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[Update] 'You Deserve Better,' Says 343 Industries On Halo Problems
Update: 343 Industries has updated on the status of the problems facing Halo: The Master Chief Collection's multiplayer modes.
We have deployed a number of server updates to help improve matchmaking. These updates should expedite wait times and allow you to find matches faster and easier. We are actively monitoring data for wait times and will continue to modify as necessary.
Additionally, we are monitoring all non-matchmaking feedback, and still targeting another release for this weekend. Please continue to use the support forums to report and discuss issues. We will continue to work until issues are resolved, and thank you for your continued patience.
The developer is updating users on the status of the game's wait times and other issues on its website.
Original Story:
It hasn't been the best of launches for 343 Industries and Microsoft. Halo: The Master Chief Collection has been suffering matchmaking problems over Xbox Live since the title was released at midnight on November 11.
Following yesterday's ongoing updates, day two of the online problems starts with a new update on the official Halo website. Dan Ayoub, the game's executive producer, says that the studio is rolling out fixes today for matchmaking and this weekend to address newly discovered achievement-related problems.
Here's the full text of the update.
Since the launch of Halo: The Master Chief Collection, we've received several, well deserved, complaints related to slow matchmaking and other issues. From everyone at 343 Industries, we are truly sorry and feel your frustration. You deserve better and we are working day and night to find solutions as quickly as possible, with our first priority focused on matchmaking improvements.
Tomorrow morning (Wednesday morning Pacific Time) we plan to roll out a number of server updates to help improve matchmaking. Again, these are server-side fixes, so you won't need to take a content update or reboot your console; you should see the effects right away.
In addition, we are targeting another release for this weekend, which will address a number of other community priorities. An unrelated issue with services is also causing achievements to not unlock correctly, and we realize this just makes it all feel a bit worse.
A game as large as Halo: The Master Chief Collection has a massive surface area, and while we made every effort to have the best launch possible for our fans, issues surfaced with launch and we're committed to improving this as fast as possible and get you all into matches. We're committed to improving things as fast as possible so you can have the Halo experience you've been waiting for.
Your feedback has been helpful for us in isolating issues, so please keep the input coming. We thank you for your continued patience and understanding while we work through these challenges. The development team at 343 Industries worked insanely hard to create Halo: The Master Chief Collection for you, and we won't stop until it's worthy of your passion for our franchise.
Dan Ayoub
Executive Producer
We'll continue to the follow the story as it develops.
[Source: 343 Industries]
Our Take
Microsoft could have run the table for fall releases with critical acclaim for Sunset Overdrive and a smooth rollout for Halo: The Master Chief Collection. This should have been the easy one, especially with online backed by "the infinite power of the cloud." (We interviewed head of Xbox Phil Spencer in September 2013 and specifically asked about the cloud services, scaling, and big online launches.)
Right now the best scenario is for 343 Industries to fix its problems in less time than it's taking Sony to repair the damage done by Driveclub. This isn't the console race anyone wanted.
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