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Bungie.net has been going berserk for quite some time now, with a timer counting down to something big. After rumors ran rampant (oh boy, there’s that word again) about the new Master Chief-less Halo game, the Halo movie and a whole lot of other crap, it looks like it’s definitely a remake of something from Bungie’s past.
Talking to a highly placed Xbox 360 insider earlier today afternoon, we’ve learned something about the new Bungie project, with our conversation going something like this:
Me: So, about the new Bungie project, do you know what it is?
Mr. X: Yes. (laughs)
Me: So, is it something which will have us jumping for joy?
Mr. X: Well, not really. Actually, it depends. Are you a hardcore Bungie fan?
Me: Yes! So its not Halo related.
Mr. X: No, absolutely not.
Me: Is it a new IP from Bungie?
Mr. X: No, it’s not a new IP. That much I can confirm.
Me: So, is it something like Myth or Marathon, from Bungie’s past?
Mr. X: (awkward silence)
Me: God, I hope its something like Myth or Marathon or Pathways into Darkness or something like that.
Mr. X: (laughs)
and the conversation ended there abruptly. With confirmation that the new project is indeed a revival and not something new, which combined with the “Pardon our Dust” message on the Bungie.net website (remember “Please Excuse our Dust”?), who’s eager for a reimagining of PiD? Or Myth? Or Marathon?
After having finished the fight last September, rabid fans of the Halo franchise had to be content with sticking their friends with grenades online and waiting for the next game set in the Haloverse, the first RTS in the series - Halo Wars. Though the continuation of the story (or rather, the prequel) was expected long before Halo 3 wrapped up (or not) the Master Chief saga, few expected it to take the form of a real time strategy game that Bungie, in collaboration with Age of Empires legend Ensemble Studios are expected to spring on us later this year. RTS games on the Xbox 360, like Command & Conquer: Tiberium Wars before it, have always been iffy, what with the level of control and freedom that a conventional keyboard-mouse combination offers, but Ensemble Studios, like every other console RTS dev before them, have claimed to have worked out the nuances of controlling the game using a standard Xbox 360 controller without frustration levels peaking into the red-zone.
While we wait for the official demo of the game to check out the control scheme for ourselves and speculate on the possibility of wreaking havoc with the Covenant war machine, one of our friends over at Microsoft, like many of us from time to time, developed a case of verbal diarrhoea and slipped us some really interesting information. Now, while we are never in the habit of starting rumors, this one comes from someone on the inside who swears on its authenticity on pain of death, and we’ve been sitting on this one for almost a couple of weeks now, trying to verify it before we say anything about it.
Warning! The following review holds heavy spoilers for Halo 3 and the series’ storyline in general. If you haven’t played the game yet and care a bit about its narrative, I highly recommend you NOT read the below text. Otherwise, you are most welcome to click the link below and crawl into my parlor.
Remember when IGN’s Matt Casamassina was wailing on how he knew about the development and cancellation of a Halo for the Nintendo DS, going as far to say that he even played what was already completed? Naturally, most of us didn’t believe him. Well if you listen closely, you might here Cassamassina effectively shoving a spoon full of my own words (along with everyone else from the internet, I’m assuming) down my throat. Real hard. The proof is in the pudding!
Frankly, I’m a little confused. True, Bungie denied that they ever worked on a Game Boy Advance game based on the Halo universe, yet this became completely overlooked and unmentioned? Talk about keeping secrets. But then again, there’s the possibility that Matt could be pulling one seriously late April Fools joke here. That would be awfully mean of him! For now, I’ll give the benefit of the doubt for now and admit defeat.
Be sure to watch the video that reveals it all, after the break. Dual-wielding ahoy!
Looks like no retailer can actually keep his ugly lil’ paws from tearing open those precious Halo 3 boxes and shower copies down from the rooftops. So what if the game is only supposed to be sold a week later, right? Images are coming in of a lot of Halo 3 copies in the wild, and considering how some retards have been stupid (or sadistic) enough to post the endings on YouTube, one wonders why even bother sticking to a release date instead of slapping on a sticker that reads “Go nuts! Sell as you please” instead of the one that pleads “Do not sell before 9/25/07″.
We’re not sure what’s going to happen in India, considering the games have to be sent to retailers before the 25th, but we’re waiting for some form of communication from Microsoft India on how they’re actually planning to prevent retailers here from going the same way of their crazed US and UK counterparts.
For those that were scared that Microsoft would ban your Xbox LIVE account if you took your purchase online before the 25th, rest easy, MS has got your back, even as they probably fleece the skin off the retailers’ for selling them in the first place.
“We can confirm that Microsoft is not taking any action (such as banning Xbox Live accounts) against gamers who are playing Halo 3 before the official street date. Any rumours or speculation to the contrary are false.”
said Microsoft, in an official press release issued to Pro-G, which had initially warned that anyone taking their copy of the game online before the 25th will have their accounts banned. I wouldn’t mind getting my copy before the 25th, considering I can’t really spoil it for anyone, what with me sitting on a broken Xbox 360 for the last 22 days now.
UPDATE: The official word from Mohit Anand, Country Manager for Microsoft India’s Entertainment and Devices Division is that they are taking enough precautions to make sure the street date is not broken here as well.
We are doing what we need to, and that is all I am willing to say :), but rest assured the game will be on shelves on [the] 25th.
We’re sure it will be, Mohit, but you’ve really got our eyebrows raised as far as they’ll go with that cryptic smiley emoticon there. Oh well, let the inexorably painful one-week wait begin! We waited years for the game, I’m sure we could wait another couple of days… I think. At least until I start crying on the doorsteps of the retailer to let me have my copy before then.
When Vijay said Microsoft’s sparing no expense for Halo 3, he meant every word of it. As if it wasn’t enough that other countries were getting massive launch parties for the final installment in the epic Halo story arc, Microsoft UK wants to show them up. Big.
Renting out the biggest theater in London, the BFI IMAX, the Halo 3 launch party for UK is an exclusive event being hosted by musician Pharrel Williams, who will also be taking on members of the public in Halo 3 matches as well as being connected to a number of other cities including Paris, Madrid, Amsterdam and Milan via Xbox LIVE. And you thought the Microsoft India launch event for the game was big! *sigh* When, if ever, will we see something like this in our own little country. For Mass Effect, perhaps? Hello, Mohit? Pretty please with lots of sugar and strawberries on top?
After getting axed in the previous two Halo games, the much-desired flamethrower will finally make its appearance in Halo 3! And that’s not all, the game also ships with a fourth grenade type, an incendiary “firebomb” that’s designed to serve up Covenant and Flood Crepe Suzette, much to our delight.
Talking to IGN, Bungie’s Frank O’Connor said that the decision to remove the flamethrower from the previous two games wasn’t just about balance, but about performance as well, which is obviously not much of a problem with the Xbox 360.
“Obviously the 360 makes things like that significantly easier. In Halo 3, we can control where it goes a lot better. [The flamethrower] obviously features a lot in campaign. But in multiplayer it doesn’t have to be in every multiplayer playlist and map. If you shoot a pillar, the liquid in the flamethrower will adhere to it and burn there. Likewise with the floor and with bad guys. It will cause continual damage to a vehicle. When the flames start to cool down and evaporate, it stops causing damage. If you’re lucky enough to keep it on a Warthog, then you will in fact take it down with a flamethrower.”
Talking about the firebomb grenade and how it can be used to cut off an enemy flag carrier’s escape route, Frank said:
It has a very similar level of damage as [the flamethrower]. It works pretty much the same way. It’s very dangerous to get hit by one directly. It will explode and splash over you when it hits.
Of course, that’s where the much-publicized Bubble Shield grenade comes in, which protects players from the effects of this flambe-in-a-shell grenade, by having the fire actually wash over the shield and burn on its surface while protecting the player from damage. Of course, with Halo 3 packing so much, the only thing left to worry about is the console itself, or rather, how the overheating issues that still aren’t fixed will bork your console just a couple of days before the game launches.