Halo 5: Guardians

[wittyscorpion]

343I said halo 5 campaign is twice as long as halo 4:

[wittyscorpion]

Aug 7, 2015 13:19:42 GMT -5 wittyscorpion said:

Here you go, replay link from Twitch.

Also up on YouTube as a playlist

Broadcasters did a pretty good job calling the games.

[eLantern]

Aug 7, 2015 16:25:58 GMT -5 wittyscorpion said:

343I said halo 5 campaign is twice as long as halo 4:

Clarification: 343i have said that the campaign's length in time could be approximately the same to past titles for an individual to complete, but thanks to Halo 5's much bigger size and scale of the world within the campaign (more than twice as large) players will potentially find themselves spending a lot more time exploring different methods to progress forward which should lead to more variable experiences in terms of length in time.

[wittyscorpion]

Flameswords (captain of OpticGaming Halo team) on his impressions of Halo 5, including opinions on AR+Magnum start, new movements:

[wittyscorpion]

Latest community update described sandbox changes based on Gamescom invitational observations:

www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/community/blog-posts/halo-community-update-8-14-15

For us at 343, the tournament offered a variety of invaluable insights. The broadcast, production, and video teams are taking learnings from the show as we gear up for the presentation of Halo 5 esports at the Halo World Championship and beyond. For the multiplayer and sandbox teams, they’re currently evaluating things like Overshield timing and strength, weapon respawn time (both power weapon and non-default weapons), overall sandbox tuning, and more. Some things you saw at the Invitational have already been changed, such as the Shotgun ammo count/range and map lighting, and others are still being tuned. I also caught up with sandbox designer Chris King to discuss some of the other changes that have been made since the build you watched at gamescom:

Improved stick tuning (vastly improves ability to use the precision weapons)

BR: Reduced some of the randomness/spread/kick to make it more effective/consistent at range

Sniper: Reduced recoil and fixed some bugs that were introducing randomness/spread

Shotgun: Reduced effective range slightly

Misc. melee fixes

Fixed lots of bugs with physics impulses

We’ve kept a close eye on pro player feedback, and also your feedback from the forums

Looks like it is not difficult for 343 to make sandboxes adjustments. Once the game is launched, they can make further tweaks based on data collected from pub play so everything can be well balanced.

[wittyscorpion]

What Frankie has to say about Forge in Halo 5: www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=168418327&postcount=9141

We will talk about Forge much later. It is SIGNIFICANTLY improved, as opposed to iteratively.

[wittyscorpion]

As cool as it looks, the Halo5 LE Bundle does not have any price breaks and is forcing people to buy the Halo 5 Limited Edition, which cost $100. I finally decided to not wait on that and picked up a regular console (There are some good deals on that at Microsoft store from time to time, essentially selling the 1 TB version for ~$350).

With that, I am able to do the following in Halo MCC to get better at sniping (which I suck very badly and desperately need practice):

1) Set up a custom game using the map Octagon (basically a map that has nothing but 8 walls), give each player a sniper rifle as starting weapon (as well as a Rocket Launcher for suicide convenience);
2) Put a rubber band on the 2nd XONE controller's analog sticks so the player will run in circles;
3) Target practice on 2) using various sniper shots: swipe, quickscope, and no scope (which I did not realize how hard it is until now);

This is how it looks like: xboxclips.com/WittyScorpion72/e80ee2eb-ee3f-41c1-a020-706643b516bf

Of course, it would be a lot more interesting if the 2nd player is shooting back . Anyone interested in doing this together?

[Deleted]

Until then here's The Arbiter's thoughts on Forge.

[wittyscorpion]

Halo 5 open cinematics: www.buzzfeed.com/brendanklinkenberg/heres-the-full-trailer-for-halo-5-guardians

[Deleted]

[wittyscorpion]

Youtube link:

[wittyscorpion]

GameStop: Halo 5 is the most anticipated game between August and October despite exclusivity

www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1104677

[wittyscorpion]

343i blog detailing Halo 5 campaigns design: www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/community/blog-posts/halo-5-guardians-building-an-epic-campaign

Spoiler free highlights:

1) "a new physically-based rendering system that improves the realism of our lighting model and materials in game";

2) dedicated servers will be used "to run our Co-op campaign and multiplayer experiences (including custom games)";

3) "Framerate is king for us on Halo 5", "delivering consistent 60fps gameplay across all modes of play";

4) "60fps gameplay is supported by a new progressive resolution system that allows us to dynamically scale the resolution at which we render the game (up to 1080p) based on the needs of the scene";

5) "There are actually seven distinct art pallets across the campaign alone, each with their own sub-pallets of unique visuals";

6) "complex layouts for each of our missions, allowing players the freedom to come up with their own ways of playing";

7) "You could replay the entire campaign more than a few times and never have to fight an encounter in the same way twice";

8) "World exploration also played a big role in how we went about creating our mission layouts", "give players the opportunity to explore and discover new items such as collectibles and hidden power weapons in between combat moments";

9) "Missions to have the most weapons, vehicles, enemies, tactical and exploration options ever seen in Halo";

10) Eexpanded our environments to support large battle scenes while surrounding them with multi-layered skyboxes that showcase the larger conflict around the player":

11) "Player choice is a huge part of any Halo campaign and with Halo 5";

12) "Every mission is designed with Co-op play in mind", "environments have been built with multiple paths and varying elevation so that players can support one another in combat";

13) "The density of active AI is multiplied to support the player count", "careful tuning to ensure optimal balance for all difficulty levels";

[wittyscorpion]

TL:DR:

consistent 60 FPS with "progressive resolution system";
Epic scale in terms of sandbox size, art pellets, weapons, vehicles, enemies, tactical options, freedom of exploration;
Player choice;
Co op focused;
balance across sole / coop (by player count) / difficult levels

If you don't mind very light spoilers, this is the promotional video shown in movie theaters:



And if you don't mind mild spoilers, 4 minute actual game play (showcasing multiple paths and the use of spartan abilities):

[wittyscorpion]

343i published a blog today providing details about the REQ system (the reward/loot/micro-transaction system for Halo 5): www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/community/blog-posts/halo-5-guardians-req-system-introduction

If you don't feel like reading walls of text, this funny video can give you the essentials:

[wittyscorpion]

If you are a fan of Halo lore and "Hunt The Truth", you will be happy to know that Season 2 is just around the corner:

time.com/4039922/halo-hunt-for-the-truth/?xid=homepage

and for bros who want to buy Halo 5 themed hardware:

[givemelight]

Sept 18, 2015 2:16:03 GMT -5 wittyscorpion said:

343i published a blog today providing details about the REQ system (the reward/loot/micro-transaction system for Halo 5): www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/community/blog-posts/halo-5-guardians-req-system-introduction

If you don't feel like reading walls of text, this funny video can give you the essentials:

Funny video indeed. :-) Sounds like Nick Offerman (Axe Cop, Ron Swanson of Parks & Rec) Thanks for posting for us.

After being disappointed with reviews of Mad Max, I think Halo is the title I'm looking forward to most this fall.

[wittyscorpion]

Multiple embargoes have been lifted, so there is a flood of videos / previews on the media.

Gamespot's article focused on the technical details, and is a spoiler free good read: www.gamespot.com/videos/how-warzone-makes-halo-5-the-most-interesting-shoo/2300-6427264/

[wittyscorpion]

Halo 5 Forge looks promising: www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/community/blog-posts/building-the-biggest-forge-yet

With a thriving forge community, expect to have high quality MP maps made by fans.

[Pope Leo VII]

Only experience slaying in Halo was throughout college when we piled a bunch of guys in a room and switched back and forth lol.

As long as I've been throwing down with the xbox its been a marriage with COD.

Lately, my buddy has been pumping me with Halo 5 videso, and man oh man this game looks promising.

Tied into the lag fest AW & BO III has become, tempted to make the switch.

Will be picking up the game none the less

[wittyscorpion]

The official launch trailer is here:



#soon

[wittyscorpion]

Two weeks to launch:

1) launch playlist: www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/community/blog-posts/launch-playlist-details

- Warzone
- Warzone Assault
- Team Arena
- Slayer
- Breakout
- Free for All
- SWAT
- Weekend Social (community voted playlist)

2) Stats API open to public: www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/community/blog-posts/halo-api-support-coming-to-halo-5-guardians

[wittyscorpion]

Halo 5 is available for preload: majornelson.com/2015/10/14/halo-5-guardians-is-now-available-for-digital-pre-order-on-xbox-one/?linkId=17958248

Download size = ~50GB! Preload is the way to go for bros who wanna party on launch night (midnight EST / 11PM CT / 9PM PT).

I am still trying to decide between the Pre-Order edition ($59.99) and the Digital Deluxe edition ($89.99). While the smart money is on former, I feel obligated to support 343i on their decision of making all DLC maps free. Besides, 14 premium REQ packs can come in handy if I wanna have a much easier time in Warzone. I'll put my try-hard hat on when playing Arena, but for Warzone I just wanna kick back and have fun.

Bros, which version are you planning to buy?

[wittyscorpion]

This is adorable (and I am probably gonna get pwned by them in Arena):

[wittyscorpion]

Oct 15, 2015 13:39:20 GMT -5 wittyscorpion said:

Halo 5 is available for preload: majornelson.com/2015/10/14/halo-5-guardians-is-now-available-for-digital-pre-order-on-xbox-one/?linkId=17958248

Download size = ~50GB! Preload is the way to go for bros who wanna party on launch night (midnight EST / 11PM CT / 9PM PT).

I am still trying to decide between the Pre-Order edition ($59.99) and the Digital Deluxe edition ($89.99). While the smart money is on former, I feel obligated to support 343i on their decision of making all DLC maps free. Besides, 14 premium REQ packs can come in handy if I wanna have a much easier time in Warzone. I'll put my try-hard hat on when playing Arena, but for Warzone I just wanna kick back and have fun.

Bros, which version are you planning to buy?

If you are confused by REQ packs like I was, this article has everything you need to know:

www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/community/blog-posts/halo-5-guardians-req-system-introduction
www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/community/blog-posts/halo-5-guardians-building-your-req-collection-part-1
www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/community/blog-posts/halo-5-guardians-building-your-req-collection-part-2

TL;DR version (important concepts highlighted):

1) REQ Cards reward stuff: including game impacting items like weapons, vehicles, etc, and cosmetic items like armors, weapon skins, assassination animations, etc. REQ Cards can be either Single Use or Permanent. REQ Cards have rarity: Common, Uncommon, Rare, Ultra-Rare, Legendary. Legendary items can be Mythic, which are unique and extremely rare, and Certifications are permanent REQs that, once unlocked, allow players to receive the corresponding single use REQ cards;
2) Game impacting cards can only be used in Warzone, not Arena;
3) REQ Cards are obtained through REQ Packs;
4) REQ Packs have rarities: Bronze, Sliver, Gold, Premium. Bronze = Common Single-Use, possibility of 1 permanent; Silver = common to rare; 2 permanent, Gold = large number of Rare to Legendary; 2 permanent. Premium = large number of REQs with an increased chance at receiving higher levels of rarity and more permanent REQs;
5) REQ Packs can be earned in game through (say-no-to-microtransaction options) : i) level up Spartan Rank, ii) complete commendations, iii) spending REQ Points (RPs), which are earned by playing MP games ( 1 Arena game -> ~1000 RP, 1 Warzone game -> ~ 2000 RP). Cost: Bronze = 1,250RP, Sliver = 5,000RP, Gold = 10,000RP;
6) REQ Packs can also be purchased with real money (I-have-money-to-throw-at-the-screen options): sliver = $1.99, Gold = $2.99;
7) Free giveaway to all players: Starting REQ Bundle - 54 REQ cards + 7500 RPs;
8) Promotional offer: Warzone REQ Bundle - 2 Premium Pack per week for 7 weeks, 14 total;
9) Warzone REQ Bundle can be obtained through the following editions/bundles of Halo5: i) get the Limited Edition of the game, ii) get the Collector's Edition of the game, iii) get the Limited Edition Console+game bundle, iv) Digital Deluxe Edition;

The extra you need to pay to get Warzone REQ pack mentioned in 9) is ~$30, which also includes the access to the animation series "Fall of Reach". In other words, it is ~ $2 per Premium Pack, which is a much better deal on average vs. the $3 per Gold Pack, assuming that you do plan to get >= 9 Gold Packs throughout your Halo 5 career.

[jaedrik]

Thank you for being that bro, bro.
Wish it was coming out on PC.

[wittyscorpion]

Arena in depth: www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/community/blog-posts/enter-the-arena

[wittyscorpion]

"Halo Companies": halo 5's clan support

www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/community/spartan-companies

Entire soundtrack free on soundcloud:

www.gamesradar.com/listen-entire-halo-5-soundtrack-now-free/?tag=grsocial-20

[wittyscorpion]

FYI: I have created a clan named "Den Kirson Bros", and invited a few XONE bros who are gonna get the game.

If you did not get an invitation and want in, send me a private message.

[wittyscorpion]

Oct 19, 2015 12:40:34 GMT -5 wittyscorpion said:

FYI: I have created a clan named "Den Kirson Bros", and invited a few XONE bros who are gonna get the game.

If you did not get an invitation and want in, send me a private message.

Some bros asked what I need for sending invs. All I need is your gamertag. You can also directly apply at the Clan page, but be sure to mention your Den username if you choose to do that.

BTW: do you guys think that we could have enough discussion traffic to warrant our own subforum here? So far there are not much going on in this thread, hopefully Halo 5 will change that. I sent a request over to Den anyway, will see what he thinks.

Note that by creating a clan HaloWaypoint is offering us a dedicated forum space at www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/forums/ae6fe63811a34a8eb747e8ec710e02fe/topics . However, I assume that most of us would prefer to use Den forum if possible.