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#Halo

3/9/2010 11:22:42 PM
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The "Death" of the Spartan Laser: My Thoughts on the Matter.

[quote][/quote][b]Introduction[/b][quote][/quote] [i]"The Spartan Laser was dead: to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. The register of his burial was signed by the Creative Director, the Audio Director, the Executive Producer, and the Campaign Design Lead. Sage signed it; and Sage's name was good upon 'Change, for anything he chose to put his hand to. Old Splazer was as dead as a door-nail."[/i] [quote][b][u]Update[/b][/u] As of the 16th page the main support for my arguement has been pretty much shot up by various comminuty members so for now this is just a collection of thoughts and reasoning rather than evidence and arguements. I didn't think of sandbox balance on a map by map basis, and made a rather large assumption that both the Spartan Laser and the "Covenant Launcher" (see Part 1) would be on the same map every game. Various users pointed out that in fact, they could spawn on different maps as the vehicle / map balance required. As of now I can't come up with a way to counter this, so for now, my arguement is uncogent (for those of you who haven't taken a logic class, that means that the conclusion is unlikely given the premises). Feel free to keep dicussing however. The rest of the original post continues below: [/quote] Indeed, it is true, the Spartan Laser will likely not return for another dose of wacky shenanigans come Fall 2010 when Halo Reach is released. [quote][b]Clarification:[/b] This is my conclusion that I have come to based upon the reasoning presented in the rest of the thread. Bungie has not officially confirmed that the Laser is out, nor have they officially confirmed that the laser is in. In this thread I am attempting to make a prediction of what Reach will be like, and I forsee it without the [i]exact[/i] one hit kill laser based anti-vehicle weapon we knew in Halo 3. In the event that the Laser is in Reach, remember to flame me, not Bungie. [/quote] [b][u]At this moment I urge the reader, instead of angrily replying to my thread, to take the time to read my entire post[/u][/b], for I believe it to be well thought out and interesting, for not only am I the Harbinger of Doom for the Spartan Laser, but for the Covenant Beam Rifle as well, which must be murdered on this day to plunge a stake through the Spartan Laser's heart once and for all. At this moment, the reader might ask: [i]"Why? Why would Bungie remove these weapons from Reach? They worked fine in Halo 3, and if you couldn't adapt to these weapons to survive, that's your own problem."[/i] However, I seek to avoid that sort of discussion, at least in my original post. The point of this thread is not [i]"Should it be done?"[/i] but [i]"It is done, and here is why I believe this."[/i] I wish to show you why the Spartan Laser won't be in Reach based upon the evidence that we already know is in the game. Whether or not it was the right decision or whether there could have been some alternative that would have allowed the Spartan Laser to be in Reach is not the focus of this thread. I wish you luck, this is going to be lengthy. [quote][/quote][b]Part 1: The Covenant Launcher[/b][quote][/quote] The first sign of the death of the Spartan Laser appeared last Wednesday in the [url=http://www.bungie.net/projects/reach/vidaudio.aspx?c=58&i=24995]Halo Reach Multiplayer Trailer.[/url] About 47 seconds into the trailer you might have spotted [url=http://i868.photobucket.com/albums/ab249/Hylebosaiden/Bnet%20Image%20Resources/CovenantLauncher.jpg]This Weapon[/url] which will be referred to henceforth as [i]"The Covenant Launcher"[/i]. Clearly this weapon is a evolution of Fuel Rod Cannon, but it's appearance in the trailer was not the first time we've seen or [i][u]heard[/u][/i] of it. In the [url=http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&link=BWU_012910]Bungie Weekly Update: 01.29.10[/url], Urk was kind enough to provide readers with some source audio from some of the Halo: Reach weapons that Bungie had unveiled in the past couple of weeks. In addition to the weapons we already knew about, Urk gave us one extra sound file for the [url=http://www.bungie.net/images/games/reach/audio/Mystery.mp3][i]"Mysterious Newcomer".[/i][/url] Upon listening to the sound file, the reader may realize that the sound of the shots fired at the 5 second mark is identical to the sound of the shots fired 47 seconds into the Halo: Reach Multiplayer Trailer. The common consensus is that, indeed, the Mysterious Newcomer and the Covenant Launcher are one and the same. If you listen again to the sound file, from 0 seconds to 1 second you'll hear computer like sounds, followed by a whirring sound that increases in revolution from 1 second to 5 seconds when the shots are fired. Based upon this and the end resulting footage that we saw, I'm supposing that the weapon works as follows: You aim the Covenant Launcher at a vehicular target, and you press and hold R to acquire a lock on the target, which takes a second. Once you are locked onto your target, you continue holding the trigger for four seconds while the Covenant Launcher charges up, at the end of which, if your are still locked on to your target, the weapon fires three bursts of plasma shots. If your reticule is close enough to the target when the shot leaves the tube, it will begin to home, otherwise it will travel in a straight line (which explains why the 3rd shot did not home on the warthog in the trailer, the hog must have been moving fast enough to throw the reticule off so the final shot that was fired wasn't aimed close enough to the target to respond to the lock.) At this moment, the reader might be wondering: [i]"What the Hell does this have to do with the Spartan Laser?"[/i] Balance. An ideal sandbox is one where all the weapons have a clearly defined niche, so there are no worthless or redundant weapons. Answer me the following question based on the following scenario honestly: [quote]You are playing a game of Capture the Flag on Valhalla, and there is currently a warthog butchering your forces in the center of the map. Before you lies a table with two boxes labeled "A" and "B". [i]"What the hell did Shishka do to Valhalla this time?"[/i] you ask your friend. Your friend replies [i]"The bastard put an anti-vehicle weapon in each of those boxes that are capable of destroying the Warthog that is losing us our map control. The weapon in box A requires a 4 second charge time before firing three homing shots that may or may not be dodged by your opponent. The weapon in box B requires a 4 second charge time before instantly killing your opponent if you are aiming your reticule at the target. Hurry up and choose, that warthog is really killing us out here."[/i][/quote] I ask the reader: [i]"What weapon would you choose to ensure that your team succeeds?"[/i] [quote][i]"Why, the weapon in box B of course,"[/i] you reply, [i]"If I use that to attack the Warthog, he'll have four seconds to break the line of sight with me or he'll die. On the other hand, if I use weapon in box A, he'll have four seconds to break the line of sight with me [u]and[/u] additional time to get to cover as my homing shots travel towards him. Because the weapon in box A give more time for my opponent to survive, of course I will use the weapon in box B."[/i][/quote] And there you have it. If the Spartan Laser and the Covenant Launcher existed in the same game, the Covenant Launcher would become a useless weapon in comparison, like the Missile Pod, doomed only to be used as a first choice only when the Spartan Laser loses its charge. The presence of the Covenant Launcher alone is reason enough to believe that the Spartan Laser has been axed, but I know this Community. You are very resourceful, and will find any solution you can Allow me to further extinguish your hope. [Edited on 03.17.2010 9:55 AM PDT]
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#Halo #Reach

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  • [quote][/quote][b]Part 2: The Covenant Beam[/b][quote][/quote] At this moment, some of our readers might find themselves jumping up and down in their seats yelling at their monitors [i]"But I [u]did[/u] see a Spartan Laser in the Multiplayer Trailer! I did see it! Sure, it wasn't the normal Red Human Version that we are used to, but a Purple Covenant form of the weapon, but it is clearly anti-vehicular in nature!"[/i] Oh, you mean [url=http://i868.photobucket.com/albums/ab249/Hylebosaiden/Bnet%20Image%20Resources/TheCovenantBeam.jpg]this Covenant Beam weapon[/url] found at the 1:16 mark in the Multiplayer Trailer? This weapon is what I will refer to as [i]"The Covenant Beam"[/i] henceforth. Contrary to what many people will tell you, this is not the [i]"Covenant version of the Spartan Laser"[/i], but more likely is the replacement for the Beam Rifle. That's right Sniper fans, [u]nobody[/u] is safe when I make threads. Despite the fact that I created this thread to explain to people why it isn't likely that the Spartan Laser will return, I found myself needing to prove that the Covenant Beam wasn't a Splazer-like weapon, and so my ideas for a [i]"The Death of the Beam Rifle"[/i] thread ended up in this part. Back in the [url=http://downloads.bungie.net/podcasts/Bungie_Podcast_12710.mp3]January Bungie Podcast[/url], Sage Merill, the Sandbox Design Lead for Halo Reach, was brought in to speak about some of the approaches to balancing the sandbox that he was taking in Reach. For those of you too lazy to listen to the entire podcast, I have transcribed the important part below for your convenience: [quote](29:34): Sage Merill: [i]"We started talking about what we can do in the sandbox from a weapon's perspective and so overall we have reduced the number of weapons that we have from Halo 3 and that is definitely intentional and that obviously doesn't mean we don't have new stuff but it means that we want particular weapons to have a role or a reason for existence right? [u]We don't want to duplicate, "okay well, here's the sniper rifle, [b]here's sniper rifle A[/b], and [b]here's sniper rifle B"[/b], and they are essentially, from their role, exactly the same, it's not interesting.[/u] We want weapons to have a specific role in the sandbox that "this particular weapon should be effective in this combat role", and then it's sort of your job to, if you decide to use a particular weapon, to then maneuver the fight so the combat into a position where you have an advantage. So obviously the easiest examples of that would be the really long and the really short range weapons, the sniper rifle and the shotgun and the sword or something. And then filling in the slots in-between there, and then adding some spice with the newer weapons."[/i][/quote] How interesting. Out of all the examples he could have used to show weapon redundancy, namely many of the close range dual-wieldables, he chose the Sniper Rifle and the Beam Rifle as his example. You heard it folks, Sage Merill, the man who decides which weapons die and which weapons live, thinks the Beam Rifle is not interesting. The death of the Beam Rifle was fortold since late January when the podcast was released, but it is only recently that we get to see its replacement. Combining the Beam Rifle with the Sentinel Beam into the Covenant Beam would be an easy way to make a new Covenant Sniper that functions very differently from the Human Sniper, and although I am terribly interested in seeing how this weapon is balanced as the Sentinel Beam is near and dear to my heart as a B.U.N.G.L.E. Pro, I believe I have said enough to show that the Covenant Beam is definitely not a Covenant Splazer. It doesn't have a warning light to alert drivers that they are about to die, it doesn't have a charge time, and it doesn't kill in one hit, so it's not a splazer. (Though, if you do want to continue discussing the Covenant Beam, feel free to, I have reserved thoughts and ideas of why it would be a better weapon for Reach than the Beam Rifle that I can bring forth at will.) [quote][/quote][b]Part 3: He who must not be linked to[/b][quote][/quote] Some readers might be inclined to ignore everything that I have said to prove that the Spartan Laser will not return in Reach. You might find yourself saying [i]"But early last year I was on the Internet and I saw some Halo: Reach Pictur-"[/i] [quote][b]Allow me to violently cut you off mid-question to remind you that [u]we aren't allowed to link to or discuss leaked materials[/u]. Why do the forum ninjas have this rule? Because Bungie didn't intend for us to see that game in that state at that time. It's still under development, certain features might be axed or changed heavily between the time of the leak and when the final game comes out. Not to mention that in this particular instance, even if you believe what you saw was 100% true and guaranteed to be in the final product, guess again, because your eyes are deceiving you, Mr. Morello said that it wasn't a Spartan Laser.[/b][/quote] There, that was an easy misunderstanding to fix, correct? And yet, this is the most common reason that people think the Spartan Laser must be in Reach, and they are entirely wrong.

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  • [quote][/quote][b]Conclusion [/b][quote][/quote] So there you have it folks. All evidence points towards the Spartan Laser being removed in Reach. [i]"Surely it could be balanced so that it fits in with the sandbox!!!"[/i] the reader might cry out. It probably could be balanced, but by the time you turn the Splazer into something that doesn't make the Covenant Launcher worthless, it really isn't going to be the Splazer you knew anymore. It probably wouldn't kill in a single shot, and it might not be a near-hitscan weapon anymore, so it doesn't really make sense for it to be a called a Spartan Laser. It's pretty much some type of a railgun now. It's just like how the DMR isn't called the BR because it lost the BR's iconic triple burst and functions very differently from the BR, so it isn't fit to be called the BR anymore. You can only balance a weapon so much while retaining it's identity. The laser was pretty cool, but to be honest, it was a bit easy to use. Take solace in the fact that if you want to see it's blaze of glory again, you can always revisit Halo 3 and play it. It's a freedom that fans of Halo 2 soon won't be able to enjoy. Putting it into the game with so many other new mechanics that hamper vehicle effectiveness (Example: Banshee Pilots can be hijacked in midair by jet packers, Splatterers need to scout their enemy to see how many of them have Bubble Shields, ect.) would really make Big Team Battle boring. Trust Bungie, I'm sure they loved the Splazer too, but they knew what had to be done to make Reach the definitive Halo game. Feel free to comment on my thread and point out any gaps in reasoning or spelling / gramatical errors that you may find, it will only allow me to make my argument stronger after I fix them. Remember, think before you post, and absolutely no flaming of any kind. If you are feeling hostility towards the person you are replying to, then perhaps you shouldn't make that post at all. ~Hylebos [quote][b]Silly people who didn't read the OP fully Count:[/b] 029[/quote] [quote][/quote][b]Epilogue Part 1 [/b][quote][/quote] I'd just like to clarify a point made in the Conclusion that I probably didn't make clear enough. I'm focused more on default Multiplayer than I am focused on Campaign or Custom Games. It's possible that Bungie could bring back the Spartan Laser and implement it into the game much like the Gauss Hog in Halo 3 where it appeared on only two map variants in Matchmaking, but I don't think we will be seeing it in default multiplayer like we did in Halo 3. Second, it is also possible that the Splazer could be rebalanced in Reach. The thing is, every weapon has a tolerance for change before it can really no longer be considered the same weapon. For weapons like the Spiker, this level of tolerance is high, due largely in part because so long as it is a close range weapon, it fires spikes rapidly, and it has giant blades on the front, people will likely recognize that weapon as a Spiker, even though it might fire shots more rapidly and do weaker damage than it did in Halo 3. The Splazer on the other hand, is a much more delicate weapon. Bungie wants to impart a sense of realism to their game, so you can only do so much before you make things unbelieveable. For example, you might want to balance the Laser by slowing down the shots, forcing players to lead targets at range, and to give drivers some time to dodge shots. But then the player scratches his head and asks "Aren't lasers supposed to travel at the speed of light? Why isn't this a hitscan weapon? How odd." It makes sense that at this point Bungie would change the design of the weapon from a laser into something like a railgun, where it is feasible that you would need to lead your shots, to avoid confusion. It's like how they changed the Halo CE pistol into the Halo 2 BR because they didn't want to deal with balancing a medium range weapon that clearly looks like it would be dual wieldable. By changing this medium range weapon from a pistol to a rifle, they avoided that problem, but you really can't idenitfy the Halo 2 BR as the Halo CE pistol, right? So to summarize my clarification, the arguement presented in this thread is really saying that "A laser based one hit kill weapon will not appear in Reach's Default Multiplayer." [Edited on 03.12.2010 2:20 PM PST]

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  • The Laser is STILL in Halo Reach. Stop dreaming.

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  • I just really hope it (or something similar) is not in Reach. Vehicle gameplay is so much more fun without it.

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  • And we will see what this actually fairs like in MM against the Falcon and other 'big weapons' XD

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  • Good read. I like the spartan laser, but I must agree it should and will be gone in reach.

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  • [quote][b]Posted by:[/b] halo2jumper The Laser is STILL in Halo Reach. Stop dreaming. [/quote] And how would you [i]know[/i]?

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  • I didn't like when someone would grab the laser and get single kills on random walking people when there was a banshee flying and about 3 warthogs.Maybe this would fix that?

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  • The laser has been confirmed, it has a pic in Game informer. Dumby :D

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  • [quote][b]Posted by:[/b] AudaciousZealot [quote][b]Posted by:[/b] halo2jumper The Laser is STILL in Halo Reach. Stop dreaming. [/quote] And how would you [i]know[/i]?[/quote] Tom :D

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  • In the leaked screenshots (which are now confirmed true), there was a pic of the Splazer.

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  • The Covie launcher is not comparable to the Splazer due to the different ranges, modes of fire, and manner of acquiring a 'hit'

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  • Woot woot no Laser! Great thread by the way! Concise, and simple...yet humorous...

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  • Too bad the splaser appeared in leaked screenshots months ago with an upgraded look.

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  • [quote][b]Posted by:[/b] GenerateX3 In the leaked screenshots (which are now confirmed true), there was a pic of the Splazer.[/quote] This

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  • [quote][b]Posted by:[/b] halo2jumper The Laser is STILL in Halo Reach. Stop dreaming. [/quote] The Laser is NOT in Halo Reach. Stop dreaming. Both of those statements have the same amount of proof and evidence. We haven't seen anything yet that confirms the Laser in Reach. [Edited on 03.09.2010 3:29 PM PST]

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  • I'm not reading all that. Spartan laser is best weapon eva!!! Keep it in reach.

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  • [url=http://twelfthcrusader.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/halo-reach-leaked-7.jpg]wat[/url]

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  • WHAT THE --blam!-K-blam!--blam!--blam!--blam!--blam!-- NO NO NO NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO YOU LIE LIE LIE NO -blam!- -blam!- DAMN -blam!- OH NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!@#$%^&*(*&^%$%^(&%$#@#$%^&*(*&@#$%^&*(*&^%$#$%^*(*&^%$#$%^&*&^%$#@#$%*(*&^%$#@#*(*&^%$#$%*&^$#@*(*&^%$##$%(*&^%$$%^&((*&^%$%^&*(*&^%$%(*&^ SOORY IN SHOCK [Edited on 03.09.2010 3:32 PM PST]

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  • [quote][b]Posted by:[/b] hockeylevys15 [quote][b]Posted by:[/b] halo2jumper The Laser is STILL in Halo Reach. Stop dreaming. [/quote] The Laser is NOT in Halo Reach. Stop dreaming. Both of those statements have the same amount of proof and evidence. We haven't seen anything yet that confirms the Laser in Reach.[/quote] I've seen the Laser already in Reach^^ Thx Tom btw :D U should stop dreaming Vehicle Noob...use ur Weapons.

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  • [quote][b]Posted by:[/b] Fajayjay The One [url=http://twelfthcrusader.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/halo-reach-leaked-7.jpg]wat[/url][/quote] Told ya. The splaser is the only thing that balances out the vehicles in this game.

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  • [quote][b]Posted by:[/b] GenerateX3 In the leaked screenshots (which are now confirmed true), there was a pic of the Splazer.[/quote] You are a smart little one aren't you? So tell what was it like NOT reading the rest of his post? That goes for all of you eggheads that didn't read it.

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  • Dude, In one of the leaked fotos you clearly see one person holding one Spartan Laser.... Stop you annoying complainging

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  • Sage did say that the overall number of weapons has been reduced. I don't care really. I didn't think I could live without the lock on rockets from H2 then after getting my hand son the splazer I thought it was way better than lock on rockets. So the lesson I've learned is that if they scrap the laser and replace it with some other vehicles killing beastie I will likely enjoy it greatly.

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  • i think it is a good thing if it goes, it was too powerful. i think if you can evade the threat like a missile pod it is fairer, plus a rocket takes more skill. only downside is it will be harder to take out air vehicles.

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  • [quote][b]Posted by:[/b] Fajayjay The One [quote][b]Posted by:[/b] Fajayjay The One [url=http://twelfthcrusader.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/halo-reach-leaked-7.jpg]wat[/url][/quote] Told ya. The splaser is the only thing that balances out the vehicles in this game.[/quote] Too bad that wall was dismantled so easily.

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