Pardon Our Dust.

[Rob Oplawar]

I've been kicking around the idea of transforming b40/c40 into a desert liek environment, similiar to the ark. Assuming I can pull off a sandstorm for C40, is this an idea you would like to see followed through?

I already told you what I think of this idea, but I'll repost it here to get some more opinions.

First off, AotCR is my favorite level. I love it, especially the feel of it, the mood.

The snow is what sets the mood. I live in Colorado (US), and every once in a while we get exactly the kind of snowstorm that you find in AotCR, and let me tell you, it's perfect. That kind of light snow with a completely overcast sky muffles everything and gives a certain softness, peace, and tranquility to the whole world around you. This is perfect for AotCR, for a couple of reasons.

First, the control room should and does feel somewhat cut off from the rest of the ring. It is, by design, hard to reach and somewhat hidden (and yet the flood still manage to reach it, emphasizing the flood's ability to escape control and overwhelm restraint). This also works for the ending cinematic, featuring only the Chief and Cortana- they must be alone, isolated from the rest of the ring.
You might argue that desert offers the same feeling of isolation, but that only works with sand dunes. Warm rock canyons inspire a different sense of loneliness, of being lost by mistake in something you know is connected to the world. But the control room's isolation is deliberate. In an overcast foggy snowstorm, the rest of the world might as well not exist- there is no way to tell that it's even there, whereas in desert you know it still is.

Second, the tranquility is the perfect contrast to the epic battles fought throughout the canyons. Contrast is an essential element. In The Ark, the world feels gritty and harsh, like the combat, constantly driving you from encounter to encounter, ultimately dulling the experience. In Assault on the Control Room, the player is lulled into a sense of peace between each encounter, making the ensuing battle that much more jarring. From a visual standpoint as well, in a desert setting the enemies fit in, with their strong edges and harsh motion, while in a snowstorm, they disappear in the distance and yet stand out strongly in front of a nearly white background when they come near. This goes hand-in-hand with the sense of security, that when they are far away, hidden in the mist, the player feels separated from them, like they are in a different world, but without that the enemies are merely far, but you know they can see you as well as you can see them.

Third, it's simply pretty. Desert can be beautiful in its own way, but not in the way you're looking for. Desert is harsh and hot, while snowstorms are cool and soft, almost comforting. A snowstorm is beautifully tranquil, and the desert is beautifully strong.



Bungie did not arbitrarily decide "oh gee, let's do a snow level next". They thought long and hard about this, one of the most pivotal points in the storyline, to decide what environment best complemented it. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and ask you (Masterz) to explain now what long thought process led you to decide that desert was more fitting for this level than snow.


e: As for the "this is a mod" argument, well, just what are you trying to do here?
Are you trying to take the original Halo and make it prettier?
Are you trying to make it more fun?
Trying to change the storyline?
To do the same thing but in a different way?

I always thought the point of SPV2 was to finish out Halo's campaign, to add to it what it was lacking because Bungie didn't have the time to do it. I've beta'd one of SPV2's levels, and I must say, you've got this odd conflict in the campaign- some of the new areas, weapons, and objectives are truly inspired. They start with what was already in Halo and they expand on it marvelously. Then you have some areas and weapons and objectives that simply feel tacked on, or you take old classics and change them just for the sake of changing them. It's this expansion vs replacement vs arbitrary addition issue. What I really want to see from SPV2 is as much expansion on Bungie's already brilliant work as possible, and it just pains me to see you replace what I knew and loved or to add something on that doesn't fit in with what's already there.

Know your audience, Masterz- the vast majority of people who still play CE do it for the love of Halo, and you're going to face a lot of criticism from those that loved something in the original and found it too different in your modification.


/me crosses his fingers for an expansion rather than a replacement.