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Exclusive H3 McFarlane ODST figure at EE
If your goal is to collect the entire line of Halo 3 McFarlane action figures then good old Toddy McFarlane is forcing you to make an action figure purchase over at Entertainment Earth (EE).Just announced is a brand new (and somewhat limited) EE exclusive Halo 3 yellow ODST action figure that's (surprise!) only available for purchase online at EE. This exclusive figure will be shipping sometime later this October, but can be pre-ordered online for $14.99. Truth be told, it isn't a bad looking "toy", but we'd be a little more impressed if this exclusive EE Spartan was rockin' the Recon ... or a flaming helmet.[Via TeamXbox]
38 Studios goes Unreal
Gamasutra is reporting that 38 Studios has decided to go with the Epic's Unreal Engine 3 to power their upcoming MMO (codenamed "Copernicus"). A few weeks ago 38 Studios picked BigWorld's technology suite for the back-end of things, so it's no surprise that they would grab the best graphic engine currently available. Whatever MMO "Copernicus" turns out to be (most recent game description says: "an original IP made up of fantastical elements, settings, characters, creatures, rules, and experiences") should at least look really, really good.
38 Studios using BigWorld to make its big world
What do you get when you get when you combine a major league baseball player (Curt Schilling), a famed fantasy author (R.A. Salvatore), and a great comic book guru (Todd McFarlane)? You get 38 Studios, and 38 Studios is working on a new MMO codenamed "Copernicus."Now the studio has licensed the BigWorld engine for Copernicus. Since the game is at a very early stage of development, we know very little about it at this point, except that its prestigious managers are optimistic about its future. Reps from both 38 Studios and BigWorld made nondescript statements saying things like, "BigWorld provides the most proven, robust, and technically solid game engine available," and "we are thrilled to be working with such a professional and talented group of game developers." Good for them!Brett Close described the rationale behind the choice in greater detail in an interview with Ten Ton Hammer. Excellent server-side tech and tools that will help the team get the game to market as fast as possible were the given reasons.
McFarlane Halo 3 figures spotted in the wild
All of the talk, news, previews and excitement surrounding McFarlane's Halo 3 series one has been accumulating over the past few months, all in preparation for the figures' March launch. But now we're learning that some fanboys my not have to wait until March to get their Halo 3 action figure goodness.X3F reader matt mcclard sent us the picture above, which he recently took at a Wal-Mart store in Dallas. And we think the picture is pretty self-explanatory. Halo 3 series one figures are already making their way into retail stores! Woohoo! This also means one other thing: we're headed off to our local Wal-mart to see what Halo 3 goodies we can find. Master Chief, we're coming for you.[Thanks, matt mcclard]
First glimpse of H3 McFarlane third series vehicles
More action figure preview goodness comes our way thanks to Action-Figure and ToyFare 2008 as McFarlane showcased some never before seen Halo 3 vehicles from their third series. And we actually have good news. If you recall, Toddy McFarlane decided to cancel all vehicles that were originally planned for the second series of Halo 3 figures including the Mongoose. That bummed us out, because Warthogs and Ghosts are cool, but nothing is as sexy as a Mongoose. (Now this is where we tell you the good news.) We just learned that McFarlane reworked the vehicle lineup for the third series and behold! We have Mongoose! The third series of Halo 3 vehicles will now include our lovely Mongoose, a Wraith and a miniature Scarab. Virtual high fives to everyone for the rebirth of the Mongoose!
McFarlane launches one hot Halo 3 website
In preparation of the March launch of their first series of Halo 3 action figures, the McFarlane team has launched a brand new and heavily Halo 3 inspired website showcasing their complete line of action figures goodness. We don't exactly know how to explain or justify our infatuation with their new website other then just telling you to make the jump and check it out for yourself. They pretty much based the website's entire look and navigation after Halo 3's menus and it's just so damn sexy. Creative and damn sexy. There's also new product photos, downloads, information, 360 degree Quicktime VRs (this is Cortana) and the announcement of a new Halo Points program. We're getting a tad overwhelmed, so you'll just have to go and experience the McFarlane / Halo 3 website hotness for yourself. Yum!
McFarlane Halo 3 Series 2 exclusives revealed
The highly anticipated and figure'licious Halo 3 Series 1 McFarlane figures will be releasing this March and all is pretty much solidified with those. But for fanboys who are saving up for Series 2 in June, they've been in the dark to what retail exclusive Spartan variants will be released. That is until now.Toddy McFarlane just announced, posted pictures (viewable in the gallery below) and laid out all the details about their upcoming Halo 3 Series 2 retailer exclusive figures. And yes, there are a bunch of 'em. Spread between five different retail outlets are six exclusive Spartan figures including a pink Mark VI, cyan ODST and brown E.V.A all of which are splendid and gorgeous. We've posted a list of all the Series 2 Spartan base and exclusive figures after the break as well as added photographic goodness in the gallery below. We're curious to see who'll be putting their manly guards down and head to D&R Lineups to pickup a pink Spartan. Any takers?%Gallery-7108%
Halo 3 MacFarlane figures packaged, pretty, coming soon
Gird your loins, because the McFarlane Toys line of Halo 3 action figures is on its way. Still due to drop in March, the snazzy-looking collectibles have already gone through packaging design, and X3F has collected some photos of what to look out for on retail shelves.With war-torn backdrops, and minimalistic packaging (except for the bizarre "Cortana LIGHTS UP!" sticker), these designs were clearly made to show off the figures, and for good reason. We might just pick up a few Spartan soldiers for ourselves, to re-enact our favorite Halo 3 multiplayer moments.
Halo 3 McFarlane figures now fully packaged
Today, we bring you newish product shots of those lovable Halo 3 McFarlane action figures that'll be available this March. But this time there's a twist. You see, we don't have any new action figures to show you, instead we have the figures' finalized packaging. Which, we must admit, is just as exciting as seeing the figures themselves. We've thrown, erm, "carefully uploaded" all of the Halo 3 series one figures' packaging shots in the gallery below, including Master Chief, a few Grunts, a Jackal and a Cortana figure who comes with a light up base. Batteries probably not included. Give the product shot a quick look over and imprint their likeness into the back of your head. Because, come launch day, you'll need to know what to look for on store shelves.%Gallery-7108%
Pictures of Halo 3 McFarlane figures in the wild
Over at the Japanese'ish forums at Toysdaily, ALIEN0021 posted a few new, unseen pictures of Halo 3 McFarlane figures in the wild. These new pictures look to be from the first series and are so close up that they showcase the insane amount of craftsmanship and detail that McFarlane put into them. Just look at these sculpts and the paint jobs and try to not be amazed. These new pictures further solidify our excitement and have caused us to take on the new Halo figure mantra; Joyride Studios who? Make a quick jump over to Toysdaily and give the up close and personal pics a quick look over. They is delectable[Via The ToyPit]
Pics of Halo 3 Series 2 McFarlane figures unleashed
He teased us with some Arbiter pics earlier this month, but today Todd McFarlane is showing off the entire Halo 3 Series 2 line of action figures that are due out in June. And be double warned Halo fanboys, Series 2 is just as hot as Series 1.Uploaded to the gallery below is the final sculpts of the entire Halo 3 Series 2 line of action figures from McFarlane that will release later this June. Featuring 18 points of articulation and beautiful paint jobs are Series 2 figures including Master Chief sporting a shotgun and spartan laser (yum!), the Arbiter, a Drone, an ODST soldier, a Brute Stalker and a handful of other Spartans. The Spartans pictured include a CQB in red, Scout in tan and an exclusive EVA in white that'll be available at specialty retailers. McFarlane also lists six other color variant figures (complete list after the break) as part of Series 2, but they're limited to select stores. Now it's time to prepare by clearing off the bookshelf to make room for all this action figure goodness. Who needs books when you have Halo 3 figures.%Gallery-7108%
38 Studios reveals: Copernicus
w00t Studios is reporting that Curt Schilling of 38 Studios has released the title for their upcoming MMO. In an interview with Gametap at the Consumer Electronics Show going on in Vegas, Schilling said that Copernicus is a "working title" but revealed no other information regarding the game.Given what very little we've seen from a previous news clip - possibly a knight atop a running horse - shown late last year, we can surmise that the game is going to be set in some ancient medieval era. 38 Studios' game Copernicus may or may not be associated with the Nicolaus Copernicus who lived from 1473 to 1543. Copernicus was the first astronomer to postulate that the sun was the center of the solar system and not the Earth, which had been the belief for centuries. His book, On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres, is regarded as the work that started modern astronomy and was pivotal to the beginning of the Scientific Revolution.Or it might have absolutely nothing to do with the famous scientist at all. It's common knowledge that Schilling is a huge Everquest and WoW player, and during the Gametap interview the famed Red Sox pitcher admitted that he's been playing a lot of my current favorite, Tabula Rasa. So... what do you all think?
New Halo McFarlane figurine Arbiter revealed
McFarlane Toys has released a gallery of pictures showing off the latest addition to its line of Halo action figures, the Arbiter. According to the press release, he will be armed with an energy sword and carbine rifle that can be fitted onto the leg or back. The press release reconfirmed for Series 2 the Drone, Spartans, Brute Stalker and a Master Chief variant. The Arbiter figurine is expected to sneak its way into retail in June along with possibly eight more entities from the Halo universe. The first series of Halo figures from McFarlane Toys is expected in March.%Gallery-12526%[Via X3F]
McFarlane showcases Halo 3 Arbiter figure
News about series one of the Halo 3 McFarlane action figures is so old hat and so 2007. What is newsworthy in 2008 is details about series two and good old Toddy came through for us.Over at Spawn.com and posted in our handy gallery below is the first look at the Arbiter figure that'll be a part of the second series of Halo 3 action figures releasing in June. Note the craftsmanship, eighteen points of articulation and the Arbiter's piercing eyes ... we're in action figure love. Remember too that the second series will also include another Master Chief, a Drone, a few Spartans and a Brute Stalker as well. So keep your eyes open for "first look" photos of those over at Spawn.com in the next few months. We're saving up already.%Gallery-7108%
38 Studios hires another industry vet
The Warcry Network reported this morning that 38 Studios has brought aboard yet another video game veteran in the form of Michael Kosenski, who will be assuming the role of Vice President of Product Development. Kosenski was the former Senior Development Director at Electronic Arts, Los Angeles, where he worked on the Medal of Honor franchise, Command and Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars (for the Xbox 360), and Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle Earth 2.38 Studios just keeps on making news and adding to their stable of gaming industry vets as Kosenski is just the latest to join the team. As reported just a few short weeks ago, Jon Laff (former lead engineer at Electronic Arts) was recently hired as the company's CTO. Obviously the triumvirate of Schilling, Mcfarlane and Salvatore know where their talents are and where they aren't. Those three are truly talented, but probably don't know the ins and outs of the gaming industry. Thus, they are surrounding themselves with people who do. What does that mean? They're dead serious about delivering the gaming goods.
A glimpse of things to come from 38 Studios
The keen eyes of Cyndre from the Kill Ten Rats blog has spotted rare images from 38 Studios top secret, as-yet-to-be-named MMO. On Friday, December 14, the Boston news channel NECN did a video interview (see above clip) with Curt Schilling (he, along with R.A. Salvatore and Todd McFarlane comprise the new gaming company 38 Studios) regarding the announcement of their 1st Annual Game Design Challenge. Which is a very cool endeavor in and of itself. According to Cyndre, right around the 1:16 mark of the three minute video interview you'll see images from their game. This has possibly been corroborated on the blog since someone purporting to be Curt Schilling left a comment saying that the animation shown was from pre-production, the phase they are in now. Curt Schilling (famous professional baseball player) is an avid MMO player. Combined with supremely talented R.A. Salvatore (famous fantasy author) and Todd McFarlane (famous comic book artist and writer), the expectations for a spectacular gaming experience is very high indeed. Catching even a quick glimpse of what these guys have in store for gamers is news worthy.
McFarlane's exclusive active camo Spartan figure
And you thought Todd McFarlane was so innocent, so pure only choosing to make Halo 3 action figures out of the kindness of his heart. Well, we'd hate to say "we told you so", but we did, because Mr. McFarlane is releasing yet ANOTHER Halo 3 figure this May available exclusively from his website. Newly announced today is a brand new Halo 3 Spartan figure featuring EVA armor and active camo (ooo ahh!) This clear figure will only be available through Spawn.com pre-orders and we're led to believe that if you don't grab a pre-order by December 12th, you'll miss out on a chance to own this limited figure. You can see what the new active camo looks like in the gallery below, check out the complete details here and get your pre-order over here. An exclusive McFarlane money making Spartan figure ... we told you so.%Gallery-7108%[Thanks, TMD]
Todd McFarlane talks 38 Studios, his role
In an interview recently published with Gamasutra, famous toy-maker and artist Todd McFarlane elaborated on the formation and development of 38 Studios, the new MMO venture started up by Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling, and of which McFarlane is a part. He explains how 38 Studios and the game they're developing is Schilling's baby, and that he and author R.A. Salvatore were really only brought in after things had gotten underway to help flesh out the areas of development related to their respective disciplines. He describes his own role as more of a director -- he's done almost none of the artwork himself -- but he's been responsible for keeping the game's artists in line with the overall design philosophy. Based on the interview, he seems confident that the new project is going to be a success, even within the already heavily-populated fantasy MMO sphere.Hearing all this noise about 38 Studios is a little frustrating, because everything we've heard from the people involved has been overwhelmingly optimistic and enthusiastic. We have to make sure to check our expectations at the door though, because we don't know a damn thing about the game. Good games, and MMOs especially, don't succeed on the pedigree of their management alone. Still, they've got a pretty captive audience at this point, it's only a matter of having something to show off.
McFarlane Steel Spartan exclusive to GameStop
Continuing his iron grip on the Halo 3 action figure market, Toddy McFarlane (we call him Toddy, because we're tight) announced a new GameStop exclusive Steel CQB Spartan action figure. The Steel CQB figure (viewable in the gallery below) will be released alongside Series 1 sometime March 2008 and like we said, it'll only be available at GameStop stores.Another factoid we found interesting was that the figure will come with removable shoulder pads, chest plate and helmet all of which will be interchangeable with other Halo 3 figures. It's an interesting concept and something we haven't heard about, but we know we'll be buying all the variants to build a figure to look like our multiplayer Spartan. Kind of like a Build-A-Spartan Workshop ... or not.%Gallery-7108%[Thanks, TMD]
McFarlane planning lots of Halo figures in 2008
Good old Toddy McFarlane and his entrepreneurial spirit, always taking ideas to the next level and always willing to saturate a retail channel. It's something we value in a person more than good will or kindness. And his ambitious nature is spreading into the previously announced Halo 3 figures he's creating, because we're getting lots of 'em.According to official product launch dates over at Spawn.com, the McFarlane Halo 3 figures we've all known about will launch sometime in March 2008, but there will be other series' coming later in the year. Series two is scheduled to land at retail a few months later in June 2008 including such highlights as ODST, Drone, Mongoose and Wraith figures. Series three is planned for an August 2008 release and includes figures like a Human Flood, Brute Captain, Banshee and Scorpion. That's not all, August will also bring a special 12" Master Chief figure and October 2008 will see the release of three highly stylized figures. Wowzaz! And for easier digestion, we posted a list of figures, release dates and a series breakdown after you click towards the break.Good old McFarlane, we knew you wouldn't let us down.
