Halo
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Halo 2 run makes the record books
Halo 2 player, Cody Miller, has reportedly been entered into the 2007 Guinness Book of World Records. His accomplishment? A speed run of Halo 2 with no deaths -- on Legendary difficulty. There is no mention of his actual clear time, but no deaths is impressive all by itself. Anybody with a copy of the Guinness care to send us a scan? It should be on the only page with Master Chief. And anyway, how the hell does anyone make it off of Cairo Station on Legendary without dying once? Cody explains it himself right here (there's even a video here). [Via Joystiq]
AICN grills Halo Director
Ain't It Cool News took it upon themselves to interview Neill Blomkamp, the newly announced director of the Halo movie -- which we can only assume will be called Halo. First, the bad news. It turns out that Blomkamp might have to *gasp!* make some changes to Master Chief's armor (no nipples, please). The good news: this guy sounds like a legitimate fan of the game. "From a purely game playing perspective I am a massive fan of the games, but more importantly, I'm a massive fan of the world and universe of Halo, the science fiction world that the games take place inside of."So he's actually played, and enjoyed, the game? Far out. Hopeful news indeed. Then again, similar things were said about a certain other game film as well. Only time will tell.
Master Chief's armor to be revised for Halo film
Newly anointed Halo director, Neill Blomkamp, has indicated that the iconic armor housing Master Chief will be slightly altered for its appearance in the 2008 film adaptation. Speaking to Ain't It Cool News, a confident Mr. Blomkamp successfully justifies a decision which, in the hands of a typical Hollywood hotshot, could quickly become a nightmarish reimagining of a beloved character into something supposedly more enticing to mainstream sensibilities. "Master Chief is certainly something that I do not want to change too much at all, there are certain things inside the Halo universe that are sacred and he's the main one. Having said that, there is a need to revise certain parts of him, just from a purely technical standpoint, he has to actually be able to move, like a human, and the game design right now does not allow for full motion freedom, which we will have to achieve."The interview sees the director affirming his love for the games, for the universe they depict and for "infected humans and covenant." He fails to provide definitive answers regarding the removal of Master Chief's helmet or the use of Bungie's original soundtracks in the film, but the inclusion or exclusion of either one is likely to fuel fan debate until well after the movie has come and gone. Rejected (and generally horrid) titles for this post: Master stroke: Master Chief armor changing Master Chief suit changing: oh no they didn't Master Chief: borg to be wild Master Chief armor change: Massive damage Master-ious costume change for Chief Master Chief says Halo to new armor Halo movie chief masters armor change Halo armor to be remastered [Thanks for the image, Ross. You'll go to hell for this one.]
Scrutinize Halo director's CV (with videos)
We know a lot of you probably had a sinking feeling in your stomach earlier today when you discovered the just announced director of the highly anticipated Halo movie, Neill Blomkamp, was some commercial director from South Africa of all places (apologies, Ludwig). But we remembered his short film about aliens struggling with integration in Johannesburg and thought the choice was really unique ... so we Googled him. We Googled the sh-t out of him. We came up with his Wikipedia entry (already updated with the Halo info, natch), his IMDb entry, his music video videography, a Canadian effects company he works with, the production company he works for, and all manner of links in between. In so doing, we've assembled a pretty exhaustive selection of all videos available online that Mr. Blomkamp has created over the past couple years, including some short films, commercials, and music videos.Notice any similarities? Yeah, the guy digs technology in a serious way: transforming Citroëns, third-world robocop androids, robotic crabs, and alien bodysuits packing some killer gravity-gun technology. We're all ready imagining Spartans and Covenant Elites duking it out in the sun-bleached streets of New Mombasa.[Update: Added in Tempbot. Thanks for the link Youri Zoutman. Anyone else have any or know of any videos by Neill Blomkamp that we didn't post?]
Halo gets a director and another year
Please take a moment to sample the video above. Now, let that sink in. What you have just witnessed is the work of the newly chosen director of (drumroll please) Halo. That's right ladies and germs, the mystery has been put to rest. It's not Guillermo. It's not Peter Jackson himself. It's a relatively unknown South African (did you hear that Ludwig?) director by the name of Neill Blomkamp. Though Blomkamp's resume consists mostly of short films and commercials, his work has garnered him many awards (including 3 Clios and a Visual Effects Society Award). Also, the Halo movie has been pushed back to 2008, ending any speculation that it would launch day and date with Halo 3. Choosing a little known director whose work has been primarily in commercials and short films is an interesting choice. Then again, Jackson himself started out making campy horror films (so did Sam Raimi of Spider-Man fame) so, who's to say? Do you think he's up to the job?[Via Joystiq]
Halo director chosen, movie out summer '08
After months of speculation, Microsoft announced their choice for director of the film adaptation of their star property, Halo, this morning. After enlisting New Zealand's Peter Jackson to serve as Executive Producer last October, there has been little revealed about the secretive project. Mexican filmmaker Guillermo Del Toro seemed like a brilliant choice -- a proven storyteller with a knack for FX work -- but scheduling conflicts (apparently) couldn't be overcome. Enter South Africa's Neill Blomkamp, director of last year's exceptional short film Alive in Joburg, a futuristic commentary on Apartheid in South Africa where aliens have become refugees. The film, embedded after the break, blends photorealistic CGI with handheld, documentary style filmmaking. Described in his bio as "a new breed of director, [who] has harnessed the powers of technology, art and creativity to bring the world imagery never before possible" and by Microsoft as "one of the most innovative and original artists currently working in short films and commercial advertising," Blomkamp seems as unlikely a choice to direct Halo as ... well, as Peter Jackson was to direct Lord of the Rings. The film will be shot in Wellington, New Zealand -- to take advantage of Jackson's state-of-the-art Weta facilities -- and will see a worldwide release in the summer of 2008. [Thanks, Evan]
Get your own plasma rifle! [update 1]
Typically, Halo makes gamers think of things like guns, explosions, Marines, or "overrated." For eBay user wansitler, Halo's only meaning is "Arts and Crafts." This guy went to the trouble of precisely replicating a lifesize...um...replica of a Covenant plasma rifle from Halo. Actually, it's made of wood so, you know, it won't shoot searing hot plasma or anything. Still, if you'd like to own this interesting conversation piece/girlfriend repellent, it can be yours for the bargain price of US $175 -- or less if you go in for the whole "auction" thing.Any takers? Maybe these guys will buy it just so they can destroy it.[Via HBO]Update 1: Oops. Looks like someone already snatched up this wondrous piece of woodwork. Congratulations, pyrometheous. Now just convince your better half to let you mount it on the wall.
Asleep at the Halo switch
Anbody who ever stayed up until 4am playing Halo 2 (or blogging) can relate to the above vid. Pretty funny, if about nine minutes to long. More narcoleptic Spartans here.
A Bungie with business sense would make Halo 4 and 5 and...
Recently there have been some rumblings that Bungie won't make another Halo game after Halo 3 which appear to be centered around a statement that Marty O'Donnell made in an interview with the BBC. In this interview, Marty says, "We all want Halo to be the great ending to an epic trilogy. We look at what Peter Jackson did with the Lord of the Rings films - which each film bettering the previous one and that is what we are aiming for." Does that mean we won't be seeing another Halo game in the future? To people who understand that making video games is a business, the rumors (which are already half-disproved) that Bungie would end the Halo franchise anytime soon are ridiculous. The first two Halo games combined have sold 14.3 million units. That puts the Halo franchise within the top 30 best-selling game franchises of all time. Without Halo, Microsoft might as well not have bothered with the Xbox; Halo and Halo 2 sold more units than the next six best selling games on the Xbox combined (if you're wondering, these games are Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell, Fable, GTA: Double Pack, Project Gotham Racing, and Need for Speed: Underground 2). With a Halo movie on the way, and the facts that Halo 2 sold more units than the first and is still the #1 game played on Xbox Live under Bungie's belt, it wouldn't be wrong to say that the Halo franchise is increasing in popularity. The bottom line is that Bungie and Microsoft would have to be stupid to end their most lucrative franchise ever after #3. We don't claim to have any insider information, we don't dispute Marty's statement and we don't deny the possibility that Bungie will create new franchises, but based on pure business logic we'd expect to see at least another two games based on the Halo universe. From a business perspective, for Bungie to dump the Halo franchise after 3 would be sheer stupidity. [Source for sales figures, Image from 1001 Fonts]
Halo faceplate is the real deal
Bungie has confirmed the existence and design of the rumored Halo faceplate. The more perceptive of you have probably realized that the faceplate in question is pictured above (click on it for an embiggened pic). The faceplate will be available sometime in October. Not bad, but as some have pointed out, it doesn't do much for vertically aligned 360s -- unless you enjoy the thought of knocking the Cheif onto his back. So, let's have a show of hands, who's planning on picking one up?
Halo faceplate shows its face
Gamestop says a Halo faceplate will ship on October 24. Not sure if this pedestrian offering is the final design. How about a series of faceplates based on art from the Halo Graphic Novel. Anybody willing to cut up their copy for the benefit of the Nyko Gameface community?[Thank Oozer]
Horrible Halo site of the day
When the best thing about your Halo machinima site is a picture Chuck Norris as Master Chief, you're in trouble. You're also probably trapped in the throes of puberty. Reader Bill says his Mom won't let him play Saints Row. He also says his site "so horrible it's funny" and needs some traffic. I'd say the emphasis is on horrible, but here's a little link love to take the sting out of Mom's censurous attitude towards simulated gangland violence.
Halo Graphic Novel a "must read"
In the first of what Bungie assumes will be many rave reviews, IGN calls the newly released Halo Graphic Novel a "must read," and better still since we now have to run out and buy it, "a work of joy, rather than a marketing gimmick." It also summarizes the separate stories for those who do their reading in the store.How about putting this comic on XBLM in 720p glory?
White Button Thugs: The Remix
This is what happens when you cross two Halo-playing 12-year-olds with Vanilla Ice.Courtesy of the Reach Around Posse.[Thanks Jeff]
Master Chief says be all you can be
Viewers of the American Armed Forces Network in Spain report that the majestic melodies from Halo and Halo 2 being used as background music in commercials showcasing various jobs in the U.S. Military. Nice to know the Master Chief is doing his patriotic duty.By the way, should the familiar score inspire you to head to the nearest recruiting office and beg for a plasma rifle, remember the grunts in Iraq use real bullets.
Denzel as Master Chief and other dubious movie rumors [update 1]
1. IGN Filmforce is buzzing that "Oscar winner Denzel Washington is rumored to be up for the role of "Master Chief" in Fox/Universal's film version of the Microsoft/Bungie videogame sensation Halo ... according to movie news website, Dark Horizons. IGN failed to link it (it's the internet, guys) but we managed to track it down here. It tersely declares, "Latest rumours have Denzel Washington as the favourite for Master Chief." IGN does mention (but doesn't link to) an Associated Press story about a meeting in New Zealand that ledes with, "Denzel Washington says he wants Peter Jackson to provide the special effects for a film he plans to direct, a newspaper reported Friday." So the two have met ... not a lot to go on there. What's wrong with Steve Downes, anyhow? 2. Well, if the rumor mill has its way, the Halo movie isn't coming anytime soon! According to The Movie Blog, "Don't hold your breath for a summer 2007 release date. Not having a director yet... a FULL YEAR after they announced the project is bad bad bad news no matter which way you try to spin it." Without an announced director on the project, they argue the Halo movie is going nowhere fast. Despite a report by Variety that targetted 2007 as the release date, like Halo 3 there still is no planned release date for the movie.3. According to an amateurish looking blog dubbed The Movie Center linked to from NeoGAF, director Tim Burton has shown interest in a script based on ... Grim Fandango. Sure, this sounds like a fanboy's wet dream, but the quote presented is not only unsourced, it contains two major spelling errors! "Well, I'm currently woerking on Sweeny Todd, which will be released in mid-2007. After that, I'm gonna start working on a new script that was sent to me recently: Grim Fandango." We ain't saying these rumors are false, just that they're skimpy. It takes a lot more than some unsourced blog postings to get our fanboy knickers in a knot.[Via Cinematical; thanks, Evan][Update 1: fixed misunderstanding in rumor #2]Read - Halo Casting Rumor (IGN)Read - Halo in Limbo (The Movie Blog)Read - Dia de los muertos (The Movie Center)
Master Chief behind the mask: Denzel?
Movie website Dark Horizons has a tiny snippet of info regarding the Halo movie: Denzel Washington is rumored to be up for the role of Master Chief. The rumor is one sentence long, halfway down the page, and has no source listed:"Latest rumours have Denzel Washington as the favourite for Master Chief."If there was an article associated with this headline, it has since been removed. My take: I don't know about Denzel being the Chief. Personally, I think that role should be filled by an unknown. However, I do think Denzel would make an excellent Sgt. A. J. Johnson.[Via Xboxic, kudos to YLA G for the picture]
Xboy's iPod murder plot exposed, will involve major online media service
If Brier Dudley of the Seattle Times is to be believed (he seems like a nice enough fellow), Microsoft is not only poised to release an Xboy this Christmas, but will have it interacting with Xgirl, Xuncle and Xred-headed step-child, the latter of which will probably prove a formidable challenge to market. All part of Project Argo -- the name of the warship that carried Greek Mythology's Jason around -- the project jokingly dubbed Xboy seems to be a full attack on that popular, more fruitful music player and it is likely to be waged on multiple fronts. As Mr. Dudley writes, the project "being developed is actually a complete line of Xbox-branded digital-media products, including a device that plays media, a software media player and an online media service."Under the leadership of General J. Allard, the branded media players will go to war with the iPod, the DS and the PSP with Wi-Fi at their disposal, as well as the backing of music companies, online media services and presumably, blitzkrieg marketing tactics. The article also mentions the support of the touted XNA platform, no doubt paving the way for easy support for existing Microsoft platform games. What you can take from the Seattle Times article is this: Microsoft is pushing hard to release a killer portable device this Christmas, one complete with Wi-Fi capabilities and an online X-tunes service which may very well be home to familiar games and properties. We can only pray that the inevitable portable version of Halo isn't dubbed Hago.Previously: Xbox-alum all over iPod killer; Xboy next? Microsoft's portable system out this year?
F$%# (bottle) rocket n00b!
Halo fan FyreWulff has created a replica of the SPNKR rocket launcher to celebrate US independence this year. The launcher -- still a work in progress -- takes on the trademark Halo design, including the "HOLD LIKE THIS" image on the side. Describing his project, FyreWulff said: "...This is not meant to be a 1:1 remake of the Halo rocket launcher. I'm basically "skinning" another (fake!) rocket launcher to look like it, as best as possible." The launcher will be used to fire holiday shells and bottle rockets this 4th of July. Whether you're a Halo fan or not, surely there is no better way to celebrate our country than by blowing up a small part of it. Follow the read link for more pictures. Anybody else have any cool holiday projects? [Via HBO]
Ultimate Halo Fanboy
Bungie.net has posted pictures of fanboy Namloco's Halo dungeon. Juggling his family responsibilities and a full time job, Namloco managed to convert his entire basement into some kind of Halo altar. Adorned with huge Halo posters, action figures, books, and even an oddball skull, the room is a Halo sanctuary. The crown jewel of his obsession is the hand painted mural on the rear wall. The technophiles among you will probably cringe when you see his TV lodged in the fireplace, though. Isn't he worried about soot?
