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 | February 2001 |  |
February 2001 Archived News
News February 28 2001
Shaken, not stirred
Earthquake followup:
We are Bungie Tough.
(Why am I getting visions of juice spilled on a kitchen floor when I hear that?) Matt Soell takes time out of his busy day to let us know that aside from some disarray introduced into Mordia's action figure collection, the Bungie offices are damage-free. Good to hear! Now where are those screenshots? (Louis Wu 19:58:26 UTC) (permalink)
Earthquake in Seattle!
Earthquake in Seattle? Xero tells us (on our forum) that a 6.2 magnitude quake hit south of Mt. Rainer, near Seattle, about 30 minutes ago. While the Bungie Webcam is still running (and shows no signs of panic), the Seattle Insider website has some information about it. Is the Juan de Fuca plate finally slipping? Will Seattle be inundated with a tsunami? And most importantly, will Halo's ship date slip? (Louis Wu 19:31:33 UTC) (permalink)
AOD Halo throws its hat into the ring
Yet another cleanup of that dang xbox screen image. (This is the last one we're mentioning, folks... we mean it!) Dorkonaspork, of AOD Halo, has posted this shot - makes the gun the Marine is holding pretty interesting-looking; is that an artifact of the enhancement process or a new gun? Your call. (And here's hoping we get some DIFFERENT Halo news to post soon...) (Louis Wu 15:24:17 UTC) (permalink)
Halo Empire enhances Xbox image
SOKAR, from Halo Empire, writes that they've done some image enhancement on the TV screen shown in the Seattle Times pic, and gotten a clearer view of the Marine. To my eyes, it's closest to a screenshot that came out in PC Gamer UK last July... so I guess that's a pretty standard pose.
One of these days, maybe we'll even find out what those guys were looking at! (Louis Wu 14:17:04 UTC) (permalink)
News February 27 2001
Just watching the game...
Big thanks to Geoff Grosenbach, who scanned in the Seattle Times front page photo mentioned yesterday. You can see it here. Geoff asks
Do you think they're really playing the game? I think they're probably just posing since the picture on the tube looks a little static and they guys look way too enthusiastic.
Hmm... good question. There's no split-screen, as is common with console games played head-to-head... but on the other hand, maybe a game just ended (Mat's demeanor lends credence to this). In any case, it's nice to see Halo on the front page of a major city newspaper. Thanks, Geoff! (Louis Wu 10:01:36 UTC) (permalink)
Wallpaper page updated
Thanks to the anonymous uploader who put our latest wallpaper into our uploads folder - you can find it on our Wallpaper page. (Louis Wu 03:02:28 UTC) (permalink)
News February 26 2001
New voices, new faces
Faces, clarified. MSN (check those initials, yah!) writes to tell us that the folks in the Seattle Times pic are (left to right) Marcus Lehto, David Dunn, Rob McLees, and Mat Noguchi. Put together with Matt Soell's Halo updates, we can probably infer that we've gotten our first glimpse of the Halo Tools Programmer. Welcome, Mat! (Louis Wu 20:00:39 UTC) (permalink)
Halo team members, playing around
Thanks to Dilbert, who found a smallish version of the aforementioned Seattle Times picture in the paper's Business and Technology section of their website. The actual picture in question is here. It's difficult to tell what's what, because of the size... but that looks like Marcus Lehto (Art Director) and someone else ;) handling console controllers while Rob McLees and Shikai Wang (?) look on. The screen is pretty tough to distinguish, but it's definitely the Halo Marine... and the press coverage begins! (Anyone want to scan in a better version of the shot, or give a more accurate accounting of who's there?) (Louis Wu 19:12:39 UTC) (permalink)
Halo in the news
Thanks to MSN, who noted on our forum that there's a picture of the Halo dev team and the cyborg running on (presumably) an Xbox dev kit screen on the front page of today's Seattle Times. Anyone in Seattle have a scanner? (Louis Wu 18:41:01 UTC) (permalink)
Halo SETI Team 7 day stats page posted
Blam!... Blam!... The Halo SETI Marines regained the two spots they lost since the last time we looked at team standings - they sit at 48th place in the Battle of the Teams. DarthFlounder crunches an amazing 430 units in these past 2 weeks - at this rate, he should overtake the number one spot by next Monday, or maybe Tuesday. Welcome to our new members (especially Hellboy, who brought 203 units in)! Check how YOU'RE doing on our 7 day stats page. (Louis Wu 16:10:36 UTC) (permalink)
October out as a release option?
Woohoo! Useless, am I? Was visiting Microsoft's Game section, and ran across a release estimate for Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee... 'Holiday 2001'. That's a tighter timeframe than 'Q4 2001' - by at least a month. Presumably, Halo and Oddworld should be coming out at the same time (they're both supposed to be launch titles for the Xbox), so maybe now we should be saying 'November-December 2001' instead of Q4? (Wirehead 15:34:39 UTC) (permalink)
Wallpaper page updated
Thanks to Brian Deatherage, who dropped off a new desktop image for our Wallpaper page. And oh... did I mention I was back? (If you get a chance, send mail to Crux, Ding, and Wirehead (okay, not Wirehead) thanking them for their coverage - I think they did a bang-up job!) (Louis Wu 14:11:01 UTC) (permalink)
Yeah we got some fan fiction baby!
"The marine breathed slowly and cautiously. The rest of his squad was scattered through the green foliage. He couldn't help them now." Ubiquitous kindly sent us in a short piece of fan fiction called His Home. Brought a tear to my good eye. Pax. (Crux Fidelis 09:44:06 UTC) (permalink)
News February 25 2001
Banshee confusion
Ok we've got some confusion on our forums about what a Banshee is. Today's Story page tries to clear up some of the confusion which a number of items from E3 2000. Hopefully Matt Soell will put all this straight when he gets back on Monday. Pax. (Crux Fidelis 18:56:17 UTC) (permalink)
More fan fiction.
"Meanwhile, not far away, under the cover of protective camouflage netting, two dropship pilots sat in the sweltering semi-darkness of their cockpit." Maszimo sends us more fan fiction. This piece is called Private Reg's Last Day Of Combat. Just the ticket for a lazy Sunday afternoon. Pax. (Crux Fidelis 18:47:18 UTC) (permalink)
News February 24 2001
What's a Banshee?
Want to know what a Banshee is in Halo? Then head on over to the Marathon's Story page to learn more. (Crux Fidelis 18:58:16 UTC) (permalink)
Island Four working
As noted by Psyrixx on our forum the Island Four site is now working. It's a good idea to check the HTML source code. Pax. (Crux Fidelis 11:02:43 UTC) (permalink)
Matt's Halo Update
Well I don't know where Ding and Wirehead are but given it was a Friday night and their youthful exuberance I think I can guess. We have alot of youthful exuberance at bungie.org. Anyway Matt Soell did send us his Halo update but he also kindly posted it to our forums. Don't forget you can read all of Matt's Halo updates and search them too at HBO. Pax. (Crux Fidelis 10:34:53 UTC) (permalink)
News February 23 2001
Bungie looking for a level designer for Halo
Kudos to Tom Van Sinden for pointing out that Bungie are now looking for a level designer for Halo. A pretty cool job. But read the requirements carefully. There are a few surprises in there. (Ding 20:34:08 UTC) (permalink)
All your base belong to us
Spotted this over at the Story page. Made Crux laugh anyway. The funny thing is it kinda fits with the Covenant theme. (Wirehead 10:55:29 UTC) (permalink)
More fan fiction
"Then I realized that Bob, whom I personally felt was in cahoots with the Covenant to kill me..." Maszimo sent us in another piece of fan fiction. This piece is called 'War Thoughts'. Maszimo also wrote 'The Second Fall'. (Wirehead 10:55:29 UTC) (permalink)
Vote Halo at PC Game Review
Poll smash! Clark Williams-Derry sends word that there is a poll at PC Game Review that asks what game are you most looking forward to. Halo is on the list but not doing so well. Let's tell them about Halo. Go vote! (Wirehead 07:27:24 UTC) (permalink)
Matt Soell interview
eldar-colonel of Halo HQ dropped us a note to say:
We've just posted a community interview with bungies matt seoll, you can view it at this link:
http://halohq.hqgaming.com/views/matt_seoll.shtml
There's also some news on our front page below the latest stuff that you might wanna check out, it's about PcPowerplays poll and Halo comment.
Check out what Bungie Community Guy - Matt Soell - has to say. (Wirehead 07:27:24 UTC) (permalink)
News February 22 2001
nVidia GeForce 3 coming to Macs first
Good news for Mac gamers as Jonathan Keegan points out that nVidia GeForce 3 is coming to Macs first. Watch Halo fly on that. Of course we have to get Halo first. (Ding 22:00:00 UTC) (permalink)
More wallpaper
Diogo Barbosa's second wallpaper is now up. It's called called Rock (328K). (Wirehead 18:13:53 UTC) (permalink)
Halo's Universe a new Halo site
Bosskiller 51 sends word of a new French Halo site called Halo's Universe. Check it out. Parlez Vous Francais? (Ding 17:05:23 UTC) (permalink)
New wallpaper
Diogo Barbosa kindly sent us in some nice wallpapers. Here's the first one called Desert. It's a biggie 509K. (Wirehead 16:21:10 UTC) (permalink)
News February 21 2001
Halo merchandise poll
As seen on the Marathon's Story page bungie.net have a new poll up about what Halo merchandise you'd like to buy at the Bungie Store. Here are the choices:
Wall Poster
Action Figure
DVD (with cool content)
Art Book (with cool pictures)
Go vote! (Ding 22:15:45 UTC) (permalink)
Want to work on Halo?
Want to work on Halo? Kudos to Harry Al-Shakarchi maintainer of Oni Central for this cool heads up. Bungie are looking for a 3D Multiplayer Artist to create exciting multiplayer battlegrounds in Halo. Check this out for size:
3D Multiplayer Artist (Redmond)
We are looking for a contractor to help design the site of a thousand battles. Work with existing art assets as well as model and texture new ones to create exciting multiplayer battlegrounds. This is your chance to participate in Halo multiplayer carnage!
Responsibilities:
Work with designers to create multiplayer levels.
UV map and paint textures.
Build levels in 3D Studio Max.
Create miscellaneous multiplayer art assets as required.Requirements:
Excellent artistic skill.
The ability to work well with a team.
Experience with 3D Studio Max and Photoshop.
One or more years of game development experience.
The ability to work well under pressure and to meet deadlines.
An avid gamer's understanding of 3D action games.
Got what it takes? :) (Ding 21:53:01 UTC) (permalink)
News February 20 2001
New look bungie.comon the way
New look bungie.com on the way says Matt in a news update on our forums. Here's the details:
I'm working on some stuff for the relaunch of bungie.com, doing preliminary work for the next FanFest, meeting with various folks about various Halo-related things (websites, merchandise, etc.), and doing some other stuff that's still a secret. :-)
Thanks Matt. :) (Ding 21:35:52 UTC) (permalink)
New fan fiction
"He remembered his pistol. Not much, only a 9mm Glock. He pulled it out. He jammed it against the alien's face." NevinNiven sent us some fan fiction. The piece is called "Halo Offshoot". This is the second piece submitted by NevinNiven. (Wirehead 07:32:29 UTC) (permalink)
News February 19 2001
Louis to do SETI stats!
"Who's gonna do SETI stats this Monday?" is our usual fun game of tag at coffee time in the HBO offices. Louis lost (hey you go on holidays what do you expect?). The Halo SETI Marines added ten new members to their ranks since last Monday bringing total membership up to 569 marines. We're ranked 48th in the team ranks. Check out L E T S _ K I C K _ S O M E _ A L I E N _ B U T T ! just below us. Have they heard about the Covenant too? (Ding 17:25:19 UTC) (permalink)
Don't forget about AoD Halo
Sorry to the AoD Halo boys for not adding their site to our links page. We mention their site back in February 13th news. You can blame Louis guys... we do. ;) (Ding 16:29:53 UTC) (permalink)
Blam!, a new Halo order goes live.
Blam!, a new Halo order goes live. Thanks to Wodasini for the heads up. The page is still under construction. So contact Wodasini if you want to join up. For a full list of Halo clans see our ever expanding Links page. (Wirehead 09:27:07 UTC) (permalink)
New fan fiction
"As I leapt off the cliff, the Covenant roared and got off a final shot that sizzled over my head as I fell." Maszimo sent us some fan fiction. The piece is called "The Second Fall". We printed it out and slipped it under Crux's cell door. He's been silent ever since. So for pity's sake send us more! ;) (Wirehead 09:18:00 UTC) (permalink)
Matt's Halo update added to the Database(tm)
We've added Matt's recent Halo update to the Database(tm). Don't forget you can search the database for all that Halo goodness. Word of the day is "levels". Go find it. :) (Ding 07:31:21 UTC) (permalink)
News February 18 2001
new look cortana.org?
Early this morning we got an email from Allenthar telling us that cortana.org was in the process of being redesigned. We checked it out and went back to sleep. Now fire phoenix over at Halo Center has posted a news item about it. The new look cortana.org however has vanished and the old look is back. (Wirehead 16:18:08 UTC) (permalink)
Halo Tip URL change
Kaidu webmaster over at Halo Tip tells us that they are changing their URL again. It's changing from http://www.halotip.com to http://halo.tip.nu. http://www.halotip.com will not work after March 2, 2001. Please adjusted your links. (Wirehead 16:05:56 UTC) (permalink)
New Wallpaper
Hey who needs Louis! We put our collective heads together and figured out how to add Wallpaper to the database thingie. This new piece is by Kaidu webmaster over at Halo Tip. We printed it out and shoved it until the door of Crux's cell. You should have heard the howls! (Wirehead 15:58:42 UTC) (permalink)
News February 17 2001
Matt likes his hippos!
Just great! Louis heads off to the sun and pina coladas leaving me here with a mad monk and an aging packet router for company. Didn't bother to leave the keys to Crux's cell either. Damn monk is starting to count out primes again. Louis won't let us answer your HBO mail either not after the last incident. Well we can still post news. Head on over to the Marathon's Story page for one of the weirdiest pics of Matt Soell ever. That's the guy who writes us those Halo updates. Scary! ;) (Wirehead 18:07:14 UTC) (permalink)
Louis is GONE!
Just a quick heads-up to HBO visitors - I'm heading out on vacation tomorrow morning, to a place that's warm, and serves drinks with little umbrellas in them, and has no net access. Ding and Wirehead and Crux (well, maybe not Crux) will be here to pick up the slack... but mail will not be answered. (It will still be READ - you can send artwork, or stories, or whatever, and they'll add it to the appropriate sections - but please don't expect a reply before I get back.) Here's hoping that no super-hi-res screenshots get released in the next 8 days... (I can't believe I just said that.) (Louis Wu 03:01:55 UTC) (permalink)
super-hi-res screenshots... mmmm.
Snow in Seattle didn't stop Matt from sending a seriously meaty Halo Update to the good folks of Rampancy.net... though it did make him rant a bit about SUV-driving wusses. Almost every point is tasty... but the two that got me were
- The chain gun for the Jeep is now fully textured. Rob is working on a new gun intended for "fodder-type" opponents; the geometry is almost done and texturing should be another couple of days.
- The script for Halo's single-player campaign is about 30% done. (Don't confuse this with the story itself, which is more-or-less finished at this point, and should completely satisfy those of you who like Bungie games for the story.)
Good story... that's key. What I REALLY want to know, though, is... what's a "fodder-type" opponent? And can I make my friends play as them in netgames? Go read all the details for yourself! (Louis Wu 02:08:26 UTC) (permalink)
News February 16 2001
bungiestudios redux
Finch adds more info to the bungiestudios.com mystery:
about that URL, I visited it shortly after the Microsoft/Bungie thing and at that time it had a few Myth II plugins available for download. They had used a corrupted version of the Bungie logo, and I just passed it off as someone trying to use the URL to make a buck off of Microsoft.
We received one other bit of mail about this earlier today, that seems to agree with Finch:
a third more likely scenario is that someone probably thought they could profit from the domain name.
Will we ever know the full story? Pax. (Crux Fidelis 19:50:18 UTC) (permalink)
interesting timing on domain registration
As noted by ax on our forums (and on the Marathon's Story page), the registration date of the domain bungiestudios.com is either a curious coincidence... or a bitter statement. 24 hours after the announcement of the Microsoft acquisition (and, therefore, 24 hours after the change from Bungie Software to Bungie Studios)... you decide. (Louis Wu 14:11:32 UTC) (permalink)
Psyjnir Complex back up
Psyrixx sends word that the Psyjnir Complex is back up and running. It's not fully fleshed out yet (the front page says 'nearing completion!') but there's quite a bit there, and if you send feedback now, changes can probably be made more easily. Swing by - looks like he's ramping up to cover ALL Bungie games, not just Halo... should be a nice addition to the community. (Louis Wu 14:00:25 UTC) (permalink)
News February 15 2001
Gamestock's a go
Confirmation is always nice... When asked on the R.net forum whether Xbox Halo will actually be at Gamestock next month, Matt Soell responded
Unless Mt. Rainier erupts, covering us and our source servers in a thick blanket of molten death, we should be there.
Stranger things have happened... but we're betting it's a go. (Louis Wu 21:32:50 UTC) (permalink)
Halo Command now Halo Generation
Thanks to Griffon (of Halo Command Central) who noticed that one of the sites listed on our links page as "Halo Command" has changed its name to "Halo Generation". (URL seems the same, though...) Links page updated. (Louis Wu 20:47:25 UTC) (permalink)
One of our own, out of the closet
The secret's out! I just got back from giving my prayer wheel a spin, and noticed the Computer Dating Agency on the Marathon's Story page. Well, I browsed around a little bit, and lo and behold - out popped a familiar face! If he's looking for dates, I guess there's no longer any need to keep his origins secret... Pax. (Crux Fidelis 18:38:30 UTC) (permalink)
Gamespot says Halo at Gamestock
Thanks to ax, who noted on the R.net forum that Gamespot has a story that discusses Gamestock, Microsioft's press-only event next month, which makes a welcome statement:
Bungie Software will be showing the Xbox version of Halo
This has been speculated for a while, but it's nice to hear it in the context of an actual story on Gamestock. Read the rest of the details! (Louis Wu 10:53:50 UTC) (permalink)
Still MORE Fan Fiction
Thanks to black flag and a red star, who has sent in his own contribution to the Fan Fiction section - a fast-paced thriller whose title should help with the twist... Check it out. (Louis Wu 01:37:02 UTC) (permalink)
News February 14 2001
a new poll at HaloNews.Org
glock writes to say that HaloNews.Org has put up a new poll - "Which group do you most look forward to playing in Halo?" Go let 'em know! Pax. (Crux Fidelis 18:30:32 UTC) (permalink)
More fan fiction
More fan fiction - Foxhound sends in the first chapter of 'Group3', a gritty story of soldiers under fire. Check it out in our Fan Fiction section! (Louis Wu 14:43:02 UTC) (permalink)
Matt, the marine
A Halo paintjob on a Porsche 959? Maybe... The R.net thread asking for suggestions for Bungie gear has reached epic proportions. Chime in! (Louis Wu 00:12:09 UTC) (permalink)
Fan Fiction section updated
Thanks to Chris Cox, who's sent in Part 2 of his fanfic "Prisoner" series. You can find it (along with Part 1, and his three-part "Warrior" series) in our Fan Fiction section. He's envisioning two more parts... so keep your eyes open! (Louis Wu 00:06:58 UTC) (permalink)
News February 13 2001
Halo doodads, for sale or rent
Seen on the R.net forum: Bungie would like to know
If you could have only one Halo-related doo-dad, what would it be? It doesn't have to be conventional (t-shirt, poster, book, etc.) though if that's the thing you'd want the most, by all means say so.
Matt goes on to say that they're not promising anything... but it's a fun thread, nonetheless. A couple of intriguing suggestions have already been posted... can you think of more? (Louis Wu 02:34:40 UTC) (permalink)
AOD Halo fills out somewhat
Dorkonaspork writes to say that AOD Halo has been fleshed out a bit. Stop by... send him suggestions, if you have any. (Louis Wu 02:33:35 UTC) (permalink)
News February 12 2001
Halo SETI Team 7 day stats posted
It's becoming an ugly pattern - grab the SETI stats page Monday morning, lack time to actually process it until Monday afternoon. The news - could be better. We have some new team members, and are very grateful for Jacob Ericsson's 513 units, and SerialSPNKR's 100, but overall, the Halo SETI Marines are slipping. Only 1510 units crunched this week. (Don't blame DarthFlounder - almost 200 of those are his. In fact, the top 7 crunchers brought in fully one-third of the total units crunched - what are the other 559 members doing?) Check out all the gory details, and see if you're doing YOUR part, on the 7 day stats page. (Louis Wu 21:12:42 UTC) (permalink)
Searchable Halo Update database updated
Once again, Friday's Halo Update posted at Haloplayers has been added to our searchable Halo Update database. Is that the first time Matt's discussed missions? Check it out. (Louis Wu 00:36:15 UTC) (permalink)
PC PowerPlay poll to smash
Thanks to eldar-colonel, of Halo HQ, who found yet ANOTHER poll in which Halo plays a role - This time it's PC PowerPlay, asking "Which game are you most looking forward to?" Halo trails Black and White and Return to Castle Wolfenstein (by how much is unknown, since there are no totals... but percentage-wise, it's 3 percent). Stop by and vote! (You guys done good over at MSXbox - Halo is crushing the competition, with 46% of the currently 1700+ votes.) (Louis Wu 00:29:37 UTC) (permalink)
News February 11 2001
MGON asks, what are you waiting for?
Thanks to Kharn353, who noticed another poll over at the MGON network main page, asking what game you're waiting for. Currently Halo's in third place, trailing Black and White and Tribes 2. What game are YOU waiting for? Pax. (Crux Fidelis 13:00:29 UTC) (permalink)
News February 10 2001
MSXbox has a new poll up
Another poll to smash! (Let's try not to cheat this time...) Thanks to Ph.D. for noting on our forum that MSXbox has a new poll up, asking which would be the one game you'd buy for the Xbox if you had money enough for only one. Halo currently has a slim lead over Metal Gear Solid - let's make sure it stays that way! (Louis Wu 16:34:30 UTC) (permalink)
Matt's Halo Update at HP
And the roll continues. Matt sent his weekly Halo update to Haloplayers... there's some good stuff in there today. The big news - the Oni team has joined forces with the Halo team to become the 'Dream Team'... and they're ALL working on Halo. Woohoo! Beyond that, there are bug fixes, working material types, almost-working holograms, and 'the coolest tree ever in a videogame'. Read all the juicy details for yourself! (Louis Wu 02:06:56 UTC) (permalink)
News February 9 2001
Ed Fries has good news
Thanks to Iden (who mailed this to us this morning) and Forensic (who posted it to our forum a little later), for the heads-up on a comment posted at MSXbox.com. Ed Fries jumped into the thread started by the no-delay news bit we mentioned a few days ago. Here's what he had to say:
"Any of you who have large monitors with your PC's you'll be happy to know that we are most certainly supporting VGA output without any adapters needed! There was some speculation on wether or not we'd implement that feature right ouf of the box.
Also, the remote which will be required to view DVDs witll be very inexpensive. You're looking at roughly $20.00 american."
Good news for those wanting to use non-tv outputs! Thanks, guys. (Louis Wu 20:59:15 UTC) (permalink)
VE Best Dev Poll: Blizzard
And the recount is over... according to the readers of VoodooExtreme, the best game developer (with almost 30% of the 11,000 legitimate votes) is Blizzard. Bungie followed in second place, with 17% of the vote. Looking Glass (a dead studio) was third, followed by Valve and Dynamix. Makes you wonder what the logs REALLY looked like... (Louis Wu 03:02:51 UTC) (permalink)
Violence in video games - red herring?
Interesting. Adrenaline Vault has an article about the recent Surgeon General's report on the causes of youth violence. As we reported back on January 19, the Los Angeles Times stated that this report drew definite links between video games and youth violence. As you can see by reading the report for yourself, that conclusion was NOT put forth by the Surgeon General's office - in fact, the report says that there isn't enough information at all to determine the impact of video games. Additionally, according to AV,
The report is the second major government study in a few months that downplays the role of violent media in making people commit crimes. Last fall the Federal Trade Commission released a report that also raised doubts about the conventional wisdom on this subject. This latest report, like the FTC study, was commissioned in the wake of the 1999 Columbine high school shootings.
Good to know we're not all homicidal... (Louis Wu 00:20:31 UTC) (permalink)
News February 8 2001
Bungie slipping in VE poll
As noted by Jester, the VoodooExtreme poll has been extended... and Blizzard has pulled ahead of Bungie. (As of the time of this writing, the tally is 3311 to 3217.) If you haven't voted... go vote! (If you have... find another machine!) (Louis Wu 23:09:18 UTC) (permalink)
MS says no delay
MSXbox noted last night that Microsoft has issued a statement pertaining to the pending lawsuit over the Xbox name:
"Despite some reports, Xbox is on track for killer launches in the US and Japan this fall and Europe in spring 2002. While there is a known trademark issue which needs to be resolved, Microsoft wants to assure Xbox fan community that the company is still on schedule to ship later in the year."
Whew! That's good news... for US customers. 'Spring 2002', though, for Europeans... wasn't the old plan Q1 (i.e. before April), not Spring (i.e. before June)? Pax. (Crux Fidelis 18:03:49 UTC) (permalink)
News February 7 2001
Monitor-hugging hippos
Gotta hand it to Hamish - he's keeping on top of the Bungie Webcam. A second hippo has appeared (this one's hugging a monitor, not a wall, but...). Pax. (Crux Fidelis 14:27:15 UTC) (permalink)
HaloNews.Org opens its doors
glock dropped us a line to let us know of a new Halo site, HaloNews.Org, hosted by Telefragged. Nice clean design - check it out! (Louis Wu 14:12:59 UTC) (permalink)
new Halo compilation movie available at MPZ
fAt1 from MPZ Halo writes to say that he's put together a new Halo compilation movie.
A little while ago I cut and pasted together a compelation of the most spectacular Halo clips from the Halo movies released so far, and I divided them up into sections like 'Interiors', 'Exteriors', you get the idea. If you look, you should be able to recognise lots of the e3 trailer, a fair whack of the nVidia promo and a bit of the MacWorld preview.
It's 5.5 MB zipped, in .asf format (you'll need Windows Media Player to view it), and while it doesn't contain new footage, it's a pretty nice composition. Release was delayed by the attempt to get permission to use parts of various movies. Check it out! (Louis Wu 14:03:49 UTC) (permalink)
Halo logo history revealed
Ever wonder where the Halo logo came from? Well, Lorraine Reyes, Bungie artist extraordinaire, passes on a bit of Bungie trivia in this post (and in several of the followup posts.) The whole conversation makes me wish I could have seen some of the rejected designs! (Louis Wu 03:32:34 UTC) (permalink)
News February 6 2001
Bungie Webcam weirdness
Seen on the Marathon's Story page... the fabled Hippo makes an appearance on the Bungie Webcam! (Pay no attention to the book in the foreground... this is a family website.) (Louis Wu 21:30:11 UTC) (permalink)
Halo-Net reawakening
We got this in the mail from info@halo-net.com:
I must be quick as they're after me. I found this data left at the location. I hope you can make use of it... 796F757220616374696F6E73206172652066 6F6F6C6973682E207768617420796F752068 61766520646F6E652077696C6C2063617573 6520737566666572696E6720756E746F2074 68652067616C6178792E206265207761726E 656420796F75722069646C656E6573732069 7320796F7572207765616B6E657373 Delta signin' out...
For the lazy among you, that hex code translates to
your actions are foolish. what you have done will cause suffering unto the galaxy. be warned your idleness is your weakness.
The Halo-Net page says 'reopening March 1st'... (Louis Wu 20:59:14 UTC) (permalink)
Fan Fiction section updated
More fan fiction from our forum. NevinNiven posted 'The Sacrifice' this morning, and told us we could put it in the Fan Fiction section. Choose your reading location! (Louis Wu 20:54:07 UTC) (permalink)
Final round of VE Best Developer poll
Final round of voting! The VoodooExtreme poll "Who's the best game development company?" is in its final round! Currently, Blizzard is in the lead, with Looking Glass second... and Bungie 6th! (Of course, there are only 200 votes so far. Get over there, and make sure they take it! (Louis Wu 16:21:18 UTC) (permalink)
News February 5 2001
Halo SETI Team 7 day stats posted
Dink!... Dink!... As of last Thursday (the last time the team stats were compiled), the Halo SETI Marines had fallen two notches in the Battle of the Teams. Ouch! Darthflounder continues to do his part, with almost 200 units this week... are YOU doing YOUR part to find the Covenant? See who's slacking on the 7 day stats page! (Louis Wu 20:27:13 UTC) (permalink)
Fan Fiction section updated
Thanks to Anonymous Coward, who wrote a short bit of fan fiction and posted it to our forum. (It's been added to the Fan Fiction section, as well.) (Louis Wu 18:25:06 UTC) (permalink)
More Shmuck the Kneerubber
Shmuck the Kneerubber has another Halo-related comic up... this one really IS about Halo. :) Check it out! (Louis Wu 13:56:41 UTC) (permalink)
Dispute may force Microsoft to delay Xbox launch
What's in a name? A lot according to the Financial Times. Seems a small Florida-based company called XBOX Technologies insists it has first claim on the Xbox brand and says it is prepared to go to court to protect its trademark. Mr van Leeuwen chief executive of Xbox Technologies is reported to have said:
"There's no way that we can co-exist... We can't afford to have our business confused with games for kids. Either we find a business solution or we get into a legal battle."
The full Financial Times article can be found here. Thanks to MSXBox for the heads up. (Ding 10:28:21 UTC) (permalink)
Halo Updates database updated with Friday's report
Minor details... but sometimes minor details are important. (Remember van der Rohe...) We've added the latest Halo update to our Halo Updates database... remember it when you need to remember that tidbit in the back of your mind! (Need to know the names of all the Pauls working at Bungie? It's in there!) (Louis Wu 04:18:48 UTC) (permalink)
News February 4 2001
VoodooExtreme poll smash!
Thanks to |CaRnyL|, who alerts us to a poll that needs smashing... VoodooExtreme is asking, Who is the best gaming development company?" You know what needs to be done... (Louis Wu 20:12:47 UTC) (permalink)
Dogma 2001: Story over Style
Paul Frankenstein brings to our attention a Gamasutra article entitled "Dogma 2001: A challenge to Game Designers". In the spirit of a 1995 'vow of chastity' proposed by a pair of filmmakers unhappy with the use of technology to cover content flaws, a game designer has suggested a set of 10 rules game designers should adhere to to 'purify' their art. Halo, of course, breaks almost all of them... and this site wouldn't be here if they didn't. :) Interesting read, nonetheless. (Louis Wu 17:40:19 UTC) (permalink)
News February 3 2001
Haloplayers back up
Thanks to Jenkz, who sent word that Haloplayers is back up, and on a faster pipe than before. If you get a 'Forbidden' message, the new address hasn't propagated to your nameserver... give it some more time. Welcome back, guys! (Louis Wu 19:47:00 UTC) (permalink)
new forums at Halo HQ
Eldar-Colonel writes to say that Halo HQ has gotten some new forums. Check 'em out! (Louis Wu 10:51:42 UTC) (permalink)
I'm too sexy for the breakers
Matt's weekly Halo Update went to Battleground Halo this week... and it's full of progress reports. A dev kit upgrade, controller issues, particle effects, cool new map editor features... and waves! We want to see waves (though we don't want to be close to Joe Staten when we see them...) Go read the details over at BGH! (This update will be added to our searcheable database sometime on Monday.) (Louis Wu 10:31:35 UTC) (permalink)
PCG says Xbox sux!
Ouch. Halo makes the "Worst Moments of 2000" according to the March 2001 issue of PC Gamer. Amongst mentions of 3dfx's demise and Daikatana, they consider "It's Xbox first for Halo" to be one of the worst gaming moments of the year. Not a list you really want to be on... thanks to Lophan for the heads-up. (Louis Wu 01:16:40 UTC) (permalink)
News February 2 2001
WSJ looks at Xbox
From Lophan, maintainer of our sister site myth.bungie.org, comes this snippet from a Wall Street Journal article on Wednesday, entitled "How Microsoft Hopes to Win With Xbox":
First, it's taking out it's checkbook. Since march 2000, when it announced plans to enter the multibillion-dollar video-game industry, Microsoft has bought two small game developers, Bungie Software Products Corp. and Digital Anvil Inc., for what some analysts estimate is more than $20 million.
Well, that's a bit less than we thought the sum would have been... but it's interesting to see this hit the mainstream press. We'd have thought the spin would have been the half-billion they're spending on advertising... (Ding 05:03:19 UTC) (permalink)
Design contest at The Junkyard
The Junkyard is having a design competition - come up with the winning artwork, and your creation can grace their t-shirts! Stop by and take a look. (They do Halo news too, you know.) (Louis Wu 04:05:08 UTC) (permalink)
News February 1 2001
HP woes almost at an end
Thanks to all the people who sent in notes about Haloplayers' moving woes - we just got a note from Jenkz, as well:
we're in the process of getting the site backup as i speak, but as we dont have 100% control over the new machine its taking time. once we find the root mysql pass for the machine we should be up within a matter of minutes,should be tonight if we can beat it out of the tech admin (who was the guywho forwarded haloplayers.com to that site, not the forum as we'd asked)
Gotta love those tech admins... Good luck, guys, getting back up and running! (Louis Wu 18:26:52 UTC) (permalink)
Invasion of the pod people
Huh? Stopping by Haloplayers made me wonder if I needed to change my dosages... It's been replaced with a page called 'Joyful Systems - online gardening for healthy systems and happy humans' based in Santa Monica, CA. Uh oh... broken DNS or something more sinister? (Louis Wu 10:39:20 UTC) (permalink)
| February 2001 | |
