The latest news about the Halo series of games from Microsoft
David Candland of Bungie reminds all the fans via Twitter that there’s only one place to go if you want to beta test Destiny, and it’s here:
http://www.bungie.net/en-us/View/bungie/userresearch/index
Some unofficial sites have been purporting to offer beta access. I won’t link to them, but Candland says using them will only “end in heartbreak”.
Halo is a fictional universe. However, sometimes we catch sight of things in real life that remind us of our favorite science fiction video game franchise. This particular series, titled Halo in Real Life, showcases those very moments. Enjoy the subtle Halo references sometimes spotted when out and about in the real world, and if you have a picture you’d like to submit for possible future inclusion, send it to bsangel[at]halowaypoint.com!
As seen and captured by Chris |
From Beyond Entertainment:
Beyond Entertainment is proud to showcase the first installment of our Top 5 Sickest Clips. With commentary by Tyler “Ninja” Blevins and editing by Jazzy, you’re going to need to strap yourself in for one hell of a ride! Want to be featured in the next Top 5? Submit your clips here: http://bit.ly/Ypcyj4. If your clip has a chance, it will appear at http://youtube.com/gobeyondclips and can be selected from there.
From SquirrelBurrito:
The NGA is looking for brand new Grifball courts for the next season of its Grifball league! This contest will focus primarily on aesthetics, as forging a Grifball map doesn’t require much knowledge or utilization of level design theory, though some basic principles will be required to be demonstrated.
We’re looking for new and innovative designs that support a fair game of Grifball. Submissions must be functional (including spawns, flat surfaces, etc.) and look professional. Maps can be forged on any of the Forge locations in Halo 4 (Ravine, Impact, or Erosion). We’ll be looking for creativity, as well as great designs!
Contest Submission Deadline: March 17th, 2013
From MythicTyrant:
The Master Chief’s pursuit of the Didact brings him to a military installation orbiting Halo ring Installation 03. There, a device called the Composer is housed which will allow the Didact to forever imprison humanity. The Chief must either transport or destroy the Composer to save the human race!
Editor’s note: Language is mature. Proceed with caution.
Over in the MariusNet forum, punkUser points out that any old school Myth fans looking to check out some current tournament action can have a look at NewMutator’s YouTube channel.
Some people show their love for Halo by playing the games. Others get a relevant image permanently placed upon their body. Enjoy this particular example of a Halo-related body modification, and if you have a picture you’d like to submit for possible future inclusion, send it to bsangel[at]halowaypoint.com!
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Halo tattoo, as seen on Loganj666 |
From Jared Castle:
This is my tribute to Cortana. If you like Halo, Muse or are just looking for a video to watch, I hope you enjoy it. Thanks!
From Bighungry2x:
Stony Props has a new toy we would like to share. A couple of months ago, Tony Pagan made a Halo: Reach Elite head. Walter Marlin had his own ideas with it, so Tony sent him a casting and he came up with this. Click the link below to see a video of it in action!
From DefendTheHouse:
DefendTheHouse is proud to present the seventh installment of our Halo 4 Mythbusters series! In this episode, we put some of our most asked questions to the test.
In Anger, Sadness and Envy Episode 25: Destiny Revealed, Narcogen, Blackstar, Miguel Chavez and Cody Miller talk about the reveal of Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 versions of Bungie’s shared world shooter, Destiny.
(Music by Martin O’Donnell and Michael Salvatori, from the Destiny ARG track “Eighth” and the Destiny PS4 Announcement Trailer)
(This podcast is also available in M4A format with chapter markers and embedded images and URLs. You can find it in iTunes here or subscribe to the feed directly here.)
Shaun McInnis, GameSpot Editor, has penned an article spelling out exactly what Bungie’s new game, Destiny, is— and is not:
“These are living, open worlds with evolving stories, changing time of day…and every one is full of players,” says engineering lead Chris Butcher. “Destiny is an always online experience, but it’s not an MMO.”
Butcher is a pretty straight shooter– plus there’s no subscription fee, so there’s that. Check out the full article to see what else will or won’t be in Destiny, according to GameSpot.
John Gaudiosi at PCWorld interviews Bungie’s COO, Pete Parsons, about Bungie’s new game, Destiny. In the interview, Parsons again confirms that an element some fans were worried would be omitted is in the game– namely, solo play:
We want players to tell their own stories. We’re going to give them the ability to customize their character, and their experience. Then they’re going to go on epic adventures with their friends. You can play Destiny solo, but we believe that everything fun to do in Destiny is more fun when you’re playing with friends. It’s that unpredictable human element that will create the most important moments in Destiny.
The game may need to be online all the time, but it looks like you’ll have the option of playing by yourself if that’s what you want.
Why, the video kind, of course.
MoreConsole avoids the obvious answer and wonders what Destiny will bring us.
Every Monday, we feature a community member who does one or more of the following things: routinely goes above and beyond for their fellow forum members, is a positive and active member of the community, and/or sends me mass amounts of cat pictures. This week our Community Member of the Week is Twizzsted. Read a little more about this particular fan below, then hit their profile to see why they love babies!
Gamertag: Twizzsted.
Origin of Gamertag: I got my Gamertag from a Gamertag generator. It was simple, easy to remember, and people couldn’t mess it up without trying, so it stuck.
Current clan/community: None.
Halo game(s) you are currently playing: Halo 4.
Favorite map, game type and playlist: Sandtrap from Halo 3, Big Team CTF/Slayer and Big Team Battle.
Least favorite map, game type and playlist: Exile from Halo 4, Team Snipers and SWAT.
Preferred control scheme: Default.
Halo playing style (offense, defense, sniper, driver, etc.): Driver, gunner and pilot.
Favorite Halo quote: “Unleashing hell!” – Vulture Pilot from Halo Wars.
Anything else we should know? I like to create my own sci-fi vehicle ideas. Also, an easy way to piss me off is to equip stickies in your loadout in Halo 4!
This week in Spartan Ops, we are featuring an encore of Episode 6. In War Games, the Extraction playlist is now available. One of Halo’s newest game modes, Extraction requires you to work with your team to extract and defend sites around the map to earn points. The first team to successfully complete 5 extractions will be deemed the winner. The map / game type selection is as follows:
|
Maps for 1 Extraction Site |
Extraction Time |
|
Skyline |
30 seconds |
|
Landfall |
30 seconds |
|
Monolith |
30 seconds |
|
Harvest |
45 seconds |
|
Haven |
30 seconds |
|
Abandon |
30 seconds |
|
Adrift |
30 seconds |
|
Solace |
30 seconds |
|
Complex |
45 seconds |
|
Maps for 2 Extraction Sites |
Extraction Time |
|
Haven |
30 seconds |
|
Adrift |
30 seconds |
|
Exile |
45 seconds |
|
Meltdown |
45 seconds |
|
Longbow |
45 seconds |
|
Monolith |
30 seconds |
As you can see, the Extraction time varies depending on the size of the map. We look forward to adding additional maps to the rotation, and encourage you to leave your feedback in this thread to give us your thoughts on settings and map selection.
The Capture the Flag playlist also received some updates this week, as Settler (the on-disc Ravine Forge variant) and Simplex (an arena-style symmetrical map from community Forger SaLoT) are now available in the playlist, specifically tweaked for 5 vs. 5 CTF. Once again, head over to the War Games Feedback section and let us know what you think about these maps!
As promised, the Majestic FFA DLC playlist has also been updated – Rumble Pro has been corrected to have the motion tracker enabled, and the join-in-progress window has been shortened to prevent players from joining games too late. We have also updated this window for the Regicide and Team Throwdown playlists. While Team Throwdown was originally slated to not include join-in-progress, we have noticed that games have been starting with lopsided teams due to players backing out of lobbies, and we have included a very brief window before and during the first few moments of a match in which Matchmaking will fill and balance teams. We will continue to monitor this window to ensure the best Matchmaking experience possible.
This week in Spartan Ops, we are featuring an encore of Episode 6. In War Games, the Extraction playlist is now available. One of Halo’s newest game modes, Extraction requires you to work with your team to extract and defend sites around the map to earn points. The first team to successfully complete 5 extractions will be deemed the winner. The map / game type selection is as follows:
|
Maps for 1 Extraction Site |
Extraction Time |
|
Skyline |
30 seconds |
|
Landfall |
30 seconds |
|
Monolith |
30 seconds |
|
Harvest |
45 seconds |
|
Haven |
30 seconds |
|
Abandon |
30 seconds |
|
Adrift |
30 seconds |
|
Solace |
30 seconds |
|
Complex |
45 seconds |
|
Maps for 2 Extraction Sites |
Extraction Time |
|
Haven |
30 seconds |
|
Adrift |
30 seconds |
|
Exile |
45 seconds |
|
Meltdown |
45 seconds |
|
Longbow |
45 seconds |
|
Monolith |
30 seconds |
As you can see, the Extraction time varies depending on the size of the map. We look forward to adding additional maps to the rotation, and encourage you to leave your feedback in this thread to give us your thoughts on settings and map selection.
The Capture the Flag playlist also received some updates this week, as Settler (the on-disc Ravine Forge variant) and Simplex (an arena-style symmetrical map from community Forger SaLoT) are now available in the playlist, specifically tweaked for 5 vs. 5 CTF. Once again, head over to the War Games Feedback section and let us know what you think about these maps!
As promised, the Majestic FFA DLC playlist has also been updated – Rumble Pro has been corrected to have the motion tracker enabled, and the join-in-progress window has been shortened to prevent players from joining games too late. We have also updated this window for the Regicide and Team Throwdown playlists. While Team Throwdown was originally slated to not include join-in-progress, we have noticed that games have been starting with lopsided teams due to players backing out of lobbies, and we have included a very brief window before and during the first few moments of a match in which Matchmaking will fill and balance teams. We will continue to monitor this window to ensure the best Matchmaking experience possible.
From Certain Affinity:
This video covers how to set up the game mode Grifball in Halo 4’s Forge mode. Details how to place spawns, the Grifball spawn, and the Grifball objective plates.
Arabic language gaming site DvLZGaME has posted a video tour of Bungie (okay, Bungie’s lobby). The video is in arabic, of course, but is still worth a look if you haven’t already seen some of the Halo memoribilia Bungie has amassed.
Incidentally, it appears that Bungie has a small but motiviated fanbase in the Arabic world that is using Twitter to lobby for the Arabic localization of Destiny– I’m guessing that Halo missed out on this treatment.
