I've tried this, believe me. Multiple times. It's not possible anymore. I know what you're referring to, by the way; it used to be how local splitscreen was handled on the 360. I used to play Halo 2, 3, Reach, etc. with friends that way. 343/Microsoft removed that capability in Infinite, and the only reason that makes sense is that they want to force every player to have their own hardware and copy of the game.
But don't take my word alone for it; this is very well documented online, and most of the posters feel the same way I do regarding the situation: it's another case of the industry shafting gamers for greed and control.
Disgusting that Halo Infinite still doesn't have a genuine local splitscreen multiplayer mode (and no, having each player sign in through a separate account DOESN'T COUNT; not everyone has an XBOX or a Microsoft account). We have the most powerful consoles and the biggest displays in the history of the hobby, and yet your OG XBOX and that 27" screen you used to huddle around with your friends provided a better and far more readily accessible local multi-player experience. It's NOT about "technical limitations"; it's about PRIORITIES and using online functionality to gate, control, and further gouge users after the original point-of-sale (example: those thousands of $$$ worth of skins that came before so many basic features that fans had previously been accustomed to expecting from the Halo franchise).
If you've reading this, 343, we're waiting, and folks like me are NOT going to stop reminding you about it.
No local splitscreen multi-player for sessions around the living room with friends and family, and local co-op hasn't exactly been a high priority for 343, either. Never mind that many gamers prefer local play over online with a bunch of strangers for various reasons, or that previous games in the Halo franchise managed to include the ability despite inferior technology (and typically much smaller displays).
There's a very simple reason for this, of course: online functionality has been weaponized by the gaming industry to exploit gamers for every last possible penny after the original point-of-sale, and any time you're doing ANYTHING offline is time your experience can't be gated, controlled, and gouged for more $$$.
Just one of many examples that should clue you into the fact that these corporations are NOT our friends, and they'll destroy the hobby and the games we love if they think there's more profit to be gained in the bargain.
Of course they're not needed; look at the glacial pace with which decent games have been releasing since the launches of both PS5 and XBox Series X/S. PS5 took over a year to have Horizon: Forbidden West to show for its frontline first-party efforts. Microsoft? Aside from Flight Simulator, Forza Horizon 4, and Halo Infinite (which also took several months or more after launch to materialize) there simply aren't really any must-play first-party titles available (and Halo Infinite being a dumpster fire has a LOT more to do with 343's priorities than it ever did with COVID).
You can have the latest and greatest, most powerful piece of hardware the world has ever seen, but without GAMES it's just an expensive doorstop. The GAMES are what hobbyists care about, not crypto, microtransactions, or whatever other online-centric business model the mega-publishers can conjure up.
I own all three current-gen consoles. The one I find myself playing the most (by far)? The Switch, because regardless of its comparative power, the thing has what Sony and Microsoft are still lacking a year and a half after their respective launches: GAMES I want to play.
I don't want to hear about what's coming two, three, or more years down the road anymore (and yes, Nintendo's been guilty as sin of that, too; see Metroid Prime 4 and Zelda: BotW 2), and I CERTAINLY am done listening to COVID being used as an excuse, because I've been watching, reading, and listening to the PRIORITIES of developers over the past couple of years. If you want my money as a consumer who votes with my wallet, you'd better give me what I want instead of arrogantly telling me what I'm getting.
The game still doesn't even allow you to play local splitscreen on your couch with friends/family (unless supposedly they each enter in a separate Microsoft/XBox Live account). None of this is an accident; 343 made Halo Infinite the way it is DELIBERATELY in favor of priorities that aren't in line with the interest of fans.
Honesty is great and all, but means little if no actual change happens. 343 and Microsoft made this game a hot mess through their prioritizing F2P business models and skins over the fundamental features that previous games in the franchise managed to include from Day One. And the entire concept of Seasons and "Games as Service" is just industry speak for laziness and unfinished and/or glitchy games being launched and then having basic features added in bits and pieces over time...if at all.
Training the gaming masses to accept (and pay more for...including after the original point-of-sale) less and less. It's the direction the modern videogame industry, especially with online-centric titles, has embraced to the hilt.
Still no mention of offline splitscreen multiplayer as Guests. Its (deliberate) omission to this point is a slap in the face to fans. Get with it already, 343; Combat Evolved managed more on the original XBox than you are with this game two decades later. INEXCUSABLE.
Here's the recipe for Halo Infinite direct from 343:
1) Create a luscious campaign, then proceed to cut about half of it out, including any varied environments and weather. Gotta get rid of the fat.
2) Add about 8 or 10 multiplayer maps of uneven quality. Those Halo players need their roughage.
3) Make sure to prioritize including thousands of $$$ worth of Fortnite wannabe skins to further monetize the game. Leave basic features that fans have come to expect like offline local splitscreen multiplayer/co-op with Guests, the Forge, and various multiplayer modes out. Gotta train those players to consume what WE want them to!
5) Release a flagship title with roughly 30 percent of its predecessors' basic features missing. But hey, cat ears are tasty!
4) Let simmer for four months (and counting) with no significant updates, maps, modes, or other content, until the player count on the servers has sufficiently evaporated.
5) Sprinkle a few apologies onto the PR dumpster fire.
@Would_you_kindly Of course, so it's also on Microsoft for the problems Halo Infinite has had. It's all about priorities, and they got burned because they chose the WRONG ones.
343 needs to correct the way they designed local multiplayer splitscreen. Requiring separate user accounts to do so instantly makes Halo Infinite useless for anyone with friends/family who don't own an XBox.
And we all know why 343 DELIBERATELY made it this way: GREED, just like prioritizing Fortnite wannabe skins over basic features that should have been in the game in the first place. They deserve for Microsoft to take Halo away from them and hand the franchise to another development team at this point.
Yes, it sure is challenging to do the basic stuff fans have come to expect from a flagship franchise over the years...when you're so occupied with monetizing it after the point-of-sale via wannabe Fortnite skins. Don't worry, 343; your priorities have been completely transparent since Halo Infinite launched. It must also be tough not to be able to hide behind COVID anymore; players can see what a dumpster fire this is.
I would be "excited" simply to be able to play local splitscreen with friends as Guests rather than the current requirement of each person signing in with a distinct username/account. My friends don't even own an XBox, so it's academic; either we can play locally with Guests or we'll be playing a different game, almost certainly on another platform. News flash, 343 and Microsoft: a LOT of gamers actually prefer to play with friends on the same TV and in the same room, and to take it a step further, many of us simply don't even like to play online for reasons that should be well-documented already.
I'm sick and tired of the little games developers are playing with consumers; behind every business model and industry buzzword, behind every "trend" that gets emphasized, everything is about gating, controlling, and exploiting for more $$$ after the original point-of-sale. Halo Infinite...as well as countless other projects could improve 100 percent overnight by doing one simple thing: give the consumers what we WANT instead of telling us what we're getting.
It's probably way too late now, but just maybe it's time for Microsoft to move on from 343 as far as handling their flagship franchise. Halo Infinite has been a dumpster fire.
343 was given an entire extra year to release Halo Infinite after that initial trailer was so poorly received. What did they do with that additional time? They made a mess of a product that was missing many key features, among them the ability to play local multiplayer or co-op as Guests (the fact you can work around this with actual accounts speaks to it being DELIBERATE), a huge swath of the campaign that was left on the cutting room floor (including varied environments/weather that even the original Combat Evolved on XBox managed to pull off), or the Forge. But they did have time to implement new ways of monetizing the game, like skins and customizations some of which look ripped straight off of Fortnite.
Some may claim that COVID is responsible, but let's be real here. What is there when you boot up the game is what 343 PRIORITIZED, and what's missing is what they deemed less important than a secondary revenue stream after the original point-of-sale. And a critically flawed game that still hasn't been fixed, let alone received any tangible additions or maps, in three months and running is a bad look for the studio.
The bottom line: ask yourself whether you'd rather be able to don cat ears for your Spartan or have all of the basic features intact that players have come to expect from this franchise from Day One. 343's priorities simply didn't line up with those of most gamers, and it's no surprise that it's come back to bite them hard.
Case in point as to why I never invest in online/multiplayer-only games. The day will inevitably come when the plug gets pulled on the servers and said investment goes up in smoke. At the end of the day, online functionality has only ever been about one thing from the corporate angle: controlling and gating users' experiences after the original point-of-sale...especially including finding every possible means of exploiting them for additional $$$.
Follow the money...namely the thousands of $$$ worth of Fortnite wannabe skins 343 made certain to shoehorn into the game. There's where your "live service" went, along with an apparently large swath of the campaign including variable environments/weather, local offline splitscreen multiplayer, splitscreen co-op, the Forge, etc.. 343 can blame COVID or whatever else all day long, but their priorities here can't be hidden. And now they're having to lie in that unfinished mess of a bed they've made.
All the reasons posters have given above are valid as to why Halo Infinite is already losing interest. For me personally, it was the very fast realization that 343 had released a 70 percent complete game with a stripped-down campaign (with no variation in environments/weather that even the two-decade-old original Halo managed to accomplish), no local splitscreen multiplayer or campaign co-op, and no Forge to make the Christmas sales window, citing, among other factors, COVID. Oh, but they had the time to incorporate thousands of dollars worth of Fortnite wannabe skins to monetize said 70 percent complete game. It's their PRIORITIES that showed in bold, all-caps lettering to me. 343 made this bed for themselves and this game, and now they're going to have to lie in it. Players will begin returning when Halo Infinite is a fully-featured videogame FIRST instead of a microtransaction machine trying to disguise itself as a game.
@UltimateOtaku91 My bad; I thought they had been purchased by Activision awhile back, but it was actually more of a partnership regarding Destiny. And yes, as you said, that ended in 2019. Sorry for being mistaken.
I can't help but wonder whether this may at some point lead to the Halo franchise being handed back over to Bungie (who's owned by Activision). Although 343 chucking the wannabe Fortnite skins as a priority and finally getting local splitscreen multiplayer/co-op and The Forge into Halo Infinite would be a start for now where I'm personally concerned.
No local splitscreen multiplayer in any form for Halo Infinite at launch. And they left an immense swath of the campaign, including variable environments and weather, on the cutting room floor in order to make that launch date. Oh, but 343 had time to make sure they had thousands of $$$ of wannabe Fortnite skins to monetize a 70 percent complete game.
They can cry about COVID all they want, but their priorities speak far louder to me.
Pro Tip: Don't announce anything you don't have a concrete plan laid out for, and preferably not before you also have significant gameplay to show. The industry has never been more sloppy or more greedy; the two are directly intertwined.
Beyond just the ridiculous pricing for all of these cosmetics, it's the fact that 343 put such an emphasis on making sure they were ready to go (and rake in additional $$$) as opposed to having stuff like local splitscreen, splitscreen co-op, the Forge, etc. ready to go at launch. Heck, from what I've read they even left a huge swath of the campaign on the cutting room floor along with variable environments/weather. They can blame COVID all day long, but it's obvious where their priorities have always been with this game.
If you're happy with what Halo Infinite offers, that's your call. But just remember that if you throw money at all of these cosmetics you are telling 343 and the rest of the videogame industry that it's okay to release games that are 70 percent complete as long as you can find other/additional ways to monetize them out of the gate.
As someone who prefers to play local splitscreen with friends/family over online, it feels like Halo Infinite and 343 are getting a huge pass here both from Pure XBox as well as many/most commenters. After a full year's delay in launching the game, it still won't have splitscreen multiplayer, co-op, or the Forge for several more months at least. A whole slew of content for the campaign was also apparently left on the cutting room floor, including stuff like varied environments that even the very first Halo managed to pull off; as one reviewer put it, it feels like the entirety of Halo Infinite is trying to emulate Silent Cartographer. Oh, but 343 made sure to have thousands of $$$ worth of skins (and cat ears) ready to monetize a basically 70 percent complete game. COVID can only take the blame for so much; it's all about priorities, folks.
Now, I won't argue that what's there is excellent, and if it satisfies your needs/wants as a player, then so be it. And while they have a ways to go (the ability to use and man vehicles/mounted weapons, not to mention actually know what to do in CTF, would be a huge evolution), the bots are a GREAT step forward for those of us who are less than enamored with online and the negative things that tend to come with it. But too many companies are being rewarded for giving us less and less at the original point-of-sale anymore, to the point we're often getting glorified betas for our $60. That's a practice that doesn't deserve accolades and encouragement.
343 has bungled everything and I mean EVERYTHING about this game. After a full year's delay, not only did they launch it without local splitscreen multiplayer/co-op or the Forge, but their focus on monetizing skins over the core of what makes a Halo game couldn't be more obvious. The problems surrounding Halo Infinite have to do far more with 343's priorities than with COVID or any other excuse. And they deserve to be called out on it.
I almost NEVER play games online anymore, and to be frank it was the bots and the possibilities they offered that really sold me on Halo Infinite. I'll never be remotely confused with probably even average let alone really good players at Halo, but I still enjoy it every now and then; however, my overall experience with online chat has been overwhelmingly negative, so I'd rather fill out a local splitscreen match with friends/family (oh yes, 343, better get cracking on that and a few other kinda MAJOR features in Halo Infinite you released the game without, huh?) by using bots if at all possible.
As many above comments have already stated, a lot of folks either mute other users or don't even bother using a headset anymore (I personally don't, either). Sure, it leaves you at a huge disadvantage if you happen to come across a team that's actually coordinating as opposed to spewing childish profanities and insults, but them's the breaks, I guess. Just another casualty of the baser aspects of human nature...and unfortunately, I don't think that any amount of policing will eliminate the root of the problem: the darkness in people's hearts and minds which is only exacerbated and enabled by a sense of anonymity.
The gaming industry right now needs to take a serious step back to reevaluate itself, its priorities, and its business practices. Not only are we seeing more and more announcement trailers for games that are years away (and may not even arrive on the console generations they're announced for (examples: Metroid Prime 4, Fable, SW Eclipse), but games that are being released are shipping less and less complete (the latest example: Halo Infinite, with its local splitscreen, 2-player co-op, and Forge still absent and not due until at least Q2 of next year). And all the while they are expecting the end consumer to just keep paying the same amount of $$$ for less and less content and overall quality at the original point-of-sale, focusing on business models that milk them afterward like F2P, battle passes, loot crates, and so on instead of traditional ones where a consumer takes a finished, complete, and non-beta release-quality game home.
Maybe hyping a game with an eye candy CGI-only trailer four or five years before its release might still work on younger, less experienced gamers, but those of us who've been around for longer know the industry is headed in a lot of WRONG directions right now. And rest assured people WILL get wise and stop pre-ordering games if the practice of releasing unfinished, glitchy messes continues, and ultimately it will start impacting sales, period. It's time to get your houses in order, gaming industry.
To be blunt, they made tremendous cuts to get it launched in 2021 as well (local splitscreen, 2-player co-op, Forge, etc.).
Sure, those features are "coming", but most are months away. And the ugly reality here...and 343 is far from the only developer who's been guilty of this trend...is that we as consumers are getting less at the original point-of-sale than we used to, including with regards to overall quality and QC testing. What makes this even more egregious with Halo Infinite is that 343 obviously took the time to implement the business model side, prioritizing Battle Passes, F2P, and thousands of $$$ worth of skins before they even had a truly full game to sell. And as the review stated, that rush may well have cost the campaign in terms of its scenic variety; for a game labeled "Infinite", having an entire Halo ring with a single biome (described as the entire game mimicking Silent Cartographer) feels like an oversell...one that could have been improved upon with additional development time.
Beta releases used to be associated with PCs; now flagship titles for consoles are launching unfinished and full of technical issues. That's both on the industry as well as us consumers for putting up with/enabling it.
Last night I attempted to try some splitscreen local multiplayer only to find it hasn't yet been implemented into the game. To be frank, it feels like Halo Infinite has been rushed in a lot of ways, even with the extra time given since its original debut trailer. Not only is the 2-player campaign waiting until at least next May according to what I've read, but features like the Forge are likewise apparently still a long way off. Right now Halo Infinite simply feels like an incomplete game that's focusing way too much on a business model (F2P, Battle Passes, and customizable skins) rather than the core stuff that, you know, has always made a HALO title.
Thanks to online functionality we as consumers are being systematically "trained" to accept less for the same $$$ at the original point-of-sale, in terms of both quality and quantity. 343 is far from the only guilty party when it comes to spreading what used to be in the package you took home from the store out across months of post-launch updates, patches, and fixes for bugs and glitches that would have been eliminated by proper QC testing in the first place.
Glad they're looking into it. Even by default these old school games take some readjustment with regard to their controls and frantic speed, but that aiming is in definite need of getting slowed down.
To each their own, but this is a huge part of why I never cared about cosmetics. If it isn't crucial to the gameplay in any meaningful way, it's just fluff. Videogame companies have become filthy rich by utilizing online functionality to gate, control, and wring further money out of consumers' pockets after the original point-of-sale, and the business models just keep getting more and more ridiculous in the sheer amount of avarice involved (Nintendo more than doubling the subscription price of an already shoddy online service to add some shoddily emulated N64 and Genesis games is just one case in point).
Again, to each their own, though. If spending more money for cosmetics is worth more to you than being able to pay a flat price and work to unlock stuff in-game, have at 'em. If not, all I can say is to vote with your wallet.
I personally don't believe that either the campaign or the multiplayer, taken individually, merits a $60 price tag. A big part of Halo's appeal has been the ability to do either or both over the years.
As for F2P, Battle Passes, and cosmetics, I honestly couldn't care less because while I still enjoy the occasional match or three of Halo/FPS multiplayer, it's nowhere near enough to justify pouring even more money into the game. I've never been particularly good at FPSes partly because I don't eat, drink, and breathe them; Halo is just one of many, many games and genres that I play and/or have time to get around to. I have actually found playing with/against bots to be by far the best innovation with Halo Infinite, and I really hope that 343 incorporates them into the Forge so that it finally has some actual practicality for those of us who don't have a laundry list of friends to play our creations with.
The biggest offense is simply that the dialogue, the characters, even the whole Horizon Festival "storyline" itself amount to interruptions that intrude on what you're playing the game for (at least speaking for myself here): exploring the map and driving/ unlocking cars. They're all tacked-on, superfluous, uninteresting fluff.
Very glad to see the Timesplitters games finally get added to BC. But even with 70 games added today there are still some titles I would readily buy if MS decides to add more, such as Daisenryaku VII: Modern Military Tactics, OutRun 2006: Coast2Coast, and Afterburner Climax.
I'd love to see the XBox BC program make a full return; there are still many deserving games from both the XBox 360 and the original XBox that haven't yet made it in. Some of my personal Wish List:
1) TimeSplitters 2
2) TimeSplitters 3: Future Perfect
3) Daisenryaku VII: Modern Military Tactics
4) OutRun 2006: Coast2Coast
5) AfterBurner Climax
6) Namco Museum Remix
@thenewguy Way too many of these industry shows are 90 percent fluff nobody cares about and make you wait until the very end for their "big" announcement...which typically ends up being a "Be sure to drink your Ovaltine"-level disappointment.
I really enjoy these games, but I admit that the "storyline" and the associated banter are all just intrusive interruptions for me personally. I just want to get out there and explore those amazing maps, acquire more vehicles, and yeah, once in awhile, race.
TimeSplitters 2 and TimeSplitters 3: Future Perfect both need to be BC. Ditto OutRun 2006: Coast 2 Coast. I'd also love to see some turn-based military strategy love for Daisenryaku VII: Modern Military Tactics (the multiplayer combined with the map editor make this one an INCREDIBLE and tragically overlooked gem).
Looking forward anxiously to next weekend's Big Team Battle preview. Some things I'll be paying close attention to will include how capably Bots man/drive vehicles and their weaponry, as well as how they fare in larger numbers (coordinating to fulfill objectives or kill human players). Bots have proven to struggle against human players in modes with added complexity like CTF and Stronghold in this week's preview (their directive to avoid human players in CTF after grabbing the enemy flag is so strong right now that they literally back themselves into corners and just stand there, wide open), and Big Team Battle will likewise be an important test since it has extra nuances for them to deal with.
It's important to remember that we're playing a preview build, and that even at launch the game's AI will leave some things to be desired with regard to Bots. But given time I really think 343 will get them refined to the point they can provide a decent challenge for players of any skill level.
DISCLAIMER: Part of this post is copied from the latest "What Are You Playing This Weekend?" article.
Been playing the Halo Infinite preview, mostly focusing on the modes with Bots. Here are my thoughts after a few hours:
1) The Bots are much more competent in Slayer than they are in more complex modes like Capture the Flag or Stronghold. Twice in a single match I watched Bots grab our flag only to suddenly and inexplicably stop and back into a corner as I approached. The typical time for a CTF victory was less than 3-4 minutes, and Stronghold saw scores of 200-0. So no, they're simply not ready for Prime Time, at least in those modes.
2) In Slayer they tend to do better, although they'll never provide as challenge for "pro" Halo players as currently constituted. For the record, I consider myself far below average at Halo; I've only played the series sporadically since Halo 2. Even so, I routinely had Killing Sprees and even entire matches where I didn't die, and that NEVER happens against human players.
ADDENDUM: For some reason the Bots actually seem to be much more competent in Training Mode than in the arenas with human players. They appear to coordinate (pincer moves) and jump and move erratically more often to avoid fire. At any rate my kill/loss ratio is much lower than in the multiplayer arenas with Bots. I really like what I'm seeing, though.
All that said, Bots are absolutely a huge step in the right direction for Halo, especially for less experienced or skilled players who are more interested in casual play...particularly in local splitscreen matches...than serious competition or the eSports scene. With an IP as huge as Halo, there's a place for both groups, but up until now the skill gap (and all too often a toxic online environment) has made for a discouraging barrier for many folks, myself included.
It could also work wonders for the Forge by filling out team rosters, because up till now unless you had an extensive Friends List and the ability to coordinate, you were left with mostly empty arenas and nobody ever got to enjoy the fruits of your efforts.
Right now the Bots are a work-in-progress, but that's to be expected. If 343 puts the effort necessary into their AI routines, I see them becoming a staple option for the future that will make Halo much more accessible to far more players. I really hope 343 will consider expanding their use in other modes, including Social Multiplayer (they could really help especially when servers have fewer players to go around). And for me at least they're a MUST for local splitscreen multiplayer and the Forge.
Been playing the Halo Infinite preview, mostly focusing on the modes with Bots. Here are my thoughts after a few hours:
1) The Bots are much more competent in Slayer than they are in more complex modes like Capture the Flag or Stronghold. Twice in a single match I watched Bots grab our flag only to suddenly and inexplicably stop and back into a corner as I approached. The typical time for a CTF victory was less than 3-4 minutes, and Stronghold saw scores of 200-0. So no, they're simply not ready for Prime Time, at least in those modes.
2) In Slayer they tend to do better, although they'll never provide as challenge for "pro" Halo players as currently constituted. For the record, I consider myself far below average at Halo; I've only played the series sporadically since Halo 2. Even so, I routinely had Killing Sprees and even entire matches where I didn't die, and that NEVER happens against human players.
That said, Bots are absolutely a huge step in the right direction for Halo, especially for less experienced or skilled players who are more interested in casual play...particularly in local splitscreen matches...than serious competition or the eSports scene. With an IP as huge as Halo, there's a place for both groups, but up until now the skill gap (and all too often a toxic online environment) has made for a discouraging barrier for many folks, myself included.
It could also work wonders for the Forge by filling out team rosters, because up till now unless you had an extensive Friends List and the ability to coordinate, you were left with mostly empty arenas and nobody ever got to enjoy the fruits of your efforts.
Right now the Bots are a work-in-progress, but that's to be expected. If 343 puts the effort necessary into their AI routines, I see them becoming a staple option for the future that will make Halo much more accessible to far more players.
No Timesplitters, not "legendary" enough in my book. Why do the games we REALLY want always seem to be either the farthest away or the lowest priority?
I got back into Tales of Vesperia a few months ago and played deep into the game, probably close to the end. But long before I simply walked away again (other games were calling for my attention), it had reminded me of why I didn't finish it the first time around: its characters are largely uninteresting, much of the dialogue comes through those intrusive "talking heads" cutscenes, and the combat was literally just me running around and repeatedly mashing buttons (and I LOATHE ANY JRPG that has gone to this mechanic over turn and menu-based; that goes for the modern FFs as well). Sure there were some cool moments where Yuri crossed some lines and obviously that intro song/video, but as a package Vesperia was frankly mediocre.
That said, it's shaped my view of the Tales franchise in general, especially the combat, which I'm not at all interested in repeating through another 50-100 hour storyline. The trailers didn't convince me there's enough difference offered here to justify that $60, non-refundable investment.
The XBox BC Program REALLY NEEDS to be brought back because there are still a lot of deserving games which never got in before Microsoft pulled up tent stakes in preparation for the move to Series X/S. Among my personal list of candidates:
1) OutRun 2006: Coast2Coast 2) Daisenryaku VII: Modern Military Tactics 3) TimeSplitters 2 4) TimeSplitters 3: Future Perfect 5) Namco Museum Remix
And while we're on the subject of "game preservation", they need to stop killing AAA games due to licensing issues, such as the Forza Horizon series. There needs to be some agreement that enables these games to be sold in perpetuity instead of disappearing forever; if it costs a bit more for those rights then get it done.
I think it really comes down to what you play a given game for. For me personally, I gravitate more toward turn-based Strategy like Civilization or Daisenryaku and JRPGs and SRPGs like the Trails series and Shining Force, because I love being able to put my feet up and enjoy games that enable me to relax while offering hundreds of hours' worth of gameplay and/or storylines. I also tend to look at the value of a game by how many hours of gameplay I get per dollar spent.
I also enjoy games that I can break out when company's over, from Civilization to Mario Kart (depending on the interests and skill level of those involved). Back in the day my house hosted epic sessions of GoldenEye, Perfect Dark, TimeSplitters, and the original Halo, among many others. IMHO local multiplayer with friends and family provides some of the best memories you'll ever get from the hobby, because it's about those face-to-face interactions and the camaraderie that online multiplayer just can't offer.
With Halo and other FPSes, I still enjoy them to a limited degree; I've never been nearly as adept as many of the folks who obviously eat, drink, sleep and breathe them, and between that insurmountable disparity of skill and the often toxic profanity and ugliness of being paired with total strangers, way too often online multiplayer sessions simply aren't all that FUN...and that's the measuring stick that keeps anyone playing a game.
What DOES have me intrigued about Halo Infinite this time around are the bots. Right now I realize their presence will be limited, but I really hope that presence will be expanded over time into all the multiplayer modes for those who want them (this is why I'm also stoked regarding the upcoming TimeSplitters reboot; hopefully the developers stick to what made that franchise so beloved and don't mess with the formula too much). There's a definite appeal to me in opponents who are programmed to mimic the player's (my) skill level while maintaining a clean and family-friendly atmosphere. It also provides a much more welcoming potential for local multiplayer.
I realize that everyone's mileage varies here in terms of priorities, but these are mine.
Developments like this make me lean even more heavily toward playing with/against bots (a feature that I hope gets expanded into EVERY corner of the multiplayer for those who prefer it). Online multiplayer can be woefully unbalanced as it is, and since my taste has shifted more toward Turn-based Strategy and JRPGs, I've never exactly been one of those players who carries my entire team in Halo; to put it VERY mildly. This feels like the devs messed with something that wasn't broken, which IMHO is ill-advised for a flagship game that's already been delayed more than a year past the console's launch and still is releasing without many core features. Time will tell if the results require "fixes" to keep lesser players from giving up and forgetting about this one.
I have the original and look forward to this iteration. I really hope Microsoft decides to expand on its BC program, though, because even now there are still lots of great and deserving titles for the XBox 360 and especially the original XBox that aren't currently available.
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Re: 343: Halo Infinite's First Drop Pod Is Arriving Next Week
I've tried this, believe me. Multiple times. It's not possible anymore. I know what you're referring to, by the way; it used to be how local splitscreen was handled on the 360. I used to play Halo 2, 3, Reach, etc. with friends that way. 343/Microsoft removed that capability in Infinite, and the only reason that makes sense is that they want to force every player to have their own hardware and copy of the game.
But don't take my word alone for it; this is very well documented online, and most of the posters feel the same way I do regarding the situation: it's another case of the industry shafting gamers for greed and control.
Re: 343: Halo Infinite's First Drop Pod Is Arriving Next Week
Disgusting that Halo Infinite still doesn't have a genuine local splitscreen multiplayer mode (and no, having each player sign in through a separate account DOESN'T COUNT; not everyone has an XBOX or a Microsoft account). We have the most powerful consoles and the biggest displays in the history of the hobby, and yet your OG XBOX and that 27" screen you used to huddle around with your friends provided a better and far more readily accessible local multi-player experience. It's NOT about "technical limitations"; it's about PRIORITIES and using online functionality to gate, control, and further gouge users after the original point-of-sale (example: those thousands of $$$ worth of skins that came before so many basic features that fans had previously been accustomed to expecting from the Halo franchise).
If you've reading this, 343, we're waiting, and folks like me are NOT going to stop reminding you about it.
Re: Halo Infinite 'Campaign Network Co-Op' Flight Begins This July
No local splitscreen multi-player for sessions around the living room with friends and family, and local co-op hasn't exactly been a high priority for 343, either. Never mind that many gamers prefer local play over online with a bunch of strangers for various reasons, or that previous games in the Halo franchise managed to include the ability despite inferior technology (and typically much smaller displays).
There's a very simple reason for this, of course: online functionality has been weaponized by the gaming industry to exploit gamers for every last possible penny after the original point-of-sale, and any time you're doing ANYTHING offline is time your experience can't be gated, controlled, and gouged for more $$$.
Just one of many examples that should clue you into the fact that these corporations are NOT our friends, and they'll destroy the hobby and the games we love if they think there's more profit to be gained in the bargain.
Re: Digital Foundry Questions The Need For Mid-Gen Console Upgrades
Of course they're not needed; look at the glacial pace with which decent games have been releasing since the launches of both PS5 and XBox Series X/S. PS5 took over a year to have Horizon: Forbidden West to show for its frontline first-party efforts. Microsoft? Aside from Flight Simulator, Forza Horizon 4, and Halo Infinite (which also took several months or more after launch to materialize) there simply aren't really any must-play first-party titles available (and Halo Infinite being a dumpster fire has a LOT more to do with 343's priorities than it ever did with COVID).
You can have the latest and greatest, most powerful piece of hardware the world has ever seen, but without GAMES it's just an expensive doorstop. The GAMES are what hobbyists care about, not crypto, microtransactions, or whatever other online-centric business model the mega-publishers can conjure up.
I own all three current-gen consoles. The one I find myself playing the most (by far)? The Switch, because regardless of its comparative power, the thing has what Sony and Microsoft are still lacking a year and a half after their respective launches: GAMES I want to play.
I don't want to hear about what's coming two, three, or more years down the road anymore (and yes, Nintendo's been guilty as sin of that, too; see Metroid Prime 4 and Zelda: BotW 2), and I CERTAINLY am done listening to COVID being used as an excuse, because I've been watching, reading, and listening to the PRIORITIES of developers over the past couple of years. If you want my money as a consumer who votes with my wallet, you'd better give me what I want instead of arrogantly telling me what I'm getting.
Re: Digital Foundry Looks At Halo Infinite's Ongoing Issues
The game still doesn't even allow you to play local splitscreen on your couch with friends/family (unless supposedly they each enter in a separate Microsoft/XBox Live account). None of this is an accident; 343 made Halo Infinite the way it is DELIBERATELY in favor of priorities that aren't in line with the interest of fans.
Re: Halo Infinite Dev: 'None Of Us Inside Of 343 Look At This Roadmap And Are Happy With It'
Honesty is great and all, but means little if no actual change happens. 343 and Microsoft made this game a hot mess through their prioritizing F2P business models and skins over the fundamental features that previous games in the franchise managed to include from Day One. And the entire concept of Seasons and "Games as Service" is just industry speak for laziness and unfinished and/or glitchy games being launched and then having basic features added in bits and pieces over time...if at all.
Re: Halo Infinite 2022 Roadmap Released, Campaign Co-Op Targeting August
Training the gaming masses to accept (and pay more for...including after the original point-of-sale) less and less. It's the direction the modern videogame industry, especially with online-centric titles, has embraced to the hilt.
Re: Halo Infinite 2022 Roadmap Released, Campaign Co-Op Targeting August
Still no mention of offline splitscreen multiplayer as Guests. Its (deliberate) omission to this point is a slap in the face to fans. Get with it already, 343; Combat Evolved managed more on the original XBox than you are with this game two decades later. INEXCUSABLE.
Re: 343 Teases 'Something New' For Halo: The Master Chief Collection
Knowing 343 it'll be microtransactions and cat ears.
Re: No Joke, The Official Halo Cookbook Releases Later This Year
Here's the recipe for Halo Infinite direct from 343:
1) Create a luscious campaign, then proceed to cut about half of it out, including any varied environments and weather. Gotta get rid of the fat.
2) Add about 8 or 10 multiplayer maps of uneven quality. Those Halo players need their roughage.
3) Make sure to prioritize including thousands of $$$ worth of Fortnite wannabe skins to further monetize the game. Leave basic features that fans have come to expect like offline local splitscreen multiplayer/co-op with Guests, the Forge, and various multiplayer modes out. Gotta train those players to consume what WE want them to!
5) Release a flagship title with roughly 30 percent of its predecessors' basic features missing. But hey, cat ears are tasty!
4) Let simmer for four months (and counting) with no significant updates, maps, modes, or other content, until the player count on the servers has sufficiently evaporated.
5) Sprinkle a few apologies onto the PR dumpster fire.
Bon appetit!
Re: 343 Details Season 2 Updates For Halo Infinite
@Would_you_kindly Of course, so it's also on Microsoft for the problems Halo Infinite has had. It's all about priorities, and they got burned because they chose the WRONG ones.
Re: 343 Details Season 2 Updates For Halo Infinite
343 needs to correct the way they designed local multiplayer splitscreen. Requiring separate user accounts to do so instantly makes Halo Infinite useless for anyone with friends/family who don't own an XBox.
And we all know why 343 DELIBERATELY made it this way: GREED, just like prioritizing Fortnite wannabe skins over basic features that should have been in the game in the first place. They deserve for Microsoft to take Halo away from them and hand the franchise to another development team at this point.
Re: 343 Explains Lack Of Communication Over Halo Infinite Season 2
Yes, it sure is challenging to do the basic stuff fans have come to expect from a flagship franchise over the years...when you're so occupied with monetizing it after the point-of-sale via wannabe Fortnite skins. Don't worry, 343; your priorities have been completely transparent since Halo Infinite launched. It must also be tough not to be able to hide behind COVID anymore; players can see what a dumpster fire this is.
Re: 343 'Very Excited' To Unleash New Halo Infinite Multiplayer Content
I would be "excited" simply to be able to play local splitscreen with friends as Guests rather than the current requirement of each person signing in with a distinct username/account. My friends don't even own an XBox, so it's academic; either we can play locally with Guests or we'll be playing a different game, almost certainly on another platform. News flash, 343 and Microsoft: a LOT of gamers actually prefer to play with friends on the same TV and in the same room, and to take it a step further, many of us simply don't even like to play online for reasons that should be well-documented already.
I'm sick and tired of the little games developers are playing with consumers; behind every business model and industry buzzword, behind every "trend" that gets emphasized, everything is about gating, controlling, and exploiting for more $$$ after the original point-of-sale. Halo Infinite...as well as countless other projects could improve 100 percent overnight by doing one simple thing: give the consumers what we WANT instead of telling us what we're getting.
Re: Halo Infinite's Multiplayer Lead Has Left 343 Industries
It's probably way too late now, but just maybe it's time for Microsoft to move on from 343 as far as handling their flagship franchise. Halo Infinite has been a dumpster fire.
Re: 343 Talks About Addressing Halo Infinite's 'Critical Issues'
343 was given an entire extra year to release Halo Infinite after that initial trailer was so poorly received. What did they do with that additional time? They made a mess of a product that was missing many key features, among them the ability to play local multiplayer or co-op as Guests (the fact you can work around this with actual accounts speaks to it being DELIBERATE), a huge swath of the campaign that was left on the cutting room floor (including varied environments/weather that even the original Combat Evolved on XBox managed to pull off), or the Forge. But they did have time to implement new ways of monetizing the game, like skins and customizations some of which look ripped straight off of Fortnite.
Some may claim that COVID is responsible, but let's be real here. What is there when you boot up the game is what 343 PRIORITIZED, and what's missing is what they deemed less important than a secondary revenue stream after the original point-of-sale. And a critically flawed game that still hasn't been fixed, let alone received any tangible additions or maps, in three months and running is a bad look for the studio.
The bottom line: ask yourself whether you'd rather be able to don cat ears for your Spartan or have all of the basic features intact that players have come to expect from this franchise from Day One. 343's priorities simply didn't line up with those of most gamers, and it's no surprise that it's come back to bite them hard.
Re: Rare Is Closing Down Sea Of Thieves' Arena Mode Next Month
Case in point as to why I never invest in online/multiplayer-only games. The day will inevitably come when the plug gets pulled on the servers and said investment goes up in smoke. At the end of the day, online functionality has only ever been about one thing from the corporate angle: controlling and gating users' experiences after the original point-of-sale...especially including finding every possible means of exploiting them for additional $$$.
Re: Halo Infinite Fans Question Where The 'Live Service' Part Has Gone
Follow the money...namely the thousands of $$$ worth of Fortnite wannabe skins 343 made certain to shoehorn into the game. There's where your "live service" went, along with an apparently large swath of the campaign including variable environments/weather, local offline splitscreen multiplayer, splitscreen co-op, the Forge, etc.. 343 can blame COVID or whatever else all day long, but their priorities here can't be hidden. And now they're having to lie in that unfinished mess of a bed they've made.
Re: Halo Infinite No Longer In Xbox Live's Top Five As Player Numbers Decline
All the reasons posters have given above are valid as to why Halo Infinite is already losing interest. For me personally, it was the very fast realization that 343 had released a 70 percent complete game with a stripped-down campaign (with no variation in environments/weather that even the two-decade-old original Halo managed to accomplish), no local splitscreen multiplayer or campaign co-op, and no Forge to make the Christmas sales window, citing, among other factors, COVID. Oh, but they had the time to incorporate thousands of dollars worth of Fortnite wannabe skins to monetize said 70 percent complete game. It's their PRIORITIES that showed in bold, all-caps lettering to me. 343 made this bed for themselves and this game, and now they're going to have to lie in it. Players will begin returning when Halo Infinite is a fully-featured videogame FIRST instead of a microtransaction machine trying to disguise itself as a game.
Re: Microsoft Is Buying Activision Blizzard, Reportedly For $70 Billion
@UltimateOtaku91 My bad; I thought they had been purchased by Activision awhile back, but it was actually more of a partnership regarding Destiny. And yes, as you said, that ended in 2019. Sorry for being mistaken.
Re: Microsoft Is Buying Activision Blizzard, Reportedly For $70 Billion
I can't help but wonder whether this may at some point lead to the Halo franchise being handed back over to Bungie (who's owned by Activision). Although 343 chucking the wannabe Fortnite skins as a priority and finally getting local splitscreen multiplayer/co-op and The Forge into Halo Infinite would be a start for now where I'm personally concerned.
Re: Xbox Gets Roasted By Wendy's On Twitter With Halo Infinite Insult
No local splitscreen multiplayer in any form for Halo Infinite at launch. And they left an immense swath of the campaign, including variable environments and weather, on the cutting room floor in order to make that launch date. Oh, but 343 had time to make sure they had thousands of $$$ of wannabe Fortnite skins to monetize a 70 percent complete game.
They can cry about COVID all they want, but their priorities speak far louder to me.
Re: No Joke, It Looks Like GoldenEye 007 Is Finally Coming To Xbox
I've got dibs on Oddjob. Heh heh!
Re: Rare's Everwild Is Reportedly 'A Real Mess', Still Being Figured Out
Pro Tip: Don't announce anything you don't have a concrete plan laid out for, and preferably not before you also have significant gameplay to show. The industry has never been more sloppy or more greedy; the two are directly intertwined.
Re: Halo Infinite: How To Get The 'Mister Chief' AI In Multiplayer
Beyond just the ridiculous pricing for all of these cosmetics, it's the fact that 343 put such an emphasis on making sure they were ready to go (and rake in additional $$$) as opposed to having stuff like local splitscreen, splitscreen co-op, the Forge, etc. ready to go at launch. Heck, from what I've read they even left a huge swath of the campaign on the cutting room floor along with variable environments/weather. They can blame COVID all day long, but it's obvious where their priorities have always been with this game.
If you're happy with what Halo Infinite offers, that's your call. But just remember that if you throw money at all of these cosmetics you are telling 343 and the rest of the videogame industry that it's okay to release games that are 70 percent complete as long as you can find other/additional ways to monetize them out of the gate.
Re: Feature: Pure Xbox's Game Of The Year 2021
As someone who prefers to play local splitscreen with friends/family over online, it feels like Halo Infinite and 343 are getting a huge pass here both from Pure XBox as well as many/most commenters. After a full year's delay in launching the game, it still won't have splitscreen multiplayer, co-op, or the Forge for several more months at least. A whole slew of content for the campaign was also apparently left on the cutting room floor, including stuff like varied environments that even the very first Halo managed to pull off; as one reviewer put it, it feels like the entirety of Halo Infinite is trying to emulate Silent Cartographer. Oh, but 343 made sure to have thousands of $$$ worth of skins (and cat ears) ready to monetize a basically 70 percent complete game. COVID can only take the blame for so much; it's all about priorities, folks.
Now, I won't argue that what's there is excellent, and if it satisfies your needs/wants as a player, then so be it. And while they have a ways to go (the ability to use and man vehicles/mounted weapons, not to mention actually know what to do in CTF, would be a huge evolution), the bots are a GREAT step forward for those of us who are less than enamored with online and the negative things that tend to come with it. But too many companies are being rewarded for giving us less and less at the original point-of-sale anymore, to the point we're often getting glorified betas for our $60. That's a practice that doesn't deserve accolades and encouragement.
Re: Cat Ears Have Some Players Worried About The Future Of Halo Infinite
343 has bungled everything and I mean EVERYTHING about this game. After a full year's delay, not only did they launch it without local splitscreen multiplayer/co-op or the Forge, but their focus on monetizing skins over the core of what makes a Halo game couldn't be more obvious. The problems surrounding Halo Infinite have to do far more with 343's priorities than with COVID or any other excuse. And they deserve to be called out on it.
Re: Xbox Creator Demands Action As Sexist Xbox Live Recording Goes Viral
I almost NEVER play games online anymore, and to be frank it was the bots and the possibilities they offered that really sold me on Halo Infinite. I'll never be remotely confused with probably even average let alone really good players at Halo, but I still enjoy it every now and then; however, my overall experience with online chat has been overwhelmingly negative, so I'd rather fill out a local splitscreen match with friends/family (oh yes, 343, better get cracking on that and a few other kinda MAJOR features in Halo Infinite you released the game without, huh?) by using bots if at all possible.
As many above comments have already stated, a lot of folks either mute other users or don't even bother using a headset anymore (I personally don't, either). Sure, it leaves you at a huge disadvantage if you happen to come across a team that's actually coordinating as opposed to spewing childish profanities and insults, but them's the breaks, I guess. Just another casualty of the baser aspects of human nature...and unfortunately, I don't think that any amount of policing will eliminate the root of the problem: the darkness in people's hearts and minds which is only exacerbated and enabled by a sense of anonymity.
Re: It Sounds Like Quantic Dream's Star Wars Eclipse Is Still Many Years Away
The gaming industry right now needs to take a serious step back to reevaluate itself, its priorities, and its business practices. Not only are we seeing more and more announcement trailers for games that are years away (and may not even arrive on the console generations they're announced for (examples: Metroid Prime 4, Fable, SW Eclipse), but games that are being released are shipping less and less complete (the latest example: Halo Infinite, with its local splitscreen, 2-player co-op, and Forge still absent and not due until at least Q2 of next year). And all the while they are expecting the end consumer to just keep paying the same amount of $$$ for less and less content and overall quality at the original point-of-sale, focusing on business models that milk them afterward like F2P, battle passes, loot crates, and so on instead of traditional ones where a consumer takes a finished, complete, and non-beta release-quality game home.
Maybe hyping a game with an eye candy CGI-only trailer four or five years before its release might still work on younger, less experienced gamers, but those of us who've been around for longer know the industry is headed in a lot of WRONG directions right now. And rest assured people WILL get wise and stop pre-ordering games if the practice of releasing unfinished, glitchy messes continues, and ultimately it will start impacting sales, period. It's time to get your houses in order, gaming industry.
Re: Halo Infinite Devs Made 'Tremendous Cuts' To Try And Launch In 2020
To be blunt, they made tremendous cuts to get it launched in 2021 as well (local splitscreen, 2-player co-op, Forge, etc.).
Sure, those features are "coming", but most are months away. And the ugly reality here...and 343 is far from the only developer who's been guilty of this trend...is that we as consumers are getting less at the original point-of-sale than we used to, including with regards to overall quality and QC testing. What makes this even more egregious with Halo Infinite is that 343 obviously took the time to implement the business model side, prioritizing Battle Passes, F2P, and thousands of $$$ worth of skins before they even had a truly full game to sell. And as the review stated, that rush may well have cost the campaign in terms of its scenic variety; for a game labeled "Infinite", having an entire Halo ring with a single biome (described as the entire game mimicking Silent Cartographer) feels like an oversell...one that could have been improved upon with additional development time.
Beta releases used to be associated with PCs; now flagship titles for consoles are launching unfinished and full of technical issues. That's both on the industry as well as us consumers for putting up with/enabling it.
Re: Halo Infinite Dev Issues Lengthy, Passionate Response To Multiplayer Criticism
Last night I attempted to try some splitscreen local multiplayer only to find it hasn't yet been implemented into the game. To be frank, it feels like Halo Infinite has been rushed in a lot of ways, even with the extra time given since its original debut trailer. Not only is the 2-player campaign waiting until at least next May according to what I've read, but features like the Forge are likewise apparently still a long way off. Right now Halo Infinite simply feels like an incomplete game that's focusing way too much on a business model (F2P, Battle Passes, and customizable skins) rather than the core stuff that, you know, has always made a HALO title.
Thanks to online functionality we as consumers are being systematically "trained" to accept less for the same $$$ at the original point-of-sale, in terms of both quality and quantity. 343 is far from the only guilty party when it comes to spreading what used to be in the package you took home from the store out across months of post-launch updates, patches, and fixes for bugs and glitches that would have been eliminated by proper QC testing in the first place.
Re: Xbox 'Investigating' TimeSplitters Issue With Backwards Compatibility
Glad they're looking into it. Even by default these old school games take some readjustment with regard to their controls and frantic speed, but that aiming is in definite need of getting slowed down.
Re: Halo Infinite Season 1's Paid Cosmetics Could End Up Costing Over $1000 In Total
To each their own, but this is a huge part of why I never cared about cosmetics. If it isn't crucial to the gameplay in any meaningful way, it's just fluff. Videogame companies have become filthy rich by utilizing online functionality to gate, control, and wring further money out of consumers' pockets after the original point-of-sale, and the business models just keep getting more and more ridiculous in the sheer amount of avarice involved (Nintendo more than doubling the subscription price of an already shoddy online service to add some shoddily emulated N64 and Genesis games is just one case in point).
Again, to each their own, though. If spending more money for cosmetics is worth more to you than being able to pay a flat price and work to unlock stuff in-game, have at 'em. If not, all I can say is to vote with your wallet.
Re: Halo Fans Grumble About Infinite's Free-To-Play Model, 'Would Pay Full Price To Unlock All Content'
I personally don't believe that either the campaign or the multiplayer, taken individually, merits a $60 price tag. A big part of Halo's appeal has been the ability to do either or both over the years.
As for F2P, Battle Passes, and cosmetics, I honestly couldn't care less because while I still enjoy the occasional match or three of Halo/FPS multiplayer, it's nowhere near enough to justify pouring even more money into the game. I've never been particularly good at FPSes partly because I don't eat, drink, and breathe them; Halo is just one of many, many games and genres that I play and/or have time to get around to. I have actually found playing with/against bots to be by far the best innovation with Halo Infinite, and I really hope that 343 incorporates them into the Forge so that it finally has some actual practicality for those of us who don't have a laundry list of friends to play our creations with.
Re: Forza Horizon 5 Players Are Finding The Game's Dialogue A Little Grating
The biggest offense is simply that the dialogue, the characters, even the whole Horizon Festival "storyline" itself amount to interruptions that intrude on what you're playing the game for (at least speaking for myself here): exploring the map and driving/ unlocking cars. They're all tacked-on, superfluous, uninteresting fluff.
Re: Xbox Adds 76 Games To Backwards Compatibility Including TimeSplitters, Max Payne & Star Wars
Very glad to see the Timesplitters games finally get added to BC. But even with 70 games added today there are still some titles I would readily buy if MS decides to add more, such as Daisenryaku VII: Modern Military Tactics, OutRun 2006: Coast2Coast, and Afterburner Climax.
Re: How To Watch Today's Xbox 20th Anniversary Celebration Event
I'd love to see the XBox BC program make a full return; there are still many deserving games from both the XBox 360 and the original XBox that haven't yet made it in. Some of my personal Wish List:
1) TimeSplitters 2
2) TimeSplitters 3: Future Perfect
3) Daisenryaku VII: Modern Military Tactics
4) OutRun 2006: Coast2Coast
5) AfterBurner Climax
6) Namco Museum Remix
Re: Rumour: Xbox Fans Will 'Definitely' Want To Watch The 20th Anniversary Show
@thenewguy Way too many of these industry shows are 90 percent fluff nobody cares about and make you wait until the very end for their "big" announcement...which typically ends up being a "Be sure to drink your Ovaltine"-level disappointment.
Re: Review: Forza Horizon 5 - An Amazing Game, But One That's A Little Too Familiar
I really enjoy these games, but I admit that the "storyline" and the associated banter are all just intrusive interruptions for me personally. I just want to get out there and explore those amazing maps, acquire more vehicles, and yeah, once in awhile, race.
Re: Rumour: Seven Original Xbox Games That Could Be Getting Backwards Compatibility
TimeSplitters 2 and TimeSplitters 3: Future Perfect both need to be BC. Ditto OutRun 2006: Coast 2 Coast. I'd also love to see some turn-based military strategy love for Daisenryaku VII: Modern Military Tactics (the multiplayer combined with the map editor make this one an INCREDIBLE and tragically overlooked gem).
Re: Halo Infinite's Second Technical Preview Is Off To An Impressive Start
Looking forward anxiously to next weekend's Big Team Battle preview. Some things I'll be paying close attention to will include how capably Bots man/drive vehicles and their weaponry, as well as how they fare in larger numbers (coordinating to fulfill objectives or kill human players). Bots have proven to struggle against human players in modes with added complexity like CTF and Stronghold in this week's preview (their directive to avoid human players in CTF after grabbing the enemy flag is so strong right now that they literally back themselves into corners and just stand there, wide open), and Big Team Battle will likewise be an important test since it has extra nuances for them to deal with.
It's important to remember that we're playing a preview build, and that even at launch the game's AI will leave some things to be desired with regard to Bots. But given time I really think 343 will get them refined to the point they can provide a decent challenge for players of any skill level.
Re: Halo Infinite's Second Technical Preview Is Off To An Impressive Start
DISCLAIMER: Part of this post is copied from the latest "What Are You Playing This Weekend?" article.
Been playing the Halo Infinite preview, mostly focusing on the modes with Bots. Here are my thoughts after a few hours:
1) The Bots are much more competent in Slayer than they are in more complex modes like Capture the Flag or Stronghold. Twice in a single match I watched Bots grab our flag only to suddenly and inexplicably stop and back into a corner as I approached. The typical time for a CTF victory was less than 3-4 minutes, and Stronghold saw scores of 200-0. So no, they're simply not ready for Prime Time, at least in those modes.
2) In Slayer they tend to do better, although they'll never provide as challenge for "pro" Halo players as currently constituted. For the record, I consider myself far below average at Halo; I've only played the series sporadically since Halo 2. Even so, I routinely had Killing Sprees and even entire matches where I didn't die, and that NEVER happens against human players.
ADDENDUM: For some reason the Bots actually seem to be much more competent in Training Mode than in the arenas with human players. They appear to coordinate (pincer moves) and jump and move erratically more often to avoid fire. At any rate my kill/loss ratio is much lower than in the multiplayer arenas with Bots. I really like what I'm seeing, though.
All that said, Bots are absolutely a huge step in the right direction for Halo, especially for less experienced or skilled players who are more interested in casual play...particularly in local splitscreen matches...than serious competition or the eSports scene. With an IP as huge as Halo, there's a place for both groups, but up until now the skill gap (and all too often a toxic online environment) has made for a discouraging barrier for many folks, myself included.
It could also work wonders for the Forge by filling out team rosters, because up till now unless you had an extensive Friends List and the ability to coordinate, you were left with mostly empty arenas and nobody ever got to enjoy the fruits of your efforts.
Right now the Bots are a work-in-progress, but that's to be expected. If 343 puts the effort necessary into their AI routines, I see them becoming a staple option for the future that will make Halo much more accessible to far more players. I really hope 343 will consider expanding their use in other modes, including Social Multiplayer (they could really help especially when servers have fewer players to go around). And for me at least they're a MUST for local splitscreen multiplayer and the Forge.
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (September 25-26)
Been playing the Halo Infinite preview, mostly focusing on the modes with Bots. Here are my thoughts after a few hours:
1) The Bots are much more competent in Slayer than they are in more complex modes like Capture the Flag or Stronghold. Twice in a single match I watched Bots grab our flag only to suddenly and inexplicably stop and back into a corner as I approached. The typical time for a CTF victory was less than 3-4 minutes, and Stronghold saw scores of 200-0. So no, they're simply not ready for Prime Time, at least in those modes.
2) In Slayer they tend to do better, although they'll never provide as challenge for "pro" Halo players as currently constituted. For the record, I consider myself far below average at Halo; I've only played the series sporadically since Halo 2. Even so, I routinely had Killing Sprees and even entire matches where I didn't die, and that NEVER happens against human players.
That said, Bots are absolutely a huge step in the right direction for Halo, especially for less experienced or skilled players who are more interested in casual play...particularly in local splitscreen matches...than serious competition or the eSports scene. With an IP as huge as Halo, there's a place for both groups, but up until now the skill gap (and all too often a toxic online environment) has made for a discouraging barrier for many folks, myself included.
It could also work wonders for the Forge by filling out team rosters, because up till now unless you had an extensive Friends List and the ability to coordinate, you were left with mostly empty arenas and nobody ever got to enjoy the fruits of your efforts.
Right now the Bots are a work-in-progress, but that's to be expected. If 343 puts the effort necessary into their AI routines, I see them becoming a staple option for the future that will make Halo much more accessible to far more players.
Re: Video: Watch The THQ Nordic 2021 Digital Showcase Here
No Timesplitters, not "legendary" enough in my book. Why do the games we REALLY want always seem to be either the farthest away or the lowest priority?
Re: Roundup: Here's What The Critics Are Saying About Tales Of Arise
I got back into Tales of Vesperia a few months ago and played deep into the game, probably close to the end. But long before I simply walked away again (other games were calling for my attention), it had reminded me of why I didn't finish it the first time around: its characters are largely uninteresting, much of the dialogue comes through those intrusive "talking heads" cutscenes, and the combat was literally just me running around and repeatedly mashing buttons (and I LOATHE ANY JRPG that has gone to this mechanic over turn and menu-based; that goes for the modern FFs as well). Sure there were some cool moments where Yuri crossed some lines and obviously that intro song/video, but as a package Vesperia was frankly mediocre.
That said, it's shaped my view of the Tales franchise in general, especially the combat, which I'm not at all interested in repeating through another 50-100 hour storyline. The trailers didn't convince me there's enough difference offered here to justify that $60, non-refundable investment.
Re: Xbox Claiming It 'Fights For Game Preservation' Is Met With Backlash
The XBox BC Program REALLY NEEDS to be brought back because there are still a lot of deserving games which never got in before Microsoft pulled up tent stakes in preparation for the move to Series X/S. Among my personal list of candidates:
1) OutRun 2006: Coast2Coast
2) Daisenryaku VII: Modern Military Tactics
3) TimeSplitters 2
4) TimeSplitters 3: Future Perfect
5) Namco Museum Remix
And while we're on the subject of "game preservation", they need to stop killing AAA games due to licensing issues, such as the Forza Horizon series. There needs to be some agreement that enables these games to be sold in perpetuity instead of disappearing forever; if it costs a bit more for those rights then get it done.
Re: Talking Point: How Are You Feeling About Halo Infinite After Recent News?
I think it really comes down to what you play a given game for. For me personally, I gravitate more toward turn-based Strategy like Civilization or Daisenryaku and JRPGs and SRPGs like the Trails series and Shining Force, because I love being able to put my feet up and enjoy games that enable me to relax while offering hundreds of hours' worth of gameplay and/or storylines. I also tend to look at the value of a game by how many hours of gameplay I get per dollar spent.
I also enjoy games that I can break out when company's over, from Civilization to Mario Kart (depending on the interests and skill level of those involved). Back in the day my house hosted epic sessions of GoldenEye, Perfect Dark, TimeSplitters, and the original Halo, among many others. IMHO local multiplayer with friends and family provides some of the best memories you'll ever get from the hobby, because it's about those face-to-face interactions and the camaraderie that online multiplayer just can't offer.
With Halo and other FPSes, I still enjoy them to a limited degree; I've never been nearly as adept as many of the folks who obviously eat, drink, sleep and breathe them, and between that insurmountable disparity of skill and the often toxic profanity and ugliness of being paired with total strangers, way too often online multiplayer sessions simply aren't all that FUN...and that's the measuring stick that keeps anyone playing a game.
What DOES have me intrigued about Halo Infinite this time around are the bots. Right now I realize their presence will be limited, but I really hope that presence will be expanded over time into all the multiplayer modes for those who want them (this is why I'm also stoked regarding the upcoming TimeSplitters reboot; hopefully the developers stick to what made that franchise so beloved and don't mess with the formula too much). There's a definite appeal to me in opponents who are programmed to mimic the player's (my) skill level while maintaining a clean and family-friendly atmosphere. It also provides a much more welcoming potential for local multiplayer.
I realize that everyone's mileage varies here in terms of priorities, but these are mine.
Re: Strangely, Halo Infinite Won't Give You XP For Just Playing Matches
Developments like this make me lean even more heavily toward playing with/against bots (a feature that I hope gets expanded into EVERY corner of the multiplayer for those who prefer it). Online multiplayer can be woefully unbalanced as it is, and since my taste has shifted more toward Turn-based Strategy and JRPGs, I've never exactly been one of those players who carries my entire team in Halo; to put it VERY mildly. This feels like the devs messed with something that wasn't broken, which IMHO is ill-advised for a flagship game that's already been delayed more than a year past the console's launch and still is releasing without many core features. Time will tell if the results require "fixes" to keep lesser players from giving up and forgetting about this one.
Re: The Halo Infinite Xbox Elite Controller Arrives This November, Pre-Order Now
That price tag's an instant deal-breaker for me. I'm sure it's an outstanding controller, but $200 is just too much.
Re: XBLA Classic Toy Soldiers Is Returning In HD Form This September
I have the original and look forward to this iteration. I really hope Microsoft decides to expand on its BC program, though, because even now there are still lots of great and deserving titles for the XBox 360 and especially the original XBox that aren't currently available.