One possible explanation is networking. More moving and destructible parts & props means more shit you have to sync. UDP topology means the maximum reliable size of an individual UDP packet is about ~1400 bytes (yes you can obviously send more than that, but things get complicated past that). It's a complex subject.The graphics looks much improved to me and they are fine. However, I am a little disappointed that the environments has very little interaction with characters. Nothing seems to be destructible or marked by on screen action. Not much motion in the back-ground either. This to me make Halo Infinite look a bit dull. Is this cross gen related?
Looks good. Banana skin cylinders after being blown up made me laugh though, and explosions seem to last a second and then disappear completely.
Some quick observations:
The first shot is Chief holding what appears to be a Halo 1-era Cortana hologram. That appearance, combined with the way the hologram disappears, and the foggy nothingness of the background, make it look like a dream sequence. Halo 5: Guardians had a similar one.
There's an unattended Wraith in the back of this shot and I'm mad at the player for not going straight for it. You could have laid waste to this base, you fool!
This kinda sorta looks like the area from the E3 demo last year.
There's a giant ship hovering above the ring in a bunch of shots in this trailer. It's in the right middle of the shot above and there are two in the shot below. They might be an open-world objective, either getting to something to fire on them or lifting up to them to destroy them from within.
Staying on the screen above, there are two weapons terminals just ahead of the vehicle one the player is using.
Let's talk about the map screen. The "Area Collectibles" window in the bottom right seems intimidating at first blush, but I think 343 is being quite liberal with the term "collectibles." I believe some of them are things you have to destroy, like the silos seen later in the trailer. Here's the other mission on the map:
Notice that there is a faint "Fast Travel" under both missions. In the bottom right it says "Fast Travel Offline." This is possibly indicating that the player has to unlock fast travel in some way, maybe once for the whole game or maybe once for each area. Then after that, you can fast travel to any mission you've completed. And under "Fast Travel" under the FOB Golf mission is faint text that says "Ordnance available." I wonder if that means you can call in airstrikes or if it's referring to an ability to change your loadout. The Ransom Keep mission also includes a symbol with 100 under it to the left of the name. Perhaps this is the experience you'll get for completing the mission.
Here are some of the upgradable elements. The Grappleshot, Shield Core, Threat Sensor, Drop Wall, and Thruster can all be upgraded several times. You need Spartan Cores to do so. When the player goes invisible right after this, that was an upgrade for Thruster. And when you upgrade something, there's text on the screen making it seem like a software upgrade for your suit.
The new flying enemies appear to be messing with a Monitor.
The Harbinger doesn't look like any current Halo enemies (except for maybe the Prophets) so it'll be interesting to see what she is. She certainly doesn't look Forerunner.
Man you completely missed the point on the new AIThe thing I'm by far the most disappointed by is New Cortana. She is so incredibly lame. I can't help but feel her inclusion is creatively completely bankrupt.
So you make your entire trilogy (or whatever it ends up being) about Cortana, her fall and her relationship to master chief and how important they are for each other. And then, after she was ripped away from him and turns into a villain...you just give Master Chief a new AI that looks and sounds almost exactly like Cortana?? And you make her the most anime trope ever, the endearing, naive cute girl everyone loves? "Maybe it's a friend!". Come on.
The novels are full of interesting, fascinating AIs. Did you know that they can take whatever form they chose? Probably not, because in the game they either have to be young, hot women or, if they get really fancy, men. This could've been their change to give MC, if they have to give him one, a really different AI! One that challenges him and presents a completely new dynamic compared to what was done before.
Instead, they just make Cortana but cuter. I'm kind of dreading my expectation that she will somehow fuse with Old Cortana at the end or something along those lines, so that they can just give you Cortana back and basically reset and ignore the entire dynamic and story built so far. But even if they don't do that: It just undermines this entire storyline. Why even go through any of this if you're only idea is "Uh...just..give him another Cortana I guess?"
Does that matter in a single player game? Interesting if soOne possible explanation is networking. More moving and destructible parts & props means more shit you have to sync. UDP topology means the maximum reliable size of an individual UDP packet is about ~1400 bytes (yes you can obviously send more than that, but things get complicated past that). It's a complex subject.
Not liking those spaceship designs AT ALL. They look very LEGO-ish. But the rest is looking really promising.
Well remember that Halo Infinite isn't just singleplayer, the campaign is slated to have co-op post launch, which will presumably run over the network much like previous titles (and likely use the competitive netcode like Halo5 did). So anything designed for the campaign has to fit both singleplayer and co-op, they aren't going to make two entirely different environment sandboxes.Does that matter in a single player game? Interesting if so
Or do you perhaps mean the MP mode only?
She's made of the same DNA, theoretically one of the three "smart AI's" Halsey created to counter Cortana. Her being so similar is expected, and really satisfying from a lore perspective. If they ever meet, it's gonna be very interesting, especially since her goal is... well, to end Cortana. She seems to be questioning that goal as you can see in the trailer. So good.
Very interesting, shows how ignorant people yelling at old gen as a bottleneck when there are many other limitations such as this.Well remember that Halo Infinite isn't just singleplayer, the campaign is slated to have co-op post launch, which will presumably run over the network much like previous titles (and likely use the competitive netcode like Halo5 did). So anything designed for the campaign has to fit both singleplayer and co-op, they aren't going to make two entirely different environment sandboxes.
Though as a fun note, it can even matter in singleplayer directly if the engine is designed around always running the netcode even with no other players (you run both the server and client always), I.e Quake. Though the limitations there are a little more lax due to not needing to run actual sockets locally. I don't think Halo is designed like this, however.
It feels like its at once a massive overcorrection of the problems with Halo 5's campaign and another example being unable to have conviction in anything other than what's popular at the time.
She's made of the same DNA, theoretically one of the three "smart AI's" Halsey created to counter Cortana. Her being so similar is expected, and really satisfying from a lore perspective. If they ever meet, it's gonna be very interesting, especially since her goal is... well, to end Cortana. She seems to be questioning that goal as you can see in the trailer. So good.
And for me personally, Halo w/o Cortana isn't Halo, so having her on board for the campaign is comfort food, a warm cozy fire in my ear lol
Check these out if you have time:
Halo Infinite: Who is the new Cortana-like AI companion?
My theory about the origins of "The Weapon" and what she was created to do.www.windowscentral.com
To me, it feels like they FINALLY have conviction that a game that goes all in on sandbox- like the classic Halo games- is the key to success.
Halo 5's campaign was massively problematic so it needed massive correction. I'm not sure how Halo Infinite's "open-world-ish" campaign will play out, but it's an natural evolution of Halo CEs design goals.
Well, they are not undermining Cortana at all. The very first shot of this recent trailer shows Chief and Cortana... in a dream like sequence. Cortana is still everything to him and this series.Honestly, I don't really think this changes anything. It doesn't change the point of the character, it just gives an explanation for why it exists. And of course there is an explanation, my problem was never that it's a plot hole or something along those lines. It's a fictional universe, you can come up with and explain whatever you want. But just because they give an explanation for why the AI exists in universe doesn't change my fundamental disappointment with them undermining the importance and loss of Cortana to both the Master Chief and the Player by just giving you a new, cuter one. It doesn't really matter how they explain that decision in universe, the decision itself is the problem for me.
And yeah, I totally get you regarding the comfortable nostalgia that is Cortana in Halo. It's just that it really goes against the entire storyline so far. You don't build a relationship between your audience and a character and then, when something of consequence happens to that character that changes their role in the world, just replace it with a literal clone so that you don't actually have deal with the consequences.
And to be clear: My problem isn't that there is a new AI. He should have an AI! It's just that i know from the novels how different and complex they can be. So seeing them using the same template over and over and over again is a bummer to me, even if it wasn't undermining the plot of the previous games.
I honestly can't understand this point. Halo 5 has the most open, sandbox-style gameplay arenas in the entire series. Halo 1 largely puts you in completely lifeless, tight, repeated corridors and only has a handful of bigger sandbox style areas. Halo 5 is chock fule of them, even going so far as to giving you several ways to progress.
Honestly, I don't really think this changes anything. It doesn't change the point of the character, it just gives an explanation for why it exists. And of course there is an explanation, my problem was never that it's a plot hole or something along those lines. It's a fictional universe, you can come up with and explain whatever you want. But just because they give an explanation for why the AI exists in universe doesn't change my fundamental disappointment with them undermining the importance and loss of Cortana to both the Master Chief and the Player by just giving you a new, cuter one. It doesn't really matter how they explain that decision in universe, the decision itself is the problem for me.
And yeah, I totally get you regarding the comfortable nostalgia that is Cortana in Halo. It's just that it really goes against the entire storyline so far. You don't build a relationship between your audience and a character and then, when something of consequence happens to that character that changes their role in the world, just replace it with a literal clone so that you don't actually have to change the audience's relation to the story in any meaningful way.
And to be clear: My problem isn't that there is a new AI. He should have an AI! It's just that i know from the novels how different and complex they can be. So seeing them using the same template over and over and over again is a bummer to me, even if it wasn't undermining the plot of the previous games.
I honestly can't understand this point. Halo 5 has the most open, sandbox-style gameplay arenas in the entire series. Halo 1 largely puts you in completely lifeless, tight, repeated corridors and only has a handful of bigger sandbox style areas. Halo 5 is chock fule of them, even going so far as to giving you several ways to progress.
Agree with all of that.Almost everything looks great and - most importantly - fun to play.
However the two pretty hefty disappointments I still have are:
- The awful explosions and particle effects. I hoped these would be fixed for launch but this trailer tells me they're here to stay. Really poor.
- The lack of location/biome diversity. I'm worried the PNW/forerunner interior combo will get stale really quickly.
For MP, maybe. They can still do something with the campaign mode though, no?One possible explanation is networking. More moving and destructible parts & props means more shit you have to sync. UDP topology means the maximum reliable size of an individual UDP packet is about ~1400 bytes (yes you can obviously send more than that, but things get complicated past that). It's a complex subject.
Halo 5 just walks you into mostly symmetrical arenas, then combat happens, then you move to the next one. Theres a route to the left and right, maybe one over and one under. Some gun racks neatly placed here and there. The level design was so lifeless and artificial. Sometimes you could bash a wall to find a secret. There was nothing organic or particularly interesting about it.
The biggest issue people seem to have with regards to 5's level design vs 1-3 is the larger vehicle sandbox stuff.But that's how every Halo works. There are very, very few, very specific levels (like the Silent Cartographer) that are a little bit more open, but even then there is a very linear progression through the level. Other than that, that game and most of every game after that is exactly what you describe - combat arenas of differing sizes followed by paths to the next arena followed by combat arenas of differing sizes, vehicle section, repeat. The only real difference I noticed with Halo 5 is that those combat arenas tended to be bigger and more open ended than I was used to in previous Halo games, especially compared to something like Halo: CE and Halo 4 but that could be subjective. The only thing I'm really struggling to understand is that Halo 5 was somehow a step back compared to Halo 1 - 3 in regards to their sandbox design and how linear they were.
But that's how every Halo works. There are very, very few, very specific levels (like the Silent Cartographer) that are a little bit more open, but even then there is a very linear progression through the level. Other than that, that game and most of every game after that is exactly what you describe - combat arenas of differing sizes followed by paths to the next arena followed by combat arenas of differing sizes, vehicle section, repeat. The only real difference I noticed with Halo 5 is that those combat arenas tended to be bigger and more open ended than I was used to in previous Halo games, especially compared to something like Halo: CE and Halo 4 but that could be subjective. The only thing I'm really struggling to understand is that Halo 5 was somehow a step back compared to Halo 1 - 3 in regards to their sandbox design and how linear they were.
I honestly can't understand this point. Halo 5 has the most open, sandbox-style gameplay arenas in the entire series. Halo 1 largely puts you in completely lifeless, tight, repeated corridors and only has a handful of bigger sandbox style areas. Halo 5 is chock fule of them, even going so far as to giving you several ways to progress.
Campaign is expected to support co-op.For MP, maybe. They can still do something with the campaign mode though, no?
Agree with all of that.
The explosions look like Goldeneye, and the lack of biome diversity is particularly frustrating because there's some incredible Infinite artwork of deserts and snowy tundras that just haven't made it into the game - as far as we know.
Do we know how the map is structured?
Is it like fully open world map with different biomes or more like different sandbox levels?
Got u. I much rather them enrich the single player experience though...
HCE has a few levels with larger open environments; Halo and Two Betrayals for example. However, for the most part CE does consist of repeated corridor sections and smallish arena type rooms.Weird, I could have written this post almost word for word, but the major difference would have been that I swapped Halo 5 and CE.
5 felt far more restricted to me than any Halo game that came before except maybe 4. It was mostly corridors with ledges and tunnels at the side. I missed the wide, open battlefields of the earlier games.
I am sure the game will have it. I feel we kinda see something in the first part of the trailer also. When they talk about Cortana and Chief is looking at her in his hand. Seems some sort of flashbackI will really need a "Previously on Halo" thing, because despite having played 4 and 5 I have like zero recollection of what actually happened in them.
HCE has a few levels with larger open environments; Halo and Two Betrayals for example. However, for the most part CE does consist of repeated corridor sections and smallish arena type rooms.
Most of Halo 5's levels will contain several large arena sections and even the most linear levels (such as the very first level) have much more complex design than the linear sections in CE.
The thing I'm by far the most disappointed by is New Cortana. She is so incredibly lame.
So you make your entire trilogy (or whatever it ends up being) about Cortana, her fall and her relationship to master chief and how important they are for each other. And then, after she was ripped away from him and turns into a villain...you just give Master Chief a new AI that looks and sounds almost exactly like Cortana?? And you make her the most anime trope ever, the endearing, naive cute girl everyone loves? "Maybe it's a friend!". Come on.
The novels are full of interesting, fascinating AIs. Did you know that they can take whatever form they chose? Probably not, because in the game they either have to be young, hot women or, if they get really fancy, men. This could've been their change to give MC, if they have to give him one, a really different AI! One that challenges him and presents a completely new dynamic compared to what was done before.
Instead, they just make Cortana but cuter. I'm kind of dreading my expectation that she will somehow fuse with Old Cortana at the end or something along those lines, so that they can just give you Cortana back and basically reset and ignore the entire dynamic and story built so far. But even if they don't do that: It just undermines this entire storyline. Why even go through any of this if you're only idea is "Uh...just..give him another Cortana I guess?"
They make a point of presenting these AIs as infinitely complex constructs with as many different forms. And what do we get in the games?
I will really need a "Previously on Halo" thing, because despite having played 4 and 5 I have like zero recollection of what actually happened in them.
Kind of reminds me of Just Cause for some reason. lol
Gameplay looks fun as heck. Can't wait.
But that's how every Halo works. There are very, very few, very specific levels (like the Silent Cartographer) that are a little bit more open, but even then there is a very linear progression through the level. Other than that, that game and most of every game after that is exactly what you describe - combat arenas of differing sizes followed by paths to the next arena followed by combat arenas of differing sizes, vehicle section, repeat. The only real difference I noticed with Halo 5 is that those combat arenas tended to be bigger and more open ended than I was used to in previous Halo games, especially compared to something like Halo: CE and Halo 4 but that could be subjective. The only thing I'm really struggling to understand is that Halo 5 was somehow a step back compared to Halo 1 - 3 in regards to their sandbox design and how linear they were.
Honestly, I don't really think this changes anything. It doesn't change the point of the character, it just gives an explanation for why it exists. And of course there is an explanation, my problem was never that it's a plot hole or something along those lines. It's a fictional universe, you can come up with and explain whatever you want. But just because they give an explanation for why the AI exists in universe doesn't change my fundamental disappointment with them undermining the importance and loss of Cortana to both the Master Chief and the Player by just giving you a new, cuter one. It doesn't really matter how they explain that decision in universe, the decision itself is the problem for me.
And yeah, I totally get you regarding the comfortable nostalgia that is Cortana in Halo. It's just that it really goes against the entire storyline so far. You don't build a relationship between your audience and a character and then, when something of consequence happens to that character that changes their role in the world, just replace it with a literal clone so that you don't actually have to change the audience's relation to the story in any meaningful way.
And to be clear: My problem isn't that there is a new AI. He should have an AI! It's just that i know from the novels how different and complex they can be. So seeing them using the same template over and over and over again is a bummer to me, even if it wasn't undermining the plot of the previous games.
Good, I liked Metro Exodus structure a lotIt is structured more like Metro Exodus, so you will visit multiple, open areas of the game.
Probably the blowing up of silos and use of the grappleshot (hook), I'd say.Kind of reminds me of Just Cause for some reason. lol
Gameplay looks fun as heck. Can't wait.