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  • Subject: Weekly What's Update
Subject: Weekly What's Update
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Good Until the Banshee part. Hardly anyone does that and it is easy to counter so wtf is up with that? Oh well like all the changes and maps

  • 04.29.2005 4:38 PM PDT
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add me to the people who can't read the damn thing

  • 04.29.2005 4:39 PM PDT
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could someone pm the update please?

  • 04.29.2005 4:42 PM PDT
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Who is your oldest Member Since: Date?, not including Bungie members and Septagon and such. I've asked this question numerous times, but I don't think anyone seems to know. Oh yeah, I apprediate the maps, thanks.

  • 04.29.2005 4:43 PM PDT
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yea i cant read the update either...*frowny face*

  • 04.29.2005 4:48 PM PDT
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danget!!! i cant read the update either!!!, can somebody please pm it to me?!?!?!
it sounds good from what im reading.........

  • 04.29.2005 4:49 PM PDT
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Most of the updates coming up sound good. I will love battle rifles as a starting weapon! I'll miss the Banshee in Headlong (not Ascension though) but I'll live with it. Nice work Bungie, especially fixing that cheap combo.

  • 04.29.2005 4:52 PM PDT
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or quote the thing

  • 04.29.2005 4:52 PM PDT
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56th.
What's up with people saying, "Don't change my game!"
It's not yours, it's Bungie's, and do you think they are making changes so that the game will be less fun? That's ridiculous. The game will be more fun now.

[Edited on 4/29/2005]

  • 04.29.2005 4:54 PM PDT
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Great Update. I think you have addressed most peoples concerns about matchmaking. Of course the MLG Rules lovers will probably not be satified until all maps have BR start. Dont give in. It only makes sense for that on large maps. The SMG is fine in most other maps. Thanks also for removing the PP from Beaver Creek and Collossus. It will definatly make a difference

  • 04.29.2005 4:56 PM PDT
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Here is the update for those of you that can't read it

Bungie Weekly What's Update



Short, but remamrkably sweet, since we detail the new matchmaking playlists, reveal some of the new gametype tweaks and look at the schedule for stat resets and more.









Hella dudes ask,

How's the playlist update coming? When can we expect it to go live?



The playlist update is still undergoing a test pass but things are progressing nicely. We're still hoping to have it ready for your enjoyment in just a few more days - most likely middle to late next week. In the meantime, remember that you and your friends can play the new maps as much as you like via custom games. Check out our forums if you're looking for more map owners to play with!





Lots of folks wonder,


What's included in the Playlist updates?



This is just a taste. A lot of things the vast majority of players won't notice, but here's one or two of the more visible and necessary changes. Note that NONE of these has been done casually. All of this has undergone testing and tweaking. Thanks to Jeremiah and Sketch for the new info.

Sudden Death has been removed from all Assault variants to prevent griefing. If you think that griefing was a legitimate tactic, you are simply going to have to learn other basic skills. You all knew that doing it was bogus, aggravated the other teams and was fundamentally imbalanced. Did we have any responsibility there? Sure. And we've fixed it. Thing is, we accept all our responsibilities, while griefers continue to defer theirs. Stop cheating, stop griefing, and don't cry about how it's our fault for making it possible. We had issues with our designs that did make it possible, but nobody forced you to exploit them. Especially when other teams DON'T do it. Griefers who complain about OUR responsibility to stop them from cheating should dial 911 and ask for a Waaahmbulance.

Round time for Assault variants has been increased globally to give teams a better chance to score since sudden death is gone. That should mean more epic struggles, and some maps, like Headlong, will become very, very interesting…

…especially since we've removed Banshee from CTF and Assault games on Ascension and Headlong. Why? Because griefers will surf the bomb to unreachable places anyway, just to be jackasses.

No more Plasma Pistol / Battle Rifle ownage in Slayer games on Beaver Creek or Colossus - we now use Human weapon sets for Slayer variants on those two maps. This will be controversial and we understand there is some small skill required to use the combo, but frankly it has become tiresome on those maps. It takes far more skill to win without that combo. More skill = more fun, right?

Motion Detector (radar) has been removed in all head to head playlist variants. This one I'm personally ambivalent about. Partly because of my inability to look at radar while fighting/getting owned. Partly because it sometimes adds a layer of strategy (creeping on objective based games, being a good example) but we hear the thronging masses. Loads of noise demanding its removal and almost total silence on the opposite opinion.

The majority of game variants on Coagulation and Burial mounds will now start players with Battle Rifle and an SMG - exceptions include games such as Team Snipers, Team Rifles or other variants which feature specific weapon sets. THIS one we expect universal approval on. Now that I can actually shoot the Battle Rifle with some modicum of skill, I will be putting it to good use. We've done more palatable Battle Rifle starts on the newer maps too, but since they're not in matchmaking yet, you'll have to take our word for it.

We've added King and Oddball variants to Head to Head to encourage more conflict, less hiding and more variety.

No more Phantoms. You'll have to custom game that one. Phantoms was a rarity anyway. Now it's just super-ultimate-rare. That is to say., gone.

We've added new CTF and Assault variants which feature Covenant vehicles just for variety. The Spectre is making an appearance and should make for some interesting encounters. Shouldn't really change balance too much though.





When is the leaderboard reset going to happen?

When are the Halo 2 Xbox Live leaderboards being reset?



The leaderboard reset is tied to the playlist update, so we anticipate this will happen around the middle to late next week. Players should be prepared for their levels to reset at some point next week. We can't say with 100% certainty due to unknowns with the test process and Xbox Live dependencies. For now, plan on this all going down next week. And for the record, your friends lists will NOT be reset nor impacted in any way whatsoever. The leaderboard reset will only impact the level that appears next to your name in the ranked playlists.

Just to clear up one odd rumor about this – we're resetting EVERYONE'S stats, not just the top 1000. Don't know where that rumor came from. Also, remember that your rank is only designed to match you against players of similar ability. It serves no other purpose. The upcoming contests we plan to run will be based solely on merit – not your rank. We will in fact ignore rank and look at legitimate match results. Rank whoring and cheating show up like a red flag, and will result in immediate banning from matchmaking. So don't do it. You've been warned.





Mr. Robbins asks,

Hi, I own multiple Xboxes. Do I have to purchase the new maps (assuming I want them immediately and not when they become free) for each separate Xbox I have, or is there a way I can dupe them to my other machines?



I'm afraid so. The maps are sold on a per-box basis, much like downloadable music, or in fact, any kind of software. This is done to prevent piracy of course; otherwise every school in America would be passing around one memory card with a Live account on it. Like it or not, the new content requires thousands of man hours, resources and other costs to produce, and even though we love puppies AND babies, we're not a charity. That said, when they are eventually free, in summer, you can go nuts and fill up as many Xboxes as you like.





BlackMagic says,

I was playing a game and it was lagging when ever I got close to the other team .once it went into blue screen and then when I got out there was a guy how came up behind me and killed me from behind when I was sniping.



Jerks can still cause standby to happen, they just can't use it effectively, as they did before the autoupdate – this is a hardware issue, not a software problem. It can happen with any game attached to a modem. However, we are also much, much more efficient at automatically spotting this behavior and we've been banning offenders from matchmaking forever. They are also ejected from games for doing it. Basically it's a total waste of time.




SentinelMujer asks,

What's up with the RSS feed? It seems sort of sporadic. Am I doing something wrong?



Our RSS feed allows Halo 2 players to incorporate Bungie.net Halo 2 stats into their own websites (among other things). However, due to higher-than-expected usage, we've temporarily reduced the number of games the RSS query returns, but are actively pursuing a way to return it to its former glory. Please bear with us and we apologize for the inconvenience.




SUIV asks,

Hey. I'm sure you get enough annoying questions but can you tell me what the record for the most suicides is because my friend and his friends held a game and they got 10680 suicides. Is that a record or a waste of time.



If it's in a custom game, it's an impressive statistic. But also a complete waste of time. Also, play around in custom games by all means, but don't do it in matchmaking, or you could be banned.






Kittenz asks ,


What about the as yet unreleased maps. Any news?



Hopefully by next week we'll have some new details

  • 04.29.2005 5:00 PM PDT
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thanks videogamespaz i was getting peed off cuz i couldnt read it 59th(i think?)

  • 04.29.2005 5:05 PM PDT
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'Sudden Death has been removed from all Assault variants to prevent griefing.'

Thank you.

''We've removed Banshee from CTF and Assault games on Ascension and Headlong. Why? Because griefers will surf the bomb to unreachable places anyway, just to be jackasses. '

Thank you.

'No more Plasma Pistol / Battle Rifle ownage in Slayer games on Beaver Creek or Colossus - we now use Human weapon sets for Slayer variants on those two maps. This will be controversial and we understand there is some small skill required to use the combo, but frankly it has become tiresome on those maps. It takes far more skill to win without that combo. More skill = more fun, right?'

Thank you. But just Slayer?

'The majority of game variants on Coagulation and Burial mounds will now start players with Battle Rifle and an SMG - exceptions include games such as Team Snipers, Team Rifles or other variants which feature specific weapon sets. THIS one we expect universal approval on. Now that I can actually shoot the Battle Rifle with some modicum of skill, I will be putting it to good use. We've done more palatable Battle Rifle starts on the newer maps too, but since they're not in matchmaking yet, you'll have to take our word for it.'

Thank you.

'We've added new CTF and Assault variants which feature Covenant vehicles just for variety. The Spectre is making an appearance and should make for some interesting encounters. Shouldn't really change balance too much though.'

Thank you.

Just one problem though, what is everyone going to -blam!- about on the forums now?

Oh, right, the AU. Oh well.

Still nice work, I don't think anyone should have any complaints about this.

  • 04.29.2005 5:09 PM PDT

Turn my headphones up! Turn them -blam!-s up!

Terminal, Multi-Team Slayer BR
50-30-28-17
Score: 39 Spree: 16 Deaths: 8 Medals:17 (8 Doubles, 2 Triples, 1 Killtackular, 4 Sprees, 1 Riot, 1 Rampage) Accuracy: 46% Head Shots: 9
Moral of the story: Gauss Hog for President.

So can we still screw around in Team Training since it doesn't affect anyone? I know that I have quit from Team Training and Rumble Training alot, because I don't want to play that map. Will this be punishable? And what about betrayals, I was betrayed yesterday because this one guy wanted the Sniper Rifle from me, and then I betrayed him and he booted me. Is this really a punishable offense, as long as it is in Training?

  • 04.29.2005 5:17 PM PDT
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Dued they rely need to put online co-op every should tell bungie to put online co-op if they do ill be happy and ill play halo 2 a lot more.....PLZ bungie put online CO-OP.....for the people who want it like me.......................you made me said with the mape that i didnt like so make us happy with puting online co-op.................
[quote]Posted by: Frankie
This week, lots of info about changes to matchmaking playlists and an estimate on when to expect them. We think you're going to like the changes as much as the Autoupdate and the maps.

  • 04.29.2005 5:19 PM PDT

NAH BLUD

nice update guys though i dont see how ur finding stuff to talk about cause u given out more info in the last two weeks then in history of man kind thx anyways

  • 04.29.2005 5:27 PM PDT

"Sir, finishing this fight!"
[url=http://www.bungie.net/fanclub/125831/Group/GroupHome.asp x[/url]

i agree with you on the online co-op thing but if you didn't like the maps your -blam-ing crazy, all four new maps rock!!!

  • 04.29.2005 5:28 PM PDT
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well now i have a new coaster the au ruiend this game and i wasted 12 dollars on maps 4 two x boxs

  • 04.29.2005 5:29 PM PDT
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At least i got 1st page! I do not want status to reset!

  • 04.29.2005 5:35 PM PDT
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At least i got 1st page! I do not want status to reset!

  • 04.29.2005 5:36 PM PDT
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Awesome awesome awesome awesome aaaaaaaaaaand awesome. If you guys were my neighbors I'd buy you cases of beer.

  • 04.29.2005 5:38 PM PDT
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Thanx a lot guys, this is going to be way more fun.

  • 04.29.2005 5:47 PM PDT
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2 on 2 gametype? is that happening?

  • 04.29.2005 5:48 PM PDT
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2 on 2?

  • 04.29.2005 5:48 PM PDT