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New Halo 3 Map, Custom Game Browser, FOV Slider for All Consoles/Framerates and More Confirmed for Next MCC Flight [Update: Now 2 New Maps!]

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Dancrane212

Dancrane212

Member
Oct 25, 2017
13,962
Following up from the tease about a new way to play in the MCC...

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www.halowaypoint.com

LOVELY LETTERS

<p>Can you believe it’s February already? The last few weeks have really turned up the volume regarding Halo news and that means we have a packed Community Update for you today. MCC kicked off Season 5, Halo esports pulled back the curtain on some of their planning, Halo Gear continued...
www.halowaypoint.com www.halowaypoint.com
Next week we are planning to kick off our first flights for MCC in 2021! In last week's MCC Flighting & Development Update, we talked about some of the features players can expect. If all goes well in Rings 1 and 2, we plan to roll out our next public flight as early as next Thursday, February 18. While all of the contents of the flight are subject to change, some of the features we're hoping to include are:

Custom Game Browser: a new way to play with each other in MCC
Season 6 content
A new map for Halo 3 from Halo Online
FOV slider support for all Xbox One consoles
FOV slider will no longer be locked when Xbox Series X|S devices are set to 120hz
Double Keybindings
Mouse & Keyboard support for consoles
Advanced Audio options
View Model Customization options
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Exciting stuff, pretty wild to see a "new" map coming to Halo 3 for the first time in almost 12 years (note that this Halo Online map was not released, even in ElDewrito). The update also includes a status update for Halo Wars (no current plans to expand on it) an interview with the Lead Sandbox Designer for Halo Infinite as well as some Pro Series details.
 
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Trisc

Trisc

Member
Oct 27, 2017
6,485
The thing that's weirded me out most about this recent season is how gratuitous the art style of Halo 3 clashes with the 343-era Mjolnir armor. Subjectively speaking, the new stuff isn't bad, but it's always weird to see two incredibly distinct styles merged. The new map looks awesome, but it looks like it came straight out of Halo 4, aesthetically.

For instance, Halo 3's Construct:
H3_Construct_FrontView.jpg
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Versus Halo Online's Edge:
1600px-HO_Edge_Overview.png
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It's two extremely different approaches to Forerunner architecture. While I vastly prefer the former, the latter isn't strictly worse, it just feels weird to think that Edge would wind up in MCC. Regardless, I don't mind the additions of new maps (I kind of expected it, honestly), I just think it's kinda surreal.

I'm also very excited for in-game viewmodel customization! A lot of games in the MCC, Halo 2 and Reach in particular, have really big viewmodels when played with a centered reticle. It's possible to angle them out of the way via .ini edits, but those have to be done gradually, or else you wind up with weirdly angled viewmodels.
 
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Dancrane212

Dancrane212

Member
Oct 25, 2017
13,962
Tatsu91 said:
Game was pretty much dead for like 5 or 6 years but they turned it around and imo is one of the best values on the market i do hope they add Halo 5 to it at some point for PC players.
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I'm especially doubtful after reading how swamped the publishing team is in regards to the MCC, but I'm still holding out hope that the Infinite delay will give 343 a window for a nice PC port and Series S|X update for Guardians.
 
FarSight XR-20

FarSight XR-20

Member
Jan 4, 2018
8,619
Custom Game Browser will be so cool !

They aren't working on Halo Wars 3 nor have plans for it at this time but they say that they're "specifically never going to say never because, well, who knows what the future may bring" and that "it really boils down to the realities of finite time, resources, and focus for the studio" as "the majority of the studio is incredibly focused working towards Halo Infinite's launch" (plus post-launch support).

hw2_bannercrop-6f4599975fa54c459af2f86d543b35c9.jpg

It's hard to believe that later this month will mark the 4-year anniversary of Halo Wars 2's launch! While a lot has changed over the course of the past four years, one thing certainly hasn't – the Halo Wars community continues to be one of the most passionate groups of players out there. We're thankful for the care and time you've given to Halo Wars 2 and all of the feedback, requests, and insights you've shared with our team over the years. Thank you!
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We always strive to be open, honest, and transparent with our community and we know many of you have been waiting, asking, and hoping for news about the future of Halo Wars 2. We want to acknowledge that we've heard you and make sure you know that this feedback and these topics do indeed get brought to the right folks across the studio for further evaluation. In the past, we've noted the Publishing Team was fully focused on MCC and we had no current plans to return to Halo Wars 2. Now, with all the titles on PC, we've seen these questions popping up again although the 343 Publishing Team is still working on more MCC seasonal content along with a variety of features and further improvements. It's not always easy to be open and transparent – particularly when we expect it's not an answer the community wants to hear – but we want to give it to you straight: 343 Industries has no current plans for further Halo Wars 2 work including content updates, balance patches, bringing the title to other platforms, or a new game in the series. We will, however, continue to monitor the game and ensure everything is working as expected.
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Yes, we did use the word "currently" because it's the truth – as of today, there is no plan for the development team to re-engage with Halo Wars 2 and we aren't working on a new game in the series at this time. But, we're specifically never going to say never because, well, who knows what the future may bring. If you told me back in the day that the totality of MCC would land on Steam or Halo 3 would get content updates 14 years after launch, I'd never have believed it and yet here we are. We know constantly waiting and wondering is equal parts frustrating and exhausting, so we hope this clarity helps alleviate some of that and we want to set clear expectations that there is no work happening on Halo Wars.
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The next question is surely "why?" and it really boils down to the realities of finite time, resources, and focus for the studio. The 343 Publishing team has no shortage of ideas and inspiration to pursue for MCC and plenty of ongoing work to support the Halo franchise. Meanwhile, the majority of the studio is incredibly focused working towards Halo Infinite's launch (and you may have also heard, "launch is only the beginning"). Given the broader impact initiatives the studio is already committed to, we unfortunately can't devote the time and attention we'd need to deliver additional updates and content for the Halo Wars franchise.
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Halo Wars 2 will continue to be a special game with a very special community and for that, we're grateful. Over the years, we're fortunate to have had the opportunity to deliver numerous updates ranging from brand new content to an unexpected map to balance patches directly shaped by players (the most recent of which landed just last August). Halo Wars 2 expanded the Halo Universe, introduced us to new characters and experiences, and inspired the future of the franchise with its classic art style and the introduction of The Banished. Thank you again to everyone in the Halo Wars community for your support and we look forward to facing The Banished together again this Fall in Halo Infinite.
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bsigg

bsigg

Member
Oct 25, 2017
22,542
Custom Game Browser - A new way to play
The new Halo Online map for Halo 3 - A new place to play

Kinda like most people assumed lol

The Ask343i video that was included in this update is great.
 
Trisc

Trisc

Member
Oct 27, 2017
6,485
Dancrane212 said:
I'm especially doubtful after reading how swamped the publishing team is in regards to the MCC, but I'm still holding out hope that the Infinite delay will give 343 a window for a nice PC port and Series S|X update for Guardians.
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As long as my XB1 progress and unlocks carry over, I'll buy the game again on PC. It was a great time at its peak.
 
EvilChameleon

EvilChameleon

Member
Oct 25, 2017
23,793
Ohio
The excuse they give for not planning on another Halo Wars is odd because a completely different studio made Halo Wars 2. I'm sure 343 did some work on the game, but not being able to do that same work again because of Halo: MCC updates?
 
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Dancrane212

Dancrane212

Member
Oct 25, 2017
13,962
EvilChameleon said:
The excuse they give for not planning on another Halo Wars is odd because a completely different studio made Halo Wars 2. I'm sure 343 did some work on the game, but not being able to do that same work again because of Halo: MCC updates?
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It's more addressing the calls from the community for a Steam port and additional content like maps from Halo Wars 1 getting ported over.
 
EatChildren

EatChildren

Wonder from Down Under
Member
Oct 27, 2017
7,029
The MCC has been a boon for me, letting me play through all the Halo games I've missed not owning an Xbox. I'd already done Halo 1 and 2, but started with them via the Anniversary remasters and only literally just the other day wrapped up Halo 4 for the first time. It's been great going through the entire mainline series bit by bit, especially since titles like Halo 3 and Reach hold up phenomenally well even today.

My only wish is that 5 eventually comes along, despite 343i implying otherwise. Super keen for Infinite either way.
 
Edward850

Edward850

Software & Netcode Engineer at Nightdive Studios
Verified
Apr 5, 2019
990
New Zealand
Valiant said:
I own it already I meant this update. As the title is only for console.
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No that's not what that means. It means the FOV slider will be available on all consoles, the update is obviously coming to PC as well given that anything less would completely break the crossplay they spent a lot of time implementing already.
 
CubeApple76

CubeApple76

Member
Jan 20, 2021
6,654
Dancrane212 said:
It did and it was fantastic. The Forge tools in Halo 5 let the community make some incredible modes and maps, it was great to have a way to actually play them with randoms.
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I was just messing with this the other day, found a map called "Trenches" where you have two castles separated by a bunch of tunnels and such. Played Super Fiesta CTF, super fun. Also played some gun game on Nuketown
 
Sordid Plebeian

Sordid Plebeian

Member
Oct 26, 2017
17,363
Trisc said:
The thing that's weirded me out most about this recent season is how gratuitous the art style of Halo 3 clashes with the 343-era Mjolnir armor. Subjectively speaking, the new stuff isn't bad, but it's always weird to see two incredibly distinct styles merged. The new map looks awesome, but it looks like it came straight out of Halo 4, aesthetically.

For instance, Halo 3's Construct:

Versus Halo Online's Edge:

It's two extremely different approaches to Forerunner architecture. While I vastly prefer the former, the latter isn't strictly worse, it just feels weird to think that Edge would wind up in MCC. Regardless, I don't mind the additions of new maps (I kind of expected it, honestly), I just think it's kinda surreal.

I'm also very excited for in-game viewmodel customization! A lot of games in the MCC, Halo 2 and Reach in particular, have really big viewmodels when played with a centered reticle. It's possible to angle them out of the way via .ini edits, but those have to be done gradually, or else you wind up with weirdly angled viewmodels.
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That's a product of 343 pulling from Halo 3 for Halo Online, and then creating content in line with their current work because they didn't want to mimic someone else's art style. Oh how times have changed lol
 
VeePs

VeePs

Prophet of Truth
Member
Oct 25, 2017
17,359
FarSight XR-20 said:
We will be able to hijack Banshee with the grappling hook.

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I'm hoping for two things with the grapple hook:

1.) They either speed up the grappling hook or add more post-processing effects like motion blur. In the E3 video it just seemed slow. A slight speed increase or maybe motion blur might make it seem more quick.

2.) For the campaign at least - I hope its not too "rigid". I'm not expecting TF2 levels of shenanigans with the grappling hook, but some of the best moments in Halo were because of the physics engine allowing fun things to happen. A rigid grappling hook would prevent some more unique encounters in the campaign.
 
ManNR

ManNR

Member
Feb 13, 2019
2,962
I'm on PC. My buddy is on Xbox. We want to play through all the Halo campaigns together. When is that going to happen?
 
FarSight XR-20

FarSight XR-20

Member
Jan 4, 2018
8,619
EvilChameleon said:
The excuse they give for not planning on another Halo Wars is odd because a completely different studio made Halo Wars 2. I'm sure 343 did some work on the game, but not being able to do that same work again because of Halo: MCC updates?
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8 years happened between the first game in 2009 and Halo Wars 2 in 2017, and HW2 will be 4-year-old in February. I think it will happen but it may also be a situation simular to Killer Instinct where they want to make the game but don't have the team as Halo Wars games were mostly outsourced (plus they say they have "finite time, resources, and focus for the studio" and that most of the studio is focused to Halo Infinite launch and post-launch support). It seems that Creative Assembly is quite busy at the moment (Total War: Warhammer 3, their new IP / FPS and maybe some other projects).
 
bsigg

bsigg

Member
Oct 25, 2017
22,542
ManNR said:
I'm on PC. My buddy is on Xbox. We want to play through all the Halo campaigns together. When is that going to happen?
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Likely never.

Campaign game modes are not currently supported for crossplay, but it is something the team is interested in and will continue to investigate potential ways to make that happen. But this is by no means a confirmation that it could happen. Digging into the code we have found some things that just cannot be done with current architecture of these games that are nearly 20 years old. But even that said, we tend to look down the rabbit holes to see if we can.
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MCC Development Update – November 2020 | Halo: The Master Chief Collection | Halo - Official Site (halowaypoint.com)
 
Moose

Moose

Prophet of Truth - Hero of Bowerstone
Member
Oct 25, 2017
10,164
That Halo online map was never released to the public so it's not even in ElDewrito. That gives me hope we'll see Skybridge as well which also never made it to a live version of Halo Online:
1600px-HO_city_map_9.jpg

HO_city_map_8.jpg
 
wwm0nkey

wwm0nkey

Member
Oct 25, 2017
15,552
Moose said:
That Halo online map was never released to the public so it's not even in ElDewrito. That gives me hope we'll see Skybridge as well which also never made it to a live version of Halo Online:
1600px-HO_city_map_9.jpg

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yup, shocked they are starting with a map absolutely no one knew about, but it's VERY exciting!
 
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