halo 4's writing which was pretty self-indulgent and dorky when it tried to be funny.
I just imagined saying that last paragraph in a Jesse Eisenberg voice.
BigTnaples
Todd Howard's Secret GAF Account
Having finished the game, I love what they did with the ads.
The whole thing was supposed to play on the "It is not what it seems" theme. We were not supposed to trust what we were seeing and hearing. That was literally the point.
Not to mention, as Frankie pointed out, the general idea behind the marketing campaign IS in the game.
Also as a side note on the length, the game FELT much longer than Halo 4 did for me. (Having recently replayed it in the MCC).
I totaled 9 hours and 15 minutes on heroic, and I uncharacteristically rushed through certain sections to get to the ending quicker.
There was a point in the game where I thought, "If it ends right now that would be too soon". Then it continued on and all was well.
Really hope there is a Legendary ending though.
The whole thing was supposed to play on the "It is not what it seems" theme. We were not supposed to trust what we were seeing and hearing. That was literally the point.
Not to mention, as Frankie pointed out, the general idea behind the marketing campaign IS in the game.
Also as a side note on the length, the game FELT much longer than Halo 4 did for me. (Having recently replayed it in the MCC).
I totaled 9 hours and 15 minutes on heroic, and I uncharacteristically rushed through certain sections to get to the ending quicker.
There was a point in the game where I thought, "If it ends right now that would be too soon". Then it continued on and all was well.
Really hope there is a Legendary ending though.
That is really, really misleading.
The Hunt the Truth campaign gave us two sides of the same story and was entirely built around making the audience question the loyality of the chief while at the same time building up Locke as his righteous hunter. It built their rivalry up, making us choose sides, giving us different outlooks on the same events, making us wonder which is true.
Turns out: None of them are true. The twist isn't that the events of the game played out differently than in the trailers, the twist is that they didn't happen at all. The twist isn't that Locke's relationship to the chief is different to what it was made out to be in the trailer, the twist is that there is no relationship. The twist isn't that the Hunt for the Truth leads us to a surprising revelation, the twist is that there is neither a revelation nor a Hunt for Truth.
It would have been great if the game actually played with these expectations and turned them on their head or used these themes to tell it's story. But it doesn't. It simply ignores them.
TLDR: You gave us a mystery full of misdirections to be excited about and then revealed that the mystery itself was the misdirection because there actually was no mystery at all.
And that is a big problem because that was the central messaging of the marketing campaign. Halo 3s Believe trailer campaign didn't actually fit into the game's story and that was kind of disappointing, but thanks to all the other marketing material, press releases, gameplay trailers, story synopsis, we still knew what the game was actually about. However, with Halo 5, everything you talked about regarding the campaign and story revolved aroudn that one central theme.
NullPointer
Member
Up to mission seven (as far as I've gotten) this is exactly how the campaign plays out.
It's not. Mission 2 tells us exactly what the chief is doing and why he is doing it. Locke follows him but not because he has to protect humanity or because he has a personal rivalry with him, but because his superiors told him to. Also, you should really first play through the game's story
NullPointer
Member
You know why the Chief is doing it, sortof, but it doesn't really make all that much sense does it? There's enough wiggle to make people question The Chief here, though its minimalist work being done in the campaign as far as story and motivations go, that's for damn sure.
The Chief has what could be a hallucination, and even Blue Team isn't sure what he's on about or what his plans are but follow him out of loyalty.
I never thought of Locke's deal being a personal rivalry as opposed to being ordered to deal with The Chief after going AWOL, but I didn't look into the HuntTheTruth stuff. I only know the marketing besides that and don't see a real disconnect. Locke does have a background with the Chief though, that much is established.
As Locke says to Buck: "You aren't the only one here because of him"
That's my plan - if only this job thing didn't keep getting in the way!It's not. Mission 2 tells us exactly what the chief is doing and why he is doing it. Locke follows him but not because he has to protect humanity or because he has a personal rivalry with him, but because his superiors told him to. Also, you should really first play through the game's story
But yeah, will bounce for now to avoid spoilers.JigglesBunny
Banned
The marketing and 343i's statements told us to expect The Last of Us, what we got was The Avengers, at best.
The plot was paper-thin action movie fodder, but it's gameplay and action was a blast.
It's more than fair to say we were misdirected when we were told what to expect.
The plot was paper-thin action movie fodder, but it's gameplay and action was a blast.
It's more than fair to say we were misdirected when we were told what to expect.
elitewillie1
Banned
This guy gets it. Thank God. I was losing my faith in humanity. Mitch needs to stop whining. IGN man, I hate all the people there.
Kor of Memory
Member
Halo 3 ended feeling like the fight was finished. You had Arby at a memorial for chief (and others) with Adm. Hood. You felt closure, and as far as you knew, the covenant were done without any leaders.
Halo 3 had a lot of closure to it.
There is a reason the next 2 games in the series took place before Halo 3.
SaganIsGOAT
Junior Member
Yeah, I 100% agree after finishing the game. I bought the game and bought into the Halo 5 hype because of Hunt the Truth and the ad campaigns. That was the story I was excited for. What we got, not even close... I feel so let down by this it's kind of unbelievable.
So what did the ads have you believe?
Twin Tails
Member
No space poncho, lied right to our face.
gollumsluvslave
Member
Finished it last night and I don't feel lied to.
I feel like the marketing and narrative execution could have been quite a bit better, but then the game where I don't feel way that is exceedingly rare - as in it doesn't exist.
I think GnawtyDog summed it up best:-
Can't see where the fuss is.
I feel like the marketing and narrative execution could have been quite a bit better, but then the game where I don't feel way that is exceedingly rare - as in it doesn't exist.
I think GnawtyDog summed it up best:-
Can't see where the fuss is.
Black Mantis
Member
Exactly. The MC vs Locke thing, ONI's plans etc, they all fall down to their correct places as minor plot points, when weighed against Cortana's actions. I saw the ads, listened to both HTT stories, and whilst I enjoyed all of the going ons, the prospect of finding out what the Guardians were and who was behind it, was easily the biggest draw for me.
The fuss is driven by the supposed big battle/revenge between Locke and Chief.
Where was this?
1 fight scene does not cut it in my opinion. After that scene, it felt like Locke had to save the chief. So much wasted potential.
The halo 5 campaign is not bad, but you can not feel other than let down after you have seen the marketing. Thats my 2 cents.
Silent Chief
Member
What is he doing then?
How so? Regarding AI? If so it's just like in the trailer. Depends entirely on what you do as a player.
Newtype-001
Member
Hunting for Senpai.
barneystuta83
Member
Just finished it all.
Will give Podcast Unlocked a listen now, they had a huge chunk on Halo spoilers basically talking about this.
So, yeah. I listened to the Hunt The Truth series. I saw the ads. And I am not sure what they had to do with the story at all. Like, barely even a tid bit of information. That isn't to say the Halo 5 story is 'bad', just nothing like I was expecting.
I can get why 343 would not make it a requirement to follow all the lore/marketing, but, if people invest time in it, some nods would have been nice.
Will give Podcast Unlocked a listen now, they had a huge chunk on Halo spoilers basically talking about this.
So, yeah. I listened to the Hunt The Truth series. I saw the ads. And I am not sure what they had to do with the story at all. Like, barely even a tid bit of information. That isn't to say the Halo 5 story is 'bad', just nothing like I was expecting.
I can get why 343 would not make it a requirement to follow all the lore/marketing, but, if people invest time in it, some nods would have been nice.
meanspartan
Member
Oh come on. Yes those listed things were there I guess, in the span of like 20 minutes ending in one anticlimactic confrontation.
NOTHING like what the marketing would have you believe.
SuperSonic1305
Member
#huntthetruth meant "play the game and find out what we lied about" so they were being up front about it all along.
JoeDanny
Member
This is one of the most retarded things I've ever read in my life
SlipperyFishes
Banned
Do you mind not throwing around that term like it's a valuable phrase in critique?
The Artisan
Member
meanspartan
Member
Language is democratic. I dont personally use "retard" often, but its clear its a synonym for "stupid" these days and not usually said with malice towards people with disabilities.
Anyway, Halo 5's plot is dogshit. Do people REALLY care about forerunner shit? I liked them fine as a mysterious ancient race. I dont like how the story is now about them almost entirely.
SunBroDave
Member
If you can't tell the difference between what was promised and what we actually got then... I don't know what to say. Ignorance is bliss I suppose.
So your complain is that you couldn't predict the outcome of Halo 5's story based on the marketing?
meanspartan
Member
Nah. Just that I was going in expecting a much more personal story and instead got a lifeless cliffhanger with yet another forerunner based story. Id rather have played as arbiter fighting his civil war. Woulda been far more interesting.
I guess my complaint is I liked the idea of the story I thought I was getting, but instead they gave me a different story that was laughably bad.
Also woulda been nice if they explained how Chief reunited with blue team, but you know, guess I shoulda read a comic or listened to a podcast or something.
Still one of my favs this year. Multi is the best since Halo 3.
DrunkShogun
Member
He might have a point but I hate Mitch from ign. Ign Xbox team are so mind numbingly dumb that it hurts to listen to them.
So your issue is with the expectations that you created, not with the marketing.
The campaign is okay and can be fun but I feel it's nothing what I expected after listening to two seasons of hunt the truth. HtT season 1 has no relevance at all. HtT season 2 which I found to be the weaker season did have more of a relevance due to the inclusion of the anomalies.
It was mentioned numerous times about the chief going rogue and then in season 2 actually being dead, but this isn't touched upon at all in the game.
The ads also really focus on how the chief is a traitor but all he does is just not return to infinity and goes after
, nothing nearly as dramatic as to what we were led to believe from the ads.
I feel that a lot of the cutscenes took a lot away from the action and that the player should actually be able to do what was shown in the cutscene.
It was mentioned numerous times about the chief going rogue and then in season 2 actually being dead, but this isn't touched upon at all in the game.
The ads also really focus on how the chief is a traitor but all he does is just not return to infinity and goes after
cortana
I feel that a lot of the cutscenes took a lot away from the action and that the player should actually be able to do what was shown in the cutscene.
can you point me to one gaming reviewer/journalist/personality that isn't dumb? I'd really like to get to know one. Most of the ones i could give a crap about or cared to listen to have moved on to something else