On Thursday, the Warzone Firefight Beta for Halo 5 was opened to the public. Many of us here at Rectify Gaming, including myself, got to play this diverse new game mode. So here is our impressions.
Playing Warzone Firefight was the best time I had since playing Halo 5. I have spent many hours playing with my friends and we all had a blast. Trust me, there are some problems with Warzone Firefight, but I will get to that in a minute. Just some basic information first; Warzone Firefight is in a Beta, and wont be coming out until Summer. So everything about Warzone Firefight that I explain or talk about might change.
Objectives
In Warzone Firefight, you and 7 other Spartans will be put into a Warzone map to complete objectives-while killing AI’s. So far, the only Warzone map available to play on in the Beta was Escape From A.R.C, but all Warzone maps will be available to play Firefight on in later updates. There are only 3 objectives so far, but that might change. These objectives are hunt, boss elimination, and defend the base-not officially named. The main goal of Warzone Firefight is to complete 5 rounds, with 1 objective each, but the rounds are timed, so make sure to use your time wisely. If you complete a round, you will have 30 second intermissions to prepare for the next one.

In hunt, you and the rest of your group have to eliminate a certain number of certain AI’s. The AI’s can range from covenant Grunts-to promethean Knights. Depending on the AI, the number of how many AI’s you will have to kill can vary. Grunts take about 75 kills, while Knights take 15. Oh, and its not only land AI’s you have to worry about, but promethean Phaetons, and Banshees will also take an appearance here, so there is some diversity of AI’s to kill. The AI’s will also have some backup with them usually (grunts don’t have any), and they will be an obstacle if you want to kill that last crawler. I like the idea of having to find your enemies in a Warzone map, while worrying about not getting killed. Its doesn’t tell you “here, kill everything you see”, but instead makes you have to find the right type of AI. Hunt will usually show up between round 1-4.

Boss elimination is the next challenge to do. Not only do you have to kill 1-4 bosses, but they also have backup by their side. In order to take these guys out, you have to get through the waves of backup first. Trust me, I have died many times trying to even get a shot at the bosses. The bosses can vary, from Ghost Marauders, Serpent Hunters, Tankmaster Rok, and more. Usually there are 2 land bosses, or 2-4 vehicle bosses such as banshees, Phaetons, and more.

This is also when reqs will start being very useful, and needed. In the beginning 2 rounds, you don’t have to use reqs yet. Your beginning weapons can keep you alive, and get kills. It is faster, and helpful to use reqs early, but that’s your choice, but in round 3, that’s when the difficulty increases a lot. More, stronger enemies will spawn. And trust me, that’s enough to make you use your reqs. They will clump up and charge for you if you’re not careful, especially with bosses. Weapons and vehicles will TRAMTICALLY increase your chances of survival. And help you decrease the health on bosses, and time. Make sure to use the right reqs though, you don’t want to use a sniper to kill a Phaeton. So make sure you, and your team are using the right reqs for the right problem.


Boss elimination is also the last round that you have to do. On round 5 legendary bosses will appear. Your team will have to take out these bosses, after that a new type of boss called mythic bosses will spawn in. So far, mythic bosses are only “stronger” versions of  current bosses, such as the Warden Eternal, and Hunter Elders. Mythic Warden Eternal will spawn a couple seconds later after 2 other Warden Eternals, and Hunter Elders will spawn in a group of 4. So far these are the only mythic bosses, but I’m sure more bosses will become “mythic” status. After killing the last of the bosses you win the match. And if its a mythic or even legendary boss, you will need everyone on your team to fight them off. Boss elimination can be on any round, but it is always on round 5.


Defend the base is by far the hardest objective to do. Boss elimination is hard, especially on round 5, but this objective is where my team has lost the most. Defend the base is just what is sounds like, defend the base from enemy AI’s. Just like defending the base in Warzone Assault, but its a bit different. You have to kill 100 AI’s before the timer runs out, if they capture the base you loose. Prometheans will start spawning inside, and outside the base. So if you kill all the AI’s that spawned inside, more will come from the outside. At first its moderately easy to kill all the crawlers and soldiers, but  later in the round the AI’s will start being more aggressive, and spawn in with more, and better AI’s. This is when your team will start dyeing. If all of your team dies (which has happened to us multiple times), they will spawn a little ways away from the base, and remember AI’s will also spawn outside so you cant just run inside. Even cloaking wont work, Crawlers can see right through you. The best strategy on winning is to kill the Crawlers first, since they are the easiest to kill. And have at least 2 people inside the base at all times. Defend the base almost always starts on round 3, but doesn’t start in any other rounds below that.
Communication
Communication is key in Warzone Assault. I cant not explain enough how important it is. A Mic in firefight is not as important then in Rainbow Six Siege, but can hugely help you in the long run. In hunt, you need to know where the AI’s are. In boss elimination you need to tell your teammates to get their reqs. And in defend the base…trust me you need that Mic. I have played multiple matches in where either my teammates don’t get their reqs to kill the last Warden, or they just run into the base and get instantly killed. So please, speak up and use that useless mic that you threw in the trash.
The bad side of Warzone Firefight
Now I have never experienced these, but I have heard many glitches that the beta had. I heard that the Warden Eternal flew across the map, or a teammate got stuck in a wall. What I have experienced however is lag. Now there isn’t a lot of lag that makes you rage quit, but it is definitely there. In big scenes where a lot of enemies are with a lot of guns firing did cause lag, which in turn got me killed instantly. Lag was also present at random times, but wasn’t a big problem. Warzone Firefight is in a beta which can explain those lag spikes themselves, but if its still there when the game mode launches this summer, a lot of players are going to get frustrated. The req point system is a bit screwed, lets say that you only finished 2 rounds, you will be awarded with about 1,700 RP. If you do complete every round though, you will only be awarded with about 2,000-2,400 RP. Which is a small difference in RP. XP wise, you can get a decent amount if your one of the top players. Other then that Warzone Firefight didn’t have a lot of problems. The difficulty is some rounds could be questioned but I am certain that Warzone Firefight will have the smoothest release in Halo 5.
Summary
Warzone Firefight was a blast to play. You can take a small break from whatever your doing and play for about 12-20, and still get the same amount of RP that you get in a regular warzone match. Never in my life had I used so much req, and its a blast to kill Grunts with a rocket launcher. Its especially fun to play with a group with friends and compete to see who can get the most points. Warzone Firefight does have its questionable merits, but if the devs get it right, they could make one of the greatest game modes in Halo history. (they already did in Halo 3: ODST).
Did you play the beta, and if you did what is your thoughts?