45 replies to this topic

[Unikraken]

I've just contacted Kawassass00, the gentleman who did our new win/lose screens, about possibly helping us update/improve our player portraits. The big question I have is whether or not we should include known characters from the Halo universe. Our previous stance on this was that we kept the characters generic so that the player could become the admiral/fleetmaster rather than the player taking over a known character with defined behaviors and actions within the lore, which can impact player decisions (everyone loves to role-play).

 

However, as the team has grown this position isn't as monolithic anymore. This is the kind of issue that the community can have a say in and it not affect the health of the mod if you choose a less favorable outcome, so I thought it best to create a poll. You will need to create an account to vote, but account creation is fast and easy. Voting will help us make the decision, so it's very important you participate if you'd rather we not do a particular thing.

 

If you're not familiar with Kawassass00's work, take a look at his deviantArt page here: http://kawassass00.deviantart.com/

 

After you vote feel free to comment below with your own suggestions about characters to include or remove (including something more generic like "make more admirals that are not white males"), likes on those comments or agreeing comments will bolster the likelihood of us taking the post into consideration.

 

I think we have a lot of room for improvement here and I'd like you to help us figure out the best way to continue.

[Aunt Gruntie]

The pickup is the best portrait. Also I always liked the ones we have, though if someone's willing to add more that'd be swell.

[HTRK74JR]

Obviously we need more portraits, maybe you guys should try and get a spartan or two

[Cole Protocol]

Obviously we need more portraits, maybe you guys should try and get a spartan or two

Only problem there is that they would not know the first thing about piloting a ship. None the less leading a entire detachment of the Navy. But who knows, up to the community as a whole to decide that.

[Unikraken]

Obviously we need more portraits, maybe you guys should try and get a spartan or two

Why would a spartan be in charge of a fleet or large section of space? Come up with solid reasoning I can accept and we'll do it.

 

It's very important to remember this is a spaceship game.

[TwitchyFireStick]

Maybe, and I say maybe, you don't need "solid" reasoning? Who wouldn't like to be the all-powerful spartan managing fleets and assault planets?

I'd like it, i'm not everyone though, but I do see the "issue" as more of a "fashion-statement" than anything else, in the end, your portrait doesn't matter in any way but how you come across to the other races or any other players..

 

You might ask the same question with the truck, why would a truck be capable of leading fleets and advanced machinery? Is it a super-truck? Is it Admiral Truck?

I'm not trying to sound condescending or anything, I'm just trying to get my spartan-portrait because I'd like the idea :3

[Unikraken]

Regardless of the poll outcome, the truck won't be surviving this update.

[DrummDragon]

 Why would a Spartan be in charge of a fleet? Well, they could be a Spartan who physically washed out during the augmentation process; you should include portraits of Admirals in wheelchairs for starters. This would be a good thing to do anyways, physically challenged people don't always get enough representation in games as it stands.

 

 

I think you should include historical portraits. This will allow people to get more into the role playing experience if they so choose. For instance, if I'm setting up a game type that re-creates the re-taking of Harvest, I might want to role play as Admiral Preston Cole, and a portrait would help that. Besides, who doesn't want a protocol named after them. 

[chiefship]

I think maybe adding admiral Parangosky or Admiral Osman would be a great idea as they are the heads of ONI and they would fit perfectly in the game .

[Fleet Admiral agigabyte]

  Besides, who doesn't want a protocol named after them. 

 

I know someone who does want one named after him...

[TwitchyFireStick]

Regardless of the poll outcome, the truck won't be surviving this update.

But.. but.. Admiral Truck is going!?

[Defender0]

Id like to see some AI for the UNSC at least. The AI serina was in charge of a lot of things on the spirit of fire, including giving orders. Is it not impossible that an AI would be given, at the very least, a supporting position in commanding and coordinating a fleet?

[Inferius707]

The closest a Spartan got to command was Kurt Trevelyan wasn't it? He was a Lieutenant Commander when he died if I remember right. Commanding a fleet isn't the same as a training camp though. I could foresee a Spartan commanding ground bases but never really a fleet. I do like the idea of Spartan "washouts" being included. Especially Osman.

[Zero]

No historic figures. There was like two at any given moment that knew how to command a ship (Jacob, Miranda) and only Lord Hood was in a position to command a fleet. Fans are going to beg for Spartans and everything else but it doesn't make sense logically to put these figures in the game.

 

Besides the only ones I could remotely think of would be Cole, Hood, Parangosky and Osman, which would fill a roster, but none of them were in their status at the same time as the mod except Parangosky and maybe Hood.

[Jaeger]

I was thinking an Admiral in a office on a SMAC station overlooking Earth or Reach with other SMACS and UNSC ships seeabe throught the window behind the admiral. Also maybe make it female admiral since you rarely see women in game in high ranks like a fleet admiral or general.

[Scorpii]

Truck is love. Truck is life

 

Aside from the joking, I think some racial diversity would be beneficial other than the generic white man or woman.

 

Also I wouldn't like adding popular historical characters from the games into the portraits. Maybe some less known characters

[Unikraken]

Fans are going to beg for Spartans and everything else but it doesn't make sense logically to put these figures in the game.

I really do value your opinion as a fellow mod dev who has to deal with stuff like this. We spend a lot of time telling the fans no. You know how we are about our vision for the mod, but this is one area I don't think really breaks immersion that much. We can have a collection of generic admirals, and if we choose to do so, a handful of popular characters from the series. Off all the things we could give the fans that isn't a serious part of the vision we're creating, this is it. If we ever gave an inch, it would be on player portraits. A few less serious portraits, I don't think, would do us a great disservice, but I'm always willing to hear out any arguments to the counter.

[theselfescaping]

The generic feel of the current portraits allows the player to imagine themselves more in the role, but I think the lack of recognition in the portraits can also be a disconnect. It's unfortunate that the game code presumably doesn't allow for animated portraits like StarCraft.

 

In any case, I think it would be nice if at least some of the portraits were updated, and newer portraits to have more gender and ethnic heterogeneity. I understand not wanting titular character player portraits for canonical reasons, but a lot of people do seem to want them, so it could make the overall experience more fun too.

[ElOscar24]

Ackerson and Sav Fel would probably make good portrait additions. Or maybe some Flood pictures like a Gravemind.

[WarthogRacingMan3]

I want to see a mix of famous Halo characters and generic ones. Some suggestions: Lord Hood, Ur Didact, Iso Didact and 2401 Penitent Tangent.