<div class='quotetop'></div><div class='quotemain'>Halo 3: Stuff That Needs Fixin?
May 18, 2007
by: Phillip Levin and Sascha Lichtenstein
Our Halo 3 ?please fix it, Bungie? wish list.
The Halo 3 multiplayer beta is here, and like true Halo fans, we?ve spent the last week screaming at our TVs, blaming Bungie for our incompetence as players. Sure, we admit it: maybe it?s our own fault we got Spartan Laser?d in that Warthog on Valhalla, giving XxXxLeetSniperxXxX an Overkill. Maybe the majority of our entire team shouldn?t travel innocently in one impending death trap on wheels, and maybe our fourth player shouldn?t follow conveniently so closely behind us in the Mongoose -- whatever!
That noted, it?s not all our fault. Some of the blame can be placed on Halo 3, which is far from perfect, thus far (after all, it is a beta). From underpowered starting weapons to having to stop moving so we can press the D-pad to warn our team mates that they?re about to get Beatdown, Halo 3 is responsible for some less-than-fun moments we?ve experienced in the last week.
Below, we?ve compiled a list of things in Halo 3 that we feel need addressing by the official Halo developer itself: Bungie. These things range from balance problems to simple nitpicks. Yes, we love Halo 3, and yes, we?ll be playing it tonight, but this is a beta, right? Aren?t we, as gamers, required by law to bring these things to the attention of Bungie?s, so that on September 25, 2007, we can boot up a more improved version of Halo 3? The answer is yes, boys and girls: yes
Polish the Graphics
Halo 3 is by no means an ugly game, but it?s not going to drop any jaws either. Under normal circumstances that wouldn?t be a huge problem, but this is the game that Microsoft is banking on to dominate the holiday season. It should outclass everything else on the market, so Mr. and Mrs. casual consumer can?t help but look away from the television ads and in-store displays. Educated gamers and videofiles will notice jaggies, muddy textures and relatively flat lighting; those who aren?t versed in the proper jargon will probably just resort to describing the game?s look as ?meh.? Seeing as the recently released Halo 2 maps actually have better detail than the maps in the beta, chances are the final game will look better ? just how much better remains to be seen.
Give the Needler a Make-Over
This is a pretty minor complaint, but it ties into the presentation. Bungie has been trying to get Halo players to take the Needler seriously for a while now, and third time?s the charm because it?s now a mid-range powerhouse. Too bad you?d never know from looking at the thing. After years of taking the sight of a Needler as a cue to charge the enemy, it?s going to take some time for players to unlearn that reflex, and a new, bigger, badder (editor?s note: yes, we just official-ized that word) two-handed look for the Needler certainly would have helped get the point across. It?s not something that?s likely to be changed, but we can still dream.
Push-to-Talk is Stupid
Communication is key for Halo team play modes, but apparently Bungie believes that players would prefer their voices ? and the voices of their teammates ? to go unheard unless they take the time to press an irritatingly-placed chat button. Why, in the midst of a battle for the flag, would a player want to take their thumb off the analog stick and press the D-pad just to alert their team to the sniper in the rocks to the left? If this is a measure to prevent the children from hearing a constant stream of swearing and homophobic slurs, then Bungie is completely off-base since A) it interferes with the gameplay to such an annoying degree that using the function is likely to incite such speech, and B) the filth spewed on Xbox Live is more often than not coming from the little ?angels? themselves. That?s the only conceivable reason we can think of for preventing unfettered in-game chatter, and quite frankly it borders on 16-digit-friend-code levels of family-friendly stupidity. Let the Xbox Live feedback system handle the a-holes, and let us chat without putting ourselves in harm?s way. Did we mention every push of the D-pad is met with a mind-splitting screech? Argh!
Make the AR Just a Little More Powerful
The new Assault Rifle is a huge improvement over the starting weapon in Halo 2, an underpowered, popcorn-popping piece of crap SMG. Unfortunately, it still feels a little too weak. Whether or not that?s a problem depends on Bungie?s intent for the weapon. If they intended for it to be a weapon that players should drop at their earliest possible convenience, then mission accomplished ? it will offer spawning players a decent (at best) shot at survival until they find another weapon. If it was intended to be a weapon that players actually value and hang onto however, we have a problem.
The AR has decent power at close range and can take out opponents in half-a-clip, provided the player mixes up the shooting with a grenade or melee. The problem is that enemies outside that close to close-medium range are effectively untouchable ? it feels like bullets evaporate once they hit a certain range. Fans have been clamoring for a balanced starting weapon, and the recipe seems pretty simple: make sure it?s not dual-wieldable so the gameplay doesn?t revolve around that mechanic, and most importantly, make sure that players can shoot any enemy they can see.
Too bad for Halo 3, that last missing ingredient really hurts the weapon and ensures that the Battle Rifle and Carbine (both of which can dominate at mid-range and can actually reach long-range) remain favorites.
Judging by the layout of the weapons on the maps in the beta, Bungie knows the reality of the situation, cause players are never more than a few seconds away from a BR or Carbine. Of course, for the one guy left without a mid-range weapon to use, the battlefield becomes a death-trap. It seems to us that as long as the AR is incapable of head-shots, Bungie can increase the range to about that of the BR or Carbine (with damage done inversely correlated to range, of course) without making the weapon overpowered. That way, players spawning into the middle of battle could actually defend themselves from attackers at medium range.
Sometimes You Need to Start with a BR
It?s a hot topic: to spawn with or not to spawn with the Battle Rifle? While some of us here at AMN want the Battle Rifle at spawn, others don?t. However, most of us can agree that on larger maps, you need to start with a Battle Rifle, otherwise, you?re of no challenge to other players on map already wielding the weapon, as well as power weapons like the Sniper or Spartan Laser. Ideally, it?d be nice if Master Chief spawned with both an Assault Rifle (mid to close range) and a Battle Rifle (mid to long range).
Grenades Need More Oomph ? AKA Need to Kill Stuff
Opinions are mixed on the grenades in Halo 3. Some think they?re a return to the boomers from the original Halo while others feel like they hardly do any damage at all. Having witnessed several (dozen) players survive splash damage from multiple grenades and direct hits from others, we fall into the later group. Considering how vital it is to complement weapons fire with grenades to conserve ammo and take out enemies effectively, it?s depressing how little damage these new grenades do. The blast radius also feels noticeably smaller, which disappoints. What kind of grenade explodes only to affect people standing directly on it? Lame ones.
Finally, the fact that it can take two to three grenades just to dismantle a Warthog (never mind actually killing the people inside the damn thing) is ridiculous ? especially when that includes Plasmas. If we can time our throws and aim well enough to hit a moving vehicle, we deserve the kill, don?t you think?
Guns Are Supposed to Sound Powerful
One of our biggest gripes with Halo 2 was the fact that weapons, such as the SMG, sounded so weak. A big part of what makes first-person shooters fun are weapon sound effects, and Halo 2 just didn?t get that. While Halo 3 is a step better, unfortunately, it too suffers from the same problem. The returning Assault Rifle sounds weaker than its Halo: Combat Evolved brother-in-law, and the Battle Rifle now has a quieter, less powerful-sounding noise accompanied with its shots. Even the Shotgun and Rocket Launcher both sound incredibly underpowered in comparison to other shooters on the field. Aren?t guns supposed to sound slightly powerful? Isn?t that the point?</div>
Part one since the fucking LIMIT is too damn short! Make it 30000!
May 18, 2007
by: Phillip Levin and Sascha Lichtenstein
Our Halo 3 ?please fix it, Bungie? wish list.
The Halo 3 multiplayer beta is here, and like true Halo fans, we?ve spent the last week screaming at our TVs, blaming Bungie for our incompetence as players. Sure, we admit it: maybe it?s our own fault we got Spartan Laser?d in that Warthog on Valhalla, giving XxXxLeetSniperxXxX an Overkill. Maybe the majority of our entire team shouldn?t travel innocently in one impending death trap on wheels, and maybe our fourth player shouldn?t follow conveniently so closely behind us in the Mongoose -- whatever!
That noted, it?s not all our fault. Some of the blame can be placed on Halo 3, which is far from perfect, thus far (after all, it is a beta). From underpowered starting weapons to having to stop moving so we can press the D-pad to warn our team mates that they?re about to get Beatdown, Halo 3 is responsible for some less-than-fun moments we?ve experienced in the last week.
Below, we?ve compiled a list of things in Halo 3 that we feel need addressing by the official Halo developer itself: Bungie. These things range from balance problems to simple nitpicks. Yes, we love Halo 3, and yes, we?ll be playing it tonight, but this is a beta, right? Aren?t we, as gamers, required by law to bring these things to the attention of Bungie?s, so that on September 25, 2007, we can boot up a more improved version of Halo 3? The answer is yes, boys and girls: yes
Polish the Graphics
Halo 3 is by no means an ugly game, but it?s not going to drop any jaws either. Under normal circumstances that wouldn?t be a huge problem, but this is the game that Microsoft is banking on to dominate the holiday season. It should outclass everything else on the market, so Mr. and Mrs. casual consumer can?t help but look away from the television ads and in-store displays. Educated gamers and videofiles will notice jaggies, muddy textures and relatively flat lighting; those who aren?t versed in the proper jargon will probably just resort to describing the game?s look as ?meh.? Seeing as the recently released Halo 2 maps actually have better detail than the maps in the beta, chances are the final game will look better ? just how much better remains to be seen.
Give the Needler a Make-Over
This is a pretty minor complaint, but it ties into the presentation. Bungie has been trying to get Halo players to take the Needler seriously for a while now, and third time?s the charm because it?s now a mid-range powerhouse. Too bad you?d never know from looking at the thing. After years of taking the sight of a Needler as a cue to charge the enemy, it?s going to take some time for players to unlearn that reflex, and a new, bigger, badder (editor?s note: yes, we just official-ized that word) two-handed look for the Needler certainly would have helped get the point across. It?s not something that?s likely to be changed, but we can still dream.
Push-to-Talk is Stupid
Communication is key for Halo team play modes, but apparently Bungie believes that players would prefer their voices ? and the voices of their teammates ? to go unheard unless they take the time to press an irritatingly-placed chat button. Why, in the midst of a battle for the flag, would a player want to take their thumb off the analog stick and press the D-pad just to alert their team to the sniper in the rocks to the left? If this is a measure to prevent the children from hearing a constant stream of swearing and homophobic slurs, then Bungie is completely off-base since A) it interferes with the gameplay to such an annoying degree that using the function is likely to incite such speech, and B) the filth spewed on Xbox Live is more often than not coming from the little ?angels? themselves. That?s the only conceivable reason we can think of for preventing unfettered in-game chatter, and quite frankly it borders on 16-digit-friend-code levels of family-friendly stupidity. Let the Xbox Live feedback system handle the a-holes, and let us chat without putting ourselves in harm?s way. Did we mention every push of the D-pad is met with a mind-splitting screech? Argh!
Make the AR Just a Little More Powerful
The new Assault Rifle is a huge improvement over the starting weapon in Halo 2, an underpowered, popcorn-popping piece of crap SMG. Unfortunately, it still feels a little too weak. Whether or not that?s a problem depends on Bungie?s intent for the weapon. If they intended for it to be a weapon that players should drop at their earliest possible convenience, then mission accomplished ? it will offer spawning players a decent (at best) shot at survival until they find another weapon. If it was intended to be a weapon that players actually value and hang onto however, we have a problem.
The AR has decent power at close range and can take out opponents in half-a-clip, provided the player mixes up the shooting with a grenade or melee. The problem is that enemies outside that close to close-medium range are effectively untouchable ? it feels like bullets evaporate once they hit a certain range. Fans have been clamoring for a balanced starting weapon, and the recipe seems pretty simple: make sure it?s not dual-wieldable so the gameplay doesn?t revolve around that mechanic, and most importantly, make sure that players can shoot any enemy they can see.
Too bad for Halo 3, that last missing ingredient really hurts the weapon and ensures that the Battle Rifle and Carbine (both of which can dominate at mid-range and can actually reach long-range) remain favorites.
Judging by the layout of the weapons on the maps in the beta, Bungie knows the reality of the situation, cause players are never more than a few seconds away from a BR or Carbine. Of course, for the one guy left without a mid-range weapon to use, the battlefield becomes a death-trap. It seems to us that as long as the AR is incapable of head-shots, Bungie can increase the range to about that of the BR or Carbine (with damage done inversely correlated to range, of course) without making the weapon overpowered. That way, players spawning into the middle of battle could actually defend themselves from attackers at medium range.
Sometimes You Need to Start with a BR
It?s a hot topic: to spawn with or not to spawn with the Battle Rifle? While some of us here at AMN want the Battle Rifle at spawn, others don?t. However, most of us can agree that on larger maps, you need to start with a Battle Rifle, otherwise, you?re of no challenge to other players on map already wielding the weapon, as well as power weapons like the Sniper or Spartan Laser. Ideally, it?d be nice if Master Chief spawned with both an Assault Rifle (mid to close range) and a Battle Rifle (mid to long range).
Grenades Need More Oomph ? AKA Need to Kill Stuff
Opinions are mixed on the grenades in Halo 3. Some think they?re a return to the boomers from the original Halo while others feel like they hardly do any damage at all. Having witnessed several (dozen) players survive splash damage from multiple grenades and direct hits from others, we fall into the later group. Considering how vital it is to complement weapons fire with grenades to conserve ammo and take out enemies effectively, it?s depressing how little damage these new grenades do. The blast radius also feels noticeably smaller, which disappoints. What kind of grenade explodes only to affect people standing directly on it? Lame ones.
Finally, the fact that it can take two to three grenades just to dismantle a Warthog (never mind actually killing the people inside the damn thing) is ridiculous ? especially when that includes Plasmas. If we can time our throws and aim well enough to hit a moving vehicle, we deserve the kill, don?t you think?
Guns Are Supposed to Sound Powerful
One of our biggest gripes with Halo 2 was the fact that weapons, such as the SMG, sounded so weak. A big part of what makes first-person shooters fun are weapon sound effects, and Halo 2 just didn?t get that. While Halo 3 is a step better, unfortunately, it too suffers from the same problem. The returning Assault Rifle sounds weaker than its Halo: Combat Evolved brother-in-law, and the Battle Rifle now has a quieter, less powerful-sounding noise accompanied with its shots. Even the Shotgun and Rocket Launcher both sound incredibly underpowered in comparison to other shooters on the field. Aren?t guns supposed to sound slightly powerful? Isn?t that the point?</div>
Part one since the fucking LIMIT is too damn short! Make it 30000!