I actually wasn't exactly disagreeing with you, just sort of contributing. In other words, I think that relegating these crazy new things to side games could make more sense.
OH MY GOSH I realized this when I was typing. That actually makes sense! Like, it could work really well!
Have a separate ODST type game (or even line of games, sort of like Modern Warfare of Black Ops. You could have Halo: Spartan Ops, or whatever, but make it into a full fledged game series instead of an episodic thing) with Spartan IVs. Since Spartan IVs are newer, they have that extra technology like armor abilities and whatever.
Since older Spartans, you could say, such as Spartan IIs do not have all those armor abilities and special things, and since Master Chief is part of the main game, you could have the multiplayer of the main Halo series be comprised of Spartan IIs-IIIs. Therefore, have the multiplayer simpler like Halo 2-3.
Idk, just an idea I just had.
I've heard some about Onyx. I'd like to see what that's about, but I don't have the time for books, really. :/ So I would totally go for a game like that.
That is pretty much what I meant. Leaving main line Halo to have classic gameplay while allowing Halo: Side Series to have things not traditionally found in classic Halo. Like the armor abilities stuff.
Ghosts of Onyx is a great book. I highly recommend it. The follow up, Glasslands, while providing closure is not really all that great at providing a worthwhile ending to GOO. You should try to read Ghosts at some point and then follow it up with a wiki entry on Glasslands. The overall story - even with a shotty ending - is a fun ride.
And dat Will death mmmmmm
For things that I didn't include I agree with or didn't have any questions about.The thing about this is that this type of game is kinda boring. It works for single missions in a larger game, because it's a different pace from the rest. The reason why "All Ghillied Up" worked was because people hadn't been exposed to gameplay like that throughout the rest of the game.
Funny you bring that one up, because I just had to play through it's follow-up(One Shot, One Kill) a few minutes ago to complete most of the MW achievements.
Anyway, I agree with you. I brought up those two missions in particular because I remember lots and lots of speculation by Halo fans that Spartan Ops would be full of those types of scenarios. The name would suggest secretive-ish missions with high stakes. Instead, we got what we normally get in the Halo campaigns with a small almost insignificant twist.
I would love to have more than one sniping segment per game. Sure, Truth and Reconciliation gave you a sniper rifle and allowed you to ambush a small group once or twice, but a full-fledged mission of that could be fun.
Especially if they also had missions bringing back other things we haven't seen in a while. Like some type of space mission again. Or perhaps bring in that Forerunner tank that was supposed to be in Halo 2. A zero-gravity mission like in Halo 2 on Cairo Station.
Basically, what I meant to point toward were small segments of past Halo games that deserve second chances. Lots of these types of scenarios - the sniping, the space ship in Reach, maybe a boss fight like Tartarus again - seemed like experimental things that haven't really happened again. I would like to bring them back for a full fledged almost "greatest hits" type of side game that would allow even more experimentation and see what segments Halo fans really like so then they could put similar segments - or improved versions - into the mainline game.
Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but the point of ODST was so the team who was working on the canned PJ project still had something to work on and put out one of their two remaining Halo titles for Microsoft. The reason it had the 3 in the name was because it was based off of the Halo 3 engine and was intended to be a single player expansion for it. Then Bungie wanted to include Halo 3's multiplayer with it, but Microsoft disagreed at the $40 price point and it got bumped up to $60. So it wasn't really cheaper. As for the feeling that ODST's story was as important as the rest of the trilogy, I don't really get it as much because of the nighttime city. If every mission was Dutch's second mission, I would probably feel that way. But Mombasa Streets acts as a nice respite to the day gameplay.
I was looking at ODST from mostly a story point of view in that post. The point of it was exploring a secretive squad of soldiers that hadn't really been explored to that point and then examining their rescue of a Huragok - which was supposed to be a pretty big deal.
But then, like I said, we find out in the books that it really wasn't a big deal at all. Strong pointed out that the UNSC got a bunch of Huragok from the Ascendant Justice (which I completely forgot. Thanks.), and then went on to get a bunch more from Onyx. Playing through the actual game was a blast, but in the story department it just felt like it lacked the punch that the mainline games have had. The books just took what remained of the accomplishment of rescuing a Huragok away. To me personally it made the objective of ODST seem lackluster, disappointing, and above all else needless. There just did not seem to be a point in retrospect.
Ghosts of Onyx came out in 2006, which was before Bungie even split from Microsoft. The followup stories to ODST is all on 343i, not Bungie.
Got the dates mixed up a bit. Good call. wtf 343.
For clarification reasons: Are you meaning gameplay or story elements with the bolded?
Gameplay wise, Spartan Ops was just Halo with more people. I think 343 could have had a great opportunity to use Spartan Ops as a little playground to experiment in but instead they went toward providing more of the same. Story wise they did well. They are giving us background on some important characters doing important things and leading into Halo 5 with how Halsey/the Librarian/Jul/Palmer/whoever are doing things. It worked.
But the gameplay left a bit to be desired. But that could entirely be on me for having expectations for more than what was offered. Or I suppose different expectations could be the right term.
Spartan Ops could do what I want a sideline game to do, probably more cheaply, but I think that there needs to be a bit of a mindset change at the company and there needs to be more budget and time put into it. The CG stuff was great. The actual gameplay was alright. But the layouts, the rehashing, and the lack of innovation drove a promising concept into the ground.
That's mean. Fubar makes a nice post and you're calling him an idiot.
Eh. Oh well.
The UNSC would have had hundreds of Huragok after First Strike.
(Edit: Ascendant Justice's crew complement was 3000, with the majority being Huragok - 100 Elites and a light company of grunts.)
Good call. I forgot about that.
343 bring Nylund back plz. You already did for the Preston Cole short. Just throw more money at him to do another full book.
