[Author’s Note: This article acts as a follow-up to the first, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth Impressions Log entries regarding the Halo 5: Guardians Multiplayer Beta. Additionally, I will continue to share my thoughts regarding 343 Industries upcoming Shooter as the Beta rolls on through January 18th, 2015.]
Now, I know what you are all thinking: Aren’t these log entries supposed to be strictly about Halo 5: Guardians? Yes, yes they are. However, because the Beta is ending is just a couple of days and most Halo players will have to switch back over to Halo: The Master Chief Collection to satisfy their First-Person Shooter needs, I thought it would be relevant to go back to MCC for comparison’s sake. Plus, as you may recall in my previous entry, I was starting to get a little burnt out from Halo 5, so the switch of pace was definitely needed.
What first saw when I booted up my Halo: The Master Chief Collection disc that has been staying in my Xbox One for almost a month now was the fact that 343 added in two new playlists for players to enjoy. Though I did not spend any significant amount of time within them because they didn’t appeal to me, I immediately got the message that 343 is preparing for the end of the Halo 5 Beta by pushing new content towards The Master Chief Collection. After all, MCC will be its flagship title until Guardians officially releases this Fall.
Halo 4 is a slower version of Halo 5 because of its lack of Spartan abilities.
Coincidentally enough, the first game of The Master Chief Collection I played was a game of Halo 4, which is ironic because it’s the Halo game that looks the most like H5. Other than the fact that the game felt immediately slower than its Beta counterpart, I noticed that the reticule was place slightly to the bottom of the screen compared to the Beta. Maybe it’s just because the way your Spartan holds your weapon in Halo 5 makes it seem that way or because it’s to adjust accordingly for Smart Scoping, but I found it very disorienting for the opening minutes. Additionally, I did miss some of Halo 5’s Spartan abilities a whole lot because I was so used to playing Halo that way for almost a month. Not depending on Clamber was a struggle because I had to adjust my jumps’ precision even more than they originally were, and not having unlimited Sprint was very annoying as well. It also came clear to me why the Thruster Pack is one of Halo 5’s most beloved features; it actually serves a purpose. The Halo 4 one does help you get out of sticky situations, but its implementation is so unintuitive and prevents you from actually pulling off impressive feats.
Moving on to the other games, there is a short adaptation process because you don’t have any Spartan abilities. The number of times I pressed the X button to use the Thruster Pack by accident was staggering and made me realize that doing so was now part of my Halo gameplay. In short, they are even slower experiences, but they are the tightest Halo games in terms of competitive nature, especially 2 and 3. That being said, Combat Evolved is, by far, the most boring Multiplayer experience compared to Halo 5. It’s slow, sluggish and doesn’t involve that much skill as three well-placed Magnum shots can kill you instantly. I’d take Halo 5: Guardians over Halo: CE any day of the week.
After playing Halo 5, I never want to touch Halo: CE’s Multiplayer ever again.
Also, playing through a couple of matches of MCC reinvigorated my thirst for Halo. Sadly, it did for the old games and not for Halo 5. Maybe it’s because I have played so many hours of those four games combined that I am a lot more comfortable playing these at a competitive level, but I don’t want to go back to the Halo 5 Beta after my night with The Master Chief Collection. That being said, that doesn’t mean it will be the case come its full release because it will have more modes and features, but I am legitimately worried I will be hyped for Halo 5: Guardians for the initial weeks following its release and go back to MCC afterwards. I mean, that’s what happened with Halo 4, so you honestly never know. However, I have faith in 343 this time around.
Once again, reminding you all to stay tuned to Gamer Headlines as this Halo 5: Guardians Multiplayer Beta Impressions Log will be continuously updated until it ends on January 18, 2015.
Have you played the Halo 5: Guardians Multiplayer Beta? If so, feel free to let us know what you think of it in the comments below and, as always, stay tuned to Gamer Headlines for all things gaming.
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