- last post: 01.01.0001 12:00 AM PDT
I certainly hope that the Bungie developers or managers are reading this thread and taking some of these suggestions. I can't wait for Halo 2 Vista! Some of these suggestions have already been offered, and so I just want to affirm my support for them, and possibly throw in some new stuff:
1. The ability to connect to a server as a pure spectator would be great, with the ability to cycle through each player and have a rotating camera. The number of spectators per server would need to be limited, but I think a full 16 players + X spectators is reasonable since spectators consume less bandwidth. Watching a good game of Halo 2 would be more fun than watching some sporting events on TV! :)
2. A popup voting screen for kicking players or spectators that are disruptive, requiring only 51% of the players to vote in order for the kick to be enacted. The server should then prevent the player from reconnecting for the duration of the current map or perhaps several map cycles. It would be great if the voting screen also allowed players to vote for the next map to be played, including voting for an immediate map switch. The available maps which are eligible to be voted for would probably need to come from a playlist pre-selected by the admin since voting for individual server options would be too complicated. The voting screen should show the server options for each map in the playlist though.
3. Colored chat text to indicate whether text is Team Chat or All Chat.
4. Auto-kick for idle players and players whose average ping is over 300 for over 5 seconds.
5. Please please disable the ability of players to disconnect and quickly reconnect to a server through the console. This enables players to team kill as much as they want while avoiding the team killer autoban.
6. Online stat tracking for players would be awesome.
7. In the servers list, offer a popup window or side window to show all server settings at a glance instead of watching slow moving text at the bottom. Enable the ability to filter the list based on individual server settings.
8. Having a map editor will be great. I would hope and assume though, that when a custom map is installed on a server, that the players would be able to automatically download that map and relevant files from the server and not have to manually download and install the files. If the process is manual, it will dramatically squash the popularity of custom maps. Perhaps this feature is already in Halo CE. I never installed it because I didn't like the hassle of having to use a separate client. The server should also be able to redirect the players to a separate high speed web or FTP server for downloading the map files.
9. Players names should appear above their heads if your crosshair hits their bounding box, not necessarily perfectly on their geometry. The names should also appear instantly rather than fading in.
10. Web browser based server administration.
11. I'm concerned that the voice chat feature might create unacceptable lag in the gameplay. I think administrators should have the ability to globally disable voice chat on the server if they choose.
12. I have not played Halo 2 on X-Box so I don't know what it is like, but underwater vehicle or swimming scenarios would be fun.
13. Multiplayer maps with secret areas would be great, such as sniper perches that require finding a secret door or invisible teleporter to enter, or having illusionary walls that can be walked through and shot through, and look solid from one side, but can be seen through from the other side.
14. Elevators and Lifts in multiplayer.
15. Traps or doors on the map that can be triggered by a button or control panel on the map, such as a drawbridge or trapdoor or crusher that can be triggered to crush enemies or drop them to their deaths. Doors that require the enemy to gain access to the control for the door in order to open the door and allow teammates into the enemy base to get the flag.
16. Teleporters that can be seen through, shot through, and driven through.
17. Jump pads that safely hurl a player or vehicle over a long distance. Jump boots for high jumping would also be nice.
18. Some sort of flying jet backpack.
19. Some piece of equipment for climbing up steep walls or onto ceilings.
20. Flying vehicles with additional passenger and gunner positions. A tank with an extra gun to be manned by a 2nd player.
I realize that suggestions 12 through 20 may be too far of a departure from the precedent already set by Halo 2 on the X-Box, but nonetheless these are elements that are tremendously popular in other first person shooter games such as Unreal Tournament, and I think they would add very exciting dynamics to the Halo universe, especially multiplayer.
In my opinion, Bungie really needs to look at the features of the original Unreal Tournament game (some of the UT sequels were not so great) if they want inspiration for features for Halo 2 Vista or any other FPS game they intend to produce in the future. With the exception of a lack of vehicles, the original Unreal Tournament and its engine still has my vote for the most compelling FPS experience ever offered.
Thanks for reading!