My Halo News.com

The latest news about the Halo series of games from Microsoft

  • A bonus for Silentium readers (only a week late)

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    halo@bungie.org
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    Last week, when Silentium was released, the Section 3 folks pulled the glyphs that appeared in the book’s chapter headings and decoded the latest offering – by visiting the Classified page (either on Halo Waypoint’s website, or in-game), you can add this code and receive 20,000 XP and a video called ‘Rebirth’. It took a few days to work properly on the website (it was much faster on XBL), but it’s up in both places now – it’s a 40-minute audio epilogue to Silentium, written by Eric and Greg Bear, and read by Greg! Pretty slick. I was pretty sure we’d front-paged this when Mid7night mentioned Nak3d Eli’s video about it – but apparently not. Thanks to GunRunner48 for the added reminder.(Louis Wu 17:53:31 UTC)

  • Bonnie Ross, Game Changer: Celebrating the Women of Xbox

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    Xbox is celebrating Women’s History Month by introducing you to the women of Xbox in a five part series called Game Changer. The first episode focuses on the Superintendent (some like say General Manager) of 343 Industries, Bonnie Ross. Bonnie is in charge of overseeing the entire Halo franchise, including the videos games, books, and even Halo apparel – that’s a pretty gargantuan task! Go find out a little more about Bonnie and see what she has to say about the studio. Neat!(mastrbiggy 10:01:21 UTC)

  • Halo 4: Forge Feature – Ep. 2: Perplex

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    halo@bungie.org
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    Beyond Entertainment released Forge Feature Episode 2 – this week they take a look at Perplex by IKorlash. Go watch! Thanks, aPK.(mastrbiggy 09:59:07 UTC)

  • aPK Presents Clips of the Week Ep. 1 + Giveaway

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    aPK has launched a personal YouTube channel and kicked things off with Clips of the Week Episode 1. To celebrate, aPK is hosting a giveaway – all you have to do to enter is subscribe to his channel. Here are the prizes:

    • 12 month XBL code
    • 3 month XBL code
    • 1600 MSP code
    • GoW Games on Demand code
    • Avatar props

    Go subscribe! (mastrbiggy 09:55:03 UTC)

  • One Man Act – Project Halysis

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    Wahrer Machine presented a design doc for his what-if Halo project, called Project Halysis – a spinoff game complete with campaign, multiplayer, forge and theater. He goes into great detail about each aspect of the game and presents some neat and quirky ideas. It’s a good read – go check it out! (mastrbiggy 09:41:08 UTC)

  • Halo Goodies For Sale On eBay

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    pvt is selling a halo bundle on eBay – all the Halo games, The Halo Encyclopedia, The Art of Halo, and the first five seasons of RvB are included. Time is running out!(mastrbiggy 09:39:47 UTC)

  • Podtacular 355: Castle Unveiled

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    theguardians@podtacular.com (Dust Storm)
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    Download
    A few lucky community members got invited to an early PAX event to play the Castle map pack. We were given early access to the Mad Catz Unveiled pre-Pax party and got a first look at the maps dropping on April 8th. All maps were playable including Daybreak, Perdition and Outcast in various game modes such as CTF, Slayer and King of the Hill. Among those community members were people from our good friends over at Ready Up Live, those of which you may already know, but are making their debut podcast appearance representing RUL’s presence at PAX. Public Relations SMG90, Creative Manager Drax and community member Micky 126 and I huddled in their hotel room for a late night recording so we could talk about what we took away from the event, resulting in the following podcast. Enjoy

  • Onslaught – A gametype to remember

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    pete_the_duck informed us of Onslaught, a new gametype he’s been working on. It’s an Infection variant, where the Zombies are in Mantises, and the Survivors have Railguns. I played this a few nights ago – and it’s a blast. (Literally.) There are lots of cool assets to go along with the map/gametype: Hedgemony took a bunch of screenshots (which are, as is the norm with Hedgemony screenshots, simply stunning), CruelLEGACEY whipped up a trailer showing off some great action angles, and pete himself put together an episode of Forge with Pete showing how the game works, and what lengths he went to to ensure that it’s fun. I’m here to tell you – it’s fun. (Unless someone on your team has a totally broken mic. Then it’s not fun. Well… the game is still fun, but you can’t really enjoy it.)(Louis Wu 20:46:44 UTC)

  • Reclaimer – Hubris

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    TTL Demag0gue let us know about the latest Reclaimer comic – Ferial gloats, but you know that won’t last.(Louis Wu 20:41:30 UTC)

  • Community Member of the Week: tL Armada

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    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 tL Armada. Read a little more about this particular fan below, then hit their profile to learn even more!

    Community Member of the Week

    Gamertag: tL Armada.

    Origin of Gamertag: I always liked the word “armada”. I have actually had three variations of this Gamertag. The original one was “The Armada King”, then turned into “Armada King 8G”, and now finally “tL Armada”. I’m not exactly sure why I put king at the end but I guess if you combine both the words, you get a powerful ruler in charge of vast and powerful war machines.

    Current clan/community: I used to be a part of an eSport gaming community known as 8G. That has since passed. I was asked to join tL, which was a small community of players. That has also come to pass, and I am now a free agent, only bound to those of Waypoint. 🙂

    Halo game(s) you are currently playing: Halo 4.

    Favorite map, game type and playlist: BTB, Fiesta and Dominion.

    Least favorite map, game type and playlist: Sword Base, Longbow and FFA.

    Preferred control scheme: Default in Halo 3, Recon in Reach, Recon in Halo 4.

    Halo playing style (offense, defense, sniper, driver, etc.): Offensive but I enjoy driving.

    Favorite Halo character: Buck, Rtas and Gravemind.

    Favorite Halo book: Fall of Reach.

    Favorite Halo quote: “I am a monument to all your sins.”

    Anything else we should know? If there’s anything else you want to know, feel free to ask!

    Get to know tL Armada here

    Discuss

  • Halo 4 Weekly Challenges: 3.25.13

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    War Games Weekly Challenges

    Halo 4 Weekly Challenges


    Spartan Ops Weekly Challenges

    Halo 4 Weekly Challenges


    Campaign Weekly Challenges

    Halo 4 Weekly Challenges

    Halo 4 Weekly Challenges

    Discuss

  • Halo 4 Matchmaking Update: 3.25.13

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    Legends in the Dark
    Today, Spartan Ops continues with episode 9, and Majestic FFA has been replaced by the limited-time-only Community Forge FFA playlist. The maps featured in this playlist are the finalists in the recently concluded Halo 4 Forge Contest, brought to you by Certain Affinity and the Community Cartographers. Many amazing forgers submitted their creations, and here are the best of the best, ready for your FFA enjoyment!!

    Black Site by The Fated Fire
    Bloodthirst by iiHopp
    Edifice by Redemption1272
    Malice by AgentPaperCraft
    Opus by SHIFTY time
    Plaza by Smexi Bilzo
    Assault by NLTROOO
    Serenity by DG Intensity

    Be sure to head to the War Games Feedback section this week and let us know what you think of these maps. As I started to say above, this playlist will only be around for a short while, after which it will be replaced by an FFA playlist that will include on-disc maps, Majestic DLC, and possibly one or more of the above Forge maps!

    As promised, Team Throwdown, our premiere competitive playlist, has also received a significant update. We’ve continued to work with professional players on the settings, and version 3 of Gh057ayame’s BR-start settings has made its way into playlist voting options, along with Halo 4’s “Pro” settings that can currently be found in Doubles Pro. Both variants feature game modes on the Majestic maps, and the playlist’s voting slots have been randomized. Here are the game types that are now be available in Team Throwdown:

    Team Slayer on Haven
    Team Slayer on Monolith
    Team Slayer on Skyline
    Team Slayer on Abandon
    Team Slayer on Shutout
    Team Slayer on Simplex
    CTF on Simplex
    CTF on Adrift
    CTF on Skyline
    CTF on Monolith
    King of the Hill on Monolith
    King of the Hill on Haven
    Extraction on Dispatch
    Extraction on Adrift
    Oddball on Skyline

    The Doubles Pro settings have replaced the “Deluxe” settings (and been converted to 4 vs. 4) in Team Throwdown. These settings offer the option to use the DMR, LightRifle, Battle Rifle or Carbine in pre-set game loadouts. Here’s a recap of the settings and loadouts:


    Mode Pro
    Score to Win Dependent on game type
    Loadouts Game Loadouts (see below)
    Instant Respawn Disabled
    Death Cam Disabled
    Motion Tracker Disabled
    Personal Ordnance Disabled
    Ordnance Drops Enabled
    Time Limit Dependent on game type

    Loadout 1
    Starting Weapon DMR
    Secondary Weapon Magnum
    Armor Abilities None
    Tactical Mod Resupply
    Support Mod Explosives

    Loadout 2
    Starting Weapon Battle Rifle
    Secondary Weapon Magnum
    Armor Abilities None
    Tactical Mod Resupply
    Support Mod Explosives

    Loadout 3
    Starting Weapon LightRifle
    Secondary Weapon Magnum
    Armor Abilities None
    Tactical Mod Resupply
    Support Mod Explosives

    Loadout 4
    Starting Weapon Carbine
    Secondary Weapon Magnum
    Armor Abilities None
    Tactical Mod Resupply
    Support Mod Explosives


    Lightning CTF will also be making its way into the Action Sack playlist this week. If you missed the Action Sack announcement, Lightning CTF is a fast-paced game mode in which players start with LightRifles, the Flag is transported on the Flag carrier’s back, and one shot anywhere on the body will kill. Go give it a shot!

    Discuss

  • Halo 4 OST V2 – Coming April 9th

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    The Omega Order is currently accepting pre-orders for volume 2 of the Halo 4 soundtrack – a total of 20 tracks are included. Cool! Thanks, Moa.(mastrbiggy 10:43:33 UTC)

  • Didact Costume Build Progress

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    Evil FX Props and Armor uploaded some new shots (scroll down to the bottom) of the Didact costume build – looks like it is coming along nicely. The added lighting looks really slick and the detail is pretty incredible. Loving the body and hands as well. I can’t wait to see the finished product!(mastrbiggy 10:35:23 UTC)

  • Halo Waypoint PAX East Recap: Part 2

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    343 and Certain Affinity recap the Halo 4 multiplayer panel in part 2 of their PAX East recap – Bs Angel, Kevin Franklin and Tom Potter break down all the juicy announcements and Bravo almost puts Jess in the hospital ;). Go watch!(mastrbiggy 10:25:51 UTC)

  • Bane Plays Halo 4 (The Return)

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    Moorpheusl9 stopped in with a link to a video that was released last December – but it’s brand-new for me, and it’s pretty fun. Batman’s Bane teams up with Bronson’s Bronson (and a couple of randoms) in a game of Slayer on Harvest – well-done! Go give it a watch(Louis Wu 18:28:06 UTC)

  • Revisiting the story of Halo

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    Carmelo M. decided to look back at the original Halo story to try and tease out what made it so special – to him, and presumably to the rest of us as well. Great read! (Louis Wu 18:25:19 UTC)

  • Halo 4 PAX East Multiplayer Panel

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    The Podtacular crew posted a video of the entire PAX East Halo 4 multiplayer panel on their youtube channel – go lean about CSR, the new maps, and Forge Island! Thanks, pete_the_duck.(mastrbiggy 05:27:22 UTC)

  • All I Want For Christmas

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    halo@bungie.org
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    Halo Waypoint released their first recap video from PAX East – looks like everyone is having a great time! Time to start working on that Christmas wish list! Thanks, zoojoo. (mastrbiggy 05:07:22 UTC)

  • Halo 3 Image Pack

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    Karl2177 from NeoGAF decided to create a Halo 3 image pack much like the Halo: Reach image pack that HaLo2FrEeEk put together back in 2010 (wow it’s been 3 years since Reach?!) Go download it! Update: We’ve put up a local mirror, just in case.(mastrbiggy 05:01:27 UTC)