VaderRx presents:

Pic and info courtesy of BigMatt. Target has their preorder cards out for Halo 4. A preorder there isn’t wise if you plan on playing at midnight on release day, but we know there are those of you that will want the card for your collection!

Image courtesy of IGN

Every week we get a tasty bulletin from bs angel at Halo Waypoint that covers various aspects of the Halo universe. This week in particular there was some useful info she brought us from Frankie about Halo 4. Some questions continue to get the vague treatment, but we did get some specific details sprinkled in that are relatively definitive. Here is a list of those facts, for your convenience:

Multiplayer
– The multiplayer system will NOT be a “mirror image” or “exactly like any existing template” (including the perks of COD).
– There will be no multiplayer beta.
– The ranking system will be altered from its current state.
– The new Halo 4 version of Slayer “will score differently than the traditional 0-50 method.”
– “Assassinations are altered, but they’re back.”
– “The vast majority of our maps will be brand new, we also know what the ladies (and gents) like.” In other words, expect one or a select few classic maps.

Campaign
– No background story from the expanded universe (books, comics, etc.) is required reading to understand the game plot, and vice versa. “Each Halo story will work as a standalone piece, but the more you experience, the more resonance (and Easter Eggs) you’ll get.”
– In regard to campaign, “there will be some very interesting new characters joining the fray.”
– “The Covenant will definitely return, albeit in a completely (graphically, politically and sonically) overhauled form, but they may be the least of your problems.”

General
– “There are no health pickups” (health packs), so the health system will change.
– The giant mech being built in the center of the multiplayer map Warhouse will not be playable, but at least one vehicle surprise coming “will dwarf that weapon.”
– “The BR is a three-shot burst weapon. It is hitscan. In its current tuning, it has recoil (not bloom) which causes it to rise slightly (in a predictable and suppressible way).”
– “You will not see bloom as it currently exists in Vanilla Reach on any weapon.”

Some very interesting stuff all around! To read more details, along with other less specific information, CLICK HERE to read the Halo Bulletin in its entirety at Halo Waypoint.

Posted in Halo 4 | Leave a comment

By now you’ve probably watched the Halo 4 trailer several times like I have (if you somehow didn’t see it, click HERE). Instead of talking about how awesome the return of the BR is, how Spartans can jump high again, or that I’m thrilled for some smaller competitive maps, there are three interesting things in the trailer that stood out to me.

Armor Changes (Abilities?)

If you check the circled area on the top left in the above picture, you can see a meter that isn’t there in the other HUD views in the video. Since the ammo meter and shield power are clearly present elsewhere, the best bet is that this is the meter for some additional ability. It is possible since it isn’t in any of the other HUD images in the video that whatever the mystery ability is, it may not be available in every gametype. Of course there is also the possibility that in the other screens 343 just hid that part of the HUD. Most likely, this is the meter for armor abilities. Which abilities are in the game are still in question, though we clearly see Sprint in the video several times, and we saw a Jet Pack/Thruster that Master Chief used back in the teaser trailer from last year. On that note, check out the following composite image:

⇑ Click HERE to expand and read the remainder of the video analysis!

Those look a lot like thrusters on the backs of those Spartans, and the more I watched the videos, the more it looked like all of them had the “thrusters.” Is it possible that there will be fewer armor abilities in Halo 4, but that you can carry more than one at a time (thrusters and sprint, for instance)?

Opening, Climbing, Crawling

The above images show some new movements in the first person view. The top image shows the segment of the video where Master Chief is climbing, and you can clearly see his hands and arms moving him around. The bottom shows some doors being forced open. Is it possible that this may be a Kinect feature for the campaign? Frank O’Connor confirmed in an interview with NowGamer that “Kinect doesn’t have any real bearing on Halo 4,” but that doesn’t mean that it couldn’t be used as an optional feature like the item scanning in Halo Anniversary. In any case, it looks like we get to see MC interact with the environment in some new ways.

New Scoring/Team Symbols?

Unicorns vs Wolves anyone? That’s what it looks like if you check the circled area. This could be team symbols, or they could hold significance for the gametype. Its unlikely the latter is the case since it clearly says “BR Slayer,” but since this isn’t a finished version of the game anything is possible. Also of note is the insanely high score that would be atypical of a normal slayer game. Is this a new gametype, or is it possible that now you get more that one point per kill depending on how you get the kill (style points for headshot, assassination, close call, etc.)? The easy explaination is that it is a custom game with a high score count limit so the game can be tested for bugs or problems for an extended time in one game, but for now all we can do is guess.

While more rumors and speculation continue to run rampant on the internet, one thing is for sure: Holiday 2012 can’t get here soon enough!

The picture says it all! If you haven’t picked up Halo Wars at this point, you may not get a better deal than this.

Image courtesy of CVG

At long last, we have new Halo 4 information coming from last week’s Microsoft Showcase. I will keep updates coming live from various sources throughout the day via Twitter. CLICK HERE to follow along on the Twitter feed.

A lot of places I go online, I see plenty of people skeptical of how 343 Industries is going to do with Halo 4 since they haven’t given us much real information on it yet. From all indications, the game was shown in secret at the XBox Showcase in San Francisco on Wednesday and Thursday. Rumor has it that the public may get to feast their eyes on it as early as next Monday.

The fan side of me wants to see the game as badly as anyone. From a business perspective, however, I can respect 343i’s strategy. Halo 4 is going to set the tone for the series going forward under 343i. They just get one shot to get it right the first time out of the gate, and restore faith to the franchise that has faltered a bit and seen itself overtaken in popularity by Call of Duty after Reach received a lukewarm reception by fans.

Is Reach a terrible game? Not at all. I wouldn’t have spent so much time playing it otherwise. It does suffer from some issues that have caused the population to decrease in comparison to its predecessor. Since taking over the management of Reach, 343i has taken steps via the Title Update and playlist changes that have made strides toward improving the gameplay experience significantly. Most of the changes made have received praise from many of the people that had complaints. After seeing the way 343i has made every effort to listen to community feedback, along with making positive changes to the somewhat-flawed Reach, I’ve been nothing but encouraged about the future of Halo.

You can’t please everyone, but I truly believe that 343i will make Halo 4 a great success. Remember, Bungie wanted to get away from the Halo franchise. Everyone at 343i is passionate about Halo, and WANTS to be working to make it the greatest game yet. Will they succeed? We will find out by year’s end. But count me on the record as one hardcore fan that has faith in them.

Wake up, John.

In today’s issue of the Halo Bulletin, bs angel revealed a list of changes coming soon for the March playlist update:

– Team Heavies being added to Big Team
– Evade is being removed from all Spartan loadouts (except Grifball)
– Team Slayer will remain the same settings, while a new playlist (Super Slayer) will use the TU settings
– New Grifball maps
– Community Infection Maps
– Anniversary Squad and Squad Slayer retired
– Team Objective moved to 5 vs 5
– Bleedthrough removed from TU

CLICK HERE to read the Bulletin in its entirety.

Sounds like some great changes overall! I’m a little sad about bleedthrough being yanked, but I’m glad TU slayer will have its own playlist now, and I’m THRILLED they are taking Evade away from Spartans! Woot!