- last post: 01.01.0001 12:00 AM PDT
I came across a great site, sirlin.net, and read an article on the theory of game balance. Sirlin brings up some intereting observations regarding balance, including this moment of Zen in his article: "A multiplayer game is balanced if a reasonably large number of options available to the player are viable—especially, but not limited to, during high-level play by expert players." Given this definition of balance, would you say Halo: Combat Evolved is a balanced game?
In my opinion, yes. To qualify my argument I'll use the controversial pistol as my example. People complain that it beats everything, which is true, but the pistol will not beat everything everytime. In certain situations you'd be better off with a rocket launcher, shotgun, sniper, or plasma rifle. This is not why the pistol brings balance to Halo however. The reason I believe Halo: CE is a balanced game is because of the vast options the pistol provides the moment a player spawns.
When a player respawns in a match with a pistol, they have the option to attack or retreat right from the start, where they could only run with other low to mid power weapons. No mid-power weapon in the game other than the pistol has the ability to do that. With other weapons you're forced into retreat, and by then you might as well admit defeat against a good player. The beauty of Halo: CE is that your options aren't limited to attack and retreat. Powerups and weapons with easily predictable respawns, coupled with good map design, allow a player at a disadvantage to bide their time and gather the items necessary to even the odds. Again, like Sirlin said, the key to balance is a variety of options, which the pistol, powerups, and clever map design expand on.
There are of course other nuances to Halo:CE's gameplay, but I don't feel like writing a book at the moment. And if you read all this, thank you and I hope you enjoyed the read. Please give me some feedback as I'd love to hear your thoughts on the subject.