[Shields] Why Infinite is not really a Halo game.

[DimensiO]

Looking back at Halo, there are a couple of things that made it a unique shooter. What stood out was the fact that you were a walking tank, that had potential to do exponential damage.
The campaign glorified this fact, being a spartan and all that. But the multiplayer extended that feel.

Bungie did this with one simple tool, and that is with the shield. When two spartans met, it could go either way. Because the shield gave you time to think of a split second tactic that could give you the edge. Be it a well placed grenade, utilizing the high jump, maneuvering behind the opponent to crack his spine etc. Either way, you had to do something out of the ordinary.

Beginners usually run at each other, empty their clip and then punch. Usually resulting in a draw. If you wanted to have the upper hand, but weren't able to pull off sick tricks, or find a powerful weapon, you had to have a second spartan at your side. Even then, a clever move could beat two players. All thanks to the shield that gave you time to think.

Halo 1 had the spartans really thick, both shield and health wise.
Halo 2 had less Shield, and a nice amount of health, but the shield recharged way faster.
Halo 3 found a nice blend between the two.

---

In the case of Halo Infinite, it went completely to the current age of shooters. Quick and twitchy, to please the lack of attention span the modern gamer has. Spoiled by Call of Duty, and all the other games that try to simulate some realism. It completely takes away the Halo shooter gameplay of old, and it's a shame.

The shields have been completely screwed. Lowered in amount, the recharge time takes slightly too long, and there is no health to be able to take cover around a corner. Being tactical is something of the past. Best you find yourself a good weapon, or simply get good at aiming for the head. I for one am going to try some custom games where we crank up the shields and health a bit. Sadly the custom games menu is bugged, and there is no Slayer FFA yet. Hopefully the developers balance the shields out, because otherwise this game is just another one of those shooters.

[hellhound]

The game just feels kind of weird. The AR in the previous Halo games was like shooting paper cuts at the enemy. It was more used as a tool to get people's shield down so you could finish them off with something else. Now the AR melts through your shield and doesn't have damage drop off, so its more viable than using the more precision oriented weapons because those you actually have to hit your shots and the general movement is a lot faster so that becomes much harder to do. I've come to notice that in this Halo game, as soon as a second enemy enters into your gunfight you are 9 times out of 10 screwed simply because two people shooting at you with the busted AR means you're going to die too fast to be able to make any sort of actual strategic decision.

[Anarchy]

Originally posted by blonde wolf:

The game just feels kind of weird. The AR in the previous Halo games was like shooting paper cuts at the enemy. It was more used as a tool to get people's shield down so you could finish them off with something else. Now the AR melts through your shield and doesn't have damage drop off, so its more viable than using the more precision oriented weapons because those you actually have to hit your shots and the general movement is a lot faster so that becomes much harder to do. I've come to notice that in this Halo game, as soon as a second enemy enters into your gunfight you are 9 times out of 10 screwed simply because two people shooting at you with the busted AR means you're going to die too fast to be able to make any sort of actual strategic decision.

The lack of player collision can cause some really stupid ♥♥♥♥ with melee weapons too like.
Oh, idk, that fiesta round where I slapped the ground with the gravity hammer because some dude literally came to stand inside of me and it didn't even hit him even though he was technically there.

[DimensiO]

Originally posted by blonde wolf:

The game just feels kind of weird...

I completely agree. I focused mainly on the shield, because I believe it to be at the core of the experience. That you're able to survive a bit longer. But the guns are messed up too. There was a certain balance in the older games, where the human weapons were straight forward. The covenant weapons were odd, but if used correctly they could melt shields.

Now there seem to be tiers. Standard guns like the pistol, or AR, Precision weapons, energy weapons with weird complicated mechanics, and the "power weapons". I don't know what to think of it. But they could all take some more effort to use, by increasing the shield / health pool. I mean, sure the rocket launcher should be powerful, but even a near miss kills a player.

[Fhuey]

Hey guys still Beta btw, a lot of room to tinker around. The game in general feels good to me tough, just have to wait on some patches.

[DimensiO]

Originally posted by DeadofPool:

...stupid ♥♥♥♥ with melee weapons too...

I use the hammer as a long range weapon. You can kill enemies that are five meters in front of you.

[DimensiO]

Originally posted by Fhuey:

Hey guys still Beta btw, a lot of room to tinker around. The game in general feels good to me tough, just have to wait on some patches.

Yes, I hope they notice our feedback and arguments and consider it.

[Anarchy]

Originally posted by DimensiO:

Originally posted by DeadofPool:

...stupid ♥♥♥♥ with melee weapons too...

I use the hammer as a long range weapon. You can kill enemies that are five meters in front of you. :winter2019coolyul:

To be fair the fact there's not player collision in a Halo game irregardless feels awful to someone who grew up playing CE-Reach and would only buy xboxes for Halo.

[DimensiO]

Originally posted by DeadofPool:

...grew up playing CE-Reach...

I have the same issue. A part of it is nostalgia, But what frustrates me more is that it isn't Halo game play at all. This is the third time 343 industries is missing the core of what made Halo so great. Shields being one of them, but also the weapons and maps... ugh dont get me started on the maps.

[Wolf DragoX]

this guy hasnt played Halo MP in his life if he thinks CE H2 and H3 you felt like a tank in MP at all. play CE in MCC again and i dare you to tell me you feel like a tank in that game

Actually, i take that back, play H2 campaign even on normal and dare to tell me you feel like a tank, you might kill enemies fast but you are not tough

[DimensiO]

Originally posted by Wolf DragoX:

...this guy hasnt played Halo MP in his life...

Come 1v1 me and see what happens.

[Oku]

"If it doesn't feel like sluggish outdated ass from 20 years ago then it isn't a real Halo game" is such a common complaint from people who genuinely thought that DMR starts in Reach or everybody spending 8 minutes spraying eachother down with a peashooter until somebody got the carbine or BR and went on a 20-man killing spree in Halo 3 was "the pinnacle of arena shooter gameplay".

The shields are exactly as durable as they need to be for the balance of Infinite, and the TTK is more fairly spread out, not favoring any one weapon in all situations and instead having jack of all trades weapons that are good at multiple engagements but are vastly outclassed by map weapons with more specialized uses in those specialized uses, which in turn are beaten out by Power Weapons. This forces a flow of players in to the grouped up hot zones of each map, most with the starting loadout and some with map weapons, fighting to secure kills and relying on their shields and movement abilities to allow them to reposition and get reversals if they are caught out or flanked, and forcing everybody to use a combination of weapons, grenades, and melee to try to burst eachother down.

This is peak classic Halo gameplay except with an assortment of quality of life improvements that there really is no reason to not include.

If all you want is a Carbon copy of Halo 3, then MCC is right over there. It's okay for things to modernize a bit and accept the fact that we aren't in 2007 anymore, it doesn't make it any less of a Halo game.

[JocularJosh]

Yeah I get the feeling a lot of people just want the exact same halo from 20 years ago.
Times change, games evolve, change, adapt to modern standards etc.

People complain about FIFA games not changing at all and here we have the opposite, people complaining about Halo changing and not being the same game over and over again.

[DimensiO]

Originally posted by Stock Image Snake:

...such a common complaint from people who...

You missed the point. I never said such a thing. Read again.

[Oku]

Originally posted by DimensiO:

Originally posted by Stock Image Snake:

...such a common complaint from people who...

You missed the point. I never said such a thing. Read again.

I didn't say you said such a thing.

Take your own advice :)

[AngryOldSock]

I literally can't imagine this game being slower and even more tanky. The number of players that suicide while fishing for melee kills is already insane to me.

And yes I admit, I'm one of the evil modern FPS players. This is my first halo.