Halo: Reach Forum
This topic has moved here: Subject: Is Reach the most casual of all Halos?
  • Subject: Is Reach the most casual of all Halos?
Subject: Is Reach the most casual of all Halos?

Two makes there more than speakers.

Obviously.

  • 01.02.2012 3:49 AM PDT

Member of team Master Theory.

17th Mythic Conqueror of Halo 3.
5th Mythic Conqueror of ODST.
If you would like to know more about Mythic difficulty please go to this thread. Thank you.

Please do not send me "recruitment messages" as I'm not interested in joining any groups currently.

tl;dr - see the last two paragraphs.

Since anecdotal evidence is apparently the way to go here's mine:

Halo 3 was my first ever FPS game. I played it extremely casually for about 2 years (yet I still played ranked simply because it was there. I played every playlist.). During my last year or so I began to start thinking about what makes players good and I'd watch the occasional MLG VoD or download films from known players' fileshares and watch those.

However I still wasn't driven to improve, I played ranked more for the number than to actually improve (stupid idea) and I didn't know many good players. In my circle of friends I was pretty good (but still fairly bad compared to myself now and most of the players I currently know).

Along comes Reach: first few months I start off still playing casually with a similar group of friends. However as I had a bit of experience with Halo 3 I managed to get a much better start in Reach than in Halo 3 (both K/D and W/L wise).

After a bit of time I began to meet and play with better players. Eventually I got to the point where I wanted to be as good as them.
And so I began to start playing less casually. I dabbled in the Arena from seasons 7-9 (after the transition to W/L ranking like Halo 3's Team Slayer playlist) and achieved Onyx division in Seasons 7 and 9 (for whatever that's worth).


Right, credentials aside my feeling was that Reach was a much more forgiving game than Halo 3 mostly due to loadouts and bloom:
players could get lucky with bloom when firing faster than recommended. Whilst BR spread also allowed for a luck factor a player didn't get to decide to try their luck with it. They couldn't "cheat the system".

Loadouts and their associated Armour Abilities both made it easier to survive and get kills: the average player has no idea how to use any of the abilities well which leads to them dying a lot more. Likewise these mistakes are so obvious that even the worst player should be able to capitalise on them (players flying straight up with the Jetpack in a panic, staying in Armour Lock at the first sign of danger, camping one corner with camo ignorant to the exposing effect of the radar jammer etc). Thus both kills and deaths are granted more easily.



To conclude this rambling wall I'll state that my own experiences with both games show that neither are particularly "casual friendly". Halo 3 has the division of ranked and social which is better for people who just want to play without the game judging them. Yet Reach has mechanics like bloom and loadouts which decrease the predictability of the game, making it easier to catch players of all skill levels off guard. Yet despite this Reach offers so many variables that it's arguably too complex to retain the attention of most casual players compared to other games better suited to casual play.

tl;dr below:
Halo 3 manages to be more "friendly" to both casual and competitive players in my opinion: both benefit from the ranked/social divide despite the core mechanics (spread and movement in particular) being regressions from Halo CE and Halo 2 respectively.

Reach isn't necessarily more friendly to "casual players" as much as it is simply unfriendly toward competitive players.

[Edited on 01.02.2012 4:00 AM PST]

  • 01.02.2012 3:56 AM PDT

Harass the harassers.


Posted by: LordMonkey

Posted by: Plunderfuq
It was so chill back then, people didnt even care, they just wanted to play, good times *sigh*
So you agree that Reach isn't the most casual Halo?
For the purpose of this study, competitive was defined by current community consensus for settings for the best competitive game. Under these standards CE would qualify as a "competitive" game, however for anyone that was there for the phenomenon that was the early years of Halo, that wasent casual, that was a party and nobody gave a -blam!- about mechanics.

  • 01.02.2012 4:56 AM PDT

Harass the harassers.


Posted by: P3P5I
Lol microcosms, how fallacious.
I actually thought of it as an experimental single subject design study. But microcosms is an apt description. Would it help if I told you I had no idea what the results would be before about three days ago?

  • 01.02.2012 5:01 AM PDT

Wow, this thread kept going. I am going to throw in one more thought.

It was kinda stated before but, imo, the way people play has changed more than the gameplay itself. This is why I personally didn't notice to much of a change from halo 2 to halo 3 and from halo 3 to Reach. The main things I noticed was less glitches and better netcode from game to game. Sure, they have added some things and tweaked some of the mechanics, but to me it is still a definitive halo game.

  • 01.02.2012 6:46 AM PDT

Posted by: Tom T
Prolonged exposure to this forum is bad for your health.


Posted by: aBIueBooksheIf
because I like pen­is.

source

Oh god Plunder, go be retarded on waypoint where people in general are just as retarded as you.

I think I lost a few brain cells after reading your posts.

  • 01.02.2012 7:49 AM PDT

this thread is stupid and OP is talking bs.

  • 01.02.2012 8:01 AM PDT
  •  | 
  • Veteran Legendary Member

The 343 forums suck. They're full of retarded kids and mods who got butthurt in the B.net forums for being told that they're bad.


Posted by: B Rye

Posted by: Plunderfuq
So every single thing that I listed has absolutly no validity?


DING DING DING! FINALLY HE UNDERSTANDS!

And it only took nine goddamn pages.


Whelp, looks like I was wrong. It took more than that, and he still doesn't get it.

  • 01.02.2012 8:28 AM PDT

And so God called Moses to come forth but he came fifth and was therefore disqualified.

I really don't care to pick apart the subconscious of the Reach community, I just play it for fun.

  • 01.02.2012 8:31 AM PDT
  •  | 
  • Intrepid Legendary Member

Hello! I'm a male!

Halo: CE -> Fight over Power ups =/= crutch
Halo 2 -> Fight over power ups =/= crutch
Halo 3 -> Fight over power ups =/= crutch
-> Fight over equipment = crutch to an extent
Halo: Reach -> Everyone gets armor abilities = crutch
-> Fight over Power ups =/= crutch

As you see the Halo franchise has gotten a little more casual as the games came out. By adding in some factors and taking out others made it easier for casuals to keep up. Doesn't matter who says what. MLG "pro" or not the franchise slowly went to the casual section. The game is fun when it functions properly and actually has a good host selection and stays on it.

  • 01.02.2012 8:38 AM PDT

Harass the harassers.


Posted by: SRQ baller24
Wow, this thread kept going. I am going to throw in one more thought.

It was kinda stated before but, imo, the way people play has changed more than the gameplay itself. This is why I personally didn't notice to much of a change from halo 2 to halo 3 and from halo 3 to Reach. The main things I noticed was less glitches and better netcode from game to game. Sure, they have added some things and tweaked some of the mechanics, but to me it is still a definitive halo game.
I played a bunch of CE and 2, very little 3 then returned to Reach and even with AA it felt like the same game.

  • 01.02.2012 9:55 AM PDT

Harass the harassers.


Posted by: Kira Onime
Oh god Plunder, go be retarded on waypoint where people in general are just as retarded as you.

I think I lost a few brain cells after reading your posts.
It is difficult to take in so much that does not include constant use of retard and LOL, find an AL is OP thread, I know how much you love those.

  • 01.02.2012 9:58 AM PDT

Posted by: Tom T
Prolonged exposure to this forum is bad for your health.


Posted by: aBIueBooksheIf
because I like pen­is.

source


Posted by: Plunderfuq
I played a bunch of CE and 2, very little 3 then returned to Reach and even with AA it felt like the same game.


I fcking lol'ed.

I recently went back to CE.
Wow. Feels nothing like Reach. You should check if you actually had the right game in.

  • 01.02.2012 10:05 AM PDT
  •  | 
  • Veteran Legendary Member

The 343 forums suck. They're full of retarded kids and mods who got butthurt in the B.net forums for being told that they're bad.


Posted by: Kira Onime

Posted by: Plunderfuq
I played a bunch of CE and 2, very little 3 then returned to Reach and even with AA it felt like the same game.


I fcking lol'ed.

I recently went back to CE.
Wow. Feels nothing like Reach. You should check if you actually had the right game in.


The only ways that CE and Reach are the same are that they both take place in the same universe, and you shoot aliens with guns. Also, the name "assault rifle" is in both; not the gun, the name.

  • 01.02.2012 10:26 AM PDT

Define "casual".

  • 01.02.2012 10:35 AM PDT

chances are I don't care who you are or what you say.

Ya reach is the most casual of halos. i didn't read the thread, but I assumed it was simply elaborating an argument for or against reach being casual.

  • 01.02.2012 10:36 AM PDT

Posted by: Dattebayo
Define "casual".


For most people its just playing for fun.

To Plunderfuq, theres an extensive list. Only 1 person has ever fit the criteria.

  • 01.02.2012 10:41 AM PDT

"Ultimate excellence lies
Not in winning
Every battle
But in defeating the Enemy
Without ever fighting."

-Sunzi: Master of War.

Your two subjects do not qualify as conclusive data.

You need to find more people to test.

Could you also compare the statistics of a casual to that of an MLG player, such as Kampy? I would like to compare the difference for myself.

  • 01.02.2012 10:43 AM PDT

"Ultimate excellence lies
Not in winning
Every battle
But in defeating the Enemy
Without ever fighting."

-Sunzi: Master of War.


Posted by: X El BaZzA X
this thread is stupid and OP is talking bs.

You have an extensive vocabulary.

  • 01.02.2012 10:45 AM PDT
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Posted by: Horse Repairman
RC RuNz the internet. Like the superintendent.

Posted by: SouthPoIe
Clone is an internet God.

Posted by: DerpRoids
RC Clone is the anti-thesis of a lurker.


Posted by: Dattebayo
Define "casual".

His definition is, that they only play infection, they never use mics, and they never play with friends.

  • 01.02.2012 10:47 AM PDT

Posted by: RC Clone
Posted by: Dattebayo
Define "casual".

His definition is, that they only play infection, they never use mics, and they never play with friends.
Lonely squeakers?

  • 01.02.2012 10:48 AM PDT

Forget it man, and get with the countdown. Shake this square world and blast off for Kicksville.

Reach host ranking algorithm: (a*quit_percentage + b*isMexican + c*(1/KDR) + d*hasGuest) * 100
where a > b = d > c

Posted by: Delicious Ulcer
Your two subjects do not qualify as conclusive data.

You need to find more people to test.

It's better than that, actually. His two subjects are in fact he and himself.

  • 01.02.2012 10:52 AM PDT

Harass the harassers.


Posted by: Kira Onime

Posted by: Plunderfuq
I played a bunch of CE and 2, very little 3 then returned to Reach and even with AA it felt like the same game.


I fcking lol'ed.

I recently went back to CE.
Wow. Feels nothing like Reach. You should check if you actually had the right game in.
I dont need to check I was in my twenties when CE was released, please tell me Kira that you were not 12 when CE was released.

  • 01.02.2012 1:03 PM PDT
  • gamertag: [none]
  • user homepage:

Posted by: Horse Repairman
RC RuNz the internet. Like the superintendent.

Posted by: SouthPoIe
Clone is an internet God.

Posted by: DerpRoids
RC Clone is the anti-thesis of a lurker.

Its amazing that you made it to 30 with that thick skull of yours.

  • 01.02.2012 1:09 PM PDT

Harass the harassers.


Posted by: B Rye

Posted by: Kira Onime

Posted by: Plunderfuq
I played a bunch of CE and 2, very little 3 then returned to Reach and even with AA it felt like the same game.


I fcking lol'ed.

I recently went back to CE.
Wow. Feels nothing like Reach. You should check if you actually had the right game in.


The only ways that CE and Reach are the same are that they both take place in the same universe, and you shoot aliens with guns. Also, the name "assault rifle" is in both; not the gun, the name.
The sniper, the pistol, the warthog, the tank, the banshee, and I could go on and Im sure you are going tell me they are so vastly different that they cant be considered the same things, and that is when Im going to tell you if you dont use a microscope, they feel the same. I played those games as well, we just dont have the same veiw of them, your acting like mechanics changes are like slapping your MOM and taking your girlfreind. Its a game, not your life.

  • 01.02.2012 1:10 PM PDT