With the HCS season now underway, I wanted to drop in and provide a few updates on some things including game settings, broadcast scheduling, LATAM age requirements, and several gameplay issues that are under investigation. Let’s just jump right in!
Roster Locks and Team Passes
As a reminder, roster locks for group play at New Orleans are on Monday, July 2, 6:00PM EDT. Rosters must filled in the MLG team builder. Once rosters are locked, we’ll be drawing groups and announcing the results shortly after.
Also, you definitely don’t want to wait to buy your team passes for New Orleans as it’s required for all teams including those in group play. Passes will not be sold at the door and rosters for open teams must be completed in the MLG team building by July 9, 6:00PM EDT
More info and passes are at Halo.gg/NewOrleans2018
Online Broadcast Schedule Change
When we announced all of the online tournament dates and broadcasts, there was originally a broadcast scheduled for next Tuesday,July 3. This broadcast has now been moved to September 4. What does that mean for this weekend’s 2k? Rather than the North American tournament being played until the semifinals, the entire tournament will now be played.
We’ve got some fun ideas cooking for the broadcasts this season, especially for the show matches. If there are some matches you’d be interested in seeing, be sure to let me know on Twitter.
Mexico Age Limit
Last season, the age limit to compete in online tournaments in LATAM (Mexico and South America ) was 18. The age limit for HaloWC 2018 Mexico City however was 16. With South America unfortunately not in competition this season and after further consulting with both US and LATAM legal teams, the age limit for LATAM (Mexico) competition this season is now 16. This change is effective immediately for online ladders and tournaments.
Oddball Melee Glitch
It was recently brought to our attention that a melee glitch with the Oddball has been discovered which allows players to kill another player with full shields (and even some Overshield) with just one swing. During initial Oddball testing, one swing was all that was required but that was changed to two based on player feedback – so this glitch is definitely behavior that is not desired. The cause of the glitch is being investigated by the team here at 343 but use of this glitch in tournament play (ladders, 2ks, LAN events) is banned completely. Use of this glitch will result in immediate game forfeiture.
Fissure Oddball Fix
The all-new Forge map Fissure has gone through many iterations and testing, and it was just recently brought to our attention this week that the Oddball could be trapped in a certain place top middle where no one would be able to pick it up. This is now fixed and is live in the Official HCS fileshare, matchmaking, and custom game listing.
Oddball Length and CTF Refuge
After receiving reports from players and reviewing matchmaking data (Champion skill range), as well as team scrim and 2k data extensively – a couple issues have been spotted with Oddball and CTF Refuge. We’re hoping to address these in time for New Orleans but here’s a look at what we’ve found:
That’s all the news I’ve got for today! Be sure to keep it locked to Halo.gg and @HCS on Twitter for all the latest – be sure to also hit me up on @Tashi343i if you’ve got any questions. See you soon!
-Tashi
Roster Locks and Team Passes
As a reminder, roster locks for group play at New Orleans are on Monday, July 2, 6:00PM EDT. Rosters must filled in the MLG team builder. Once rosters are locked, we’ll be drawing groups and announcing the results shortly after.
Also, you definitely don’t want to wait to buy your team passes for New Orleans as it’s required for all teams including those in group play. Passes will not be sold at the door and rosters for open teams must be completed in the MLG team building by July 9, 6:00PM EDT
More info and passes are at Halo.gg/NewOrleans2018
Online Broadcast Schedule Change
When we announced all of the online tournament dates and broadcasts, there was originally a broadcast scheduled for next Tuesday,July 3. This broadcast has now been moved to September 4. What does that mean for this weekend’s 2k? Rather than the North American tournament being played until the semifinals, the entire tournament will now be played.
We’ve got some fun ideas cooking for the broadcasts this season, especially for the show matches. If there are some matches you’d be interested in seeing, be sure to let me know on Twitter.
Mexico Age Limit
Last season, the age limit to compete in online tournaments in LATAM (Mexico and South America ) was 18. The age limit for HaloWC 2018 Mexico City however was 16. With South America unfortunately not in competition this season and after further consulting with both US and LATAM legal teams, the age limit for LATAM (Mexico) competition this season is now 16. This change is effective immediately for online ladders and tournaments.
Oddball Melee Glitch
It was recently brought to our attention that a melee glitch with the Oddball has been discovered which allows players to kill another player with full shields (and even some Overshield) with just one swing. During initial Oddball testing, one swing was all that was required but that was changed to two based on player feedback – so this glitch is definitely behavior that is not desired. The cause of the glitch is being investigated by the team here at 343 but use of this glitch in tournament play (ladders, 2ks, LAN events) is banned completely. Use of this glitch will result in immediate game forfeiture.
Fissure Oddball Fix
The all-new Forge map Fissure has gone through many iterations and testing, and it was just recently brought to our attention this week that the Oddball could be trapped in a certain place top middle where no one would be able to pick it up. This is now fixed and is live in the Official HCS fileshare, matchmaking, and custom game listing.
Oddball Length and CTF Refuge
After receiving reports from players and reviewing matchmaking data (Champion skill range), as well as team scrim and 2k data extensively – a couple issues have been spotted with Oddball and CTF Refuge. We’re hoping to address these in time for New Orleans but here’s a look at what we’ve found:
- Oddball – With the score limit being 200 points, Oddball matches on average are either ending due to hitting the time limit (12 minutes) or by around 10 minutes. For comparison, all Strongholds, Slayer, and CTF matches (except for Refuge, I’ll get to that next) end after around 7 minutes. This is quite the difference and I’m sure you’ve experienced this quite often if you’ve been playing.
- CTF Refuge – This gametype has similar symptoms to Oddball – matches are either ending due to hitting the 12 minute time limit or running over 10 minutes long if a team gets three flag caps on average. This gametype is actually performing worse than Fathom CTF in these areas. Addressing this issue is perhaps not as straight forward as Oddball but we’re investigating options.
That’s all the news I’ve got for today! Be sure to keep it locked to Halo.gg and @HCS on Twitter for all the latest – be sure to also hit me up on @Tashi343i if you’ve got any questions. See you soon!
-Tashi