Halo: Reach

By Dan Whitehead Published 6 May, 2010

How different armour abilities are making their mark.

So, the Halo: Reach multiplayer beta is now open to all - well, all the people who bought Halo 3: ODST anyway - and now that the obligatory first-day rush has finished pounding the servers into digital paste, we're starting to get a clearer picture of how this tactical new twist on a classic multiplayer formula is going to work.

It's tougher, that much is clear. Shield damage no longer translates into physical damage, so taking down other players requires headshot expertise. You can get away with a few lucky kills by blasting away, but if you're used to using a spray-and-pray technique for most of your multiplayer scalps, you're going to struggle.

It's also a game with a unique sense of balance. With pre-defined loadouts rather than rigid character classes, the different skillsets are, at first glance, not balanced at all. Elites in particular are absolute monsters; larger, faster and more powerful than the Spartans in almost every respect.

This isn't a game where each class has its own counter-agent that smoothes out its battlefield efficiency. There's no rock, paper, scissors formula to deadling with each threat, as there are abilities available here that should be game-breaking, yet somehow they're not. We'll chalk it up to Bungie's expertise in this sort of thing, offering up cool toys but restricting their use to certain maps and modes so as not to skew the playing field.

1

Armour Lock will even withstand a collision with a vehicle, turning you into a bollard of doom.

All the armour abilities are mapped to the left bumper, with a quick tap or a prolonged press producing different effects. Now they're in active service, we can see how players are making use of them.

We'll start with Jetpack because, well, that's what everybody is doing. It's a jetpack. In a Halo game. Why wouldn't you want to take it for a spin before doing anything else? It works very well, too. Control is intuitive, and it only takes a few rounds to become adept enough at flight to be dropping in on flags or snipers with lethal precision.

For the first day of beta play, however, the ground was thick with the bodies of enthusiastic n00bs who had jumped straight in, hit the bumper and flew up into the sky like dim-witted pheasants - right into the sights of a more experienced player, calmly clipping their wings and chalking up lots of lovely XP points as they tumble back to terra firma.

It's the same problem that blights planes and helicopters in Battlefield. People want to fly, and leave themselves stupidly open to attack in their eagerness to soar. Still: jetpacks. Fun.

2

Sprint can't help but have suicidal overtones, but racing towards your enemy, guns blazing, can still unnerve a new player.

Sprint is almost the exact opposite - an ability that barely feels like an ability at all, given that it's usually a basic requirement of the FPS genre. That's not to say it's not useful though, and as players come to grips with the way these abilities can overlap and complement each other we're starting to see the sprinters come into their own.

It's an ability usually mapped to one of the more straight forward combat classes, such as Pro or Grenadier, so for rushing an enemy position and creating a distraction it's immediately clear how to make basic use of it.

In the flag-capturing modes, it's also instinctively useful, allowing players to dart into dangerous territory or draw enemies away without losing shields. Sprint definitely seems to be working best when players operate in teams. A guy who can run fast isn't much use on his own, but pair him up with someone rocking the other abilities and it can become a vital tactical tool.

Active Camo, for example, makes for a great partner skill to someone using Sprint. While they're dashing about, attracting enemy fire, you can go all Predator, disappear behind a wobbly transparent haze and get things done. You're not completely invisible, but in the thick of the action it's easy to go undetected if you skulk about rather than stroll around in plain sight.

Once you figure out the bottlenecks in the maps, it's also very handy for lurking in dark corners with a plasma sword. There's a thin passageway in Sword Base with just enough room to loiter that will certainly become a Camo player's dream. Even if an enemy spots you, the cloaking effect is such that it generally buys you a few moments' grace while your target works out if you're friendly or not.

Active Camo is also an ability that comes with more stringent limitations. While you get a generous amount of time to ply your secretive trade, it's slow to recharge and screws your radar while activated. It works best when you hold back until the last moment, activating it just before you encounter enemies rather than roaming around cloaked, hoping to stumble on the perfect kill.

Snipers will obviously get a lot of mileage out of it as well. Combine a cunning elevated position with one of the fearsome new long range weapons like the focus rifle and you can inflict terrible casualties before the enemy even pinpoint you.

Then there's Armour Lock, perhaps the ability with the most long-term potential. Essentially the tank of Reach's fluid class system, it offers complete invulnerability at the cost of all your movement.

You can shrug off anything - including a direct hit from one of the game's vehicles - but once you return to normal you'll have attracted all sorts of attention and no doubt be in the crosshairs of multiple enemies. To begin with, many players seemed completely at a loss as to what to do with such a useful-yet-useless skill, but now we're seeing teams figuring out tactical advantages.

It's obviously handy for modes where defence is required, offering fortification options on the fly, especially when you have three or four Armour Lock players alternating their impenetrable stasis. Use it in conjunction with the new Spartan grenade launcher, seeding the ground in front of a capture point with primed explosives, then let them detonate as you shrug off the blast for an especially effective way of keeping the wolves from the door.

3

For those Boba Fett moments, Jetpack can't be beaten.

Alternatively, since the armour customisation in Reach makes it impossible to tell which ability a player is using from one spawn to the next, it can make for a fun surprise should you jog around a corner into an enemy. They open fire, you turn invincible, and meanwhile one of your team-mates creeps up and executes the sucker from behind.

Finally, there's the Covenant Elites, as if they needed any more help. They get their own exclusive ability in Evade, which does pretty much what it sounds like: makes them a right pain in the arse to hit.

Equally handy for dodging incoming fire or taking the upper hand in a melee confrontation, it's similar to Sprint in the sense that it doesn't have any immediately cool impact, but once you've gone toe-to-toe with a player who has mastered the duck and roll you'll see how it completes the frankly terrifying arsenal that Elites bring to the game. Resilient, fast, and now difficult to hit as well - it's a killer combination for players willing to put in the hours to master the manoeuvres.

4

Elites: tough... but not unbeatable.

These abilities are all mixed and matched with weapons old and new to create a buffet of loadouts tweaked for each map and mode. Operators head into the fray with Armour Lock, plus shotgun, pistol and frag grenades. Stalkers arm up with Active-Camo, assault rifle, pistol and frags. Elite Gladiators rock Evade with plasma sword, plasma repeater and a pair of sticky grenades. Others, like the Spartan Marksman and Elite Assassin, are only available in Invasion mode. Part of the fun is just browsing the modes and seeing what each combination brings to the table.

Internet forums are already throbbing with arguments about which ability is best, which new weapon will become the default choice for most players and which loadout will dominate the maps. Such speculation seems to suggest that, a few tightening tweaks aside, Bungie is set to deliver another deceptively rich multiplayer experience, with enough immediacy to woo the casual crowd but layers of depth that reward the long term player.

The Halo: Reach multiplayer beta is available now to Halo 3: ODST owners. The full game is due out this autumn.

Picture of Dan.

About Dan Whitehead

Dan has been writing for Eurogamer since 2006 and specialises in RPGs, shooters and games for children. His bestest game ever is Julian Gollop's Chaos.

Read more articles from Dan by visiting the Dan Whitehead archive page.

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Comments (64) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • iamtheoneneo #1 2 years ago

    but their not making their mark - and thats the problem.
    this is a very misguided article....the perks add little extra dimension to the games.

    the most important issue with the beta at the moment is the unbalanced maps and the extremely nerfed weapons that lack much needed punch. how you can write about the extreme sense of balance is beyond me and suggest you really dig your heels into the beta to trully understand the issues with it as its all very nice on the surface but deeply flawed underneath.

    asides from that its still the same old halo.....
    Edited by iamtheoneneo at 06/05/10 @ 14:05

  • B0MBJ4CK #2 2 years ago

    Whats Ellies take on it? ;)

  • Eraysor #3 2 years ago

    Sword Base is such a terrible map I can't bring myself to play it; whoever thought that layout was a good idea was an idiot. Powerhouse, on the other hand, is excellent.

    I'm quite enjoying the armour abilities though, the lock one in particular is nice and tactical.

  • dbranchevans #4 2 years ago

    Curse you Xbox 360 owners! *Goes back to MAG and cries at its inferiority*

  • miiiguel #5 2 years ago

    Alternatively, since the armour customisation in Reach makes it impossible to tell which ability a player is using from one spawn to the next, it can make for a fun surprise should you jog around a corner into an enemy. They open fire, you turn invincible, and meanwhile one of your team-mates creeps up and executes the sucker from behind

    This is rather satisfying and a "bonding" moment.

  • RedSparrows #6 2 years ago

    'the most important issue with the beta at the moment is the unbalanced maps and the extremely nerfed weapons that lack much needed punch. '

    What? If anything, they need the least work.
    Edited by RedSparrows at 06/05/10 @ 14:16

  • iamtheoneneo #7 2 years ago

    really?play swordbase stockpile and tell me that its NOT unbalanced.
    Edited by iamtheoneneo at 06/05/10 @ 14:18

  • karooo #8 2 years ago

    I just love this game :D damn but need to finish Lost odyssey first :( its making me suck at the beta. but i dunno why the hate for sword base its a superb map, if you memorize it properly you can pull off a lot of stunts and some epic kills.

    my fav AA is sprint, just love running away or charging at a guy for melee :p

  • Bravestinsane #9 2 years ago

    will get negged for this but oh well.

    I found it too slow if im honest, i found running around from a to b, was quite boring and i felt like a slug turning was also incredibly slow even on highest setting (10 insane) seems to have lost a lot of pace in the game.

  • RedSparrows #10 2 years ago

    'really?play swordbase stockpile and tell me that its NOT unbalanced.'

    The onus is actually on you to say why it is.

    I'd say perhaps that red base is slightly easier to defend than blue, albeit blue has less entrances. That's not map design per se anyway, but game mode design - they can move flag spawn and bases without changing the map.

    Also, how the hell is 10 slow for you? You must be a ninja ;o
    Edited by RedSparrows at 06/05/10 @ 14:25

  • Yossarian #11 2 years ago

    Incidentally, you can tell what ability an enemy (or friend) has. A jetpack on their back is most obvious, but Armour Lock puts a small orange generator thingy on their lower back, Camo puts a small blue generator thing on their lower back, and Sprint leaves their lower back exposed.

  • uglygamer #12 2 years ago

    Love it, absolutely love it! Awesome beta.

  • kinky_mong #13 2 years ago

    Ermm am I missing something, because the way this article is written suggests there are game modes pitting Spartans vs Elites, and modes where the loadouts have different weapons as well as abilities which I haven't come across in the 6 or so hours I've played the Beta?

  • karooo #14 2 years ago

    @kinky, i just played that today, elite roll ability is awesome, but i guess you need to be a sergeant not sure.

  • miiiguel #15 2 years ago

    @kinky, i just played that today, elite roll ability is awesome, but i guess you need to be a sergeant not sure.

    No, it's not that, I played Elite like in my 4th or 5th game. Rolling (and Scrathing :} ) is indeed awesome!

  • MiniAmin #16 2 years ago

    The DMR is a beautiful weapon. It has the same tactile feedback you get from a Shotgun, even though it's a mid-long range rifle type weapon. Headshots with the DMR feel wonderful. I think the Armour Lock and Sprint are the most useful abilities.

  • RedSparrows #17 2 years ago

    DMR, across Overlook. 1. 2. 3. 4...and 5. BAM. Headshot.

    It's already overtaken the BR for that feeling. Which is pretty good.

  • muscleblade #18 2 years ago

    "and the 360 can have another excellent exclusive to keep the PS3 fanboys quiet ;) "

    Chances of this being excellent =100%
    Chances of keeping PS3 fanboys quiet =0%



  • Captain_America #19 2 years ago

    I'm enjoying the much improved needler. It works like it should have in Halo 3 and is again a very effective weapon, satiisfying watching them blow up as well.

    So far from what I've played the abilities work well, with none being particularly OP.

  • telboy007 #20 2 years ago

    Took me a fair while to get to grips with this going from -1000000 K/D to consistently getting -2 K/D after a few hours. One day I'll hit positive, one day!!! I enjoy the boring old sprint tbh, good to get the hell out when need be and good to get in close quick when you feel the need to elbow someone in the chops. Plays and looks nicer than Halo 3 and this is still a beta. Weird blur stuff going on when you reload though, does my eyes in.

  • tiny_Eggy #21 2 years ago

    "Whats Ellies take on it? ;) "

    Probably a whole lot more realistic than a bunch of Halo fanboys who've been playing the same game for 10 years. At least it's finally in HD now though, I guess that is something to celebrate.

  • dirtschmooz #22 2 years ago

    Halo : Reach Around...looking forward to this one

  • metalangel #23 2 years ago

    Ellie the Elite says "wort wort wort!" :)

  • TeaFiend #24 2 years ago

    @kinky_mong:
    Invasion and generator game modes, coming later in the beta. Journalists likely get advance previews :]
    Edited by TeaFiend at 06/05/10 @ 15:19

  • sfp_noodle #25 2 years ago

    Been playing the beta a few days now and whilst it is fun I have to say it is...rather slow. Boring at times too. I just can't shake the feeling that bar the added perks and sprinting, this is Halo 3 patched. It doesn't distinguish itself from Halo 3 that well and reminds me of the way I felt when I played Modern Warfare 2. It felt like COD4 with added perks but essentially the same game. Worse even.

    This is just my opinion and I am aware that many people enjoy it. However, considering this is an all new Halo game thats coming 3 full years after the last vanilla release, I don't see enough improvements. I'm happy sticking with my ODST MP disc until Reach drops in price after Chirstmas.

  • super_monty #26 2 years ago

    Ellie would say 7/10 and something about masterbation.

  • ziggy_played_guitar #27 2 years ago

    Can you please stop with the ambiguous comments, I want to bad-karma everyone who says he enjoys Halo, but this whole new trend is driving me crazy.

  • IIIvirusIII #28 2 years ago

    i hope they didnt spend long developing this game because it no improvment on halo 3 , ive even say that its the worst game released in ages .

  • CaptainQuint #29 2 years ago

    Loving the beta but getting sick of the same 2 maps, the other 2 can't come soon enough.

    Also, for all the fun and strategy the new abilities bring to the game, am I the only one in mourning for the slow death of Halo 3's brilliant Bubble Shield? I wish they'd find somewhere to put it into Reach.

    Farewell Bubble Shield, we hardly knew thee.

  • Negotiator #30 2 years ago

    As of now the beta only consists of 2 maps and a handful of gametypes and it is superb, tomorrow brings the first real big different gametype for Halo with Invasion. And a new map to play it on, the biggest Halo map yet, this will convert a number of people to Halo.

  • Zerobob #31 2 years ago

    "Been playing the beta a few days now and whilst it is fun I have to say it is...rather slow. Boring at times too. I just can't shake the feeling that bar the added perks and sprinting, this is Halo 3 patched. It doesn't distinguish itself from Halo 3 that well and reminds me of the way I felt when I played Modern Warfare 2. It felt like COD4 with added perks but essentially the same game. Worse even."

    Unfortunately I know EXACTLY what you mean. I've not played the beta (paying an Xbox Live Gold subscription every month alone doesn't entitle you to the luxary of playing a demo for some reason) but I bet you can't quite put your finger on why it feels so slow.

    It just stinks of Bungie fiddling around a little too much and ruining the basic feel of the game. A bit like what they did with Mario Kart on the Wii. I really hope they fix this slowness people have been mentioning before the final release.

  • miiiguel #32 2 years ago

    this will convert a number of people to Halo.

    And that's a good thing ? I have no desire to see more (some?) ppl playing/enjoying Halo.

    /is selfish, not so social.

  • Rich72 #33 2 years ago

    I would have been happy with the new weapons minus the abilities

  • Moonprince #34 2 years ago

    Android123

    Edited 3 times, most recently on 06/05/10 @ 16:18

    seriously..?

  • Rich72 #35 2 years ago

    is reach on the ps3 anthony?

  • KilgoreTroutXL #36 2 years ago

    The abilities are a great addition, though I think they ought to require a bit more downtime between uses than they currently do.

    I'd also like to see about 5 more bullets in each DMR clip and a slightly faster firing speed. If that happens it'll be the coolest gun in any halo, ever.

  • ziggy_played_guitar #37 2 years ago

    Are you advising the community on Halo, Mr. "Lite" Daniels?!!! You know even with the massive minus you get in every single thread some ppl still read them. May I sugest backwards psychology or a sock ?

    off-topic: why no ignore button?

  • geeza2020 #38 2 years ago

    hopefully this is different enough from previous halo's to keep my interest. I was kinda disappointed with Halo 3, so never played ODST. The preview on this site previously was really quite positive and made me prick my ears up a bit more, but some of the comments here have made me think that maybe its not the grand revolution of the halo series I was hoping for.

    Please be good.

  • Dizzy #39 2 years ago

    Here I am in locked down mode while the grenades are bouncing off. Awesome!

    http://www.bungie.net/Stats/Reach/FileDe...

  • Genyus #40 2 years ago

    At first I only played with the jetpack because it's a friggin jetpack but now I'm starting to enjoy stalker too. I enjoy the armour abilities in general I guess.

  • DUFFKING #41 2 years ago

    Really enjoying Halo Reach and don't get the comments saying 'it's just halo again'. Course it fucking is. Just wish a nice new twist that keeps it fresh and an interesting rebalance that seems to favour ranged combat a little more.

    It's funny seeing half the people bitch that it's too similar to what's come before and the rest bitch that it's too different. Guess that means it's just right.

    Also, the multiplayer play makes me think the campaign could be something special this time. No previous campaign has gotten it just right in Halo, so hopefully they'll deliver with the final effort.

  • T3TSUO #42 2 years ago

    WOW!
    Yet another Halo Reach preview EG? I take it this is the only half decent game MS have given you to promote this year.

  • ziggy_played_guitar #43 2 years ago

    I know I'm an old guy (with a God given ass), but why write a name with a number? Seems so, I don't know?! Silly, juvenile?

    Fuck, now I know I'm bored. I wish I was somewhere else.

  • leafmulch #44 2 years ago

    I'm rubbish at Reach, not that I've ever been good at previous halos, but those bitches with jetpacks are always getting me and whatever special/new gun out there I can't get a single kill with - well that's the gun the kids are doing me in with. How can I possibly go on? Great though....

  • matrim83 #45 2 years ago

    Using the Armor lock is now becoming almost instinctual to me. So if I play with any other armor ability I end up hammering the LB to go into Lockdown mode only to remember that I am using the Sprint/Camo.

    /Facepalm.

    Oh and also, Pistol could use an extra 3-4 rounds per clip IMO.

  • onyxbox #46 2 years ago

    I couldn't get into it.

    Every game seem to be run/spint/jetpack towards each other, throw grenade on the way then circle strafe whilst unloading a clip in someone elses face then hope your connection has less latency than the enemy... repeat until game over.

    The graphics feel smoother but the blur-o-vision makes it look like my telly is an old smearing LCD (reminds me of the effect FEAR2 used).

    I dunno' each to their own I guess.... I tried to like it but I couldn't get into it... still looking forward to the SP tho'

  • tobsen #47 2 years ago

    Looking at this and at other Halo-related comment threads, I wonder if Microsoft has a street team going around on EG that marks down all posts that are even remotely critical.

  • DUFFKING #48 2 years ago

    No around here any post that's critical about anything gets marked down, the people who act like wankers in the process get marked down more.

    Not that the karma system ever meant shit anyway.

  • mizcicz #49 2 years ago

    the reach beta is awesome. canīt wait for the new modes starting with invasion tomorrow. the new abilities are absolutely well designed. as the article says...some SEEM to be overpowered at first, but they arenīt. use sprint and the gravity hammer - killing sprees guaranteed...unless you didnīt notice the camo guy that sneaked up on you. thereīs a lot of hate for swordbase and i can understand that. i also prefer powerhouse, but swordbase is also a cool map. you just have to change your playing style a little more with each map / mode it seems. while powerhouse is great for every ability swordbase screams for jetpacks - yet you still need to switch between all the abilities but in swordbase i use jetpack far more often than in powerhouse due to itīs vertical design. i never was a huge halo lover but iīm ultra impressed with how smooth, slick and stylish the reach beta is. itīs just so much fun..to me it seems like reach will become videogame heaven.
    Edited by mizcicz at 08/05/10 @ 08:24

  • mizcicz #50 2 years ago

    and while iīm at it to praise this game like a fanboy. to play as an elite is soooooo cool...

  • iamtheoneneo #51 2 years ago

    oh knows i just got marked down bc i slated a beta thats funadmentally flawed and an article that addresses none of those.

    fuck me EG users - get a grip and open your eyes!!!

    my points still stand this game needs serious work before it can even be a remotely enjoyable experience.

  • RedSparrows #52 2 years ago

    People don't just get marked down for being trolls and writing flamebait.

    They also get marked down for simply being wrong, or for not backing up their claims. There are many of us here, who in all seriousness, like to discuss such things. Bleating about us all being blind doesn't indicate such an attitude.

    For instance, Onyxbox's post, whilst not needlessly trolly like many, seems to be an honest reaction to the game, and fairplay. It's also fundamentally flawed, given the impression of the game is clearly not the whole picture. Hence it could be downrated for several reasons.

    But that should be fucking obvious.
    Edited by RedSparrows at 07/05/10 @ 00:36

  • Yossarian #53 2 years ago

    u mad

  • rommy667 #54 2 years ago

    Halo 1 on xbox is still the best Halo game by miles i dont know how they screwed it up so much on the 360.............

  • OldMan #55 2 years ago

    Played the beta for a couple of nights and quite like what I've seen. It appears that Bungie is doing the exact same thing with the Halo "gear-system" as they originally did its weapons system: to give various options a distinct impact on the gameplay. Gear in Halo Reach is far more than just "perks", it's a choice of playing style. Choice of gear and weapon will go beyond cosmetics, create genuine variety, and I like that.

  • geeza2020 #56 2 years ago

    heh, I didnt even make a negative comment, just mentioned that there were other comments on here from people who have played the beta who were critical of the game, and that made me wary of the game. And i got negged. For that. Its hard to argue about EG being a good site to have mature discussions about games when even a well balanced argument is just negged because it doesnt say halo is the mutts nutts. Fucking fanboys of ps3 and 360 should all just go and gas themselves to death. It would make the whole world a much nicer place.

  • telboy007 #57 2 years ago

    No gassing necessary, just ignoring. Anyway played this again last night, I do like the armour ability and the stalker ability more but still can't leave sprinting. I'm liking it more and more have to admit. That blur effect is off putting though, especially when you have someone running by your side that go between close enough and not close enough for the blur to engage and they go in and out of focus. Still, I like. So that is that!

  • geeza2020 #58 2 years ago

    fucking neggers. i hate em. your all a bunch of smelly neggers.

  • CHACK #59 2 years ago

    Not overly convinced, I keep playing the Beta looking and hoping to like it but the sheer frustration of the games drives me insane, too many hoppers bouncing around, blasting away with a BR then tossing in grenade for the shield drain or vice versa. is it just me or do the weapons need a ton more work, the rifle might as well spit frozen peas for all the damage it actually does. I was hoping for something really innovative with the maps and weapon sets, there's still that sense that the weapons don't have the physics and power. Battlefield however gives some real weight, audio giving the impression you're doing damage.

  • RedSparrows #60 2 years ago

    The DMR is a beast. Learn its ways.

  • GooseUK #61 2 years ago

    Wow that blur effect is absolutley HORRIBLE, it actally makes the edges of object appear to 'bend' very wierdly.

    Fun thing to do - stand in a doorway and strafe left and right. It will make to doorway appear to be made out of wobbling jelly... try it - i wish i was joking

  • ozzzy189 #62 2 years ago

    Thought it very slow after cod especially. and also the controls just aren't up to MW2 either, holding x to swap weapons makes it impossible to swap guns without stopping, changing the control layout doesn't work as then there is an issue elsewhere. i did start to enjoy it, but everone's flinging grenades around as now dual wield has gone, which makes them over plentiful and it becomes uber crazy at times. SWORDBASE IS AWFUL !!! i really did not enjoy the halo3 maps bar a couple, and find bungies map design since halo2 has really gone downhill.
    I'll give it another go, but i wasn't massively impressed.

  • OrangesJoel #63 2 years ago

    @Eraysor
    So far in my experience it's pretty poor for objective based games, particularly Stockpile where the base locations heavily favour the Blue team, but to be fair Sword Base is a great map for fast-moving Slayer/Team Slayer variants. Slayer, SWAT, and especially Headhunter are all good fun on it.

  • AHiFi #64 2 years ago

    Couldn't get into it at all. Massive Halo fan since the start. Even have the books. This is the first time I've genuinely not played the hell out of something new in the series. The maps are just...not doing it for me. I like the Stockpile mode, but stuff like the upgrades...what's the point?

    In Modern Warfare 2, it feels like it has a point. It unlocks naturally without you having to do much. But with this, you have to buy the upgrades. Why do we have to buy them? It all ends up in the same place anyway. Why does it have to be cash? Why can't it be 'Here, choose something new every level you go up'. It's pointless as by a certain level, everyone will have all the stuff anyway. So why do we have to use cash to buy it?? Is it psychological? Oooh money, must play more! I really don't get it, unless they're planning to do something else with it and offer a massive choice of stuff to buy.