This week we hear from Halo 2 for Windows Vista developer Shogo Ishii about the current state of the game. Shogo talks about a recent demo PC Gamer Magazine was privvy to, where the game is from a graphical standpoint and about their progress on the audio front.
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Halo 3 Spoilers – and how we’re dealing with them.
This has come up a few times in the forum – now it’s appearing in my mailbox, so it’s probably time to deal with it publicly. We have a spoiler system in place for Halo and Halo 2 information. This is ENTIRELY story-based; the spoilers we’re talking about have to do with Halo’s story; plot, universe, what have you. Folks have been asking whether it’s time to institute a Halo 3 spoiler setting – and the answer is ‘no’. The answer is no for a very simple reason – there IS no Halo 3 story information out yet that can be considered ‘spoiler’ material – and there almost certainly won’t be until Halo 3 is nearly ready for release.
If you feel that you want to play Halo 3 without knowing ANYTHING about what’s coming – new weapons, new maps, new vehicles, changes to armor, whatever – you have a single choice; stay off the internet. (Well, stay off Halo-related sites.) That information is not considered story spoiler material; we will not be blocking it with a spoiler cookie. Our belief is (and has always been) that knowledge of information that Bungie deems ‘releasable’ before the game is out will not in any way impact your enjoyment in playing the game. You are welcome to disagree with that belief – but you’re on your own avoiding it. We don’t have the time or energy to decide what consitutes a ‘spoiler’ in that sense to the millions of Halo fans out there. (I guarantee you, the range of what’s acceptable is nearly infinite – from ‘no info at all’ to ‘everything except the color of John’s underwear’.)
There WILL be a Halo 3 spoiler setting implemented – probably a month or two before Halo 3 is released (in order to catch any potential leaks in magazines) – but it will NOT cover information released by Bungie before that point, and it will not happen sooner than that.(Louis Wu 20:19:52 UTC)
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Mute Radio Ep 5
BlueStrike2 sends word that Mute Radio Episode 5 is now available for download. 12.5 minutes, 12 mb – MLG NY, MLG on TV, MLG Las Vegas, and life in general… go listen!(Louis Wu 20:07:03 UTC)
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Guilt O’ Lantern Update
Eep, forgot the update. The 2006 Guilt O’ Lantern contest closed for entries last night – things are sort of busy right now, but in the next few days, the entries will go up for public voting. Thanks to all who entered!(Louis Wu 19:56:42 UTC)
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Halo 3 Details over at 1Up
Over at 1Up.com, Luke Smith has written up a clarifying article; the scans floating around from Sweden’s LEVEL magazine, and more recently from FAMITSU magazine, generated a lot of speculation around the net. This article clears up the worst of the misunderstandings, and makes some cool things clearer. (For folks confused about the ‘Frostbite’ level referenced in the LEVEL scans – this article confirms that the three maps shown were Valhalla, Snowbound, and High Ground – Frostbite was obviously a bad translation.) Give it a read-through, for a great summary of what’s currently known! Thanks, Binford04.(Louis Wu 19:02:43 UTC)
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Rear Gunner.
One of the new tweaks that Halo 3 will sport, according to the magazine info floating around the net, is that your secondary weapon will be carried on your back, making it possible for other players to know what that weapon is. Most people have been pretty positive in their response to this feature – but Stuntmutt shows you a drawback in today’s One One Se7en.(Louis Wu 16:28:51 UTC)
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Skittles – Bonus!
Luke McKay created a fun Haloween-related doodle yesterday – we’ve added it to his Gallery here. Me, I’d take the trade.(Louis Wu 15:55:52 UTC)
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Submit Stuff for Episode 88: Customs and Call Ins
Episode 87 came out early this week because of the surprise we had for Foo Mo Jive, but it’s now time we get back on schedule so submit your customs and call ins for our next show.
I got this custom called “Popcorn”, where all we do is superjump the whole entire game.
Wow that would be a great game huh? Got a better one? Then just send it to us and we will pick the best 2 or 3 customs games and read it on the show. Just send your custom in with your gamertag so we can give you credit for it. Make sure to give us a one-paragraph synopsis of your game type.
Get the phone… Get The Phooooone!!!!
Want to give us a tip, a tale from the foxhole, a halo 3 or halo wars speculation, or sing us a song? Give us a call at 206-888-HALO. If it’s good, we’ll play it on the show and make you famous! This is now naarated by the one and only CapnKrunk.
This one time i stuck the train on Terminal and the whole thing blew up.
Got a cool story from Halo gameplay? Let us know! Whether it’s a really close game, a time in RL that you had a Halo or Podtacular moment, or your experience with cheaters and modders, we wanna know. Just send it in with your gamertag and if it’s good, we’ll read it on the show.
Deadline is Thursday night
At about 5:30pm EST, so get those submissions in quick! The earlier we get it, the more likely it’ll get on the show. Move it or lose it! Make sure you use the spell check for your tips. We’re not as U883R 1337 45 J00.
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Submit Stuff for Episode 88: Customs and Call Ins
Episode 87 came out early this week because of the surprise we had for Foo Mo Jive, but it’s now time we get back on schedule so submit your customs and call ins for our next show.
I got this custom called “Popcorn”, where all we do is superjump the whole entire game.
Wow that would be a great game huh? Got a better one? Then just send it to us and we will pick the best 2 or 3 customs games and read it on the show. Just send your custom in with your gamertag so we can give you credit for it. Make sure to give us a one-paragraph synopsis of your game type.
Get the phone… Get The Phooooone!!!!
Want to give us a tip, a tale from the foxhole, a halo 3 or halo wars speculation, or sing us a song? Give us a call at 206-888-HALO. If it’s good, we’ll play it on the show and make you famous! This is now naarated by the one and only CapnKrunk.
This one time i stuck the train on Terminal and the whole thing blew up.
Got a cool story from Halo gameplay? Let us know! Whether it’s a really close game, a time in RL that you had a Halo or Podtacular moment, or your experience with cheaters and modders, we wanna know. Just send it in with your gamertag and if it’s good, we’ll read it on the show.
Deadline is Thursday night
At about 5:30pm EST, so get those submissions in quick! The earlier we get it, the more likely it’ll get on the show. Move it or lose it! Make sure you use the spell check for your tips. We’re not as U883R 1337 45 J00.
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Bungie.net Fan Art
Last week, we mentioned that Bungie.net was going to start highlighting community artwork. Last night, the first batch was posted – and I must say, there’s some killer stuff in there! Here’s hoping some of those people choose to submit their work to our Art sections, as well! Lots of folks noticed this – Sep7imus was first.(Louis Wu 15:19:08 UTC)
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I don’t think that’s regulation.
Heh – A tech writer at Microsoft took some photos in her building’s lobby yesterday. Poor Chief! Thanks, 3Suns.(Louis Wu 15:13:10 UTC)
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Carbon Looks Forward to LV
MLGPro has an interview with Carbon posted – they go over the games in the NY finals, and the upcoming Las Vegas matchups, in a lot of detail. Unless you keep up on pro doings, the language might be hard to follow. It was really nice to see thoughtful analyses of performance, without a lot of trash-talking. Las Vegas will be a tourney to watch! Thanks, 3Suns.(Louis Wu 15:09:19 UTC)
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halowiki.net – bad now, but getting better
PEZ writes to say that halowiki.net has been experiencing server-related problems, and is switching hosts; accessibility for the next few days will be spotty. Please be patient! (They’ll be keeping people up to date with developments on the WikiRiot website.)(Louis Wu 14:36:39 UTC)
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Escape the Fate – A Halo Tribute?
Tex points out a song that seems to clearly reference Halo – it’s called The Guillotine, by Escape the Fate. Never heard it… but now you know!(Louis Wu 14:34:24 UTC)
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Halo 3 Pre-Order Info Blitz
Quite a number of people let us know that Gamestop and EB Games are taking pre-orders for Halo 3 (all three versions of it) starting today. The earliest mention came in this forum thread, started by Max Power – there are details, as well as an audio recording of the message Gamestop has been leaving on voicemailboxes all over the country. Your guess is as good as mine as to whether there’s any real need for pre-ordering… but the info’s out there.(Louis Wu 14:31:01 UTC)
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Arisen From Coconut-Flavored Ashes
Nick from HaloDev let us know that their site has re-opened with a new backend system and a lovely bunch of coconuts. The site has FAQs for HaloDev as well as for the Prometheus editor, community forums, and developer blogs.
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Arisen From Coconut-Flavored Ashes
Nick from HaloDev let us know that their site has re-opened with a new backend system and a lovely bunch of coconuts. The site has FAQs for HaloDev as well as for the Prometheus editor, community forums, and developer blogs.
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Funk Reviews GOO
Funkmon over at Subnova wrote up a scathing review of Eric Nylund‘s latest Halo novel, Ghosts of Onyx. Although he gave high marks for writing and story, in the end he wanted fewer new characters and more of the Master Chief– and the reality is the book isn’t about Master Chief at all.
For my own part, I liked it, ranking it right up there with Fall of Reach and way above The Flood, which I didn’t care for at all. I think some of Funkmon’s criticisms are unfair; I don’t think Nylund was free to explore events between Halo 2 and Halo 3 since the latter picks up pretty much where the former left off. The book exists more to clarify your interpretations of what has already been revealed and to drop a few hints about what is to come, not to actually move the main story forward.
Where I do agree with the review is on areas where things we see in the novel just don’t match up with what we see in gameplay; encounters that simply don’t play out the way we know they would in the game, for various reasons.
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Funk Reviews GOO
Funkmon over at Subnova wrote up a scathing review of Eric Nylund‘s latest Halo novel, Ghosts of Onyx. Although he gave high marks for writing and story, in the end he wanted fewer new characters and more of the Master Chief– and the reality is the book isn’t about Master Chief at all.
For my own part, I liked it, ranking it right up there with Fall of Reach and way above The Flood, which I didn’t care for at all. I think some of Funkmon’s criticisms are unfair; I don’t think Nylund was free to explore events between Halo 2 and Halo 3 since the latter picks up pretty much where the former left off. The book exists more to clarify your interpretations of what has already been revealed and to drop a few hints about what is to come, not to actually move the main story forward.
Where I do agree with the review is on areas where things we see in the novel just don’t match up with what we see in gameplay; encounters that simply don’t play out the way we know they would in the game, for various reasons.
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Ghosts Of Onyx: Show Funk The Story
Funkmon over at Subnova wrote up a scathing review of Eric Nylund‘s latest Halo novel, Ghosts of Onyx. Although he gave high marks for writing and story, in the end he wanted fewer new characters and more of the Master Chief– and the reality is the book isn’t about Master Chief at all.
For my own part, I liked it, ranking it right up there with Fall of Reach and way above The Flood, which I didn’t care for at all. I think some of Funkmon’s criticisms are unfair; I don’t think Nylund was free to explore events between Halo 2 and Halo 3 since the latter picks up pretty much where the former left off. The book exists more to clarify your interpretations of what has already been revealed and to drop a few hints about what is to come, not to actually move the main story forward.
Where I do agree with the review is on areas where things we see in the novel just don’t match up with what we see in gameplay; encounters that simply don’t play out the way we know they would in the game, for various reasons.