According to 343 Industries, Halo 5's Big Team Battle (BTB) community refresh is now up and running.
The update is a collaboration with Halo 5's community to improve a number of different multiplayer maps made in Forge, the game’s level editor. Those of you who have been around since the early aughts will remember that BTB, which features two teams of eight, originally started with Halo 2, back when the feature was more novel. Just over a decade later, players are now involved in creating the very maps they play on.
And since Forge is free to use on Windows 10 if you have the anniversary update, this is likely just the beginning. Now that PC users can get their hands on the Forge level editor, as well as Halo 5’s multiplayer, the game could be catching its second wind.
After releasing the update, Halo 5's creators wanted to shed some light on the process behind testing and modifying users’ creations:
“After pulling the new and refreshed maps internally, the Multiplayer Team is able to take a closer look at them and contribute even more input on layout, aesthetics, and the overall flow of the gameplay. At this point, the process becomes a very quick back-and-forth as the Forgers look to make the last few changes needed on their maps, such as improving player containment, quality intro and outro cameras, as well as fixing up name location placement. Then, after all of this is complete, the MP Team verifies the fixes and deems the maps ready for matchmaking.”
BTB certainly hasn’t been as vibrant in the latest game as compared to Halos past, but continued updates from the community is certainly one way to try and fix that. As interesting as some of the player-made levels have been, like Viking for instance, they certainly seem to have benefited immensely from a bit of 343 Industries’ polish.
Now if only 343 would get on-board with pistol starts. You can see the rest of the maps that were updated here.