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Would you have preferred that the multiplayer of Halo Infinite was not free?

Which would you have preferred?


  • Total voters
    33

KyoZz

Tag, you're it.
So first of all, let me just say what I like in the game first:
- the weapons are feeling good, you get a nice response from shooting and the sound is also amazing
- movement is improved a lot, it plays great on m/k
- the art style is still a big win for me, I can't wait to dive into the single player
- the maps available are all great imo

Now, let's talk about what I think is a step down compared to previous Halo:
- the number of maps, it is missing a lot of map imo, new and classic maps from previous Halo (give me Blood Gulch, Battle Creek and Zanzibar!)
- that progression system is fucking people minds, leaving the server because 'muh challenge'
- no playlist choices and no server browser. That was here in the MCC, so now we regressing?
- I also think that if 343i didn't lost time with this progression and F2P systems, we would have more maps and a more user friendly game (that's just my opinion of course)

The progression system is the least of my problem, if it wasn't here I wouldn't even notice. I just don't care but it introduce problems as I said before.

Those are points that can be, and will be addressed I hope. The game has a lot of potential but 343i needs to bring back everything we loved in previous Halo as this is supposed to be the ultimate Halo experience.
At the end, this doesn't feel like a fully fleshed out multiplayer, it lack that "premium" feels you get in previous title in the franchise mostly because it lack content and has a weird progression system.
 
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MiguelItUp

Member
Now, let's talk about what I think is a step down compared to previous Halo:
- the number of maps, it is missing a lot of map imo, new and classic maps from previous Halo
Yeah, there could be some more. But they've been pretty firm about calling this a beta. Makes me assume there will be even more maps on launch? Though I'm not entirely certain.

The game feels extremely good though, I'm surprised I've enjoyed it as much as I have. My only issue is I think they need to adjust leveling or XP. It currently feels like a hefty grind, which feels kind of gross as it could entice people to want to pay to level faster as a result.
 

elliot5

Member
No. F2P multiplayer is the future and with crossplay and crossprogression it makes sense. It's a bit bare bones but they're already working on the battle pass, and I'm sure it'll evolve nicely over the next year.

There were like 23 maps datamined so I'm sure this will be drip fed as they are finalized over the coming seasons.

Lack of server browser and match composer kinda sucks though. They really need to prioritize that over this basic playlist stuff. Hopefully by Dec 8 they add a few additional options or playlists.
 

VAVA Mk2

Member
So first of all, let me just say what I like in the game first:
- the weapons are feeling good, you get a nice response from shooting and the sound is also amazing
- movement is improved a lot, it plays great on m/k
- the art style is still a big win for me, I can't wait to dive into the single player
- the maps available are all great imo

Now, let's talk about what I think is a step down compared to previous Halo:
- the number of maps, it is missing a lot of map imo, new and classic maps from previous Halo (give me Blood Gulch, Battle Creek and Zanzibar!)
- that progression system is fucking people minds, leaving the server because 'muh challenge'
- no playlist choices and no server browser. That was here in the MCC, so now we regressing?

Those are points that can be, and will be addressed I hope. The game has a lot of potential but 343i needs to bring back everything we loved in previous Halo as this is supposed to be the ultimate Halo experience.
They are addressing progression system, game is technically in beta so playlists an MP will change likely after full launch, for MP they are clearly gonna release a lot more over time. Rumor of at least 23 maps so far. This doesn't include Forge which is supposed to be a huge step forward in custom content when it launches likely in May. They already said they are likely not going to rerelease old maps as they do not work well with Halo Infinite sandbox and equipment.
 

Sosokrates

Report me if I continue to console war
Threads about weather halo mp being F2P is good and then OP lists pros and cons?

ANvVHkk.gif
 

Kssio_Aug

Member
If it wasn't free, I'd play anyway because of Game Pass. But I think they did well by making it free to play... it will call a huge amount of players from both Xbox and PC. Free to play done right is a good thing, and I believe that's the case for Halo Infinite, even though it's not perfect. I wish CoD and BF was F2P as well... I'd probably play them once in a while, but no way I'd pay a considerable amount of money for them. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
 
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STARSBarry

Gold Member
See here's the thing, if this had just launched as a full game it would be an xbox first party title, meaning it you have GamePass you would of got a full buy 2 play game with a much better multiplayer. Why would the multiplayer be better? Because essentially they could have the game revolve around keeping people interested while having fun rather than intentionally annoying you so that you cough up some cash.

For a majority of people it being on Gamepass as a full premium product would of allowed them access to a much more player focused progression system...

Although Halo 5 was essentially a F2P game you had to buy, so who knows.
 
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KyoZz

Tag, you're it.
They are addressing progression system, game is technically in beta so playlists an MP will change likely after full launch, for MP they are clearly gonna release a lot more over time. Rumor of at least 23 maps so far. This doesn't include Forge which is supposed to be a huge step forward in custom content when it launches likely in May
This is all good news, I honestly can't wait for the game to get bigger in content, also yeah Forge is gonna be awesome (I hope it won't have too many restriction).

They already said they are likely not going to rerelease old maps as they do not work well with Halo Infinite sandbox and equipment.
Now this is a big letdown, and sound like a bad excuse. I can't see why it wouldn't work. I need Blood Gulch. Give it to me. Please.
Pleeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaase !!!!

Makes me assume there will be even more maps on launch?
No not on launch :(

None of the things you mentioned would be fixed by charging for the game?
As I said, it lack that "premium" feeling. I can't even browse servers.... The fact that you can't choose which gamemode you play in other things is a direct consequence of this being F2P.

Threads about weather halo mp being F2P is good and then OP lists pros and cons?

ANvVHkk.gif
What's the problem? I'm asking for feedback, saying what I like and don't like in the game right now. I'm curious to read more opinion.

Because essentially they could have the game revolve around keeping people interested while having fun rather than intensively annoying you so that you cough up some cash.

For a majority of people it being on Gamepass as a full premium product would of allowed them access to a much more player focused progression system...
Yeah that's my pov too. Though I think the F2P system isn't as bad as it could have been, it's still already causing problem with people leaving the server because "oh no I can't complete my challenge on this gamemode/map".
 
I'd have it on GP anyway, so I guess yes. Because then there would theoretically be less incentive to pad out a battle pass.

But honestly, I'm enjoying it now as is and I don't really care.
 

Black_Stride

do not tempt fate do not contrain Wonder Woman's thighs do not do not
As I said, it lack that "premium" feeling. I can't even browse servers.... The fact that you can't choose which gamemode you play in other things is a direct consequence of this being F2P.

Even if the MP was behind a full purchase these things would still be the same
This is what they implemented.
The Battlepass might not be as aggressive but everything else would be the same.

What they designed isnt a consequence of going F2P....or do you have some insider information that says otherwise?
 

ckaneo

Member
See here's the thing, if this had just launched as a full game it would be an xbox first party title, meaning it you have GamePass you would of got a full buy 2 play game with a much better multiplayer. Why would the multiplayer be better? Because essentially they could have the game revolve around keeping people interested while having fun rather than intentionally annoying you so that you cough up some cash.

For a majority of people it being on Gamepass as a full premium product would of allowed them access to a much more player focused progression system...

Although Halo 5 was essentially a F2P game you had to buy, so who knows.
This is all bullshit lol
 

HTK

Banned
Are you saying if it wasn't free that it would have more maps or things from previous HALOs? Probably not given the history of games and their offerings.

Of course it's a good idea to have Halo as a Free-to-play title.
 

Banjo64

cumsessed
No. Genuinely.

No upfront cost. Based on MCC and other live service games like Sea of Thieves and Apex, we’ll be receiving regular and interesting updates/content for the next 5 or 6 years. Not just cosmetic updates, but maps coming in and new weapons. Can you imagine season 3 or 4 launching with the DMR and a remastered version of Guardian and The Pit for ranked and Sandtrap for BTB? It’ll generate a lot of hype.

I fail to see how anyone can prefer the old way of doing things (initial RRP of the game up front and then 2 sets of DLC map packs that fragment the user base priced at £10 each).
 

Nikana

Go Go Neo Rangers!
I think its a smart move for Halo as it had lost a lot of its "luster" after two games that failed to catch a lot of longevity the series previously had. In a world where Halo has far more competition and isnt riding the highs of the 360 momentum its going to be harder to get people in with a $60 price tag.

I wouldn't be worried about maps. They are going to support the hell out of the game. Maps take time.
 
I think its a smart move for Halo as it had lost a lot of its "luster" after two games that failed to catch a lot of longevity the series previously had. In a world where Halo has far more competition and isnt riding the highs of the 360 momentum its going to be harder to get people in with a $60 price tag.

I wouldn't be worried about maps. They are going to support the hell out of the game. Maps take time.
I think for MS it is absolutely the correct call. Gets a lot of people back into Halo that have fallen off the Halo and MS train in general. Also in line with current trends.
 

OrtizTwelve

Member
Overall it’s a great game that seems to be gaining attention and bringing back mindshare to the Halo franchise and Xbox as a platform.

I think the team did a really good job looking back at what made Halo great and re-interpreted it for the current times. Everything just feels really tight and solid, and a lot of polish and care has gone into everything with respect to gameplay.

I think this will be a very big win for Xbox moving forward and F2P just makes it more accessible to people. Also, given that call of duty and battlefield are pretty weak this year with their new iterations, Halo will likely gain a lot of new players.
 

Nikana

Go Go Neo Rangers!
I think for MS it is absolutely the correct call. Gets a lot of people back into Halo that have fallen off the Halo and MS train in general. Also in line with current trends.
I think in a world where this game didn't start development before Game Pass took off I could see them using it as an even bigger vessel to get subs, which they will still obviously do for the campaign, but I think FTP is the right call in the long run. PC version will also be very important.
 

jakinov

Member
Now, let's talk about what I think is a step down compared to previous Halo:
- the number of maps, it is missing a lot of map imo, new and classic maps from previous Halo (give me Blood Gulch, Battle Creek and Zanzibar!)
- that progression system is fucking people minds, leaving the server because 'muh challenge'
- no playlist choices and no server browser. That was here in the MCC, so now we regressing?

Those are points that can be, and will be addressed I hope. The game has a lot of potential but 343i needs to bring back everything we loved in previous Halo as this is supposed to be the ultimate Halo experience.
At the end, this doesn't feel like a fully fleshed out multiplayer, it lack that "premium" feels you get in previous title in the franchise mostly because it lack content and has a weird progression system.
- They will add more maps over time, F2P wasn't why there's limited maps. If anything F2P model or GaaS model will help them continously add maps over time. Look how much content Warzone, Fornite, League of LEgends, etc. gets and they are free to play. F2P usually means more content because it's a continuous revenue stream.
- The progression system is just poorly designed nothing to do with it being free to play
- It's common for games nowadays to have less auxiliary features than their predecessor it costs more and takes more time to do everything. A server browser will likely come when forge comes because ATM it's not really useful for the vas tmajority of players
 

MiguelItUp

Member
No not on launch :(
Ah, well, I don't think all hope is lost. Just depends on the roadmap they have planned for it. What's there is outstanding and polished AF. It's okay to want more, but for a F2P title, what's there is solid IMO.

They're already adjusting the Battle Pass, so I'm happy about that. It's pretty ridiculous right now, lol. I'm level 7 and I had 3 REALLY good games this AM with double XP enabled. I still didn't level, lmao.
 
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I'm enjoying it and pretty much satisfied. Been a battlefield player since 1942 and never really liked Halo MP or Gears and I'm fully into this one, pretty much stopped playing most other games in my free time since it launched and im full in on it. The movement improvements won me over, I always felt Halo was too floaty and had terrible movement, I love the feel of this...Its not the same - but at times the speed/movement reminds me of when I used to play tons of the first Unreal Tournament online.(LMS Instagib for the win)
 

i should have known that would hurt your fragile feelings. how the fuck is halo as big as call of duty and your calling me a clown? even at its peak it never was. also are you telling me being free to play isnt going to bring in more players than if it had a cost? i dont even know what to say to that its that stupid.
 
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I always prefer buying a full game and not having to worry about missing out anything by skipping microtransactions.

That said, let's face facts - these games are going to have tons of microtransactions regardless if the are F2P or a full $60-$70.
 

Fbh

Member
There's no guarantee that any of your cons would be solved by having it be paid. Lots of paid games launch with a limited number of maps and almost everything has some sort of battle pass or carrot on a stick progression system these days.

I think making it F2P was the better choice, it ensures an active player base and if it's financially successful for MS it will most probably get supported with new content, including new and classic maps, for years to come.

There's still some stuff I'd like to see improved, like the playlist choices you mention, but don't forget that this is still technically a beta.
 
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Kssio_Aug

Member
There's no guarantee that any of your cons would be solved by having it be paid. Lots of paid games launch with a limited number of maps and almost everything has some sort of battle pass or carrot on a stick progression system these days.

I think making it F2P was the better choice, it ensures an active player base and if it's financially successful for MS it will most probably get supported with new content, including new and classic maps, for years to come.

There's still some stuff I'd like to see improved, like the playlist choices you mention, but don't forget that this is still technically a beta.
Exactly. If you look at CoD Vanguard and BF 2042, they don't look a paid product compared to Halo Infinite's MP, as they also feature Battle Pass.
 
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KyoZz

Tag, you're it.
Even if the MP was behind a full purchase these things would still be the same
This is what they implemented.
The Battlepass might not be as aggressive but everything else would be the same.

What they designed isnt a consequence of going F2P....or do you have some insider information that says otherwise?
One could say do you have insider information to prove your point? Same thing.
Now I'm saying this because of previous Halo games. You can choose the mode you wanna play, the map and have a tons of variation (and customization). There isn't a battlepass too.
Halo Infinite is supposed to be the ultimate Halo experience, the magnum opus, and yet the multiplayer is lacking a lot compared to previous entry. Some choices they made when designing the multiplayer are really baffling me.

- They will add more maps over time, F2P wasn't why there's limited maps. If anything F2P model or GaaS model will help them continously add maps over time. Look how much content Warzone, Fornite, League of LEgends, etc. gets and they are free to play. F2P usually means more content because it's a continuous revenue stream.
- The progression system is just poorly designed nothing to do with it being free to play
- It's common for games nowadays to have less auxiliary features than their predecessor it costs more and takes more time to do everything. A server browser will likely come when forge comes because ATM it's not really useful for the vas tmajority of players
Except for the number of map, all I read is excuses. It's not because it is common for games nowadays to have less features that we should be happy with it.
The progression system is the least of my problem, if it wasn't here I wouldn't even notice. I just don't care but it introduce problems as I said in the OP.
Maps are coming, that's good.
 

Nikana

Go Go Neo Rangers!
One could say do you have insider information to prove your point? Same thing.
Now I'm saying this because of previous Halo games. You can choose the mode you wanna play, the map and have a tons of variation (and customization). There isn't a battlepass too.
Halo Infinite is supposed to be the ultimate Halo experience, the magnum opus, and yet the multiplayer is lacking a lot compared to previous entry. Some choices they made when designing the multiplayer are really baffling me.


Except for the number of map, all I read is excuses. It's not because it is common for games nowadays to have less features that we should be happy with it.
The progression system is the least of my problem, if it wasn't here I wouldn't even notice. I just don't care but it introduce problems as I said in the OP.
Maps are coming, that's good.
Maybe you already listed it but are you talking about features other than maps and game modes?
 
The progression system is bad. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it. There is a progression system for people who don't purchase the battle pass, but in that progression they never unlock anything. So the purpose of progressing is completely negated. I've seen a lot of posts on twitter where people are resigning themselves to the same inevitable conclusion - our spartans are just going to look like trash forever lol. I guess most free to play games are similar in that they charge for cosmetics, but it feels foreign with Halo since Halo has always had an easily approachable customization system that is part of the core experience of the game. Now that it's behind a paywall it feels wrong.

i should have known that would hurt your fragile feelings. how the fuck is halo as big as call of duty and your calling me a clown? even at its peak it never was. also are you telling me being free to play isnt going to bring in more players than if it had a cost? i dont even know what to say to that its that stupid.
This is a big oof take right here :messenger_grimmacing_
 
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Banjo64

cumsessed
i should have known that would hurt your fragile feelings. how the fuck is halo as big as call of duty and your calling me a clown? even at its peak it never was. also are you telling me being free to play isnt going to bring in more players than if it had a cost? i dont even know what to say to that its that stupid.
You did hurt my feelings but don’t worry, I know you didn’t mean to. I like how you changed the parameters from ‘no chance against’ to ‘how is Halo bigger than CoD’.

5 months ago it was confirmed that the Master Chief Collection has over 10 million users on PC alone. Throughout the last 18 months it’s regularly charted in the top 10 on Steam’s sale chart.

CoD Vanguard sales are down 44% in the UK.

You seem to be under the illusion that there is a chasm between these franchises when in reality it’s a crack in the pavement. Not to mention the fact that Halo Infinite, unlike Vanguard and 2042, is actually a good game.

I realise now that I obviously hurt your feelings by insinuating that you are a clown, so I would like to take this moment to apologise and I hope this won’t affect our relationship moving forward.
 
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Kappa

Member
Yes it was a mistake. Too many f2p griefers in ranked.



More seriously tho the time wasted implementing this cash grabby of a battle pass would've gone towards polish and systems implementation so yea def would've preferred to pay
 

KyoZz

Tag, you're it.
Maybe you already listed it but are you talking about features other than maps and game modes?
Honestly, those are my main complain. But this too: progression system is fucking people minds, leaving the server because 'muh challenge'
I also think that if 343i didn't lost time with this progression system and F2P systems, we would have more maps and a more user friendly game (of course this is just my opinion). Also the fact that you can't choose what to play is because they want you to try hard to finish those challenges.
 

IFireflyl

Gold Member
F2P =/= P2W

Free to play is fine. Pay to win is not fine. As long as they don't make Halo Infinite Multiplayer pay to win then there is nothing wrong with this model.

For example, if 343i introduces an ability that you can purchase which would let you respawn a power weapon (rocket launcher, sniper rifle, et cetera), that would be pay to win. They would be giving paying customers an advantage over non-paying customers.

However, if all they introduce are level-boosts or cosmetics then there shouldn't be any issue. It doesn't matter what level you are, or what cosmetics you have. If you don't land the shots, you're going to get killed. Level-boosts and cosmetics are irrelevant to non-playing customers as long as they don't come with perks that give them an advantage (such as making it take less shots to kill an enemy, or reducing their hit-box making them harder to shoot).
 

Kssio_Aug

Member
I think most online competitive games nowadays should be free-to-play. Mos of them, even paid, feature some sort of mtx anyway! If these games were free-to-play without pay to win mtx, and cross-play, it would do WONDERS to the player base! I wish it was more common, specially among fighting games!
 
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K' Dash

Member
I understand the reason to make it F2P.

I don't like it.

It's a sacrifice to remove any kind of barrier and get people to play the game and invest into MS ecosystem, it is a brilliant move.
 

tmlDan

Member
Apex Legends is great with Free to Play battleplans model. Halo can do the same.
not really, because Apex introduces new heroes which is more exciting than just skins in Halo.

Also new maps aren't as exciting since in Apex its an entire open world map essentially rather than a new tiny arena.

They'd have to do something more unique to their style of game to keep people interested.
 

RiccochetJ

Gold Member
Your poll is going to be completely screwed. Your thread title asks if people would prefer if the MP wasn't free and then the survey title asks if it being free is a good idea. I had immediately filled in "no" in the poll thinking I was answering the thread title question until I saw how you phrased the actual poll question.

Anyways regarding the number of maps, Halo has tended to launch with a similar number over the years and they then add to them. I'm perfectly happy with it. For example Halo 3 launched with 10 maps which bumped up to 11 if you finished the campaign. Thing is, we absolutely more maps are coming. This won't be an issue in the future unless you're bored of all the maps and 343 can't churn them out fast enough to your liking. I also would like to choose what modes I play. Some game types I'm just not a fan of.

As for the challenges, yea it sucks that they're basically incentivizing people to drop until they get the game type that's on their current todo list. Adding additional xp for performance would likely mitigate this a decent amount. Hopefully they'll address this soon.
 

carlosrox

Banned
I wish CoD and BF was F2P as well...

Warzone? Very free and very awesome.


Thread title and poll are saying different things btw.

And I say it's a good thing cuz I'll be trying it out soon enough when I wouldn't if I had to buy the game.
 
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jakinov

Member
Except for the number of map, all I read is excuses. It's not because it is common for games nowadays to have less features that we should be happy with it.
The progression system is the least of my problem, if it wasn't here I wouldn't even notice. I just don't care but it introduce problems as I said in the OP.
Maps are coming, that's good.
The thesis of your post "would you have prefered that the multiplayer of halo infinite was not free" or "was F2P a good idea" and you go off to list a bunch of negative things. So my repsonse is based off of that

How is they did a bad job desinging the multiplayer an excuse? I'm saying it's not because it's free the multiplayer is poorly designed. It's just simply poorly designed, they made design choices they made it suck, if they sold you the game for $60 those changes are not suddenly inherently better.

You don't need to be happy about there being less. You just need to tolerate it and understand why. They don't shove as many random features like they used to into games. It's not an excuse it's just how things are. God of War for example use to have dcostumes and bonus challenges when you beat the game they no longer have those, diffenret games used to have multiplayer or splitscreen or this feature or this mode but later sequels don't have them. But as I said that stuff is likely coming anyways just later. And again, the main point I'm getting at is that it's not because it's free-to-play that it's "regressing" (your words) it's because generally speaking as time goes by lots of auxiliary features don't show up in later games and that those features are likely to come anyways.
 
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