Monthly Archives: February 2013

I have need of “actors” and writers for an ongoing Halo Machinima project.

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If you’ve ever wanted an opportunity to be in a Halo machinima project, here’s your chance.

I can’t give out the complete details yet. However, I’ll state the following:

I need up to 15 people for an ongoing Machinima project I’m creating.
If interested please read the following guidelines I require of each “actor.” As well, I will need people to help write and proofread with me.

• Must be mature. I do not want people goofing off during filming. While the scripts may call for that, I don’t want people just doing their own thing.
• This will require a serious time commitment. At least 2-3 hours every Saturday mid day (Eastern US time). Possibly more if scheduling permits.
• You must have certain armor unlocked as it applies to characters in the series.
• Must be able to take direction and criticism well. No drama please. While I’ll take suggestions, please understand this is my production.
• Your participation is voluntary and unpaid.
• You will be under a non-disclosure agreement (details of which will be stated if selected)
• While American accents are preferred, I will definitely consider other countries/accents if they fit the roles.

Writers will likely need to devote more time to the series as we’ll be writing in advance, editing, proofreading, etc. I don’t have an alotted time nailed down on that as it’s likely to evolve over time. It will be more than 2-3 hours a week though.

I may have more requirements, but for now, the above cover most of what I’m looking for. I have parts for male and female alike. No “kid” voices please. Again, this is a mature project. Character voices require an adult voice.

Should this series succeed, you may have an opportunity for a long term voice-over part.

Interested parties need to e-mail me at [email protected]. Information discussed in those e-mails are to remain private between myself and the interested persons. No reposting any of the e-mail or information there-in. If found, you will be immediately disqualified from consideration.

As I said, this is a serious project that will require people who are willing to put the time in. Big picture: If this succeeds we may be rewarded somehow for it. What reward remains to be seen.

[UPDATE] Whoops, forgot to mention, I’ll need folks who can render video from Halo 4… If you have a capture card and can render video from Halo 4 I NEED you!

-Sal

Custom Halo Grifball set (LEGO)

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While I don’t like to promote LEGO Halo as they do not have the license, I would like to have a Halo Grifball set. Here’s hoping Mega Bloks answers this with an official Grifball set!

Custom LEGO grifball arena

 

I keep saying we need a Grifball Arena set. Here’s proof there is demand for it. It irks me to no end that this custom was done with LEGO instead of Mega Bloks.
This was made for a contest on Flickr. I know Mega Bloks can do MUCH better though.
It would be SO easy to have a Mega Bloks set created.
• Flat set with small walls, capture plates
• 9 minifigs (4 red, 4 blue, 1 orange-the Grifballl carrier)
• 8 Grav Hammers and 8 Swords
• 1 Grifball
Price could be about $35-40
Design the set so it could be reconfigured into another arena design or two. Simple really.
This would be another great way to get Gravity Hammers back into the line too!
-Sal

Awesome custom UNSC Infinity made of Mega Bloks

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Goodwill Hunter (whom I’ve interview on the blog previously) has created yet another fantastic custom Mega Bloks set. This time it’s the UNSC Infinity. And it’s a BEAUT!

In his own words here is GWH’s description of the custom build along with his pics.

I used the last 3 weeks and bloks from a variety of sets, including the Forward Unto Dawn, to put together a custom build of the UNSC Infinity from Halo 4. It was a challenging but satisfying build, and a lot of fun to work on. It comes in at just under 3 feet including the antennae. I like how it turned out, but would enjoy hearing what others think.

unscinfinity01

unscinfinity02In terms of size, while the actual body of the Infinity build is longer than the FUD, the extra-long gun/antenna at the front of the FUD gives it the edge in overall length. unscinfinity03

unscinfinity04I used the tall wall pieces from the High Ground set to build the bottom center of the ship, which is why it is much more bare of detail compared to the rest of the ship. I used decals to make up for that, including the 4 white/blue rectangles on each side that are supposed to represent the hangar bays. unscinfinity06

unscinfinity07

unscinfinity08unscinfinity09The “UNSC INFINITY” signage was just printed on a laser printer and attached with double-sided tape. I was surprised at how well it blends with the plastic. unscinfinity10unscinfinity13

Regarding proportion, the two angled surfaces at the bottom front of the ship are a bit taller than I would have liked, but couldn’t find a way around that with the pieces I used for those parts….had to make a number of compromises in this build given the bloks I had available. spartanloungeAnd finally, the interior…just “raise the roof” and the “Spartan Lounge” is open all night!

I just hope that Cyan Spartan is paying attention as he reaches for his beer – one false move on Cortana and I’m sure the Chief will be willing to finish the fight!

/End GWH’s text.

I have to say this custom is beyond coolness. How and Why MEGA hasn’t hired him on, I don’t know. (Unless he really is a MEGA employee in disguise… Let the conspiracy begin, LOL.

Seriously, this is the best (and only) custom UNSC Infinity I’ve seen.  While slightly out of proportion, as he stated, for the bloks he had, it turned out GREAT! The only thing I’d like to see changed are the grates on the top front of the ship. If those would become solid tiles instead, that would just shoot it even further over the top. But that’s minor really. As a custom goes, you’d be hard pressed to beat his.

Great job!

-Sal

Preview of McFarlane Halo Avatar minifigs series 2

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Text taken from McFarlane:

The second series of Halo Avatars are invading stores this month! Based on the stylized representations of the Halo characters that are available on the Xbox 360 console, these little guys from the Halo universe are ready to help save the day!

From Halo-themed t-shirts, to Spartan helmets, to full suits of character armor, gamers can make their avatars look like true Halo fans, or even characters from the Halo universe. To represent the customization options available to online avatars, McFarlane Toys’ avatar figures feature interchangeable heads, torsos, and legs. Collectors can mix and match pieces to create their own custom avatar figure, much like they can with their online avatar.

HALO AVATARS SERIES 2

havatars2_Product shot cropped

• Blue EVA Helmet/Legendary Tee

McF Halo avatar s2_Eva

• Emile

McF Halo avatar s2_Emile

• Anniversary Helmet/Tee

McF Halo avatar s2_Anniversary

• Blue JFO Helmet/Black Noble Team Tee

McF Halo avatar s2_JFO

• Brute Costume

McF Halo avatar s2_Brute

• Banshee

McF Halo avatar s2_Banshee

• Red Spartan Mark VI

McF Halo avatar s2_Mark VI

• Metallic Gold ODST

McF Halo avatar s2_Gold ODST

 

In addition to characters and apparel, Halo Avatars series 2 also includes a “prop” items, the ultra-rare Avatar Banshee. Don’t think it will be that easy to find your favorite avatar, because each figure comes disassembled and randomly packaged in a small “blind” foil bag.

The hunt for Halo Avatars Series 2 figures this February at Gamestop, Target, Toys R Us, Wal-Mart – Canada, Blockbuster – Mexico, Toys R Us – Canada, Fred Meyer, Kroger, HEB, F.Y.E, local comic book stores, and other retailers nationwide.

End Copy Paste

Wow, I’m looking forward to these. They are quite affordable at about $3 each. Now trying to get them all will be the issue. The vehicle ones are rare and the gold minifigs are highly desired. I’m surprised AND very happy that McFarlane is making Emile. Here’s hoping they also make the rest of Noble Squad including the default Noble 6.

Source Link: http://spawn.com/news/news2.aspx?id=13910

-Sal

Special Halo Reach Easter Egg (In Real Life)

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Tweeted by Halo.Bungie.org, this cool “Easter Egg” isn’t in a Halo game. It’s in REAL LIFE! Article on Kotaku.com by Jason Schreier

The people at Bungie are famous for putting obscure Easter Eggs into their games. Halo‘s creators have packed the massive sci-fi shooter franchise with all sorts of references and secrets, and fans love finding them.

But sometimes, Halo‘s little secrets are so obscure, nobody ever sees them.

A tipster—who asked that we not use his name—pointed us to an Easter Egg in the special edition of Halo: Reach that we believe nobody has discovered yet. While it’s possible that someone somewhere has stumbled upon it, of course, we couldn’t find anyone talking about it on the web anywhere.

Halo spoilers follow.

The limited edition of Halo: Reach, released in 2010, came with an ID card for scientist Catherine Halsey, an important character in the world of Halo and the creator of the AI bot Cortana. While some people noticed that something was up with the image on the card, nobody noticed one strange secret: if you take a blacklight to it, you can see a strange photo that’s sort of half-Halsey, half-Cortana that looks like a blue, Cortana-ish version of Halsey.

Here’s the card:

medium

Now take a black light to it and…

medium-1

 

medium-2

Source link: http://kotaku.com/5987211/a-halo-easter-egg-that-took-years-to-discover

End Copy Paste of article.

Okay, so here’s you’r homework folks, find this card and take a pic of it with you. If you’ve got a blacklight, then let’s see that too. I’ve got to find mine. This is VERY cool news, even if it’s from a now “old” Halo game.

-Sal

The making of Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn CG pre-visualization.

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The following article was sent to me by the writer himself: (As per requested, I’m removing the bulk of the article and replacing it with a synopsis of the article. To read the whole article, please go to the source link.)

The making of Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn
By Ian Failes (Synopsis/Paraphrased)

Microsoft’s experimental Halo live-action miniseries Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn has received over 50 million views since airing online last year. The five ‘webisodes’, produced by 343 Industries and directed by Stewart Hendler, were shown on MachinimaPrime’s YouTube channel and are now available on DVD/Blu-ray.

Sniper fire

In one sequence from the series, Master Chief Petty Officer John-117 assists the United Nations Space Command in fending off a sniper attack. The attack was filmed at the Simon Fraser University Library, a location, like others in Forward Unto Dawn, that Arc measured and photographed extensively.

Shootout_previs

In some locations, such as the forest seen in the later episodes, photogrammetry proved difficult with the complicated tree surrounds.

Production filmed the sniper attach based on detailed storyboards and previs.

“The rule of thumb was that the good guy’s weapons were treated as if they were typical gun powder weapons, the bad guys were more sci-fi looking.”

Shootout_final

A military advisor on set also proved extremely helpful. He referred to Master Chief as a ‘weapons platform’ and suggested that Chief wouldn’t fire indiscriminately. …those subtleties really make a difference.”

Not so welcoming wagon

Arc’s environment work included shots of a space elevator, and its destruction by Covenant vessels in one of the eps. Interior shots for the elevator were made of greenscreen hallway plates and CG geometry, with exteriors rendered as matte paintings and set extensions. …when the elevator actually fell apart we turned the piece off in animation and effects took over to trigger the crumbling.

elevator

Delete the Elite

One of the creatures brought to life by Arc for Dawn are Elites, Covenant warrior aliens.

elite

Hunting the Hunter

Even more imposing creatures were the fierce Hunters in a fight against Master Chief. On set, an 11 foot pole stood in for the Hunter to provide camera and actor eyelines.

hunter

Rendering Master Chief

In only a few shots, Arc was required to create a CG Master Chief. A live action practical suit built by Legacy Effects was used for most shots.

…capturing the majority of that material in camera goes towards the believability of the digital work…

chief

End Copy/Paste.

Wow, that was a cool article. I love to see how things are made. Thanks again to the writer of the article for the link, Ian Failes.

-Sal

Halo 4 Fileshare is now active on HaloWaypoint! (I’m talking internet folks, not XBOX!!!)

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I was made aware that you can now access your screenshots and download them via HaloWaypoint on the net. SWEET! That was one thing sorely lacking at launch. I’m SO glad 343 has caught up on this.

To find your files, log into HaloWaypoint. From there you will see a menu bar across the top of the page. (If not, go to the main HaloWaypoint.com page. Once there, go to the “Career” tab on the far right (see pic). (Click pics to make bigger)

Career tab on Waypoint

 

Next click on the “File Share” tab (see next pic):

Fileshare tab on Waypoint

 

From there if you have uploaded any files to your fileshare you will be able to access them. (I had some but deleted them before posting this article. Might I also suggest that when viewing them to use the “List” option (second icon to the right of “View”). (See last pic)

Fileshare screen

 

This will allow you to directly download the image from the list option. If you view them as thumbnails, you’ll be directed to a new page to download a specific pic you have clicked on. Then you’d have to go back a step to get back to the thumbnails. Having it in list mode makes it faster to download your images.

Have fun and HAPPY SCREENSHOTTING!

-Sal
P.S. (Now if we could only have this for Campaign and/or Spartan Ops…sigh, SO much in both I want to take screenshots of.)

Got all the Majestic map pack achievements?

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I did. Not too hard either. TBH, I did need a little help with the Airsassination one though and the Pulse grenade one. Just couldn’t get that double kill until a friend dropped in my party to help out.

So I was able to get them all today:

Halo 4 cheevos

 

Thanks to my buds RM Getaway, RM Fumbles, DayandKnightly, and RM BlueThunder for gaming with me on the new maps. I had a great time.

-Sal

Majestic Map pack is out and…

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And it’s AWESOME!

I knew I was going to like Landfall. Having seen it “in person” now though, it’s even BETTER than what I had hoped for. There’s a Spade in the garage. Why/How I didnt’ notice that before? I did find a Forerunner glyph on this one. (In the garage above the Spade)

Skyline looks good. It’s really small though. I mean REALLY small. Oh do I wish there was a way to get outside of the map on this one…or is there? LOL

Monolith is better than I expected. I’m losing interest in Forerunner maps. However, this one has some nice graphic elements to it, namely the center structure. As well the planet in the distance as well as the space around is a fantastic view.

Do I recommend buying this map pack? Oh hells yeah!
-Sal

Master Chief/Iron Man mashup

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Okay, I HAD to post this one. I’m a HUGE Iron Man fan. SO in the games, I try to make my Mjolnir armor look as much like Iron Man as I can.  Here’s my current version followed by two pieces of fan art from the same person who made the Chief/Shepard art I just posted previously.

fullbody

 

v2_ironchief_1-1 11x17_a_ironchief_1a1

 

I really wish 343 would look to other franchises for custom armor like these. Yeah, it’s not in the Halo tradition, but WOW it would be great for fans like me.

-Sal

Master Chief/Commander Shepard mash-up (extreme coolness)

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I usually only post Halo here. However, Mass Effect is another gaming franchise that I love. Hey, it’s sci-fi too and plays great. Anyway, I got this pic from a friend’s Facebook page (Drax). It’s not his art (too bad) as I’d like to credit him for it.

It’s an awesome mash-up that I had to post it.

307391_505348419503360_810126568_n

Were it so easy! I’d LOVE to see Chief’s armor like this in the game. I don’t know if I’d ever change it… Can you imagine if he had powers like Shepard does? He’d be freakin’ unstoppable!

-Sal