Action Season Interview: Silva
We are joined by one of our own, M4j0r Silva, to do a post season wrap up and discussion about what we learned and how the season went!
Nkotb4evah:
As a player who did not make the playoffs, what do you think went wrong?
M4j0r Silva:
Well first and foremost, awesome season. As for why the team performed so poorly I blame myself. The game in which we used you as a sub I ignored your feedback and thought to myself, “this guy is a total chumpo.” turns out I was wrong and you’re a total… chAmpo.
Nkotb4evah:
Oh you’re too kind! While you say the season was awesome that does not mean it was without issue though right? We heard a number of complaints throughout.
M4j0r Silva:
We did and I will say a number of them were valid. One thing that pertained particularly to me was the sub rule. We had gone with a rule that allowed subs based explicitly on grade. This system was set up to function for Halo 4, while Halo 3 has much more going on that stats alone do not capture. There was particularly some concern about me subbing as my grade was so low. To that I say I was stinking and any game I subbed in, the outcome was not particularly swayed. The bigger problem I saw was in the runners being used as subs, particularly Robot. A runner of that level will not have the stats in other fields to properly grade them and will allow them to sub for a player that has far less impact on the court and the game than he did.
Nkotb4evah:
I must say I agree. The concept behind the system, and the reason we pushed it so much was we felt it was the fastest way to make sure games were played. The grading was imperfect in some regards, and that DEFINETLY needs to be addressed. Overall though I think conceptually and with some minor tweaks the system could be valuable to further seasons, not just Action Season.
How did you feel about the host situation? That was another point of contention among some players.
M4j0r Silva:
I personally enjoyed the concept behind traveling host. It was a neat idea. In execution though, host in Halo 3 plays such a dominant role in the outcome of games, it made it hard to adapt from week to week. It also found teams just stuck with a matchup that was unfavorable. The luck of the draw could match you against an entire West coast team on West coast week. Not much play to be had in a game like that.
Nkotb4evah:
Valid criticism. I thought the idea of a migrating host to reflect the concept of the board game would be fun, and would make the season as a whole feel more alive. I know full well that host in Halo 3 is a major factor so figured since the game was already inconsistent it would be the perfect test ground game. I will say with confidence we discovered consistent host leads to more consistent competitive games, and an overall more satisfied community.
Now for some fun stuff, do you believe there was any stand out players or teams this season, be it new players, old players, or strategies that you would say, wowed you?
M4j0r Silva:
I might sound like a broken record here, but man Nkot you performed like a wiz. A true showing of NKOT of old. I always said you were one of the greats, in Halo terms, a forerunner. Your artifacts of running were left to be discovered and deciphered, but it was only when you came back to show us how they truly worked, could we even begin to understand them. They should definitely retcon the old Hall of Fame to include you, as it should have originally.
Nkotb4evah:
Well thank you so much, I would very much appreciate being retroactively inducted into the Hall of Fame I was wrongly excluded from. But what about the big story, Scet and Zeg bringing it back old school style and making a run for it (with doer and sab, who lets be real also helped carry them).
M4j0r Silva:
Their team name was annoying, calling themselves Alpha was just confusing and silly. Should have been some obscure funny reference to waiting for a boat, as they are currently waiting for a chess set that has been on a cargo ship for over a year. They did perform well though, and really came together to show that one of the biggest factors in Halo 3 is just embracing the game. With all of its flaws and craziness, if you try to fight it, you will only have a bad time.
I would say the same goes for most teams that had success this season. Players like Robot, Luxe, Atone, and Doer really do try to utilize the elements of Halo 3 that make it unique. Luxe in particular launched more than darn near anyone, completing the highly controversial launch mission and stimulating a heated debate about what is and what is not a Flowers.
Nkotb4evah:
Now THATS a spicy meatball!
I think with that we can safely bring this interview to a conclusion. I thank you M4j0r Silva for taking the time to sit with me and discuss how you felt about everything. Maybe next time you will heed my advice, but until then, thank you and good luck on the court!