My Halo News.com

The latest news about the Halo series of games from Microsoft

  • Another learning experience

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    by

    foomojive
    in

    A certain (now former) staff member recently flipped out, deleting the rec section in the forum and making everyone overlord in Rec B. Believe it or not, this is good news. Our community reacted as a team to recognize this and fight it, and just a day later we are making a variety of positive changes in our clan system and forums to ensure we have solid leadership and don’t leave ourselves vulnerable to bipolar emos in the future. If you’re in a Podtacular rec clan, read on for some important info that you need to know.

    First of all, I’d like to thank a few people that worked together to identify and fix this quickly. Namely Stooch, Renegad3, DrThom, Dialpex, CapnKrunk, Woof1989, and the IRC team. Thanks guys for solving this little annoyance and helping us come out as a better community the next day!

    P0dtacularRec B

    If you were in PodtacularRec B, that clan is going to be moved to a new home. The new Rec B clan has a zero instead of an O in the p0d part. You should receive an invite from woof1989, who is the new sole overlord of Rec B. Please accept this, as the former rec B is no longer an official Podtacular clan. If for some reason you didn’t get this invite yet, be sure to request a clan invite and mention that you were in rec B. We’ll get you one ASAP.

    Rec clan leadership requirements

    Rec clans now have a limit on overlords and staff: There is only allowed to be one overlord and a max of three staff in a rec clan. This is effective immediately, and I will be checking on the rec clans in a few days to make sure this gets implemented, so be sure to get it taken care of quick. Staff decisions at this point are up to the overlord. If there is more than one overlord, they need to decide who will be the overlord and one needs to step down. If the overlord is never on (and I mean NEVER), let me know.

    Future rec clan leadership

    Any new leaders of Rec clans including new and existing rec clan overlords and staff will now be carefully decided on collaboratively by the staff. We have a new system for deciding on staff based on trustworthiness, activity level in Halo, activity level in the forums, respect, humility, and helpfulness.

    Rec clan leaders and the forums

    Overlords in Rec clans can no longer moderate (which also means delete topics) anywhere in the forums unless they go through a careful selection process by the admins similar to the one mentioned above. This applies to current overlords and new ones.

    Hope that clears some things up. I wouldn’t even call this a setback since there were so many positive things that came out of it, and really I’d say we’re better off now than we were a day ago. We still have the 99% of our important forum topics and we still have Rec B. The only one to lose on this is the emo that just lost all his friends and ended up helping us out. Go Podtacular!

  • Hanah Stuart, Exposed

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    by

    HBO
    in
    Kotaku hunted down Hanah Stuart, violinist extraordinaire, who made waves a couple of weeks ago as part of a very cool high school Halo music exhibition. It’s a monster interview; it kept coming back to discussion about the music, but it did quite a bit of moving around. Pretty funny stuff – and I’m already feeling sorry for Hanah, who is going to have a scary-sized following of mooning males after this… she’s smart, talented, and funny. And hot. Thanks, Florian.(Louis Wu 21:12:43 UTC)

  • Another learning experience

    —

    by

    foomojive
    in

    A certain (now former) staff member recently flipped out, deleting the rec section in the forum and making everyone overlord in Rec B. Believe it or not, this is good news. Our community reacted as a team to recognize this and fight it, and just a day later we are making a variety of positive changes in our clan system and forums to ensure we have solid leadership and don’t leave ourselves vulnerable to bipolar emos in the future. If you’re in a Podtacular rec clan, read on for some important info that you need to know.

    First of all, I’d like to thank a few people that worked together to identify and fix this quickly. Namely Stooch, Renegad3, DrThom, Dialpex, CapnKrunk, Woof1989, and the IRC team. Thanks guys for solving this little annoyance and helping us come out as a better community the next day!

    P0dtacularRec B

    If you were in PodtacularRec B, that clan is going to be moved to a new home. The new Rec B clan has a zero instead of an O in the p0d part. You should receive an invite from woof1989, who is the new sole overlord of Rec B. Please accept this, as the former rec B is no longer an official Podtacular clan. If for some reason you didn’t get this invite yet, be sure to request a clan invite and mention that you were in rec B. We’ll get you one ASAP.

    Rec clan leadership requirements

    Rec clans now have a limit on overlords and staff: There is only allowed to be one overlord and a max of three staff in a rec clan. This is effective immediately, and I will be checking on the rec clans in a few days to make sure this gets implemented, so be sure to get it taken care of quick. Staff decisions at this point are up to the overlord. If there is more than one overlord, they need to decide who will be the overlord and one needs to step down. If the overlord is never on (and I mean NEVER), let me know.

    Future rec clan leadership

    Any new leaders of Rec clans including new and existing rec clan overlords and staff will now be carefully decided on collaboratively by the staff. We have a new system for deciding on staff based on trustworthiness, activity level in Halo, activity level in the forums, respect, humility, and helpfulness.

    Rec clan leaders and the forums

    Overlords in Rec clans can no longer moderate (which also means delete topics) anywhere in the forums unless they go through a careful selection process by the admins similar to the one mentioned above. This applies to current overlords and new ones.

    Hope that clears some things up. I wouldn’t even call this a setback since there were so many positive things that came out of it, and really I’d say we’re better off now than we were a day ago. We still have the 99% of our important forum topics and we still have Rec B. The only one to lose on this is the emo that just lost all his friends and ended up helping us out. Go Podtacular!

  • Community Heat Lamp: Chevelle65

    —

    by

    foomojive
    in

    BrentGamer sat down with Chevelle65 the other day to ask about moderating the forums, running Halo News, and whether he really drives a Chevelle. Read on for the whole interview…

    Brent: How did you learn about Podtacular?

    Chevelle: I was sick of joining clans online just to have them inactive and not even do anything. Well, after doing a couple of searches on the net I found podtacular and started listen to the podcasts. I quickly fell in love with podtacular and have been working my way up ever since joining Rec A a long while ago.

    Brent: What are your duties as Mod?

    Chevelle: First and foremost I belive it is to keep the peace (i.e. flame wars and such). Second, I’m helpful to the members if they have any questions. Third, I keep the the topics in line with deleting double posts and putting threads in the right place.

    Brent: How did you come up with the idea for Halo News?

    Chevelle: Halo News was a collective idea of Dazzolas, Jordanjr, A Oompa Loompah and myself. We worked toghether on the first one and a little on the second but after that I took over making, writing, filming and editing the episodes. That was the big switch in Halo News which led to the title being changed to “The Podtacular Community Presents”. That change really opened up opitions in HN and gave others a chance to be a part of it.

    It will be great to have Dazzolas online once again, he has had some problems with his internet and Xbox but I am very much looking forward to having him back on the team. Even though he is not on Live he calls my house to disscuss the news and help out in any way he can. He is one of the only original cast members to stick by me to offer any kind of help I may have needed.

    Brent: Where is Halo News going in the future?

    Chevelle: Look for more off the wall wacky stuff. I’m between homes right now but one of my goals with HN is to come up with some very well thought out, acted, and edited episodes. Episodes you can watch all the way though and still laugh at.

    Brent: Can anybody send in ideas for Halo News?

    Chevelle: Yes and it is encouraged!!! I’ve already used one idea from a member (thanks painkilla) and look forward to using more.

    Brent: What is your favorite Halo 2 moment?

    Chevelle: Being able to beat the guy that introduced me to Halo 2. The first time I ever played halo2 was on live at my buddies house. Well he pretty muched destroyed me and I never heard the end of it. So I went out and bought an Xbox, Halo 2, and Live. A month later I went back to his house to play him agian. He never played me again after I got done with him.

    Brent: Final Question: Jessica Alba or Eva Longoria?

    Chevelle: I didn’t even have to think about it. JESSICA ALBA!

    Thanks Brent for putting together another excellent interview. Thanks to Chevelle for all he does at Podtacular! We never found out if you drive that chevelle… -Foo Mo

  • When the cabin boy gets cabin fever…

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    by

    HBO
    in
    KP’s been looking for stuff to do – he updated two somewhat neglected sections of Bungie.net, the Gallery (with a cool ninja-kick screenshot) and the Voting Booth (where you can weigh in on the Bungie Podcast). I’m saddened by early returns in the poll…(Louis Wu 19:07:40 UTC)

  • Are You Not Entertained?!

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    by

    Bungie.net’s Recent News
    in
    The Gallery and Voting Booth Forums are back with a vengeance today. Select few have been given privileges in both forums to revive them. Just now, something’s been posted in both, so go check them out and expect more in the future!

  • Community Heat Lamp: Chevelle65

    —

    by

    foomojive
    in

    BrentGamer sat down with Chevelle65 the other day to ask about moderating the forums, running Halo News, and whether he really drives a Chevelle. Read on for the whole interview…

    Brent: How did you learn about Podtacular?

    Chevelle: I was sick of joining clans online just to have them inactive and not even do anything. Well, after doing a couple of searches on the net I found podtacular and started listen to the podcasts. I quickly fell in love with podtacular and have been working my way up ever since joining Rec A a long while ago.

    Brent: What are your duties as Mod?

    Chevelle: First and foremost I belive it is to keep the peace (i.e. flame wars and such). Second, I’m helpful to the members if they have any questions. Third, I keep the the topics in line with deleting double posts and putting threads in the right place.

    Brent: How did you come up with the idea for Halo News?

    Chevelle: Halo News was a collective idea of Dazzolas, Jordanjr, A Oompa Loompah and myself. We worked toghether on the first one and a little on the second but after that I took over making, writing, filming and editing the episodes. That was the big switch in Halo News which led to the title being changed to “The Podtacular Community Presents”. That change really opened up opitions in HN and gave others a chance to be a part of it.

    It will be great to have Dazzolas online once again, he has had some problems with his internet and Xbox but I am very much looking forward to having him back on the team. Even though he is not on Live he calls my house to disscuss the news and help out in any way he can. He is one of the only original cast members to stick by me to offer any kind of help I may have needed.

    Brent: Where is Halo News going in the future?

    Chevelle: Look for more off the wall wacky stuff. I’m between homes right now but one of my goals with HN is to come up with some very well thought out, acted, and edited episodes. Episodes you can watch all the way though and still laugh at.

    Brent: Can anybody send in ideas for Halo News?

    Chevelle: Yes and it is encouraged!!! I’ve already used one idea from a member (thanks painkilla) and look forward to using more.

    Brent: What is your favorite Halo 2 moment?

    Chevelle: Being able to beat the guy that introduced me to Halo 2. The first time I ever played halo2 was on live at my buddies house. Well he pretty muched destroyed me and I never heard the end of it. So I went out and bought an Xbox, Halo 2, and Live. A month later I went back to his house to play him agian. He never played me again after I got done with him.

    Brent: Final Question: Jessica Alba or Eva Longoria?

    Chevelle: I didn’t even have to think about it. JESSICA ALBA!

    Thanks Brent for putting together another excellent interview. Thanks to Chevelle for all he does at Podtacular! We never found out if you drive that chevelle… -Foo Mo

  • Helm’s Deep.

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    by

    HBO
    in
    Stuntmutt takes a novel look at the Ghosts of Onyx cover in today’s One One Se7en. There’s something for everyone!(Louis Wu 17:21:23 UTC)

  • Schwagalicious.

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    by

    HBO
    in
    j41m3z got a bunch of stuff signed at Thursday night’s Hollywood Bowl VGL show – he scanned a bunch of it for the forum. Lucky!(Louis Wu 13:50:42 UTC)

  • HBO Staff – we’re here for you.

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    by

    HBO
    in
    Jillybean took some time out from her busy videogame-playing schedule (mostly because she can’t play the games she likes with the video card she has) to process some of the recent story-related content floating around out there (including a pretty intriguing observation from Wado just last night). Check out the Halo Story Page for all the goodies!(Louis Wu 13:03:54 UTC)

  • Interview with a janitor

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    by

    HBO
    in
    Major Silva, of UNSCDF, snagged me for a few questions recently. I hate pointing out interviews of myself – makes me look like I’m tooting my own horn. So don’t read it! Yeah, that’s the ticket! Don’t follow the link, skip it. Don’t go there.(Louis Wu 12:56:49 UTC)

  • Ghosts of Onyx, the Audio CD

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    by

    HBO
    in
    Tempus Fugit noticed an entry for an audio version of Ghosts of Onyx… real, or Amazon’s mistake? (And if it’s real, who’s reading it?) Nice.(Louis Wu 21:34:34 UTC)

  • More to see than can ever be seen.

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    by

    HBO
    in
    Wonga. Someone synched the song ‘Circle of Life’, from the Lion King, to the video from the Halo 3 trailer. The amazing part… it works! Go watch at YouTube. Thanks, Retsof-Noraa, for the heads-up.(Louis Wu 21:33:04 UTC)

  • WikiRiot 17

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    by

    HBO
    in
    Sigafoos writes to let us know that WikiRiot 17 is now online. 44 minutes, 17.5 mb, covering wiki updates, Bungie’s first official full-length podcast, and ‘The Game’, which you have to listen to to figure out. Go listen.(Louis Wu 18:46:31 UTC)

  • Console Wars

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    by

    HBO
    in
    BOLL found a series of vids called ‘Console Wars’ – they’re remakes (hehe, sort of) of Star Wars films, with video game characters sort of grafted on. The Master Chief has a pretty big part. They’re pretty funny.(Louis Wu 13:10:42 UTC)

  • Dun Dun Dun Dun

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    by

    HBO
    in
    Rockslider describes playing ‘Shark’ in Assault on the Control Room – sounds like a fun game variant!(Louis Wu 13:06:26 UTC)

  • Braiinnnnnsss

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    by

    HBO
    in
    Brannon Boren’s blog entry about ‘Creating A.I. for Halo‘ is now live; it’s an interesting look at how backstory was developed to explain specific, visible parts of the early game. (This backstory was then used, and further developed, in books, leading to a pretty rich history.) (Louis Wu 13:05:16 UTC)

  • Art Infusion

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    by

    HBO
    in
    In the nick of time; one more huge batch of Miscellaneous Art has been added to the collection. There’s stuff in here that had gotten lost in the depths of our queue for months; apologies to the artists involved! We should be ALMOST caught up (there are still a bunch of recent pics in the collection). Enjoy – I’m LOVING a ton of these! I’m seeing a couple of artists that should be added to the Gallery pages…(Louis Wu 02:45:36 UTC)

  • MC, Sketched

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    by

    HBO
    in
    Wow, cool. BOLL found a site called ‘TheDailyDrawing.com‘ that has videos showing someone (‘J.W.’?) drawing stuff – and today’s artwork is the Master Chief. The video is 4:21 long, and was filmed at 2.5x speed, so this pic took about 11 minutes to complete. Pretty fun to watch! (If you’re reading this news post at a later date, I’m not positive whether the movie will be available on the site; there are some movies listed, but almost no information at all, so it’s not clear if ALL films are archived, or just some; the direct YouTube link is here, and will get you back to TheDailyDrawing in any case.)(Louis Wu 18:54:44 UTC)

  • New Machinima on the way from Treeskunk

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    by

    HBO
    in
    Break Point Halo has interviewed Dan Preuss, the co-creator of Treeskunk Productions (a machinima group that created Outpost: Coagulation’ and ‘Outpost: Backwash’, among other projects. Nice to hear they’re gearing up again! Thanks, haphazardly.(Louis Wu 18:45:00 UTC)