Wow, looks like we missed a fun event for Canadian Halo fans; Tuesday night, the Vancouver armoury was hosting an evening of Firefight – sounds like a day with the ODST Roadshow, except no truck (but they DID have Canadian Forces members handling security). Here’s hoping HBO readers in Vancouver made it there without us!(Louis Wu 12:51:00 UTC)

Hawty McBloggy is giving away a PAX Swag Bag – if you couldn’t make it to Seattle at the beginning of the month, here’s your chance to get a box containing all the stuff you’d have picked up if you DID (plus a very cool signed Cortana-themed faceplate, to boot). Minimal Halo content – but that faceplate makes up for all of it. (And the bag DOES contain some cool stuff.) Go read, and sign up!(Louis Wu 12:48:24 UTC)

LazerBlader sent along a PDF containing all the Gamestop stores hosting a midnight opening for Halo 3: ODST on the 22nd. I couldn’t find it on their website, so we’ve got a copy here for you. Nearly 3000 stores on this list… Update: found a link on this page – swing down to the ‘Interact’ section halfway down the page. (Louis Wu 12:47:47 UTC)

Vast Inspiration wrote a short review of Halo 3: ODST over at NeoGAF that could have been from my head. No spoilers – just impressions about the game itself. And opinions that are mine, except that I’ve never even read a post from this person before. Check it out. (Louis Wu 12:20:44 UTC)

More and more people are getting early copies of Halo 3: ODST – Newegg sent out a bunch of orders early by accident, some countries are less rigid about street dates than others, and even in places where street dates are taken seriously, mistakes are made by employees who might not be paying attention. This means two things: first, be careful what links you follow on the internet, if you’re looking to remain spoiler-free… and second, you MIGHT be able to get your hands on the game a bit early (if you don’t already have it preordered somewhere, or if you don’t mind extra copies). Mostly the first, though. Be careful out there. (Louis Wu 12:20:06 UTC)

Minime noticed a new video at IGN – Firefight Starter Tips. It’s a spoiler-free discussion of ways to maximize your survival, at least in the early rounds. (Decent advice, even.) I was pretty amused by the comment at about 1:30 that “teamwork is essential for success”… spoken as the player we’re watching throws a grenade into a barrier, bouncing it back towards the team (rather than at the enemies). Heh. I think someone’s been watching over my shoulder again… (Louis Wu 12:19:20 UTC)

Giantbomb discusses Halo 3: ODST in their latest weekly podcast – swing by to listen to the two and a half hour discussion. (Halo content spans the stretch from 7:40 to 18:10.) Thanks, Minime637. (If you’re reading this near the time it’s posted, their server is having trouble with direct podcast links; you can get there by visiting the podcast page directly. Actually, at the moment, their server is having trouble, period – check this link periodically.) Pretty spoiler-free, overall.(Louis Wu 12:18:11 UTC)

Hehe – it looks like Howard Ryan has a new title. The Kirkland Reporter has a Police Blotter for last week – and the incident involving the sniper model made the list. The funny part? “The president of Halo was contacted after…” It’s like he’s a king or something! (Quick screenshot, in case they fix it.) Thanks to Max Dyckhoff for the heads-up.(Louis Wu 12:12:20 UTC)

Bungie.net posted a new Community Spotlight late yesterday – this one focuses on Forge Union, a group of (duh) Forge enthusiasts who do a lot of playing together. Check out Bungie Favorites for some of their stuff.(Louis Wu 12:11:46 UTC)