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Makin’ Money at Fanfic
Not specifically Halo-related, but our Fan Fiction community is reasonably large, so… Looks like this weekend’s Wall Street Journal had an article about the rise of fan fiction in popular media – and how Fanfic writers were even, in some cases, getting publishing deals. The article itself is only available to paying subscribers online – but you can listen to a short podcast on the subject from their podcast section. Exciting stuff! Thanks, Marty Duffy.(Louis Wu 22:45:44 UTC)
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The top 10 things people want to see in Halo 3
Podtacular has had 1 hour shows once a month since January called the “Halo 3 show” where we talk mostly about what people want to see in Halo 3. There have been hundreds and hundreds of suggestions, and these are the ones people want to see the most.
I intentionally left out things Bungie has already confirmed, such as new vehicles, maps and weapons, the return of some older levels, larger battles in campaign, and new game types in matchmaking.
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10. Armor that takes visible damage. People suggested chunks of armor flying off or armor denting, scratching, or cracking. This would make for a more realistic portrayal of damage. Although it would go beyond the energy shield being the first line of defense, it would add to the realism.
9. Dynamic weather and daylight. For another way to customize a level and make it interesting, many people suggested having the option for weather such as snow, rain or fog on a level to change the feel and playability. Also having different times of day or night would change the whole look and bring midnight snipers into the mix.
8. More interactive and destructible maps. Most everybody loved the addition of things like the openable gate and deployable bridge on Zanzibar, the openable transporter on Relic, etc. And they want more! More interaction with the level would make for more interesting games. People also suggested more capability to destroy parts of levels, such as an assault bomb going off destroying walls, floors and ceilings around it.
7. A survival mode. A gameplay mode where you have to see how long you can survive while waves and waves of covenant are sent in to try and take you out. Like it or not, lots of people suggested this.
6. Usable Jackal shield. This seems to be the most obvious answer to the notorious “noob combo.” Holding the Jackal shield would obstruct your vision and you could only hold a dual-wieldable weapon in your other hand, which would even it out. It could be taken out with a plasma pistol overcharge or enough damage, similar to the portable shields in the single player levels of Halo 1 and 2. Some have even suggested a marine shield such as a riot shield as an alternative.
5. More playable characters. We know that not all the Spartans are dead according to the books. Why not make different Spartans with different armor or capabilities available to play as? Playable covenent didn’t work because of the larger headshot target, but maybe it could be done with other aliens or Spartans? Or maybe some other character we haven’t thought of yet?
4. A map editor. Games such as Far Cry: Instincts already have this available on the Xbox. Why not Halo 3? This really could be a killer feature if done right. There could be a way to share created maps for custom games in kind of a marketplace.
3. Online cooperative play. This feature was clearly planned for Halo 2, but apparently couldn’t be completed in time. Cooperative game play builds teamwork and allows non-competitive players to enjoy playing with other people. Of course many would prefer for the difficulty to be hiked up somehow to accomodate for an extra soldier on the battlefield.
2. A flyable Pelican. The main reason people want this is to have a viable troop transport vehicle where you can send in an overwhelming force of foot soldiers. As long as you can get them there of course, which is where balance comes in. Some have suggested being able to take it down with 4 rockets or even having an anti-aircraft gun. Others have suggested an alternative to the pelican being a warthog or other ground vehicle that carries lots of troops. Either way, lots of people want a flyable pelican and they want it in Halo 3!
1. Bots. Love it or hate it, tons of people want to see bots as an option in Halo 3 multiplayer. It would help to learn the basics of multiplayer without getting yelled at, it would help to practice and fine-tune techniques, and it would at least even out the teams when you want to even them out with a bot.
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Agree with these? Disagree? Let us know in the comments below! You can also send in stuff you want to see in Halo 3 and if it’s good and unique, we’ll mention it on the podcast.
-
The top 10 things people want to see in Halo 3
Podtacular has had 1 hour shows once a month since January called the “Halo 3 show” where we talk mostly about what people want to see in Halo 3. There have been hundreds and hundreds of suggestions, and these are the ones people want to see the most.
I intentionally left out things Bungie has already confirmed, such as new vehicles, maps and weapons, the return of some older levels, larger battles in campaign, and new game types in matchmaking.
———-
10. Armor that takes visible damage. People suggested chunks of armor flying off or armor denting, scratching, or cracking. This would make for a more realistic portrayal of damage. Although it would go beyond the energy shield being the first line of defense, it would add to the realism.
9. Dynamic weather and daylight. For another way to customize a level and make it interesting, many people suggested having the option for weather such as snow, rain or fog on a level to change the feel and playability. Also having different times of day or night would change the whole look and bring midnight snipers into the mix.
8. More interactive and destructible maps. Most everybody loved the addition of things like the openable gate and deployable bridge on Zanzibar, the openable transporter on Relic, etc. And they want more! More interaction with the level would make for more interesting games. People also suggested more capability to destroy parts of levels, such as an assault bomb going off destroying walls, floors and ceilings around it.
7. A survival mode. A gameplay mode where you have to see how long you can survive while waves and waves of covenant are sent in to try and take you out. Like it or not, lots of people suggested this.
6. Usable Jackal shield. This seems to be the most obvious answer to the notorious “noob combo.” Holding the Jackal shield would obstruct your vision and you could only hold a dual-wieldable weapon in your other hand, which would even it out. It could be taken out with a plasma pistol overcharge or enough damage, similar to the portable shields in the single player levels of Halo 1 and 2. Some have even suggested a marine shield such as a riot shield as an alternative.
5. More playable characters. We know that not all the Spartans are dead according to the books. Why not make different Spartans with different armor or capabilities available to play as? Playable covenent didn’t work because of the larger headshot target, but maybe it could be done with other aliens or Spartans? Or maybe some other character we haven’t thought of yet?
4. A map editor. Games such as Far Cry: Instincts already have this available on the Xbox. Why not Halo 3? This really could be a killer feature if done right. There could be a way to share created maps for custom games in kind of a marketplace.
3. Online cooperative play. This feature was clearly planned for Halo 2, but apparently couldn’t be completed in time. Cooperative game play builds teamwork and allows non-competitive players to enjoy playing with other people. Of course many would prefer for the difficulty to be hiked up somehow to accomodate for an extra soldier on the battlefield.
2. A flyable Pelican. The main reason people want this is to have a viable troop transport vehicle where you can send in an overwhelming force of foot soldiers. As long as you can get them there of course, which is where balance comes in. Some have suggested being able to take it down with 4 rockets or even having an anti-aircraft gun. Others have suggested an alternative to the pelican being a warthog or other ground vehicle that carries lots of troops. Either way, lots of people want a flyable pelican and they want it in Halo 3!
1. Bots. Love it or hate it, tons of people want to see bots as an option in Halo 3 multiplayer. It would help to learn the basics of multiplayer without getting yelled at, it would help to practice and fine-tune techniques, and it would at least even out the teams when you want to even them out with a bot.
———-
Agree with these? Disagree? Let us know in the comments below! You can also send in stuff you want to see in Halo 3 and if it’s good and unique, we’ll mention it on the podcast.
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Elegant.
_Wheels03 got his Xbox 360 set up with his (relatively) new Halo faceplate – looks spiffy!(Louis Wu 17:27:19 UTC)
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Turf Drifting
Halo Heads 9 was posted today – now THAT looks like a fun game!(Louis Wu 17:22:27 UTC)
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Kittymanjaro.
It’s Wednesday, so Bungie will likely be playing a Halo Humpday Challenge against some unsuspecting group tonight. Stuntmutt offers some suggestions on how the selection process works in today’s One One Se7en.(Louis Wu 15:33:15 UTC)
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Game-Spectrum.com Interviews KPaul
Game-Spectrum.com recently had the honor of interviewing Bungie employee, Kevin Paul, more commonly known as KP. After threatening to stab me in the face, the interview went pretty well.
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XBOX 360: 1080p and HDDVD $179
From a Microsoft press release:
Xbox 360 HD DVD Player and 1080p Support
Microsoft announced pricing and availability details for the Xbox 360 HD DVD Player in Japan. The accessory will launch on Nov. 17, 2006, priced at Â¥19,800 (estimated retail pri…
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Who’s The Boss?
In his latest blog entry, Narcogen takes a look at ‘boss battles’, and tries to figure out if any of the existing characters from Halo 2 would make good candidates for a Halo 3 boss battle. Interesting – but maybe the vision is too narrow?(Louis Wu 13:51:44 UTC)
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XBOX 360: 1080p and HDDVD $179
From a Microsoft press release:
Xbox 360 HD DVD Player and 1080p Support
Microsoft announced pricing and availability details for the Xbox 360 HD DVD Player in Japan. The accessory will launch on Nov. 17, 2006, priced at Â¥19,800 (estimated retail pri…
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Redefining the way we play games
Peter Moore talked to News.com about where Microsoft’s console empire stands, and what’s in store – Halo, as could probably be predicted, plays a pretty big role. Some of his answers may leave you scratching your head.(Louis Wu 12:39:19 UTC)
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XerxdeeJ Gains the Lead
Over at Bungie.net, the Community Spotlight has been turned on XerxdeeJ, of Tied the Leader. Don’t mind the beads of sweat; that spot is HOT. If you’re not a regular reader of TTL, read this to see what you’re missing. If you ARE, read this to learn a bit more about TTL’s head honcho. (And forgive KP for the rhotic invective of the first paragraph; he posted this yesterday, when sheep the world over were talking like pirates.)(Louis Wu 12:24:49 UTC)
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You’re Not The Boss Of Me
If Halo 3 were going to have boss battles, who would your opponents be?
That’s an idea that occurred to me after participating in an HBO forum thread that started out talking about a rather idiotic article wondering if Halo 3 would suck, and ended up morphing into a discussion of boss battles.
I’m not really sure how boss battles got into Halo 2 in the first place. Perhaps somebody asked for them. Perhaps it was felt that Halo 2 needed “bigger” encounters than the first game; conflicts with individual characters instead of anonymous Covenant foot soldiers.
Whatever the reason, some of them worked fairly well, and others garnered a lot of negative feedback, particularly the fights against the Prophet of Regret and Tartarus. Most of the criticism stemmed from the arbitrary and repetetive natures of those encounters; how the rules varied significantly from how the rest of the game was played, and how they evoked stereotypical gameplay situations perhaps better suited for other genres.
With Halo 3, there are still a number of recognizable characters in the story who are potentially sources of conflict for our main characters, the Master Chief and, presuming he returns, the Arbiter. Might any of these be the subject of a boss battle? If so, how might Bungie alter the way those battles work compared to Halo 2?
Click “read more” from the front page for the entire article.
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Will Deimos Be Next?
Russian news site Novosti says that the Russian government is planning on launching an unmanned mission to the Mars moon of Phobos in 2009. The vehicle is expected to arrive on the moon in 2010, and depart for Earth in 2011 carrying soil samples.
The story doesn’t say whether or not the Russians expect to find any leather goddesses on the small moon, but you can bet this is a prelude to landing on Mars’ other moon and beginning secret work to turn it into a colony ship.
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Episode 81: Customs and Callins

Download | Show Notes
It’s the Customs and Callins show, where we talk about the top few custom games, play back some interviews with commentary this week by CapnKrunk, and read back some tales from the foxhole. We also play an interview with Queso Man, DrThom, Painkilla05 and GLewis by proxy, members of Team US and winners of the Podtacular Summer 2006 Season. With guest host Quality Jeverage. Thanks to Paul Maestri for this week’s cover art (it’s a play on JVB’s comments from last episode). Paul is the artist behind Halo Heads. Thanks to Ciclonic for editing this show, which weighs in at 1:07. And since I never mention this for some reason, thanks to JVB, the co-host with the most. Oh and I’d like to thank God and my mom and dad since I’m thanking everyone under the sun now. Enjoy the show!
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Community Plank-Walk: Xerxdeej
Arrrr! It be “Talk Like a Pirate Day” and to celebrate we dropped anchor in the port of Tied The Leader to flap jaws with Xerxdeej, he who claims to be a full-beard pirate! Read on to learn about his crew and how shivered be his timbers.ÂÂ
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Episode 81: Customs and Callins

Download | Show Notes
It’s the Customs and Callins show, where we talk about the top few custom games, play back some interviews with commentary this week by CapnKrunk, and read back some tales from the foxhole. We also play an interview with Queso Man, DrThom, Painkilla05 and GLewis by proxy, members of Team US and winners of the Podtacular Summer 2006 Season. With guest host Quality Jeverage. Thanks to Paul Maestri for this week’s cover art (it’s a play on JVB’s comments from last episode). Paul is the artist behind Halo Heads. Thanks to Ciclonic for editing this show, which weighs in at 1:07. And since I never mention this for some reason, thanks to JVB, the co-host with the most. Oh and I’d like to thank God and my mom and dad since I’m thanking everyone under the sun now. Enjoy the show!
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Arg.
Sigh… I thought I was going to get through today without having to mention that it’s International Talk Like a Pirate Day. (Is there also an international Dress Like a Transvestite Day? How about a Snuffle Like an Aardvark Day?) Halo Heads 8 references the ‘holiday’ specifically, so… thanks, Paul Maestri. (Thanks a LOT.)(Louis Wu 17:56:12 UTC)
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Romeo, Where’s the Art For?
Well, it’s not EMPTY, but the Miscellaneous Art queue has just dropped in size by 30 images. Swing by to see a fun collection of sketches, renders, paintings, collages, and more. There’s some awesome stuff in there this time! (I’m only 2 weeks behind! w00t!)(Louis Wu 17:15:55 UTC)

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