Bravo writes this week’s bulletin.

A typical morning at the studio involves a cup (or three) of coffee, a quick game (or three) of Matchmaking, and a meeting (or three) that cover one if not all of the numerous projects we’re working on. This morning though, on an incredibly oversized 220” screen, we watched a live broadcast of the Seattle Seahawks parading through the crowded streets of downtown Seattle (strangely enough and certainly unrelated, our studio was not crowded and instead as barren as can be). While the local news coverage of the event provided more ridiculous moments than actual coverage of the parade itself, such as the news anchors’ repeated failed attempts to get the attention of the Seahawks passing by, it was exciting to witness the city’s celebration of our first world championship, and see the (and I’m quoting the local news anchor here) “Big vehicles with big people in them” cruising through the city. After one last celebration for our team, Dr. Phil popped onto the screen, and that’s when we realized it was time to turn the TV off and try to get a little bit of work done.

Speaking of football, we hope that you got a chance to partake in some Halo 4 Spartan Bowl over the weekend. We all know how the big game ended (woo-hoo!) but we thought you’d enjoy hearing about how the two teams faired in-game.

Although we know who quite handily won the real game, the Halo 4 Spartan Bowl had a slightly different result. As you can see above, the Broncos-themed red Spartans appear to have edged out the real championship team. bs angel would like me to add that if you played as the Seahawk-themed blue team and lost at all over the course of the weekend, you may be permanently banned. I think she’s kidding. But is she? Either way, if you hopped into the playlist and contributed to any of the 164,518,855 points that were scored over the weekend, we’d like to thank you, and hope you enjoyed the games.

Next up, let’s see what else is going on in the world of Matchmaking.

Matchmaking Playlist Update

Heavies went live as our featured playlist on Monday morning, and we’ve seen that thousands of you have joined the action. The playlist, which stole the top spot from Big Team Battle for three days running, is packed with heavy vehicles and large weapons and features both Slayer and King of the Hill on Wreckage, Shatter, Harvest, Daybreak, Outcast and Perdition, Longbow, Ragnarok, Vortex, Meltdown, and Exile. As we mentioned last week, the playlist is a great stomping ground to rack up vehicle and weapon commendations along with ridiculous and explosive Matchmaking memories, and also several achievements. The Crimson DLC Mantis achievements “Bigfoot,” “David and Goliath,” and “Pump Yer Brakes,” are all achievable in Heavies, so get ’em while they’re hot. The playlist, will be around until February 17th – hop in and join the action!

HFFL: I posted yesterday how much fun I was having in Heavies. I continue to believe that this should be a gametype in BTB. Hopefully 343 will be convinced by the shear numbers it’s pulling compared not only to other rotational playlist gametypes, but other standard gametypes, like BTB as Bravo mentioned. If you’re loving Heavies, tweet to @halowaypoint or reply in the feedback thread on HaloWaypoint and let them know!

We’ll have all the juicy details for the upcoming update (and the Big Rumble Playlist) next week, but first we’ve got a new Community Choice Poll that will help determine one of the game types that we include in Big Rumble.

Big Rumble will feature 12-player Free-For-All on medium-sized maps and a combination of game types at launch. One of those game types will be one of the above, and we need you to select which! Read more about each option below.

Quick Draw
A brand new game type to Halo 4, Quick Draw lets players battle it out with just Magnums, Frag Grenades, and the Dexterity Support Upgrade. In Quick Draw, the fastest on the trigger will emerge victorious.

Stickyball
Originally announced as part of the Oddball playlist last October, Stickyball equips players with the Sticky Detonator and Plasma Grenades. In an FFA setting, there are even more explosions, frantic escapes, and things getting stuck to other things. It’s messy, good fun.

Fiesta Slayer
There’s no doubt that 12-player FFA is already a party, but add in random weapons, and you’ve got a real Fiesta. Players respawn with random primary and secondary weapons.

Head here to vote on the Waypoint forums where voting will be open for approximately four days. Next week we’ll announce the Community Choice winner along with the Matchmaking Update!

HFFL: okay, I’m voting for Quick Draw. Why you may ask? We’ve had Stickball already and Fiesta Slayer is prevalent in Action Sack, even if it’s team based. Plus, I really like the idea of ONLY Magnums (and frag nades). This is totally balanced, weapons wise. SO then it’s a matter of your skill. Are you up to the task? If so, I’ll see you at high noon…

Halo eValentines

You may recall last year that we created some Halo-themed eValentines that featured a collection of pick-up lines that any Halo fan would appreciate. If you happened to share one of these cards with your “favorite Player 2,” as bs angel put it last year, there’s a good chance that you are now together or joined in wedlock, as they were masterfully written to melt hearts. This year, we’re looking for the best community-crafted Halo-themed valentines to share and woo us!

If you have an idea for a creation, send it to bsangel [at] halowaypoint.com and we’ll select our favorites for next week’s Bulletin. Whether you create it digitally, with tape and scissors, or use an in-game screenshot, those of you who submit a creation may or may not receive festive-colored Spartan armor for your Xbox 360 avatar…

Stop by next week to see our favorites, and also to grab the last minute eValentine that you’ll undoubtedly need because you once again forgot that Valentine’s Day was already here (bs angel edit: tsk tsk). Don’t worry. We got you. Actually, your fellow community members do – make sure you thank them!

HFFL: Side note, I may have some Halo themed Valentines myself to share, so stay tuned as we get closer to the day.

Gamers for Giving Preview

Coming up this weekend is Gamers for Giving, a charity gaming tournament and LAN party that happens to be all sorts of awesome. I’ve had the privilege to attend the event in past years, and we at 343 Industries are honored and excited to partner with them yet again for their fantastic, frag-filled festivities. I’ll be heading out to Michigan this weekend to check out the Halo 4 action, and whether on the live stream on in-person, you should as well!

I was going to tell you about the event and charity myself, but then I imagined bs angel making a very nervous, tense face, shaking her head, and waving her hands in suggestion that I should let our friend Zach Wigal (who may know slightly more about Gamers for Giving) give you the details. So then I decided to do just that.

Hey, Zach! Thanks for joining me today. We’ve got Gamers for Giving coming up this weekend – tell us, just how busy have you been?

Hey, Bravo! Between finishing school, handling regular work, and organizing Gamers for Giving, the past couple of months have been packed. I definitely plan on taking a little bit of a break once the event is wrapped.

Taking a step back, can you tell us a bit about the origins of Gamers Outreach Foundation and Gamers for Giving? 

During my junior year of high school a group of friends and I tried organizing a Halo 2 tournament for our student body. A few days before the tournament was supposed to happen, a local police officer who belonged to a media censorship organization called The Parent’s Television Council found out about our tournament and called our school’s superintendent asking her to cancel the event. It was his opinion that Halo and other M-rated videogames weren’t appropriate for high school students to be playing. He basically ascribed to the ‘Jack Thompson philosophy’ of the time, and felt videogames were having a negative influence on the minds of youth. Our superintendent revoked our rental permit shortly after she received his call, and we had to cancel our event.

Growing up, I was always involved in the ‘normal’ school activities. I played sports, made okay grades, and was involved in music, but playing videogames was the consistent hobby. I really resented the idea that my mind was somehow being corrupted because I enjoyed playing games like Halo.

I decided the most productive course of action would be to move forward and organize a new tournament that would raise money for charity. I wanted to show the police officer that gamers were a friendly group of people, and that our event could actually benefit the local community for the better. A year after my high school tournament was canceled, the same group of friends and I hosted Gamers for Giving – a competitive gaming event that raised money for charity. We had around 400 people show up, and after covering the event’s expenses, we were able to donate $4,000 to a local chapter of the Autism Society of America. Not bad for a bunch of high school students!

I had never been involved with charity work prior to hosting Gamers for Giving, but its importance was quickly ingrained. Having done this for a few years now I’ve come to believe that’s the natural process for becoming involved with philanthropy. Unless you have a personal connection to a cause or you’re able to make that initial leap of faith to get involved, it’s easy to be inactive or unaware. Videogames were the bridge that connected the dots for me, and Gamers Outreach Foundation was created to support more activities like Gamers for Giving.

Fast forward to present day, the organization now has its own initiatives. We build portable gaming carts for kids in hospitals, and send videogame care packages to U.S. troops overseas. Gamers for Giving is the annual fundraising event which helps us kick start our work each year.

How much preparation goes into something of this scale? When and where does the work begin? 

Event management is a lot of work, and as an organizer the challenge of constructing events changes with scale. Gamers for Giving has about a 10 to 12 week build window. First, we work to recruit support from partners within the industry, as well as from Eastern Michigan University, where our event is hosted. These partners provide us with the resources to actually conduct the event, and help us cover overhead so that our attendee entry fees and donations can be used to support Gamers Outreach charity programs. Receiving support from folks like Astro Gaming, Twitch.tv, and 343 plays a big role in our ability to conduct a successful event.

Once support has been lined up, we begin solidifying the details of the event. We address questions like “What activities should be at this year’s event?”, “How many attendees can we accommodate for each activity?”, and “Where will we find equipment to support the event?”

As those questions are being answered, we simultaneously begin promoting the event. Thankfully, a number of eSports personalities have become involved with Gamers Outreach over the years, so their collective voices help us get the word out to folks beyond our immediate reach. That cycle continues until the weekend of the event – and our first priority then shifts to making sure our attendees have a fantastic time. We want our attendees to enjoy gaming in a competitive, friendly environment.

Aside from all that, the purpose of Gamers for Giving is to help build portable videogame carts for kids in hospitals and send videogame care packages to troops overseas. Thanks to a company called Kona’s Korner Productions, we’re able to stream Gamers for Giving and collect donations from supporters across the internet. This year, we’re trying to raise $20,000 to kick off Gamers Outreach activities.

How can the Halo community get involved this year? 

Halo is how we started, so we’re proud to be able to support another tournament at this year’s event! Halo fans are welcome to participate in our 4v4 Halo 4 tournament on Sunday, February 9th. Team passes are $100, and can be purchased online athttp://www.GamersforGiving.org. For those unable to attend, we’ll be streaming the event at http://www.twitch.tv/GamersOutreach. Donations can be made on our website, or during the live stream of our event. As of this interview, we’re only $7,000 away from the goal! Anything the Halo community can contribute would help!

Thanks for taking the time to sit down with us this week. I’ll see you this weekend for some Halo 4 action! 

Any time, Bravo! It’s going to be a good one.
——————–

Stay tuned to Waypoint and our official Twitter account for Gamers for Giving updates this weekend and into next week. Next up, bs angel is back with another gallery of in-game goodness.

Screenshot Spotlight: Heavy Vehicles

Last week, we turned the spotlight on nature. This week, we decided to go with things that are large and in charge. Take a gander at the following heavy vehicle screenshots, and maybe even find inspiration to make your own.

For your chance at being in the next spotlight, take a screenshot that reflects love (KEEP IT CLEAN) and then tag it with “Love” and “Halo Waypoint”, and maybe, just maybe, yours will be featured in the next Halo Bulletin!

And with that, this week’s Bulletin comes to a close.

Until next week,

Bravo

HFFL: Personally I like the one in the top left the most. 

As always if you want to see the bulletin, go to Halo Waypoint. In the case of this week’s, I’ve reposted it all here. Only thing different is the screenshot spotlight is one graphic here whereas on Waypoint, you can click each one and download if you so choose.

-Sal

Bravo brings us this weeks Halo Bulletin.

Bravo: As the first month of 2014 comes to a close, it seems like an appropriate time to check in on the status of New Year’s resolutions across the team. bs angel has boldly promised to wear a cat shirt once per week, and I do believe she’s on track so far. Quinn has set out to become the Heisenberg of soap by creating an empire of scented soap bars for gamers. As for me, I’ve sworn to eat healthier and get more active. However, as some of you may have discovered, the major caveat with New Year’s resolutions regarding a healthier lifestyle is that as soon as you ‘round the January corner, you get smacked with Super Bowl weekend. Generally speaking, it derails any and all hopes of continued success, doing enough caloric damage in one day to negate all progress you may have made in the past month. Science has proven this disaster (or delicious defeat) is unavoidable, so we’ve put together the Halo 4 Spartan Bowl, an exclusive (and calorie free!) playlist we’ve got coming to Matchmaking this weekend only. Read on for details!

Super Bowl weekend means a few days of football-themed festivities, and this year, said festivities extend into Halo 4 Matchmaking. For this weekend’s special edition playlist, we’re featuring “touchdowns only” Ricochet on an updated version of “Stadium”, a virtual football / battlefield designed by Nokyard. Two specific teams (Go Hawks!) will be represented through their official colors, so you can simulate the matchup in Halo 4 Matchmaking and custom games before the big game. Then, if you’re unhappy with the final result (or in my case, just can’t get enough Halo), you can continue to run games through Sunday evening.

The playlist will be available from this Friday, 1/31 through Sunday, 2/2. This reminds me that it is nearly February, which means we’ve got another Matchmaking update coming on Monday, and also that I need to make sure that bs angel is on track with her resolution.

Matchmaking Playlist Update
The next Matchmaking update will be released this Monday following the Halo 4 Spartan Bowl, so if you’re craving some new playlist and game type action, you’re in luck. We’ve got some brand new experiences on the way in the form of a featured playlist as well as new game type chosen by you, the community.

Heavies (HFFL: YES!!!!)

Heavies is our next featured playlist! In this warzone, you’ll work with teams of six players each in Slayer and objective game types with a tremendous amount of firepower, including large weapons and vehicles. In Heavies, each of the maps in the playlist have been outfitted with an abundance of vehicles, additional cover for infantry, and heavy weapons. Hop into a vehicle or grab the weapon of your choosing, and join your teammates in all-out vehicular warfare.

On top of bonuses for destroying vehicles, the playlist will give players an opportunity to work towards their Vehicle Mastery commendation, with plenty of chances to destroy a healthy number of Mantises, Scorpions, Wraiths, and more. Additionally, those of you chasing Halo 4 commendations for some of the heavier weapons are likely to find success in Heavies. We will be offering both Slayer and King of the Hill in the playlist across on-disc maps as well as maps from the Crimson and Castle Map Packs.

HFFL: Alright! I’ve been hoping for this one!!! I’m still chasing that Scorpion commendation. Of the vehicle commendations I only need Scorpions and Mongeese. So you can bet I’ll be playing this playlist heavily (pun intended) when it comes out this Monday!

Community Choice Swat Poll Results

Thanks to your votes, SWAT CTF will be available in the SWAT Playlist this coming Monday! The game type was the clear winner over SWAT Oddball and SWAT King of the Hill, grabbing 47% of your community votes. The game type will feature forced respawn times and be playable on a variety of maps.

HFFL: This is the first one that my vote wasn’t the same as the winner selection. Ah well, no matter. These days, I do not play much SWAT anyway.

Come Work on Halo – Franchise Writer
HFFL: Yep, THIS is the job I’ve applied for folks. I mentioned it just yesterday in my Why I Love Halo article. Below is the entire article that includes an interview with Jeremy Patenaude.

That’s right! We’re hiring, and looking for a certified Halo expert to join our team. If you know everything there is to know about the universe, can handle working with a ridiculously awesome team, and have the desire to grow the Halo franchise with your fancy words, you may be interested in our recently posted Franchise Writer position.

To give you an idea of what the job entails, I picked the brain of one of our writers from that very team, Jeremy Patenaude. Jeremy is one of the go-to experts on the team, and when I have a question about the history of UNSC vehicles, or evolution of the capitalization of the term “game types,” I head on over to his desk and bother him. This week, he gave me some insight into what he loves about his job as well as the universe. Read on for the details!

The franchise writer position sounds pretty badass. Tell us, how did you end up working as a writer on the team?

My work at 343 Industries began in 2009, but before that I had been working in the community since about 2004. Initially, it was just a group of guys who liked discussing Halo, but it eventually evolved into a blog where we started throwing some of those ideas out there into the public space. When we published stuff on the blog we tried to ensure that it was articulate and thoughtful, whether we were talking about the moral implications of Halo 3’s terminals or the combat flow and sight lines on Lockout. It was serious-minded conversation on Halo, and while there was some of that in the general community at the time, it wasn’t very widespread. Not terribly long after we started the blog, Microsoft’s Halo team was preparing to launch Waypoint; I was tipped off about an open writer position and was fortunate enough to be brought onboard to help out. After a year or two on Waypoint, which was a blast to work on, I moved over to the Franchise team. It’s a small team of really great people (who work extremely hard on unbelievably rad things) so I consider myself beyond blessed.

What would you say is the most rewarding part of working on the Halo universe and fiction?

There are a ton of rewarding aspects: the team is awesome, the stuff we work on is great, and I love going into work every day to see what unique challenges crop up. If I could pick one thing that is rewarding about being involved in the fiction of Halo, it’s seeing a project go from birth to completion and playing a role, however large or small, in that process. Like seeing novels come together from just a kernel of an idea to 400+ pages of Halo canon. Or watching a weapon or vehicle go from an early concept sketch to something I can actually use in the game, and then having to go back and figure out what interesting ways it could slot into Halo’s existing canon. That whole arch of ideation to realization is something that is a blast to watch and experience.

What is your favorite area or subarea of the franchise to explore and write about?

My favorite area in Halo canon is easily the rich lore around the forging and fomenting of the Covenant, particularly the war between the Prophets and the Elites. There’s something primal and profound about that era, when the Covenant wasn’t so much an alliance of billions of aliens, but just an agreement between two species not to kill each other. The events in and around that time period, from the Prophets’ own brutal civil war to the subjugation of the Brutes on Doisac–there’s just a lot of really cool moments there that are huge in the history of Halo, but have seen little light of day yet outside of the story bible. Don’t get me wrong, I love the other parts too–there’s just something special about the Covenant’s origin that I find interesting.

What is the maximum top speed of a Warthog, anyway?

Not fast enough if you’re driving the flag back to base. Too fast if you’re trying to pick up your teammate who now has the flag and is running outside the base directly in front of you.

Lastly, any advice would you give to Halo experts who might be applying for the Franchise Writer position?

Honestly, the key ingredients for this position are there in the job listing–if you’ve got them, you should absolutely apply. There are a lot of incredible writers out there, but as the listing indicates we want someone who is passionate about Halo and knows it at an intimate level. The great thing about Halo is that there are a ton of people out there who do love it and who do pay close attention to the games and the books, and so we’re just as excited about this opportunity as anyone else.

————

HFFL: Great article there. I am hoping beyond all hope that I get a call from them to interview for the position. Folks, I think you know how much this would mean to me, heck any Halo fan. Given my unfortunate long-term unemployment, I NEED this as much as I want it. If you’re not applying yourself, please wish me luck!

And lastly, the Screenshot Spotlight. This week’s subject: Nature

HFFL: There were some good submissions for this week. Of the ones shown on Waypoint, the following one was my favorite: 

Next week will be an interesting subject. It’s “Heavy Vehicle”. Take a screenshot of a heavy vehicle (Scorpion, Wraith, Warthog, etc.) and then tag it with “Heavy Vehicle” and “Halo Waypoint”, and maybe, just maybe, yours will be featured in the next Halo Bulletin!

To view the bulletin on Waypoint, go HERE.

-Sal

Bravo writes up this week’s bulletin.

As we all know, 343 is located in Kirkland, Washington, which is located essentially next to Seattle. So it’s no wonder the folks there are Seahawks fans. (That’s an NFL football team…LOL). Anyway, they posted the following pic of there support for the team:

This leads into the next article within the bulletin.

Matchmaking Playlist Update
Halo Spartan Bowl!

Those who hopped into Halo 4 Matchmaking on Thanksgiving weekend in November may remember the football-themed Turkey Bowl playlist, which featured “touchdowns only” Ricochet on a custom football field, designed by the Grifball guru and Forge expert Nokyard. For Super Bowl weekend, we’re bringing the game type back, on an updated (new and improved!) virtual football field, and select team colors which may or may not reflect two of the top teams in a certain football league (Go, Hawks!). The playlist, which is called the Halo Spartan Bowl, will be available from Friday, January 31st through Sunday, February 2nd, so you’ll have ample time to play before and after the big game. We’ll have more info as well as a preview of the game type next week on Waypoint.  

The Team Slayer Top 200 season 1 rankings are listed. To see the full list for season 1, head here. To start competing in season 2, simply head into the Team Slayer Playlist and join the action! You can track your CSR (Competitive Skill Rank) for the playlist by visiting your Halo 4 Service Record. To learn more about CSR, head here.

HFFL: I for one am looking forward to this gametype. I just hope all or at least some of those annoying shields that were on the Thanksgiving map are gone. I’d prefer weapons to only be swords, so it’s as close to football as possible. Yes, swords aren’t part of football, but neither are automatic weapons…

Community Choice: SWAT game types
The next matchmaking update is February 3rd. SO 343 is asking you to vote for one of three gametypes to be the winner of the next Community Choice Poll.

HFFL: Personally, I prefer SWAT to stay slayer only. Of these choices…
• CTF – Man, I’d hate to be that guy with the flag. Big marker over your head. You’re getting taken out quick.
• Oddball – Not only the big marker but you also CAN NOT SHOOT….
• King of the Hill (KOTH) – of the three this might be the one that is the better of them. Although, I wouldn’t want to be in the hill. You’re sure to get picked off pretty easily.

So I’ll vote for KOTH, but only because it makes more sense than the other two, not because I really like the choice.

The bulletin mentions Mortal Dictata being out now. As I’ve covered that pretty well this week, I’m not going to rehash that part of the bulletin.

Community Interview: The Fated Fire
This interview is with a person who is a Forger. Forgive me that I’m not ware of this person. I have played on a few of their maps. “The Ark,” “Black Site,” and just this week, “Meta Raid.” You’ll have to check out the full bulletin for the interview. Link is at the bottom of this article.

Finally as always the Screenshot Spotlight. This week’s topic? Explosion
Here are my picks of the ones shown this week, in no particular order:




Next week’s topic is nature. If you want a shot at being in the bulletin, tag your screenshots with “Nature” and “Halo Waypoint.”  You might be lucky enough to be picked.

To read the full bulletin, go HERE.

-Sal

Another week, another Halo bulletin. So what’s on tap for this week and what is upcoming?

Bravo writes this week’s bulletin. He talks a bit about the recent 343 community playdate and the fun that was had.

Matchmaking Playlist Update:
Team DLC:
Starting Monday we’ll have two weeks of Team DLC, which will feature a healthy mix of game types: Slayer, King of the Hill, Extraction, SWAT, Snipers, Ricochet, Regicide, and Oddball variants will be available on the following maps:

• Skyline
• Monolith
• Landfall
• Daybreak
• Harvest
• Vertigo
• Pitfall

HFFL: Personally this is one of the rotational playlists I’ve been looking forward too! I’ll be playing a bit of this for the next two weeks!

Action Sack:
Three more gametypes are added to action sack. One of which I’ve been campaigning for, for many months.

Paintball:

HFFL: Petetheduck’s Paintball gametype FINALLY gets into matchmaking!

The classic Plasma-Pistol-One-Hit-Kill game type is back! We’ve worked with Forger petetheduck to bring this game type to play Halo 4 Matchmaking, and he’s created an incredibly bright and colorful speedball-inspired map to chase down your Plasma Pistol commendations. Jump height is reduced, and each player has one life per round.

Husky Raid:
Husky Raid is a unique linear Capture the Flag experience that provides the perfect amount of chaos for those who like to press into combat over, and over, and over again. Each team spawns with random weapons at their flag platform, opposite the other team. Only a single-lane valley separates them, so there is only one way in, and one way out. If you’ve ever imagined all eight players in the same lane, playing tug-of-war in between bases, then you might have a good idea of how Husky Raid plays. This game type has appeared as a popular custom game type in past titles, and The Fated Fire has made it possible in Halo 4 as well as helped us bring it into Matchmaking.Clang of the Hill:Aptly named for the loud, rich sound of Energy Swords clashing against one another, Clang of the Hill is a 4 vs. 4 King of the Hill game type with Thruster Packs and swords designed by SNIPE 316. Dodge, slice and dice your way to victory.

 We have a winner in the community choice poll for an objective gametype to be added to the Doubles Playlist.

HFFL: I’m happy KOTH won. As I mentioned last week, this one makes the most sense to me as it means ALL players will still be able to shoot and go for the objective. Flag and Oddball would have meant one of the four would not be able to defend themselves properly. Yes, flag carrier has flagnum…still. And yes, Oddball carrier can drop the ball, but again, still… 

Below is the map pool for KotH Doubles.
Haven
Abandon
Simplex
The Ark
Fallout
Pitfall
Skyline

Mortal Dictata

The third and final novel that concludes the New York Times bestselling “Kilo-Five Trilogy” will be available this Tuesday! This novel ties into Halo 4, and will continue to influence the content in all future Halo games. For a peek into the story, see below.

In Halo: Mortal Dictata, the Covenant War is over but hatred, guilt, and devotion endure beyond the grave. The Office of Naval Intelligence faces old grievances rising again to threaten Earth. The angry, bitter colonies, still with scores to settle from the insurrection put on hold for thirty years, now want justice — and so does a man whose life was torn apart by ONI when his daughter was abducted for the SPARTAN-II program. Black ops squad Kilo-Five find their loyalties tested beyond breaking point when the father of their Spartan comrade, still searching for the truth about her disappearance, prepares to glass Earth’s cities to get an answer. How far will Kilo-Five go to stop him? And will he be able to live with the truth when he finds it? The painful answer lies with a man long dead, and a conscience that still survives in the most unlikely, undiscovered place.

Halo Mega Bloks Update
HFFL: Yes, this is in the bulletin and isn’t something I added…LOL
In this section Waypoint mentiones the ONI REAP-X Quad Walker. I already covered this previously HERE.

Community Interview: Stephanie, The Female Master Chief

The following is a direct copy/paste of Bravo’s interview:

Last week, we stumbled upon a blog that showcased an epic Master Chief photo shoot. Naturally, we were rather intrigued, so I reached out to the author to find out more. I caught up with Stephanie a few days later, and we talked about the Master Chief, cosplay, and (wedding) cake.

Hey, Stephanie! Thanks for joining me today. We recently checked out your Master Chief photo session and thought it was pretty rad. Tell us, when did you first get into Halo? 

I’ve always loved videogames, and fell in love with them back in the days when Galaga and Pac-Man were a big deal. I was introduced to Halo in March 2005 by my brother when I went to visit family during my kid’s spring break. I played multiplayer games with my brother, his best friend, and my kids for the entire week…staying up way later than we ever intended. I had a blast, and my Halo love affair began (both figuratively and literally). When I returned home, I immediately set up my first Xbox Live account with the help of my brother’s best friend (who later became my husband) so that I could keep playing multiplayer games with them.

If there’s one thing we understand, it’s certainly the immediate need for more Halo. You mentioned in your blog that Halo 2 and Halo 3 had a lot to do with you getting to know your husband. Tell us more! 

I met my husband Dave during that family visit for spring break March 2005. We played Halo 2 multiplayer all week. I just couldn’t get enough Slayer game time in! When I returned home (9 hours away), I had to call Dave to help me set up Xbox Live so I could keep playing online. That started our “online” friendship. We played almost every night, often staying on the headset just talking for hours….long after the last game was over. By the time Halo 3 came out, the relationship was no longer a friendship, and we were officially dating long distance. We played Halo 3 multiplayer as often as we could since it gave us a chance to talk and have fun together even though we lived so far apart. I got to know a lot of Dave’s friends via Halo 2 and Halo 3. It was a little lopsided, as I’m the only girl I know that plays video games (much less a first person shooter game) so Dave didn’t get to meet any of my friends via Halo!

Do you happen to have any pictures of the Master Chief on your wedding cake? We need to see! 

For sure! Our photographer thought it was pretty cool. 🙂 The Christmas before we got married, my brother jokingly gave me a set of Master Chiefs daring me to put them on our wedding cake. Because Halo had played such a large part of us getting to know each other, the Master Chief (along with Assault Rifles and Battle Rifles) had a prominent place on our wedding cake. It was definitely “us.”

What is your favorite thing about Halo, and what are some of the aspects of the universe that have pulled you in as a fan? 

In Campaign mode, I love the idea of the “Good Guy” or the “Ultimate Soldier.” You know, the one guy that is willing to always do the right thing. So yeah, I have a thing for the Master Chief…but not in the way you’d think. I’d just really like to BE him, to be THAT guy! The relationship between the Master Chief and Cortana has always been intriguing particularly due to the symbiotic relationship they have. They need each other, and it’s hard to imagine one without the other. Bringing the Flood into the mix was brilliant! The continuation of the story throughout the Halo franchise really makes me want the story to never end.

Multiplayer, though, is my favorite. The ability to use Forge to create custom maps and game types created a whole new level of interest and fun. Having an eight-hour game day party with friends created a way to keep us connected all over the US…some that we know personally, and others that we’ve become friends with through playing online!

How often do you sport the Master Chief costume? Have you ever cosplayed at an event? With that fancy, upgraded reflective visor, I imagine it would turn many heads! 

When my hubby surprised me with the costume this past October, I was so excited as I have been wanting one since I fell in love with Halo in 2005. We both decided that a better visor was necessary to keep the coolness factor, and went to a local motorcycle supply store to find a new replacement. With some ingenuity and elbow grease, Dave replaced the visor for me. I made a few other adjustments to the costume as I’m only 5’6″ and the costume was made for someone much, much larger than me.

I wore the costume for Halloween. It was the BEST Halloween EVER!! I stood outside in my driveway perfectly still (I had a friend acting as my “interpreter” since I wasn’t talking) and waited to see people’s reactions…some people thought I was a statue or robot. There were a few near misses when cars would drive by because most of the drivers were shocked to see the Master Chief standing in the driveway with a Plasma Rifle! So many of the kids recognized the Master Chief (and a large number of the dads, as well). I’m still trying to figure out how some of the moms would think I was a Transformer. But the absolute BEST was when a little five-year-old girl saw me, squealed, and screamed, “It’s Halo…it’s the Master Chief! I love Halo! I love the Master Chief!!” And then she asked me for a hug. When I took off my helmet…she was even more excited to see it was a girl inside the costume. Turning around, she told her mom that she wanted to be a Master Chief, too. Best moment of the night! I love that a five-year-old girl is as excited about Halo and the Master Chief as I am! 🙂

 

I just found out from a tweet of Beyond Entertainment via gameinformer.com that the rumored Halo movie is indeed false.

Microsoft admitted as such. While disappointing, I’m glad they decided NOT to leave we fans hanging on this one.

Here’s the full text from the article by Ben Reeves of GameInformer:

This morning, a few rumors started to circulate that Alien director Ridley Scott was on track to produce a feature-length Halo film. According to Microsoft, this is not the case.

The Halo franchise has had a torrid affair with Hollywood, trying to kickstart a film, and coming seemingly close a few times, but never actually succeeding. Production Weekly sparked a whole new set of rumors about a possible Halo film, but according to a Microsoft spokesperson, these are just fan dreams.

“We expect you’ve seen the rumors circulating about the Halo movie,” wrote the spokesperson. ‘We’re trying to get out ahead of this one and let you know that as we’ve previously stated, we have no plans for a Halo motion picture at this time.”

Sigh…I had hopes that with the success of the Forward Unto Dawn mini-series that a movie might just be in the works. Though, I’d rather have a stellar game in the next installment than a movie. So, let’s hope we can count on that, right?

-Sal

Production Weekly reveals films and tv shows going into production weekly. Jim from IGN caught this and asked about Halo.

The answer of what seems to be a MOVIE, no lees done by Ridley Scott himself is exciting. Now, is this part of the Steven Spielberg TV show or an honest to goodness movie?

I have to say, if it’s a movie, that really is some exciting news. TO be produced by Ridley Scott even better. He’s the one who brought us Alien, a CLASSIC Sci-Fi movie (and subsequent franchise).

SOURCE LINK

-Sal

Ghost pictured above right, has been hired by 343! Folks, this is GREAT news for the Halo franchise. I believe he above any other pro-play they’ve hired has made the most impact on Halo. This will bode well for competitive matchmaking for certain.

I was fortunate enough to meet Eric when he came to my LAN party in August of last year.

At that time I handed him two pages of ideas for Halo. Hopefully, he’ll review those and maybe bring them up to the rest of the folks at 343.

A HUGE Congrats to Eric! Well deserved!!!

-Sal

This article was written and published on Halo Waypoint by Josh Holmes, former Creative Director, now Executive Producer with 343.

2014 is here and much is afoot in the Halo universe. This past year has been a time of great transition at 343 as we’ve moved our engine and team from Xbox 360 to Xbox One and begun building the next chapter in the Halo saga. We’re proud of what we accomplished with our first release in Halo 4 and now we’re focused on something much more transformative as we make the leap to the next generation of Xbox. We showed a hint of what we have in store at E3 last year and we’re excited to share more in the not-so-distant future. Please be patient – we can’t wait to show you what we have in store.

Beyond the transition of platform and technology, we’ve made some notable additions and changes to our team.

As some of you may know, we added a new Creative Director to our team in 2013. Tim Longo joined us last May, coming to us by way of LucasArts. Tim carries with him almost two decades of game development experience during which he has worked on titles such as Tomb Raider, Star Wars: Republic Commando and most recently the unreleased FPS, Star Wars: First Assault. Finding Tim was the result of a long search on my part. In many ways I felt like I was searching for a unicorn. I needed someone with a mastery of game narrative and storytelling, a deep understanding of game mechanics, experiential design and aesthetic, with the ability to define a compelling creative vision and inspire a large cross-functional team to achieve it. With Tim, I found that person and over the past seven months, we’ve formed a great partnership working together. His keen sense of vision, collaborative spirit and creative generosity have made him a terrific addition to the team.

In hiring Tim, I have moved from my former role of Creative Director to that of Executive Producer, heading up the internal development team. In my new role I am responsible for overall project leadership and business ownership, for setting the high level project vision and goals and leading my team to achieve them. It’s been an interesting shift in focus and I’ve been grateful to have such a stellar team supporting me.

But what about Kiki, our EP from Halo 4? Our intrepid Wolfkiller is right here, developing exciting new stories, experiences and technologies that will transform the way that you experience Halo. She will have more to share at a later date, but I can promise that what she is working on is really cool.

Finally, our beloved Art Director, Kenneth Scott, has made the decision to move to California and bring his family together in one place. As a result of this move he will be stepping down as AD, though he will continue working with us remotely in his new role as Visual Design Consultant.

Obviously this is a big change for our team and we are going to miss having Kenneth here in the building with us. Ken is a founding member of 343 Industries and working with him on Halo 4 was one of the highlights of my career. He was my creative partner and brother-in-arms for many years, and through his vision we managed to establish a bold new look for the Halo universe. He was also instrumental in building the amazing team of artists that we have here at 343 today.

Kenneth leaves some pretty massive shoes to fill on the Art Director front, but we are lucky to have another artistic giant stepping up to take the reins. Nicolas “Sparth” Bouvier is taking over for Kenneth as Art Director. Nicolas has been with the studio since the beginning as our Lead Concept Artist and he has worked closely with Kenneth over the past five years to define the visual language for 343’s Halo. In fact, Ken and Sparth have worked together for over eight years now in the industry and it has been said that the two share the same brain (except Nic is much more French). Nicolas is a master painter and visionary artist with 17 years of industry experience. He is world-renowned for his concept work and is someone whose work I have followed closely long before I came to 343. (I would pay money to live in Sparth’s dreams!)

Kenneth had this to say about his move:

It was hard to make this decision. This team has been my family for half a decade and I love them dearly. Helping build this studio and team is easily the highlight of my career. It’s heartbreaking. 
BUT! 
I’m excited to hand the big pants to one of my dearest friends, Nicolas ‘Sparth’ Bouvier. Nicolas and I have worked together for the last eight years, and we’ve shared a brain for most of it. He was one of my first hires to 343, and not seeing him day-to-day will feel as weird as losing a limb. I have the utmost confidence in him and I know the future is sound in his mighty fingers. 
AND! 
We just can’t get enough of each other, so I will continue to support 343 and this universe as a Visual Design Consultant from sunny Santa Monica. 
In my underwear. 🙂 
Those Skype meetings will get awkward… 
– Kenneth

In closing, I will leave you with this image from Sparth – an early exploration of a new location that features prominently in a little game project we’re tinkering with….
/Josh

Click the above pic to make HUGE!

HFFL: I’ve been following Sparth for sometime and his work is AMAZING! His concept art is legendary. I’m VERY happy that he’s taken the reigns as the new Art Director for 343. He definitely deserves it, IMO. ANd how about that sneak peak pic? OH MY……

-Sal

Ah here we are in a new year and the first of the Halo bulletin’s for 2014!

First up is the Matchmaking Playlist Update!
Big Team Swat was released on Monday in Standard, Covenant and Forerunner version on the following maps:

• Wreckage
• Shatter
• Longbow
• Ragnarok
• Vortex
• Meltdown
• Settler
• Exile
• Complex

Big Team Swat will be available until Jan 20. At that point, Team DLC will be the new playlist for the rotational playlist.

A new Community choice poll is up and asks you which of the following three gametypes you’d like to have in Doubles:

Personally, I do not play much doubles, but if I did, I’d want King of the Hill. At least both team members are still able to shoot this way. In Flag or Oddball, to get the objective, one of you has to hold the objective which cuts your firepower in HALF!

There’s a blurb about the new Halo comic book mini-series “Escalation” by Dark Horse. I unfortunately wasn’t able to get issue #1 as comic shops were sold out near me. However, I may be able to get a digital copy, and if so will review that and issue #2 on the blog. So I’m not going to post this particular section of the bulletin here as I don’t want to spoil it for any of you who might not have read it yet.

The next big thing is a Community Playdate with 343 featuring Big Team SWAT!

343 be inviting community members at random, so just send an Xbox Live text message to one of the gamertags below on Monday:

• HaloWaypoint
• B is for Bravo
• SamPand
• JayFresh006
• TTL L askan

Next comes an interview with legendary Halo Forge map/mini-game creator, petetheduck. The following will be a direct copy/paste of that interview.


In the first community interview of 2014, I had the pleasure of catching up with legendary Forger petetheduck. Perhaps most known for his video series Forge with Pete, which premiered on Halo Waypoint two years ago, pete has worked on a multitude of projects since the first iteration of Forge. Read on for some insight into what he loves about Forge, and even some info about his new Action Sack game types which are being considered for Halo 4 Matchmaking!

Halo Waypoint (HW): Hey, petetheduck! Thanks for sitting down with me today. For those who haven’t yet seen your videos, tell us a little bit about yourself! 

petetheduck (ptd): Hey, Bravo! These chairs are amazing. Let’s see, I’m petetheduck, and I like Forge. It’s not just that I like to Forge, but I’m also a huge proponent of the tool itself–I think Forge plays a pivotal role in each Halo game; from creating traditional multiplayer maps for enhancing the matchmaking portfolio to using Halo as a platform for atypical custom game experiences likeSpeedrun, Forge is a source of infinite content and can even be an enjoyable activity in and of itself.

I’ve been involved in the online Halo community since 2002, primarily at Halo.Bungie.Org. I started to create Forge-focused videos in 2012 and it has been great to be able to share Forge with Pete with the Halo community through Halo Waypoint. Forge with Pete is a video series I use to share some of my more elaborate Forge creations, with an emphasis on how they were built. That’s an underlying theme to most of the content I create–trying to be informative and helpful. I want people to know how my creations work so if they’re inspired by them, they know how to build something similar themselves.

HW: How did you start Forging? What were some of your first projects? 

ptd: I fiddled around with Forge when Halo 3 launched but I didn’t really get into it until the Foundry DLC was released–that was the moment when Forge went from a map tweaker to a real map creator. I like Halo and I like creating things, so Forge was a natural fit for me. I’ve always been drawn to the more unusual uses for Forge, so I started out creating Infection maps. They were all pretty awful.

My first successful Forge project was the Flaming Ninja Challenge obstacle course in Halo 3. I continued to make obstacle courses throughout Halo 3 and Halo: Reach before transitioning more into custom games, the kind of things that I think are fun for 16 players to jump into in a custom game lobby and play.

HW: Which projects have been some of your biggest or most difficult, and why? 

ptd: I think the most difficult Forge project I’ve completed was Guitar Halo in Halo: Reach. The challenge in building that particular map came from an interesting quirk in the game engine–the game would not spawn two objects simultaneously. I was attempting to use golf balls to imitate instrument-based rhythm gameplay (Guitar Halo–get it?), which is based on very precise timing. But because the game was spawning the golf balls in a random sequence and not simultaneously, I had to create a mechanism to compensate for the spawning system. I went through many design variations before finally finding something that worked. If you’re curious how I did it, check out the episode!

I’ve used Forge to create other elaborate mechanisms–from Battleship to Rock-Paper-Scissors. I’ve always found it fun to explore the limits of what Forge is capable of, brainstorming ways to make those unexpected experiences possible.

HW: We know you’ve whipped up a few Action Sack game types that are being considered for Halo 4 Matchmaking. Tell us about them! 

ptd: I submitted three game types for consideration in the Action Sack playlist. I’m not sure which, if any, will actually make it in, but here’s the rundown on what I put forward:

Paintball: What sets Paintball apart from other instant-kill Slayer experiences like SWAT, aside from the themed map and Loadout, is the elimination-style, round-based gameplay. You’ll only have one life per round, so make each Plasma Pistol shot count as you try to eliminate the other team. If Paintball makes it into Matchmaking, I’ll be interested to see the community’s reaction. There is a lot of potential for other experiences that use one life settings if Paintball is well received. Paintball is already a popular custom game, and I simply provided a colorful speedball-inspired arena to play it in.

Z Fighting: Z Fighting uses the Dominion game type to spice up Shotgun Slayer. The short range of the Shotgun allowed me to experiment with a minimalistic map design–a completely flat battlefield that is dynamically altered as Dominion barricades rise up from fortified bases. The lack of elevation variation makes base turrets and Auto Sentries surprisingly effective, adding an interesting twist to Z Fighting’s fierce close-quarters combat.

Warthog Chase: With elements inspired by popular custom games like Warthog Derby, Warthog Chase is a love letter to our favorite Halo vehicle. Using King of the Hill, a large hill will move from Warthog to Warthog during the game. When you have the hill on your Warthog, you’re trying to avoid the enemy team because if they get inside your hill’s radius, they’ll contest it and prevent you from earning points. The gameplay is all about chasing down the Warthog that has the hill and contesting it, or attempting to knock it completely off of the map.

HW: Any advice to aspiring Forgers out there who would like to see their creations in Matchmaking? 

ptd: Get involved in a Forge community. Feedback is critical to improving as a Forger, but even the best maps need to be seen–and Forge communities are a great place to share your content with others.

HW: I also know you’re quite busy with work these days. Any future Forge projects that you’d like to tackle next in Halo 4? 

ptd: Work! Yes, and the little ducklings. They keep me busy. Action Sack has a lot of potential and I would enjoy focusing on that style of gameplay more in the future. I don’t have any specific plans for custom games at the moment, but with Ricochet–well, the possibilities are endless. Multi-team Ricochet is the most versatile game type there has been in a Halo game and because of it, now is definitely an exciting time to be a Forger. I also seem to have a tradition of releasing a single Rube Goldberg Machine for each Halo game..

Halo 3
Halo: Reach

I think Halo 4 might be next.

HW: Thanks for joining us, and hope to hear from you again soon! If people want to check out some of your videos, where should they go? 

ptd: Thanks for having me! My website, petetheduck.com, is an archive of most of my projects and has links to my different channels. Right now some of my videos posted there are offline, but they’ll be back soon. Quack quack!

—end copy/paste

HFFL: That’s a great interview. I’m lucky enough to have pete on my friendslist. I’ve also been fortunate enough to play all three of those gametypes he’s proposed for matchmaking. I love all of them.

I’m really hoping Paintball makes it in. It would be a GREAT way to rack up the kills with a Plasma Pistol and work on that commendation as well. I’m also hoping for a variant of this that uses the Boltshot, for the same reason. Z Fighting is fun and can get intense! The lead can switch suddenly and there is always action going on. It’s near impossible to camp on that map (which I’m grateful for). Warthog chase is a blast! Running down the current Warthog HIll driver is immensely fun. When you’re lucky enough to be in the Warthog with the Hill, it’s a rush trying to get away from everyone else! 

I for one hope ALL THREE make it into matchmaking!

Lastly we come upon the Screenshot Spotlight and the subject is the best of 2013. There are some great choices here. The following two were my favorites of this particular bunch!

How could you not love this one? I so totally wish this was a SKIN for our armor! Crackling LAVA!

This one is an awesome take on Red vs. Blue (if even in reverse). Not the video series by Rooster Teeth, just the regular matchmaking teams.

Well, that wraps up my abbreviated version of this week’s bulletin. If you’d like to read the full bulletin, go HERE.

-Sal