For those not familiar with Halo MP on the Xbox let me give a quick run down.
There are 5 basic game rule sets in Halo: Slayer(deathmatch), Oddball (basically keep away), Capture the Flag (CTF), Race, and King of the Hill (Control Zone)
Now each of these 5 basic game rule sets has available variants which are options that can be customized specifically to that game rule set (CTF has an attack\defend mode, Race has a rally mode, the game types have team modes, etc...).
Now, in addition to the 5 basic game rule sets and variant settings are a lot other general game settings and customization options that we like to call "game ingrediants". Its this system that is very powerful and puts a lot of customizibility and power in the hands of the player. Its one of Halo 's strong points in MP and we decided to expand upon and add more "game ingrediants" since the basic game rule sets already cover a lot of game types and game play.
For example, we have already mentioned at E3 and in the press the added options for Friendly Fire and the new vehicle customization options where if a map supports the number and type of vehicle you want you can customize these values PER TEAM in Halo for the PC (eg, Red team has 1 tank, Blue team has 2 warthogs).
These options are configurable and can be turned off\disabled, so even the Halo Xbox purists will be happy since they can play MP and the levels as they were on the Xbox.
As on the Xbox, you can create a new game mode by starting with a basic rules set and adding "ingrediants" from scratch, or take an existing game mode setup and tweak the values, all of which can be saved to a custom setup up with a custom name.
I cannot go into too much more detail, but expect Bungie\MS\Gearbox to release more info on the new features in the coming weeks and months
Hope this helps.
David Mertz
Lead Level Designer Halo PC
Gearbox Software
