James MacGlashan writes to say that version 1.0 of the One South Halo Timer, a Mac OS 10.3 application that keeps track of respawn times for all items in multiplayer games, has now been released. (There was a beta mentioned a couple of weeks ago.) This one supports all maps, clock time adjustment with fast forward and rewind, keyboard shortcut commands and more.

Games Domain has posted a Halo 2 review from the E3 play sessions – thanks, JonK. Update: this is the same as the GameDaily piece mentioned earlier; that’s what I get for wanting breakfast rather than reading carefully. normanthesquid was the first to notice.

The gameplay sessions behind the Press curtain were off-limits to cameras; this was not because anything new was being shown (you’ve already read dozens of writeups of the gameplay), but because Bungie didn’t want to have to deal with folks judging the game by bad shakeycam footage. However, there are ALWAYS fans who want shakeycam footage, and there are ALWAYS people willing to try and sneak in and get it. A couple of guys over at the Opa Ages forum did just that; there are a bunch of clips of surreptitiously-filmed screens showing the CTF games folks were playing. Quality sucks – but that’s shakeycam. For the hardcore Halo 2 fan who needs EVERY SINGLE SECOND of footage… go visit. (There’s also a pretty funny writeup and a few dozen photos.) Thanks, Adam Vokes.

There’s a huge (15:33 long) video interview with Pete Parsons over at Xbox.com; it’s streaming WMV, and totally inaccessible to Macs, but it’s a good listen; if you can find a PC that will play it, go listen. Thanks, Alex Higueras.

Canada.com has put up a nice writeup of the Halo 2 showing at the show – a great quote attributed to Max Hoberman. Give it a read! (Thanks, Jim.)

There are a number of new pics at the Joyride site – including the Black Master Chief and some new 5-packs. There’s also a Halo checklist for all the figures, which lists everything including Exclusives (a Battle Damaged Cobalt Master Chief from Gamestop, the Battle Damaged Black MC from ToyWiz, and the Battle Damaged Maroon MC from Gamespot (though we have other sources suggesting this will be available at Hollywood Video, instead). Check it all out for yourself, and grab the stuff you don’t have! Thanks, Dan’s Brother.

GameDaily has posted a Hands-On Halo 2 article – there are a couple of misconceptions/misrepresentations, but mostly, it’s a pretty good accounting of the game that was shown to press this week at E3. Give it a read! Thanks to Drgn2007 for the heads-up.

Oops – we got mail recently from Ghôlsbane about a Halo Babies update this week, even though both mrsmiley and Gruntsbane were at E3; go take a look. (There’s also sketch art for this strip in the Artwork section.

Okay… I’m not home yet (Still in LA for another 24 hours), but I’m finally getting a few minutes on a computer; time to say a HUGE thank you to 3of9 for his amazing coverage as all the rest of us abandoned the site for E3. I’ll try to post a few things over the next few hours – I thought I’d start with Friday’s comics, which I neglected to post (or let 3 know how to post). Halo: Resolution introduces a new character… and One One Se7en does too. (Different characters.) Go check ’em out!

Halo 2 has snagged some more awards. This time, from 1up.com. Best of Show went to some other game, but Halo 2 managed to snag Best Visuals, Best Xbox Game and Best Shooter.
Kudos for this one goes to MinM.

Halo 2 has also walked away with TeamXbox’s Best of E3 award. As if that wasn’t enough, they also got Best Xbox Live Title and Best FPS Title.
Kudos go to Saint.

Halo 2 has been named by IGN as Best of E3 in all platforms. Enough said.
Kudos to Coylter for spotting this one.

gd pointed out that Xbox.com has put up an article covering the happenings at this year’s Fan Fest. There are several pictures and some good info on the carnage and prizes.

Frankie, deciding to forgo the luxury of sleeping, has posted this week’s Halo 2 Update from the floor at E3 right here at HBO. This one is rather huge, too. There’s no Adventure of Mister Chief this week, but Frankie promises a special Deluxe edition next week.

A demo of Halo: Blood Covenant, a 2D Side-Scroller based on Halo, has been released. Thanks to Skinnypuppy for letting us know.

BBC News has published their own preview of Halo 2. This one is a nice read due to it’s mass-media perspective. Of particular note is the very last paragraph in the article. Hmmm… rumors and weeds? (Kudos go to gholsbane for this find.)

3Suns brought to our attention that TeamXBox has posted their hands-on preview of Halo 2’s multiplayer experience. No particularly new information, just another perspective on the subject. (Thanks to Sep7imus for correcting my bad grammar.)

Mister Chiffe pointed out that 1up.com has posted their own hands-on preview of Halo 2’s multiplayer. 1up’s approach compares Halo 2’s multiplayer experience with that of the original Halo. It’s a smaller preview than the other, but what it lacks in length, it makes up for in content. Go! Make with the clicking already!

E3 Insider also has footage from their own Halo 2 Multiplayer experiences. Looks like standard issue stuff… but I’m sure there is a gem or two hiding in there waiting to be discovered. Kudos to MinM for this one.