Not to be forgotten, here are all the known pre-order bonus Emblems you can get at select retailers.
Hmm, is someone a Broncos fan? Heh, anyway, they are cool. Streamlined, great line work. I can’t wait to see all the emblems that become available in Halo 4!
I’ve added the Oceanic Armor/Circuit Skin as well as the back of the Gungnir/Pulse armor, plus the two new Helmet skins, Deadeye and Locus.
Wow, that Locus looks like the hybrid Human/Alien from the movie series.
The Oceanic Armor looks like something out of Bioshock (which isn’t a bad thing-I liked that game).
Gawd, I want them all!
Thanks to Corrine Yu, Principal Engineer Programmer for Halo 4, at 343 Industries for letting me know the names of the talented artist who came up with these skins. They are:Â Albert N, Kory H, Gabo G.
From British retailer “Game”. You can pre-order to get the “Oceanic” Armor skin.
I like the helmet. Wow, these skins are getting a bit out of hand though. We still haven’t seen the Wal*Mart one yet.
Let’s look at the facts.
Spartan IIs:
Superior Training – Taken from early childhood and training for 10 years before being put on the battlefield. Any remaining left as of Halo 4 have more than 40 years of combat experience and have not shown signs of slowing down.
Surgically altered bone mass – Not only are their bones longer making them taller, they are also denser making them much harder to break.
Mental alteration – Let’s not forget they can plug things into their brain (ala Cortana)
Mjolnir suit is stronger (we can run and gun H3-games after you need health packs to pick up)
Spartan IV’s
Spartan IV’s come from the remaining Spartan IIIs, some ODSTs, and some marines. TO this end there is a variance in initial training.
Even when all SIV candidates take on Spartan Training, there will still be that variance for them to fall back on.
SIIIs who have become SIVs were mentally altered and some not for the good.
None of the SIVs have had surgically altered bones, making them normal humans.
Mjolnir suit is not as strong as SIIs. It can’t be. Due to the Surgical enhancements to SIIs the suits can whip their bodies around with a force that would injure or kill those not enhanced. SIV armor has to rely on shields more than SIIs. Healthpacks needed for SIVs have not yet been confirmed that I know of. If so then it points to them being weaker yet again.
Clearly SIVs are not the same as SIIs and are weaker.
The program run by Dr. Catherine Halsey was extremely expensive and secretive. The Spartan II program experimented on the recruits when they were kids, of which roughly half survived the full process to mature SIIs.
SIVs are already grown men and women. They are (as we are led to believe) beyond the age of being surgically enhanced to match the size and strength of SIIs.
Thankfully, we should be at the end of Spartans being weaker with each iteration. Now that they are being formed out of ODST and Marine ranks, really we have nowhere else to go but UP from this point.
With the next iteration of Spartans we may see a similar project as Halsey’s with kids being used again, or at least starting with early teens.
IMO, Master Chief will always be the strongest. If not in pure physical strength, in mental strength, experience, and of course his all important LUCK.
-HFFL
The following is from a discussion on Halowaypoint.com that I replied to.
SitriStahl-“Well, that is until we get the new Hayabusa”
My response:
I have it on VERY good authority that there will NOT be Hayabusa armor in Halo 4. Besides that being a deal between Bungie and another game developer, IIRC, 343 has already stated as such that they are not for Hayabusa. I can understand that too as it harkens back to the previous developer.
Halo 4 is 343’s baby. They are making it their own. (as evidenced by the newly released armor perms) I’m hoping for something along the lines of Iron Man.
As far as being able to pick and choose between different parts of armor, I can see that. Helmet
Shoulders
Bicep
Forearm
Chest
Thighs
Knee/Lower legs
Boots
That’s a LOT to be able to customize. Though, with regards to those exclusive skins, you may not be able to use them with altered armor perms. I see those as only being able to use with specific armor sets rather than mish-mashes of armor.
For those keeping tabs on these (like me), here are all the known armor skins. The exception is Wal*Mart’s “Circuit” skin as a pic of it has not yet been released.
As more armor skin graphics become available, I’ll of course bring them to you.
So I wonder…If Dick’s Sporting Goods gets an exclusive Halo 4 skin, will it be called the “Fore” Skin? (You know as in Golf, not what you were thinking, LOL)
-HFFL
Awesome!
Um, if any of my U.K. readers can hook me up with one of these, contact me: [email protected].
Wow, 343 is just pushing these skins. I’m lovin’ them. I just hope I can get them all. You’ve already seen the Raptor skin. Now we see that the armor is called “Venator.” As well the Gungnir armor returns but is really changed. A skin called “Pulse” is available for this one via the Microsoft store.
Note also the cool “Locus” Helmet. Pulse looks like a pulse, but more so a TARGET.
The two emblems are cool. I prefer the assassin one more of these two. Oh and the watermark is “Mighty Ape.” It’s a store in New Zealand from what I understand. So, I expect those all to be available at a U.S. store (among other national stores).
Earlier today I reported on the Forest and Raptor Armor skins as well as the Artic Camo skin for the BR. Here are yet more skins and other customization options to be had:
This is the “WEB” skin shown on the new CIO armor. Note it’s CLOSE resemblance to the Spiderman costume. I like it, however, I’m certain we’ll see a TON of SPiderman clones on the battlefield when Halo 4 comes out…
Next up are two different emblems that can be had by pre-ordering through Amazon:
Finally (as of now, unless I find more) here is a helmet skin. It’s obvious this is concept. I’m not sure if it’s even real so take this one with a grain of salt…
Again, with all of these pre-order options, I really hope they will all be available in the Limited Edition. If not, then at some point shortly thereafter launch (say no more than a month-a good Christmas present to ones self) via DLC on XBOX Live.
Check out some of the skins that will be available by pre-order for Halo 4.
First up from Gamestop/EB Games is the custom “Forest” skin. This is shown on the new styled “HAZOP” armor, though it’s not yet known if the skin will be available for all armors or just this specific set of armor:
Here’s a close-up:
As well, by pre-ordering through GS/EB you also will get the Artic weapon skin. This is shown on the Halo 4 BR. Again, not yet known if this will be available for all weapons, or just the BR.
Next we have Best Buy’s pre-order special the RAPTOR armor skin. Okay first, note that this looks MUCH like Forerunner armor. YEA!!! What is shown is Best Buy’s colors, however those colors are changeable. Looks like this one is limited to this armor.
I LOVE the new skins. However, I am a bit miffed that in order to get them all, I’d have to pre-order extra copies from different stores so I can have the skins. I wonder if those skins will become available at a later date? This could become maddening. What if Wal*Mart, Target and Toys R Us want their own skins…
Well, in my case, I won’t mind getting two copies. I’ll give one to my brother-in-law. But if there is more…well there may just be a contest on this site for a copy of Halo 4 (sans skin codes…)
Okay, so how do YOU feel about the skins?
Oh and I almost forgot, thanks to Greenskull from Readyuplive.com. Here’s his video on the skins:
I had the honor of being selected to game with Jessica Shea, none other than 343’s Blog manager “BS Angel” last night during 343’s gaming night. I got to play three games with her and had a blast.
First up was a game of Snipers on Ridgeline (for which BS Angel promises to ban all of those who voted for Snipers). I’m not a great sniper, though I managed to go 13/5. She was on my team (and we still managed to win, LOL) Luv ya Jessica…
Next up was a game of Heavies on the repurposed Ridgeline variant “Superstition.” Okay, I’m NOT a fan of heavies in Reach, and though we lost, I still have a fun time.
For the third/final game of the night with BS Angel, we played TU BTB Slayer on Hemmorrhage. I posted a respectable 10/4 K/D w/10 assists.
I wasn’t really trying to play at the top of my game. I was just having fun gaming with BS Angel and chatting her up about Halo 4 stuff. She didn’t reveal anything new (couldn’t). But did say when asked about Forge that we would be VERY happy.
I asked her what aspect of Halo 4 was she looking forward to the most and she quickly said campaign. When probed about info on Spartan Ops and it’s possible reveal of info at E3 this year, she said “mayyybeee.”
During the games I blurted out a “That’s what she said,” and realized I might have made a major faux pa. Instead she laughed. I apologized but she said she’d be more mad if I didn’t say it more. So I did. LOL. She was a great sport and a real nice person to game with. Very cheerful. She genuinely liked gaming with we fans.
Jessica, if you’re reading this, thanks again. And follow me on Twitter, puh-leeeeesss.
-HFFL
I saw these first hand at Toy Fair and they were amazing. Here are three new pics showing the sets.
These small sets will retail for around $9 U.S. each.
The small boxed sets will retail for around $13 U.S. each.
The large sets will retail for $17 U.S. each.
Some really good stuff here. I can’t wait until these show up at retail. Though, there are a lot more sets on the way besides these. Check out my coverage from New York Toy Fair this year to see more. NYTF Halo McFarlane Micro Ops!
These realistic sets are fantastic for those who want to build a diorama but don’t have the room for the larger McFarlane line. As well, you’ll be able to get sets that will never be done in the larger line.
Personally, I love to build scaled perspective dioramas. That is to say larger things in front smaller things in back. So for instance, I might have a action figure sized ghost in front and one of the micro ops ones in the background to give the illusion of distance, yet keeping the diorama relatively small.
I managed to get my hands on a great pic of the newly released Halo 4 Animated Box Art.
So what do I do with it? Why share it with you, my great readers!
Click and save:
In this 10 minute video the folks from Bungie talk about their maps. This vid was made back when, so it’s from that perspective as if they are new.
Maps looked at are Ghost Town, Avalanche, and Blackout (the remade Lockout).
Personally I loved all three maps for different reasons. Ghost Town was asymetrical and had a really lived in feel. You really needed to have tactics down to own on this map.
Avalanche was a vehicle lovers dream. As a Hog driver and Tank operator, I LOVED playing on this map. There was a weekend in June of 2009 that I recall fondly. I got 420 wheelmen that weekend and two of those games came back to back on Avalanche. In those two games I helped my gunners get Perfections. One with more than 45 kills. the other with around 20. Â Great times.
Anyway, without further ado, here’s the vid, enjoy:
This is one of the most interactive Avatar items out there. Very cool.
Below text from HaloWaypoint:
The United Nations Space Command uses Drop Pods for rapid deployment, and now your Avatar can, too! So whether you enjoy jumping out of a spaceship in this Single-Occupant Exoatmospheric Insertion Vehicle, or you are simply looking for a new way to keep your Avatar entertained, you should check out the newest addition to the Halo Avatar Collection, the Drop Pod prop—available on May 15th, 2012 on Xbox LIVE.
Buy your ODST DROP POD HERE! It will set you back 320 Microsoft points which equated to $4 U.S.