The Strangely Tragic Success of the Storm Rifle

[@AscendHyperion]

Click these strangely tragic links: twitter.com/Ascend_Hyperion discord.gg/2fDjeYs

[@greatcesari]

Surprised you didn't mention the "Reach Plasma Rifle" or the "H5 Brute Plasma Rifle." Sure, the Reach PR wasn't in vanilla maps, and the H5 Brute PR was introduced through a later title update. However, those two variations of the gun were perfectly balanced for their respective sandboxes.

[@warriorlore1theforgetful539]

What's the situation on grenades?

[@anthonyw9447]

truly tragic

[@SuperGoose42]

Discord link doesn't work 😭

[@S1erra107]

The Storm Rifle in 5 was definitely a force to be reckoned with, and it’s on paper powerful stats were balanced by its projectile nature and im perfectly okay with that

[@randomhaloplayer918]

I always used it on the beggining of warzone in halo 5 and got plenty of kills with it.

[@bornfromfire9379]

I remember picking it up in arena all the time and melting people with it, good fun.

[@HeartTribe]

Yeah. I think it had found it's place in the sandbox. Tbh, and I've always said it- other than the magnum and br 5 had one of the best sandboxes, and I would have loved to see it again in infinite

[@fase1doughnut]

Balanced? Nahhhhh it was far too good and easy to use

[@HeartTribe]

@@fase1doughnut I thought it was good. 6sk, but overheated very quickly, and had very slow projectiles and a small ammo capacity. It was terrible at range but a great power weapon in close quarters. However, a good strafe when just out of immediate distance and it could be defeated. I think it satisfied a certain area of power weapon requirements, where one would want great effectiveness within a short range, but for a limited time.

[@bingusthegreat9733]

This is one of the reasons why I like 343, they made it so the automatic weapons weren’t basically paintball guns

[@YasaiTsume]

AR in CE was the best it ever was tho. I still have no idea to this day what balance changes forced them to reduce the rounds from 60 to 32. The AR was supposed to be a powerful mid ranged weapon that kept enemies pinned with its big clip, it didn't need to be changed at all. In fact this ability to keep enemies pinned could have been a huge teamplay factor in HR where it was really DMR or nothing.

[@pxm2337]

@@YasaiTsume the smg in halo 2 was the replacement for the ar. It still had a 60 round mag.

[@omni6982]

@@YasaiTsume ^

[@bradthebreadstick]

@@YasaiTsume it was outclassed in every way by the magnum

[@phantomninja01]

For all their faults 343 understands weapon balance better than Bungie did.

[@CyanEyed07]

I feel like if Bungie at least kept the stun effect then the plasma rifle could have stood out more, and it could probably have worked well with dual wielding.

[@EchoLocoCJ]

That alone would make it worth using

[@Can_O_Peas]

Halo 3, plasma rifle and smg is my favorite combo. Strips shields like they aren’t even there, and kills the enemy incredibly fast. Fantastic combo that’s always reliable

[@Puppy_Puppington]

@@Can_O_Peas imagine if it still had the halo CE stun effect.. that’d be wayyyy too effective

[@griffinashley2890]

Stun mechanics are lame and unfun to play against

[@jackmcmorrow9397]

Ironically the best Plasma Rifle we've gotten since CE was the BPR in H5. That thing kicks ass.

[@jasondahfolf4325]

Yeah, it strips shields insanely fast. Allowing it to combo into a precision weapon or a good ole beat down

[@wolfdragox5563]

Idk why is that ironic

[@jackmcmorrow9397]

@@wolfdragox5563 Because that the game with the best version of the storm rifle.

[@wolfdragox5563]

@@jackmcmorrow9397 ah ok i think I get it now

[@arc4859]

It’s really hard to get kills with though. I’m trying to complete its commendation and I was shocked when I learned I hadn’t. Turns out it’s because I always shot the guy 3 times and then melee’d him for a quick kill and rarely used the gun to finish him off. Let me tell you that thing is hard to get kills with

[@richman6974]

I never liked the Storm rifle... Until I was forced to use it in custom games. It turned out to be a very fun weapon to use, when it is on its range, it is very lethal. I always thought the plasma rifle line was trash in all games including CE and 4 and 5, but with 343 making weapons usable, it is fun to deviate from the 2 weapons that dominante every game.

[@iya6998]

Its a blast in the campaign too

[@Nedak2003]

The plasma repeater was the worst. Couldn't kill shit with it, it didn't auto vent, and it looks like a plasma rifle with a stock.

[@midgetman4206]

@@Nedak2003 hey, I like the last part. I am a big fan of how there's a rotating bit while it shoots, it hits the thing i have for engineering

[@FriedMetroid]

The CE plasma rifle was amazing in campaign, the faster projectile speed and higher damage per shot compared to the plasma pistol make it a viable choice against Elites on legendary. Not as flashy as the plasma pistol, but less one dimensional. Does pretty good damage against the Flood too and shreds sentinels

[@Bob-vp3dc]

The amount of bloom really killed the Storm Rifle for me in the same way that the Plasma Repeater did.

[@YodaOnABender]

I don’t care what people say, I like the storm rifle

[@Venomfan88]

I love shredding with it in Halo 4!

[@cheezy9143]

Heresy

[@cheezypoof9949]

Gross

[@hellothere6927]

i hate it for many reasons but i respect your opinion to say this.

[@jackcolson4745]

If only it looked like the plasma rifle then I would like it more.

[@JhonnyMordecai]

I think players where too obsessed with "343 bad" that they never gave them a propper chance at their weapon desing and sandbox, in my opinion, I think it's better that automatics could finally kill someone other than the BR like in bungie games, I mean, what's the point of having like 20 weapons when 3 are the ones you should use to kill a player?

[@MPdude237]

I would agree. One thing I didn’t like about the Bungie games is that precision weapons dominate multiplayer in most situations without power weapons coming into play. It is understandable if a precision weapon trumps an automatic at range but it doesn’t make sense that a precision weapon trumps an automatic up close.

[@somerandomguy6767]

@@MPdude237 True, True but I do think they went a bit overboard with it in 5 but from what I seen from Infinite. It looks like they are putting a decent balance between them all.

[@KenyaSG]

343 was bad, and that was 343's fault. These are the facts, these are their stories, these are the surviving victims.

[@thatsprettygood9613]

Exactly the point. One of the reasons why Halo 2 multi was trash

[@somerandomguy6767]

@@thatsprettygood9613 especially due to how broken it when people figured out button combos to ruin casual and quick play matches. Like dude, this is a shooter. Not a fighting game.

[@tostie3110]

Seeing as the argument around this gun is usually about looks as well: It still looks like it comes from the same family of guns, with the grey barrel being somewhat inspired by the Carbine and Needle rifle for example. But the combination of the overheat screen to the rear, instead of the bar on the side, and the switch off of the two barrels with an electrical arc inbetween, made it a lesser design.

[@houselightkell]

Mainly people complain about it looking too much like human weapons and not "alien" enough. But in the lore, the Covenant actually learned a lot from the UNSC and redesigned their main rifle in accordance

[@thebigyes8482]

@@houselightkell This is a sci-fi game, nobody honestly cares about what happened in the lore in regards to the overall design language of the game. That’s utterly irrelevant.

[@nap0038]

@@thebigyes8482 yeah. It’s like 343 damage control. Why couldn’t the elites just say “hey, our rifle offers superior ergonomics than this two handed caveman gun. I can’t even carry my sword in the opposite hand.” There, the lore reason is there to keep the design similar. But we need blue assault rifle, so here we are

[@Puppy_Puppington]

@@houselightkell I hate when people are like “OH but it’s actually more accurate to the lore of the universe according to the books blah blah blah”. Like gtfo with that lore universe BS. I fell in love with the video game not the books and that universe. And So did like 99% of halo players ... so they compare designs to the games. Not lame lore. People also use that universe excuse to try and convince themselves that halo 4 and 5 weren’t complete and utter garbage, story and game play and design wise. Which is insane denial. Should’ve ended with the Chief in H3. What a waste of a heart felt ending.

[@houselightkell]

@@Puppy_Puppington well that is quite the controversial take. Especially the part. Well; halo always has stood out at the most brilliantly designed FPS in terms of gameplay with only Destiny threatening sneak in and snatch the crown. But to me at least, Halo is a story first

[@arangeroftheorder853]

Isn't strange that sense CE, human weapons have almost always been dominant over covenant weapons, in both campaign and MP, plus the fanbase tends to get rather pissed whenever the devs want the add weapons to the covenant pool, because apparently the aliens can only have three or four weapons, and nothing that resembles a human one, in form or function

[@kaihamza4710]

Whenever a alien weapon has a something slightly similar to a human style grip for example the community goes beserk mode lol

[@whatzittooyah3244]

@@kaihamza4710 dude this community will go berserk over 343 changing chiefs cock girth by 0.003 millimeters

[@bakes1324]

I hate that human weapons aren’t consistent throughout the games either. I don’t think the saw or smg won’t be in infinite. Sounds so stupid to imagine a human army the doesn’t carry a machine gun or pdw type weapon.

[@michaelcaboose8685]

That always bothered me to no end. How are we expected to believe humanity is losing when we have the better weaponry. Thankfully it looks like infinite is fixing this with almost all Banished weapons being, on paper, more powerful than their UNSC counterparts

[@tridonstrident6785]

@@bakes1324 What? That doesn't make any sense. Those weapons still exist, we just can't use them. Do you think that weapons just stop existing because we can't use them in the game?

[@atlfoevaeva09]

It was always interesting to see plasma weapons be so weak seeing how strong it is in the lore. I think being low tier power weapons work best so that it’s integrity isn’t compromised. Probably not going to fix player reception but… I mean, screw them lol

[@tobiramasenju6290]

How strong is it in the lore??

[@bellsknell3297]

@@tobiramasenju6290 It's fucking horrific. Plasma burns through armor like nothing. And that's not mentioning the armor and clothes fusing to skin due to the intense heat.

[@Newbmann]

I mean the way they balance kenetic with plasma of plasma better vs shields but kenetic better vs hp kinda limits how many good plasma weapons there can be before sandbox redundency kicks in. How many "noob combo starters" can there be?

[@majesticwolfyguy6629]

@@tobiramasenju6290 one shot either kills or severely injures. An overcharged plasma shot isnt some EMP, it's a small missile and can vaporize poor marines if it even hits nearby

[@JBzucc]

I don't see the point in having it completely useless and adding nothing to the sandbox, it's like it may as well not be there at all, that doesn't seem like a good sandbox when you have weapons that do nothing, it's just halo 3 all over again where everyone just uses the BR cause it's only thing worth using unless a sniper or rocket spawns

[@JFlintstone1]

Bungie did a lot of things wrong in Reach. As someone who started with CE, I felt like bungie broke a bunch of things when making reach and then left it for 343 to clean up. I don’t think 343 did the best job doing that but everything isn’t their fault.

[@alephkasai9384]

There's a lot of weapons in reach that are pretty redundant and the sandbox is bloated.

[@paytonallen1027]

I do love the reach sandbox very much but I agree that a lot could’ve been better. I do want to make a mod that adds and changes things to reach that makes it ideal in the way I see it. On the subject of plasma rifles, I would add back the stun effect and also make the plasma repeater do more damage to vehicles. Just little things like that to make the sandbox better

[@SoIstice]

@@alephkasai9384 A lot of the sandbox in Reach is designed around Invasion, giving UNSC and Covenant equivalent weapons so that both sides are balanced. I personally don't think they did a very good job at it, but that's where all the redundancy comes from.

[@DanielGonzalez-lr6bk]

@@SoIstice it's ironic then that invasion is notoriously unbalanced isn't it?

[@SoIstice]

@@DanielGonzalez-lr6bk Exactly what I meant by feeling they didn't do a good job at it. UNSC usually curbstomp the Covenant because for the first two rounds, the UNSC vastly overpower the Covenant, but it's easy to see what they were attempting at the very least. Sucks the mode ended up like it did, I'd love to see it return one day as the concept is great and exactly the kind of thing I'd enjoy, despite the poor execution. I love it when the multiplayer feels like you're actually part of the war that singleplayer is focused around in games.

[@Baytuh]

This is one of those things that I don't understand about og classic Halo fans. They hate the 343i weapon sandbox for being too good and powerful but love the Bungie weapon sandbox even though most of the weapons in those games aren't good in multiplayer.

[@sarthakgiri1114]

Thats bungie fans for you.

[@OKMBVideos]

It's the overabundance of powerful weapons putting less emphasis on acquiring and using Power Weapons skillfully. If your Pistol is basically a top-tier weapon at any range, why bother picking up Rockets? Weapons in Halo 3's MP can be good, you just have to be smart about how you position yourself and utilize them. The AR is great for ambush attacks and chaining together shots with melee. You can easily outplay BR players at close range with it. I prefer Bungie's sandbox, warts and all, because it feels much more unique. Not every gun is going to shred your enemy from most ranges, and that's fine. There's more emphasis on swapping weapons, finding Power ones, and adapting to new situations than I've found with 343's sandbox.

[@wolfdragox5563]

That’s the thing, they love to excuse that with the good old “not every weapon has to be good” which is a...weak argument imo, it’s valid but it’s not good to argue about weapons being useless in MP

[@sarthakgiri1114]

Really, thats why Halo 3 was all about Brr brr brr. I mean BR was the mostly used weapon with AR completely worthless.

[@phantomninja01]

Having played a fuckton of Destiny, I can confirm that Bungie is bad at weapon balance.

[@Lonect7]

Before seeing Infinite’s take on the AR, I actually wanted it to be a low-tier power weapon, and in a way, it kind of is. This is the most powerful version of the weapon we’ve gotten with its newfound ability to confidently outclass precision weapons in close range and even pack a punch at midrange.

[@TehCakeIzALie1]

Infinite's AR is literally a hard counter to sniper weapons, at least on console. Good luck getting sniper headshots when even a single AR can reliably keep you out of scope while the rest of their team push into close range. (Opinion based on the test flights, obviously)

[@Lonect7]

@@TehCakeIzALie1 If the range could get toned down ever so slightly I’d be completely on board with this gun. It’s finally a functional weapon in its optimal range.

[@TehCakeIzALie1]

@@Lonect7 I agree. The problem is, in its 'current' state (i.e. flight 2), it dominates a little too hard on 4v4 maps, but it feels pretty much perfect in big team. I'd almost prefer if they actually treated it as a power weapon on smaller maps, making it spawn on a wall or whatever, and gave us a different loadout primary.

[@kx7500]

The problem is now the UNSC weapons have barely any role difference from each other. They’re even nerfing the commando. What’s the point anymore other than basic personal preference to having any of them since they all have a damage multiplier too?

[@randomhaloplayer918]

Honestly I myself have always loved the storm rifle since it appeared in halo 4, many say it doesnt look alien enough, others say its too good to be plasma weapon , but for me its just perfect and more lore acurrate than the halo 2 or 3 plasma rifles since in halo lore unlike the games plasma does quite some damage and when using the storm rifle I felt like I was using a true plasma weapon, also using the halo 5 storm rifle I felt like I was an halo 2 legendary elite just because of how fast I killed an enemy with the storm rifle, and also the weapon variants anyone barely used were pretty fun as well the yellow storm rifle felt like a truly powerful plama repeater and the red one was as good as a plasma answer(saw variant).

[@oliverdowning1543]

I'ma be honest I think from a visual design perspective the Storm Rifle feels waaay worse than the plasma rifle in terms of identity, uniqueness and character but yh I'll be honest I'm glad to see the plasma rifle class doing so well for itself.

[@NutsorSomethingBerserk]

I agree. At least from a visual design and feedback perspective, the Halo 4 and 5 weapons just were incredibly lackluster and didn’t have the same level of punchy feedback that the UNSC weapons had. Using the Storm Rifle just didn’t feel right despite it being strong as hell and being a significantly better Plasma Rifle.

[@aceskeletonne7446]

@@NutsorSomethingBerserk its cuz the storm rifle is a fine looking weapon ,its not ugly but its just boring, basically a purple assault rifle, lacks the unique alien designs other covenant weapons have. althought tbf im not a big fan of the visual design of the plasma repeater either even if its just a stretched out PR, looks more like something from mass effect rather than halo

[@NutsorSomethingBerserk]

@@aceskeletonne7446 Never been a fan of the Plasma Rifle sister designs. The Plasma Rifle design and just overall weapon feel was always the best out of all the designs and gun feel. I hope they bring back the Plasma Rifle and make is much like the Storm Rifle but double down on it being a boreline covenant SMG. In CQC it can absolutely melt people but outside that range it should have trouble. Something like the Pulse Carbine without the tracking and is built for automatic CQC. Idk. I hope the PR returns to its former glory and feels great one day.

[@aceskeletonne7446]

@@NutsorSomethingBerserk same

[@houselightkell]

I mean, that I can agree with but the original plasma rifle does look a bit like, a violent stapler

[@obligatoryfate6849]

The plasma pistol shot as fast as you could pull the trigger in 1/CE. It is amazing and then completely nerfed in 2. It makes a fantastic combo with regular pistol or shotgun. It’s a fun weapon I always have.

[@EmperorHelix]

In Reach, Plasma Pistol stripped shields in 3 shots and killed you in 5, for a total of 8. It was BEAST and so much fun to kill with.

[@epicty3607]

I used to have a fast enough trigger finger to make it shoot almost as fast as the plasma rifle. Rapid firing it was always a fun thing to do

[@Boxfortress]

I remember one day in Halo 4 (actual Halo 4) somethin possessed me to make a load out with it for MP. I don't remember if had to fall back on it one too many times in mp, campaign, customs, spartan ops, or what... but I made a loadout and went on a tear in a 4v4 on that 2 level 4 ramp forerunner map. I was genuinely surprised how well it worked and even more so when I got sent rage voice messages calling me a hacker for getting a solid KD with "the shittiest gun in the game [colorful metaphors galor]". I also remember sending my own voice laughing at the guy saying "na dude that's the suppressor". Guy was so fucking pissed I actually had to block/report his ass after getting 5 rage messages in rapid succession.

[@lpharmer3496]

I would once and a while run with the storm rifle in 4 as sort of a support role. I'd run in and melt sheilds in objective games for my team to mop up after. I don't remember how effective it was but it was fun.

[@kx7500]

Nice

[@CountKibblesNBits]

I was very fond of running an AR and Storm Rifle, or DMR Storm/AR. Open with the storm to pop shields finish with the AR

[@jackcolson4745]

I think you're missing a huge point. How the weapon looked was one of the biggest reasons why players hated it. Sure it makes no logical sense that the aesthetics of a weapon would impact how it performs, but it definitely impacts how it's presented and received. So the simple fact that the storm rifle _wasn't_ the plasma rifle in all it's small, single-handed glory was a large factor in the distaste of it from most fans. This goes for the h4/5 art style in general. I guarantee you if h4 and 5 had the classic art style, they would have not been as hated. We can actually see the direct effects of that experiment in halo Infinite. It retains some advanced movement, it has a fast ttk, grapple hook, player outline system, open world campaign; 343 is basically taking things from other games and putting them in Halo, yet because Infinite _looks_ like classic Halo, most of these copied and pasted things are seen in a positive light. It just goes to show you that no matter how people try to not judge a book by it's cover, looks do still influence their judgement.

[@Windjammer19]

Yep. My main issue with the Storm Rifle was how uninspired its design was. The Plasma Rifle was this alien gun with fully automatic fire, TWO barrels, and a weird over heat meter on the side. The Storm Rifle felt like it could have just been a human gun. Basically every time I looked at the SR, I would think, "Why not just have the Plasma Rifle be this good? What's with the re-skin?" That said. I love 343's approach to the sandbox of not having weak guns. I'm not punished for wanting to see everything the game has to offer.

[@SockEater4293]

I don't think it was all because of the look, the sound also made me feel like it was barely doing any damage at all to my opponent, and I don't care what the stats say, if a weapon feels bad to use then I won't use it because it feels weak.

[@wolfdragox5563]

The presentation matters far more than we believe, think about it, people overhype games that look pretty just bc of the look, imagine if a game with ps2 graphics was launched today and it was actually insanely good, the majority of casuals wouldn’t care bc the game doesn’t look impressive, same goes for movies, we care about the looks way too much and we don’t appreciate what’s inside

[@shadowtear101]

@@Windjammer19 it actually has one barrel. The generators on the gun makes it look like two barrels.

[@shadowtear101]

@Zugaikotsu Toxsyk that's probably a result of 343 wanting to carve their own identity with Halo and not just rely on the classics. After 3 games of the plasma rifle being complete dog shit I can see why they would forgo the gun and go with something new.

[@firefly666angel]

While I didn't enjoy the plasma repeater for it's damage output, I did like the flavour it brought to covenant weapons. The high rate of fire upfront and higher accuracy as the fire rate decreased could be something to return to. Additionally I have to give props to Bungie creating a reload function with the venting feature which is finally returning in Infinite.

[@doltBmB]

Every gun in Halo reach needed to have a covenant and human variant that was directly comparable. The reason is Invasion. There needed to be enough weapons for comparable loadouts for both the elite and spartan teams. Hence needle rifle, plasma repeater etc. Same was true for Halo 2 where you needed campaign missions as the arbiter with no human weapons to fill the sandbox, hence carbine, beam rifle, etc.

[@davidperry4013]

The closest Covenant equivalent to a DMR would be the halo reach needle rifle. However the plasma rifle is comparable to an SMG. Pairing an SMG with a plasma rifle is the best dual wielding combination in Halo.

[@thesoapbox8949]

I personally liked how the plasma rifle looked specifically more alien in design. While all 3 variants (Rifle, Repeater, Storm) looked alien, the Plasma Rifle looked the most unique. Two barrels? Firing ports? Firing plasma not in unison, but one after the other. It made it FEEL like a different gun. While to be entirely honest, the Storm Rifle and Plasma Repeater just didn’t have that same feel. Both looked and felt like lazier attempts at rebranding the Plasma Rifle. By no means do I want to diss on the designers of any of these weapons. This was just a personal take on how they were/are throughout my time playing Halo.

[@pfeilspitze]

And then there's the Blissful Slumber variant, which is so insanely good 😍

[@Sheikah_Architect]

To me it was the generic look and extremely generic sounds of the 343 storm rifles that killed them for me. I had no idea they were so powerful! But the BR killed Halo's gun sandbox since Halo 2... so I didn't give it much of a chance. I was expecting the Halo Infinite storm rifle to be covered here though!

[@cryamistellimek9184]

I always thought they were weak because covenant weapons in general always felt lackluster until I picked one up when playing the halo 4 and 5 campaigns again. If I had know these things could shred shields like they did and still follow up to kill the target without a ballistic weapon I would have grabbed them a lot more.

[@DeNihility]

I honestly love the Storm Rifle design.

[@Sheikah_Architect]

@@DeNihility It's fine on its own, but as a continuation of the Plasma Rifle it's terrible and generic. But yeah, it makes me think of it as a gun the Covenant made after studying human weapons.

[@donutmerchant8393]

Honestly it makes me wonder why the sandbox existed to begin with. You have a ton of cool ideas but with bungie having terrible balance none of mattered. People act like BR dominance was a good thing but looking back it really wasn’t. There’s also the obsession from mega fans of making the AR a useless gun because if something can actually contest the BR it’s “overpowered”

[@saltpoweredrobot5625]

Funny you mention the whole "Its kinda a Power Weapon" thing. Personally, I treat Brute Plasma Rifles in H2 as pseudo Power Weapons, cause you can pair them up with SMGs or Magnums (H2 Magnum is secretly amazing), and now you have a combo that can absolutely shred at close range. Shotguns have no chance against it (though to be fair, they never really had much of one to begin with). I'd also say the Spiker could have been reworked to be a Power Weapon. Its way too weak in 3, and only slightly better in Reach. I thought it would be cool if it had a "Bleed" effect, where it dealt small damage overtime to both shields and then health once those drop. It made sense to me since the spikes actively stick into you and persist for a good while.

[@Enderguy059]

Regarding the Spiker, you'd probably like SPV3's take on the weapon in the Lumoria Campaign and Firefight, where it's been rebalanced into an LMG of sorts.

[@aceskeletonne7446]

ive always thought the spiker should be a one shot headshot capable weapon (on no shield targets) that fires at a much slower firerate but with stronger projectiles, but it looks like the skewer is taking that idea and cranking it up to 11

[@arangeroftheorder853]

TBH I have always liked the plasma repeater, it's what I imagine a LMG style plasma rifle would look like, sorta like a handheld version of the little plasma turrets carried by grunt heavies from halo 2, but hey that's just me

[@MajoraZ]

I'm a fan of the Storm Rifle:Visually I think it's much better then the Repeater or Pulse Carbine (which look too blocky for covenant guns) and in utility I thought it was pretty good in 4, worth using as a loadout weapon paired with the magnum (storm rifle shreds up close, magnum can at a distance if used well), and in Halo 5 it was SO good I actually do sorta think it was OP pre-TU and I'm somebody who will defend H5's AR and SMG pre-TU as being fine (and unlike them, the SR is still good post TU, thankfully) The only things i'd change is that 1. I've seen mockups that switch out the barrel for a pronged front like the OG Plasma rifle that looks great (look up "Storm Rifle Halomaps"), 2: I wish it had no overheating/venting system the repeater had to make it more mechanically unique, and 3: I think it'd be neat if it perhaps it was as strong as it was in H5 Pre-TU, but with even faster overheating and a tighter firiing cone, plus less aim assist/bullet magnetism: This would actually give it a skillgap where it would MELT people up close if you could track your target well, but if you can't and miss even a few shots while holding the trigger it'd overheat and you'd die, forcing good aim tracking skill (and of course, you could always use bursts/feather the trigger to avoid overheating at the cost of DPS output). As far as what other "low tier" weapons could be reinvetned as "power weapons": Most of the autos. The problem with designing automatics is that they tend to not require/reward skill, and you can't have a non skill based gun be really good or else it's OP.... but if it's a power weapon, then it can be! I think the SMG would benefit from this (and i'd arguer in pre TU H5, sorta was: not as much as the Storm Rifle, which as I said I do actually think was still sorta too good, but I'd say the SMG was a good "mid tier" gun a la the H2/3 Bruteshot), ideally as a perma duel wielded weapon where in exchange for it shredding people easily just with spraying, you lose nades/melees and have a super long reload to require better situational awareness. The Needler already basically became a power weapon in H4 and 5, too. The AR is the exception, in that as a spawn gun, it CAN'T be a power weapon, so i've always been an advocate of making the AR reward skill more as a "precision auto". You can tell I want the Storm Rifle/SMG to be somewhat more skill based too, but I really want the AR reward precise burst fire, like outright want like headshot multipliers on the AR even when shields are up so you have to land consistent headshots across the entire engagement to get an optimal TTK, which could, with low aim assist/magentism, making the headshot multiplier also reduce the longer the trigger is held, etc.... the Commando is sorta doing that already now, though, but in the context of Infinite i'd still like the AR to be a little less spray-y but to retain it's current power when bursting. Sadly can't make it a full blown precision auto without it being too close to the commando, though.

[@Windjammer19]

Favyn once said on stream that he'd like the AR to be projectile based. That would make it harder to use at range, making its high damage in Infinite more acceptable.

[@tobiramasenju6290]

I didn't read all that but with that much work you've earned my like

[@MajoraZ]

@@Windjammer19 Yeah, me and Favyn have actually talked about AR balance quite a lot, though we don't agree on it a ton, but that's a suggestion i'd be okay with. I don't think it really addresses the H5 AR being too spray based for my liking tho

[@dangerdonkey4383]

Imo, the plasma rifle in Halo 3 was pretty good with in melee range. It can even allow you to trade with Shotgun and sword assuming you get the punch in. But overall I agree that next to halo 5, CE had the best plasma weapons. The Halo 1 Plasma pistol is my favorite weapon.

[@andrewsever4651]

I mean, it kinda works as an improvement on the plasma rifle and repeater. At least in an in universe sense. Rather than increasing or decreasing rate of fire the longer you shoot like it’s predecessors, it’s just always at max rate of fire

[@autumngottlieb3071]

Funny you should put it like that, because in the lore that thing was developed after the war to phase out the Plasma Rifle. I think by Jul 'Mdama's people, but don't quote me on that.

[@andrewsever4651]

@@autumngottlieb3071 it was actually developed by lodam armory on sanghelios and basically sold to the highest bidders, so that ended up being pretty much every sangheili faction

[@tulio.guitar]

It wasnt even hard to properly balance the Plasma rifle in H2 and H3, all you had to do was to keep the stun effect when you single wielded, and make it lethal at CQC range without the stun effect when Dual-Wielded

[@ENDfilms44]

I'm personally glad the stun effect left after CE, anything in fps games that messes with your aim sensitivity really annoys me. Though that could be due to being a mouse player and having to swipe/reset more instead of holding the stick to one side for a bit longer. Though if it just kept movement speed stun and not aim stun I could see it being pretty cool.

[@Windjammer19]

@@ENDfilms44 tbf it's not like anyone used it because of how busted the Magnum was

[@Basu117]

@@Windjammer19 If you're using MCC as your reference then I agree, as the stun doesn't work and the pistol is waaaaay easier to use than in the original game

[@timlewis5527]

I always liked it in CE and visually it's a lot more appealing than the guns that followed it. I never really saw it as a weapon that should be duel wielded, it's a rifle not a pistol.

[@ENDfilms44]

@@Windjammer19 I mean in CE while the magnum would beat future precision weapons in a 1v1, it wasn't that busted in its own sandbox. Shotgun easily won up close (and not just point blank like future halos) sniper out ranged it, ar could melee spam you down up close, explosives could nuke you etc.

[@eliantalboe-5418]

Honestly the halo 4 storm rifle was a beast on pve Specially against heavier shielded elites and the knights Just a quick barrage and you've completely destroyed their shield I call it the spartan ops fun mode

[@Ori--pw5vw]

In lore the storm rifle was replaced because the armory that made the plasma rifle belonged to the SOS , so the Storm covenant used but halo 5 completely breakes this lore

[@richardpatterson1694]

They just stoled them done. Hell maybe they went the banished way and took over a production base, hell we know they will buy weapons from off human worlds that's how they got the harvesters.

[@Reyma777]

Lore isn’t broken if you factor in raids, and black market arms dealings.

[@alphacraig2001]

@@Reyma777 Also it would make sense that after the Battle of Sunaion (I think that's how it's spelled) that the Swords would have confiscated a lot of Storm technology.

[@neonvalkyrja]

Bearing in mind that I didnt play Halo 5, the main issue I had with the storm rifle was its inaccuracy in H4. I just felt the spread to be too wide (was it a bit weak? yes, but I still could find a use for it, unlike the supres*cough*)

[@zxomegaxz5548]

You forgot to mention that the reason the CE plasma rifle has such a fast kill time is because of it has head shot multiplier. Also the storm rifle is one of the biggest poster child for why people disliked 343i. It replaced a cool classic alien weapon with what a human would identify as a rifle class weapon and in order to get people to use it they just made it powerful rather giving it any interesting functionality. I think the spiker is worth a look it had the design to be great but it came out as worst smg with slimmer of increase melee dmg in H3 and than was a slightly better Plasma Rifle in Reach.

[@theneoreformationist]

And you can't melee while duel wielding.

[@gustavomartins364]

The spiker is my most used gun im both caimpains.

[@nathanmoore4712]

I think one of the major reasons plasma weapons in general were never used in Halo 4 and 5 was the way that ammo depleted so fast for plasma weapons in those games. Like in Halo 4 1 shot from a plasma weapon took off 2% so you'd only get 50 shots. Compared with the CE plasma weapons which you lost 1 percent with 5 shots meaning you got 500 shots. I'm not totally sure if my math is right here but I think it is.

[@archvile9388]

I could be wrong, but if I recall in the first game a full charge plasma rifle had 200 shots (not factoring in the misfires at low charge which still drain the battery) and the pistol had 500.

[@sodium7127]

The storm rifle got me through many a legendary spartan ops missions.

[@untitledchannel1225]

Loved the Storm Rifle in Halo 4, it's sound and just the way it felt when running though the campaign was... divine. Though maybe that's just my personal bias because Halo 4 is my favorite Halo at least in a PvE aspect.

[@_narrows]

I'll never understand why Bungie put the plasma repeater in central, highly contested spots on several maps. That placement, as well as the fact it's just a beefy plasma rifle, makes you assume it must be a power weapon when it's simply a projectile AR.

[@AscendHyperion]

Tryna trick players into using it lol

[@danieldickerson4838]

As both a car enthusiast, and Camaro fan/owner, the reference to said car as a way to tie in your point was pretty damn good lol.

[@jurassicarkjordanisgreat1778]

The spiker in halo reach is underrated. It shreds up close

[@soapimpossible7023]

@4:56 Ah yes, the Plasa Rifle. My favorite covenant weapon

[@matthewreed5988]

Does everyone forget there was a plasma rifle in reach and it actually destroyed in campaign (I can't remember how it was in mp). Btw agree with the video just pointing this out.

[@deltahalo241]

I remember when I first picked up a Storm Rifle in Halo 5, I'd always generally ignored them in Halo 4, but the thing just tore in 5 and it sounded great as well. It quickly became one of my favourite guns in the game.

[@princejugali6637]

I had a blast using this thing in halo 5 multiplayer, it can shred shields faster than the plasma pistol sometimes, its the best to use with the magnum cause then you can quickly switch and finish off your enemy.

[@pfeilspitze]

Yeah, in team modes it's way better than FFA, since you can just spam it to keep them weak and your teammates can clean up.

[@SuperGoose42]

Suppressor. I love it, want it to be better. Idk how to do that, maybe make it like a SAW at close range, but ONLY close range

[@tulio.guitar]

Like in h4? I always thought the suppressor was a extremely unique and cool SMG

[@FakeJake5843]

@@tulio.guitar same but the h5 version, the h4 version was terrible

[@SuperGoose42]

@@FakeJake5843 I've never played H5 so I never experienced that version

[@nodubstephere1008]

I feel like the Storm Rifle was kinda slept on. I feel like it was a logical improvement to the Plasma Rifle.

[@DrOmnipotent]

As a certified Storm rifle warrior im glad to see this. Loved this gun in every edition and my h4 tod for years.

[@PartyC4nnon]

The plasma repeater only makes sense in the context of Reach having Invasion mode imo. That doesn’t really justify its design, as elites were fundementals different from Spartans and their other equivalent weapons were different. all this was accommodated by the fact that in invasion mode, roles switched per rounds so the game would be balanced.

[@thegamingnerd4]

For the viewer question, I think there's one weapon that most people could agree needed an upgrade for the longest time: The Assault Rifle. Despite being Chief's signature weapon, and easily one of the most iconic weapon in the franchise, it's never really had its own place in the meta until Halo Infinite (hopefully). For a long time, it's been in this weird state where everyone knows about it and knows how it's basically synonymous with Halo itself, but nobody uses it. It was closer to an SMG in CE, only usable at point-blank range against unshielded targets. After being replaced by the SMG for Halo 2, it got completely reworked in Halo 3. Unfortunately, despite being a competent weapon in its own right, the BR meta completely invalidated it, and it was a similar story with Halo Reach. In Halo 4, it got even better, being pretty damn good in a close-range fight. Unfortunately, similar to the Storm Rifle, it suffered from the Custom Loadout system. And in Halo 5, the Magnum completely dominated... well, everything. Halo Infinite's Assault Rifle is looking like it will be the best in the series, and I sincerely hope so. It's about time it gets some love.

[@xLeeH1]

No matter what happens with Halo I will always miss the Plasma Rifle. It may have sucked for all this time as a competitor in Multiplayer, but damn was it a beautiful looking gun, and I think H2A's version of the Plasma Rifle and Brute Plasma Rifle are the best of the best in terms of their visual design. I just want my plasma rifle :( But I'm happy to see 343i experimenting with new designs too.

[@scolack123]

Plasma rifle during my buddy and I's re-play through of halo reach through 5 on legendary to prepare for infinites release was my main gun through halo 1

[@VaneWalker]

The Plasma Repeater is my favorite aesthetically, for functionality, it has to be the CE Plasma Rifle

[@iya6998]

For the viewer question. The needler. What if the needles detonate one after the other, doing damage and stalling shields for a little bit. Kind of like poison damage

[@Oatmealz]

343's Weapon Sandbox is the reason why i actually enjoyed Halo 4 and 5 unlike many of the "Hardcore" Halo fans. I love the fact they made it so assault rifles actually had a fighting chance against the power house that is the Battle Rifle, and loadouts just made everything more fun. Although the boltshot was pretty annoying in the right hands.

[@darkphoenix2]

I think your videos are pretty insightful and you usually have a good sense of how various things in Halo work. However, I often feel that the conclusions you draw are based on very nebulous or theoretical ideas. I mean, what's more likely - that average players ignore the Storm Rifle because of their past experience with other Plasma weapons, or that they tried the Storm Rifle a few times, had trouble with it, and stuck with easier to use weapons? I know the H5 Storm Rifle is powerful...at close range. As soon as you're at mid range, it doesn't clearly beat anything. An AR is more effective, a Needler is deadly, and any precision weapon will melt, especially the Magnum. This video did make me appreciate the idea of the Pulse Carbine a little more. The entire reason I think we're having this discussion is because the plasma projectiles are just harder to hit with. Giving them homing abilities could be the answer, but the Pulse Carbine still felt terrible to use. Maybe the CE design was best - high accuracy and damage. I can't say I know the best way to make the Covenant version of the AR work, but I don't think the short range of the Storm Rifle or the cross your fingers design of the Pulse Carbine is the answer.

[@glowaru]

CE Plasma Rifle definitely works in other Halo games too, I've tried imitating it in other MCC games through modding and there's no issue. It feels great, unique and competent no matter the game. The CE Plasma Rifle is what should be in Infinite too instead of the Pulse Carbine.

[@callumburke6967]

With the new sandbox in halo infinite I'd love to see the storm rifle return. Seeing old guns return would be a great way to bring players back to the game over time and keep the sandbox fresh. It would be cool to see old maps/weapons/vehicles return. Even newer stuff like the storm rifle, saw or phaeton.

[@PANCAKEMINEZZ]

1:44 I wouldn't say the CE plasma pistol was mediocre AT ALL. That's when I think it was its best, damage wise. The charged shot not only stripped shields, but dealt a huge amount of damage in a tracking shot.

[@henryalberts539]

In legacy H4, I used a loadout with the Firepower Package to use a LightRifle and a Storm Rifle, and man, it shredded. While I've changed it up a bit since then, I have respect for the Storm Rifle still.

[@Lattidude]

Plasma Pistol is an absolute beast in CE, it got me through Legendary in no time.

[@emilylefebvre646]

I think a lot of it is a misconception on what Plasma weapons' utility is. The Plasma Rifle in Halo 3, for example, strips shields quickly enough to drop a player if you hit three bolts then a melee - which is what Plasma weapons were designed around support and not direct kills. This is for multiple reasons, as it makes it easier for lower skilled players to support their team in meaningful ways, but also for campaign play against AI. The Storm Rifle in Halo 4 is actually a great example of the downfall for plasma weapons, as it's a direct clone of Halo 4's AR killing at around the same shot count and dealing about the same amount of damage against shields, which is because the storm rifle was actually built upon the repeater which was specifically created for Invasion.

[@ringard5172]

And why a lower skilled player would want to use a handicapped weapon? To handicap themselves even more? Very funny. It doesn't matter what game-designer thinks - if mechanic is not used as intended then it needs to be reworked or removed.

[@emilylefebvre646]

@@ringard5172 Because it isn't handicapped, it's merely good at different purposes. Taking down someone's shields during a fight is enough to turn a four shot into a one shot kill for your teammate or even yourself if you switch back quickly enough. On top of that if you're with a friend, it's sometimes faster and more efficient to strip the shields of multiple targets while your friend picks them off with headshots.

[@ringard5172]

@@emilylefebvre646 You can say it has a place all you want, the question is how many players use it on a regular basis? And the answer is very slim minority. Why? Coz a sandbox like that where you have abundance of instruments that preform a lot better in a much wider variety of situations weapons like PR is handicapped in comparison no matter how good can it be when used as intended.

[@emilylefebvre646]

@@ringard5172 Except that's not necessarily true. At least in the 360 days, the Plasma Rifle was quite famous in a few communities for it's impressive melee kills for a common weapon and since CE has been beloved by newer players for it's ease. I think a weapon like this absolutely works in Halo 3 due to it's higher TTK, and I'd actually recommend you give weapons like this a shot before condemning them right off the bat. Halo 3 is a hell of a lot more fun when you're utilizing the whole sandbox after all

[@ringard5172]

​@@emilylefebvre646 ==few communities... --Yeah that's what i'm talking about - few... ==I think a weapon like this absolutely works in Halo 3 due to it's higher TTK --It has one of the lowest TTK actually, TTK can be high only when it used with melee as you said or in combination with magnum or smg-mauler. The problem with this approach is effective range, it will be either low or very low depending on whether you use dual wielding or not. And not being able to throw nades when your effective range that small is too punishing in halo MP sandbox. ==has been beloved by newer players for it's ease --Precision scrubs always banter about noob guns and how they don't have a right to perform well in their respective range. Why? Coz easy to use guns tend to suck in halo, which created a very specific type of community. Although i would say PR is not an easy to use gun it definitely get such treatment from developers since H2 to reach. ==I'd actually recommend you give weapons like this a shot before --Plasma rifle and Plasma repeater are my most favorite guns in a series, i even made a mod for Reach which drastically changed gameplay, and weapon sandbox, to my liking, you can watch trailer of it on my channel if interested.

[@carburetor77]

You really changed my perception of the weapon. I've been playing the Halo Reach Mythic Overhaul mod, which includes the Storm Rifle. I'll give it another shot

[@Qvartz_Lite]

I remember my early days of H4, looking for example loadouts to have an idea on how to build a custom one. Then, this one channel told me that the storm rifle was ideal for small maps and I didn't believed until I used that loadout to defend a flag, and let me tell you, it didn't disappointed me. And haven't disappointed since that day.

[@kapthas59]

I recently started using it. Shit melts

[@ZeeroDubs]

Brutshot! We need the Bruteshot back as a quasi-powerweapon.

[@Basu117]

Cindershot basically does this

[@thedoncjg6263]

Storm Rifle is definitely under appreciated, that think can do work in the right hands. Also, kind of glad you got rid of the random face cam clips. They felt kind of shoehorned in in previous videos to be honest.

[@ilgenowski]

H3 plasma rifle is great. Delete the shield then beat them down. It's like a combo weapon

[@CozmicEmbyrs]

fun fact, in the run up to the release of Halo 4, there was a booth at a convention i'd gone to that year where whoever won the most rounds of Slayer got a free gift. While initially really liking the Saw, the Storm Rifle was what won me the day - and a cool Halo Baseball cap, which i still have today!

[@victordiaz7353]

Storm rifle in halo 4 could be used as a brawler weapon, if paced correctly and manage the its overheating, you can overwhelm people as a suppresive loadout equivalent LMG

[@hiwrenhere]

The storm rifle was my favorite after I got over being a hurt fanboy that the plasma rifle was gone and actually tried using the storm rifle.

[@Wepospalient]

I think the Storm Rifle's biggest failings were it's visual and audio design. Despite being nerfed into the ground after CE, the Plasma Rifle is one of Halo's most iconic and instantly recognizable guns, right up there with the Needler and Assault Rifle. Even when designing the Plasma Repeater, Bungie borrowed heavily from the Plasma Rifle's unique design. On the audio front, since Halo 2, the Plasma Rifle has also had a very unique and memorable firing sound, and it is easily recognizable in Halo's soundscape. Even when you hear a dozen different guns firing at once, the Plasma Rifle is easy to pick out of a crowd. Halo 4 & 5's Storm Rifle utterly fails in these regards. Gone is the iconic visual design of the Plasma Rifle, instead looking like a human Assault Rifle that was spray painted purple. No longer did it resemble a strange alien weapon, built for alien hands, that humans didn't full understand, now we had a very clear visual analogue to the assault rifle, and in that we lost a lot of the uniqueness that the Plasma Rifle brought to the table. Gone too was the Plasma Rifle's distinctive firing sound, replaced with a much softer and harder to read sound effect. Picking out a Storm Rifle in a crowd is much harder than picking out a Plasma Rifle. I'd compare with they did between the Plasma Rifle and Storm rifle to a hypothetical where they came out with the brand new Needler and it was just a Pink Assault rifle. Sadly, I think for all the good the Storm Rifle did in restoring plasma weapons to a viable gameplay spot, it utterly and completely failed at capturing the audio and visual magic of the Plasma Rifle, and that made it very hard for me to ever adopt it as a gun I liked.

[@thunderr0736]

I loved the storm rifle ever since its introduction, and nobody can change my mind on that. Sure, the design does not look as alien, but every time I got my hands on one, it never disappointed. It felt much more lore-accurate for the alien guns to do more damage. To answer the viewer questions, I would love to See the brute-shot revisited as a power weapon. I would have said the mauler, but we are getting a gun like it in infinite anyway. Really stoked to pick that one up.

[@ghostplasma5590]

In my ideal world weapon sandbox would look a little like this: (Note:I will give just a few examples not all weapons couse i dont remember all) UNSC weapons: Assault Rifle-Medium dmg to health,Medium dmg to shields [Medium range weapon] SAW-High dmg to health,Low dmg to shields [Close to mid range weapon] Battle Rifle,DMR- Like assault rifle [Long range weapon] Sniper rifle-High dmg to health,High dmg to shields [Long range weapon] Pistol- Like assault rifle [Short range weapon] Covenant weapons: Storm Rifle- Low dmg to health,High dmg to shields [Medium range weapon] Plasma Pistol- Medium dmg to health,High damage to shields [Short range weapon] Needler- High dmg to health,Low dmg to shields [Medium range weapon] Carabine- Medium dmg to health,Medium dmg to shields [Long rnge weapon] Beam Rifle- like UNSC counterpart Promethean: Bolt Shot- High dmg to health,Medium dmg to shields [short range weapon] Suppresor- High dmg to health,Low dmg to shields [short to mid range weapon] Light Rifle- Medium dmg to health,High dmg to shields [Long range weapon] Binary Rifle- Like UNSC counterpart [Long range weapon]

[@imDstroy]

The fact that people complained about the storm rifle (and i did, a lot), has nothing to do with time and perception of other plasma rifle. The weapon was just too easy to use for the power it delivers. The weapon was indeed a power weapon in term of damage you can expect from it. But wasnt treated like so on the maps. The respawn time was like any low tier weapon, so there wasn't any team decision on how to control it, because most of the time the weapon was available, and there was a storm rifle for each teams. In a game that reward skills, and for the weapons that doesnt neeed skills, rewards team play to control them, the storm rifle was a stupidity.

[@Basu117]

I had to scroll down way to far to see someone spitting these facts

[@NotSoChattyYT]

Still can't deny the fact that the weapon design deviated from being alien to covenant version of AR.

[@Reaper-Rex]

So glad we are talking about the plasma rifle, it has been my favorite design for a weapon, but in the games (except for CE) it was trash. One thing I can appreciate about 4 and 5 is they revived this weapon for me and finally I can use it In multiplayer and not get crapped on.

[@dissrune]

You are right, yesterday playing superfiesta I got a Storm rifle and I was disappointed because I thought it was weak. I didn't knew it was actually a good weapon

[@hackersulamaster]

My old school favourite combo was duel wield smg and plasma rifle. One of the underestimated facets is since the plasma rifle didn't need to reload and that the smg needed only a few rounds to finish people off you could get away with a few kills before reloading. It's become a common occurence where my favourite playstyles involve the ones tailored for buffer warfare. Unlike in infinite where everygun has almost a 1 kill limit on it's mag unless it's the cindershot, rocket launcher or sword. Every single generation they keep buffing defense in infantry games where positioning should be prioritized. Character models are made more slim, tanky and faster. This is why Halo: CE had the easiest sniper/pistol to use in the SERIES. An old beloved fan favourite where you could effectively fight off multiple foes with the same number of maneouvers. Instead they cater to this run and gun gameplay that lacks immersion but is an easier sell because it *seems* like people are more skilled but only because everything is harder to do. It's a fallacy where marketing-wise the game is more interesting if it has difficulty to it and its easier to pick up but it becomes less fun when that difficulty mechanic is just a simple hard buffer which ends up making things frustrating like you're playing with chopsticks or something. Ironic considering gunpowder weapons became popular because they were so easy to use. Even more so when tactical wit is extremely rewarding. If I were a gameplay historian I would always bring up the history of the battlefield 3 beta. The true paradigm shift where the loud overtook the many. Where idiots cried their loudest to preserve their baser instinct of running "directly towards the enemy, like theyre coming from behind" - The Sarge, Red vs Blue. Killing the best playset in history that would've actually made people put on face camo while playing. Instead of trying to style on everyone all the time.

[@elijahhaynes216]

The Storm Rifle played better than it’s predecessor, but replaced one of the most iconic weapons in Halo

[@fanamatakecick97]

I don’t hate the Storm Rifle, i hate that *replaced* the Plasma Rifle

[@existentialselkath1264]

When I started playing halo with mcc pc I was under the impression that the plasma rifle was iconic. So I was surprised when it got replaced with stuff like this. Its weapons like the plasma rifle that make me consider CE as possibly the best sandbox

[@Man-of-Beans]

Only thing I dislike about the storm rifle is its appearance, other than that it’s great

[@danteaghoulfromspace2996]

one thing i did always like about the plasma repeater, is that you could vent it whenever you wanted

[@SockEater4293]

My problem with the Storm Rifle was that it lacked a good presentation (at least in Halo 4, I didn't play Halo 5). By the stats it seems good, but it always felt weak and underwhelming to use because it felt like the firing sound was too quiet and it just looked like a covenant version of the Assault Rifle.

[@daklr2501]

Halo 5s storm rifle is the epitome of the phrase: "You may not like it, but this is what peak performance looks like" in an artistic to functional sense

[@Takuat]

I think my main issue with the Storm Rifle is that still didn't have a unique trait. If it had maybe had its damage reduced and bringing back the stun effect, then I'd find it more appealing but at the moment all it really was (at least to me, I'm one of those that thinks CE had the best sandbox) is a ventable SAW. Also, this isn't the Storm Rifles fault, its the Plasma Repeaters for starting the trend, but Infinites introduction of venting for all plasma weapons certainly feels like it takes away some of the uniqueness of the plasma family in general, alongside the fact floor plasma weapons restore energy. The actual traits and uses of the Pulse Carbine(and I'd rather have a vent than a reload like the Plasma Carbine, its more thematically fitting) are really interesting, I just wish they kept the old family traits as well. As for under-powered to power weapon, one idea I had would be for the SMG. If we end up getting the MA5B from CE back, a way to distinguish the SMG and the MA5B would be to give the SMG dual functions(ala the Heatwave), single wield and dual wield(this would also somewhat appease people who want dual wielding back). Although it would still mess with the dance, it wouldn't restrict and nerf the entire small weapon sandbox, players would have the option to remove their ability to throw grenades and melee quickly at the cost of a second SMG. Whether this just meant it took the melee/grenade longer to come out and afterwads you immiediately went into single wield or jsut outright not allowing the player to use those abilities would be a balance decision that'd need to be considered but it would provide neat and unique functionality to a weapon that since its inception, was meant to overlap with the AR.

[@jaidenbaxter1871]

I think 343 should have sorta mixed the repeater and SR, buff the plasma rifle to be like CE and have the SR be a precision automatic like the silenced smg, the SR could be touched up on to look more unique maybe with a maroon colour or still purple but leaning closer to red to contrast the blueish plasma rifle, kinda like one of the Halo 2 beam rifle variants in Halo 5, the SR could have a slow fire rate by automatic standards that gets slower when held for too long requiring venting to speed up (like the repeater) but noticeably being faster than precision and sniper weapons with little bloom, the projectile speed could be like the H3 BR requiring proper tracking and leading, due to its fire rate it's a medium to long range weapon outperformed by the AR and PR at close range but at medium to long range it annoys the hell out of snipers and marksmen because the automatic fire constantly forces them to de-scope, meaning that if used properly at long range it makes up for its low damage (by precision weapon standards) and slow fire rate (by automatic standards) because of de-scope and not needing to aim for the head as that doesn't speed up ttk.

[@TheMock5000]

I will always prefer the T25 plasma rifle over any design replacement.

[@TheMasterMind144]

The Plasma Pistol was anything but a fairly unimpressive combat weapon in Combat Evolved. Even without the vehicle EMP ability the weapon's damage was still insanely good against shielded and unshielded targets alike. It's raw damage was nerfed into the ground in Halo 2 where the tracking on it became OP (and because of dual wielding) and then again in 3 where it gained the ability to EMP vehicles, but it actually started out as a very strong weapon overall. Also, Reach buffed the Plasma Pistol again to almost CE levels of damage while retaining the EMP ability, making it one of the best iterations in the series. Overall what you are saying might be applicable to the PR, but you are completely wrong about the PP. EDIT: Also, didn't the Plasma Repeater in Reach deal a lot of damage against health as well? I'm fairly sure its actually role in the sandbox was that of a good starting weapon for Elites during Invasion. I agree that they should have just buffed the Plasma Rifle instead of creating the Repeater though.

[@Drakrylos]

Legit surprised that the Brute Plasma Rifles in Halo 2 and 5 weren't mentioned at all. Halo 5's BPS in particular is a beast.

[@Chrisspru]

a cool option for infinite: reubtroduce the storm rifle from h5 with a smaller reticule, making it a shield shredding but non headshot-bonus covenant vk78 comando counterpart. the plasma rifle can return in its CE form, maybe even the plasma repeater (which would work like the plasma rifle, but without stun but a bit of splash damage) as general close to midrangers. the pulse carbine then is the pure midranger

[@sylvasilva2851]

Honestly, if it just had a different sound, I would have used it at all turns.

[@gh0stofinf1nity11]

We all have to admit that the Plasma Repeater looks damn cool though

[@FeinryelRavenclaw]

I suppose I like the functionality of the Storm Rifle, but I never liked its design. Puke-green UI, bulbous silhouette, lack of consistency with other plasma weapon designs like the beam of lightning.

[@ScrumbDuck]

I was actually a Storm Rifle main in Halo 4. I loved mopping the map with that thing.

[@Blibbyant]

Something I would like to see if these three weapons were all in the same game is for the repeater to have similar stats to the storm rifle does now, the plasma rifle to act as it does in CE, and for the storm rifle to perform like a plasma LMG, a counterpart to the SAW.

[@eduardoflores3453]

It was my fauvirite machinegun in halo 5, and i loved the Orange variant, it was Onésimo of the first weapons that i completed its challenges

[@nickm5419]

Storm Rifle is the gun you pick up when you're low on ammo and you need a gun that is somewhat effective and has punch to it when your back is against the wall

[@georgefremd1802]

Even after the nerf, the storm rifle In halo 5 is a powerful ambush weapon. It combines well with the assault rifle. It's a beast on plaza when you post up by the stairs below the light rifle spawn. As well as the walkway connecting blue base with plasma pistol spawn. It's also devastating when your cloaked

[@markdevonport3274]

I freaking LOVE the Halo 5 storm rifle. Sure it was a bit OP, but it felt so satisfying to mow down enemy players with it.

[@reilly_sharky_reese]

The Halo 2 & 3 SMG comes to mind as receiving a power weapon treatment in 5, just barely scraping the ceiling of loadout to power weapon imo.

[@davidperry4013]

I love dual wielding a plasma rifle with an SMG in halo. It’s definitely my go to in Halo 2 and 3. Dual wielding plasma rifles is pretty nice too.

[@TheSonicfanx1]

The Halo CE Plasma Rifle was my saving fucking grace in H:CE Legendary. That gun was so fucking useful and consistent at killing covenant because it deletes shields, that I would sometimes even drop the H:CE Shotgun in favor of a Plasma Rifle.

[@hounsdjentlow3074]

You when you edited out hyperion was that a 1 second clip of can you feel the heart by bmth? Love the content homeslice thank you and keep it coming !

[@AscendHyperion]

Lol yes it was. Had to be fast tho. Those copyright cops be lurkin 👮‍♂️

[@hounsdjentlow3074]

@@AscendHyperion they do be lurkin 😂 knew that synth the second i heard it 😉 maybe youd do a video on the real tragic existance of the grenade launcher when you have time acsend hidjention