Have a PS5 Pro and live near LA?

The release of the Halo CE Remake is nearly upon us, and that means updating the HBO Cutscene Library. Sadly I have but the lowly PS5, which probably doesn't run the game in 4K. So if you have a PS5 Pro, live in or around Los Angeles, and would like to help capture the cutscenes at their best in 4K60 5.1 surround sound, then do get in touch.

I DID hear that the cutscenes are prerendered this time… if that's confirmed I don't think it would matter then as even a PS5 should be able to play a 4K video file.

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Series X has roughly the same GPU power as a PS5, and way less than a Pro.

PC is super hard to do surround sound on (and I do not have one).

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If you’re playing split-screen on PlayStation 5, both accounts will need to have PlayStation Plus and be linked to a Microsoft account

Based on this explanation, when players sit down to play Halo: Campaign Evolved co-op in July, all participating users will need to have an active subscription, even if they're sitting right next to each other on the couch.

https://www.ign.com/articles/halo-campaign-evolved-split-screen-co-op-on-ps5-requires-playstation-plus-for-both-players

It should require ZERO accounts, let alone TWO. Absolute insanity. This literally means I cannot do what I wanted to do and play through split screen with chris101b because he doesn't have a playstation.

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This literally means I cannot do what I wanted to do and play through split screen with chris101b because he doesn't have a playstation.

You can make a playstation account on their web site.

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They've cough walked back on cough clarified it. No need for subscriptions at all.

Glad to see 343i's MOs are still alive and well these days.

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They've cough walked back on cough clarified it. No need for subscriptions at all.

Glad to see 343i's MOs are still alive and well these days.

You still need a Microsoft account to play split screen offline. I don't want to make one. Why do you think I buy Playstation and Apple?

Hard pass. Someone else update the cutscene library.

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I’m confused by this thread. You needed a PlayStation 5 Pro, and Chris 101B doesn’t have a PlayStation? And I don’t know what you have against using for a throwaway email to create a temporary account. I agree that it seems excessive, but I’m willing to bet there’s no malevolent motive— this is just the easiest way for them to overcome a technical difficulty. For Bungie the solution was to have everybody become “bungie friends.”

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And I don’t know what you have against using for a throwaway email to create a temporary account.

I'm not doing that for offline splitcreen play. Like, holy shit on Switch you simply pair a second controller, and you can just play. No account funny business at all. As it should be.

I could somewhat understand the PS account, but not having to be linked to a Microsoft one.

Respect yourself and your time a little more. The only defense against enshittification is not giving them your money.

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And I don’t know what you have against using for a throwaway email to create a temporary account.

I'm not doing that for offline splitcreen play. Like, holy shit on Switch you simply pair a second controller, and you can just play. No account funny business at all. As it should be.

I could somewhat understand the PS account, but not having to be linked to a Microsoft one.

Respect yourself and your time a little more. The only defense against enshittification is not giving them your money.

It doesn't bother me. I've got accounts on both. I think cross-platform play makes everything complicated, even when you're not playing cross-platform. They need an account to track your stats and achievements as a player. They didn't code for a generic player. Could be laziness. Could be there was some technical problem and this was the only solution. Not a great solution, but maybe it was the one they knew would work.

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They need an account to track your stats and achievements as a player. They didn't code for a generic player. Could be laziness. Could be there was some technical problem and this was the only solution.

I doubt it was the only solution. Do you really think professional programmers can't work out how to say "Hey, don't bother with trophies for the second player who isn't signed into anything'?

Come on.

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You still need a Microsoft account to play split screen offline. I don't want to make one. Why do you think I buy Playstation and Apple?

Don't you already have one? I know you played Halo 2, 3, and Reach. You had a gamertag, which means you had a Microsoft account.

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You still need a Microsoft account to play split screen offline. I don't want to make one. Why do you think I buy Playstation and Apple?

Don't you already have one? I know you played Halo 2, 3, and Reach. You had a gamertag, which means you had a Microsoft account.

If that what that is, it's on a long dead email that was never linked to any other information. I had an amazingly hard time canceling Xbox Live back in 2012 because of this fact.

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You still need a Microsoft account to play split screen offline. I don't want to make one. Why do you think I buy Playstation

Not really the better stewards of personal accounts.

https://cybersecop.com/news/2021/11/14/playstation-network-breaches-psn-hacks

https://www.playstationlifestyle.net/2025/12/23/psa-psn-accounts-hacked-even-with-2fa-passkey-enabled/

https://www.playstationlifestyle.net/2026/05/23/playstation-accounts-hacked-social-engineering/

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You still need a Microsoft account to play split screen offline. I don't want to make one. Why do you think I buy Playstation

Not really the better stewards of personal accounts.

https://cybersecop.com/news/2021/11/14/playstation-network-breaches-psn-hacks

https://www.playstationlifestyle.net/2025/12/23/psa-psn-accounts-hacked-even-with-2fa-passkey-enabled/

https://www.playstationlifestyle.net/2026/05/23/playstation-accounts-hacked-social-engineering/

Believe me. I would love the good old days where you just typed in what you wanted your display name to be, and you just joined a multiplayer game. Accounts are for tracking digital game purchases, and trophies right? I could very easily live without either.

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Accounts are for tracking digital game purchases, and trophies right? I could very easily live without either.

Also needed for trust and safety enforcement. No accountability if there is no identity permanence and it is not connected to anything personal. Depending on region there are also legal requirements around age verification.

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Accounts are for tracking digital game purchases, and trophies right? I could very easily live without either.

Also needed for trust and safety enforcement. No accountability if there is no identity permanence and it is not connected to anything personal. Depending on region there are also legal requirements around age verification.

The big issue is that I doubt this can be played without the internet (in this case Cody is right to complain) but with this connection comes a lot of requirements. This is what I'm getting at. This solution is inelegant, but it might be all they could implement with the time and resources they had. They'll lose the Puritans like Cody, but most people will just jump through the hoops so they can play.

Meanwhile I'm over here still at little stunned that it is possible and happening.

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but it might be all they could implement with the time and resources they had.

Why do you keep saying this? Halo Studios has access to HUNDRED OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS.

I cannot stress this enough. I literally changed my mind about this purchase because of this singular issue.

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but it might be all they could implement with the time and resources they had.

Why do you keep saying this?

Maybe because I've worked in the software industry since 1998 and know a little bit about how it is never as simple as it looks from the outside. The requirements list is long, and much of it hidden.

Halo Studios has access to HUNDRED OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS.

And in the grand scheme of things, that money went to something else.

I cannot stress this enough.

Maybe.

I literally changed my mind about this purchase because of this singular issue.

At this point, I am familiar with the sequence. This is a Cody red line. It is VERY IMPORTANT THAT IT MATTERS AS MUCH TO EVERYONE, else we're not respecting ourselves, unlike you, who are the last man standing with integrity. Meanwhile, I, with my utter lack of principle, have enjoyed many Destiny raids that you haven't touched and never will. (I also never spent a dime in eververse for Destiny 2. I did for D1, but stopped when they didn't let my silver transfer to D2. I didn't have to throw the baby out with the bath water.) It's not that I don't care about the same things you do. It's just way more important to me that there's a chance I'll finally play Halo with my friend BigArm, who is a big Playstation gamer.

I know it sounds like I'm giving you a hard time. I'm trying not to, but it's not like you don't make it clear that you want everyone to follow your lead. I would much rather spend time interacting with you in a game than interacting here. Alas! Now excuse me while I go download the new Halo game.

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At this point, I am familiar with the sequence. This is a Cody red line. It is VERY IMPORTANT THAT IT MATTERS AS MUCH TO EVERYONE, else we're not respecting ourselves, unlike you, who are the last man standing with integrity.

If he alone votes for his concerns with his wallet, the industry will keep going without him. If he convinces a bunch of other people, maybe that makes a considerable difference in the companies' bottom lined and stops them from going further.

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At this point, I am familiar with the sequence. This is a Cody red line. It is VERY IMPORTANT THAT IT MATTERS AS MUCH TO EVERYONE, else we're not respecting ourselves, unlike you, who are the last man standing with integrity.

If he alone votes for his concerns with his wallet, the industry will keep going without him. If he convinces a bunch of other people, maybe that makes a considerable difference in the companies' bottom lined and stops them from going further.

I get it, too, but I don't have his priorities. Here's the thing: you provide a service. Your customers either think it's worth what you charge or not. Your job is to make it worth it to both you. You screw it up, you fail. In a free market, you're always going to have someone come along who will try to provide greater value. In my model, you don't need Cody Miller judging other people's priorities for things to change. There will be a disruptor who provides better value. Change will come.

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There will be a disruptor who provides better value. Change will come.

This is where you are wrong. There is too much consolidation, and too little competition. Too much lock in. That is why things are the way they are. You cannot rely on anyone but the people buying the game to force change.

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There will be a disruptor who provides better value. Change will come.

This is where you are wrong. There is too much consolidation, and too little competition. Too much lock in. That is why things are the way they are. You cannot rely on anyone but the people buying the game to force change.

Am I? When has there not been disruptors? When has there not been change? Every year there are games that surprise, a Baldur's Gate, something. There are big corporations that were winning that are now losing. I can't believe that on a Destiny forum, just days away from Bungie dropping support for Destiny, you're arguing that things are static. If the audience isn't having fun, they quit. They find other ways to spend their time. Isn't that obvious? I believe in the invisible hand. I think you believe in the moral superiority of your hand guided by some platonic ideal of gaming that must be achieved else no self-respecting person should play it. The gaming business is doing terribly. Why? Competition. Not just from games, but from everything else. Yet, someone somewhere, who could be from a big or a small studio, is today working on a game that will be a hit tomorrow. Mark my words.

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Am I? When has there not been disruptors? When has there not been change? Every year there are games that surprise, a Baldur's Gate, something.

And that changed what? Remember the discourse? Other devs said not to expect that from them. They literally said they didn't want to change, didn't, and everything is the same.

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Am I? When has there not been disruptors? When has there not been change? Every year there are games that surprise, a Baldur's Gate, something.

And that changed what? Remember the discourse? Other devs said not to expect that from them. They literally said they didn't want to change, didn't, and

So what? They're setting expectations based on what is in the pipeline. But also they're looking at Baldur's Gate and figuring how it was done so they can do it. The bar is raised. That's the effect of competition, and it's a good thing.

everything is the same.

Cody, again, you're posting on a website for a game that is about to be mothballed. I don't know how you can make globalizing statements like "everything is the same." The developers who make a product that provides the least amount of friction to get to the fun are going have an audience, and if they can figure out how to do that and make a profit, they'll be able to keep doing it. That's the basic equation, and there are always going to be people trying to make the math work.

I don't begrudge you having your very exact standards for what is acceptable. I might find it ridiculous the extent to which you're willing to return the meal and leave the restaurant because there is a drop of pickle juice on your plate and you said no pickle, but you do you. I do begrudge how you tend to a interpret it as a character issue if someone else decides the meal isn't exactly what they'd like in every particular, but the good parts outweigh the bad parts.

I totally agree that there should be a guest option in the new Halo, BTW. The enjoyment I'm anticipating having with the game outweighs that inconvenience.

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I totally agree that there should be a guest option in the new Halo, BTW. The enjoyment I'm anticipating having with the game outweighs that inconvenience.

That’s me too. Sure, it’s stupid and annoying to need a Microsoft account to play Halo on a Playstation. But I no longer have an Xbox, and I already have a Microsoft account, and I just want to play Halo again, so it’s a hoop I’m willing to jump through if the game turns out to be good. I don’t see that as a moral failing, I guess.

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But also they're looking at Baldur's Gate and figuring how it was done so they can do it. The bar is raised. That's the effect of competition, and it's a good thing.

They literally aren't. They SAID they aren't. They said "Don't expect this from us." Not tiny Indie studios, but people representing AAA studios and publishers. I'll believe it when I see it, but we aren't seeing it.

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But also they're looking at Baldur's Gate and figuring how it was done so they can do it. The bar is raised. That's the effect of competition, and it's a good thing.

They literally aren't. They SAID they aren't. They said "Don't expect this from us." Not tiny Indie studios, but people representing AAA studios and publishers. I'll believe it when I see it, but we aren't seeing it.

I covered this already. They're setting expectations based on what is in the pipeline. It's likely too late to change much in a game that is well under development. Mark my words. In interviews for games in the future, devs will cite Baldur's Gate as an inspiration.

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But also they're looking at Baldur's Gate and figuring how it was done so they can do it. The bar is raised. That's the effect of competition, and it's a good thing.

They literally aren't. They SAID they aren't. They said "Don't expect this from us." Not tiny Indie studios, but people representing AAA studios and publishers. I'll believe it when I see it, but we aren't seeing it.

I covered this already. They're setting expectations based on what is in the pipeline. It's likely too late to change much in a game that is well under development. Mark my words. In interviews for games in the future, devs will cite Baldur's Gate as an inspiration.

https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/baldurs-gate-2s-co-lead-designer-was-asked-to-make-baldurs-gate-4-after-larian-decl...

Look at that. Doesn't even want to TRY. There won't even be a Baldur's Gate 4 because not even Larian nor the designer of 2 want to compete with 3.

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But also they're looking at Baldur's Gate and figuring how it was done so they can do it. The bar is raised. That's the effect of competition, and it's a good thing.

They literally aren't. They SAID they aren't. They said "Don't expect this from us." Not tiny Indie studios, but people representing AAA studios and publishers. I'll believe it when I see it, but we aren't seeing it.

I covered this already. They're setting expectations based on what is in the pipeline. It's likely too late to change much in a game that is well under development. Mark my words. In interviews for games in the future, devs will cite Baldur's Gate as an inspiration.

https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/baldurs-gate-2s-co-lead-designer-was-asked-to-make-baldurs-gate-4-after-larian-decl...

Look at that. Doesn't even want to TRY. There won't even be a Baldur's Gate 4 because not even Larian nor the designer of 2 want to compete with 3.

That's cool! That's quite a testimony to how good the game is. Good games motivate other devs to create good games. I promise, when those devs do and cite Baldur's Gate 3 as an inspiration, I won't come swaggering around here (if "here" exists) saying "Kermit was right" like I'm cock of the walk or something. Not saying you do this, Cody, but you know what I mean.

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That's cool! That's quite a testimony to how good the game is. Good games motivate other devs to create good games. I promise, when those devs do and cite Baldur's Gate 3 as an inspiration, I won't come swaggering around here (if "here" exists) saying "Kermit was right" like I'm cock of the walk or something. Not saying you do this, Cody, but you know what I mean.

You should. Feels good to drop the hashtag.

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That's cool! That's quite a testimony to how good the game is. Good games motivate other devs to create good games. I promise, when those devs do and cite Baldur's Gate 3 as an inspiration, I won't come swaggering around here (if "here" exists) saying "Kermit was right" like I'm cock of the walk or something. Not saying you do this, Cody, but you know what I mean.

You should. Feels good to drop the hashtag.

It's even better when others do it on your behalf.

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That's cool! That's quite a testimony to how good the game is. Good games motivate other devs to create good games. I promise, when those devs do and cite Baldur's Gate 3 as an inspiration, I won't come swaggering around here (if "here" exists) saying "Kermit was right" like I'm cock of the walk or something. Not saying you do this, Cody, but you know what I mean.

You should. Feels good to drop the hashtag.

It's even better when others do it on your behalf.

I mean, in my case it’s often both. 😛

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At this point, I am familiar with the sequence. This is a Cody red line. It is VERY IMPORTANT THAT IT MATTERS AS MUCH TO EVERYONE, else we're not respecting ourselves, unlike you, who are the last man standing with integrity.

If he alone votes for his concerns with his wallet, the industry will keep going without him. If he convinces a bunch of other people, maybe that makes a considerable difference in the companies' bottom lined and stops them from going further.

I get it, too, but I don't have his priorities. Here's the thing: you provide a service. Your customers either think it's worth what you charge or not. Your job is to make it worth it to both you. You screw it up, you fail. In a free market, you're always going to have someone come along who will try to provide greater value. In my model, you don't need Cody Miller judging other people's priorities for things to change. There will be a disruptor who provides better value. Change will come.

And yet 343 has still, to this day, never released a fully complete game. Or a game that doesn’t have something, or many things, severely wrong with it. Or without controversy, like this situation that has Cody upset (and actually is pretty similar to the Sony account requirement controversy with Helldivers that tanked its reviews and overall player counts). Where’s the disruptor and better value? There isn’t, at least not until they shutter that studio and give Halo to someone else. Yet there’s still somehow always someone defending 343. Good for Cody drawing a line and sticking to it and trying to let others know about his opinions.

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At this point, I am familiar with the sequence. This is a Cody red line. It is VERY IMPORTANT THAT IT MATTERS AS MUCH TO EVERYONE, else we're not respecting ourselves, unlike you, who are the last man standing with integrity.

If he alone votes for his concerns with his wallet, the industry will keep going without him. If he convinces a bunch of other people, maybe that makes a considerable difference in the companies' bottom lined and stops them from going further.

I get it, too, but I don't have his priorities. Here's the thing: you provide a service. Your customers either think it's worth what you charge or not. Your job is to make it worth it to both you. You screw it up, you fail. In a free market, you're always going to have someone come along who will try to provide greater value. In my model, you don't need Cody Miller judging other people's priorities for things to change. There will be a disruptor who provides better value. Change will come.

And yet 343 has still, to this day, never released a fully complete game. Or a game that doesn’t have something, or many things, severely wrong with it. Or without controversy, like this situation that has Cody upset (and actually is pretty similar to the Sony account requirement controversy with Helldivers that tanked its reviews and overall player counts). Where’s the disruptor and better value? There isn’t, at least not until they shutter that studio and give Halo to someone else. Yet there’s still somehow always someone defending 343. Good for Cody drawing a line and sticking to it and trying to let others know about his opinions.

I guess it has been a while. That hobby horse was begging to be ridden. 343 is dead, dude, but maybe you didn't know. Regarding controversy, what is not controversial in 2026? It is the coin of realm. Cody is welcome to be upset. I think he enjoys it on some level. I can also find his level of upset unwarranted, and regarding the spec that he demands be met, well, everything is simple provided you don't know much about it.

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And yet 343 has still, to this day, never released a fully complete game. Or a game that doesn’t have something, or many things, severely wrong with it. Or without controversy, like this situation that has Cody upset (and actually is pretty similar to the Sony account requirement controversy with Helldivers that tanked its reviews and overall player counts). Where’s the disruptor and better value? There isn’t, at least not until they shutter that studio and give Halo to someone else. Yet there’s still somehow always someone defending 343. Good for Cody drawing a line and sticking to it and trying to let others know about his opinions.

I guess it has been a while. That hobby horse was begging to be ridden. 343 is dead, dude, but maybe you didn't know. Regarding controversy, what is not controversial in 2026? It is the coin of realm. Cody is welcome to be upset. I think he enjoys it on some level. I can also find his level of upset unwarranted, and regarding the spec that he demands be met, well, everything is simple provided you don't know much about it.

Eh, not really a hobby horse these days. They've been continuously failing for so long that at this point I'm just literally pointing out what's happened. They renamed. Put that lipstick on the pig. A pig rose by any other name would smell just as pig. Or maybe I should just paraphrase from Halo 2? That name change won't hide their mark of shame. 343.

But back to the actual discussion, you're right about everything being controversial in 2026, but 343 has been causing that controversy going back to 2012. Regardless, you're also right about Cody and yourself. His level of upset may be unwarranted, but it's warranted to him, he's absolutely allowed to feel the way he does, and the same goes for you about his feelings or about 343's new game. Hell, I wouldn't have even commented if not for the disruptor/change will come stuff, because those concepts don't seem to apply to 343 and Halo. It's unfortunate, but it's what they are.

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It's unfortunate, but it's what they are.

All of this is a discussion of comparing "what it used to be" vs "what it is"

Boot up Halo 1 on OG xbox and 4 people can instantly play multiplayer. 2 people can instantly play the campaign.

Now, as a dad with two boys and the only way we can play games together is by having 3 tvs, 3 xboxs and 3 accounts that have to individually purchase a game....it f***ing sucks!!!

If a game offers a local coop experience, then everyone should be able to play under the console owners account. The "guest" account should always be an option.

However...

We've now reached a time where EEEVVVEEERRRYTHING requires an account.

When Kermit says "change will happen", the problem is....change won't happen until things get so extreme, that the change is a whiplash effect and creates a polarizing environment that makes everyone an enemy and ultimately collapsing the thing we all love. (can you imagine if this happened in real life?....)

The deal is this. If you want to partake in anything digital, there has to be a barrier to entry. And if you only have to supply an email address...enter that burner and enjoy your live.

It's unfortunate, but it's what they are.

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It's unfortunate, but it's what they are.

All of this is a discussion of comparing "what it used to be" vs "what it is"

Boot up Halo 1 on OG xbox and 4 people can instantly play multiplayer. 2 people can instantly play the campaign.

Now, as a dad with two boys and the only way we can play games together is by having 3 tvs, 3 xboxs and 3 accounts that have to individually purchase a game....it f***ing sucks!!!

If a game offers a local coop experience, then everyone should be able to play under the console owners account. The "guest" account should always be an option.

However...

We've now reached a time where EEEVVVEEERRRYTHING requires an account.

When Kermit says "change will happen", the problem is....change won't happen until things get so extreme, that the change is a whiplash effect and creates a polarizing environment that makes everyone an enemy and ultimately collapsing the thing we all love. (can you imagine if this happened in real life?....)

The deal is this. If you want to partake in anything digital, there has to be a barrier to entry. And if you only have to supply an email address...enter that burner and enjoy your live.

It's unfortunate, but it's what they are.

Or, the deal is this. Don’t buy the product. Which Cody is doing. And coincidentally, while directly referring to 343, don’t buy their products at all is what I have been recommending for basically everything they’ve released since MCC (or at minimum, recommending waiting to purchase until after it’s confirmed that they didn’t lie to consumers, release a brick, release an incomplete product, etc.). So the real deal is, buyer beware, vote with your wallet, and don’t just accept the trash that the companies tell us we have to accept (otherwise, inaction gets us to this place you described where everything requires an account, no matter how ridiculous the requirement is).

Edit: Also, Nintendo’s GameShare on Switch 2 basically handles all of this without requiring any additional accounts. But like Kermit said in an earlier post, clearly someone decided to use their millions for something else.

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Or, the deal is this. Don’t buy the product. Which Cody is doing.

(I honestly probably won't be buying it anyway. I've already bought that game 3 times.)

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to buy and think I could play it tonight with early access. It releases next month, not next week.

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I get it, too, but I don't have his priorities. Here's the thing: you provide a service. Your customers either think it's worth what you charge or not. Your job is to make it worth it to both you. You screw it up, you fail. In a free market, you're always going to have someone come along who will try to provide greater value. In my model, you don't need Cody Miller judging other people's priorities for things to change. There will be a disruptor who provides better value. Change will come.

But that's not what the invisible hand does.

It creates a minimum viable product which gains market share, and then diminishes the product over time now that it has the scale to manipulate markets and exclude competitors. That's what it does. Always. Decade after decade, country after country. To say anything else is ahistorical.

You can try to curb it by implementing regulation and laws like antitrust. But that's substituting human judgement for the "free market". Some great things have come out of the system, but those are almost always some iconoclast's personal vision that is financed by the seedier parts of the system. So, where does this human judgement come from; who gives ideas to the iconoclast? The critic.

P.S. The Critic, by the way, is also the fountainhead of the public will that will sometimes change what is considered a minimum viable product, so what exactly are you arguing against here, anyway?

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I get it, too, but I don't have his priorities. Here's the thing: you provide a service. Your customers either think it's worth what you charge or not. Your job is to make it worth it to both you. You screw it up, you fail. In a free market, you're always going to have someone come along who will try to provide greater value. In my model, you don't need Cody Miller judging other people's priorities for things to change. There will be a disruptor who provides better value. Change will come.

But that's not what the invisible hand does.

It creates a minimum viable product which gains market share, and then diminishes the product over time now that it has the scale to manipulate markets and exclude competitors.

Are we talking about the same thing? “It" in your sentence describes a monopoly, which interferes with the invisible hand. The invisible hand refers to the process through which the public is provided with quality goods not as a result of planning, but because the public consistently chose the best value among competitors. That best value, by the way, may not be the minimum viable product.

That's what it does. Always. Decade after decade, country after country.

So all goods end up being produced by monopolies? How does that track with the state of gaming at this moment? How does that explain smaller studios producing AAA-level games that are hits?  

To say anything else is ahistorical.

Hmm. Just the other day I drove my Saturn over to Sears to pick up some Kodachrome film to use on my vacation, which of course I'd planned using a travel agent. I'm visiting Italy, by the way, inspired by the movie ROMAN HOLIDAY--a friend had loaned me her copy of it on betamax last year. I dialed her up the other night to thank her again, but the line was busy. Yeah, the established producers stay established and nothing ever changes.

You can try to curb it by implementing regulation and laws like antitrust. But that's substituting human judgement for the "free market". Some great things have come out of the system, but those are almost always some iconoclast's personal vision that is financed by the seedier parts of the system. So, where does this human judgement come from; who gives ideas to the iconoclast? The critic.

The free market IS human judgment at scale—many humans making independent decisions.

P.S. The Critic, by the way, is also the "fountainhead of the public" will that will sometimes change what is considered a minimum viable product, so what exactly are you arguing against here, anyway?

I am not sure what "fountainhead of the public" means, but you seem to imply that only some people can be critics, as opposed to all consumers being critics all the time. I was arguing against the idea that we must align with Cody's ideas of what is acceptable in a game else it's our moral failure. It seems as if you are arguing that he is the Critic with a capital C--thereby the only one who can have ideas or legitimate judgments about what we should spend money on. I disagree.

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So all goods end up being produced by monopolies? How does that track with the state of gaming at this moment? How does that explain smaller studios producing AAA-level games that are hits?  

And who gets 30% of the take? I'll give you a hint… monopolies.

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So all goods end up being produced by monopolies? How does that track with the state of gaming at this moment? How does that explain smaller studios producing AAA-level games that are hits?  

And who gets 30% of the take? I'll give you a hint… monopolies.

You mean publishers? We could use more competition in that area. The point is, the gaming industry is struggling right now, but that's not a sign of big greedy corporations winning. We're not buying what they're selling. The business model isn't working very well. Someone will find something that works and catches fire. Someone always does. There will be hits. These games will still be unlikely to meet your vigorous standards, of course. :-)

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So all goods end up being produced by monopolies? How does that track with the state of gaming at this moment? How does that explain smaller studios producing AAA-level games that are hits?  

And who gets 30% of the take? I'll give you a hint… monopolies.

You mean publishers?

No. The storefronts you are required to sell on in order to actually reach people. No publisher? You still gotta sell on steam. That'll be 30%.

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So all goods end up being produced by monopolies? How does that track with the state of gaming at this moment? How does that explain smaller studios producing AAA-level games that are hits?  

And who gets 30% of the take? I'll give you a hint… monopolies.

You mean publishers?

No. The storefronts you are required to sell on in order to actually reach people. No publisher? You still gotta sell on steam. That'll be 30%.

We have laws against monopolies, and we should use them. Too often, entities petition the government to create regulations that solidify their competitive advantage.

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I don't know if Steam actually qualifies as a monopoly. Maybe.

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So all goods end up being produced by monopolies? How does that track with the state of gaming at this moment? How does that explain smaller studios producing AAA-level games that are hits?  

And who gets 30% of the take? I'll give you a hint… monopolies.

You mean publishers?

No. The storefronts you are required to sell on in order to actually reach people. No publisher? You still gotta sell on steam. That'll be 30%.

We have laws against monopolies, and we should use them. Too often, entities petition the government to create regulations that solidify their competitive advantage.

I wonder if Sony no longer making physical Discs will run afoul… as now the only place to buy a PlayStation game is on PSN, at the price they choose.

🤞

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So all goods end up being produced by monopolies? How does that track with the state of gaming at this moment? How does that explain smaller studios producing AAA-level games that are hits?  

And who gets 30% of the take? I'll give you a hint… monopolies.

You mean publishers?

No. The storefronts you are required to sell on in order to actually reach people. No publisher? You still gotta sell on steam. That'll be 30%.

We have laws against monopolies, and we should use them. Too often, entities petition the government to create regulations that solidify their competitive advantage.

I wonder if Sony no longer making physical Discs will run afoul… as now the only place to buy a PlayStation game is on PSN, at the price they choose.

🤞

I don't think it works like that. You can still buy video games elsewhere. On Xbox, on Switch, on Steam or GOG or any number of other places on PC. Playstation isn't a monopoly.

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So all goods end up being produced by monopolies? How does that track with the state of gaming at this moment? How does that explain smaller studios producing AAA-level games that are hits?  

And who gets 30% of the take? I'll give you a hint… monopolies.

You mean publishers?

No. The storefronts you are required to sell on in order to actually reach people. No publisher? You still gotta sell on steam. That'll be 30%.

We have laws against monopolies, and we should use them. Too often, entities petition the government to create regulations that solidify their competitive advantage.

I wonder if Sony no longer making physical Discs will run afoul… as now the only place to buy a PlayStation game is on PSN, at the price they choose.

🤞

I don't think it works like that. You can still buy video games elsewhere. On Xbox, on Switch, on Steam or GOG or any number of other places on PC. Playstation isn't a monopoly.

Neither is Apple then, but the EU is making them open their devices to other stores and sideloading.

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Hmm. Just the other day I drove my Saturn over to Sears to pick up some Kodachrome film to use on my vacation, which of course I'd planned using a travel agent. I'm visiting Italy, by the way, inspired by the movie ROMAN HOLIDAY--a friend had loaned me her copy of it on betamax last year. I dialed her up the other night to thank her again, but the line was busy. Yeah, the established producers stay established and nothing ever changes.

The fact that some things are old does not prove any point that cuts against anything I have said. Unless you are trying to say that all change is good. I certainly disagree with that assertion. In fact, my point has been that change exists and the natural general direction of that change under capitalism is toward the benefit of the producer/companies/rich and against the consumer.

If you are, in fact, trying to convince me that historically, change is good for the consumer, I would not have picked: a famously superior video cassette format that died because the merits were outweighed by forces of capitalism, a profession that used to provide high-touch service that benefited travelers but was driven to extinction by companies doing cost-cutting, a retail and manufacturing company that was done-in by choosing to make products with long warranties and high quality sold by career experts but cost more than the cheap disposable crap sold by websites, one of the greatest movies ever, and film stock so respected that it is to this day hoarded and prized by collectors and imitated digitally by people who were never alive to even touch it. ¯\(ツ)/¯

You can try to curb it by implementing regulation and laws like antitrust. But that's substituting human judgement for the "free market". Some great things have come out of the system, but those are almost always some iconoclast's personal vision that is financed by the seedier parts of the system. So, where does this human judgement come from; who gives ideas to the iconoclast? The critic.

The free market IS human judgment at scale—many humans making independent decisions.

Even if you have faith in the wisdom of crowds — which I have learned not to, but we're getting far afield here — it is not a source of creative direction (If Ford asked people what he should make they would have said "faster horses") and it would require access to a wide range of different options which is a problem I have discussed a lot so far.

P.S. The Critic, by the way, is also the "fountainhead of the public" will that will sometimes change what is considered a minimum viable product, so what exactly are you arguing against here, anyway?

I am not sure what "fountainhead of the public" means, but you seem to imply that only some people can be critics, as opposed to all consumers being critics all the time. I was arguing against the idea that we must align with Cody's ideas of what is acceptable in a game else it's our moral failure. It seems as if you are arguing that he is the Critic with a capital C--thereby the only one who can have ideas or legitimate judgments about what we should spend money on. I disagree.

Ideas come from somewhere; a source, a fountainhead, a specific point from which a wide range of impacts will flow. When you speak of "the public" making decisions, they do not do so sua sponte in a vacuum of ideas; these decisions are influenced by experiences they have had with others. Specifically, critics.

Nobody said only Cody can have an opinion. That's a straw man you have introduced into the conversation. My question has been why you think only Cody can't share his opinion.

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Hmm. Just the other day I drove my Saturn over to Sears to pick up some Kodachrome film to use on my vacation, which of course I'd planned using a travel agent. I'm visiting Italy, by the way, inspired by the movie ROMAN HOLIDAY--a friend had loaned me her copy of it on betamax last year. I dialed her up the other night to thank her again, but the line was busy. Yeah, the established producers stay established and nothing ever changes.

The fact that some things are old does not prove any point that cuts against anything I have said.

Maybe let’s back up, because you’re right—we’re getting far afield here. You criticized my use of the phrase “invisible hand” when describing how free markets work. And I agree that it doesn’t always work that way in every particular case. The minimally viable product is a real phenomenon that we see in shrinking candy bars and whatnot. What does that have to do with old things? How do things get categorized as old? Because they are replaced by something newer. Why are they replaced? Because what is a minimally viable product is affected by innovation and competition. And yes, maybe the immediate replacement is worse (as with VHS), but in the long-term that’s not a constant to say the least. DVDs are obviously superior to betamax. The nature of change is that there are losses to go with the gains. Is every product better in every way than what replaced it? Of course not, but do more people have access to greater benefits than they had before? On the whole and over enough time, I think the answer to that question is undeniably yes.

We both can be right in describing different aspects but still incomplete. These are your points that I take issue with.

1. Producers deliver less and get more.   

Like I said, a real issue that is more likely to happen with large corporations that have some sort of lock on the market. We must be diligent and ensure fair competition. Focusing on large corporations, however, presents a distorted view of our economy—at least in the US. Small business make up 99.9% percent of US companies. They represent a little less than half of our GDP.  

2. Innovation comes from the iconoclast “financed by the seedier parts of the system.”   

Considering what the gets the most attention in the media, I assume you’re talking about the Elon Musks and Sam Altmans and the VCs associated with them. See previous answer—the focus on this ignores a huge chunk of our economy. Small business owners are often hustling 80+ hours a week to out-innovate their competitors. There’s a brewery in western North Carolina that was started several decades ago by a Jamaican-Chinese immigrant. They’ve weathered hurricanes and changing tastes (less drinking) to become a tourist destination with large indoor and outdoor spaces of activities and events. They’re now moving into food service. Maybe they’ll never end up on the cover of Forbes, but they are innovators and that’s the free market, too.  

3. Critics are the source of ideas, not the “wisdom of the crowd.”

We might be using different words for the same thing. You ever do a usability study? The most talented designers in the world can't reliably predict how users will actually react to their product. And you’re right, the best solution may not be what they say they want. On the other hand, several iterations of “best solutions” still may not be what they want. Consumers get a vote, and when they don’t buy, they are being critics. And now we’re getting back to the invisible hand. There isn’t a discussion or plan, but there is the behavoir of many customers acting out of their personal self-interest.

Nobody said only Cody can have an opinion. That's a straw man you have introduced into the conversation. My question has been why you think only Cody can't share his opinion.

Of course Cody can have an opinion. My issue with Cody is almost always his presentation, and this thread started because of his opinion that living with no guest option in the new Halo game equated to not having respect for oneself. Since then, Sony made their stupid disc announcement, an issue truly worthy of anger. Cody can be the boy who cried wolf, but in the latter case, Sony is being a bona fide wolf. Even though I have many fewer PS discs than Xbox discs, I won’t see myself buying a PS6 because I’ve yet to see that what I’ll gain exceeds what I’ll lose. I can easily imagine not updating either of my consoles for years and I don’t think I’ll be alone, which means PS6 or Helix exclusives will be slow coming. We’ve got to figure out a way to ensure that a purchase is a purchase. I expect there to be lawsuits. I expect that the landscape will change.   

Here is the bottom line: what I appreciate about free markets as opposed to alternatives to it is the former’s ability to self-heal. There is a thermostatic effect at work: with every problem comes an incentive to solve the problem. But what about the big corporations like Sony? Sony survived 35 years to be featured as an ad in both Bladerunner movies. Many big brands featured in the first movie didn’t. Bring on creative destruction.   

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And yes, maybe the immediate replacement is worse (as with VHS)

VHS was arguably not worse. It ran twice as long. That's a pretty big advantage in being able to put movies on one tape. The load mechanism was also far simpler, and didn't break as much as BETA.

Is every product better in every way than what replaced it? Of course not, but do more people have access to greater benefits than they had before? On the whole and over enough time, I think the answer to that question is undeniably yes.

Hard disagree. As Technology has proliferated, we are seeing less and less benefit, and lots of straight up regressions. Platforms enshittify. Our ownership rights are taken away. Prices go up. Generative AI plundered human culture for nobody's benefit. I can count on one hand the number of things that have gotten better in the last 15 years.

Like I said, a real issue that is more likely to happen with large corporations that have some sort of lock on the market. We must be diligent and ensure fair competition. Focusing on large corporations, however, presents a distorted view of our economy—at least in the US. Small business make up 99.9% percent of US companies. They represent a little less than half of our GDP.  

It is not the small businesses that are ruining everything. It's the large ones that have the push.

Small business owners are often hustling 80+ hours a week to out-innovate their competitors.

To failure it seems then. Because we have no meaningful choice anymore with regards to many things we used to, or technologies that control large portions of people's lives. Nobody cares if a brewery started by immigrants thrives. That's not driving the destruction of our privacy, rights, or culture.

Consumers get a vote, and when they don’t buy, they are being critics.

I've found that instead of 'listening', they simply make it harder for you to not buy it.

Here is the bottom line: what I appreciate about free markets as opposed to alternatives to it is the former’s ability to self-heal.

Never in my life have I seen a market heal. Only destroy. Have you looked at ANYTHING?! We'd still be driving without seatbelts and airbags if the market weren't distorted by having them be REQUIRED.

Not requiring an account of any sort for splitscreen is just not an option for a company that is so intent on data collection. They can't even conceive of NOT logging everything you do. What does that gain you? Not a damn thing.

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And yes, maybe the immediate replacement is worse (as with VHS)

VHS was arguably not worse. It ran twice as long. That's a pretty big advantage in being able to put movies on one tape. The load mechanism was also far simpler, and didn't break as much as BETA.

Yes, it was arguable, but a distraction from the discussion. As with most format wars, they each had their advantages.

Is every product better in every way than what replaced it? Of course not, but do more people have access to greater benefits than they had before? On the whole and over enough time, I think the answer to that question is undeniably yes.

Hard disagree. As Technology has proliferated, we are seeing less and less benefit, and lots of straight up regressions. Platforms enshittify. Our ownership rights are taken away. Prices go up. Generative AI plundered human culture for nobody's benefit. I can count on one hand the number of things that have gotten better in the last 15 years.

I share many of your concerns. The right to ownership is essential for any market, so I'm glad you're on my side. Many factors have led to the rise in prices, and they mainly have to do with a lack of stability. Business thrives on certainty, and we haven't had much of that in the last 15 years. My time horizon for the increase in benefits is much longer than 15 years, though. We live with so much abundance, it's easy to take it for granted and not credit the miracle that is liberal democratic capitalism. Innovations and discoveries are happening all the time. The online algorithms prefer bad news.

Like I said, a real issue that is more likely to happen with large corporations that have some sort of lock on the market. We must be diligent and ensure fair competition. Focusing on large corporations, however, presents a distorted view of our economy—at least in the US. Small business make up 99.9% percent of US companies. They represent a little less than half of our GDP.  

It is not the small businesses that are ruining everything. It's the large ones that have the push.

Small business owners are often hustling 80+ hours a week to out-innovate their competitors.

To failure it seems then. Because we have no meaningful choice anymore with regards to many things we used to, or technologies that control large portions of people's lives. Nobody cares if a brewery started by immigrants thrives.

You're wrong. I care. Successful businesses are a big part of what makes a place a place. I am concerned that entrepreneurship is in decline, but I still say it's pretty much in the water in the US and has big impact on culture. We are still a country of problem solvers.

That's not driving the destruction of our privacy, rights, or culture.

Like I said, I share some but not all of your concerns.

Consumers get a vote, and when they don’t buy, they are being critics.

I've found that instead of 'listening', they simply make it harder for you to not buy it.

I don't anticipate it being hard for me to not buy a PS6.

Here is the bottom line: what I appreciate about free markets as opposed to alternatives to it is the former’s ability to self-heal.

Never in my life have I seen a market heal. Only destroy. Have you looked at ANYTHING?! We'd still be driving without seatbelts and airbags if the market weren't distorted by having them be REQUIRED.

HAVE YOU? I can use the caps key, too. MARKETS ONLY DESTROY????!! Seriously? Car companies use their product's safety ratings to sell cars. I might lean towards libertarianism, but I recognize that regulation can be good and helpful. I'm also aware that large companies often petition for regulation in order to lock out competition.

Not requiring an account of any sort for splitscreen is just not an option for a company that is so intent on data collection. They can't even conceive of NOT logging everything you do. What does that gain you? Not a damn thing.

I share your concern about privacy. Many people do. Want an example of the market healing? Companies give you the ability to create burner email addresses so other companies can't track you. VPNs also help you stay anonymous.

There are so many ironies in this conversation. Bungie.org is a culture sprung from a shared hobby that wouldn't exist if our lives did not have more comforts and leisure than kings had 100 years ago. Bungie had an amazing track record of producing better and better games in a very competitive market. They are at risk of failing now, and I guess it's obvious that that is the market's fault because markets only destroy.

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VPNs also help you stay anonymous.

I’m not sure how you specifically meant this, and it’s just me nitpicking, but I just wanted to point out that VPNs give you additional security, but they don’t by default keep you anonymous. You’d need to be doing a lot of other things along with the VPN to stay anonymous.

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VPNs also help you stay anonymous.

I’m not sure how you specifically meant this, and it’s just me nitpicking, but I just wanted to point out that VPNs give you additional security, but they don’t by default keep you anonymous. You’d need to be doing a lot of other things along with the VPN to stay anonymous.

True enough. I'm sympathetic regarding not wanting to be tracked, but I can't get worked up over signing in when I play games on a console. Been doing that since 2004, and Halo 2 stats were super cool. Remember when we all scrambled to download those before they went away? But man, Microsoft has really got the goods on me. They know I played 3000 games and never got any better at multiplayer. How embarrassing!

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VPNs also help you stay anonymous.

I’m not sure how you specifically meant this, and it’s just me nitpicking, but I just wanted to point out that VPNs give you additional security, but they don’t by default keep you anonymous. You’d need to be doing a lot of other things along with the VPN to stay anonymous.

True enough. I'm sympathetic regarding not wanting to be tracked, but I can't get worked up over signing in when I play games on a console. Been doing that since 2004, and Halo 2 stats were super cool. Remember when we all scrambled to download those before they went away? But man, Microsoft has really got the goods on me. They know I played 3000 games and never got any better at multiplayer. How embarrassing!

Speaking of stats, Marathon has no post-game report that you can refer back to after you’ve exited the screen that shows what you extracted/failed to extract with. Bungie practically invented the way stats were displayed and stored with Halo 2, but that’s all just gone in Marathon. It would be cool to have, but they obviously have bigger problems right now.

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VPNs also help you stay anonymous.

I’m not sure how you specifically meant this, and it’s just me nitpicking, but I just wanted to point out that VPNs give you additional security, but they don’t by default keep you anonymous. You’d need to be doing a lot of other things along with the VPN to stay anonymous.

True enough. I'm sympathetic regarding not wanting to be tracked, but I can't get worked up over signing in when I play games on a console. Been doing that since 2004, and Halo 2 stats were super cool. Remember when we all scrambled to download those before they went away? But man, Microsoft has really got the goods on me. They know I played 3000 games and never got any better at multiplayer. How embarrassing!

Speaking of stats, Marathon has no post-game report that you can refer back to after you’ve exited the screen that shows what you extracted/failed to extract with. Bungie practically invented the way stats were displayed and stored with Halo 2, but that’s all just gone in Marathon. It would be cool to have, but they obviously have bigger problems right now.

Seems like an oversight, doesn't it? In my mind between Halo 3 and Reach, Bungie reached a peak with their quality of life features both built in and integrated with Bungie.net. To keep with the enshittification theme of this thread, when the platforms implemented similar functionality, it was never as good.

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Accounts are for tracking digital game purchases, and trophies right? I could very easily live without either.

Also needed for trust and safety enforcement. No accountability if there is no identity permanence and it is not connected to anything personal.

Why do we need this for offline splitscreen? Accountability is me looking at you and saying knock it off.

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Why do we need this for offline splitscreen? Accountability is me looking at you and saying knock it off.

Because they don't want the added complexity of a completely different path in the code for fully offline play. You are 100% entitled to find that inexcusably lazy/greedy, but it makes sense to me, even if I also dislike it.

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Accounts are for tracking digital game purchases, and trophies right? I could very easily live without either.

Also needed for trust and safety enforcement. No accountability if there is no identity permanence and it is not connected to anything personal.

Why do we need this for offline splitscreen? Accountability is me looking at you and saying knock it off.

We live in a time where you have to create an account for a new toilet.

Every game (console) requires an account. Even Switch. Don't get me started on trying to sync multiple controllers to a Switch. I'll create 100 accounts before having to deal with that nightmare.

You're choosing to stubbornly deprive yourself of fun over something that is now just a way of the world.

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Accounts are for tracking digital game purchases, and trophies right? I could very easily live without either.

Also needed for trust and safety enforcement. No accountability if there is no identity permanence and it is not connected to anything personal.

Why do we need this for offline splitscreen? Accountability is me looking at you and saying knock it off.

I didn't say we did. You were listing reasons accounts are needed and I added some you missed.

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#HaloCE is OFFICIALLY GOLD and Early Access begins on July 23.

Let's give our old friends a warm welcome: https://t.co/Y4s3pLKvWn pic.twitter.com/IjE7cGnNgH
— Halo (@Halo) July 13, 2026

I wonder how many layoffs will now occur.

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Aren’t most of them subcontractors?

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This time Cortana has better enunciation.

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I take it you've watched some of the cutscenes. What do you think? Although I like some of the original deliveries better, they're just what I'm used to. The cutscenes I've seen so far seem to take the material more seriously, and I like what they've added.

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I take it you've watched some of the cutscenes. What do you think?

It depends. Some miss the point entirely. I think Silent Cartographer is a downgrade in the cinematic language telling the story.

Here's another downgrade: In the original, "I think we're just getting started" has the camera pull back to show the fighter drifting in the vastness of space, slowly becoming a speck against the infinite cosmos. How will he get home? In Campaign Evolved? A close up where the MC takes off his helmet, then cuts to black. The music doesn't even get to finish. Completely ruins the emotional weight of the ending.

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I take it you've watched some of the cutscenes. What do you think?

It depends. Some miss the point entirely. I think Silent Cartographer is a downgrade in the cinematic language telling the story.

Here's another downgrade: In the original, "I think we're just getting started" has the camera pull back to show the fighter drifting in the vastness of space, slowly becoming a speck against the infinite cosmos. How will he get home? In Campaign Evolved? A close up where the MC takes off his helmet, then cuts to black. The music doesn't even get to finish. Completely ruins the emotional weight of the ending.

Haven't gotten that far. That's a shame.

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I take it you've watched some of the cutscenes. What do you think? Although I like some of the original deliveries better, they're just what I'm used to. The cutscenes I've seen so far seem to take the material more seriously, and I like what they've added.

I saw some very cool additions to the cutscenes. There’s probably some nostalgia-bias here, but I think the original deliveries were largely better. Some of the lines that have been added are intended to clarify the plot, but… “the last time…” was a line that sparked so much speculation and intrigue and most of that mystery is paved over. It’s like they put a location marker over all the plot points because they didn’t want us to explore and lose our way.

Also, Master Chief moves weird and looks odd just randomly pointing his gun and firing a few shots here and there in certain cutscenes.

Also, Cortana… they somehow managed to put more focus on her assets and pelvic region than before and the whole thing feels more male-gazey than other iterations.

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Also, Cortana… they somehow managed to put more focus on her assets and pelvic region than before and the whole thing feels more male-gazey than other iterations.

Reminds me of a meme I saw about how it was crazy ONI thought that for Miranda’s ceremony to honor her dad, it was ok to bring the guy who bashed his face in, and a hologram version of her naked mom.

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Also, Cortana… they somehow managed to put more focus on her assets and pelvic region than before and the whole thing feels more male-gazey than other iterations.

Reminds me of a meme I saw about how it was crazy ONI thought that for Miranda’s ceremony to honor her dad, it was ok to bring the guy who bashed his face in, and a hologram version of her naked mom.

Hadn’t thought about that. The Keys - Halsey relationship feels like fanfic to me. My headcanon won’t allow for its existence.

How weird would it be for the crew to have the captain yapping to a naked version of his baby-mamma all the time?

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I take it you've watched some of the cutscenes. What do you think? Although I like some of the original deliveries better, they're just what I'm used to. The cutscenes I've seen so far seem to take the material more seriously, and I like what they've added.

It's a bit of a mix, for me. I like a lot of the new stuff, but miss some of the old. The Assault on the Control Room cutscene where we deposit Cortana is great, I think. It's less . . . frantic, I guess, but it really sells her absorbing everything about Halo in a way it didn't before.

I'm more mixed on the opening scene. In the new version, Halo isn't in the background, it's on the other side of the planet. It makes for a cool reveal, as we see it for the first time while we're on the escape pod, and it goes a lot further to really sell the Autumn being under assault with all the extra guns firing, leaving tracers everywhere in the skybox.

The redesigned levels are great, though. They changed the interior of Truth and Reconciliation a bit. Likewise, Assault on the Control room layouts have been changed, so it feels a bit less like it's just the same rooms and hallways copy/pasted throughout the level. The Library is the best change (and I didn't even dislike The Library). Instead of using the elevator to go up, we start at the top and work our way down, deeper into the facility, and every level gets more Flood infested. The Flood is significantly overhauled, too. It's basically the Halo 3 Flood, with Juggernauts showing up occasionally (no snipers, though, thankfully), and bodies being infected in real time. The Guilty Spark level looks great and has great atomsphere. And overall the game is impressive looking. The lighting is all great, as are all the effects. Subtle bullet trails from the assault rifle, the way the plasma shots light the environment. The beach on Silent Cartographer is the best looking beach I've ever seen in a game; the way the waves roll into shore is top notch. And this is probably my favorite iteration of Master Chief ever, they really nailed the design.

There are some nitpicks. The aim assist/bullet magnetism is far too strong. It's so strong that hitting the hands of the Jackal through the little shield notch with the pistol is damn near impossible--the bullets all track straight to the body and impact the middle of the shield even if you're aiming right at the little notch. While annoying, it has made for a bit more interesting fights, as Jackals can be a real pain with easily being able to knock them from behind their shields.

Performance is also occasionally a problem. It's not super awful or super frequent, but it is noticeable when lots of enemies are on screen, especially in Two Betrayals in the bigger outside battles.

My biggest nitpick is also the dumbest, but I miss real time cutscenes that use the actual game state. In the original, I loved parking the Warthog next to the Pelican at the end of the level Halo, then throwing grenades at it right before the cutscene started to try and flip the Warthog onto the Pelican in the cutscene. And early in that level when you activate the light bridge. I always broke the glass under the control panel so that the Chief dropped like six inches when the scene started--it made me laugh.

Also sort of a silly nitpick is that all the ice is gone! Assault on the Control used to have ice everywhere, now it's all just snow and mud. No more sliding the Warthog around on the ice. ): Although, otherwise the Warthog feels really good to drive (after switching the controls to classic). 343i has never made the Warthog feel good, but they kindof nailed it here, even if it doesn't feel exactly like the original.

Overall, though, I'm actually really enjoying Campaign Evolved. It feels very good, it looks good, and it even sounds great. Probably the best sound design 343i has pulled off, and it even changes convincingly based on environment (shooting inside the caves sounds really cool).

EDIT: I was in Keyes when I typed all that up. I just finished the game. I played on Heroic. It's been like five years or so since I lasted played through the original game, so maybe I'm wrong, but Heroic felt very easy in Campaign Evolved. There are some tricky sections, but not many. The enemy AI doesn't seem as aggressive. I've seen people saying they're using the Reach AI and behaviors, but they don't seem as aggressive as that, either. The Flood especially don't seem to rush as much. They make up for it in numbers, though. Again, maybe I'm misremembering, but enemy density seems higher, which is neat.

The Warthog run was cool. They did a lot of environment design there--it feels pretty convincingly like driving through a crashed ship. The Maw in general was really great with the visual overhaul. All the windows are blown out, so the ship is filled with sand and dust.

I haven't played the new missions yet, but I'm eager to. I've come away liking this game quite a lot.

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I take it you've watched some of the cutscenes. What do you think? Although I like some of the original deliveries better, they're just what I'm used to. The cutscenes I've seen so far seem to take the material more seriously, and I like what they've added.

It's a bit of a mix, for me. I like a lot of the new stuff, but miss some of the old. The Assault on the Control Room cutscene where we deposit Cortana is great, I think. It's less . . . frantic, I guess, but it really sells her absorbing everything about Halo in a way it didn't before.

I'm more mixed on the opening scene. In the new version, Halo isn't in the background, it's on the other side of the planet. It makes for a cool reveal, as we see it for the first time while we're on the escape pod, and it goes a lot further to really sell the Autumn being under assault with all the extra guns firing, leaving tracers everywhere in the skybox.

The redesigned levels are great, though. They changed the interior of Truth and Reconciliation a bit. Likewise, Assault on the Control room layouts have been changed, so it feels a bit less like it's just the same rooms and hallways copy/pasted throughout the level. The Library is the best change (and I didn't even dislike The Library). Instead of using the elevator to go up, we start at the top and work our way down, deeper into the facility, and every level gets more Flood infested. The Flood is significantly overhauled, too. It's basically the Halo 3 Flood, with Juggernauts showing up occasionally (no snipers, though, thankfully), and bodies being infected in real time. The Guilty Spark level looks great and has great atomsphere. And overall the game is impressive looking. The lighting is all great, as are all the effects. Subtle bullet trails from the assault rifle, the way the plasma shots light the environment. The beach on Silent Cartographer is the best looking beach I've ever seen in a game; the way the waves roll into shore is top notch. And this is probably my favorite iteration of Master Chief ever, they really nailed the design.

There are some nitpicks. The aim assist/bullet magnetism is far too strong. It's so strong that hitting the hands of the Jackal through the little shield notch with the pistol is damn near impossible--the bullets all track straight to the body and impact the middle of the shield even if you're aiming right at the little notch. While annoying, it has made for a bit more interesting fights, as Jackals can be a real pain with easily being able to knock them from behind their shields.

THANK YOU! I wondered what the heck was going on. I was worried that my vision was finally gone.

Performance is also occasionally a problem. It's not super awful or super frequent, but it is noticeable when lots of enemies are on screen, especially in Two Betrayals in the bigger outside battles.

My biggest nitpick is also the dumbest, but I miss real time cutscenes that use the actual game state. In the original, I loved parking the Warthog next to the Pelican at the end of the level Halo, then throwing grenades at it right before the cutscene started to try and flip the Warthog onto the Pelican in the cutscene. And early in that level when you activate the light bridge. I always broke the glass under the control panel so that the Chief dropped like six inches when the scene started--it made me laugh.

Also sort of a silly nitpick is that all the ice is gone! Assault on the Control used to have ice everywhere, now it's all just snow and mud. No more sliding the Warthog around on the ice. ): Although, otherwise the Warthog feels really good to drive (after switching the controls to classic). 343i has never made the Warthog feel good, but they kindof nailed it here, even if it doesn't feel exactly like the original.

Overall, though, I'm actually really enjoying Campaign Evolved. It feels very good, it looks good, and it even sounds great. Probably the best sound design 343i has pulled off, and it even changes convincingly based on environment (shooting inside the caves sounds really cool).

EDIT: I was in Keyes when I typed all that up. I just finished the game. I played on Heroic. It's been like five years or so since I lasted played through the original game, so maybe I'm wrong, but Heroic felt very easy in Campaign Evolved. There are some tricky sections, but not many. The enemy AI doesn't seem as aggressive. I've seen people saying they're using the Reach AI and behaviors, but they don't seem as aggressive as that, either. The Flood especially don't seem to rush as much. They make up for it in numbers, though. Again, maybe I'm misremembering, but enemy density seems higher, which is neat.

The Warthog run was cool. They did a lot of environment design there--it feels pretty convincingly like driving through a crashed ship. The Maw in general was really great with the visual overhaul. All the windows are blown out, so the ship is filled with sand and dust.

I have some of your quibbles--although I didn't monkey with the cutscenes as much as you, but the one cheat in AotC I almost always used is gone: in the area where you first go underground with the tank, I would hold back with the tank to avoid triggering the banshee, and use a sniper scope in conjunction with a rocket launcher to knock the banshee off the high platform on the other side of the stage, then steal it, fly it underground to kill all those guys from the air, then on the other side fly to the far door and saunter through the spooky empty hallways and then to the control room. It made the level much shorter, but the result was Assault was probably my most played level BECAUSE I could knock it out pretty quickly.

I just played that level all the way through, and I gotta say, I haven't loved Halo this much in a long time. It was epic. I got stuck in several sections for a while, mainly because of oresources, and man, thank goodness for the plasma pistol. It reminded me that part of the fun of the game was how tactical it was. I was always asking myself, what is the best way to move forward here? I've had fun--especially when the muscle memory tactics didn't work like they used to.

Specifics: I agree with much of what you said about it technically. I think it looks and sounds great. I like what storable power-ups bring to the table. The MSG is better than I thought it would be. Dislikes: The elites speaking English. I know why they did this, and some of it is additive, but really, David Scully backwards was more evocative. Also, his new voice acting is as good as ever, but the way the character is animated breaks to fourth wall in a way I found annoying. I noticed some new music that I didn't like. I really don't understand why they thought THAT was needed.

Although I've yet to finish, I did watch the credits, and seeing Mig, Claude, and Brian Morden's name made me smile.

I haven't played the new missions yet, but I'm eager to. I've come away liking this game quite a lot.

Would love to play those with you once I finish.

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I just played that level all the way through, and I gotta say, I haven't loved Halo this much in a long time. It was epic. I got stuck in several sections for a while, mainly because of oresources, and man, thank goodness for the plasma pistol. It reminded me that part of the fun of the game was how tactical it was. I was always asking myself, what is the best way to move forward here? I've had fun--especially when the muscle memory tactics didn't work like they used to.

There's a part in Assault on the Control Room where you exit a building onto a bridge, and there are two Banshees parked there. As soon as you leave that building, two Elites make a dash for the Banshees, but if you're fast enough, you can grab one and skip the building and elevator on the other side and head straight for the Control Room.

That section was maybe the absolute toughest for me in my playthrough. It's fine if you don't try to go for the Banshees, but I spent like an hour right there trying to beat those Elites to one of them. Partly it's just that I didn't have much ammo for my weapons, but I think there's an extra pair of Elites standing around, and a bunch of Grunts with Needlers. I just couldn't get the Elite killed before he grabbed the Banshee while also avoiding all the extra enemies--they just killed me too fast. It was really fun to try and get that done.

Keyes was really fun, too. The really pack those hallways full of Flood in a way I don't remember them doing in the original. There was one hallway where I backed up around a corner, and I swear the Flood kept coming for like five minutes. It made me wonder if they were just set to infinitely spawn until I pushed forward, but they did eventually stop.

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The prerendered Cinematics in Halo Campaign Evolved are:

AVC
1080 x 832
Stereo Audio

WTF are you doing Halo Studios? It's 2026. Why are we not UHD, 5.1 or 7.1 surround, and HDR?

In game cinematics will always be king.

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The prerendered Cinematics in Halo Campaign Evolved are:

AVC
1080 x 832
Stereo Audio

WTF are you doing Halo Studios? It's 2026. Why are we not UHD, 5.1 or 7.1 surround, and HDR?

In game cinematics will always be king.

The audio on the files is blank… No music, no sfx. No voice, except for the occasional voice line. MOST are silent… but a few are there.

Why would they do it this way? So weird. Maybe we can get them in 5.1 after all. But no 4K.

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https://www.reddit.com/r/halo/comments/1v8hk9t/why_does_cortana_sound_so_bored/

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How does the new version of the "This cave is not a natural formation..." play out?

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How does the new version of the "This cave is not a natural formation..." play out?

We know for a fact Generative AI was used in Campaign Evolved. I will bet there is a non zero chance some of these crappy voice lines were synthesized.

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How does the new version of the "This cave is not a natural formation..." play out?

We know for a fact Generative AI was used in Campaign Evolved. I will bet there is a non zero chance some of these crappy voice lines were synthesized.

I seriously doubt that for the main cast. I don't think it's that bad. Sure, some lines don't come across as well, but I'm willing to bet that if we were used to the new version, and had not heard the old version, people would be saying what they were used to was superior.

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I seriously doubt that for the main cast. I don't think it's that bad. Sure, some lines don't come across as well, but I'm willing to bet that if we were used to the new version, and had not heard the old version, people would be saying what they were used to was superior.

Play the game through, then try to argue that.

It's worse. Straight up.

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It's worse. Straight up.

For the most part, I disagree. Now what?

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It's worse. Straight up.

For the most part, I disagree. Now what?

I guess a fight to the death.

Snipers on Boarding action, or Magnums on Hang em High?

Oh wait, no multiplayer!

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Oh wait, no multiplayer!

* no PvP. You can still duke it out on campaign maps. Warthog joust on the beach!

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I THINK this is the hippo? But Unreal Engine is doing so much smearing and blurring it might be a random line.

[image]

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Someone was nice enough to send me the game to get the cutscenes. But now it's time to unlink my made up MS Account, and either send the disc back, or send it to someone else who wants it.

It is not a faithful remake at all.

Legendary is completely different, and weapon balance is not the same at all. Legendary is comparable to Halo 2, as you are about as weak.

Every weapon has a longer delay before it become active after you swap.

The magnum has more magnetism, so you can n00b combo with the plasma pistol way easier.
The AR has half as many rounds, and can be used long range because you can zoom in with any weapon now.
Plasma Rifle no longer stunlocks and it sounds terrible, so its only use is on Sentinels.
Plasma Pistol is similar.
Needler feels like the Halo 2 version.
Shotgun range is nerfed, and audiovisual feedback is not as satisfying. Also mistakes like the MC cocking the shotgun after you place new shells in when there are still some inside (he should only cock after a shot, or after reloading from empty).
Rockets can lock on and track vehicles and turrets trivializing encounters.
You can use the Sword, SMG, Beam Rifle, Needle Rifle, and Sentinel Beam.
Sword Lunge is reduced significantly over Halo 2 (probably to prevent sword flying), and will 1 shot hunters to the back on Legendary.
The Sentinel beam is very good at killing elites.

The game breaks a lot of rules:

Sticking an elite no longer guarantees a kill. Red Elites can survive being stuck on Legendary.
Vehicle and passenger healthbars are not shown, even though the values are still used.
Carrier forms do not have physics when they explode, so the insanity of chain reactions flinging carrier forms everywhere no longer occurs.
Popcorn flood do not chain react beyond one extra pop anymore. As a result, they hang around longer and are harder to get rid of.
Knocking over a turret onto an enemy is no longer an instakill.
Powerups are activated by the player, not when you pick them up.
Flood can have shields, even the ones that are human form.
There are no health packs, and your heath fully recharges.
Covenant vehicles do not obey OG physics, and the warthog control scheme is awful unless you change it back to classic.
Magnum bullet magnetism is off, so good luck trying to hit a Jackal's hands from a distance. The shots will be pulled to the shield's center.

Tons of encounters are completely different because of the new sandbox. Too numerous to list.

Performance is terrible on PS5. The last three levels struggle during large Covenant / Flood battles. Instead of dropping the framerate, the game runs the animations at what look like 1/4 speed, so projectiles, and enemies stutter through the air. It looks horrendous. Foe Hammer's ship looks like it's teleporting during the Maw Run. It's not excusable that a 25 year old game can't run at 60fps on hardware 100s of times more powerful than the original target. Insanity.

Silent Cartographer and AotCR look very bad. Unstable visuals on reflections of forrunner floor and walls, and the snow effect in the bridges does not work at all.

Invisible walls everywhere where the OG had none. Numerous hand holdy audio lines added because they think we are stupid. Levels often redesigned, for instance making the armory necessary to go through in order to get to the engine room (and the engine doesn't have shutters anymore, so you don't have to time your grenade or rocket).

Cortana's voice acting is horrendous, and she sounds bored the whole time. I do not blame the actor, I blame whoever directed her.

It is not a campaign evolved. Sad this will be the way some people experience Halo for the first time, especially with regards to the story presentation.

DBO Forums

Have a PS5 Pro and live near LA? (Gaming)

Wouldn't a PC work too? Or a Series X?

Wouldn't a PC work too? Or a Series X?

You Blew it Halo Studios

You Blew it Halo Studios

Nevermind

Nevermind

Nevermind

Nevermind

Nevermind

Nevermind

Nevermind

Nevermind

Nevermind

Nevermind

Nevermind

Nevermind

Nevermind

Nevermind

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I was dumb enough ...

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

For the record...

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

I mean, I get it too

Nevermind

Nevermind

Nevermind

Nevermind

Gold

Gold

RIP Dustin Echoes

RIP Dustin Echoes

RIP Dustin Echoes

RIP Dustin Echoes

Halo CE Is Not Canon 😊

Halo CE Is Not Canon 😊

Lol

RIP Dustin Echoes

But is there a flamethrower?

RIP Dustin Echoes

RIP Dustin Echoes

I took a peek at the game files

So Weird

Is all the new VO this bad?

Is all the new VO this bad?