Author Archives: Sal

About Sal

I’ve got tons of experience with Halo gaming and collecting. I feel I have something to offer to the greater Halo fan community. Posts along the way will be about tips and tricks in the games as well as collecting and many more Halo related things. I’ll also repost interesting articles from the official site, Halowaypoint.com, or from fellow Halo fan sites. As I continue this blog, I hope to help gamers who want advice on the games, as well as any collectors with regards to where to find collectibles as well as deals, coupons and so on. You can also follow me on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/#!/HaloFanForLife or Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/halofanforlife11. Welcome to my blog and I hope you’ll come back again and again. -Sal

Xbox One FAQ

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Q:    Does Xbox One require an “always on” Internet connection?
A:    No, it does not have to be always connected, but Xbox One does require a connection to the Internet. We’re designing Xbox One to be your all-in-one entertainment system that is connected to the cloud and always ready. We are also designing it so you can play games and watch Blu-ray movies and live TV if you lose your connection.

Q:    How do consumers benefit by being connected to the cloud?
A:    The cloud makes every experience better and more accessible.  Because Xbox One is powered by the cloud:

  • Your games have more power available to create new gameplay, persistent worlds, and deeper experiences.
  • Your system and games can update automatically, so you shouldn’t have to wait for downloads or updates.
  • Your games and entertainment are stored and saved in the cloud, so you can access them anytime, from any Xbox One.*
  • Start a game, movie, or TV show on one console and finish exactly where you left off on another.
  • You can play multiplayer games with your friends, stream movies or TV shows right away, and enjoy the community and social features of Xbox Live.
  • Xbox One can recognize you, log you in and tailor your home screen just for you.

You can discover what your friends are playing, watching and listening to if they choose to share.
These are just a few examples of how customers benefit from our platform being connected to the Internet. It brings the future of TV and games to our consumers—and it’s designed for today and the decade ahead.

* Subject to content geographical restrictions.

Q:    When will Xbox One launch and in what markets?
A:    Xbox One will launch in markets around the world later this year. We’ll have more to share later.

Q:    Can I use my current gamertag on Xbox One and will my Gamerscore and Achievements transfer?
A:    Yes. Your current Xbox Live Gamertag will stay with you on Xbox One if you choose to keep it, and your hard-earned Gamerscore and Achievements will indeed carry over from Xbox 360.

Q:    Will Xbox One be backward compatible with my existing games?
A:    Xbox One hardware is not compatible with Xbox 360 games. We designed Xbox One to play an entirely new generation of games—games that are architected to take full advantage of state-of-the-art processors and the infinite power of the cloud. We care very much about the investment you have made in Xbox 360 and will continue to support it with a pipeline of new games and new apps well into the future.

Q:    Will Xbox One allow players to trade in, purchase and play pre-owned games? 
A:    We are designing Xbox One to enable customers to trade in and resell games. We’ll have more details to share later.

Q:    Will my current Xbox Live Gold membership work with Xbox One or will I have to buy a new one?
A:    You do not need to buy a new Xbox Live Gold membership. Your current membership will work on both Xbox 360 and Xbox One.

Q:   Why require Kinect with every Xbox One?
A:    The all new Kinect is now an essential and integrated part of the platform.  By having it as a consistent part of every Xbox One, game and entertainment creators can build experiences that assume the availability of voice, gesture and natural sensing, leading to unrivaled ease of use, premium experiences and interactivity for you.

Q:    Do I need to have a specific cable or satellite TV provider to watch live TV on Xbox?
A:    Our goal is to enable live TV through Xbox One in every way that it is delivered throughout the world, whether that’s television service providers, over the air or over the Internet, or HDMI-in via a set top box (as is the case with many providers in the US). The delivery of TV is complex and we are working through the many technologies and policies around the world to make live TV available where Xbox One is available.

Q:    Xbox One is a more powerful product compared to Xbox 360, but does it also use more power?
A:    No. By providing multiple power states in Xbox One, we’ve balanced energy efficiency with functionality. We’ve taken a completely different approach to how Xbox One consumes power. It only uses the power it needs at that particular moment for the task at hand.

Here’s the link.

Spartan Ops: a discussion of facts and circumstances.

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I replied to a forumite on Halo Waypoint regarding the ending of Spartan ops season one as well as addressed some of their questions regarding Spartan Ops (SpOps) in general.

Below is Claymore155’s queries and my reply.

Claymore155: …As for Spartan Ops, no clue. In all honesty, it could go in any direction. Halsey says she wants revenge but she never been so strait forward about her true intentions. This is also a great opportunity for the new Spartan IV’s to mature and start acting the way a Spartan should. (And something needs to be done about Palmer).
I know you play as Fire-team Crimson, but the story seems to follow Majestic, so the gameplay is (once again, only in my opinion) not that crucial to the story. Majestic team was actually starting to work and think like a team towards the end of the season, so they cold have a lot of potential.

HFFL: Agreed that there is SO much potential here with the Spartan Ops story. I hope we don’t have to wait until Halo 5 comes out for it to have more episodes/missions. Unfortunately, I think that’s exactly what’s going to happen. Each download of SpOps is huge. Some people have complained about that. More episodes would tie up space on people’s memory to the point where they might not even be able to play new episodes/missions due to too much space being taken up.

Agreed, that finally by the end of SpOps Majestic is acting more like a real Spartan squad and yeah, Palmer needs an adjustment, IMO.

Claymore155: Maybe Master Chief will get involved in the story as well. I personally wold like to find out what happened to Buck’s ODST squad for Halo 3: ODST.

HFFL: There are plenty of fans, count me in there, that would like to see the ODSTs return, specifically Buck. Especially if he became a Spartan IV.

Claymore155: 1.) In the first missions of Spartan Ops season 1, why did everyone act like they had never seen Promethean combatants before?

The storyline is supposed to take place several months after the main Halo 4 campaign ends. By that point, the Infinity with all of its advanced technology should have simulations to practice fighting the Promethians or at least had the time to educate the crew onboard about them.
The first few missions seem like the Infinity is running in with no previous experience with Promethians. It could be argued that Palmer is trying to share some “wisdom” with Crimson when they first see an enemy, but based on her character, I think she was basically saying spray and pray.

HFFL: Watch the first episode of SpOps again. Majestic and Crimson are NEW to the Infinity. They are brought on board right before Infinity slips to Requiem. Palmer wanted to run them through War Games for 48 hours, but Lasky said no, that the UNSC wanted them ready to go. (Not tired from War Games I’d assume) Essentially Lasky was saying he wanted boots on the ground the moment they exited slipspace at Requiem.

Claymore155: 2.) Why are there still Covenant around Requiem?

This one i probably my fault for not understanding. I just remember that when the Didact left Requiem to get the Composer, all (or what I thought was all) of the Covenant forces followed him.
I know they would probably want to return, but after the huge battle with the UNSC in Earth’s orbit, I wouldn’t think the Covenant would have enough ships, troops, and resources to go back before the humans. It just seems odd that after a huge defeat like that above Earth, the Covenant would been be able to dig in with such a large military presence before the UNSC could even get one ship out there.

HFFL: Fairly simple here. Jul M’dama’s “Storm” faction went back to Requiem to get as many of the Forerunner secrets as possible. Read the Kilo-5 books ([i]Glasslands[/i] and [i]The Thursday War[/i]) and you’ll gain a new appreciation for Jul’s forces. Those promise to ramp up even more in the third Kilo-5 book that takes place right before the events of Halo 4. Jul has assembled a large force of Covenant, now “Storm.” The UNSC/humanity is still reeling from the decades long war the the Covies, not to mention the destruction of New Phoenix just 6 months prior to going back to Requiem. They can’t devote a huge force to go back to Requiem. Sending the Infinity back is a logical solution, but not until they have the ground personnel they need to take Requiem from the Covies.

Enter the new large faction of Spartans now on the Infinity. Note in Episode 1 of SpOps that Palmer speaks of “old hands.” She’s referring to the smaller contingent of Spartans that were already on Infinity the first time they went to Requiem.

Also, don’t forget that the Infinity was repurposed to be a scientific exploration vessel and not a war machine. It took those 6 months after the Didact’s attack on Earth to formulate a plan for return to Requim. This included adding many more Spartan teams. (Note that Palmer was a Lieutenant during the campaign and was promoted to Commander at the beginning of SPartan Ops. This denotes the much larger presence of Spartan teams for which she is in charge of). Beyond this, the Infinity needed to add more personnel. Military for defense and Scientific for exploring/exploiting the Forerunner tech found on Requiem.

Claymore155: 3.) The way Halsey didn’t know that Master Chief was onboard doesn’t fit in.

Halsey is smart, but it’s not impossible to hide things from her. However, Master Chief’s presence tends to fill the air of where ever he is, yet no one seemed to be talking about him.
Master Chief is not one to sit out of a fight, especially when other people’s lives are in danger. And when when he fights, he (even unknowing) makes his presence known. So when the Infinity was boarded, why didn’t Halsey hear or see Chief? She was with Lasky, the acting commanding officer of the ship. Master Chief would do all he can to find and protect Lasky, or at least go out of his way to receive direct orders from him either in person or over a communication cannel (which were being jammed so he would have to meet up with him in person). Yet Halsey never saw John or even heard him some form of radio.

HFFL: Master Chief is not on board the Infinity at the time of SpOps. So that does explain a lot. As well, Halsey is brought on board Infinity as a prisoner. It’s safe to assume that only essential personnel had contact with her and that they were under strict orders not to talk of Master Chief being on board previously.

As for where Chief is at during the events of SpOps, that may have to wait for Halo 5, if not another novel before then.

-Sal

Halo Mega Bloks series 7 insert sheet!

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I was able to get my “hands” on a virtual file of the insert sheet (thanks to sharkfinboy1-a fellow MB collector).

I reported just Friday an article of the  “Halo Mega Bloks Series 7 blind pack preview“. Glad to see I was indeed correct in my preview.

Anyway,  without further ado, here’s the insert sheet believed to be coming with the minifigs (click to make bigger):

Halo Series 7 Commonality sheet

 

I’m VERY agreeable with which ones are common, rare, and very rare. Mind you this sheet doesn’t show the four translucent minifigs.

Happy hunting! Oh and when you find them, snap a pic and send it to me at sal@halofanforlife.com and I’ll share it here on the blog!

-Sal

Flood or Prometheans, which were better/scarier?

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This is pretty simple to answer, IMO.

The Flood were SCARY when I first met them in Halo CE. Even by Halo 3 they were no joke.

The Prometheans were not scary. I think them being revealed before the game came out kind of ruined any surprise. Even then, the Prometheans lack personality. Not like the Flood have it either, but the Flood were truly scary.

Watchers are a pain in the arse, but easy to take out. Same with Crawlers. Knights, meh, they were never really a challenge.

When I compare beating the games on Legendary, Flood were tougher than Prometheans.

I hope in Halo 5 there are new enemies. Either new classes of Prometheans or finally some rogue still living Forerunners. I was disappointed that we never REALLY got to fight the Didact. Sure there is that QTE at the end of the Campaign, but it’s not the same as having to have a strategy to take him down. Just hit some buttons at the correct time and he’s toast.

I suspect the Flood are going to make a return to Halo, could be they are an instrument of the Precursors, could be that the Gravemind is a Precursor. Whichever… Prometheans really need to amp it up in Halo 5. We essentially had to beat birds, dogs, and quirky hunchback beetles.

The Flood were infected Humans, Elites, and Brutes. Definitely scarier as they were abominations. Prometheans are to armor and “clean.” Nothing really says, “Be scared of me!”

-Sal

Halo Mega Bloks Series 7 blind pack preview

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MB grey logo
As was revealed at Toy Fair in Febraury, we will soon see the next series of Halo Mega Bloks blind packaged minifigs. This series doesn’t contain the normal 8 figure count. Nor does it contain 3 translucent figures. Nope…It contains a WHOPPING 16 minifigs AND 4 translucent minifigs. That’s a total of TWENTY minifigs in one series!

Below is a pic I compiled of all 20 minifigs to come in this series. After which, I’ll give my own thoughts on each minifig. I’m going to start left to right, top to bottom…however, saving the translucent figured until the end.

Halo MB s7-wTransFigs
Top Row:
Standard Marine with full goggles: Okay, I’m ALWAYS up for more marines. This figure is great for army building. It comes with an Assault Rifle
Desert ODST: OMG, YES! Another figure worthy of army building. Now we get the ODST in what looks to be a desert paint deco. If it’s white, that cool too. Comes with Assault Rifle.
Black Armored Halo 4 style Marine: OH YEAH! Now I might now have to try and buy multiples of the more expensive Weapons Ammo set. Another good army builder! Comes with…Is that a Railgun!
Black (or is it grey) Spartan Mark 5 [ b ]: I’m pretty sure collectors are going to start calling this “Not-Noble 6.” So let me be the first here. This is certainly a welcomed minifig. I’d love to have the completed Noble Team someday and this is another step towards that. To note, this fig comes with a crimson Plasma Rifle. This can said to be a Brute Plasma Rifle. YES!

Second Row:
Yellow EOD Spartan: I’m not so much a fan of yellow painted Spartans. However, I AM a fan of the EOD helmet. So it’s a welcome addition, IMO. Hard to tell what this one comes with from this pic. Sorry.
White Scout Spartan: The Scout is cool. I like the helmet. This one if crafted to look more like the Halo 4 Scout could be a good one for customizing into Spartan Commander Sarah Palmer. Comes with an Assault Rifle.
Silver Security Spartan: I really like silver painted Spartans. Though I’m not a huge fan of the bug visor Security helmet. Still, it’s a welcome addition. Comes with what looks to be a Brute Mauler.
Grey CQB Spartan: Oh yeah! One of my favorite helmets. Though, IIRC, we already have a grey CQB from a previous set. Not sure, but is that a sentinel beam in it’s hands? If so, AWESOME!

Third Row: 
Yellow Grunt: Grunts grunts and MORE grunts! I love ’em Keep them coming! Yellow isn’t really an in-game color (with exception to Halo Wars). So I’ll have to treat this as a commander grunt. Comes with a crimson not-accurate needler.
Green Grunt: See above, just switch out the color for green. Though green is closer to an in-game color which was closer to teal-green.
Dark Blue? Reach Style Grunt Major: I’m VERY glad to see Reach style Grunts come back. This one looks to be a Dark Blue variant. Comes with purple plasma pistol. (When is MEGA going to make game accurate dark blue plasma rifles?)
Blue Mark VI Halo 4 style Spartan: YES! If you’re looking for TEAM color spartans, this is one of them! Comes with a light grey Railgun.

Fourth Row:
Human Flood: I already have more of these than I really need. Still for those who don’t have enough or even one, I’m glad it’s in this series for you. Comes with an Assault Rifle.
Purple Ascetic Elite: Dark purple. And a Carbine. The Ascetic Elite is my favorite armor design for Elites from Halo 3.
Violet Zealot Elite: This Elite is decidedly different in color from the Purple one. I’m VERY glad to have yet more Zealots make an appearance in the minifig line. Comes with it’s own violet colored Carbine.
Crimson Jump Pack Brute: VERY cool color! If you have the Crimson Brute Prowler (exclusive to Wal*Mart), then you already know how cool the brute look in this color deco. This one comes with a black Mauler.

Now we get to the four that I am MOST looking forward to. As you long time readers know, I LOVE translucent toys. I just love seeing how they are put together. Even minifigs such as these are awesome, in my book! Of course, these are going to be the VERY hard to find ones…

Translucent minifigs:
Green Marine: Well, at least I THINK it’s a marine from the pic. Lean Green Translucent Marine! Possibly has a shotgun.
Orange Elite Minor Halo 4 style: Okay, now THIS color is VERY different. It’s the first time we’ve had an orange translucent color minifig. I’m looking forward to it. Comes with a needler.
Gold Spartan Mark VI Halo 4 style: Could be yellow, but looks more gold in color. The weapon included looks to be the DMR. VERY cool fig, IMO.
Blue Zealot Elite: This one, to me is the GEM of the bunch. Why? Well, it just LOOKS like an Elite coming out of active camo. It being a new Halo 4 style Elite Zealot just makes it that much more AWESOME! Comes with a needler.

So what are your thoughts about these figures? Any of them really strike you as must have for your collection? Any you don’t like? Hit the reply button below. If you’re not already signed up as a subscriber to HFFL, then please shoot me an e-mail to sal@halofanforlife.com if you want to become a subscriber and reply.

-Sal

 

 

The Halo Bulletin 5.15.13

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halobulletinheader_5-15-13Well, here we are again with another Halo Bulletin. Has a week really gone by that quick? Are these bulletins ever going to be interesting again?

This week marks the third week in a row that I’ve been disappointed with the material presented.

BS Angel comes back after a two week hiatus. And she doesn’t fail to disappoint us with a few paragraphs of nothingness to start. Really, do we care why she didn’t write the bulletin the last two weeks? I look to the bulletin for PERTINENT info about HALO…

Next is a section about being voted game of the year by Geekwire.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZiQQJvHxxc&feature=player_embedded

Yet more about the weapons tuning, specifically about streaming the testplay of it. No offense to those who like to, but I do NOT like to watch others play. I prefer to do the playing myself. Oh and Greenskull from RUL gets to go to Seattle and playtest with 343. Again, no offense to those who like or are a part of RUL, but damn, how about spreading the wealth around? Greenskull got to go to the actual set for Forward Unto Dawn. Sure, he’s a nice guy and all, but there are OTHER fans out there, ya know? There are plenty of other sites deserving of some recognition by 343. Am I saying my blog? That would be a bit self serving now wouldn’t it? I’m not saying any site in particular, just any DIFFERENT site, rather than those ones who have already been chosen time and again. Greenskull already has his place in Halo history with the FUD visit as well as having armor in Halo 4 “created” at a location that bears the name of his hometown. Sure, he’s got a popular website. Doesn’t mean he’s anymore a fan than anyone else….just sayin’.

Okay sorry about that last part folks, I’m just a bit depressed and seeing others who have already had more than their fair share get yet MORE makes me even more depressed.

At least one good thing about the weapon tuning article in the bulletin, we now have a concrete date as to when it’s going to roll out. June 3.

Next up in the bulletin is the matchmaking update.

Several community made maps on Forge Island are going to see rotation in playlists.

Map: Elevated by Smexi Bilzo
Infinity Slayer
Capture the Flag – 5 Flag
Extraction 1-Site

Map: Crucifix by Wraith2098
Capture the Flag – 5 Flag
King of the Hill
Infinity Slayer

Map: Onyx by Hahkarazy
Throwdown v3 Slayer
Throwdown Capture the Flag – 5 Flag
SWAT

Map: Confined by Big Papa Salot
TD Slayer Pro
Team Snipers
Capture the Flag – 5 Flag

Map: Ender by The Fated Fire
King of the Hill
Infinity Slayer
SWAT

Map: Forgotten by Flying Shoe ILR
Extraction 1-Site
Capture the Flag – 5 Flag
King of the Hill

In addition, Big Team Infinity Slayer and Infinity Slayer have some updates as well.

Big Team Infinity Slayer:
• Slayer Pro added to voting options.
• Complex added to map rotation. (Good. This map needs to be in rotation for larger team sizes)
• Voting options reorganized to provide increased variety.

Infinity Slayer:
• Slayer Pro added to voting options.
• Complex removed from map rotation. (Thank gawd. This map is WAY too huge for 4v4.)
• Voting options reorganized to provide increased variety.

HFFL: (Ugh, a no radar option. I hate not having radar. This should be in the Throwdown playlist only as that’s the MLG/Pro players settings.)

And finally, the now normal screenshot gallery is inserted. This one showcasing the EVA helmet. There are some good shots.

What bothers me most about these galleries is that I never seem to know what is upcoming so I can have a chance to submit a screenshot to possibly be picked.

Thus ends the bulletin. If you want to read the whole thing go here to the official site.

 

Should there be other weapon choices in SWAT for Halo 4?

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Well, maybe not should, but “could” be in SWAT.

I may be in the minority here, but I DO wish other weapons were available. Not in the same game mind you. I’d like to see a SWAT Carbine gametype within the SWAT Playlist. Same goes for Light Rifle. Honestly, if 343 made a LR SWAT playlist, I’d play it. As it is now, I’ve already maxed out DMR, BR, Carbine, Magnum. So the only other weapon feasible for SWAT for me, is the Light Rifle.

SWAT is one of two playlists I just don’t play any more. Once I maxed out those weapons, I never went back to SWAT. It’s the reason why I don’t have a CSR in SWAT. (The other playlist being Team Tryhard…er Throwdown.)

While we’re talking about it, is there a variant for Snipers? How about a Beam Rifle gametype within Snipers? I’d play snipers then if that weapons was available to use.

-Sal

Would a public BETA have helped Halo 4? How about a public BETA for Halo 5?

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A public BETA for Halo 4 would have revealed flaws in the gameplay. Something 343 could have fixed before it launched. Deadlines aside for a moment, had there been a public BETA AND time enough to make changes/fixes based on player feedback from playing the BETA, we most likely would have had a lot of the features we wanted instead of a lot that we didn’t want. Playlists would have been better from the get-go instead of playing catchup many months after release.

I SERIOUSLY hope 343/M$ has learned their lesson here and gives us a PUBLIC BETA for Halo 5. Not for Campaign/Spartan Ops. Just for Multiplayer.

I’m going to buy the game regardless. However, I’d like to know that my feedback has at least some impact on the final released game. Rather than we not having ANY feedback to give and being asked to trust a NEW company. By the time Halo 5 is released, 343 will no longer be new and a LOT will be expected of them. They won’t be given a “pass” on Halo 5 if it’s screwed up and not darn near completely ready to be released.

-Sal