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[Havok]

We need to be able to contextualize these around the rest of the customization and investment suite, but that hasn't been detailed yet.

I think that's the big messaging miss here. This is a detail that should be added to our existing understanding of how the progression and ordnance systems work. Instead it's being dropped in without any context. I have no idea how to fit this into the rest of the systems.

I really hope 343 just up and writes an article for Waypoint explaining this stuff.

Context has always been what's missing with Halo 4 stuff. I mean, as an example, the Halo 4 LE was announced in the middle of May, and "early specializations!!!" was a big bullet point, where everybody immediately stopped, like someone scratched a record, and said "hey wait what's a specialization?" And now, three months later, we're finally getting the definition of something that was namedropped all that time ago. With this, the article talks about regenerating vehicle health faster. But we know approximately zilch about the vehicle health system, so that could mean anything. It's very frustrating.

It's awesome that David and Frank take the time to come in here and elaborate on things, but with big stuff like that, should it really be necessary?

 

[blamite]

The other ones are released later unless you've got LE, Pioneer and Wetwork are the exception, you get those at launch, which I assume means Rank 1 as well, or else there'd be no point in Pioneer surely...

No, they're all max rank rewuired. This was explained at Comic-con. The others are just added to the game over the months following release. If you have the LE, you don't have to wait for them to be released to the general population, you could choose them day 1 if you were able to reach 50 that quickly, while others wouldn't have that choice yet..

 

[TS x Massacre]

The other ones are released later unless you've got LE, Pioneer and Wetwork are the exception, you get those at launch, which I assume means Rank 1 as well, or else there'd be no point in Pioneer surely...

Yes there is a point. You have to go back and do 1-60 all over again for your next spec reward. So pioneer will help with your second or third or however many playthrough the progession system.

It's not a one time deal leveling up

 

[NullPointer]

To be fair Prestige has been a Hugely popular system, You cannot fault them for trying to bring it to halo and giving it an incentive.

I can't believe I'm saying this but last I checked COD prestiges didn't provide battlefield advantages. In fact, they brought you back down to lvl 1.

 

[kylej]

On a serious note though, what are these adding to the gameplay? What was Halo missing before that you felt necessitated these additions?

It was missing COD's sales.

 

[Talents]

Wait wait wait... where is it said or has been said that Halo now has prestige?

You're all just joking right?

...right?

 

[Enfinit]

Trust them they said. It feels like Halo they said.

 

[bobs...onGaf]

This doesn't feel like Halo.

Not even close.

Well I mean no one can say that just yet, but it does sound odd.

So you're giving pretty significant gameplay-altering boosts, but only to people who play a lot.

Feels Like Halo.



On a serious note though, what are these adding to the gameplay? What was Halo missing before that you felt necessitated these additions?

Yeah, I would love a Vidoc where 343 just sits down and discusses the motivations behind the mechanics of Halo 4. They dont need to be specific, just do what Treyarch did and discuss why the higher level systems felt like they where needed. The excuse of the game being in flux only extends as far as specifics go in terms of shot per kill etc.

 

[Abdozer]

Wait wait wait... where is it said or has been said that Halo now has prestige?

You're all just joking right?

...right?

Specializations = Prestige, apparently.

 

[Deadly Cyclone]

I don't see these giving high ranked players a huge advantage like others do. You still have to give up one of your other bonuses to use the one you unlock at the end of a specialization.

 

[a zoojoo]

Yes there is a point. You have to go back and do 1-60 all over again for your next spec reward. So pioneer will help with your second or third or however many playthrough the progession system.

It's not a one time deal leveling up

But it shouldn't be easier 2nd time round.




It should be harder. If you want that specialization, you'll have to earn it.

Not, lets give billy a head start because he's been on track longer than the other kids.


Why does this exist?


This is more CoD-esque than CoD is.

 

[zap]

Context has always been what's missing with Halo 4 stuff. I mean, as an example, the Halo 4 LE was announced in them middle of May, and "early specializations!!!" was a big bullet point, where everybody said "hey wait what's a specialization?" And now, three months later, we're finally getting the definition of something that was namedropped all that time ago. With this, the article talks about regenerating vehicle health faster. But we don't know the vehicle health system, so that could mean anything. It's very frustrating.

Totally agree. If you're not prepared to explain, just don't say anything. Only reveal stuff once you can explain what your plan is and how it will be implemented.

343 has a lot to learn with these info drops... Hopefully Halo 5's lead up won't be so confusing and frustrating.

No, they're all max rank rewuired. This was explained at Comic-con. The others are just added to the game over the months following release. If you have the LE, you don't have to wait for them to be released to the general population, you could choose them day 1 if you were able to reach 50 that quickly, while others wouldn't have that choice yet..

Ugh, they are arbitrarily holding stuff back just to have another bullet point on their LE box? :|

 

[L1NETT]

Yes there is a point. You have to go back and do 1-60 all over again for your next spec reward. So pioneer will help with your second or third or however many playthrough the progession system.

It's not a one time deal leveling up

If this is true, after you finish level 60 - you lose all your unlocked weapons etc....? Do you keep your specialization you unlocked at 60?

Bye bye BR!

I can see it (if this is true of course) happening that people will not want to go back to level 1.

 

[FyreWulff]

On a serious note though, what are these adding to the gameplay? What was Halo missing before that you felt necessitated these additions?

The ability to involve a value-add in a higher-priced SKU to get more upsells?

 

[Noricart]

Apparently Bravo is uploading his vid right now.
I know for a fact that he'll explain better and do better hype than IGN.

 

[Poker Face]

im so glad we're getting prestige mode and specializations instead of a skill based 1-50 system.

:'(

 

[NullPointer]

Yeah, I would love a Vidoc where 343 just sits down and discusses the motivations behind the mechanics of Halo 4. They dont need to be specific, just do what Treyarch did and discuss why the higher level systems felt like they where needed. The excuse of the game being in flux only extends as far as specifics go in terms of shot per kill etc.

I can only imagine that 343 were instructed to take as many COD elements as they could fit and Halo-ify them to the best of their abilities. Its the only way this stuff makes sense to me.

 

[Spawnling]

So, you thought spawn-killing from high ranked players was bad before...

 

[feel]

I don't quite get this reaction though, we've known about unlocking perks for months

 

[TS x Massacre]

If this is true, after you finish level 60 - you lose all your unlocked weapons etc....? Do you keep your specialization you unlocked at 60?

Bye bye BR!

I can see it (if this is true of course) happening that people will not want to go back to level 1.

Yeah that's my main concern.

And honestly, the specialization mods are not a huge deal.

For Example: If you pick Pioneer you're missing out on 'Shielding' or some other mod designed to help you slightly in-game

I don't quite get this reaction though, we've known about perks for months

This.

So, you thought spawn-killing from high ranked players was bad before...

...what? The mods aren't even that good tbh. I'm so confused on people acting like this will allow them to spawn with rockets or something.

Total overreaction is all i've seen. All they announced are new tactical or support packages essentially.

 

[blamite]

Yes there is a point. You have to go back and do 1-60 all over again for your next spec reward. So pioneer will help with your second or third or however many playthrough the progession system.

It's not a one time deal leveling up

We don't know if you have to do 1-60 again after finishing a specialization, or only 51-60. Honestly I'd be kind of surprised if you weren't able to immediately choose a second specialization after finishing your first one. Going through all 50 levels each time seems kind of excessive.

I don't quite get this reaction though, we've known about perks for months

Exactly, these are barely different from the perks we already know about. It's just a different method of unlocking them.

Overreactions. Overreactions everywhere.

 

[kylej]

Can this week's bulletin explain how the $99.99 Halo 4 Limited Edition gives me an in-game advantage over buying the regular edition? The bulletin that showcased the $399.99 Halo 4 Edition Console* was one of my favorites.

*Halo 4 Limited Edition not included with console

 

[Noricart]

I don't quite get this reaction though, we've known about perks for months

But it's been leaked first, then shown at E3 with little fan-fare and no in depth explanation/ perk examples.

 

[Poker Face]

I don't quite get this reaction though, we've known about unlocking perks for months

its not so much about the perks (at least for me) this kind of solidifies the fact that competitive ranking is gone. we'll probably just get one arena like playlist.

 

[lybertyboy]

This is actually one of the things I said in the interview.

By enlisting in a Specialization you basically raise your own level cap. With each one, you can extend the level cap a little further. You DO NOT have to rank all the way through again.

 

[GhaleonEB]

Context has always been what's missing with Halo 4 stuff. I mean, as an example, the Halo 4 LE was announced in the middle of May, and "early specializations!!!" was a big bullet point, where everybody immediately stopped, like someone scratched a record, and said "hey wait what's a specialization?" And now, three months later, we're finally getting the definition of something that was namedropped all that time ago. With this, the article talks about regenerating vehicle health faster. But we don't know the vehicle health system, so that could mean anything. It's very frustrating.

It's awesome that David and Frank take the time to come in here and elaborate on things, but with big stuff like that, should it really be necessary?

Yeah. The vehicle health one needs context, as does the "stablize your reticule" one. I read that and thought, wait, our targeting reticule sways now? Since when?

We're talking about a specialization system that impacts game systems which we do not know about, and are themselves part of an investment and unlock suite that has not been described.

I have some thoughts on the specific stuff announced here, but I'm going to head home and mull it over.

This is actually one of the things I said in the interview.

By enlisting in a Specialization you basically raise your own level cap. With each one, you can extend the level cap a little further. You DO NOT have to rank all the way through again.

I don't understand this at all. Could you explain ranks and level caps?

 

[Sikamikanico]

Sigh. I can't read anymore. Bed time for me. Goodnight HaloGAF, I expect at least 10 pages (100ppp) to read when I get to work tomorrow.

 

[a zoojoo]

Can this week's bulletin explain how the $99.99 Halo 4 Limited Edition gives me an in-game advantage over buying the regular edition? The bulletin that showcased the $399.99 Halo 4 Edition Console* was one of my favorites.

*Halo 4 Limited Edition not included with console

All that plus funny pictures of Spartans with their Thumbs up their asses!!!!

This is actually one of the things I said in the interview.

By enlisting in a Specialization you basically raise your own level cap. With each one, you can extend the level cap a little further. You DO NOT have to rank all the way through again.

Wait, can you enlist in 2 at a time, so at lvl 60 you unlock the 1st specialization then at 70 the other?

 

[bobs...onGaf]

If this is true, after you finish level 60 - you lose all your unlocked weapons etc....?

Bye bye BR!

I can see it (if this is true of course) happening that people will not want to go back to level 1.

I doubt its going to be like prestiging at all. It sounds more like once you hit the highest rrank, you choose what to 'specialize' in, all specializing does is give you 10 more ranks, once you get to the 10th rank you unlock one of these rewards.

I would assume that if you want, you can specialize in multiple fields? Meaning that someone in 3 years from now could essentially have all the armour mods and use them at will?

 

[Not a Jellyfish]

Apparently Bravo is uploading his vid right now.
I know for a fact that he'll explain better and do better hype than IGN.

A child can do that.

 

[FyreWulff]

So, you thought spawn-killing from high ranked players was bad before...

You killed the Inheritor camping your base! Oh wait, since he gets a HUD icon pointing out where you are, changing position to keep him on his toes no longer works once he respawns, so he can just wait for you to go into the open and pick you off with a sniper. Hope you're a level 50 as well and have whatever counters that equipped.

I was under the impression before that it was closer to CoD in that you'd unlock specializations as you leveled up. Which sounded fairly meh. But now we know that you only get the actual perk once you hit max level.. and everyone else under your level just has to deal with the fact that you have an actual game-function advantage over them because they didn't pay 100$ for their copy of the game.

I still need a flowchart for this.

 

[StalkerUKCG]

I can't believe I'm saying this but last I checked COD prestiges didn't provide battlefield advantages. In fact, they brought you back down to lvl 1.

That's true but people didn't do it to reset ranks they did it to get a special emblem. Halo is doing it and now you get special Armor. Yes the Armor mod might be a bit far but from what I can tell I don't think they are going to be game breaking just mix up the game a little.

This whole thread is full of people who don't want to accept change and I can completely understand that but for halo to be successful again it needs to evolve. The problem with the way reach tried to do things (for me personally) was that the additions really broke how the game played.

Halo 4 has nothing that seems game breaking "yet". Everything shown looks like its goal is to mix up encounters and add variety to combat.

I have no doubts that something of a Classic Nature exists and will be deployed close to release for purists but to hate on features you have never tried that could potentially add so much new fun to the game seems stupid to me.

CoD is hugely popular and it got that way because it's meta game does a lot of things people like. You really cannot blame Halo for trailing something similar.

Yeah i know, #343DefenseForce #Casual #SensyGAF #Slurp ect ect.

 

[Karl2177]

...

An honest question: How does this benefit the gameplay in the longterm?

 

[Portugeezer]

This doesn't feel like Halo.

Not even close.

When the guns go pewpew it feels like Halo.

 

[Blissful]

This is actually one of the things I said in the interview.

By enlisting in a Specialization you basically raise your own level cap. With each one, you can extend the level cap a little further. You DO NOT have to rank all the way through again.

Now do I get matched up against people with the same progression? or can I be matched up with someone who just started the game?

 

[User 73932]

I don't quite get this reaction though, we've known about unlocking perks for months

I just though it was another slot for customization on top of AAs and tactical/support packages. That would of really bothered me.

Yeah. The vehicle health one needs context, as does the "stablize your reticule" one. I read that and thought, wait, our targeting reticule sways now? Since when?

The only thing I can think of is stabilization that reduces kickback from being shot/shooting.

 

[Deadly Cyclone]

We've broken the sound barrier.

 

[lybertyboy]

Now do I get matched up against people with the same progression? or can I be matched up with someone who just started the game?

You will be matched based on a variety of factors, SKILL, DLC, connection speed, etc.

 

[L1NETT]

This is actually one of the things I said in the interview.

By enlisting in a Specialization you basically raise your own level cap. With each one, you can extend the level cap a little further. You DO NOT have to rank all the way through again.

Ah right. Thanks for explaining again.

 

[Hey You]

I am thoroughly confused.

A ViDoc breaking all of this stuff down would be very helpful. Putting out bits and pieces isn't really helping the cause.

MS marketing at it's finest.

I mean I understand needing to give details to media outlets, but they'll cover whatever you put out regardless. If you made a video or article detailing features, they'll pick it up and throw it on their frontpage.

 

[Tashi]

This is actually one of the things I said in the interview.

By enlisting in a Specialization you basically raise your own level cap. With each one, you can extend the level cap a little further. You DO NOT have to rank all the way through again.

So you hit the last level, enlist in a specialization and raise the level cap. When you reach the "new" last level, you get the gameplay ability for which you chose to enlist in (Are all specializations unlocked to choose from when you reach the last level for the first time?). And you do this for each specialization.

How does the limited edition change this?

 

[Overdoziz]

Another day, another poorly handled Halo 4 reveal.
Just release some proper vidocs already.

 

[a zoojoo]

On the bright side the armor looks good.......

 

[dalVlatko]

...

An honest question: How does this benefit the gameplay in the longterm?

it keeps it "fresh" lol

 

[NullPointer]

CoD is hugely popular and it got that way because it's meta game does a lot of things people like. You really cannot blame Halo for trailing something similar.

Yes, I can really blame people for turning yet another shooter into a COD offshoot. We have far more than enough of those.

This stuff just rubs me the wrong way. Not sure exactly what it is, but I don't see the gameplay justifications for it outside of 'hey, this other game is really popular and makes a fuckton of money'. This doesn't feel like an evolution.

But I'll try to reserve some judgement. First impression is not great though.

 

[zap]

Can this week's bulletin explain how the $99.99 Halo 4 Limited Edition gives me an in-game advantage over buying the regular edition? The bulletin that showcased the $399.99 Halo 4 Edition Console* was one of my favorites.

*Halo 4 Limited Edition not included with console

Don't worry, 343i will decide to dole out some of these to the community if you are extra good. They're like Santa!

Spoiler

Giving us stuff we never wanted

 

[Gabotron ES]

Sounding good plus some of the armor sets looks sick. DAT OPERATOR

Just imagining how Reach's invasion would have played with H4's loadouts customization options makes me wet.

 

[Portugeezer]

You killed the Inheritor camping your base! Oh wait, since he gets a HUD icon pointing out where you are, changing position to keep him on his toes no longer works once he respawns, so he can just wait for you to go into the open and pick you off with a sniper. Hope you're a level 50 as well and have whatever counters that equipped.

And could be used in many more OP ways in objective modes, does it run out? does the person who killed know the guy can see him?

 

[Not a Jellyfish]

...

An honest question: How does this benefit the gameplay in the longterm?

It is all going to be about the matchmaking, I am sure there will be playlist that allow specializations and ones that don't. In the longterm it just adds a new dynamic, if done correctly it is a whole other aspect for competitive play. Changes how teams are built and how they function.

 

[Noricart]

You will be matched based on a variety of factors, SKILL, DLC, connection speed, etc.

I like/ Jack Nicholson nodding gif