The latest news about the Halo series of games from Microsoft
Okay, first of all, I know, there’s no such thing as official Mythic difficulty in Halo 3. That’s what people call playing solo, legendary, all skulls on (HSH calls them SLASO to create more acronyms).
Asmodeus has posted over at HBO a walkthrough for this mode that makes this possible, and it’s fantastic. If you haven’t read it and you’re a campaign junkie, it’s an absolute must.
We are having our monthly leadership conference on Sunday, and now is the time to speak up. Think there should be something changed on the site? Is someone due credit for their efforts in the community? Now’s your chance to speak up. If you have something to say, please send me an e-mail at duststorm117(at)gmail(dot)com, replacing appropriate punctuation.
According to the intertubes, Microsoft is forging ahead with Halo using a new internal studio. Forming the team are Ryan Payton, formerly of Kojima Productions and the producer of Metal Gear Solid 4; Corinne Yu, former technician at Gearbox; and at least two former Bungie employees: writer Frank “Frankie” O’Connor and animator Nathan “bentllama” Walpole.
Linkdump: Shacknews, Joystiq, GameSpot, GameReviews, HBO, bentllama’s HBO forum post, EDGE Online.
This formation puts Bungie’s independence in a bit sharper contrast. While Keep It Clean shows that Bungie isn’t done with Halo, it is no longer the only thing they are working on. While there were always supposedly other projects in the works while Halo games were in production, none ever reached fruition, and the Halo projects typically consumed the studio’s entire attention come crunch time.
That Bungie’s Halo project is billed as “Halo 3”, indicating an expansion rather than an entire new game, indicates that their commitment to the title will be somewhat less in the past, giving room for new developments.
Presumably the new studio will be 100% devoted to Halo. So the question will become: will fans be just as interested in Halo games not made by Bungie? Will these games be FPS, like the Halo series to date, or something else? Time will tell.
Okay So, We will be doing a double elimination because there were only so many teams that signed up. There will also be a team with a by this week.
Schedule!:
Equinox vs. Team Strik3 Down
Reflex vs. Your Team
Blain and Simple vs. AoR
By: Winged Warriors
EVERYONE SCHEDULE YOUR GAMES and you can try to contact them, here is a link with the teams.
Also, the scores are due the by this Sunday.
If you have questions feel free to ask.
– Jaba
We are kinda taking a backwards twist on things starting up. This week’s episode will be Customs and Creations, so send in a description of your favorite map variant, game variant, etc. along with your name to get a chance to be mentioned on the show. Deadline is Sunday afternoon.
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(Skorge)
Gears of War 2 will be released on November 7th. Here is round up of what to expect:
* graphical upgrades (Wikipedia)
* physics engine improvements (Kotaku video)
* play as a Skorge in multiplayer (dual chainsaw not usable)
* 10 players in multiplayer
* at least 3 multiplayer modes: “Guardian” is essentially a modified version of “Assassination” from the original Gears of War, but allows players to continue fighting after the leader has been killed, but losing the ability to respawn. “Wingman” splits all ten players into five teams of two, where both members of a team play as the same character. “Submission,” formerly known as “Meat Flag,” is a version of capture the flag in which players attempt to “down” an enemy controlled by the game’s AI and move its body to their team’s base to earn points.
* bots will be available in multiplayer
* A new co-op game mode was confirmed during Microsoft’s E3 2008 press conference; called “Horde,” this mode allows up to five players to fight off waves of attacking Locust together. Horde Mode will not feature bot support as in competitive multiplayer, and can be played alone. The Locust attack in waves of multiple enemies which become more difficult as players progress.
* the new Battle Cam allows players to pan around a map as the camera focuses on areas of intense fighting, and the Ghost Cam allows a player to roam freely around a map. A photo mode will also be featured, with each photo taken by a player rated on the amount of action in the shot.
* no plans to bring GoW2 to the PC
* to get an achievement which requires 500 kills with a weapon or 500 headshots, only the first kill or headshot made by a player in a given multplayer match will count towards the achievement.
* new characters introduced in campaign mode
* players will be able to fight the large Brumaks
* dueling chainsaw battles
* us downed enemies as shields
* players who have been injured can crawl as a final desperate attempt at life
* the level of blood and gore will also be increased, for example, when the player is close to death, wherever he moves there will be trails of blood behind him
* more “fatality” moves added
* In Co-op Players can play on different difficulties in the same game
* some of the Xbox Live achievements can be completed through both play in single player and multiplayer mode
* bigger and badder enemies than the Brumak are planned
* you’ll be able to ride and pilot a Brumak
* the collection of COG tags has been expanded to include the collection of story-based items such as personal letters and medical records, and a “war journal” will track which collectibles have been found and where missing ones can be located.
* all grenades can now be used as mines by placing them on walls or floors, and will detonate when approached by enemies
* players can now be knocked over by the concussive force of a nearby detonating grenade
* Amazon will deliver this game to your door the day of release (pre-order the game here)
What do you think of these changes and features? What are you expectations for this game?
