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[Review] Halo 4: 343 Does Bungie Better Than Bungie - Twinfinite

Fans have been eagerly awaiting this newest release in the Halo series for what feels like forever. This enthusiasm was tempered with some serious concerns. Fans didn’t know if the hand over to 343 Industries would be successful. I’m relieved to say that they went above and beyond any and all expectations. They did such a great job, my amazing coworker Brett McLeod (also Twinfinite’s multiplayer Halo master), demanded to contribute and wrote a little piece detailing his experiences with the multiplayer aspect of the game.

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twinfinite.net
Monstar4551d ago (Edited 4551d ago )

Err, YES.

Bungie if anything were one hit wonders with Halo, they became way too cocky and road the success of the first Halo for too long..and due to fear were NOT willing to spice things up or make much needed improvements. Bungie also seems to have lost direction or perhaps ideas/creativity what the first story created and in doing so drove the franchise in a more military approach. Halo 2 is a good example of this.

That being said, Halo 4 is clearly what halo 3 shouldn've been, in looks..designs, feel and attention to detail. Perhaps 343 new the overall fragile state of such a huge franchise and did everything they could to make it right without losing it's indentity in fear of the reaction. With such responsibility they mananged to perfect an already aged formula and make it feel good again.

Best story in the franchise, PERIOD! It was above and beyond and pushed forth the direction it needed to go, expecially concerning Master Chief which fully expressed him in more way's than just some typical grunt in an armored suit..but someone more enlightened and emotionally driven..which gave much depth to his mission and surival of the human race.

Metroid Prime was a great influence for 343 NO doubt and i'm glad it was.

atticus144551d ago

While im not making excuses for them I think Bungie just became bored, thus why they left the sequel machine that MS made them to be.

We'll see if 343 gets tired a few games into the series, although they do have a great advantage of finally moving to a next gen console, lots more innovation will be possible with vastly superior hardware.

Kalowest4551d ago

Almost half of 343i are old bungie developers.

IronFistChinMi4550d ago

Not true. Whilst a few did make the switch (in some of the important roles), the majority of them are new to the franchise.

aviator1894550d ago

Not really. Not even close.
I think only a handful few went to 343i.

TekoIie4551d ago (Edited 4551d ago )

I absolutely agree! Heres some reasons why:

1. Easily the BEST single player in any Halo game!
2. Great new MP modes and improvements compared to previous games Halo games.
3. Spartan Ops is awesome! Watch episode then play with friends!
4. Armor looks much more futuristic compared to Reach which I like a lot :)
5. Prometheans add more variety to enemies.
6. I love the concept of the Spartan IV's and Infinity War games!!!

My only issues are the following:

1. Is the battle rifle weak? Or is the DMR too good?
2. Forge magnets are a slight letdown.
3. NO PELICAN IN FORGE D: I mean atleast bring the falcon back!
4. Tone down the boltshots secondary fire mode. Its ridiculously powerful...

My issues with the game are a little picky but I still absolutely love this game!

MrKim124551d ago (Edited 4551d ago )

Your title has me confused.

Jek_Porkins4550d ago

I think Halo 4 is a marvel for sure, Bungie created the franchise and will never be forgotten because of that, but I agree that 343i has done the best Halo game with Halo 4.

It also cant be lost that at least a few employees at 343i are former Bungie, and the rest of 343i is made up of an all star team of developers. Microsoft spared no expense with the future of Halo and it shows.

MasterD9194550d ago

Halo 4 is an epic masterpiece. It's damn near perfect.

My only complaint is that I wish a few more classic Halo maps would come back. I'm hoping that the DLC will have unbelievably awesome maps.

190°

OG Destiny artist recalls Bungie’s “disgruntled” reaction to Halo 4’s art style change

Original Destiny artist Darren Bacon recalls how Bungie reacted to the art style change of Halo 4 by 343 Industries.

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videogamer.com
Tacoboto8d ago

Bungie at that time became the most wonderful bunch of hypocrites in the gaming industry. Knowing this now, gosh the entitlement they felt was out of this world.

Nothing like buying yourself from Microsoft because you don't want to be the Halo Studio anymore, and the FIRST THING you do is sign your next IP over to Activision, for a DECADE, while they are in the middle of ousting the heads of Infinity Ward so they can exert even more control over COD while screwing out the devs at IW...

Should've come as no surprise then that Activision gutted the content of Destiny 1 before launch and was a horrible partner through Destiny 2, until history repeated itself and Bungie had to split from Activision only to wind up in the arms of another major conglomerate that also doesn't know how to handle these unmanageable devs.

Profchaos8d ago

Tti their credit they praised the technical abilities of 343 and I remember at the time thinking halo 4 was a huge graphical leap above reach everything else was rubbish when I actually got to play it but there was no doubt it looked good for the 360 and is probably the best looking game on the system.

But ultimately I think bungie has always had a leadership problem and going independent ultimately proved this it's only getting worse with studio heads being outed by Sony for abuse allegations seems like all bungies past success has been in spite of management not because of it.

But really I think the bungie we have today is not the same one we had in that Xbox era of Bungie

PhillyDonJawn8d ago

I liked the artstyle change. For the most part. Something looked worse but most of everything else looked better. Weapons and vehicles for sure. The wraith come to my mind instantly.
And how can they get mad when the bungie changed it with Halo Reach?

Sciurus_vulgaris7d ago

I know a lot of people dislike Halo 4’s arts style, but there’s thing about it I like and dislike. Personally, the Halo 4 design of Master Chief’s armour is my favourite depiction of the character’s armour.

370°

Former Halo Dev Blasts 343 Industries; Warns Devs To Avoid Studio

A 343 Industries former developer recently discussed major red flags associated with the studio due to horrible decision-making and leadership.

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tech4gamers.com
jznrpg201d ago

“they are creatively limiting” when speaking of management. That seems to be an issue for a good chunk of MS’s studios for the last decade. It’s not as harsh as “their leadership is cancer” statement but it’s really important to nurture creativity with video games and seems like an obvious issue within MS and especially 343.

just_looken200d ago

Yeah but overall creativity is way down in the AAA market not many risk's are being taken.

M$ though has so many unused ip's like ninja giden and conker poor rare :(

But its all down to how much money a company is making sadly overall despite the failures of halo micorsoft is still stupid rich.

Dabigsiebowski200d ago

DEI is dragging profits down for those that follow it. Simple. Those narratives don't have a large market for gaming.

DarXyde200d ago

.... Did you really say Ninja Gaiden?

Buddy....

just_looken200d ago

@DarXyde

Yes i said Ninja Gaiden though my spelling was bad MS has published it in the past but of course sega/koei also did so who owns the ip is always a debate

That being said it is another dead ip that once had a good run of games.

Bathyj200d ago

Who owns it is not a debate.
Someone owns it by law and it's not Microsoft.

Notellin200d ago

You talked about creativity and then proceeded to bring up old franchises just to contradict yourself immediately after.

We don't need sequels we need new stories and IPs. That's creativity.

Lexreborn2200d ago

Bro literally said DEI is what’s causing creative limitations and 343i have been selling halo short longer then that was in the conversation lol I swear these micro aggressions over inclusion with ppl trying to associate it to things failing and not the decades long issue of poor management and greedy practices is sad, pathetic and hilarious all at once.

Starting to believe these anti dei people ARE the poor management ppl trying to make themselves feel better online

PapaBop200d ago (Edited 200d ago )

Overall creativity down with the big publishers *

There fixed it for you. I've never felt there is a lack of creativity in the games I play but then again I can count on one hand the games I've bought from the big three publishers in the last five years.

Noskypeno200d ago

Lex, look at a photo of the 90s devs, just a bunch of bros that actually look like they are having fun, guys like Cliffy were in charge. Look at the devs now, they look like they are just there for the checks and preach a message, it feels much more corporate. Gamers don't want to be preached to. I'm not against diversity, some of my favorite games are filled with people that arent just white men, games like Halo, Gears, Tomb Raider, Uncharted and many more.

refocusedman200d ago (Edited 200d ago )

what does DEI have to do with this conversation?

Knightofelemia200d ago

@just_looken

I don't remember reading any article or hearing anything about Microsoft purchasing KOEI Tecmo or the Ninja Gaiden franchise. Microsoft does not own Ninja Gaiden they published the game that was it. And there was away to skate around the contract with Microsoft so KOEI Tecmo could bring the game to the PS3. KOEI Tecmo owns Ninja Gaiden they are the ones who can do what ever they want with the franchise.

just_looken200d ago

@Notellin

Ahh another person that puts words in my mouth gets praise its like America in here.

Please anyone here on n4g point out were i said sequels?

Old ip's can be reborn same or even new characters with fresh ideas hello conker needs a fresh comeback a silly platformer game for adults.

There are so many old ip's never reused at least bungie is bringing back marathon for what ever that is worth but atleast that ip is given a second chance.

+ Show (8) more repliesLast reply 200d ago
Profchaos200d ago (Edited 200d ago )

It's not like we can't see it ever since the shift to prioritise gamepass it's been all quantity over quality.

A mediocre game that ships and holds someone's attention for 20 hours is the same on gamepass as a incredible game that holds someone's attention for 20 hours.

It's clear up until recently they pretty much gave up on selling games until.they realised there's money to be made by selling games to PlayStation and Nintendo gamers that won't subscribe to gamepass. Like the marketing for halo infinite was abysmal with day one on gamepass being the only aspect pushed halo used to be a game that retailers would proudly promote and have midnight launches for but if you told me it didn't ship on a disc id believe it a physical copy of the game is almost non existent.

just_looken200d ago

i know its the meta to blame gamepass

But remember there is ubisoft + ea access playstation plus collection deal then you got that nintendio game sub.

You are right in what you said but its more than Microsoft is going the way the netflix of gaming.

trez1082200d ago

Hard to only blame 343. Microsoft have this franchise mentality and focus on what worked for them before and the fact that they also listen to that small loud section of their fans is a problem. Not saying they have to be like Sony or Nintendo but those companies don’t really listen outcries or demands but focus devs visions. so many Mario’s n Zelda’s out there but pretty much all different but some fans would cry so loud of Halo dares to try new things. I see some hope now with new engine, third person option etc

obidanshinobi200d ago

It's business managers like Phil Spencer butting heads with creative talented developers.

Obscure_Observer200d ago

"It’s not as harsh as “their leadership is cancer” statement but it’s really important to nurture creativity with video games and seems like an obvious issue within MS and especially 343."

WTF? Didn´t MS just allowed 343i to do go through a complete team overhaul with new creative staff, new focus, new name and new engine after spent hundreds of millions on R&D for Slipspace?!

The dude, didn´t trashed MS or his former colleagues at 343i studio, he was talking specifically about the *leadership* and one person in particular, Pierre Hintze.

Then you turn and twisted his comments into some bs Xbox hit piece when in reality Xbox´s Matt Botty is encouraging Xbox studios to create *new* games and *new* IPs like Avowed, South of Midnight, Everwild, Clockwork Revolution, Contraband, Kojima´s OD, Project Mara, Fable, Perfect Dark, State of Decay, Flight Simulator, Age of Mythology, Blade, Towerborne, Gears E-Day... and more.

Then I look at Playstation´s Hermen Hurst forcing first party studios to work mostly on GaaS, Remasters, Remakes and Re-Releases and I know which company is allowing and encouraging freedom of creative for its developers.

So you can pretend and twist reality all you want, but you that I´d brought you FACTS!

ApocalypseShadow200d ago (Edited 200d ago )

Begins to spew nonsense while ignoring that many of Microsoft's ips have gone to point of not selling in high numbers anymore. Halo was a huge fail as it no longer rivals other media or competitor's ips. And lost features that used to be standard. Forza comes out and is pretty much forgotten compared to GT7. Red Fall was a fail. Star Field was a fail. And now games are coming to competitor's platforms just to pick up sales.

And YOU think it's just Pierre. Lol. What is 343 allowed to make besides Halo? There's no creativity in banging out a dead horse every couple of years. And then get worse at it to the point where they were shook up to fix a broken nightmare. Abandoning an expensive game engine instead of making it better. You don't see Naughty Dog abandoning their engine. You don't see Guerilla abandoning theirs. You don't see Polyphony abandoning theirs. They make theirs better.

Management is a problem from Phil all the way down Microsoft game studios. Or they wouldn't be getting their asses kicked consistently and selling games on other platforms. But keep on being the blind warrior. You don't restructure for doing well. It's when you're failing. Lol... Allowed... What nonsense. They were allowed.... Lol.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 200d ago
Sonyslave3201d ago (Edited 201d ago )

An ex speaking bad on their ex 😂
And they got rid of Bonnie and the other head at 343 so yes they done more then change their name.
Like why do we listen to people like this. If was so bad like he claimed why stay for 13 years lol.

XiNatsuDragnel201d ago

We need proof of actual gameplay because we don't know yet

just_looken200d ago

have you already forgot the first game play of halo infinite then all the hype of the mp?

I say toss out this "new" game then give it a year or toss it on GP

DarXyde200d ago

Did you read Waltz's post?

He gives a pretty clear picture of reasons why he stayed.

You can say it's a jaded ex speaking ill of an ex, but if you finally break up with someone after a long time and give clear reasons for it, it sounds like someone trying to really commit to making it work but you hit a breaking point and as you leave, you share some insights: what kept you there that long (he says why) and what's very difficult to overlook (he says what).

If, after hearing that, people still want to work for them, no issues. But frankly, there is more evidence in support of his perspective than against it.

gold_drake200d ago

why stay for 13 years ?

money, making a living. work.

crazyCoconuts200d ago

Exactly... And,... It is Halo- that's a great legacy to walk away from

Knushwood Butt200d ago

This.
Anyone that's worked for one company for a long time knows that it's not perfect all the time, there are always ups and downs, and there's a balance between the pros and the cons.
It's when that balance starts to tip and the cons start to outweigh the pros, I find you get to a situation where there's the 'stick that broke the camel's back', that one thing just reaffirms what you already knew - that it's time to get out, and you quit.

At the end of last year I left somewhere after 14 years, and almost every day I think about how it was turned into a complete shit show by incompetent, unprofessional leadership.

Sorry for the rant!

201d ago
plmkoh200d ago

Seems every studio associated with Halo (Bungie, 343) is just simply toxic. Coincidence or not, I don't know but it sure explains why Halo has been underwhelming since 3.

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60°

343 Industries Hiring Generative AI Lead for Future Projects

343 Industries is hiring a Generative AI Lead to integrate AI into future projects, pushing the boundaries of innovation in game development.

Notellin257d ago

Go join that team and be the part of launching a massive disappointment. Now you can help lol with AI to make it even more generic, apply now!