so we gonna see you at the next lan on the 26th then?

I'm sorry nick. I can't agree with any of your points. Encounters were not random. When the game hit it's groove, as in when players had a better understanding of map and weapons, and were able to decide what armour abilities/loadouts were best suited and when, the encounters were anything but random.

The situations you complained about with the armour abilities & loadouts did exist, but fortunately all of them can be countered by team work, and just plain cleverness. Controlling power weapons has always been an aspect of the game, and there have always been campers.

General opinions of a lot of my friends, from the regular Halo players, to die-hard COD fans, give Reach the thumbs up and you are in the minority my friend. It's just a shame that your frustration with your 7 games have blinded you to something I think you would enjoy quite a lot. I hope that you will one day chalk it up to the Beta, hire out Reach at some future date and give it a real try.

Radar Jammer:
From the plethora of objective games I played in the beta I can say that camo was hardly ever used let alone effectively by either the defensive or attacking team in CTF also it is too short lasting when crouch walking to be over powered. The radar jammer actually gives away your general position leaving you open to the much more powerful grenade damage in Halo Reach. I found this to be the easiest armour ability to counter as such.

Btw from what I saw the most commonly used abilities in CTF matches seemed to be armour lock (for returning the flag) jetpack and sprint.

Sprint:
This ability isn't over powered at all. You're easy to see, no special shielding, no camo - really my favourite ability too. In terms of being able to get to a contested objective or power weapons quickly this is the best option.

Armour Lock:
The only over powered armour ability IMO. Not due to slowing gameplay in terms of kills... after learning of the EMP blast it gives off I stayed back from them and naded them at the time I expected their lock to end = easy kills. Where this WAS over powered was in relation to returning the flag. I did request (via the beta feedback forum) that Bungie either lengthen flag return times or shorten the armour lock period as currently they are too close to each other in duration. It was evident that upon doing the hard work of getting the flag out of the base it was too easy for the defending team to return the flag by having a guy sit on it with armour lock activated.

Jet Packs:
You're flying / sitting duck at the same time so hardly over powered.

Lastly re: Halo 3 vs Reach. I don't for a second doubt a large number of Halo 3 players will remain playing Halo 3 rather than play Reach. They probably also don't like the very different MP game Bungie have developed in Reach. The engine isn't the same, the gameplay isn't the same and the whole rank system is overhauled. If you enjoyed Halo 2 and 3 I doubt this would wet the appetite as it's nothing like either of those games.... combining elements of Halo CE (single wielding, fall damage, health packs, shield system etc) with completely new elements and weapons.

I like both games personally. Halo 3 is good fun (when you're not lagging like a SOB) and Reach is so refreshingly different. I wouldn't want to buy another rehash of Halo 3 MP though as there is one already in this current hardware generation. Halo Reach has expanded my Halo MP options to two distinctly different FPS games now and for that I'm very grateful.

Most of the Halo CE fans I know love the return of so much of the Halo CE way of doing things in Halo Reach. I was just elated that my biggest concern (about the single shot accuracy based weapons) was not a problem at all.

As for MLG guys struggling with Reach - lol great!!! I'm sure they are. 6yrs and 2 games worth of very similar game engine / mechanic and now this. I'm betting most will give up or keep a Halo 3 based MLG competition going in preference.

On the topic of Armour Lock, Bungie said in a recent Weekly Update that they'll be tweaking it so it's not so overpowered.

On Nick's topic, I thought the beta was fun and will be another big seller for Halo: Reach. Loadouts featuring armour abilities and different weapons causes a different style of gameplay, especially in the first seconds of a match when grabbing weapons. A co-ordinated team can have one player with jetpack grab a weapon up high while another with Sprint grab something else. No offense to you Nick and I know that I've said it before, but you're a bit negative on things, especially when it comes to Reach, but I know it's only because you want a great result from it. Just like everyone. I've learned to accept decisions made and find fun out of it no matter how crap the gameplay might be. For the record I don't think the gameplay is crap, I liked the beta.

I love how you guys bag on MLG guys who honestly now a lot more about the gameplay of the Halo games then any of us.

I played quite a bit of Reach at a friend's house because my internet was dropping out every few minutes due to a fault that still hasn't been resolved so I can only game when at friends.

COD is rubbish hence why it failed in MLG and was removed from events.

I find CoD fun while it doesn't have to be a competitive game to be a fun game. If you see what I'm saying.

MLG guys know alot more of a specialised variant of the gameplay of Halo. Hence they are always asking for MLG style maps and MLG weapon layouts. If you look at both the Halo 2 and Halo 3 MLG competitions they only ever used a small portion of the total Halo MP maps available. Mostly never playing on maps big enough to support vehicles and vehicle based strategy. If I was to draw an analogy MLG players are playing Halo MP in such a specialised way it's like playing Monopoly but only using 1/4 of the board.

I respect the skills of MLG guys with two weapons (cos that's really what they commonly use with superior proficiency) Sniper and BR / Carbine. I respect their dedication to the handful of maps they play MLG games on means they know abbreviated call outs for every location. But should they ever have a say in Halo Reach game development or any other Halo game? = no.

MLG hardcore competition players equate to about 1/30th of the total Halo playing / copy owning community (and that is being generous). I really can't see how MLG should even be at the forefront of consideration for Bungie when developing a game. No minority, specialist group, operating for their own financial gain (not part of Bungie) should have a say in the development criteria for a new game. For the vast majority of players it's about something new, something fun, playing with mates - not about being elitist or "pro".

Many of Bungies longest and greatest supporters have never and will never have anything to do with serious MLG competition style Halo. So in short I respect competition MLG players skills in their chosen variant but I don't think for a second that they deserve a big say in how a game designed for broader appeal, than Halo 2 and 3, should be made. Xbox 360 has Halo 3 (Halo 2 clone minus glitches) so if they prefer that keep playing it.

You talk like an MLG player, you act like an MLG player, yet you constantly bitch about social slayer? what gives?

Stop being such a pessimist, you play a couple games of an unfinished product on the default settings and wonder why the game is cheap. Do you actually like games? I've only ever heard negative comments from you.

That would have made sense if you said I bitched about MLG where getting balanced teams is more difficult and lag plays a larger role due to increased damage and speed.Bungie said the same thing about the Halo 3 Beta and they didn't change a hell of a lot in the final game.Because the Halo games are slipping, by the time 343 is through with the franchise it'll be just another shallow COD style game.

Halo: Combat Devolved.

Nic... The world loves Halo and COD.... What do you want to play then... It's sure not what the majority wants...