We start off with the Matchmaking Playlist Update. The Sniper is the weapon of the day here.

Team Snipers will be receiving new and updated maps: Ragnarok has received heavily optimized respawns, with many of the mid-map respawn points being moved to reduce the frequency of gaining control at the “50-yard line” and continually spawn-killing the enemy. Additionally, the respawn points behind and in front of the bases have been optimized to reduce the frequency of spawning out in the open. Also, Pitfall will be added to the playlist alongside Community Forge maps “The Ark,” made by The Fated Fire and “Opticon,” made by SaItyKoalaBear.

The Ark offers a wide mix of sightlines and scenery that help players learn and understand the map relatively quickly. For a look around the map (and potentially a jump on your opponents) check out the vid below.

Opticon brings a large arena-esque map into the Snipers mix, and offers challenging angles and sightlines into the middle structure, guaranteeing that securing map control will be no easy feat.

In addition to these updated maps, there are some new game types. The first of these are Covenant and Forerunner Snipers, which will equip players with Beam Rifles and Binary Rifles, respectively. Also, the traditional Team Snipers variant will no longer have any on-map weapons, and each game type (Team Snipers, Covenant Snipers, and Forerunner Snipers) will feature single-weapon sniping experiences.  There is something new inspired by “No-Scopes Only” custom game types that have been popular in custom game lobbies for years. This coming Monday, Snapshot will make its premiere in Matchmaking.

SNAPSHOT
In this new game type, only “un-zoomed” kills will add to your team score. Players will still be able to zoom in, and even kill opponents whilst in-scope, but these kills will not count towards your team score, and your team will be upset with you for being so foolish for zooming in with a Sniper Rifle.

Players will start with both the Beam Rifle and UNSC Sniper Rifle. Extensive playtesting went into this game type, and we decided to start players with the Beam Rifle as the primary weapon due to the fact that un-zoomed kills with this weapon come at a faster and smoother pace, and we believe that this leads to an optimal flow (as well as laughing, chaos, and epic multi-kills). As always, we look forward to hearing your feedback about this game type.

Community Game Type Highlight: Conversion

Over the next few months (and potentially beyond), I’ll be highlighting noteworthy contributions from the community in the Bulletin. These may come in the form of maps, montages, and more. This week, I’ve decided to focus on a custom game type that has gained some steam and popularity over this past summer: Conversion. I had the chance to play this game type a few days after it was officially released, and was impressed by the new twist on an attack/defend round-based game type, which is based off of Extraction. There has been a significant amount of work on the game type since I last played, so I reached out to The Psycho Duck, one of the brains behind the project, to discuss the game type, where it came from, and where it is now. Enjoy!

(What follows is an interview with the creator of this game type. To see this go to the official site. Link at end of article)

In the meantime, you can download the gametype and maps here:
Conversion Gametype
Firebase map
Colony map

Lastly the screenshot spotlight. This week: Ricochet.

I particularly like this shot:

To read the full bulletin, go HERE.

-Sal