Still, map editors with terrain editing, the ability to "paint" surfaces with new textures, etc., are things that exist on consoles. Forge could be redesigned in Halo 6 to incorporate such tools in addition to offering the massive set of tools Forge already offers.

: Not being argumentative, or saying Far Cry is a poor comparison, I just don't
: feel like Spark should be considered in such a discussion when Halo has so
: much more to offer than an editing mode.

I actually find the Far Cry map editor to be rather awkward to use. The camera and object manipulation feels stilted, and overall it's not very user-friendly. You can't really create new types of buildings from scratch (most everything is a prefabricated structure). It has a lot of things holding it back. But it does have some features that Forge lacks that I do like. I'd absolutely love to see the best of both worlds fused together.

There's been times I really could have used a terrain editor. My BTB map Plateau that I made in Reach had to work within the limits of Forge World's predefined terrain, which resulted in some issues with the balancing. A map I made in H2A has to work with fixed terrain pieces, which are not only fixed objects themselves (you have to work around their predefined shape), but also eat into the overall object budget. "Terrain as objects" isn't as restrictive as a fixed map, but it's still not quite ideal for all map-making situations.

Also, there's been times in every iteration of Forge that I really would have liked to be able to create a wider variety of environments with different climates, something Forge and its fixed biomes don't really offer. Far Cry 4's editor might be awkward to use, but in about half an hour each, I was able to create from scratch a U-shaped canyon reminiscent of Blood Gulch, a lush tropical island, and an oceanside level with a winding river that leads from the beach to a base further inland, with open hills towards the coast and thicker vegetation closer to the base.

I can only image what I'd be able to create if I had those terrain, texture, vegetation, and water level tools at my disposal in Forge.

: Just a couple pennies to throw out there. Either way I think all are in
: agreement that this is a pretty sweet deal, I really hope they find a way
: to integrate Forge created maps into matchmaking better. I know the number
: of playlists is always an issue, but one featuring top shelf forged
: creations could be really fun.

Oh, most definitely. I'm glad to see Forge get new tools. I'm glad they've expanded the selection of objects by roughly eight-fold from Halo 4's ~200 structural and miscellaneous objects (not including things like trait zones, spawn points, objectives, weapons & vehicles, etc.). It's going to be a lot easier to Forge things than in previous games. But I'd still love to see even more tools added.