Halo 3 - now coming to Xbox One. MC Collection.

[dan_tm]

Personally, I'd rather have both options - Matchmaking and Public Custom Games as both have their plus points.

I'm pretty sure it's already confirmed that we're going to get both options.

Because matchmaking only works when the population is high enough.

They said that they regretted not doing it for Halo 2 as they originally thought it would have had a negative effect on Matchmaking, they didn't anticipate the amount of players constantly using the service.

Don't forget, the previously most popular online console game was SOCOM on the PS2 with a peak of around 20,000 people playing at once*. Halo 2 got something like 200,000 unique players on it's first night when it was only available in the US.

And they don't seem to have learned that nobody actually cares about Halo's story.

WRONG.

[edit]

*Actually no it wasn't, it was 20k in the first 48 hours from release.

[kerraig UK]

i'm only joking about the matchmaking. No way will it be deserted. there'll constantly be enough players in all aspects of halo 3 multiplayer for well over a year i'm convinced. i'd just like to have the option of more control.

[Kryptonian]

I'm pretty sure it's already confirmed that we're going to get both options.

I know. That was my point really - if both options are there it caters for all. Unless one significantly affects the other.

[Verylonewolf]

i'm only joking about the matchmaking. No way will it be deserted. there'll constantly be enough players in all aspects of halo 3 multiplayer for well over a year i'm convinced. i'd just like to have the option of more control.

Well in the beta matchmaking died as soon as we hit level 20, so that shows you what happens when the population isn't high enough.

I don't see how searchable custom games are any use to us anyway. If we want to play customs surely we'd all rather just get together with people from the forum.

[kerraig UK]

searchable custom games are of use to me when none of you are on or for when I get frustrated with matchmaking but still want to play the game. The customs we had (mad dash) in the halo 3 beta were more fun for me than anything I did in halo 2

[dan_tm]

Hopefully we'll get the option to force the host if we can search for games too, it'd be good if you could actually search for games with the best connection to you rather than relying on Bungie not to match you up with Americans with horrible latency.

[Stroker Ace]

Well in the beta matchmaking died as soon as we hit level 20, so that shows you what happens when the population isn't high enough.

I don't see how searchable custom games are any use to us anyway. If we want to play customs surely we'd all rather just get together with people from the forum.

Not everyone has a forum full of people to rely upon.

[Verylonewolf]

Not everyone has a forum full of people to rely upon.

And? My point is that its of no use to any of us so I don't see why people here would want it unless they would rather join random rooms.

[Beertiger]

Exactly. Every other game I ever played a decent amount of on Live ended up being dominated by one map. This meant that if you wanted to play anything else you had to set up a game yourself and have enough people on to play it with just your crew. Splinter Cell had Warehouse, Xbox Counterstrike had Miami, Halo 2 would have been Lockout, even PGR2 with over 100 tracks only had about 5 that ever came up if you tried to search for a game.

Sure, it was annoying sometimes in mm when a map you didn't like came up a lot in one session (BURIAL MOUNDS!) but its still better than being forced to play the same map all the time.

Battlefield 2 Modern Combat was ruined online because of the one map mentality. It was amazing when a vote came up to see the same damn map get voted in again, after playing it 10 damn times already. Matchmaking is an amazing system that kept Halo 2 alive far longer than any other online game I've played. I love Gears of War and that would be superb with Matchmaking. As it is, sitting around waiting for 8 people to fill the lobby is a chore.

[Stroker Ace]

And? My point is that its of no use to any of us so I don't see why people here would want it unless they would rather join random rooms.

Some people want to join random rooms.

[MalevolentPanda]

Some people want to join random rooms.

Random rooms you say? They should try matchmaking.

[dan_tm]

And? My point is that its of no use to any of us so I don't see why people here would want it unless they would rather join random rooms.

Joining random games of Rainbow Six 3/PGR2 is how I met most of the people on my friends list to be fair.

[Stroker Ace]

Random rooms you say? They should try matchmaking.

Are you just being obtuse or do I ACTUALLY have to explain this to you?

Wolf says "nobody needs a lobby browser for custom games! We can easily set up games on the forum!"

So I say "some people don't post on forums"

And he says "it's no use to any of us! At least not unless people want to join random rooms!"

And I say "some people want to join random rooms".

As you'll see from the context, by 'random rooms', we don't mean RANDOM GAMES, we mean rooms full of random players.

A lobby browser would let people who don't post on forums - which, by the way, is nine tenths of the people who play on Live - play games with rulesets they enjoy without needing to populate their friends lists with like-minded nerds. What the fuck is the problem with that?

[wretcherd]

Don't get me wrong, matchmaking and the party system were and still are the best things to happen to online games in a long time; i can't believe that even after 3 years it hasn't become a standard feature.

Look at the easy access Friends list on Halo 2 and how Microsoft incorporated it into the 360, and then look at how games like Gears still have the audacity to spit you out to the main menu as punishment for thinking you might be able to join a room.

Then there are the steps that Bungie have taken to fix some of the problems, like the veto and the weapon spawning, so you don't end up with 3 consecutive Assault on Burial Mounds matches where the other team end up with both snipers and you're lucky if you manage to walk 3 consecutive paces before dying.

[Verylonewolf]

Are you just being obtuse or do I ACTUALLY have to explain this to you?

Wolf says "nobody needs a lobby browser for custom games! We can easily set up games on the forum!"

So I say "some people don't post on forums"

And he says "it's no use to any of us! At least not unless people want to join random rooms!"

And I say "some people want to join random rooms".

As you'll see from the context, by 'random rooms', we don't mean RANDOM GAMES, we mean rooms full of random players.

A lobby browser would let people who don't post on forums - which, by the way, is nine tenths of the people who play on Live - play games with rulesets they enjoy without needing to populate their friends lists with like-minded nerds. What the fuck is the problem with that?

Actually I said "I don't see how searchable custom games are any use to us" (Us being those of us on the forum) My point was purely that I don't see why any forumites would see it as something that would make or break the game, not whether it would be of any use to anyone else.

[Stroker Ace]

Actually I said "I don't see how searchable custom games are any use to us" (Us being those of us on the forum) My point was purely that I don't see why any forumites would see it as something that would make or break the game, not whether it would be of any use to anyone else.

Who cares about us? We're a bunch of frickin' nerds. We're 1% of the Live population.

It's absolutely a make or break issue - it's one of the key options that will let newcomers experiment with and enjoy the game more. But then, none of the 'hardcore' ever want new people enjoying their games.

[Verylonewolf]

Who cares about us? We're a bunch of frickin' nerds. We're 1% of the Live population.

It's absolutely a make or break issue - it's one of the key options that will let newcomers experiment with and enjoy the game more. But then, none of the 'hardcore' ever wants new people enjoying their games.

Firstly: maybe it is the make or break issue in a wider sense (it isn't, but whatever) but that still doesn't change the fact that it shouldn't be a major issue for anyone on here.

Secondly: Fuck the newcomers, why would I support something that compromises the best thing about online halo just to make it a bit easier for them to get into. If that makes me 'hardcore' then so be it.

[Stroker Ace]

Secondly: Fuck the newcomers, why would I support something that compromises the best thing about online halo just to make it a bit easier for them to get into. If that makes me 'hardcore' then so be it.

You wanna play Halo 3? You're stuck with it, because you're forty quid and they're forty million.

Don't like it? Don't support it. Piss off back to Halo 2.

New players will be the lifeblood of Halo 3. Without casuals, it's just be nerds like us and that's not a game I'd ever want to play.

The problem, as ever, is the resistance to change. I remember when you first played Halo 3, then spent the entire night complaining about all the things that had been changed. It's not as if you're FORCED to play Halo 3. Your game still exists - it's called Halo 2. Theirs doesn't - it'll be Halo 3. Bungie are ramming the game out with features and options to make it as friendly to newcomers as possible, because they can see what a vile fucking cesspool Halo 2 is on Live.

Everyone playing Halo 2 has been around for years - nobody new sticks around. If they don't fix that, the game dies, or turns into Counter Strike. Either way, it's shit.

[Verylonewolf]

You wanna play Halo 3? You're stuck with it, because you're forty quid and they're forty million.

I'm not arguing that, I'm saying why would any of us want it in the game when we have no use for it. Sure it would make the game more accessable theres no argument from me there, but why would you or anyone else here want that at the expense of the quality of our experience.

I remember when you first played Halo 3, then spent the entire night complaining about all the things that had been changed.

And I suppose I was being entirely serious?

[Stroker Ace]

I'm not arguing that, I'm saying why would any of us want it in the game when we have no use for it. Sure it would make the game more accessable theres no argument from me there, but why would you or anyone else here want that at the expense of the quality of our experience.

I have a use for it - plenty of uses, in fact. It means I don't have to be dependent on my friends list to play quick games with custom rule sets. It means I'm not a slave to Bungie's typically vanilla playlists. It means I can discover new rule sets and get the party leader to share them with me. Great stuff.

I don't see how it affects your experience. You really think there'll be a shortage of people on matchmaking? On Halo 3? Do me a favour.

And I suppose I was being entirely serious?

Well yes, you were. That, or it was the most protracted and boring joke in the history of comedy, lasting not hours, but days.

[Verylonewolf]

I have a use for it - pelnty of uses, in fact. It means I don't have to be dependent on my friends list to play quick games with custom rule sets. It means I can discover new rule sets and get the party leader to share them with me. Great stuff.

I don't see how it affects your experience. You really think there'll be a shortage of people on matchmaking? On Halo 3? Do me a favour.

I really think it will mean a great deal fewer people in matchmaking which means it will be a lower level at which we start having trouble finding games, yes.

Well yes, you were. That, or it was the most protracted and boring joke in the history of comedy, lasting not hours, but days.

I do try.

[dan_tm]

I don't see how it affects your experience. You really think there'll be a shortage of people on matchmaking? On Halo 3? Do me a favour.

If that ever became a reality they'd turn the server browser off I'd guess.

[citation deducer]

I'm more excited about playing 4-way co-op on legendary than anything else, as long as its fun.

Also, what amazing snobbery from some of the posters on here.

Too many chiefs and not enough indians.

[Straps]

I really think it will mean a great deal fewer people in matchmaking...

It will, until people realise that going into a supposed Team Slayer game and ending up with a fucking Brute Shot only low-grav game for the eight-millionth time is starting to grate.

[Stroker Ace]

Oh! I thought of another good thing to come from browsable custom games - if you've got six of your friends in a custom game and you wanna play 4v4, you can open it up to a stranger, explain the rules and play with him. Bonus points: you might make an extra friend to add to your friends list, too! And if he sucks, it's the big boot!

Everyone wins!

If that ever became a reality they'd turn the server browser off I'd guess.

Yeah, Bungie are good at maintaining their community.

But that's not likely to happen anyway.

[hanzo]

Has the 4-way thing been confirmed at all?

[Stroker Ace]

Has the 4-way thing been confirmed at all?

It was dug out of the beta code along with a ton of other stuff. So far, tonnes of stuff from the beta has gone on to be confirmed - levels, Achievements, weapons, vehicles, alternative armour types, the mounted gun on the Pelican, all sorts.

Four player co-op might just be next. Certainly, nothing that was dug up has been categorically incorrect yet.

[Smitty]

Sorry, but if you can't follow Halo 2's story, you're a tard. It's that simple.

[kerraig UK]

I'm not arguing that, I'm saying why would any of us want it in the game when we have no use for it. Sure it would make the game more accessable theres no argument from me there, but why would you or anyone else here want that at the expense of the quality of our experience.

And I suppose I was being entirely serious?

I plan to spend about 80% of my playtime in custom games, so i dont really agree that we here have no use for it.

[BeeJay]

Regardless of if people like matchmaking or not, it's still very definately one of Halo's ISP's. How much did people bitch about the lack of it in 360 games when the 360 came out and are still doing so today.

I will, without doubt, stop playing Halo 3 online if the only games available are zero grav shitty games on backwash (or whatever shit map will be in Halo 3) While I enjoyed custom games with mates on the Beta, 50% of them were shit after 1 play, let alone the 20th.

I truely believe that if searchable custom games start affecting the matchmaking pool they will pull them straight away and so they should.