Why Halo doesn't have iron-sights

343 Industries talks about keeping the spirit of Halo in tact, using (the lack of) iron-sights as an example of the series legacy.

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Now that 343 Industries has assumed control of the Halo franchise, the company has weighed what design decisions are fundamental to the series DNA. Among them is the lack of iron-sights for weapons, which came to represent the idea of change and legacy in general in a recent interview.

"So it's really 'What is appropriate for your game, and what is appropriate for your encounters?'," said 343's Frank O'Connor. "Halo has these slightly longer, more strategic encounters."

Comparing the series to Call of Duty's shorter encounters, O'Connor talked about the feel of Halo compared to other modern first-person shooters. "Halo has a different pace in encounters and if a good player comes up behind me and starts shooting, I've got a small chance of turning that encounter around," he told AusGamers. "I'll probably still get killed because I’m pretty bad, but it does have a different pace and it does have a bigger sandbox and I think that’s what makes Halo Halo.

"I think we could add iron-sights and we could make the encounters shorter and all of that stuff, but the soul of what makes Halo and the soul of what keeps people coming back to it year after year is what’s at its heart and it's that kind of encounter and that kind of sandbox experience and the sci-fi universe that it exists in."

Chad Armstrong added that putting in iron-sights would be checking a "bullet-point," but it would "require a lot of testing and a lot of user-research to figure it out." All the same, Armstrong says it's important to occasionally look at the project with fresh eyes and consider new things.

It's no surprise that Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary is going to hew close to classic Halo. In its case, that's the entire point. But these comments could serve as insight for Halo 4, and we still have no indication of how far it will stray from the series roots. Former game director Ryan Payton recently said he wanted to build a Halo 4 that was fundamentally different; but we can probably expect the game to be recognizable for long-term fans.

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From The Chatty
  • reply
    October 11, 2011 8:00 AM

    Steve Watts posted a new article, Why Halo doesn't have iron-sights.

    343 Industries talks about keeping the spirit of Halo in tact, using (the lack of) iron-sights as an example of the series legacy.

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      October 11, 2011 8:04 AM

      Why would a futuristic shooter have iron sights?

      I love my guns, and I love my iron sights, but I can't believe that there will be a point in time when iron sights will go the way of the dodo.

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        October 11, 2011 8:09 AM

        The books explain that they all have their aiming reticules synced up with their HUDs, so they wouldn't need to use them anyway. At least the Spartans do, I don't know about the Marines.

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        October 11, 2011 8:11 AM

        in the future everybody will shoot from the hip?

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          October 11, 2011 10:26 AM

          They will shoot from the hip because they can aim from the hip.

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            October 11, 2011 11:32 AM

            That must be why the sniper rifle requires the scope and aiming and is never a smooth and steady shot. And why every gun has uncontrollable recoil.

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          October 11, 2011 12:07 PM

          In the future nobody gives a shit because its just a game and it isn't supposed to be real. Oh wait, that's right now

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      October 11, 2011 8:23 AM

      Fuck halo. Iron sights adds a realism, a generic sifi shooter needs no realism factor.

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      October 11, 2011 8:26 AM

      Halo and sandbox just seem so funny in the same sentence.

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      October 11, 2011 10:05 AM

      That was painful to read. The guy is a bloody idiot. But what can you expect from someone on a Halo project.

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      October 11, 2011 8:04 PM

      I hate the lack of sights :( Makes the game feel dated imo.

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      October 12, 2011 12:56 PM

      Some games iron sites just dont belong. One of those would be games that have guns with terrible iron sites. Like almost every single borderlands gun.

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