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[Prine]

Om my looooord. Looks like its going to be the best multiplayer game of all time. Halo's combat is just tooo good.

 

[AltogetherAndrews]

Looks like UT3. And neat. Not that the two aren't compatible.

 

[electricpirate]

Could you point this out for me in the video?

Sure, it's the scene that starts at 9 seconds, and ends at 11 seconds. the blue spartan on the right does the cool animation blend.

 

[Louis Wu]

I'm wondering why the video still says it's alpha. Wouldn't this be considered the beta version.

This is alpha (feature-complete, but missing lots of sophistication); it's what they're playing now.

Beta won't be out for months.

 

[Trasher]

It now makes sense that there is a credit/money system in the game since there are Loadouts. Right?

 

[nilam01]

Sure, it's the scene that starts at 9 seconds, and ends at 11 seconds. the blue spartan on the right does the cool animation blend.

Yes I see it now. Too bad they cut away so quickly, but I can see he supports himself when turning away.

btw could this mean we can pilot a phantom?

or maybe it's firefight?

 

[Kapura]

It now makes sense that there is a credit/money system in the game since there are Loadouts. Right?

Eh, not really. Bungie has publicly said that they never want more experienced or better players to have a material advantage. A cred system implies that as players progress, they unlock more things. That seems opposed to Bungie's stated aims.

 

[electricpirate]

Yes I see it now. Too bad they cut away so quickly, but I can see he supports himself when turning away.

btw could this mean we can pilot a phantom?

or maybe it's firefight?

Yea, I'm wondering that myself.

My current line of speculation is that invasion is a "Human vs. AI mode" where two teams are competing to get the most kills, or to take the most objectives against firefight like waves of elites.

I'm thinking Arena is a more traditional Halo style of MP, tight firefights, no loadouts, map control etc.

I think spartan vs. Elites is an attack defend mode, or it could just be a feature explanation for invasion. I'm not really sure, but damn it looks rad.

 

[Louis Wu]

Did anybody else get an Engrish vibe from the trailer too, with all of the nonsensical words and super-dramatic music? Seriously, "Active Roster" and "The Arena" mean little to me in the context of the footage... Active Roster just shows a red team and a blue team, and The Arena seems to be a final showcase for maps, but simpler would have been better there I think, especially with all of the new stuff already going on.

Everything we've gotten before this point was analyzed to death before we ever saw it; the press got early looks, wrote it all up in nice small easy-to-digest words, and spit it back to us. Then, later, we got to SEE it - all imagination was gone, no interpretation needed.

This time, we're getting a look at what we'll play - BEFORE anyone tells us anything about it. We get to speculate. We get to smoke the crack pipe, and come up with how we think it all might mean. And then, down the road a bit, they'll clarify - and we'll see how right (or wrong) we were.

It's way the hell more fun this way.

Of course, if all you wanted were bullet points, don't worry, I'm sure the tried-and-true press-first method will be back before too long...

 

[JaggedSac]

Eh, not really. Bungie has publicly said that they never want more experienced or better players to have a material advantage. A cred system implies that as players progress, they unlock more things. That seems opposed to Bungie's stated aims.

A cred system could be how armor customization works. Visual customization only though. Still good to have a reward based system in some capacity to keep people coming back.

 

[BladedExpert]

I got a pretty big Shadowrun vibe from some of that. The DMR is basically the Shadowrun Rifle (sweet weapon) with the almost the exact same reticle bloom when shooting. The Pistol, although looking like the CE pistol, reminded me of the Shadowrun pistol (nice basic weapon but not overpowered). The Jetpack perk reminds me of the wing tech you could get too.

None of these similarities surprise me, Sage McBeard being from Fasa. I have to say, combining two of my favourite shooters of the generation is getting me pretty moist

May3rdMay3rdMay3rdMay3rd....

 

[Trasher]

Eh, not really. Bungie has publicly said that they never want more experienced or better players to have a material advantage. A cred system implies that as players progress, they unlock more things. That seems opposed to Bungie's stated aims.

I'm not talking about unlocking things. I'm just talking about how you get to choose what weapons and equipment you want to use in a specific game/round/match/etc.

 

[electricpirate]

It now makes sense that there is a credit/money system in the game since there are Loadouts. Right?

I think Cred/money system will be used solely for visual upgrades, not sure though.

 

[Vigilant Walrus]

Do you think we will get more than 16 players at maximum this time?

Or Flyable vehicles, that can hold many players?

 

[electricpirate]

Do you think we will get more than 16 players at maximum this time?

seems likely

Or Flyable vehicles, that can hold many players?

we have confirmation that the falcon is pilotable, not sure how many it holds though.

 

[Kapura]

Do you think we will get more than 16 players at maximum this time?

Or Flyable vehicles, that can hold many players?

1: Probably slightly more (20 max maybe)

2: Certainly. Ske7ch confirmed the Falcon as an MP vehicle.

 

[Olivero]

I like how they have the callout for the map listed in the bottom left corner of the screen near the radar. Nice touch. Will really help with communication, I think.

 

[Kapura]

I like how they have the callout for the map listed in the bottom left corner of the screen near the radar. Nice touch. Will really help with communication, I think.

I thought that was awesome too. Will probably make navigating through the maps easier the first few rounds, with names for areas rather than just scenery as reference points.

 

[Trasher]

I think Cred/money system will be used solely for visual upgrades, not sure though.

Would make sense definitely. But then again why would you need an in-game tracker of your credits to unlock customizable armor? Wouldn't really make much sense. And of course I am speculating on all of this based on those Tom Morello screenshots still (the credit system hasn't been confirmed or even discussed by Bungie yet right?).

 

[BladedExpert]

I like how they have the callout for the map listed in the bottom left corner of the screen near the radar. Nice touch. Will really help with communication, I think.

Also from Shadowrun. Missed that bit in my previous post. Wonder if there will be auto callouts like from Shadowrun (press back button for nice lady voice to call out location and number of enemies)

 

[backflip10019]

SOO MUCH TO ANALYZE! I'm going to give it my best:

-Assassinations - we already knew about these, but I thought that these third person animations were only for melee/assassinations from behind? And a punch to the nuts? Really?
-Elites can roll - I guess the success of Gears finally got to Bungie. It looks like an interesting mechanic in a Halo game. Not sure how I'll feel about it in the end b/c it looks like it will give Elites a huge advantage in CQC.
-Loadouts - looks like the first one is a type of grenade or something, then the jetpack (not sure how I feel about this), then what the bubble shield should have been
-Sniper rifle tweaks - So the reticule jumps in size after firing, I'm guessing to make it more difficult to no scope consecutively? I don't really agree with Bungie's decision to make the firing time in between each shot longer, but w/e.
-Assassinations from behind - Again, not sure how I feel about it. I kind of wish they just kept it the same as H3. I feel like it just takes too much time and makes you too vulnerable like Gears 1's chainsaw.
-New HUD - looks so awesome. Big improvements all around.
-Plasma rocket launcher shooty thing - looks awesome. Let's hope there's no missile pod in this game.
-I'm guessing Headhunter is the new SWAT or something?
-Explosions look awesome.
-Rockets look a bit more powerful which is good. I hate in H3 when you shoot a rocket at someone's feet while they're jumping and they just lose their shield. Hopefully in Reach they have a little more oomph.
-Purple spartan laser thingy? Not sure what this is...
-H1 pistol - Awesome. Let's hope you spawn with it in multi.
-DMR looks awesome. Can't wait to out-DMR BKs.
-The hammer makes a comeback - ehhhhhhhhhhhh really could have done without it.

And those are my thoughts.

 

[Mr Vociferous]

We get to smoke the crack pipe.

I will smoke the crack pipe but only because you said we should.

 

[I NEED SCISSORS]

Woah, not stepped into this thread since the first vidoc.

Halo always has such amazing particle effects. I remember my jaw dropping the first time I saw the plasma grenade in Halo 2. I guess Bungie haven't lost touch of that particular area, ho ho ho.

 

[ToyMachine228]

Do you think we will get more than 16 players at maximum this time?

Or Flyable vehicles, that can hold many players?

- Possibly. But then again the most popular modes in previous Halo games have always been around 4v4, or 5v5. Big Team Battle has never really caught on. But who knows.

- The Hornet can hold multiple players in Halo 3.

- I have a feeling Invasion is more than just "Spartans vs Elites". It may be that at it's core with one team being Spartans and one being Elites, but it's definitely more complicated than that, and the Phantom probably supports that.

Also, nice point on the Shadowrun thing. I didn't know that captain beardman from Bungle was formerly a fasa guy.

 

[ToyMachine228]

-Assassinations from behind - Again, not sure how I feel about it. I kind of wish they just kept it the same as H3. I feel like it just takes too much time and makes you too vulnerable like Gears 1's chainsaw.

For the 10th time today. You have to hold down the B button to do an assassination. If you just tap the B button like we always have to melee in Halo: CE, Halo 2, Halo 3 and Halo 3: ODST you melee like normal. Assassinations aren't something that happen automatically. You as the player have control whether you just want to melee or do an assassination.

 

[Chip N Chance]

I'm loving what appears to be Elites vs Spartans.

 

[Syracuse022]

Everything we've gotten before this point was analyzed to death before we ever saw it; the press got early looks, wrote it all up in nice small easy-to-digest words, and spit it back to us. Then, later, we got to SEE it - all imagination was gone, no interpretation needed.

This time, we're getting a look at what we'll play - BEFORE anyone tells us anything about it. We get to speculate. We get to smoke the crack pipe, and come up with how we think it all might mean. And then, down the road a bit, they'll clarify - and we'll see how right (or wrong) we were.

It's way the hell more fun this way.

Of course, if all you wanted were bullet points, don't worry, I'm sure the tried-and-true press-first method will be back before too long...

Point taken. Yeah, it's more fun this way for sure. Lol @ the crack pipe metaphor by the way.

Anyways, I guess I'll keep smoking. I count 4 maps:
-Smelter - huge industrial complex with a Headlong vibe (cranes, sunset-tinted skybox, etc.), seems to house the majority of the Invasion footage
-Rock Garden - green rock-strewn hills just like the campaign level we've glimpsed in screens and ViDocs
-Lysol - antiseptic office building, littered with technology; all sorts of interesting and vertical geometry
-Powerhouse - take all the dam pictures you want; seems to be focused on circular spaces, (the interior room we saw in the concept art, the spillway that we see in the KotH clip). I'm digging the watery hill location by the way.

EDIT:

-H1 pistol - Awesome. Let's hope you spawn with it in multi.

Yeah, that's not the H1 pistol. It fires a lot faster and looks like it might have a shallower clip (8 rounds). Probably does less damage too. Expect to use a single clip killing one person I would wager as it's probably still in the ballpark of five or six shots to kill.

 

[Olivero]

Also from Shadowrun. Missed that bit in my previous post. Wonder if there will be auto callouts like from Shadowrun (press back button for nice lady voice to call out location and number of enemies)

That would be awesome. I really enjoy the spotting technique deployed in BFBC2.

 

[OverHeat]

I just jizzed in my pants....cant wait for the beta

 

[backflip10019]

For the 10th time today. You have to hold down the B button to do an assassination. If you just tap the B button like we always have to melee in Halo: CE, Halo 2, Halo 3 and Halo 3: ODST you melee like normal. Assassinations aren't something that happen automatically. You as the player have control whether you just want to melee or do an assassination.

Oh really? Well, for the first time today, did it say that anywhere in the video? `No.

And if they aren't mandatory, what's the point of having them at all? If the animation makes you vulnerable, who the hell would ever use it in multiplayer?

-Powerhouse - take all the dam pictures you want; seems to be focused on circular spaces, (the interior room we saw in the concept art, the spillway that we see in the KotH clip). I'm digging the watery hill location by the way.

Where can I get some dam bait?

 

[Prophet Steve]

Would make sense definitely. But then again why would you need an in-game tracker of your credits to unlock customizable armor? Wouldn't really make much sense. And of course I am speculating on all of this based on those Tom Morello screenshots still (the credit system hasn't been confirmed or even discussed by Bungie yet right?).

I believe Bungie said you got only cosmetic upgrades by leveling up, not exact words.

 

[Trasher]

I'm not really sure why, but I was digging the new king of the hill indicator. Also seemed like it was a much bigger area in comparison to Halo 3's hill size. That map it showed it on seemed to be built with king of the hill in mind too.

 

[Spasm]

Loadout: I'm guessing you can choose armor abilities AND weapons, etc, but each map/gametype will have a list of allowed items.

Active Roster: My guess, this is just their fancy name for Drop-in/Drop-out.

Also:

Looks like the PBS exerts some kinetic force outwards. Anything near you when it pop gets tossed away with prejudice. More fun with physics!?

 

[Truelize]

Holy crap that video is amazing!!!!!!!!!! WOW!

 

[JaggedSac]

I don't think their previous P2P methods can handle more than 16. They would either have to start using dedicated servers for the bigger game modes, or they would need to introduce something that has not been implemented in gaming. Perhaps a subset of Donnybrook.

 

[Kajiba]

That was a nice trailer. I was Kinda suprised when the brute hammer pop up. Didn't think that would be in since its reach. Guess bungie said fuck that noise, Going all in for MP Reach :lol.

I'm hyped now.

 

[GhaleonEB]

Wondering what the point of Invasion slayer is. Seems to me it would require a shitton of balancing to make sure each side can slay equally and human vs covie seems to fit objective games much better. There are enough slayer modes anyways. I wanna jump into the invasion playlist to play unique one-sided objective matches not slayer with different skins.

Just read through everything and didn't see this addressed. You're making the assumption that Invasion = Slayer. The "Generator Destroyed" could well be for the invasion game type, meaning it's less about kills and more about taking over the enemy base and blowing their shit up. Either way, Invasion won't just be slayer.

Good lord what a way to wake up. :lol

More when I get to work.

 

[backflip10019]

I'm not really sure why, but I was digging the new king of the hill indicator. Also seemed like it was a much bigger area in comparison to Halo 3's hill size. That map it showed it on seemed to be built with king of the hill in mind too.

Me too. I like how you can actually see inside the hill when you're out of it. It was way too difficult to actually see where someone was inside the hill in H3 because of the grandiose indicator.

 

[Louis Wu]

And if they aren't mandatory, what's the point of having them at all? If the animation makes you vulnerable, who the hell would ever use it in multiplayer?

Seriously? Have you NEVER killed a tea-bagger who was squatting instead of paying attention?

 

[Kapura]

I'm not really sure why, but I was digging the new king of the hill indicator. Also seemed like it was a much bigger area in comparison to Halo 3's hill size. That map it showed it on seemed to be built with king of the hill in mind too.

I dug the hills too. They looks more in place in the environments than the big forerunner glyph polygons.

 

[JaggedSac]

I think, and someone previously stated this I think, Invasion is a set of game modes of Spartan vs Elites. Invasion regular is objective based. Invasion Slayer is kill based.

 

[Apharmd Battler]

And these are soldiers from the Spartan III program....DAMN! Man, this fottage has me abot to pass out at my desk here at work with such unbridled awesomeness. Bungie is putting there foot in this one. I've watched that trailer about 8 times, and will watch it again here at my desk on lunch break (via smart phone). This game looks s o friggin' awesome!

 

[Kapura]

Just read through everything and didn't see this addressed. You're making the assumption that Invasion = Slayer. The "Generator Destroyed" could well be for the invasion game type, meaning it's less about kills and more about taking over the enemy base and blowing their shit up. Either way, Invasion won't just be slayer.

Good lord what a way to wake up. :lol

More when I get to work.

But there was a gametype listed as "Invasion Slayer."

My guess: Spartans v Elites Slayer.

 

[feel]

They should have released this a day or two before the beta. This is just cruel.

 

[Syracuse022]

Could Headhunter be a SWAT free-for-all of sorts? All they show are headshot kills... Maybe doming someone has them drop every skull they're carrying (plus one) for you to add to your collection.

 

[GhaleonEB]

I dug the hills too. They looks more in place in the environments than the big forerunner glyph polygons.

Part of me liked the completely opaque Beta hills, where you couldn't see in or out of them. :lol

But there was a gametype listed as "Invasion Slayer."

My guess: Spartans v Elites Slayer.

Hmm, I missed that completely. Must need to see it another 10 times. They really packed a lot of goodies into that trailer. :lol

Still, I assume there's a difference between Invasion Slayer and Slayer. Could just be Spartans vs. Elites, which raises the question of how they'll play differently.

 

[Trasher]

I believe Bungie said you got only cosmetic upgrades by leveling up, not exact words.

I'm not saying that the credits are a leveling system. I'm just speculating on if they are accumulated over the duration of a match and are given to players for getting kills or completing objectives. My only frame of reference for a Loadout game is Counter-Strike so if there are different styles of Loadouts please clue me in.

 

[backflip10019]

Seriously? Have you NEVER killed a tea-bagger who was squatting instead of paying attention?

Nope, never in my 8,235 games played have I done this.

I guess Assassinations (w/animations) are legit. I'm really happy that they're not mandatory.

 

[Kapura]

Could Headhunter be a SWAT free-for-all of sorts? All they show are headshot kills... Maybe doming someone has them drop every skull they're carrying (plus one) for you to add to your collection.

I don't know if it's like SWAT in that there are no shields, but headshots are definitely the way to collect domes. I hope there is some way to make it so you don't lose ALL of your heads if you die. That'd be silly and cruel.

 

[backflip10019]

Hmm, another thought: If Active Roster is actually drop-in, drop-out like CoD's system, does that really work with Halo's traditional ranking system? Not really. I wonder what they're going to do to make it work.

I don't know if it's like SWAT in that there are no shields, but headshots are definitely the way to collect domes. I hope there is some way to make it so you don't lose ALL of your heads if you die. That'd be silly and cruel.

Reminds me of Super Smash Bros Melee's coins game.