Shooting star
Whilst the campaign is often overlooked, not living up to the expectations many had hoped, Halo 5s multiplayer experience is arguably the most complete of any Halo so far - further enforced by innovative additions such as Warzone and Breakout - bringing a touch of eclectic freshness to the proceedings.
Yet, even with great success, theres always room for improvement. The loyal Halo community has been vocal in its suggestions to make Halo 5 even better, and with the welcome release of the Cartographers Gift update - which brings Forge mode, and a bunch of new REQ cards and multiplayer maps - its clear 343 Industries is heeding the calls of the fans. But where next? Ive collated some of the most requested additions and alterations the community has asked for, as well as a few from our own experiences online too. After all, theres no harm in polishing a diamond.
Warzone Assault defending
Warzone is a revelation for the series. Built around distinct MOBA aspects whilst still feeling very Halo, its been a rousing success with both die-hard fans and those new to the series. The linear capture/defend variation on the game type, Warzone Assault, has proved less popular, however.
Its a nice change-up to Warzones traditional mode but is heavily biased towards defenders. The Escape from A.R.C. maps garage is so big, its easy for a single defending player to block captures by hiding, whilst other teammates hold out the rest of the area. A simple solution lies in one of Halos stablemates, Gears of War, specifcally in the way Judgments Overrun mode play. A round of attacking and defending for each team. Its that simple. The team that advances through the capture points quickest would be victorious, but if the game ends with both teams successfully defending the first point, then the best percentage of capture would prevail.
Warzone Assault capturing
Ive noticed through my trials and tribulations in Assault that as the levels of players increase, the chance of securing a capture becomes more likely - after all, better REQs, a better chance for success. Yet, unlike in similarly-focused games such as Team Fortress 2, another minor problem arises.
When blitzing through to jump on a point with little-to-no capture progress at the end of a round, the time it would take to control that point, often exceeds the time thats left making the last few, would-be crucial seconds of the round pointless. A logical solution to this would be overtime. If a point is being captured or contested with zero seconds on the clock, the game extends the play-time until the bid is over. It works wonders in Team Fortress 2, making for some really tense endings, plus, it helps the balance between defending and attacking; its a no-brainer.
Boss takedowns
A hotly talked about topic in the Halo community, Boss takedowns are both frustrating and intently satisfying in equal measure. Grinding on a boss alone, whittling them down to a slither of health, to have a teammate - or worse, an enemy - steal that legendary kill and claim the glory and XP for themselves, is infuriating. But at the same time, it works both ways. Notice that a boss is close to destruction, throw your hard-earned REQ points at a power weapon, steal the kill for yourself, and youll feel very differently.
Some of the community believe that this type of play simply isnt fair, whilst others appluade its similarity to competitive counterparts such as League of Legends and DOTA 2, claiming that its all part of the strategy. My opinion? Im on the fence. Indeed, whilst it could be strategic to steal an enemys takedown from under their nose, there should be more of a concrete allocation of boss kills spoils among teammates. Sometimes XP sharing occurs but its not clear-cut, and some clarification from 343 Industries on this would be well received by the community.
Vehicle spawning
Have you ever spawned into a game after spending six REQ points on a Beam Rifle, only to be instantly killed from enemy Banshee fire? Sucks, right? When choosing to spawn with a power weapon there are several ways to avoid being caught in a crossfire - primarily by selecting safer, out-of-the-way spawn points - but it's often tough to judge how secure a vehicle spawn is when you want one.
Escape from A.R.C. is the culprit once again. If you have captured the garage and want to spawn a shiny Ghost Ultra or Mantis, its possible to get jacked, or destroyed, almost before you are able to make it on to the battlefield proper. A safety period for vehicle spawns needs to exist, making it at least possible to exit your base before your inevitable demise.
Medal breakdowns
I love showing off as much as the next person. Screenshots of my post-game exploits litter my hard drives, and I love it. One thing I and many others miss though, is in-game medal breakdowns. Currently only accessible through Halo Waypoint, analysing the medals acquired throughout your previous game should be made available on the post-game screen. Its a decent way to gauge how well you are doing against your opponents for consistency, and also a great tool for gloating.
With boosts that reward you for landing in the top 50% for medal count, not showing how many medals you achieved in certain game modes makes no sense. This is another touch-up that many peacocks, like myself, would be more than happy to see come to light. Let me bask in my own glory without having to open up a web browser.
Expanded statistics
Expanding on the post-game screen, there are some missing stats that should be included, and existing ones that can be omitted. In Warzone, for example, a stat showing damage to the core would be extremely handy, as would one showing damage dealt to bosses.
In SWAT, theres a column for Perfect Kills. It almost always shows zero. Theres really no need to have it there. Its wasted space that could be used for something more worthwgile, like number of multikills or longest streak. .
DMR and Carbine SWAT
Back in the days of Halo 4, there were some really neat SWAT combinations, making for interesting, varied matchups. Halo 5 currently has only two types of SWAT: Battle Rifles only (Standard), and the Magnum variation.
Whilst both are great, other variations would certainly keep things fresh. The fan favourite DMR seems to have been put to one side in Halo 5 and is certainly missed. Offering more range than a Magnum, but with a similar rate of fire, it would certainly change things up a bit. Also, what happened to Covenant SWAT? The Carbine was brutally effective in getting rapid kills thanks to its mid-range and superior rate of fire. If it makes a return, expect some super-quick, high-energy rounds.
Daily, weekly and monthly campaign challenges
Once the campaign has been played through once or twice, and all the collectibles and Skulls have been discovered, many players shy away from revisiting Halo 5s story mode. The daily, weekly and monthly challenges found in earlier Halo iterations would counter this completely, bringing about an entirely new way to enjoy the campaign.
In previous games they were a really interesting way of keeping both individual players and their online friends engaged with the game, well after its release. And now, with REQ pack customisation and micro-transactions teasing more engagement after launch, theres even more reason for 343i to bring back these challenges in Halo 5.
Tidy up the Collection menu
Its pretty tricky to get a handle on some of the menus when loading up Halo 5 or the first time. With the vast amount of different helmets and armour sets available to unlock through REQ packs, the Collection menu gets a little cluttered to say the least.
To help with this, stacking armor, helmet and vehicle variations together would help address the mess and give a better way to notice the subtle differences in the variations unlocked. And besides, us show-offs want to show off. Let me see all my trinkets in one orderly place.
Give us Assassination previews
Everybody loves getting a satisfying up-close kill, and 343i has certainly catered to the sadistic, skull-piercing minds of its fans by including a whole host of different takedowns for players to choose from.
The problem is that the only way to see how your assassination will look once youve unlocked it is to go in-game and perform it. Sadly, some players just arent good enough to get that immediate pay-off. A preview of how those new assassinations work, on the Collection screen, would give players a visual goal to aim towards, and something to covet straight away once they get there, similar to the previewing of emotes in Star Wars: Battlefront.
