Halo 4
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Halo 4's 'Majestic' map pack arrives Feb. 25
Halo 4 is laying down the red carpet to provide its Majestic DLC with a royal entrance when it arrives next week on February 25. Like Crimson before it, Majestic brings three new maps to 343 Industries' shooter, each one a small-scale affair. There's the metropolitan wreckage of Landfall, the arena-like Monolith, and the rooftop mayhem of Skyline.Majestic comes with two new playlists too, one a free-for-all for eight players and the other a 4v4 team-based line-up. Also, the new free-for-all Infinity Rumble game type is a timed-exclusive for owners of the DLC. Infinity Rumble is all about earning and using personal ordinance, this doled out for killing stylishly and special medals.The DLC is priced at 800 MSP, and is free to those with the War Games pass. The third map pack DLC, Castle, is coming sometime in April. Given the accuracy so far of this leaked ad from last year, our gut is telling us it's coming April 1. But our gut is also very hungry.%Gallery-179199%
Librarian, meet Dr. Halsey in Halo 4 Spartan Ops ep. 9
If you've been entrenched in the story of Halo 4's Spartan Ops mode, prepare yourself for this latest episode. Dr. Halsey meets the Didact's wife, the Librarian, and learns her role in humanity's fate is bigger than she imagined.
Halo 4 Spartan Ops ep. 9 trailer is a librarian rodeo
You don't often hear the words 'librarian' and 'rodeo' close to each other, but this trailer for the ninth episode of Halo 4's Spartan Ops, out February 11, pulls it off, leaving us with the pleasing image of riders shushing each other as they desperately try to stay saddled. %Gallery-178226%
Hit List Q&A: Frank O'Connor, 343 franchise development director
In the "Hit List" from the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences, the video game industry's top talents describe their current gaming addictions, their most anticipated releases and more. This week: 343's Franchise Development Director Frank O'Connor. Frank O'Connor has worked in and around the gaming industry for about twenty years, starting in the gaming press in the UK, where he edited and wrote for several magazines before making the move to the States. After several years working on games publications here, he took an opportunity to work at Bungie studios as a community manager, working on consumer relations, marketing efforts and game fiction.When Bungie spun out of Microsoft during Halo Reach, he decided to stay with the Halo franchise and has been there since the inception of 343 Industries. He's lived through every single console and computer game transition, and he is just as excited about the impending one as he was when Pong gave way to the Atari 2600.At Frank's forthcoming 2013 D.I.C.E. Summit session with Microsoft Game Studios/343 Industries' Executive Producer Kiki Wolfkill, Frank will co-present on "Changing the Universe - Three for Three." This session will explore the trials, tribulations, and opportunities in building and rebuilding a cultural phenomenon, expanding a beloved universe into live action and transmedia storytelling, all while creating a AAA-game studio from scratch.
Conan knocks himself out in Halo 4
This latest edition of Clueless Gamer, in which Conan O'Brien says he "kinda hates games," is slow to get going as the host struggles with the plot. But it's worth the watch just to see him react to Cortana, and in particular the characters voiced by himself and Andy Richter.
Halo 4 Spartan Ops ep. 8 trailer exposes the dangerous life of scientists
If video games have taught us anything, it's that the life of a scientist is always in jeopardy. Their labs are invaded, their projects go awry and, as illustrated in the latest Spartan Ops trailer, aliens try to murder them. It's no wonder STEM education is so important – our scientists keep dying.%Gallery-177675%
Dr. Halsey lays the smack down in this Halo 4 Spartan Ops episode 7 trailer
If Halo 4's Spartan Ops has proved anything, it's that Dr. Halsey is not to be trifled with – and as the trailer for episode 7 above proves, she's not above smacking a fool.
Halo 4's Spartan Ops episodes due Jan. 21 and 28, Feb. 4
343 Industries outlined the first three weeks and episodes of Spartan Ops' return to Halo 4, starting as scheduled on January 21 with Episode 6. The next two episodes of the co-op campaign are coming on January 28 and February 4. After that, two more as-yet-undated episodes will conclude the first season, the likely word of pertinence being 'first.'343 Industries is also releasing matchmaking updates alongside the Spartan Ops episodes. Joining episode 6 on January 21 is a new 'Forge Test' playlist which rotates around some of the smaller Forge maps like Relay. Pioneer and Pathfinder specializations are also being unlocked then. Accompanying the following episode on January 28 is a Grifball playlist, along with Engineer and Stalker specialization unlocks. February 4 brings the Team Doubles playlist, with maps limited to two teams of two, as well as Rogue and Tracker specializations.
This Halo 4 trick jumping video is everywhere at once
Most think of Halo 4 purely as a shooter, but this "trick jumping" video might turn your world upside down. The video comes from Jumprs.org forums user ReiKo, who recently recorded a number of baffling ways to traverse the game's environments and land on previously-unreachable spots."I just wanted to create a video that showcased some cool jumps in a video that I hope everyone can at least enjoy as 'something to watch,'" the video's creator wrote. "If you enjoy it, I will be very humbled." We're pretty sure some of the jumps here are what we'd call humbling.
Microsoft working on a fix for Halo 4 SmartGlass issues, arriving in 'the coming weeks'
Microsoft's SmartGlass and Microsoft's Halo 4 apparently aren't quite getting along on Windows Phone 8 devices. Using SmartGlass, Halo 4 players can normally access their stats and other info about their android supersoldier using the long-established Waypoint service -- except for Windows Phone 8 users, apparently. A forum thread dating back to Halo 4's November launch highlights the issue -- as Xbox.com forum user "Scion Eon" puts it: "Whenever I try to log into SmartGlass on my phone while playing Halo 4, I am immediately greeted with a message that says 'Your device is missing certain required features.'" As it turns out, Mr. Eon isn't the only one experiencing said connectivity issues -- specific to Windows Phone 8 devices -- and Microsoft's aware of the situation. "We are aware that there is an issue with the Xbox SmartGlass experience for 'Halo Waypoint' on Windows Phone 8 devices, which may prevent users from accessing Halo 4 player stats," a Microsoft rep told us this afternoon. Thankfully, Redmond's also taking care of a solution. "We are actively working on a fix and expect to have a solution within the coming weeks. We appreciate your patience as this gets resolved and apologize for any inconvenience this causes," the statement reads. Of course, should you want to access Halo 4's Waypoint functionality on SmartGlass before that fix, you can always use Microsoft's competitor's devices. But then who'd do that? [Thanks Colin!]
Joystiq Top 10 of 2012: Halo 4
Halo 4 wasn't supposed to happen. Halo 3 was meant to conclude the story of John 117, the man we all know as Master Chief, and Halo: Reach put a bow on the franchise, leaving us to sit back and wait for whatever grand universe Bungie would reveal next.But that's not how things shook out. Instead, Bungie left Microsoft entirely, and Halo was left in the care of 343 Industries, a studio created exclusively to shepherd the franchise going forward. Who would have guessed that the untested team would create not only one of the best games of 2012, but one of the best games in the entire Halo series?
Yes, that 'Halo 4' on the App Store is obviously fake
If you're an app developer that's ever had trouble getting your handiwork approved for release on the App Store, we hope you have your blood pressure medication handy. If you're not, you're in for a good laugh. It seems that Apple let not one, but two apps claiming to be Microsoft's blockbuster first-person -- and Xbox 360-exclusive -- shooter Halo 4 slip through its stringent approval process. Apps that not only call themselves "Halo 4" and have official-looking icons, but ape the game's description in their metadata and even use screenshots of the console game. One of the counterfeits is a simple chess game and the other is a racing title, and both sell for the reasonable amount of US$4.99. [Note: Between writing this up and the time it was published, both apps appear to have been pulled.] Perhaps just as mind-boggling as their approval is the fact that each has dozens of glowing, five-star reviews. So, this tale serves as a one-two punch of commentary on not just the obviously porous approval process, but an easily exploited review system as well. Not that you'd want to, but we can only imagine that your window to purchase either mobile version of Master Chief's latest adventure (or not) is rapidly shrinking. Now, if you'll excuse us, we'll be getting "Grand Theft Auto" ready to submit for approval. [Via Gizmodo]
PSA: Halo 4 Crimson Map Pack is ready for deployment [Updates]
At ease, solider, because the Crimson Map Pack for Halo 4 is now available on Xbox Live Marketplace. The War Games Map Pass (2000 MSP) grants automatic access to it and two other upcoming map packs, otherwise you have to stump up 800 space marine bucks. Those with the Map Pass can access the pack through the Halo 4 in-game store, and it's expected to come there today.The Crimson pack includes Wreckage, Covenant, and Shatter maps, along with a playlist featuring the trio exclusively. Today also sees Extraction come to Halo 4, a new multiplayer mode which is all about defending and attacking beacons planted by players on the map.Update: Via two tweets, developer 343 Industries apologized for Map Pass and Limited Edition holders being unable as yet to download the map pack. The tweets read: "We are aware of the issue in which Map Pass and LE owners are not being recognized to download the Crimson Map Pack at no additional cost. We are working on the situation now and will provide an update as soon as we have one. We apologize for the inconvenience."Update 2: Microsoft's Xbox 360 Service Status page acknowledges the problem facing Season Pass holders, writing, "Season pass holders are you unable to access your Crimson Map Pack download on Halo 4? We're working hard to get you into action in the new lands! Thanks for being patient. We'll post another update in 30 minutes." That was at 7:30 a.m. PT.[Thanks, Eric]
Halo 4 and Hitman: Absolution on sale on Amazon today
Halo 4 is on sale for $39.99 on Amazon today, and comes with $10 in Amazon Instant Video credit. What was that you said? You have more money to spend? Well you're in luck, because a PC download of Hitman: Absolution is on sale for $29.99 on Amazon as well, with Xbox 360 and PS3 versions at $39.99.Halo 4's Crimson Map Pack arrives December 10. For those without a calendar, that's tomorrow, which makes today's sale rather convenient. %Gallery-172273%
Halo 4's Spartan Ops returns Jan. 21
Halo 4's episodic co-op campaign Spartan Ops returns January 21. The series goes on hiatus next week to make way for Mountain Dew and Doritos presents Halo 4 Infinity Challenge. January will bring the final five episodes of the season. Place your bets now if there'll be a second season. Spoiler: There will.
NPD: Black Ops 2 sold 7.5 million in US during November
Zooming in on yesterday's NPD data for November, it turns out Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 sold 7.5 million copies in the United States. The retail tracking service also told Gamespot that second-place entry Halo 4 sold 3.2 million units, while runner-up Assassin's Creed 3 moved 2.9 million copies.NPD's data tracked Black Ops 2 sales from launch on November 13 until November 24. The game would go on, according to Activision, to reach sales of $1 billion four days later.
Halo franchise up to 50M sold worldwide, next entry in the works
In the last month or so the Halo franchise shot past the 50 million mark for games sold worldwide, the figure being 46 million going into the launch of Halo 4 by 343 Industries. Microsoft revealed the new milestone to us via a recent press release.The new figure would suggest sales of around 4 million for Master Chief's latest adventure, but it's those pesky other Halo games that are complicating the issue. We do know the Xbox 360 shooter made $220 million on its first day at retail – not bad when you consider the multi-platform Black Ops 2 did $500 million in the same time, with more expensive special editions.343's Development Director, Frank O'Connor, revealed this week that the next major Halo game was already in the works before Halo 4 launched. Speaking to CVG, O'Connor said, "I can't say more than that, but work on the game started actually before we launched Halo 4 and continues apace as we cycle staff through the team's vacation breaks. We're excited about the next game."
Halo 4 Spartan Ops goes on hiatus next week, 'Infinity Challenge' begins
Halo 4's episodic co-op campaign Spartan Ops will go on hiatus next week, concluding in January with the final five episodes of season one. Microsoft is also teaming up with Virgin gaming on the "Halo 4 Infinity Challenge," which has a V8-powered 2013 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor (pictured), along with an appearance in a future Halo game, as its grand prize.Those interested in participating in the Mountain Dew and Doritos presents, in association with Seven Eleven and Harvey's RV World, Halo 4 Infinity Challenge can register at www.halo4infinitychallenge.com. The tournament begins December 17 and will track War Games and Spartan Ops leaderboards, with over 2,800 prizes available. The qualifier phase will run until January 10.After the qualifier section, players will be tiered into three groups, with the final phase taking place the week of January 12. Leaderboards will be reset at this time to award the top performers in each tier. No word yet if the new Ford F-150 handles like a Warthog.
Making Halo 4 Spartan Ops with the group behind the Dead Island trailer
The Halo 4 Spartan Ops episodes don't just magically appear; they're painstakingly crafted by Axis Animation, the same studio that created that memorable, heartbreaking trailer for Dead Island in 2011. Take a peek at the process in the above video.
PSA: Remaining Halo 4 multiplayer Specializations now available to some
When Halo 4 launched way, way back on November 6, only those that purchased the game's Limited Edition were granted access to all eight multiplayer Specializations; normal players could only make use of two. As of today, however, a slightly greater number of people will be able to utilize the other six classes originally reserved for the cool kids. Codes to download "Specialization Priority Alpha" are currently being emailed to anyone that participated in Halo 4's multiplayer prior to November 20, Kotaku reports. The DLC acts as a key that unlocks Engineer, Tracker, Rogue, Stalker, Patherfinder and Operator Specializations, all of which grant unique armor and abilities after Level 50.For anyone that doesn't meet that criteria, well, you can always make your own unique armor out of cardboard and duct tape. Other players won't be able to see it, granted, but you'll know. And, in the end, isn't that the important thing?
