Yes, I Am Part of the Problem: Ponying Up $24.99 for the Arena REQ Bundle

Beginning February 16, Halo 5: Guardians is offering a new Arena REQ Bundle on Xbox Live for $24.99. And while reading comments to any announcement of the offer is met with an internet's worth of vitriol and condemnation, I will confess I am the kind of person that will buy it.

So REQs were one of the newer features to Halo 5 (see link for more detailed explanation). They are virtual "cards" that add features to your Halo 5 gameplay. They fall into a number of categories including permanent unlocks like armor customization (helmets, armor and visors), weapons skins, assassination animations, profile stances, and Warzone weapon loadouts. There are also consumable REQs such as weapons and vehicles for Warzone use and boosts that add to potential XP or RP payouts increasing Spartan Rank and Requisition Points respectively.

To me, the REQ system succeeds primarily in two areas: 1) while the Warzone REQs can be extremely powerful and ultimately game-changing, Arena is ALWAYS an even play field and 2) REQ packs can be obtained through gameplay REQ point accumulation.

The first area has always been a reason why I have preferred Halo over things like COD, RSV, or Titanfall more recently. Those games rewards you for experience and play and so the more you play, arguably, the better you are. In addition to that, those that need the least advantage get an even greater advantage by starting with better equipment/weapons than the noob. A game in Arena, everyone has starts exactly the same and success is entirely determined on how well a person does that game, not how many games they played before it.

The second area is especially nice because it creates a natural incentive to play. The more you play, the more you can unlock. Accordingly, a player would not have to spend a single dollar beyond initial purchase of Halo 5 to access the same content as the person who purchases REQs using real world virtual money. The cost of a Gold REQ pack is 10,000 Requisition Points. I find a fairly long night of gaming (a few hours) is about right to unlock a new pack's worth of points. I usually use the 10,000 benchmark as a goal for the night and call it quits after opening up a new pack.

I purchased the Warzone REQ Bundle when the game launched. Every week, I would get to open two new REQ packs with some great Warzone equipment. Of course, I do not really play Warzone that much and when I originally bought the game, I did not really understand what REQs were. Actually, I didn't fully understand Warzone until the game was released. That said, the Arena REQ Bundle are unlockables that are STRICTLY cosmetic.

I know. Armor, helmets, assassination animations, and weapon skins that provide no gameplay difference mean I am playing "dress up" with my Spartan. And you know what, I love it. What can I say? Ever since Halo 2, I have played with more or less the same Spartan type -- brown armor, some variation of the yellow lightning bolt against the forest green background. I can't wait to order the 3D-printed collectible once I decide on my favorite armor and helmet.

The Art of Ori: My Gaming Moment of the Young Year

By most accounts, Ori and the Blind Forest was a standout title on the Xbox One in 2015. I downloaded the game fairly early on, but the game did not grab me immediately. Sure, Ori is a pretty game -- detailed, colorful animation reminiscent of the recent Rayman platformers that I love but with even greater depth. I found Ori's soundtrack and story to be mysterious and eerie and wonderfully complementary to the visual style. But the self-described "Metroidvania" characteristics of mixed genres proved an early barrier for me. I usually prefer linear action so I don't "waste" time not doing anything but wandering. Knowing there were inaccessible areas brought more frustration than determination to return.

But after seeing Ori make as many Games of the Year lists as it did, I decided to revisit the title. What happened was nothing short of reaffirming my convictions that games can be art.

WARNING: MINOR GAMEPLAY AND STORY SPOILERS TO FOLLOW

Some context is appropriate to understand and appreciate fully the video sequence. Ori, as best I understand (having not yet completed the game), is the player's character, a forest spirit tasked with survival and saving the Blind Forest. Here, Ori has cleansed the waters that will once again refill the Ginso Tree. In the process, Ori must escape the quickly filling tree.

While I think the controls are not as tight as Rayman, the platforming elements of Ori require fairly precise manipulation. At this point in the game, Ori can double jump, wall climb, and more recently, bash. The bash move was one that I have not had much (if any experience with). The bash ("Y") features prominently in the escape from Ginso Tree, from the earliest moments to the last of action. Finding an enemy or light to "latch" to, the gamer presses "Y" and a directional arrow appears. Manipulating the left stick opposite the direction you want to go determines the arrow's direction. For example, to bash upwards and towards the right, the gamer presses "Y", aims the left stick downwards and towards the left to the desired direction, and releases "Y."

The section is tricky. It took me over an hour to complete the 90-second or so sequence. A quick search for Ginso Tree and Ori will return a number of hits about rage quitting. While I appreciate the challenge, and again compare Ori to Rayman and what I have always described as the very visceral learning curve of improvement, the greatest drawback to the challenge during this part of the game is its dampening effect to the enthusiasm of the moment.

But the moment itself is awesome. The music excites and escalates the tension. The raging waters, though refreshing in its vitality, churn and increase as silhouetted detritus vanishes under the water's dangerous power. I gripped the controller that much tighter because of the pressure of limited time and tricky maneuvering. I sensed well after completion not only sheer joy at the accomplishment but also the still-increased heart rate from what Ori made me feel. Ori is a pretty special game and stands as a great example of why I love playing.