The pay to win is weapons basically locked behind paywalls that are extremely powerful. I don’t have an answer for your easy comment. I can let you know what I don’t like about the game and how I think the skill gap could be opened up more, but that will not get us anywhere. So no I don’t have an answer for you. The game is just nowhere close to memorable. I will admit I am biased because I bought the game like hex for zombies and blackout. Zombies being a huge disgrace with recycled maps and tons of bugs, and still to this day missing content that was promised on launch. Blackout I had fun in for a while but it got old to me. That’s fine, I feel like that’s where I got my money’s worth though. When I decided to almost go back to it this week (this is pure) “ignorance” I’ve heard a lot of talk about obtaining good weapons in this mode only if you’ve unlocked them through reserves. https://www.google.com/amp/s/screenrant.com/black-ops-4-blackout-blackjack-stash/amp/
I also feel it's important to put emphasis on the actual game mechanics BEING the biggest offenders. Specialist ultimates and equipment are extremely flawed and add nothing but cheap advantages to the game. Buffed up killstreaks and having to use multiple crutch perks to slightly counter the BS isn't doing the game any favors either.
Lots of decent stuff here, but conversations always devolve when we have these back and forth monster posts that don't really go deep into anything and instead cover a lot of random topics superficially. I'd say focus on 1 or 2 points and go from there. It's not a fair way to argue because one of you has to accept that there are points being made against you that will just have to let go unanswered for the conversation to move forward. Personally I'd like to see the last paragraph explored more. Treyarch zombies has been trash for 7 years you should have known better lol The specialist abilities that can kill are literal cancer. I cant tell you how many times I've had a streak ended by an attack dog owned by someone who had less than .5 kd and on the opposite side of the map, or hitting a random tripmine. 0 excuse for that nonsense and by far the worst part of the game. Or maybe I'm just salty because I was outplayed. idk
Black ops 4 was the first call of duty in a while that I didn't buy. I usually enjoy at least something in the game. The main reason I didn't buy the game wasn't because there was no campaign but I just figured if they were being too lazy to make a campaign for it that the whole game would probably suck too. I have heard mixed reviews about the game since it's release. The battle Royale sounds ok but I feel like it would get old quick and I've heard the zombies is trash which is usually what I play the most on the newer call of duties. But overall I got 60 extra dollars that I'm glad I kept instead of spent on a mediocre game.
First, you seem to assume that the word integrity has some sort of mystical, deep and impossible to articulate meaning behind it, but I don't think I could have a clearer definition of the word considering that I spent 19 minutes in video format explaining exactly what I mean when I say it. Everything in this post is your imposition on the word and has nothing to do with what the idea I reference. Again, I'm not at all interested in arguing over semantics beyond this point. I've made my ideas regarding the word as clear as I am capable, and if that's how you want to interpret the word, then fine, I'm happy to move on. Second, and once again, you're imposing on me things that I've never claimed, saying that "I think I understand truth to a deep level". I've never said that, never will, and it's nothing but obnoxious when you say something so sarcastic like that in a conversation with another person. "Oh, you think you understand the mysteries of the universe? LUL" Yeah man... that's not getting us anywhere. Address the arguments, or please, don't address me. Third, the only Truths I hold to are the ones given to me, not of my own understanding. The only thing I understand is that we can understand what works and what doesn't to an incredible degree. That much is apparent, obvious, and so much so that I couldn't care less about your chimpanzee argument. I've said it before, if this really is all subjective, or if the subjective is more important than the objective, then how do any of us get better? What are art classes for? Who knows what might be successful and wholesome? The answer is nobody, and that is obviously not the case. People do improve, even to the point of making smash hit after smash hit. If that's possible, then obviously a constant lies underneath, and I think that constant is moral truth, which I can say without a doubt comes not from me, but from God. That's really all I have the energy to say anymore, and one day we'll make the best game ever and you'll all be forced to believe me, and I can shut up forever. or not Fourth, to use my maps as some sort of distraction from my arguments is beyond obnoxious. I'll be the first to admit that the maps I have created so far are, to quote your insulting word choice, "disappointments", but each was a step, some skipped a few stairs with the help of friends and those more talented than I, but all the same, I'm heading somewhere, and will eventually be able to take pride in what I make. But, even though my maps aren't ideal, I do think you could spot a trend if you honestly assessed them, but maybe that's my bias talking, maybe they're getting worse. Now, I would understand you pointing out flaws in my maps if and only if I arrogantly referenced my maps as some sort of standard, but I haven't, not in this conversation, not in any conversation, not ever. If anything, Look to Multi's maps, and maybe argue with him instead from here on out, because my attributes as a person and designer seem to be of greater interest to you than any argument, and I'm not enjoying that process. Fifth, it's apparent that you don't want to stop beating the "you lost, you're just mad" drum anytime soon, so I'll just refrain from commenting further. If you really think my beliefs are predicated on the frustration I felt like 2 months ago playing your maps against box, or that I have such a limited understanding of your maps that I am unfit to judge them, then fine, think that from now until eternity. I don't care anymore. Sixth, on the jump example, if the imaginary complaint you gave as an example were to actually come up, I would probably just tell that person that they're just mad they lost and that they don't understand Halo... Ahem Returning to sincerity, I would just point out the flaw in the logic. The assumption in your example is that a jump is over-rewarding because it's an instant vertical strafe... but really the opposite is true, especially in Halo. Jumping is often a death sentence, and actually makes it much easier to shoot people. Combine that punishing element with the potential for skill based movement and you have an inherently well balanced ability, or one with Integrity and the capacity for creative control.
I know most of my maps do not follow the "halo style" but my goal recently has been to make maps with a unique layout. It's a hit or miss. And most of my best maps actually do follow the halo style. But I have made a few maps such as rathole and flood island that don't follow the halo style much at all and I'm pretty proud of how they turned out. I'm currently reworking Abandoned as I feel it had a lot of potential but due to my inexperience at the time I originally made it, it never really looked that great. I've currently got it partially updated and playable again but in about a week or 2 I will have it fully updated. It already looks and plays much better than the original version and my final version should be even better. I will also update flood island in the next few weeks as well as a few other maps. I'm trying to give my maps with the best gameplay and layouts more polished visuals.
"When you fail to approach Halo 5 from this angle, and even push it further in the other direction, you get maps like Salty's mausoleum. I don't mean to offend if you're reading this salty, and that's what Halo 5 is if we allow it to be, and Halo 5 would've certainly been an even bigger flop if it was allowed to be that." Do you see how pretentious and presumptuous that post was? If your wondering why ive been so snide and sarcastic in my replies, this would be one of the reasons. I want to move past the pissing contest because as you and others have pointed out, is getting us nowhere. I hope we can discuss this further on xbl or discord party as much is lost in translation. The topic is so deep and complex, its quite hard to articulate thoughts without falling prey to imposition. As I clearly misinterpreted you multiple times, as you've done to me. So sorry, I do apologize and want to move past this snideness, ( Sorry FH drama spicelords) I think we fundamentally disagree on what a 'Video Game' is and why they exist/why we as humans engage in them, and I think this disagreement is having a ripple effect into our disagreement on "Sprint, Thrust, Clamber and Stabilize" having mechanical merit within the construct of 'Sport'. Sport- An activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment. Game- A form of play or sport, especially a competitive one played according to rules and decided by skill, strength, or luck. I believe competitive video games, just like competitive sports/board games, have their roots in the human nature to war. War with oneself, and war with each other. They deal with victory and defeat over others and over ones-self. Interestingly enough 'first person shooters' are clear visual reminders of the primal origins of sport/game. They quite literally are a graphical representation of war, where your goal is to conquer and destroy your opponent. At their core, sports/games exist as a byproduct of the duality of the human condition, and the war within ourselves. They are in essence a product of our flawed nature. If humanity were perfect, as our God is, there would be no need for war. Neither between each-other, nor within ourselves. I do not believe that FPS games, and all competitive sports/games for that matter, would exist if man were pure. So the impurity of them at their core has extreme relevance when trying to sort out TRUTH within them, as at their core they aren't truthful/pure in origin or effect. Would you agree to any, possibly all, of these points? Disagree with any? Id love to hear some articulated responses. Okay one last snide thing for the forgehubbers lmao Returning to sincerity, I would just point out the flaw in the logic. The assumption in your example is that thrust is over-rewarding because it's an instant horizontal strafe... but really the opposite is true, especially in Halo. Thrust is often a death sentence, and actually makes it much easier to shoot people once they thrust as they cannot fire back. Combine that punishing element with the potential for skill based movement and you have an inherently well balanced ability, or one with Integrity and the capacity for creative control. c wut i did thar
Walking doesn't really have integrity in games if you think about it, you literally just press a button or key and you walk forwards.. there's no nuance to it, it's **** so I propose that the map moves around the players in future games to avoid falling into the trap that is dog walking mechanics.
Shooting doesn't really have integrity in games if you think about it, you literally just press a button or key and you fire your gun.. there's no nuance to it, it's **** so I propose that the map has no guns for players in future games to avoid falling into the trap that is dog shooting mechanics.
We've already had the argument, in voice, over your take on war and games, and you've never been this sarcastic or degrading to me in that format, so maybe one day we'll do it again, but not here And I stand by my comments about how Halo would've done if 343 didn't hold back at some point with their direction change. The game is already a failure in terms of player retention, and certainly would've been even worse for the series if this whole thing hadn't been stunted. Call this pretentious if you want, but I don't think it qualifies. Finally, regarding your last part... "Thrust is often a death sentence, and actually makes it much easier to shoot people once they thrust as they cannot fire back" What? If you've ever fired at someone who had already thrusted, you know how unbelievably easy it is to perfect them. Thrust definitely helps more than it hurts, and presents more of a problem when it comes to mending our bad positioning on the whole anyways. Also, I've already explained why the abilities are lackluster regarding creative control. You're 0 for 2 with these reimaginations of my own posts in terms of making a point, but I don't doubt you'll cease making them because they kinda look like you might be getting at something. I'm pretty sure you're joking, but I just feel like I have to remind any readers that this format and combination of words was never my explanation for Integrity or my argument against any ability. It's a parody of the things I've said in an attempt to make me look silly. That's enough for me boys
2v2 Contest Rules Suggestion thread. https://www.forgehub.com/threads/next-contest-rules-suggestions-2v2.158962/
If you refuse to have the 'Orgin of sport/game and why individuals engage in them' discussion with me here, I can do nothing but respect that. Although I hope we can have the discussion again in the future because I believe it is extremely pertinent when discussing merit/ integrity in level design for a sport/game. For anyone here on the forums who is confused about what Xandrith means when he speaks of integrity, this is what he meant. I myself did not mean to turn it into a parody, I only meant to highlight where the logical leaps lie whilst trying to determine the merit/integrity of an ability. I admit I did it in very ineffective and childish way which caused others to act in the same way, and that was never my intention. When Xandith speaks of "Integrity", he is referencing the below points, paraphrased from his video 1)A Mechanic, Level design, or system In a video game that rewards or punishes a player proportionally to their merit in a give situation. 2) We should be careful not to conflate all mechanics that introduce a skill or merit and those with integrity. 3) Anything you add to a game will also add something for you to utilize better then your opponent, but not all of these mechanics will feature integrity and not all skills are created equal. I actually have no argument with any of the ideas presented here, and agree with all of them. They are expertly crafted, and you have every right to be genuinely proud of that video and the thoughts presented in them, as I told you before, it was one of the best design philosophy videos I've seen. Here is my issue, we must make a logical leap when determining what warrants a proportional punishment/reward for the players merit in a give situation. That is where the debate lies, my problem was never with the idea of integrity/merit, but the application and assessment of it. For that, is where nuance and personal taste pervade objective territory due to the subjective nature of us a flawed creations, what we find pleasureful, and the often paradoxical nature of universal laws. The below graph is a visual representation of an imaginary "Skill Spectrum" Lets say that skills with the most merit/integrity lie within 500-600nm. With 550nm being the golden ideal. If you and I were having a discussion on a skills merit/integrity and I was a fan of a skill that sat at the 450nm, is my skill set close enough to be considered merit/integrity worthy? How far would the skill need to move towards the 550nm range to be considered acceptable, and worthy of being competed over? How about the inverse, how far could it move away from the 550nm and still be acceptable? Are skills in the 400 range completely unacceptable to explore in a competitive environment that holds up integrity, are we never allowed to explore those skills? The point of this visual aid, was to highlight the spectrum of (subjective) personal tastes bound within an objective system. Back to the application and assessment of your ideas as applied to designs in H5. I have yet to see a design from you that does not hypocritically break some of the same exact fundamentals that you preach. Maybe this is due to H5 being broken at its core, but I can and still do see the designs strive towards the goal of integrity, and do a damn good job, but striving is not the same as doing. You admitted to me that your designs weren't at the level they could be, and were still improving and you never claimed them to be a benchmark from which I should judge your philosophy. I respect that self honesty and so I wont use them as a rubric. You then asked me "If anything, Look to Multi's maps, and maybe argue with him instead from here on out, because my attributes as a person and designer seem to be of greater interest to you than any argument, and I'm not enjoying that process." I'm not going to deeply assess or evaluate any of multi's maps as he is not here to defend himself, but I've heard what other individuals have said about them, and I've known from my own experiences on the maps numerous "Integrity" errors that reward or punish player disproportionally to their merit in a given situation do exist on the maps. Multi is not a God, and nor are you or I. However I have a different take on level design then either of you, and Multi is an intuitively skilled designer so as those "errors" exist, as they do in any art form, In most cases the errors present do not detract from the overall experience provided and this is one of the many reason why I thoroughly enjoy almost everything he has made and respect him greatly as a designer. I just think it could be beneficial for you, as a 'teacher' since you have presumed that role many times, to provide something of your own that reflects your beliefs. I understand if Halo 5 is not the game you'd like to do it in, as the game itself has weak integrity, but maybe have one last go at it for this upcoming 2v2 contest. Id love to sink my teeth into something designed by you. If anyone here would like me to explain how and why I believe I've made sprint thrust and clamber have more skill/merit AND integrity on many of my designs vs base H5 maps (Will look at Ebola first) Id love to explain my thought processes. Just let me know with a reply and if even one person is interested, I will do my best to fully explain.
Checkmate would sport it better. This map would need to be somewhere in New Alexandria. It could be like a mall or an asymmetrical take on Club Errera.