CVG talked to Frank O’Connor about what’s coming up – looks like they’ve already begun tossing around ideas for Halo 5. (Spartan Ops Season 2, however, though much closer, is not yet decided upon.) Thanks, TheOddOne.(Louis Wu 18:23:16 UTC)

Robowski sent word about Post Game Carnage Report Episode 140 – the crew gets into a tussle over Campaign. (There’s also a video called ‘esPGCRpn CenterSports‘… MegaBloks + Halo, in sports journo action.)(Louis Wu 18:21:56 UTC)

The Halo Bulletin went live this morning on Halo Waypoint (and of course in our Halo Bulletin Archive, for those who need a leaner version) – it contains information about a number of subjects. There’s a new contest called the Infinity Challenge – you’ve got a chance to win a Halo-themed pickup, an appearance in the next Halo, and more. Spartan Ops will be taking a break, until late January – you can still play existing Episodes, but the last five from Season 1 won’t be showing up for at least six weeks. There’s a Matchmaking update coming on Monday – King of the Hill is out (the loss is temporary, but we don’t know when it’ll be back), Crimson Map Pack list is in. (The Crimson maps will show up in other lists as well, heavily weighted, if everyone in your match has them.) If you missed any of IGN’s Crimson Map Pack walkthroughs or videos released recently, they’re embedded here. And finally, there’s some beautiful Halo 4 concept art from John Wallin Liberto. Check it out!(Louis Wu 16:09:57 UTC)

Firestream wrote to remind us about HaloSphere2, which has had some pretty fun updates recently. There’s now a built-in card game called Halodex – completely PVP. There’s also a mobile mode for the game, so you can have fun while on your phone. (Visit the mobile URL for this.)(Louis Wu 15:58:22 UTC)

WhoLikesChicken pointed out a TED talk called ‘Your Brain on Video Games‘ – cognitive researcher Daphne Bavelier talks about how video games affect the human brain. It’s not specifically Halo-related… but she talks a lot about shooters. Great watch!(Louis Wu 15:55:52 UTC)

Spike has released a commercial for its Video Game Awards, coming up tomorrow night – it’s pretty fun. And both Halo gameplay and the Master Chief make an appearance. Go watch! Thanks, IHaveIce.(Louis Wu 15:51:37 UTC)

Davis Beutler took a picture of a QR code at some point, and it won him a pretty cool (giant) poster, signed by 343’s Josh Holmes. Nice!(Louis Wu 15:49:14 UTC)

The Halo Forge Epidemic has a couple of videos up on their YouTube stream that offer intriguing custom options to Halo 4 players – take a look and download the maps! Jurassic Park is a take on the Flood gametype – the map actually has self-driving vehicles on it! (Thanks, Tawpgun.) How they managed this isn’t explained, but they DID say a tutorial would be coming. There’s also a gametype that brings up memories of Slender Man – it’s another Flood-based game, and apparently it’s really, really scary. Check these out, and give ’em a try with your friends!(Louis Wu 15:32:49 UTC)

Yesterday, we mentioned GrifballHub’s Wednesday Night Grifbrawl coverage… along with a hint that an interesting presentation technique might be coming. If you missed the match live, it’s up on their TwitchTV site right now (the actual game begins around 42 minutes in to the 2-hour archive) – and the technique they came up with for ‘Spectator mode’ is really, really clever. They put a Wraith under the court, held up by a gravity lift zone – it doesn’t affect the gameplay at all (well, except for putting a wraith on the radar, but that’s probably easily dealt with by the players), but the POV of the driver is actually at game height – so the Wraith can follow the action around the court as though it’s another player! Love it.(Louis Wu 15:27:39 UTC)

The winners of the Halo 4 Remix Contest have finally been posted. There is almost two hours of music to listen to and plenty of wub wub to go around. Congrats to the winners!(mastrbiggy 22:41:56 UTC)

I love synchronized Christmas lights (except on my street) – and this particular batch is pretty amazing. Not clear where it is… but it’s absolutely worth a watch. Awakening never looked so good! Thanks, TheOddOne.(Louis Wu 22:33:55 UTC)

Whoa. Not sure if this is accurate or not (nothing’s been mentioned at all by 343, that I’ve seen), but someone on Reddit noticed a paragraph in the Halo 4 Strategy Guide that suggests we won’t be seeing any more Spartan Ops eps this month:

In the following five weeks after Halo 4 releases, 343 Industries will release a new episode each week, containing five new missions to challenge. Each mission in an episode is designed to last close to fifteen minutes. The remainder of Season 1 will arrive early in 2013 after a short hiatus, releasing the remaining episodes in Season One.

It’s possible that this was the plan when the guide was written, and things have changed… or it’s possible that this IS what’s happening, and 343 will tell us about it in tonight’s Bulletin. Either way, when we know more, we’ll let you know. Thanks, CyReN.(Louis Wu 20:14:15 UTC)

Kal let us know that there’s a new Wednesday Night Grifbrawl tonight – it’s a double header between Green Army and Four Guys One Ball, starting at 10pm Eastern. The note ended with this interesting line: “But we’ll also be premiering an exciting new way to stream Grifball games that will revolutionize the sport!” Tune in to find out more! (Louis Wu 20:10:27 UTC)

CruelLEGACEY has kicked off The Fails of Requiem – it’s a montage series that looks at (wait for it…) FAILS IN HALO 4! (Also, wins and laughs.) Nicely filmed – go watch! (Louis Wu 20:07:57 UTC)

Carmelo let us know about a new Halo 4 review from Clever Musings – it’s pretty seriously in-depth. (They looked at a LOT of things.) Go give it a read!(Louis Wu 20:04:57 UTC)

BigTeamBattle.net needs a new logo – if you’ve got the skills, check out their requirements, and submit a try! Winner walks away with MS points and Double XP.(Louis Wu 20:02:46 UTC)

Okay… so I’m not really sure what to make of this… but it’s intriguing. Go ask paddy to explain.(Louis Wu 20:01:25 UTC)

Jordan117 stopped into our forum with some pretty impressive pictures – he found a collection of maps created by Minecrafter Ulanus – these are complete, 1:1 replicas of entire campaign levels from the original game. Check ’em out – they’re fantastic! (Louis Wu 20:00:19 UTC)

We get a lot of news from NeoGAF’s forums – if you’re curious about the people who hang out there, nscuDuncan’s got your back. He’s kicked off a new series called ‘Debriefing’ – he going to be talking to HaloGAF regulars to see what makes them tick. Ramirez is up first – it’s a great read!(Louis Wu 19:54:51 UTC)