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More of your questions about Halo 2 online stuff this week, including an update on cheating (thousands more accounts suspended) and some tricky interface questions just for good measure.

<toggledisplay> Posted by Frankie at 1/28/2005 5:16 PM PST

Every week we attempt to answer the most common and pressing questions in the Halo 2 community. This week we keep after the cheaters, deal with more downloadable content questions (poorly) and answer some tricky interface questions.

Many players ask,

Will you guys ever release a two on two Matchmaking type?

Almost everything is being considered. Two on two is less problematic than some other types, since it is proven to work very well on a range of small and even midsize maps, like Lockout, Midship, Foundation and (with more sniping) Colossus. We're investigating this and other types of match for our next big matchmaking update. We'll keep you posted.

I ask myself,

What's a Bantasm?

That's what Xbox Live instituted again on a number of folks too stupid to quit cheating, or to learn from the thousands of Xbox Live accounts who've already been suspended. The cool thing about these weekend suspensions is that it makes weekends slightly more enjoyable for players who don't cheat, use network exploits, racism or abusive language. There's a lesson to be learned here: Xbox Live knows when you're being a jerk, and acts on it. We've had a number of mostly gratifying letters from players who've apologized for bad behavior, or basically learned what the limits are, and promised not to do it again. We have of course had plenty of letters from players claiming their little brother did it, or my personal favorite, that "my modem is broken and reset every four or five minutes last week. Please unban me."

And since so many of you are confused about what Xbox Live considers naughty, here's a recap:

1 What kind of things is Xbox Live suspending people’s accounts for?

A good rule of thumb is to follow the Xbox Live Code of Conduct . The code of conduct is a list of do’s and don’t for the Xbox Live community and gives you a good idea of what is acceptable on the service .

2 How much evidence and data does Xbox Live have to support a ban or suspension?

It’s important to point out that just one piece of negative feedback from that ticked off person you just pawned on Lockout won’t get you banned from Live. While I won’t say how much feedback it takes to get banned remember that the Xbox Live in game feedback system has been successfully used for over 2 years across hundreds of titles. Using a variety of tools and reports we are able to confidently stand behind the actions we take to create a stronger Live community.

3 What do you say to folks who blame their suspension on a friend or family member?

(sigh) How many times have we heard that? Maybe people should not let their ‘little brother’ or ‘friend’ on their Xbox Live account. You should protect your Xbox Live account with the same level of security that you protect your email account with. You would be pretty ticked off if someone sent email from your account, wouldn’t you? A lot of people don’t know this, but they can protect their Xbox Live account so that you need a passcode to sign into Xbox Live. All you need to do if turn on your Xbox without a game, go to account management and choose “Pass Code.”

4 How can folks avoid being suspended or banned?

Just follow the rules. Some people throw all social graces out the window when playing, but they need to realize that there are consequences for bad actions. If you and your team play fair, then you’ll have uninterrupted gaming pleasure on Xbox Live.

5 Lots of players are worried that they could get suspended for negative feedback they didn’t deserve, how do you reassure them?

If members have done nothing wrong they have nothing to worry about. From what we have seen in the community the system does indeed work.

Here is a good page to read up on Xbox Live and the feedback system. Xbox Live Feedback

Many readers ask,

Why won't you talk about downloadable content?

The simple reason is that we're working and testing very hard and we don't want to make any promises we can't keep. The number and type of maps could change, and as a company, we've seldom committed to anything until we're absolutely sure it's going to make it. When we have mentioned things in the past, they often bite us in the ass. Look at the ATV for example. So, we'll make an announcement the second we can.

Speaking personally, I can tell you I've played more than one. And they rock. I mean truly classic stuff.

Ralph asks,

Where can I find the Fuel Rod gun? I've looked everywhere and I cannot find it.

The Fuel Rod gun only exists in the Campaign mode (it's simply too powerful and unbalanced for use in multiplayer) and it should be really easy to find. It's on the first Arbiter mission – Gas Giant, and there are actually a few of them to be found.

Guarav asks,

I don't know how to get out of my clan. Can you help.

Yep. It's easy. Sign into Xbox Live, and press Y to bring up the Live menu. Scroll right once to see the clans page. Now press X to bring up additional options. One of these is "Leave Clan." Don't worry, you'll see a warning message asking you if you're sure. And remember, a clan, as far as Xbox Live is concerned, is treated like a Gamertag – but with the caveat that you can only be a member of one at any given time. Once you leave, you cannot rejoin until invited. You are free at that point however, to create your own clan.

Buzzy Banks asks,

My son has played on a level he called "foundation". We can't find this level on our Halo 2. Could you tell me if there is such a level and if so, how do we get it. Thank you in advance for your help.

If you log your Xbox onto Xbox Live, an autoupdate will automatically unlock Foundation for you to play. You'll find it in the "change map" menu as soon as the download has completed. If you don't have Xbox Live or broadband, why not take your system to a friend's house who does, and have them log into their Live account with your Xbox. That'll work just as well.

Foundation can be unlocked by completing the game AND activating a training event on the final level. A training event usually happens the first time you try something – like driving a vehicle. The simplest way to ensure this happens is to avoid using a Spectre until the last level. THAT should unlock the Foundation level for you to play.

Gringo asks,

If you currently have a gamertag how do you change it without losing your rankings and associations to a clan and friends lists?

You cannot. Once you've picked a Gamertag, that's the one you keep, unless you start a new Xbox Live account.

Michael asks,

I keep seeing messages appear on screen, saying that someone has sent me a message, but when I got to my friends list, there's nothing there. What gives?

That's almost certainly a clan invite. Scroll right and look at your clan page. I bet you have a backlog of clan invites.

A disgruntled player, possibly a Bungie employee in Rumble Training asks,

Is SuperHansumRob really handsome?

I cannot say, but I suspect not. WHO TEAMS UP IN RUMBLE TRAINING? COME ON!?

Several billion players ask,

Can you add the popular "Zombie" game type to the matchmaking playlists?

No. I've played zombie and it's kinda fun, however as any of you know that've played it, if one player refuses to cooperate (by switching teams in a timely fashion) it totally sucks. Now, since there's no facility in the Halo 2 code to force a team change on a killed player, we couldn't implement it even if we wanted to. But feel free to continually come up with cool new custom game types of your own.

And Shishka, aka, Pretender to the Lordship of British, asks,

I heard you got a new graphics tablet. Does this mean Mister Chief will start to look better?

I think the picture below answers that question perfectly.

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