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[TheOddOne]

Well well:

The whole mission takes about 10 or 15 minutes and ends with the collection of a Forerunner artefact, which is then taken back aboard the UNSC Infinity. Assuming Microsoft don’t go back on their promise of the whole season of episodes being free then Spartan Ops seems like a more than welcome addition to the series.

We've sort of shifted our rhetoric a little bit and part of that is because of the way that Spartan Ops works, and so we're calling it a saga. Because all of the story pieces that we do from now on are going to be connected and actually matter. So a trilogy kind of limits it in a really weird way, because some of the bigger ticket story beat items that are gonna happen are actually gonna happen in Spartan Ops, before the next mainline sequel comes out.

 

[Overdoziz]

I'd rather have 5 more MP maps than Spec Ops.

 

[J10]

Unfortunately, I think Frank said that it would last about as long as a TV season (the support for SPOPS, that is).

The fact that he used a TV season as a metric seems to indicate a desire to produce multiple releases. 4-5 months worth of weekly campaign expansions every year would be a lot of Halo.

 

[Blue Ninja]

Tried something:

 

[HiredN00bs]

I don't want to alarm anyone but we've gone a quarter of the way through this thread in 5 days.

Debating whether to start reading from the beginning...I missed a lot.

Just finished listening to the Giant Bomb podcast with Frankie, David, and Josh. Great stuff.

Do we have an ETA on the new Sparkcast?

Nope. I can't stand the guy.

Reading that other Fallon thread just proved that I completely disagree with nearly everything GAF as a whole represents and likes. He has got to be the least funny person in the business. I'm debating whether or not it's worth it to see Halo 4 at the cost of having to watch him bumble and fumble through his horribly lame jokes. His writers are every bit as bad as he is.

/rant

Man, Jimmy Fallon's first weeks on Late Night were rough. I felt almost exactly the same as you did.

But, I have some seen some downright hilarious moments on that show since then, the Roots are always awesome and a huge asset to the show, and I would say that Fallon has grown into his own. He's no Conan, and his show doesn't run at a laugh-a-minute, but it is a show that is fun to watch.

 

[Gabotron ES]

What exactly did you need it for?

Gonna try to recreate it like I did with the 343 hoodie.

 

[Poker Face]

anyone know what was the XBL update was for?

 

[daedalius]

I'd rather have 5 more MP maps than Spec Ops.

I'd rather not.

 

[Der Flatulator]

Yup.

 

[Overdoziz]

I'd rather not.

More maps for MLG to create a good version of.

 

[Booties]

No remakes in Halo 4 please. I really don't want to play shitty halo 1 and 2 maps with Promethean vision and booster jets.

 

[Fracas]

No remakes in Halo 4 please. I really don't want to play shitty halo 1 and 2 maps with Promethean vision and booster jets.

I agree. I don't understand how Prisoner got in Anniversary, that thing's an abomination. Same for half of the Anni maps.

 

[Der Flatulator]

More maps for MLG to create a good version of.

*mega-sigh*

 

[J10]

MLG variants are usually trash.

Also, Boarding Action would be awesome with jetpacks.

 

[HigherLevel]

I agree. I don't understand how Prisoner got in Anniversary, that thing's an abomination. Same for half of the Anni maps.

Yeah Prisoner and Damnation are two head scratchers. Who actually wanted those back? I'm pretty sure I remember Max Hoberman wanted Terminal and Turf or something like that. Why couldn't we have got those?

 

[Overdoziz]

*mega-sigh*

Never forget.

 

[Deadly Cyclone]

I agree. I don't understand how Prisoner got in Anniversary, that thing's an abomination. Same for half of the Anni maps.

If anything, only bring a few big team maps back. I'd love to see Terminal show up again, and I think it'd work fine with the AA's. Small maps are hard to re-balance.

 

[Striker]

MLG variants are usually trash.

Also, Boarding Action would be awesome with jetpacks.

MLG gametypes are another story, but the changes they made to The Pit were pretty substantial. The large crates in the base area, blocking off the attic, etc. And the changes to Zealot were great.

No remakes in Halo 4 please. I really don't want to play shitty halo 1 and 2 maps with Promethean vision and booster jets.

Lockout with regen fields and hardlight shields.

 

[Demoncarnotaur]

Not only are all the indicators pointing to it, MS has outright said they want to go faster than the 3 year cycle.

http://www.1up.com/news/microsoft-increase-rate-halo-releases

I hope that means a spinoff in 2013/2014 with Halo 5 in 2015.. But I see Halo 5 coming in 2014, despite it nearly 100% being on new hardware which I would rather have them spend as much time needed to optimize for it.

I'd rather have 5 more MP maps than Spec Ops.

Sure, but there are a huge number of people who want more SP/Firefight styled experiences, and since this is basically a continuation of SP I am sold. 10 maps plus SpOps sounds amazing tbh, and yes Im sure I will say I want more MP maps when the game comes out, but not at the cost of SpOps.

Yup.

I wonder what they plan to show.

 

[Der Flatulator]

Yeah Prisoner and Damnation are two head scratchers. Who actually wanted those back? I'm pretty sure I remember Max Hoberman wanted Terminal and Turf or something like that. Why couldn't we have got those?

Terminal - Trains. Don't think Reach supports that kind of dynamic map. But hell it would have been awesome...

 

[Fracas]

Maps shouldn't be remade unless they're heavily tweaked to accommodate armor abilities. If you do that though, the new map will be too different from its original layout.

So it just shouldn't be done.

 

[Risen]

MLG variants are usually trash.

Also, Boarding Action would be awesome with jetpacks.

Well at least you back up your opinion with well thought out reasoning.

 

[Tashi]

Well at least you back up your opinion with well thought out reasoning.

This post is trash

 

[Gui_PT]

Nice to see 343 haven't done anything about idling in FF yet. It's understandable, the game did just come out so they'll need time

 

[Spawnling]

I would be fine with this.

Halo 4 2012
ODST 2/Wars 2/Other side game 2014
Halo 5 2016

Give 343 all the time they need and have a beta.

Edit: If we can expect a new mainline Halo game every 2 years, either 343 is going to be worked to death (like Bungie) or another studio will be developing Halo too under 343s oversight.

In that article they forget to mention Halo CE Anniversary.

 

[Hypertrooper]

In that article they forget to mention Halo CE Anniversary.

The article was published in 2010. Anniversary was not announced back then. Sigh...

 

[GodlyPerfection]

Is this somewhat accurate?

No I didn't make it.

Just watched Hoaxer's and Neighbor's gameplay on here and I can confirm that that is close, but not quite it. It is missing the down ramps that come out below the upper platforms in the center room where power weapons spawn and it is missing the second man cannons in the small corners of the map. Those man cannon platforms have two man cannons... one to each initial spawn. He is also missing a jump up in the center room that goes up to the mid section levels on the corner with no ramp up. It isn't obvious that the lift connects to bottom center on that map either. And the weapon drops are actually pretty simple and in obvious places.

The layout it very interesting. My head hasn't worked through all of the area to area interactions yet via sight lines, but the amount of points you can travel to particular areas from is very well developed. For example if you are on center platform and you push someone into one of the corner midsection platform doors towards the lift hall you can cut them off on the lift. If he goes left you can take the upper platform in center room and come down on him as he comes out the door to the initial spawn corner platforms. Or if he takes the right side door you can drop down on your right to the down ramps below the upper platform and head up to the man cannon platform corner to continue pursuit.

The map isn't as big as people are thinking. It takes a bit of focused time to learn the layout. The weaving is intricate enough at first that it is tough to learn and easy to get lost, but travel time from point A to point B can be relatively quick if you know the layout. I'd say the square footage of utilized playspace is about equivalent to Countdown. A lot of the traffic is going to head towards those upper platforms for power weapon spawns, however those halls have two exit routes. I think the problem that we are going to see develop is that if you back a person into that hall you have a few options but two of the three main options aren't as viable. Jump straight for the upper platform. Drop below the platform and take the ramp going up to their initial spawn and come at them from the jump up to the hall. Or you can go right (facing the platform from center) and take the path on the left of the lift. The problem is that the two side paths start come up with height disadvantage and it shouldn't be too hard to hold that hallway. The only way of making those two options feasible is heading towards the back corners of the initial spawn platforms to come up on equal footing using the cargo boxes to provide cover. Grenades are the best bet for clearing those upper halls. If you don't have grenades the flankers are going to have quite a bit of trouble or take quite a bit of time to get into a decent position to contest.

Guess that gives good reason to the grenade spawn placement below the right path. Grab those first then head up and as soon as you go through the door onto the initial spawn platforms then turn left and look up and aim grenades towards that hallway then sprint like hell to the outer corner to get up those ramps to get a good firing position.

 

[bobs...onGaf]

Nice to see 343 haven't done anything about idling in FF yet. It's understandable, the game did just come out so they'll need time

People still idle firefight? Lol! You would think this close to h4 people would have given up on the ranking grind, idling firefight is hardly going to get people to inheritor in the next 5 months lol

 

[wwm0nkey]

Tried something:

You have to use the new version of the Didact glyph

 

[Der Flatulator]

Just watched Hoaxer's and Neighbor's gameplay on here and I can confirm that that is close, but not quite it. It is missing the down ramps that come out below the upper platforms in the center room where power weapons spawn and it is missing the second man cannons in the small corners of the map. Those man cannon platforms have two man cannons... one to each initial spawn. He is also missing a jump up in the center room that goes up to the mid section levels on the corner with no ramp up. It isn't obvious that the lift connects to bottom center on that map either. And the weapon drops are actually pretty simple and in obvious places.

The layout it very interesting. My head hasn't worked through all of the area to area interactions yet via sight lines, but the amount of points you can travel to particular areas from is very well developed. For example if you are on center platform and you push someone into one of the corner midsection platform doors towards the lift hall you can cut them off on the lift. If he goes left you can take the upper platform in center room and come down on him as he comes out the door to the initial spawn corner platforms. Or if he takes the right side door you can drop down on your right to the down ramps below the upper platform and head up to the man cannon platform corner to continue pursuit.

The map isn't as big as people are thinking. It takes a bit of focused time to learn the layout. The weaving is intricate enough at first that it is tough to learn and easy to get lost, but travel time from point A to point B can be relatively quick if you know the layout. I'd say the square footage of utilized playspace is about equivalent to Countdown. A lot of the traffic is going to head towards those upper platforms for power weapon spawns, however those halls have two exit routes. I think the problem that we are going to see develop is that if you back a person into that hall you have a few options but two of the three main options aren't as viable. Jump straight for the upper platform. Drop below the platform and take the ramp going up to their initial spawn and come at them from the jump up to the hall. Or you can go right (facing the platform from center) and take the path on the left of the lift. The problem is that the two side paths start come up with height disadvantage and it shouldn't be too hard to hold that hallway. The only way of making those two options feasible is heading towards the back corners of the initial spawn platforms to come up on equal footing using the cargo boxes to provide cover. Grenades are the best bet for clearing those upper halls. If you don't have grenades the flankers are going to have quite a bit of trouble or take quite a bit of time to get into a decent position to contest.

Guess that gives good reason to the grenade spawn placement below the right path. Grab those first then head up and as soon as you go through the door onto the initial spawn platforms then turn left and look up and aim grenades towards that hallway then sprint like hell to the outer corner to get up those ramps to get a good firing position.

Nice analysis, sounds pretty accurate. Have you taken a look at Haven? Pretty simple in comparison. I was thinking of mocking it up in SketchUp today, but I got distracted

 

[Gui_PT]

People still idle firefight? Lol! You would think this close to h4 people would have given up on the ranking grind, idling firefight is hardly going to get people to inheritor in the next 5 months lol

1/3 of the people I get teamed up with idle. It's depressing

 

[heckfu]

No remakes in Halo 4 please. I really don't want to play shitty halo 1 and 2 maps with Promethean vision and booster jets.

I wouldn't mind remakes, honestly. Chill Out proper is still my favorite map of all time and Halo 2 had some STELLAR maps, calling them shitty is a bit out of line IMO

 

[Overdoziz]

Maybe the people idling in Firefight have just fallen asleep because of the snoozefest that is Reach Firefight.

 

[HigherLevel]

I wouldn't mind remakes, honestly. Chill Out proper is still my favorite map of all time and Halo 2 had some STELLAR maps, calling them shitty is a bit out of line IMO

I think the problem is remakes often don't work due to sandbox changes. Look at Reach for example, Beaver Creek is a mess in normal Reach due to all the changes between 2 and Reach.

 

[Poker Face]

No remakes in Halo 4 please. I really don't want to play shitty halo 1 and 2 maps with Promethean vision and booster jets.

I hope you're not calling Halo:CE and Halo 2 maps shitty. The remakes that were in Halo 3 and Reach were mediocre, but the CE and H2 had the best map design to date.

 

[Ravensmash]

1/3 of the people I get teamed up with idle. It's depressing

Heh, remember Halo 3 and the old bouncers?

That was annoying as hell.

 

[Risen]

This post is trash

Yer mudder


Edit: Do you play Halo anymore nerd?

 

[Falagard]

^^ Very nice.

Heh - 343 on "completely contradictory", "hilarious" fan reactions to Halo 4

they're embracing the feel

embrace the feel bro.

 

[Der Flatulator]

embrace the feel bro.

.

 

[Spawnling]

The article was published in 2010. Anniversary was not announced back then. Sigh...

Ah! Thanks for that

 

[SomeOneInaHat]

I wouldn't mind remakes, honestly. Chill Out proper is still my favorite map of all time and Halo 2 had some STELLAR maps, calling them shitty is a bit out of line IMO

I recently bought a copy of Halo 2 Vista. Its still as great as ever, not to mention 60 frames/s.

I'd like to see District get a revival, never knew that map existed until recently.

 

[wwm0nkey]

My attempt at recreating the symbol in the shirt

 

[Demoncarnotaur]

^ that new Diadact symbol still reminds me of a pokeball.

 

[heckfu]

^ that new Diadact symbol still reminds me of a pokeball.

Ultraball. Dumbass.

 

[Karl2177]

^ that new Diadact symbol still reminds me of a pokeball.

Didact is Mewtwo confirmed.

 

[Tashi]

Yer mudder


Edit: Do you play Halo anymore nerd?

I've been pretty busy and honestly I think my neice breaking my headset really put a damper on my desire to play. I think it's just a phase though lol

 

[Der Flatulator]

^ that new Diadact symbol still reminds me of a pokeball.

Are we 100% sure it's the Didact? Could totally be his bro!

 

[Demoncarnotaur]

Ill show you ultraballs.

Now I want to play pokemon.

Didact is Mewtwo confirmed.

 

[GodlyPerfection]

Nice analysis, sounds pretty accurate. Have you taken a look at Haven? Pretty simple in comparison. I was thinking of mocking it up in SketchUp today, but I got distracted

I haven't taken a close look at Haven yet. The past few days I've been playing with Unity so I can finally mock up a prototype of my multiplayer stealth game concept that I've been designing for a little under a year. Unity is MUCH easier than I expected... I only started playing with it because that is the program we are using for Game Dev 2 this fall. So thanks to that I've been distracted. I've got to put out a new mindful cartography vid tomorrow though so I may do it during that time.

When I find the time I will definitely be mocking them up in sketchup because I plan to use them for Mindful Cartography to encourage theoretical analysis of a map that is guaranteed to hit a large audience to help compare first impression play vs veteran play. Theoretical analysis definitely helps with planning maps and having two maps to analyze before they are actually played on a large scale is going to really help gauge where their analysis skills lie once we see how Haven and Adrift are played a few months after release. I'm looking forward to seeing how they play once people learn the maps to see how close my theories are to how it will be played. Of course that is just initial theories. Once I have the maps drafted in Sketchup I will be able to get a better feel of them.

Gotta keep practicing if I'm ever going to land a designer job in 343i or Bungie.

 

[Overdoziz]

Gotta keep practicing if I'm ever going to land a designer job in 343i or Bungie.

I don't want to see Chateau in any future Halo game, thanks.