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[Trey]

^Cruel, innit?

All I want to see is how they implement it. On paper they might seem the same, but if the execution is different then there should be no worries. Still, from first glace, this really looks like blatant copying.

Nobody has a Frankie 'shop with the words "I wouldn't worry" yet? I'm disappointed.

 

[Slightly Live]

Here's a summary of the non-multiplayer stuff.

• Halo 4 is set in 2557 - four years, seven months and ten days since the FUD was split into two and the finale of the events of Halo 3.
• True native 720p with FXAA
• New HUD, features subtle paralla movement during athetic actions and additional visual cues indicating that you are actually wearing a helmet.
• Chief, Cortana and other characters animated with the assistance of motion capture.
• Cortana impending rampancy will be a critical theme as will be exploring Master Chief as a person.
• Cortana has chosen a new visual identity whilst the Chief has been sleeping.
• The Covenant, at least Elites and Grunts, return but are not the primary enemy.
• The FUD eventually crash lands on Requiem, a planet enclosed in a massive Dyson Shell.
• A new faction from Reqium is introduced. Like the Covenant they will have unique and different enemy types, weapons and equipment. "If anything, they're kind of elevated in terms of their intelligence and complexity relative to the Covenant."
• Huge, alive environments - a piece of concept art depicts a floating air squid in a jungle setting.
• The skybox is filled with massive pillars reaching down from above and the surrounding view is painted by the inside of the Dyson Shell.
• Game is split between Campaign and Infinity - the new term of the entire multiplayer experience seperate from the Camapign.
• Multiplier directly and in-directly ties into the Campaign.
• Multiplayer features Spartan IV's - adult volenteers taken from the the best of special ops soliders, equippe with a new version of the Mjolnir armour (lightweight variation) and deployed onboard the UNSC Infinity.
• The UNSC Infinity is the largest ship the UNSC has ever created. Over three kilmetres long, it was designed with cutting edge technology and features some additional technological enhancements provided by the study of Forerunner technology - including faster and more accurate slipspace travel.
• The UNSC is deployed on a top scret mission into deep space but will cross paths with the Master Chief during the campaign.
• The Spartan IV's onboard train in the Infinity's "combat deck" (think holodeck or Danger room). The deck and simulate any known environment and plays host the the multiplayer games players are familar with.
• Firefight is absent and it is stated that there are no plans for it to return.
• New Co-Op mode called Spartan Ops for up to four players in online Campaign-esque missions.
• Spartan OPs introduces new movies sequences and missions on a weekly basis which tells the story of the UNSC Infinity's mission and battles the new Spartan IV's face.
• Spartan Op missions are objective based and feature new content, events and locations each week. Spartan Ops missions also reward Spartan Points and feature selectable difficulty levels like Campaign.
• Spartan Ops missions are not DLC, they are included in the overall Halo 4 package but it is unclear if the content is available on the disc or must be downloaded separately.
• Weapons in the overal sandbox include Assault Rifle, Battle Rifle, DMR, Assault Carbine, Covenant Carbine, Shotgun, Rocket Launcher, Sniper Rifle, Magnum and Plasma Pistol. There are numerous unrevealed, new weapons.

And Multiplayer details summary.

• Loadouts are composed of a primary and secondary weapon, a grenade type, armour ability and modifications. It is unclear how the modification system works or what things it modifies or how.
• Returning Armour Abilities include Hologram, Jet-Pack and Camo. A new ability to see through walls was shown and Sprint is now a baseline ability all players will have access to at all times.
• FFA Variant, Regicide. Lead slayer is "King" - each of the King;s kills raises his "bounty". The bounty is claimed by whomever kills the King.
• In Team Slayer (not confirmed for other gametypes), players can respawn instantly after death if they choose. Additionally, power weapons are introduced into a game on a random timer and appear at random drop points on the map.
• Medals are turning including new medals for "revenge kills" and for causing a distraction.

 

[FL1Psyde]

Im laughing at all the nerd rage, MLG can shut up they play custom settings anyway and even if they port over the reach customization opens for custom games MLG can create "competitive halo"

Everything mentioned so far for multiplayer aims to make it easier for less skilled players to play, people need to get of their very high very elitist horses and understand from a business standpoint the best thing to do is to make your game as friendly to new players and less skilled players as possible.

While i dont agree with some choices to immediately shout "Halo is dead" before having even played it is ridiculous

MLG shouldn't have to completely change the game to make it competitive, we wish like everybody else that plays the game to have some kind of competitive merit out of the box and not be a random cluster!@#$

 

[TheOddOne]

Nobody has a Frankie 'shop with the words "I wouldn't worry" yet? I'm disappointed.

Guess I'm the blacksheep here

MLG shouldn't have to completely change the game to make it competitive, we wish like everybody else that plays the game to have some kind of competitive merit out of the box and not be a random cluster!@#$

Turning off a checkbox sure is a lot of work!

 

[Arnie]

All I want to see is how they implement it. On paper they might seem the same, but if the execution is different then there should be no worries. Still, from first glace, this really looks like blatant copying.

There is no way to balance out the fact that players can respawn instantly and sprint straight back into the action. It's just awful.

 

[Poker Face]

All I want to see is how they implement it. On paper they might seem the same, but if the execution is different then there should be no worries. Still, from first glace, this really looks like blatant copying.

100 percent agree with you there. I just don't know how different the execution can be considering what the story said.

 

[Rizzo Ratso]

Hi y'all - can't stand waypoint anymore.. this seems much more civilised

my impressions of the new GI are mixed; graphics look incredible - even at this early stage
the textures on character models and the new lighting system both look leaps and bounds above Reach.

No firefight - devastated!!- there is still hope though.
The caption in the magazine states no "DEDICATED" firefight mode, i imagine this means there will in fact be survival type maps in the spartan ops mode. This would be a good compromise - in reach there are only a few firefight maps that i play anyway.

Speaking of Spartan ops - very excited - sounds similar to that Peter Jackson Halo:Chronicles game that was cancelled.

i still don't know enough about the competitive mp stuff to really comment - though i know that no playable elites will upset many.

 

[TheOddOne]

Slightly Live, are you gonna post that in the GS? Do you mind if I post it? Seems something tons of people are intrested in.

 

[shinobi602]

Firefight is absent and it is stated that there are no plans for it to return.

Just...don't understand.

 

[Blue Ninja]

From the tail of the article:

That's always the case. We'll probably get some nice new info there, maybe a few behind the scenes videos.

Just...don't understand.

http://archivethumb.foolz.us/board/m/img/0074/39/1330211606013.jpg[IMG][/QUOTE]

From what I gather, Spartan Ops is pretty much the Firefight evolution I had been hoping for. More on the offensive, completing objectives, ... It's sad to see the original go, though.

 

[CyReN]

lol at Stazima.

 

[Trey]

There is no way to balance out the fact that players can respawn instantly and sprint straight back into the action. It's just awful.

The only thing that changes is deaths have one less negative attribute to them. How is that awful? (in regular slayer, I could definitely see issues with objective games)

 

[Hydranockz]

The vidoc surely suggests that the game can be awesome with the omission of such features.

Roll on podcast. I can't wait to find out how these feaures will work

Random weapon spawns strike me as odd. I keep imagining X number of locations where they can spawn in. We'll see.

 

[shinobi602]

From what I gather, Spartan Ops is pretty much the Firefight evolution I had been hoping for. More on the offensive, completing objectives, ... It's sad to see the original go, though.

Hmm, true.

Alright, looking forward to seeing it

 

[TheOddOne]

About Firefight, the article says no "didicated" Firefight mode. What does that even mean? Why not say "No Firefight mode"?

 

[Arnie]

The only thing that changes is deaths have one less negative attribute to them. How is that awful (in regular slayer, I could definitely see issues with objective games)?

Because you're forgetting how important map control is. Forcing players to respawn and have to work back to key parts of the map is massively important to how Halo plays.

That I have to spell that out is massively concerning.

About Firefight, the article says no "didicated" Firefight mode. What does that even mean? Why not say "No Firefight mode"?

I imagine there will be Firefight style missions in Spartan Ops.

 

[Blue Ninja]

I'm still expecting the "Jetpack" ability to be more of a "jump boost" this time around, like what the Halo 3 Brutes had.

About Firefight, the article says no "didicated" Firefight mode. What does that even mean? Why not say "No Firefight mode"?

My guess? Spartan Ops can feature some Firefight-esque scenario's.

 

[WJD]

Here's a summary of the non-multiplayer

See, now this doesn't sound so bad!

 

[Slightly Live]

About Firefight, the article says no "didicated" Firefight mode. What does that even mean? Why not say "No Firefight mode"?

There may be other methods or modes similar to Firefight that may function in a similar capacity.

 

[TheOddOne]

I'm still expecting the "Jetpack" ability to be more of a "jump boost" this time around, like what the Halo 3 Brutes had.

God I hope so, but the seeing that Warhouse is three stories high, it must be the regular jetpack from Reach.

There may be other methods or modes similar to Firefight that may function in a similar capacity.

Yeah, that would make sense. Still seems they could have used recycled stuff from the campaign /rant.

 

[Hydranockz]

I'm still expecting the "Jetpack" ability to be more of a "jump boost" this time around, like what the Halo 3 Brutes had.

Exactly my thoughts.

Why would 343 take all these out of AA's out of Reach, just to put them back in 4 in the same way?

My idea for jetpack is more of a double-jump or some small, vertical boost.

 

[Sikamikanico]

I remain cautiously optimistic.

The singleplayer sounds great, as does Spec-Ops...I mean Spartan Ops. And the art/graphics in general look superb.

But it all sounds very...'armour ability based' when it comes to multiplayer...the idea of jetpacks being back...I'm scared HaloGAF...scared.

 

[Trey]

Because you're forgetting how important map control is. Forcing players to respawn and have to work back to key parts of the map is massively important to how Halo plays.

I'm not forgetting. Players still have to respawn, they just don't have to eat a timeout. They are still out of the battle for a time and can still be forced back. 343 is trying to make battles much more quicker and fluid, which is an admirable goal. They mitigate spawn traps as well.

You would have to prove that map control could not be achieved if players aren't removed from the game for a certain amount of time upon death, something in which you cannot do without knowing how things progress in the game.

I disliked the sound of instant respawns too, then I thought about if respawn times are actually needed. Still thinking about it, actually.

If you wanted to take issue with map control problems in Halo 4, random weapon spawns are definitely more troublesome than instant respawns.

 

[CyReN]

Just curious has there been anyone supporting the new information? I've looked from casual to competitive and it seems like Black Tuesday.

 

[Arnie]

I'm not forgetting. Players still have to respawn, they just don't have to eat a timeout. They are still out of the battle for a time and can still be forced back. 343 is trying to make battles much more quicker and fluid, which is an admirable goal. They mitigate spawn traps as well.

You would have to prove that map control could not be achieved if players aren't removed from the game for a certain amount of time upon death, something in which you cannot do without knowing how things progress in the game.

I disliked the sound of instant respawns too, then I thought about if respawn times are actually needed. Still thinking about it, actually.

If you wanted to take issue with map control problems in Halo 4, random weapon spawns are definitely more troublesome than instant respawns.

I'd say they're equally debilitating mechanics. If there's a reduced penalty to death then there's less time for an attacking team to capitalise on the space left by killing the opposing player.

Take a map like Construct where controlling the open and closed rooms, as well as the gold lift is so central to winning the game. Now imagine that map without a spawn delay. Players could be back up either of the lifts in a matter of seconds following their death. That's awful.

 

[The Librarian]

Just a reminder: Today is suppose to be "Halo 3 Day." Bobs, Gui, and I are running some games in Social Slayer. Bobs is about to leave, so if you don't care about your rank, we'll run some games in Team Slayer.

 

[Slightly Live]

Just curious has there been anyone supporting the new information? I've looked from casual to competitive and it seems like Black Tuesday.

Which parts of the new information?

Overall the majority of the details from GI are pretty awesome.

 

[ElzarTheBam]

Which parts of the new information?

Overall the majority of the details from GI are pretty awesome.

I'm gonna agree with this hobo here.

 

[Tha Robbertster]

Just curious has there been anyone supporting the new information? I've looked from casual to competitive and it seems like Black Tuesday.

I'm not supporting the instant spawning and the random weapon spawns. I'm still unsure about the AA's and perks. Being able to spawn with a BR/DMR/AR/Carbine is great IMO.

 

[CyReN]

I'm not supporting the instant spawning and the random weapon spawns. I'm still unsure about the AA's and perks. Being able to spawn with a BR/DMR/AR/Carbine is great IMO.

How I feel basically.

 

[Rand0m TAG]

I'm not forgetting. Players still have to respawn, they just don't have to eat a timeout. They are still out of the battle for a time and can still be forced back. 343 is trying to make battles much more quicker and fluid, which is an admirable goal. They mitigate spawn traps as well.

You would have to prove that map control could not be achieved if players aren't removed from the game for a certain amount of time upon death, something in which you cannot do without knowing how things progress in the game.

I disliked the sound of instant respawns too, then I thought about if respawn times are actually needed. Still thinking about it, actually.

If you wanted to take issue with map control problems in Halo 4, random weapon spawns are definitely more troublesome than instant respawns.

i think instant respawns are going to be worse.
the random weapon drops arent going to occur all over the map at randomized locations (from what i read), but at 2 or 3 set spots. a good team can still control these points fairly easily. the4 only thing now is that everyone knows where and when these weapons will drop. the worst that could happen is that you get a crummy power weapon instead of rockets (let's say).

with instant respawn, you lose map control. lets take pit for example. you kill 2 guys on needler side. you will now have 3 seconds to either chase down the remaining 2 kills or try and establish a more dominant position over the enemy. with no respawn time, you kill 1 guy at needles, and he will instantly respawn at snipe and be able to sprint right back into battle, giving you almost no time to establish map control.

I dont like either instant respawn or random weapon drops, but if i had to choose one it would be random weapon drops

 

[Slightly Live]

Controlling the map is much less important if the power weapons aren't in a fixed location.

 

[TheOddOne]

There is just so much up in the air right now, I just don't know how to feel.

No Firefight, which has become standard in a lot of other games, is pissing me off more then anything.

 

[KidA Seven]

I'm not forgetting. Players still have to respawn, they just don't have to eat a timeout. They are still out of the battle for a time and can still be forced back. 343 is trying to make battles much more quicker and fluid, which is an admirable goal. They mitigate spawn traps as well.

You would have to prove that map control could not be achieved if players aren't removed from the game for a certain amount of time upon death, something in which you cannot do without knowing how things progress in the game.

I disliked the sound of instant respawns too, then I thought about if respawn times are actually needed. Still thinking about it, actually.

If you wanted to take issue with map control problems in Halo 4, random weapon spawns are definitely more troublesome than instant respawns.

On a symmetrical map, instant respawns take out the incentive to go towards the other base. With the current respawns, you can gain control of areas in the other base, and just cause havoc. This will no longer happen because going into the enemy's base means instant death due to instant respawns.



Edit: Now that I think about it. Will there even be bases (symmetrical maps) for teams to spawn at with random weapon spawns? For example, if Pit had instant respawns and random weapon spawns, even a 20 sec indicator wouldn't do much. The weapons can spawn in the other teams base, and no matter what you do, the other team can instant respawn so it would be impossible to gain control of those power weapons no matter the amount of time the notice gives you. The only way you can fight for it fairly would be to get rid of set bases for either team. You would essentially get default H3 Narrows spawns (which was awful).

 

[op_ivy]

didnt frankie shoot down the idea of random weapon drops?

 

[Slightly Live]

On a symmetrical map, instant respawns take out the incentive to go towards the other base. With the current respawns, you can gain control of areas in the other base, and just cause havoc. This will no longer happen because going into the enemy's base means instant death due to instant respawns.

Bases have no owners if there are no team based respawn areas like on many of Reach maps. So your argument doesn't hold any weight. Teams won't spawn exclusively on any own base or side.

 

[The Librarian]

Bases have no owners if there are no team based respawn areas like on many of Reach maps. So your argument doesn't hold any weight. Teams won't spawn exclusively on any own base or side.

I hate that so much. Purple bases!

 

[Danny 117]

Are many of you coming on Halo 3 tonight? There's a unofficial 'Populate Halo 3' event today
I'm going on for sure.

 

[bobs...onGaf]

Are many of you coming on Halo 3 tonight? There's a unofficial 'Populate Halo 3' event today
I'm going on for sure.

Just played a few with Dax and Gui (good games guys!) and will certainly pop back on a little later. Sorry Dax, I know Team Slayer would be better than Social but with the way im playing I would have got slaughtered if I went for it.

 

[KidA Seven]

Bases have no owners if there are no team based respawn areas like on many of Reach maps. So your argument doesn't hold any weight. Teams won't spawn exclusively on any own base or side.

Yeah I just edited that scenario in.


Which means we get H3 default Narrows. I couldn't stand default Narrows.

: (

 

[Trey]

I'd say they're equally debilitating mechanics. If there's a reduced penalty to death then there's less time for an attacking team to capitalise on the space left by killing the opposing player.

Take a map like Construct where controlling the open and closed rooms, as well as the gold lift is so central to winning the game. Now imagine that map without a spawn delay. Players could be back up either of the lifts in a matter of seconds following their death. That's awful.

It goes without saying there would be less time to capitalize before the fallen member returns.

Of course when you think in the context of past Halos the mechanic would seem broken or misaligned. The real question is whether a respawn timer is integral to the mechanics of map control. If active player agency and battling for space can determine map control without an arbitrary time limit removing players from the game, then nothing is compromised. You have to remember that the instant respawn works both ways.

 

[Magni]

Why I am disappoint if true.

Forerunner Vision- Deep Impact/UAV

Weapon Randomness- Game relies on chance even more and not skill or mastery.

No respawn timer- I feel at breaks the flow of objective game types.

Join in progress- Hopefully that's just for scoial playlists and not ranked.

I agree with all of these. I've been for join-in-progress for social playlists since H2, so I don't care if it's introduced there, but please keep it away from Ranked.

Randomness is almost never the right choice, I still have no idea how they came up with that decision. What's next, random critical hits?

Instant respawn should only be in Social as well, for when you have your COD friends over . Halo shouldn't cater to the ADHD kids who can't handle a 3s timer when they goofed up and died (or 10s for Objective... instant in Obj would be a nightmare).

I'm still pissed at Sprint being in the game. It completely breaks the flow of the game.

And LOL at X-ray vision, can't wait to hear that being explained.

The only good news I got from the article (concerning MP, SP sounds awesome so far!) was the absence of bloom/armor-lock talk. I'm very afraid :/

Old post of mine in this thread:

All this talk of using Forge for remakes has made me think about how much Bungie relied on the community to provide content and how it had far from perfect results.

I love the fact that you can customize so much in the settings, and that we have Forge (though a real editor à la FarCry would be orgasmic). These two things have produced a heap of new ways to play Halo (Grifball being the most obvious example). Yet I feel like Bungie used those two things as excuses to botch the classic competitive (not necessarily MLG competitive, I'm using competitive here to distinguish from Actionsack style gametypes) experience.

Compare default settings/maps from CE to Reach with the respective MLG counterparts. A casual Halo player back in CE or H2 could play MLG settings without being lost, could watch the pros duke it out and understand what is going on.

But since Halo 3, and especially now with Reach, MLG has become a game within the game, something completely foreign and scary to the average player. Add the fact that so many of the maps are visually awful (compare Halo 2 Sanctuary with Reach "Sanctuary", Halo 2 Midship with Halo 3 Onslaught) due to having to rely on Forge and you understand why Halo has dropped off in popularity in the MLG community (Reach's paltry numbers don't help of course).

I'm not asking for 343i to make default H4 be MLG approved and for the rest of the Halo community to have to play to MLG rules, I just want them to reverse the trend and make Halo 4 more competitive out of the box, to not use Forge and Custom Game Settings as a crutch when designing the competitive MP ("oh, well they can just fix it themselves").

I have a feeling based on what we've heard so far that MLG will once again have to be drastically different from vanilla Halo. Sadface

Waiting on the Podcast now, Frankie save us!

 

[op_ivy]

i'm pretty blown away at the first level pictures

Spoiler

forward unto dawn

, even from the first person, they look incredible. more detailed then reach AND with killer lighting and atmospherics. so hot.

 

[Rand0m TAG]

i'm pretty blown away at the first level pictures

Spoiler

forward unto dawn

, even from the first person, they look incredible. more detailed then reach AND with killer lighting and atmospherics. so hot.

thats one thing i like, the game looks like a halo game. reach, i dont know why, but i detested the art direction. the weapons looked like shit too. what the fuck were they thinking with the needle rifle.

 

[Franklinator]

Geez this thread moved fast (also I went to bed early)

Anyway, I'm still really excited about the single-player stuff. It looks great! I think it has the potential to be the best Halo campaign yet, honestly.

As for multiplayer, I'm not sure what I think about it, assuming this new stuff is implemented in every playlist. But hopefully that's not the case, so I guess I'll wait and see.

And am I the only one who thinks the new DMR looks awesome?

edit: Also Spartan Ops (lame name though) sounds great

 

[The Librarian]

Which parts of the new information?

Overall the majority of the details from GI are pretty awesome.

Because the majority of the information was about campaign.

 

[JonCha]

I find hard to believe that 343 can screw up the game with all the change they've made to Reach.

 

[ElzarTheBam]

Geez this thread moved fast (also I went to bed early)

Anyway, I'm still really excited about the single-player stuff. It looks great! I think it has the potential to be the best Halo campaign yet, honestly.

As for multiplayer, I'm not sure what I think about it, assuming this new stuff is implemented in every playlist. But hopefully that's not the cases, so I guess I'll wait and see.

And am I the only one who thinks the new DMR looks awesome?

The covenant carbine=I want to make love to it.

 

[Hydranockz]

And am I the only one who thinks the new DMR looks awesome?

I think it's pretty groovy

Elites are reproritising shileding to their feet I see :lol

 

[Slightly Live]

Elites are reproritising shileding to their feet I see :lol

Must be where they keep the gonads. Got to protect the crown jewels.