There have been two DLC packs for Halo Reach to date, Noble and Defiant. Together they included six new maps, which are were super rad. Problem is, they’ve kinda….disappeared. The one I miss the most is probably Breakpoint, because it was one of only three original Invasion game-type maps Reach had to offer. Also it was snowy!

We paid a grand total of 1600 Microsoft Points (£13.71) for both of those DLC packs, and now we never see them in multiplayer matchmaking. What’s going on?

There used to be a seperate playlist available for those who wanted to play the DLC content (called Premium Battle). We had hours of fun swapping between the DLC maps and the vanilla maps in multiplayer matchmaking, getting the most out of our money and the best experience Reach had to offer.

So what went wrong?

In December 2011 the DLC playlists were removed, and all DLC content integrated into their regular playlists (for example, Breakpoint would now appear in the Invasion playlist). Here’s what 343 Industries had to say about the change at the time:

We’ve adjusted the Matchmaking algorithm to match players who have DLC with other players who have DLC more often than in the past. We’ve also upped the weighting for DLC in our playlists so that you’ll see the DLC in your voting options more frequently. Also, remember that all of the Anniversary maps have been added to the majority of the playlists. The combination of these things means that you’re going to be able to enjoy your premium DLC in Matchmaking much more often than ever before. If you would like to continue playing the game types and maps featured in this particular playlist after December’s Matchmaking update goes live, here’s a handy-dandy cheat sheet to get you started on replicating that experience. Slayer – Visit Team Slayer, Squad Slayer, and Big Team Battle, where DLC has been weighted to show up frequently.

Objective – Visit Team Objective and Big Team Battle, where DLC has been weighted to show up frequently.

Invasion – Visit the Invasion playlist, where Invasion Breakpoint has been set to show up frequently in slot one.

That sounds like a pretty nice solution right? Match people with the DLC together, and then make it more likely that the DLC will show up for them. I like that solution. However, it clearly doesn’t work.

I usually play Reach once or twice a week for a good number of hours, and have done since it was released back in 2010. You could call me….a fan. Since the Premium Battle playlist was removed, I have not seen a DLC map once. Not once. Let me be very clear.

Not a single time.

I can only think of three reasons for this to be the case, considering how 343 have changed the matchmaking algorithm.

So few people own the DLC packs that the system simply can’t match them together, and so we never see the DLC Their matchmaking algorithm is broken, and isn’t putting those with the DLC together 343 Industries are trolling us

So, the maps aren’t gone, we’re just more likely to get hit by a bus tomorrow than we are to land on one in matchmaking. To quote one Halo Reach Forum member…..