Halo Reach: The Present & The Future

It’s hard to see how Bungie could get a game which was meant to be their swansong within the Halo universe, so very wrong.

Games by Ashley on  Sep 10, 2011

For something that was engulfed in so much hype and acclaim prior to its release, it’s hard to see how Bungie could get a game that was meant to be their swansong within the Halo universe so very wrong.

Before I divulge into the current state of Halo Reach multiplayer, let me first just clarify that I do indeed like the game. Halo Reach is a great game as both a first-person shooter and also a great source of multiplayer entertainment. Some of the iconic features from Halo 3 have been improved (Such as Forge mode and Spartan customization), but others have simply been changed for the worse (Such as the ranking system). If I was to review Halo Reach right now, it would be comfortably in the seventy percent range, but would struggle to score any higher.

Halo Reach

Right now, Halo Reach multiplayer is as unenjoyable as it has ever been. This may seem to contradict my previous statement regarding how Halo Reach multiplayer is entertaining, but it is, regrettably, the truth. Halo multiplayer, on the whole, can feature some of the most unpredictable and exhilarating multiplayer moments you will see in any online shooter, and this is true also for Halo Reach; however, when Reach is this unbalanced and lacking in so many areas, it’s hard to see this as a Halo game at all.

Recently I had the urge to give the game another shot, partly due there being nothing of note to dedicate my time to until the influx of releases at the end of the year. Upon playing a few games, I became frustrated that the same old nuances that had driven me away from Reach in the first place were still present. This isn’t the Halo that I love, and it sure as hell isn’t the Halo that I remember.

There is, however, light at the end of the tunnel. In what will be their first act upon Halo Reach as the new overseers of the Halo Universe, 343 Industries will be releasing a title update for Halo Reach. In short, 343 will be cleaning up the mess that Bungie left behind. Within the title update, which will occur in early November prior to the release of Halo Combat Evolved Anniversary, 343 will be addressing some of the key areas for improvement, as highlighted by the Halo community.

First stop, reticule bloom. Making its all-unwelcome debut in Halo Reach, the Bloom was essentially meant to reward the more methodical player who timed their shots as opposed to those who unceremoniously gyrated the right trigger without a second thought. Unfortunately, the Bloom was badly implemented and terribly inconsistent. Chance played more of a part in a straight-up fire-fight with a player than Bloom did, and 343 is keen to rectify this in the title update. Bloom is being completely ditched, and instead, your reticules will now be fully fixed a la Halo 3.

If that wasn’t enough, 343 would also be diving head-on into the whole armor abilities furor. Although it seems unlikely that they will be removed, 343 will be balancing them more appropriately. Perhaps the most infamous armor ability, ‘Armour Lock,’ will be at the forefront of this renovation. Armour Lock will remain, however, be altered so that opposing players can simply melee you while you are locked to forcibly remove you from it, meaning that Armour Lock will now require greater timing and more intelligent usage in order to escape life-or-death situations intact.

Besides these integral updates, the title update will also feature increased damage for the Magnum pistol, ‘Bleed through’ melee combat, meaning that a melee against a partially shielded opponent will now also cause them to take actual health damage, the removal of being able to block a sword lunge with melee, plus many more currently unknown features as well as a predictable playlist update. Currently, it isn’t known whether Halo CE Anniversary multiplayer will be entirely separate from the regular Reach multiplayer and whether or not the title update will apply to Reach, CEA Anniversary multiplayer, or both, but it is impressive to see how quickly 343 has taken in what the community has had to say, and that they are actively changing the game based on the desires of the fans.

This November, as well as being treated to a remake of Halo Combat Evolved complete with campaign co-op and multiplayer set on seven iconic Halo CE locations, 343 will also be adjusting the Halo Reach multiplayer experience for the better and hopefully giving us what is effectively ‘Reach 2.0’. So, if you are on the fence about whether or not to buy Halo Combat Evolved Anniversary based on your experiences with Halo Reach, then maybe this might convince you otherwise. Get your pre-orders in now, and get ready for some upgraded Halo Reach multiplayer plus the remake of Combat Evolved dropping this November.

Halo Combat Evolved Anniversary will be released on Xbox 360 worldwide on November 11th. As confirmed by 343 Industries Community Manager BS Angel, the Halo Reach title update is scheduled for release shortly before that.

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