You may recognize the author of this article as the person behind many well thought out comments peppered throughout my blog. I have personally sent him several thank you messages for leading positive discussions which could have easily gone downhill without his participation. IX Fall0ut XI (who goes by -S- around these parts) enjoys a side of gaming I don’t participate in as a casual recreational player, which is professional gaming. In his article he discusses the changes he would like to see implemented in Halo 3 that would please the pro gaming community. Regardless if you consider yourself recreational or competitive, give it a read and see if you agree with his thoughts. Enjoy.
The Halo Pro Gamer’s 2008 Wishlist
Let me begin by saying that professional gaming is a strong movement that is rapidly growing in this country and around the world. Love it or hate it, it’s very hard to ignore. The Professional Gamers League of America, the Cyberathlete Professional League, the World Series of Video Games, the Video Gamers League and Major League Gaming all have advertising deals, gaming and marketing contracts, numerous nationwide tournaments and countless followers.
Whether you’re on the ‘pro gaming’ boat or not, you have to admit that it definitely falls into one of the 4 categories of gaming (according to me). Those categories are:
- Games you play alone for pure solitary entertainment and storyline (e.g. Final Fantasy and Oblivion)
- Games you play alone but like to compare high scores just because (e.g. Brain Age, Tetris, Pac-Man)
- Multiplayer party games you play with several other people on the same console at the same time (e.g. Wii Sports, Mario Party, Super Smash Brothers Melee)
- Multiplayer games where you play with many other people over the net/LAN each on their own systems (e.g. Counter Strike, Halo, WoW)
Pro gaming is right in there, comfortably in #4 (and sometimes #3).
Now in the Halo world (and all other games in the #4 category), whether you agree with me or not, the hardcore pro gamers are the ones that the folks at Bungie need to take care of the most. Yes that’s right, the pro gamers and avid multiplayers are your golden goose Bungie. We’re the ones who keep games alive and healthy and off the dusty shelves for years. How many gamers can you list that play Xbox Live every week? Thousands. How many people can honestly say they play through the Halo 3 Campaign every week? I myself have played through the campaign about four times and that’s basically about as much as I can get out of it, for quite some time now anyways.
Go ahead, you can argue me all you want. I am by no means a multiplayer only guy – I love the Halo story line and I’ve read all the books but think about it this way. What do you think kept Halo CE such a wildly popular game for several years after it came out? The multiplayer! Everyone had fun playing Campaign mode but in the long run, eventually replay value begins to decline because it’s the same thing every time. In multiplayer games and tournaments, it’s always different and exciting; new scenarios, different play styles, competing with/against friends, trying to be the best gamer you can be among your peers, and just having fun! Raise your hand if you’ve ever stayed awake from 8PM to 9AM playing GoldenEye with your friends.
Of course, I’m being very non-specific here. Let’s clarify. In my own personal opinion the good people at Bungie are NOT competitive players. At all. They’re more of the fun-loving kind of gamers; Grifball, Ninjanaut, Hide and Seek, Cat and Mouse, Hammerzeit, Civil War, and Zombies. Don’t get me wrong, I’d be an incredible hypocrite if I came out and said that any of these games aren’t fun. They’re great and every time a new zany creation comes out, I’m one of the first in line to try it but that’s just the thing, gametypes like that are sort of just ‘fads’. All you have to do is go to any Forge creation or custom game forum to see how many silly gametypes are made each day and to realize that as fun as they are, games like Grifball just simply come and go.
The pro gamers thirst for a different kind of challenge. 100% balanced playing fields, straight forward scenarios, and matches that reward strategy and accuracy as opposed to simplistic dual wielding and bullet spraying. Have you ever played with a kid who kept blaming the fact he was doing poorly on a broken controller? “There’s something wrong with the joystick, seriously guys, the button just keeps sticking. Why won’t it work? It’s broken, I’d do better if it wasn’t.” Don’t you just want to stop the match and GIVE him a brand new controller just so he can put his money where his mouth is, with everyone playing on the same level with no advantage/disadvantage? Pure skill against pure skill?
Yeah, it’s like that.
This my friends, in very specific order, is what the most dedicated gaming crowd, the Pro Gamers of the world, would like to ask Bungie to implement in the new year.
- Bring back the old maps!
Seriously, we love all the new stuff. It’s truly awesome; new stuff is what keeps games fresh and players on their toes. But I’m getting the feeling that you thought if you had brought back classics like Midship, Lockout (and don’t give me that Guardian nonsense, it ain’t the same), Beaver Creek, Chill Out, and Warlock with the release of Halo 3, the critics would have given you the theoretical ‘smack down’ for not being innovative. No one will say that, I promise. :) Those maps were beautiful, a piece of gaming art. Fun and perfect for that symmetrical, all around even playing field that the hardcore gamers love.
- Fix the melee system, please!
Come to think of it, this might not fall under the ‘pro gamer’ category – I’m pretty sure a lot of people I know have been peeved about this little annoyance. For those of you who don’t know what I’m talking about, when two players in Halo 3 melee each other at the same time, the one with the more health ‘wins’. Sounds simple enough but there have been countless instances where Spartan A and B collide, and B has slightly less health yet blatantly connects with his melee before Spartan A. Even though he hit first with a blow that should have killed Spartan A he will lose and die, even after striking, because he had less health. This is unacceptable in the pro gaming world, where those with the quickest reflexes receive rightful glory.
- Bring back the Halo 1 Pistol?
Alright, alright. I know this one is never going to happen, but you can’t blame me for trying. Like that 14 year old kid who asks for a space ship for his birthday. Never hurts to ask, right? If you want to get technical, Bungie did bring back the Halo 1 pistol, kind of. It’s mostly for show, considering it’s basically a tinker-toy when compared to its former self. Why bother even putting it in if it’s basically just a not-as-strong battle rifle? Oh well, we can all dream.
- Separate Team Hardcore into Hardcore Slayer and Hardcore Objective.
While about 90% of the pro gamers I know practice their skills in extremely organized custom games with people they’ve known long enough to trust with their bank accounts, it’s always great to have last minute playing options when no one else is available. Team Hardcore, while slightly different from the recent MLG test variant gametypes (no schedule has been announced thus far) is still a lot of fun to play on Live. However sometimes you just feel the need for one or the other. You separated Team Slayer from Team Objective. So why not the same for Team Hardcore as well? We’d totally love that.
- More customizable armor!
Yeah alright, this actually has nothing to do with the hardcore gaming community. At all. I just really thought the armor options in Halo 3 were really kinda cool. More plz?
- Please fix the rocket launcher.
Alright Bungie, come clean. You KNOW what I’m talking about here. I’ll set the scene: A 12 year old running around Epitaph with the rockets. He rounds a shield door and OMG THERE’S A GUY RIGHT HERE 2 INCHES FROM MY FACE! What do I do?!? Uhh, uhhh FIRE!!! *Bam* Guy up close dies, 12 year old with the rocket launcher … still alive? Why? Back in Halo CE if you got excited and fired off a rocket at your opponent when you were in kissing distance of each other, you BOTH got blown away, and rightfully so. You’re right in the explosion! N00bish tactics of panicking, not thinking clearly and getting a ‘desperation kill’ because you didn’t know how to react to an opponent in your face other than blindly squeezing the trigger, that sort of behavior is frowned upon in the pro gaming community. Prove you’re a quick thinker – beat him down, put distance between the two of you, throw a clever grenade, switch your weapons, anything! But playing with the “Duhhh HULK SMASH” mentality with your rocket launcher just proves you don’t know how to handle yourself properly in a heated match. Firing from that close because you didn’t know what else to do means you deserve to sit in re-spawn ‘time out’ as well.
- The sniper rifle needs a little work as well.
Thanks to Theater (which is awesome by the way, 100%), I’ve paused and zoomed in on several sniper rifle shots fired by myself, teammates, and strangers in matchmaking that have clearly passed through the skulls of opponents without giving any damage. No, I’m not just ‘whining’ because my kill didn’t register or because I’m just “making excuses because I really suck”. Seriously, check YouTube. There are videos of clean headshots/bodyshots/crotchshots etc that have passed clean through opponents with visible blood splatter and no damage. Just a little tweaking would do this fine. <3
Well, this is it for me. Thanks again to Angel for being the awesome blogger/gamer that she is and to the hardcore pro gaming community that I love so much to be a part of. Thank you Bungie for making a terrific game series and thanks to everyone for reading!
If you would like more information on pro gaming, national/regional tournaments and the likes of your favorite games, check out www.mlgpro.com or any other site of the many dedicated gaming leagues mentioned earlier on. Good gaming and Happy Holidays!
- S -
Gamertag: IX Fall0ut XI (with a zero, add me if you so wish)
Posted by Azraeus on January 1, 2008 at 4:13 am
Ooh…I’ll tread lightly here. You’ve made some very good points. Sniper system needs fixed, rocket needs adjusted, etc. There’s just a few counterpoints I’d like to make here.
-While everybody seems to hate the melee system, it’s not broke. That’s the way it was designed. Do I agree? No, not really, but it’s technically not a code problem, because it’s the way the code was written
-As far as new maps go, I agree, but we don’t know what the next set of maps is going to be. On the flip side, mess with forge till then. Last I heard, someone made a pretty convincing midship
-Here’s the deal; Bungie sold…over 5 million, I’m not sure on the exact number, but we’ll go with that for illustration purposes. Being generous we’ll say that 1 mill are pro gamers (not to be insulting, but it’s probably less). That’s still 4 million people that want it in some way different from pro. Now, the reason I bring this up is because many people don’t want the game balanced. By having it the way it is, they can have a fun, competitive game with their friends and they don’t have to be the best shot in the world.
-The verdict’s still out on Grifball, but Zombie is massively popular. I’d even go as far to say it’s much more popular (and has been for a while) than pro gaming. The difference is, casual gamers, still Halo’s majority, aren’t necessarily big internet types. There’s different levels of Halo fan:
–Frat Boy; Loves to drink and grief
–Corporate tool; likes to play it occasionally to relax
–PC Gamer; Hates Halo, for the most part
–Fake gamer; Doesn’t realize there aren’t systems not named Wii
–MC Fanboy; Would buy halo boxers, if they made em–and then show them to everybody (AKA You, I and Hawty)
This is obviously a generalization, and I missed MANY types, but you get the idea. The problem is this; really, most gamers don’t go on bungie forums or read Kotaku or even know who Major Nelson is. The true gamer is a rarer breed because Halo, like the Wii, has become trendy. Zombies (finally getting back to my main point) is awesome with people because “zombiz r c00l” or because it’s something unique. The reason people aren’t clamoring for a playlist is because the people that like aren’t the ones that spend a lot of time on gaming websites.
-Balance; it’s a touchy subject on what balance actually is on their game. Whether I think H3 is balanced or not, I’ve always felt it an insult to tell bungie that the game they spent so much time tweaking and playtesting was made wrong. It just strikes me as offensive. They made it the way they made it. I’d be pretty ticked if I made a game and a group of people kept telling me to change it.
Anyway, I apologise if I nitpicked too much here. In truth, your article is one of the most well thought out MLG articles I’ve ever read (for very bad examples, type mlg into the bungie forums search bar and start reading anywhere). While I am not a fan of pro gaming (mostly because I don’t think taking weapons out of a game makes it more balanced), I have no real problem with it. I’ve read some of your replies in other threads on here (long time listener, first time call…poster) and they’re well thought out and thought provoking, much like this one. I’ve pointed out my opinion, but please don’t let it discourage you from your goal.
Also, BS Angel, your blog freaking rocks. I read it regularly and you always find such cool stuff. Thanks for making this one of my favorite sites to go to.
Peace
Posted by Crazyeye0 on January 1, 2008 at 5:08 am
Despite not being a Pro gamer, I still agree with all of these suggestions, but I’ve one thing to add.
Bring back Blood Gulch please, no Coagulation or standoff, Blood Gulch, left how it was, just reformed in Halo3 glory.
Posted by wriXeL on January 1, 2008 at 7:21 am
I TOTALLY agree with most of your points.
1. Bring back the old maps! I think bungie made new maps so everyone would start off on the same playing field. For a lot of people halo 3 is the first Halo game they bought. It wouldn’t be fair to fight pros in old maps they already know. It would be nice if they released an old school map pack though
2. Fix the melee system, please! 100% agree. Too many times ive said, WTF!
3. Bring back the Halo 1 Pistol? I actually like what they’ve done… I always thought it was funny how the pistol was better than a machine gun =D.
4. Separate Team Hardcore into Hardcore Slayer and Hardcore Objective.
This would be nice. I hate being stuck with PROs. Who complain I can’t kill 3 people in a row and get the flag… BY myself.
5. More customizable armor! 100% agree. This was one of the coolest new features in HALO3. More armor the better.
6. Please fix the rocket launcher. 100% agree. I’m sick of noobs rushing to the launcher and twitch killing me…
7. The sniper rifle needs a little work as well. 100% agree. It seems the collision detection is slight off… it might be due to the armors?? Not sure but ive noticed this as well..
awesome suggestions! =D
Posted by Excardon on January 1, 2008 at 12:01 pm
Although I can write a whole book about this, as of right now I don’t have much time so I will lightly touch on two things. Although I am not into MLG I do run a highly competitive Halo community team.
- Melee System
It does not need to be fixed. This is purely based on the reason that the new Melee System fixed the issue with Host always winning. It seemed in Halo 2 every game I played in MM (or customs for that matter) there was someone complaining how so-an-so beat them because they have host.
This system fixes the problem. If you don’t think you’ll win because your health is low you can throw a nade to try to stick them, duck/jump over/circle around the melee, or just try to finish him off before he gets too close. The new melee system actually stresses more tactical gameplay and thinking. If anything, its better than hearing “WAHHHH.. He’s got host!!!”
- Old Maps
Totally disagree. With the way the gameplay and weapons are now it just simply won’t work. You may think it would but it won’t. Take the good old Hang Em High remake for example. Complete crap because it just simply did not work because Halo 1 and Halo 2 are different games.
The same I believe will happen with a few of these boards if remade. Midship is a possibility for success but I do not believe Lockout is possible. I mean, come on Guardian is basically Lockout. You can use most of the old callouts for it. Yes, its restructured but its the same feel and plays wonderful on Halo 3.
Bungie knows what they are doing in all aspects (recreational and competitive) and this is obvious by the maps and games they made in Halo 2 and in my mind the maps in Halo 3. Yes the “Pro” community does make games a bit more competitive by tweaking settings however without Bungie there would be nothing for them to run off of.
Going off on a tanget now, I do think the 4 vs 4 competitive play is a bit hampered in Halo 3, however I encourage people to try some 6 vs 6 matches sometimes. If done right, they can become more competitive and fierce than any 4 vs 4 match could ever be.
Posted by Anodyne on January 1, 2008 at 3:50 pm
Hmmmm, I do believe I would say that I agree with… pretty much all of your points. I’m a largely social gamer myself, finding that if you have a friend or two or ten to play with, that makes it all the more enjoyable. I also don’t really consider myself “pro”; I focus on getting better, yes, and I enjoy nothing more than improving and being able to support my team, but I don’t know if I’ll ever be good enough to consider myself “pro”. I’m pretty much just in it for the fun, but hey, getting better is fun so that’s pretty much how all of that factors in for me.
Anyways, the point I agree with most is the melee system. I’m sure I’ve screamed “Garbage!” multiple times as what I’d assumed would be a fatal melee got shoved back in my face, even after I HEARD my blow connect. Bringing back old maps could be fun, too, providing they did it well; which wouldn’t be too hard as long as they replicated them pretty directly.
As for the armor customization, well, I am totally with that. Despite the variety of armor types it’s surprising how many “cookie-cutter” designs there are floating out there (multiple Hayabusas in one match; most Elite players wear the Ascetic armor and shoulders). I’m not ripping on people’s personal taste, to each their own, but I still think that offering even more personalization would be neat.
Anyways I don’t consider myself the last word on what should or should not be done to Halo, but I do think that the points you made are very valid ones; in the very least, definitely points to be taken into consideration.
Posted by haloed5 on January 1, 2008 at 4:50 pm
I agree completely with all of your points (except maybe the halo 1 pistol, i mean honestly, it was awesome, but definitely completely unbalanced, and i think it would take a lot of the combat dynamics out of halo 3), but i think a major one that you missed was the respawn system.
Now, I’m not saying i personally could do it better, but the respawn system, particularly in slayer, is honestly almost as broken as the melees (anyone who says the melee is just “different” is simply ignoring halo 3’s glaring flaws. Awesome game? Yes. Perfect game? Definitely not, says the melee system. Of course bungie coded it that way, it clearly isn’t an accident, but it simply ruins gameplay at times. I’d much rather deal with the occasional host advantage death than feel like every person in the room has host advantage. Bungie has said themselves that the three things in halo combat are shooting, grenades, and melee, and in halo 2 1.0, they made the shooting too powerful and the grenades and melees too weak. In halo 3 1.0, the melees are not only broken, but also too powerful, and grenades simply don’t seem as reliable as they used to. bungie definitely recognizes this, however, and it will probably be fixed before long. /rant).
back to respawns. in slayer, bungie has what are called in forge “Respawn areas” in which the game will prefer to respawn a team on one side of the map rather than anywhere else. Example: In narrows, you always spawn on the same side, pretty much without question. At first, this seems to make sense, but honestly i feel it should be put back to the way it was in halo 2 (for slayer). too many times have I either a) respawned with 3 opponents with BRs staring be down simply because the game wants to respawn me on that side of the map or b) been about to get a kill on a weak opponent only to have his friend spawn next to him and grab a headshot on me before i got the first kill. These two situations, along with numerous others, cause me much grief in halo 3 at times, and I don’t really remember that sort of issue in halo 2. I’m sure it was present at times, but something about H3 spawns just seems off, and i believe it is caused by respawn areas. i know spawn systems can NEVER be completely perfect, and you’re always going to get a bad spawn here and there, but when my team and i clear 3 people out of the tower in guardian only to have them all spawn on elbow and kill us before our shields are even back, something needs fixing. just my two cents on halo 3’s problems.
Posted by bs angel on January 1, 2008 at 6:17 pm
The spawn points is a good suggestion. That is something that definitely bothers me especially on certain maps (can you say High Ground?). People will spawn directly behind you in close proximity, even when you are pushed up nearly to the back of the map. I am assuming they do that to not let one team dominate completely but if a team can coordinate where they are capable of dominating the map (i.e. the beach on High Ground) , don’t you think they should be allowed to? Dominating a map and spawn killing do not go hand in hand. And breaking down holding points is possible too with coordinated attacks. Anyways, just my two cents. :)
Posted by Tyger on January 1, 2008 at 8:39 pm
sniper problem is just lag i think, unless video’s take the info off the hosts box, cuz then things should be exactly as they appear (or maybe not, because halo 3’s networking is different than halo 2′)
anyway, what really needs to be fixed is the spread on the BR. why was that fixed in H2, and then re-broken for halo 3. i just dont understand
Posted by serpx on January 1, 2008 at 10:50 pm
I also believe the sniper problems are also most likely lag, and video recordings will catch the lag.
The online world isn’t perfect yet.
Posted by agdTinMan on January 2, 2008 at 12:16 am
You lost me at “the hardcore pro gamers are the ones that the folks at Bungie need to take care of the most.”
Why is it “pro’s” feel this gigantic sense of entitlement? They’re such a tiny percentage of any games fanbase, yet they feel they are the VOICE OF THE FANS.
Bungie tries to take care of ALL of it’s fans.
Posted by Dracc on January 2, 2008 at 4:44 am
This is the worst drivel I have ever read. You are seriously a whiny little wank. Pro gamers are all that matter you say? Well then I suppose you make up a significant portion of the playerbase, then. Oh, you don’t? Less than 1% you say?
GET OFF YOUR HIGH HORSE.
Note to Hawty: If you are smart, you should avoid ever letting this idiot write on your blog again.
Posted by -S- on January 2, 2008 at 8:17 am
Dracc…people like you make me sad to exist.
Honestly, although Azraeus and Excardon’s comments varied on disagreements with my opinions, they were at least very interesting for me to read because they were well written, and politely worded.
You however, offer your opinion through pure insult…and nothing else. Nowhere in my article did I put ‘Pro gamers are all that matter’. I’m simply highlighting a group of very dedicated gamers who are not “better” than anyone else, but are often overlooked.
And PS, thanks for commenting on my idiocy, i’ll be sure to make a doc’s appointment this week to get that checked out. Posters like
Azraeus sez
“I’ve read some of your replies in other threads on here (long time listener, first time call…poster) and they’re well thought out and thought provoking, much like this one. I’ve pointed out my opinion, but please don’t let it discourage you from your goal.”
Dracc sez
“This is the worst drivel I have ever read. You are seriously a whiny little wank.”
Ever play ‘which of these doesn’t belong’?
Classy. Angel, I’m sorry that I had to respond to my own guest article, but seriously I just can’t take it when people throw out comments like this with no thought. I love this site for letting people say what they want to say and discuss what we all love to do; game. Unfortunately, that means that people like Dracc get to comment their unpleasantness freely as well. Oh well.
Be grateful for free speach everybody, and whenever you can thank Angel for being nice enough to let us all voice how we feel, regardless of how disrespectful it might be to others. Mutetacular.
Posted by XMixMasterX on January 2, 2008 at 9:52 am
Your article starts out well, if not slightly elitist in attitude.
I am a competitive gamer who has nothing to do with anything ‘pro’. I like 90% of the gametypes out there including both BR starts and Rocket race (polar opposites).
My only complaint is once you got into listing what you ‘wanted’ it turned into the same old complaints you see everyday. Bring back the pistol, fix the melee, bring back old maps… etc.
I would have liked to see less complaints about the system dynamics and more of an actual list of gameplay changes. Your list really can’t be seen as any different from typical complaints much less ‘What Pros want’
Posted by bs angel on January 2, 2008 at 10:57 am
This is intended for Dracc.
Constructive comments with differing opinions that contribute to the subject at hand are always welcome. Flat out insults without any substance are not. I work hard to maintain a positive environment on my blog where people are comfortable debating in a mature, respectful manner. Play nice, or don’t play at all.
Posted by Compton on January 2, 2008 at 1:52 pm
I agree with the fact that “Pro” gamers are the vocal minority. I also wish that people who claimed to be “Pro” would have to exemplify a certain behavioral standard. But that is another discussion…
The point I would like to address is the separate Team Hardcore into Slayer and Objective. I think what you are basically asking for is a Team Hardcore Slayer Playlist, because unfortunately a vast majority of all Halo players prefer slayer to objective. If you do not believe me look at the number of players in the objective playlists and then look at slayer. I personally really enjoy the objective gametypes because they add a lot of the dynamics to multiplayer that makes the game so re playable. If Bungie were to separate Hardcore into 2 playlists objective players would just lose another populated semi-objective playlist.
Just my two cents.
-Compton
Posted by Fate on January 2, 2008 at 2:00 pm
This is slightly off-topic, but touches on the armor permutations. What do you think about an armor/equipment system like CoD4, where you would be able to equip yourself with a certain grenade or equipment option at the beginning of the match?
It wouldn’t need to be as extensive as CoD because you wouldn’t want to change the game dynamic that much, but it could be interesting.
Food for thought, anyway.
Posted by -S- on January 2, 2008 at 3:45 pm
Fate –
A very good point you bring up. I have yet to get my hands on CoD, but I’ve read all the online reviews and I’m familiar with the interesting equipment system it brings to the table…and I’ve thought about it many times.
If not made ‘unbalanced’ then i certainly think that armor/equipment permutations with benefits would be an excellent idea, and would add to the strategy involved in the game. When i say ‘unbalanced’ I mean that no armor benefit would be too strong – let’s say that Mark V spartan armor let’s you reload a couple frames quicker, while the Hayabusa armor grants you an Overshield. Know what I mean? A balanced collection of armor/equipment could be a great addition to pro gameplay; 2 or 4 man teams figuring out which they would want to use depending on the map or gametype, along with trying to find the best balances with teammates and tricky, tactical combinations.
Definitely a cool idea.
Posted by Tortacular on January 3, 2008 at 1:55 pm
The old maps were great in Halo 2. Just like Halo 1 maps were great in Halo 1. Remakes are very hit and miss. The best H2 maps were the maps made for H2. I wasn’t a fan of most of the remakes in H2 and I’m not sure why people are clamoring for them in H3 already. There’s plenty of nice maps in H3. If you want balanced gameplay in a H3 universe, I don’t see how H2 maps are going to work. Of course, It seems to me that MLG just wants to play Halo 2 anyways, given the current MLG settings out there seem to mostly serve to make the game more like Halo 2. Just my opinion of course.
I’m not going to address the whole pistol arguement if you want to talk about weapon balance. C’mon now… ;)
You want to split Team Hardcore? There’s 6000 people in the list now. That would be about as productive as splitting Team Objective into two which hasn’t worked particularly well.
I agree with the rocket splash damage issue, it’s annoying to get rocket’d from point blank range and watch the other guy walk away, I assume that’s a side-effect of them killing the splash damage on it (which I agree with for the H3 world).
I don’t really see a problem with the sniper rifle. Yeah, shots don’t seem to register sometimes but here’s the thing… even if you’re looking at “saved films”, it’s just game data using the same connection. So if it looks like you made the shot in-game, thats how it will look in film. It could look very different on another player’s game data. To me it’s more reliable than the H2 sniper because host isn’t so prevelant.
The melee system can be frustrating, but no more so than H2 when either the host was running rampant or I was getting button combo’d.
I can appreciate your passion for the “Pro” style of gaming, but it’s Bungie’s job to cater to their entire fanbase, not just a vocal minority. By and large I like everything about H3. My only complaints revolve around spawn points and the lack of assault/one-flag in BTB.
Posted by -S- on January 3, 2008 at 3:35 pm
Ah Tortacular, you rascal. Another good point. I should clarify some things – and acknowledge a point made way earlier by Azraeus. I don’t like commenting so much on my own article, but I love good Halo discussion, and just want to make everybody happy/participate.
Azraeus sez:
In truth, your article is one of the most well thought out MLG articles I’ve ever read (for very bad examples, type mlg into the bungie forums search bar and start reading anywhere).
And Tortacular points out:
You want to split Team Hardcore? There’s 6000 people in the list now. That would be about as productive as splitting Team Objective into two which hasn’t worked particularly well.
Now the most annoying part about Pro Gamers is…they complain a lot. case and point? well…you’re reading this article aren’t you…heh *cough* anyway. Azraeus is extremely correct in saying that there are a lot of hate-filled ‘mlg’ threads spewed all over the bungie forums; kids basically saying things like “BUNGIE SUX IM BOYCOTTING HALO NOW” etc, etc, etc. These losers do not represent us, but sadly, they exist, and it’s very sad to see happen because it definitely ’sets the movement back’ if you know what I mean. Anyway – reason I’m saying that is to say this; the most ‘dedicated’ pro gamers practice/scrim in private, custom games, chosing not to rely on Bungie’s matchmaking system, hence: a weak 6,000 players on Team Hardcore. Why? Although Bungie was very gracious and kind to give us Team Hardcore, it’s exactly that…Team Hardcore, not MLG standard rules. While I myself play lots of Hardcore anyway, there are more ‘dedicated’ pro’s who refuse to play HC because it doesn’t follow MLG’s gametypes to the letter.
Sound crazy? Of course it is. It’s impossible to please 100% of the people 100% of the time, but I must give credit that Bungie listens to it’s fanbase alllll the time and they always do a hell of a job trying to please everyone anyway. Just in case you’re still confused, here’s an example: in Team HC – objective based weapons always bonk out 1 hit kills (the oddball, flag, bomb, etc) while in MLG rules, the objective power has been toned down so standing 1 hit melees do not produce instant kills. This might not sound like a lot, but have you ever played Team HC Oddball, and the ball carrier is laughing at you from inside the bubble shield? The only thing that can stop that is a shotgun…and even still you need to time it juuuust right.
Please note: I am also not saying that I dislike Team HC for Bungie’s differentiation from MLG gametypes…to each his own, and in the end Bungie decides what they will and won’t release. I’m just explaining why the # of players is so low.
So yeah, I’ll admit, splitting Team HC into objective and slayer is pretty weak – to make a long story short (too late) it should read: in a perfect world if MLG gametypes and Team HC were exactly the same to the T and people scrimmed in MM rather than custom games, then yes…splitting them would be much more effective!
Heh, and your h1 pistol counter argument? yeah, i got nothin there :p I’ll just be wavin that flag till the day i die i guess
Posted by Guest Article: Master Chief Must Die « Hawty McBloggy Invites You to Play on October 1, 2008 at 3:12 am
[...] stranger to this site. At the beginning of the year he made some detailed requests in the form of The Halo Pro Gamer’s 2008 Wishlist. Some of you agreed with him, others of you did not. This time he tackles a completely different [...]