Small screen size in Halo 3 splitscreen co-op?

Question

Has anyone tried to play splitscreen co-op mode yet? And if so have they noticed the black bars on the side?!? I have a 42" LCD widescreen 1080p tv. Why the crap do I have black bars? When I play single player no bars. Yes my settings are correct, there is a HDMI cable plugged in and its working fine. Microsoft support is useless as they outsource and I cannot understand what they are saying. I also used the Bungie Calibration tool (bonus filler, meh) and that does nothing. So yet again Microsoft fails to give support to the fans it claims to "love". Honestly, the guy at support asked me who my internet provider was..............because that has something to do with splitscreen OFFLINE co-op mode display settings. Please stop outsourcing!!!! I am tired of repeating myself and not understanding a word of what those prats are trying to say!!!!

Answer 1

I've noticed the same thing with my setup running either 720p or 480p on my 42" using component. I think it's on purpose and likely due to hardware limitations of the engine with cranking out full width split screens.



The only workaround I found (far from perfect) is to change my 360's viewing aspect ratio to 4:3 (instead of the proper16:9) Which allowed me to stretch the picture across the entire screen width. Not perfect becuase the screen is stretched, but it looks better than the black bars on the side.



Hopefully they will release a patch to fix this issue. Rest assured it's not your setup.

Answer 2

Hi all, I have a 103" Image and an HD 720p native projector and I also see that MS/Bungie has forced the coop mode wide screen into 4:3 ratio but it retains it's 16:9 ratio within that window. I am not sure if they will be able to "fix" this as I am sure this is a hardware limitation as the 360 is basically a 3 year old PC with a minorly hyped Video Card. Maybe they can release a "real" 360 elite that has lower power/heat dual core or quad core CPU's an integrated HD DVD player and a real Video card with a Gig of RAM. Then they could have H3 show true 16:9 in a true 16:9 window. For now I think we are stuck with the smaller image. 103" does help!

Answer 3

I have the same gripe with the game. But, I think it comes down to a hardware issue. Take a look at other games that are split screen co-op for the 360 like RB 6 Vegas & Ghost Recon, both are in widesreen but they are also dumbed-down in order to keep the action flowing. It sucks, but i think Bungie did right by not compromising graphics and gameplay and making it 4:3 ratio. Another problem is that the split-screen is one on top of the other instead of side-by-side. I imagine if you cut off the top and bottom 1/4 of your widescreen TV that would be the view you'd have in Halo 3's co-op game.

Answer 4

If you read the Bungie forums on this there are a few explanations that make sense, but still I find them to be excuses that either Bungie themselves are making, or its just Bungie and Halo fanboys defending there favorite franchise.



After spending over $100 on the Legendary Edition I expect all game modes to take up the full screen, and unfortunately the 2 player co-op does not. I don't really care what anyone says in rebuttal to my statements, but if you are going to hype up a game this big and you know everyone is expecting nothing less that the best, then \why would you half *** the co-op mode.



From what I understand they chose to not widen the field of view in the co-op mode, this is not to say that they couldn't. anyone who has played Gears of War knows that co-op full screen is achievable and looks great.

Answer 5

Just got the game today, (UK launch,) and i'm really dissappointed with this split screen problem. I read another answer on yahoo that quotes "O'conner" or someone from bungie saying this is what they intended to do so they wouldn't compromise on the aspect..



I was really looking forward to playing co-op campaign with my flatmate. My personal take is that bungie's game engine isn't up to the task. If you play the game split screen in HD, you can see the level of detail shift... it's far too close than it really should be. (e.g moss suddenly appearing on rock much closer than a battle you are walking into.)



You can't blame the hardware either....



...If you don't agree, just hit the eject button on your console and put Gears of War into the tray.. That was a great game to play as a co-op campaign. They should launch the next version on PS3 aswell to make microsoft sweat.

Answer 6

I have had the same problem man. I also have a 42" lcd tele, and i have black bars when im splitscreen online or offline. I believe this is caused from high definition and a widescreen TV. I have come this conclusion because some HDTV channels also have bars like that on the side. It is kinda retarded and i was like wtf when i turned it on but the game is nasty sick and i can get used to it. Im glad im not the only one with the problem thanks for posting

Answer 7

It doesn't seem like it's a possibility, unfortunately. This doesn't actually make sense to me. Halo 2 does it fine on my 360. It's side by side, but it's a way bigger picture than the squished "thing" I'm getting now. It cuts my 60" screen virtually in half. I'm very upset about this.

Answer 8

its not ur tv....I have the same problem. Notice when you press START the pause menu goes over the black bar on the right side of the screen. This means it's the way HALO 3 was made....It's REALLY LAME.