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[Diablohead]

The point I'm getting at is that it's not about limiting someone else's choice, it's about giving you the choice to avoid behavior you don't like.

It's not limiting choice, he or they can go play in unranked social games if they want to stick to a party chat, leave the arena to the real players please.

 

[Magni]

I'm against restricting features for players, but not allowing party chat in the Arena sounds like a good idea to me. Arena is supposed to be the real competition and leagues of Halo -- where people can actually be elitist pricks and force competition in a console shooter.

But in a normal play list like what Grab Bag is? Fuck no.

Which is why I'm only asking for it in the Arena =)

As for the "Chatty" option, don't worry I've already chosen my Social features, and I'm glad Bungie's included them, much welcome, but they won't stop someone from being in PC. A guy in PC may be chatty, but he won't be calling out, or getting call outs. He'll be in his own game, he won't be with the team. IMO, that is unacceptable in the Arena.

Not exactly.

The TOU for Live (http://www.xbox.com/en-US/legal/LiveTOU.htm) require good behavior and address abusive language, harassment and cheating or abuse of game rules. Betraying, threatening, name-calling etc, are all specific violations of the TOU and the contract to use Xbox Live.

So actually, all of the abuses you describe are not in fact OK. Either by rule or by common sense.

Thank you Frankie.

It's common sense to expect teammates to play as a team, to communicate in the Arena. Hence why I think it should be a rule as well. Is that so hard for you to understand?

I can't stop someone from muting everyone, or force them to talk obviously, but at least PC disabled will be a step in the right direction for ideal team games in the Arena.

 

[Diablohead]

Agreed. The damage should roll over into the player's base health. However, I feel like the new system would be a lot better if the lunge were increased.

BIGGER lunge? you guys must be joking about all this melee shit :lol reach has the best close range method in any halo game for me because beatdowns were way too strong, now it takes that tiny little bit of thought and planning instead of bumrushing with an automatic weapon or BR.

Reach has more skill involved then any BR fighting in the previous halo games, adept.

 

[Magni]

Hey fellas. If I give my friend my 360 account to download the Reach beta, will he be able to play the beta using his gamertag?

Yes, my brother is playing 300 miles away thanks to this. Recover your account on his console, sign his account on, sign out yours (so you can recover it on your console), and he can play the beta. As long as he doesn't quit/sign out.

 

[Dipswitch]

Banged out a number of games last night. As a Halo 3 multiplayer noob, I had to overcome a sharp learning curve with the objective style games. The confusing objective marker color didn't help either. Repeatedly showing up in the blue teams flag area because I thought the red objective marker showed my designated area was annoying .

The grenades seem overpowered. They definitely feel "meatier" than the H3 grenades, but the splash damage radius seems excessive. Getting repeatedly nailed by a wall of shrapnel when across the room from 2 other dudes duking it out isn't fun. Half the time I don't even see who's killed me when grenades are involved.

I haven't quite formulated an opinion on the weapons yet.

Melee seems alright to me, albeit somewhat inconsistent. Pumping someone full of rounds (But not to the point where his shields are down) and then not getting a kill with a melee strike feels wrong. But I don't feel like I'm getting the short end of the stick too often and I'm still getting kills that way. My opinion may change however.

Armor abilities are definitely an improvement over the equipment in H3 and allow for more consistent gameplay IMO. I'm definitely favoring sprint at the moment. Engaging armor lock more often than not results in me being circled by other players like hungry animals and then getting nailed when it blows. In that regard, I guess I'm not using it right . I'm still experimenting with Invisibility and Jetpack.

 

[Magni]

However, I feel like the new system would be a lot better if the lunge were increased.

You're kidding, right? Right? Hooray for the death of lunge!

The confusing objective marker color didn't help either. Repeatedly showing up in the blue teams flag area because I thought the red objective marker showed my designated area was annoying .

I'm hoping this will be changed for the full release, it's been discussed quite a few times already =)

 

[AwesomeSyrup]

From a lot of stuff I've been reading on another forum(it's so fast here right now I can't keep up) it sounds like this is a mixture of Halo CE and Shadowrun. Which if it is then this game will never leave my disc tray.

 

[Wiggum2007]

And the Needler. Bungie, please, please, please, change the Needler back to the way it was in Halo 3. It was perfect.

Out of curiosity, what has changed about the Needler from 3 to Reach that you don't like? I have found the Reach Needler to be very effective, in fact I think my only killing spree in the beta so far has been using it. :lol

 

[PedroLumpy]

And that kind of shit should not be allowed in the arena, along with private chats.

Arrr, you're missing it to! The point is to get the tools so that you can choose to avoid these things if you want, not limit someone elses choice in what they can do.

 

[bj00rn_]

I want to play the beta so bad, it doesn't help that I'm sick right now and the weekend is going by slower.

Sorry to hear that man. If I had a code I'd give it to you. Hope you'll get better soon.

 

[mescalineeyes]

Melee seems alright to me, albeit somewhat inconsistent. Pumping someone full of rounds (But not to the point where his shields are down) and then not getting a kill with a melee strike feels wrong. But I don't feel like I'm getting the short end of the stick too often and I'm still getting kills that way. My opinion may change however.

the melee is nothing if not consistent. first hit takes his shield, next takes his life. no matter how much shield, no mutter how much health.

 

[GhaleonEB]

Out of curiosity, what has changed about the Needler from 3 to Reach that you don't like? I have found the Reach Needler to be very effective, in fact I think my only killing spree in the beta so far has been using it. :lol

It takes twice as much ammo (and time) to kill someone with it: one set of needles to pop the shield, and a second to kill the player.

 

[Apath]

It doesn't look dated. The game looks really good.

Looking dated and looking good are not one of the same. I really like how Reach looks, but when someone who just came from playing Uncharted 2, Banjo, Killzone, whatever says they're underwhelmed by the graphics, can you blame them?

Uh...yes it does.

I was just playing a match where a guy was a little bit in front of me, and despite my spamming RB, I just couldn't hit him with the sword. I could be mistaken though -- I'll try again some other time.

And the AR feels so much weaker because a big part of the AR before was the melee. Needing to remove all the shields before going in for the melee makes the AR feel gimped.

It takes twice as much ammo (and time) to kill someone with it: one set of needles to pop the shield, and a second to kill the player.

Seriously? That's the change? WTF? I thought the change was just needing a lot more needles to trigger the super combine, but needing two separate sets of needles for both the shields and health is ridiculous.

 

[Teknoman]

I still dont like it when i'm the only guy on my team not in party chat :lol

 

[Magni]

Arrr, you're missing it to! The point is to get the tools so that you can choose to avoid these things if you want, not limit someone elses choice in what they can do.

What tools? Social settings? These don't help to avoid PC at all.. I'd rather be limited in when I can go in PC, then have shitty games very often.

If Halo 3 MM and the current Beta are anything to go by. If I don't go in with a full team, I have much more chance to be with guys in PC than guys in GC :x

This isn't going anywhere, hopefully Bungie will make the right choice

It takes twice as much ammo (and time) to kill someone with it: one set of needles to pop the shield, and a second to kill the player.

I rarely used the Needler in H3 because of how inconsistent it was for us in Europe, and haven't picked it up much in Reach, so this probably won't affect me too much, but that is a pretty drastic change

 

[The Librarian]

You're kidding, right? Right? Hooray for the death of lunge!

There's still a lunge...it's just really short. Too short.

Out of curiosity, what has changed about the Needler from 3 to Reach that you don't like? I have found the Reach Needler to be very effective, in fact I think my only killing spree in the beta so far has been using it. :lol

It takes nearly twice as many needles to take someone down.

BIGGER lunge? you guys must be joking about all this melee shit :lol reach has the best close range method in any halo game for me because beatdowns were way too strong, now it takes that tiny little bit of thought and planning instead of bumrushing with an automatic weapon or BR.

What you clarified has nothing to do with the lunge; again, it adds to that more grounded feeling that should not be in a Halo game. The strength of a beatdown is exactly the same as it was in Halo 3: It takes two beat downs to kill someone in Halo 3, it takes two beat downs to kill someone in Reach. The only difference is that the damage of each beat down doesn't roll over into the players base health, which is stupid.

 

[mescalineeyes]

What tools? Social settings? These don't help to avoid PC at all.. I'd rather be limited in when I can go in PC, then have shitty games very often.

If Halo 3 MM and the current Beta are anything to go by. If I don't go in with a full team, I have much more chance to be with guys in PC than guys in GC :x

This isn't going anywhere, hopefully Bungie will make the right choice

fwiw, I am with you on this one. Party chat has no business in a competitive setting.

 

[Apath]

There should be no dispute to not allowing party chat in the arena. The arena is supposedly all about fostering a hardcore competitive environment, and team work/communication is a huge part of that. If you're going in with the intent to not communicate with your entire team -- you shouldn't be playing in the arena.

 

[Shrennin]

Party chat has no business in a competitive setting.

Even if Bungie did what IW did by eliminating the use of party chat, it will still basically be replicated with mute. Most games I've played in MW2 have their respective parties mute everyone else that is not in their party (thus replicating party chat). And please note that I did not say teams, I said parties (multiple parties could be comprised of one team).

I would be for eliminating it in Arena (as Kenak suggested), but there's still the problem of mute.

 

[CrazedArabMan]

What tools? Social settings? These don't help to avoid PC at all.. I'd rather be limited in when I can go in PC, then have shitty games very often.

If Halo 3 MM and the current Beta are anything to go by. If I don't go in with a full team, I have much more chance to be with guys in PC than guys in GC :x

This isn't going anywhere, hopefully Bungie will make the right choice



I rarely used the Needler in H3 because of how inconsistent it was for us in Europe, and haven't picked it up much in Reach, so this probably won't affect me too much, but that is a pretty drastic change

For arena, I won't mind if they only allow GC, but for social, PC should work no problem without any limitations.

 

[Dipswitch]

the melee is nothing if not consistent. first hit takes his shield, next takes his life. no matter how much shield, no mutter how much health.

Fine - it feels inconsistent. I know how it's supposed to work, it just doesn't feel right for the reasons I mentioned earlier. Not that big of a deal however - as I said I'm still getting kills using it.

 

[Sanic]

Arrr, you're missing it to! The point is to get the tools so that you can choose to avoid these things if you want, not limit someone elses choice in what they can do.

If i'm playing in an arena match with PC enabled, Bungie is limiting my competitiveness in a game mode designed strictly for competition.

Even if Bungie did what IW did by eliminating the use of party chat, it will still basically be replicated with mute. Most games I've played in MW2 have their respective parties mute everyone else that is not in their party (thus replicating party chat).

Even with that situation present, the overall environment is still better than if PC was enabled. Not everyone is going to mute everyone else.

 

[The Librarian]

Looking dated and looking good are not one of the same. I really like how Reach looks, but when someone who just came from playing Uncharted 2, Banjo, Killzone, whatever says they're underwhelmed by the graphics, can you blame them?

I've played two of those games you mentioned and Reach looks good by comparison, especially the art direction (and with that, the skyboxes...holy shit). But let me get this out of the way so I know it's completely understood: I am in no way saying that Reach has better graphics than Killzone 2 or Uncharted 2.

And the AR feels so much weaker because a big part of the AR before was the melee. Needing to remove all the shields before going in for the melee makes the AR feel gimped.

Actually, to me, the AR feels more powerful in Reach than it ever did in Halo 3, and that's due to its increased accuracy over a longer range. I feel a lot more confident in the weapon's ability to kill someone.

 

[Magni]

There's still a lunge...it's just really short. Too short.

It takes nearly twice as many needles to take someone down.

What you clarified has nothing to do with the lunge; again, it adds to that more grounded feeling that should be in a Halo game. The strength of a beatdown is exactly the same as it was in Halo 3: It takes two beat downs to kill someone in Halo 3, it takes two beat downs to kill someone in Reach. The only difference is that the damage of each beat down doesn't roll over into the players base health, which is stupid.

I was asking if you were kidding concerning your asking for lunge to be increased (that is one horrible sentence structure :lol). I know it's more or less gone, good riddance

I actually prefer the new system. AR+melee ruined non BR-start games for me in H3. 6 shots + melee? Fuck that, good riddance.

 

[soldat7]

I think this is an universal concensus.

You want stronger melee but weaker grenades? You're nuts.

fwiw, I am with you on this one. Party chat has no business in a competitive setting.

Party chat is great. I don't think I'd play much if they removed it. There is no point in removing it, none whatsoever.

 

[Shake Appeal]

I actually prefer the new system. AR+melee ruined non BR-start games for me in H3. 6 shots + melee? Fuck that, good riddance.

Can't be said enough.

Run with the new melee system and never look back, Bungie.

 

[Kibbles]

o hai

 

[Apath]

Party chat is great. I don't think I'd play much if they removed it. There is no point in removing it, none whatsoever.

In the Arena? If you're talking general multiplayer, I'd agree, but when it comes to the arena Party Chat should definitely be disabled.

 

[Popeck]

Maybe I'm playing wrong or my opponents are playing wrong, but I've got 217 melee kills out of 922. That's quite a lot. It's my most efficient killing method, right before DMR (188) and pistol (180). You can melee two times so quickly in succession that I always hit instead of shooting, if the enemy comes close.

Also the more I've played, the less I've used Assault Rifle. I've got only 18 kills with it and I've been killed 95 times with it! That's crazy. The weapon is included in almost every loadout. Maybe I should try to actually use it, but the quality of other weapons really pushes me away from AR.

Not many people seem to know about the grenade launcher or care to use it, but the weapon is awesome. It's so rewarding to time the explosions right or just shoot someone in the face with a grenade.

 

[Teknoman]

Elites look alot crazier now...

Also party chat is a double edged sword in games with team MP. On one hand, if you're whole team is in party chat...you avoid trash talk and random lame insults. On the other, if you're the odd man out, you're basically screwed as far as team communication goes.

 

[PedroLumpy]

As for the "Chatty" option, don't worry I've already chosen my Social features, and I'm glad Bungie's included them, much welcome, but they won't stop someone from being in PC. A guy in PC may be chatty, but he won't be calling out, or getting call outs. He'll be in his own game, he won't be with the team. IMO, that is unacceptable in the Arena.

Well, I would be cool with chatty options enforcing no PC, because when you chose that option you are implicitly agreeing to be chatty.

Thank you Frankie.

It's common sense to expect teammates to play as a team, to communicate in the Arena. Hence why I think it should be a rule as well. Is that so hard for you to understand?

I can't stop someone from muting everyone, or force them to talk obviously, but at least PC disabled will be a step in the right direction for ideal team games in the Arena.

Oh man, so OuterWorldVoice is Stinkles? Man I think I'm late to the one.

Well, I expect people to play as a team in every team mode, doesn't mean they're going to. MLG settings or whatever they are this time, while yes they are used for 'high level' play, every match you play is not 'high level'. I like MLG settings for some games I've played because I think they make the game better, but i don't suddenly think that I'm playing on some 'higher level' than all the other vanilla <insert game title here> players.

Essentially I don't agree that when something is more 'balanced' it automatically becomes more 'serious'

 

[soldat7]

Watching the Beta videos, it looks like Halo 3 all over again at 720p. I was hoping for a visual overhaul but nope still the same. The cinematics in Halo Wars had a very dark gritty like atmosphere, why have they not fleshed that out? I don't understand this. When players go into rooms the rooms seem pre-lit, there are lights in the room but they don't seem to do jack shit in terms of how the room is illuminated. Seriously? That shit should have stopped last gen.

It's Halo so no doubt people will go ape shit for it but considering this is Microsoft's big flagship title, it blows my mind that it's so dated technically. It's been surpassed by just about every other first person shooter I can think of. Hell Halo 3 was very ordinary when it launched, 2 years on and the game still looks the same albeit at a HD res this time.

Ur dum.

 

[Subtervotion]

Not it's not his game. It's our game. If he's in SinglePlayer, it's his game. If he's in MultiPlayer, it's our game. I mean, going by your logic, I can do whatever the fuck I want, betray, mod, standby, insult the fuck out everyone, because it's my game, right? Well no, I can't, because Bungie and MS have included measures against what I just stated (boot, ban, mute). IW has gone one step further, all I'm asking is for Bungie to do the same, for Arena only.

Betaying, modding, and standbying are way worse than a guy who doesn't talk. Yeah, randoms suck a lot. But I love party chat and I'll continue to use it!

 

[Apath]

Maybe I'm playing wrong or my opponents are playing wrong, but I've got 217 melee kills out of 922. That's quite a lot. It's my most efficient killing method, right before DMR (188) and pistol (180). You can melee two times so quickly in succession that I always hit instead of shooting, if the enemy comes close.

Also the more I've played, the less I've used Assault Rifle. I've got only 18 kills with it and I've been killed 95 times with it! That's crazy. The weapon is included in almost every loadout. Maybe I should try to actually use it, but the quality of other weapons really pushes me away from AR.

Not many people seem to know about the grenade launcher or care to use it, but the weapon is awesome. It's so rewarding to time the explosions right or just shoot someone in the face with a grenade.

My top three are the same exact thing as yours, and a lot of others also have similar variants of them as their top three. I'd say it's more telling of the system than your particular play style.

And yeah, the Grenade Launcher doesn't get much use because:
1) Not everyone knows about it. It's hidden in a corner of the bathroom on Powerhouse. People don't go there often.
2) It takes a little bit of practice to get good with.

 

[Blueblur1]

And that kind of shit should not be allowed in the arena, along with private chats.

Leave private and party chat alone.

 

[dilatedmuscle]

Not it's not his game. It's our game. If he's in SinglePlayer, it's his game. If he's in MultiPlayer, it's our game. I mean, going by your logic, I can do whatever the fuck I want, betray, mod, standby, insult the fuck out everyone, because it's my game, right? Well no, I can't, because Bungie and MS have included measures against what I just stated (boot, ban, mute). IW has gone one step further, all I'm asking is for Bungie to do the same, for Arena only.

It may save you a headache if you just find people to be in a party with instead of playing with randoms who dont want to talk to anyone in the particular match.

 

[soldat7]

*wisdom*

You are wise, for one so young.

 

[Not a Jellyfish]

Leave private and party chat alone.

I would like to see party chat in the Arena only allowed if you have a full 4 person party, I think having that stipulation will create more teamwork and good randoms forming parties.

 

[Shake Appeal]

Maybe I'm playing wrong or my opponents are playing wrong, but I've got 217 melee kills out of 922. That's quite a lot. It's my most efficient killing method, right before DMR (188) and pistol (180). You can melee two times so quickly in succession that I always hit instead of shooting, if the enemy comes close.

My #1, #2, #3 are the same, and I have 242/1,161 for melees, which is a similar proportion (21% to your 23% or so). That seems a very reasonable number.

It's worth pointing out that if you combined your DMR and pistol it would outweigh the melee, and it's the same in mine. They're very similar guns (they fire the same round), it's just the differences in rate of fire/bloom that give them different roles in different contexts. Around 40% of your kills are with either the DMR or pistol, and about 33% of mine are. Again, that seems reasonable.

Once people crack this melee system my feelings might change, but right now I feel like half the players I get into CQC with just don't know what to do, and I'm either winning the beatdown exchanges or grabbing a simultaneous against the odds almost every time.

 

[soldat7]

I would like to see party chat in the Arena only allowed if you have a full 4 person party, I think having that stipulation will create more teamwork and good randoms forming parties.

That didn't help MW2 any.

 

[Diablohead]

Leave private and party chat alone.

Both block communications with your team though especially if you are using party or private chat to someone in another game outside of the arena, both are just as bad.

Also wow just had dejavu writing that reply out (no joke)

 

[PedroLumpy]

What tools?

Yeah, that's the point, we should be complaining about that, rather than trying to tell someone else what to do.

This isn't going anywhere, hopefully Bungie will make the right choice

Yeah sorry I had typed that last one up while you were typing that up etc. etc. etc. It's getting really hard to follow with the thread motoring along. So yeah you can think I'm some self absorbed racist asshat, and I'll think you're a facist and we'll call it even.

 

[Apath]

That didn't help MW2 any.

MW2 isn't about team work. It's about killing as many people as quickly as you can to get a spree to call in helicopters 'n shit.

 

[Not a Jellyfish]

My #1, #2, #3 are the same, and I have 242/1,161 for melees, which is a similar proportion (21% to your 23% or so). That seems a very reasonable number.

I am one of those playing wrong I guess. :lol

Melee and AR is what is working me the most, those are the majority of my deaths.

I am -42 Melee but -105 AR.

 

[soldat7]

Actually, to me, the AR feels more powerful in Reach than it ever did in Halo 3, and that's due to its increased accuracy over a longer range. I feel a lot more confident in the weapon's ability to kill someone.

And aren't you the resident AR expert? I didn't like the AR in Halo 3, but love it in Reach.

 

[The Librarian]

And aren't you the resident AR expert? I didn't like the AR in Halo 3, but love it in Reach.

Some would call me that.

 

[Apath]

And aren't you the resident AR expert? I didn't like the AR in Halo 3, but love it in Reach.

Check his Bungie.net profile :lol He's the first I've seen with AR as #1 in kills.

 

[Wiggum2007]

It takes twice as much ammo (and time) to kill someone with it: one set of needles to pop the shield, and a second to kill the player.

Yeah I knew about not being able to supercombine the needles until after shields are down, but something seems to have been improved with it. I don't know if it's an increased rate of fire, or better needle tracking, but I am finding the Needler to be more consistently effective then it ever was in Halo 3. Heh, then again maybe it's because I suck so much with the rest of the new weapon set that the Needler just seems better in comparison. :lol

 

[Zeouterlimits]

Little UI Annoyance:
Active Roster
It's a great idea, <3 H2's Y button, so AR is handy but the fact that you can't see any version of it when searching for a game is a mistake in my opinion.
It should be something I see all the time, instead of having to back out to see who is doing what.

Love the fact that it's there though.

Posted a bug about the UI in the Feedback forum related to Theatre Mode Screenshot text running off screen too.

 

[Kibbles]

+49 with the Needle Rifle Way better than the DMR.

Watching the Beta videos, it looks like Halo 3 all over again at 720p. I was hoping for a visual overhaul but nope still the same.

Wat? This looks far better than Halo 3.