Halo 3

Halo 3
File:Halo3ring.jpg
Developer(s)	Bungie Studios
Publisher(s)	Microsoft Game Studios
Platform(s)	Xbox 360
Release	2007
Genre(s)	First-person shooter
Mode(s)	Single player, Co-Op Play, Multiplayer, Xbox Live

Halo 3 is a first-person shooter video game currently under development by Bungie Studios for the Xbox 360. An official announcement on the developers' website states that Halo 3 will end the current story arc, and will end the Halo trilogy. Halo 3 is scheduled to be released in 2007. [1].

E3 trailer

A trailer (warning, large file - 100+ MB) of the game was shown at Microsoft press conference at E3 2006. The trailer ends with the tagline, "Finish the Fight 2007".

File:H3chiefemerges.jpg

Master Chief emerges from smoke and rubble that litters an African plain

The trailer opens with a powerful orchestral piece, showing a desolate and dry desert area, the remaining rubble of New Mombasa, which was destroyed in Halo 2. Part of the broken space elevator as well as the obliterated New Mombasan bridge are shown in the background. Through the smoke and rubble of a ruined building Master Chief emerges, obscured occasionally by overlaid transmission images of Cortana who utters somewhat distorted messages:

"I have defied Gods, and Demons."

"I am your Shield, I am your Sword."

"I know you; your past, your Future"

"This is the way the world ends."

Cortana's lines use a trochaic heptameter, also used by Gravemind in Halo 2. Fans have speculated that the voice of Gravemind can also be heard, mirroring Cortana's words, leading many to believe Gravemind plays a part in Cortana's speech, possibly even speaking through Cortana to the Master Chief. Another possible explanation is that the transmission started off with heavy distortion and corruption. This is evidenced as the transmission improved drastically with each attempt of communication. Notably, the Master Chief is seen holding what appears to be an MA5B Assault Rifle from the original Halo, which was not included in Halo 2. The rifle also appears to have received some minor visual modifications and perhaps a complete revamp from the original. A Bungie employee has stated, "Who says it's the standard Assault Rifle? Doesn't look identical to me…" hinting at a whole new weapon. Many believe the weapon to possibly be the MA2B, the smaller version of the AR which has appeared in the Halo Books. He is also wearing new gloves which may be part of speculative Mark VI MJOLNIR armor upgrade (the armor shown appeared slightly different from that in Halo 2).

Features

Overhead, a massive Covenant armada (the "excavation fleet," as it was called by Bungie) holds position over an enormous crater where the Chief is currently overlooking. The crater contains an expansive metallic structure, over three miles in diameter, stated by Bungie to be a Forerunner related structure. Whether this is the Ark or a ship similiar to the one the Prophet of Truth took to Earth at the end of Halo 2 is unclear, although it bears a striking resemblance to the ship's interior.

Above the crater, there is a massive maelstrom in the sky caused by "massive, never before seen subatomic forces," presumably emanating from the gigantic domed structure. Banshees and Covenant warships fly by, but pay no attention to the Master Chief. The camera then switches from the crater to the cliffs as a part of them fall and then zooms in onto the Master Chief's visor.

File:H3artifact.jpg

Covenant ships disperse as the ancient Forerunner artifact is activated. Rumored to be the 'Ark'.

The camera turns from a glowing reflection on the Chief's visor and zooms out, revealing a grandiose scene as the mysterious structure is awakened. The structure begins to unfold, similar to a blooming flower, and rises above the ground as Covenant ships reverse direction and speed away from it. The device emits an energy pulse into the funneling skies as the trailer ends with Cortana stating the last line, "This is the way the world ends." It is unclear what the pulse actually is, but it could mean that this stucture, whether it is the Ark, or a transmitter that is activated from the Ark, could have sent the confirmation code to the remaining six rings (originally 7, but the Master Chief and Cortana destroyed the ring near Threshold). This refers to the first letter from "Cortana's Letters", which preceded the announcement of the first Halo [2]. Also noticed was an accent on the word "this" as if she is rejecting T.S. Eliot's famous quote from his poem, The Hollow Men:

This is the way the world ends

Not with a bang but a whimper.

The trailer was produced entirely using the Xbox 360 hardware in real-time. After the E³ showing, Bungie demonstrated the real-time nature of the demo by moving the camera around and moving Master Chief to demonstrate the game's visual effects.

The music in the trailer utilized a 60 piece orchestra and a 24 piece choir. On Bungie's site, composer Marty O'Donnell states his goals for the trailer's music.

"I want them to feel pride and longing the moment Master Chief walks out of the smoke, I want them to get excited and perhaps even froth at the mouth when they see the Covenant Capital ship and then the incredible buried artifact. I want them to be left with that, 'I can hardly wait to play this game' feeling by the end with a slight, 'I wonder what she meant by that aftertaste."[3]

Jarrett McGraw is a flaming fag

Release and other information

Bill Gates, Microsoft's chairman, stated in a May 2005 Time Magazine interview that Halo 3 would be released as close to the PlayStation 3's launch as possible, to divert sales. "It's perfect," Gates said. "The day Sony launches [the new PlayStation], they walk right into Halo 3." (Time.com article, registration required; relevant quotes on Gamespot.com). When asked shortly afterwards however, Microsoft senior vice president Robbie Bach was less definite, saying: "We haven't announced anything on what Bungie is doing or where we're going with the future of the 'Halo' franchise... With all respect to Bill, I don't run Bungie's studio, and neither does he. We'll work with the Bungie guys and let people know [when they have something to announce]".

An article in Game Informer in November 2005 reports that: "Halo developer Bungie is so paranoid about the storyline for Halo 3 leaking out that two different storylines are being worked on so that even the company's employees are in the dark as to the plot of the game." Game Informer has also mentioned that Bungie is working on a "non-Halo" project as well as possibly Halo 3, although Bungie staffers have since commented that Bungie will only be working on one game at a time, and Bungie has made no subsequent mention of any other current game projects either in their Weekly Updates or during E3.

Soon after the Xbox 360 was unveiled in May 2005, EB Games and FYE started taking pre-orders for Halo 3, despite having no official word from Bungie on whether they would make another Halo game. The pre-order page has since been taken down, but other retailers have followed suit.

On May 9, 2006, the announcement trailer to Halo 3 appeared on the Xbox Live Marketplace, shortly before the trailer made its appearance at E3, due in part to the E3 conference starting late. Halo 3's announcement was soon carried on other gaming sites, including Gamespot. [4] After some downtime on the official Bungie Website, the game was announced officially and the trailer was made available for download. [5]

Halo 3 is set to come out in 2007 as it says in the trailer, however speculation from fans say that the exact date of release will be July 7, 2007, (7-7-07). It is said that Bungie's favorite number is the number 7.

File:Halo3-EasterEgg.jpg

A "Grunt Crossing" sign easter egg.

There is also reportedly an "easter egg" hidden within the trailer: a wobbling sign on the side of the road which appears to be a "Grunt Crossing" sign. Bungie's official response to the sign was "The New Mombasa City Council had an incredibly efficient public works department until and even during the tragic and devastating Covenant invasion."

Confirmed facts about Halo 3

• According to Bungie's statements about Halo 3, Master Chief and Cortana are still separated from each other.
• According to the Bungie website, scenes in the trailer are mixtures of different scenes and animations from the actual game, which include the tower wreckage that Master Chief walks through at the beginning of the trailer.
• The Bungie website also alluded to "a devastated and Covenant controlled Earth".
• Bungie revealed that the game would have a new "materials system" so advanced that "you could see light reflect off the ground and onto his armor. A new materials system shows the difference between his armor and the rubber undersuit. It's so detailed that if you bring the camera close to the Master Chief's visor, you see everything in front of him reflected in it, right down to the ammo counter in his rifle" [6]. In addition, there would be new advanced texturing to reflect permanent, persistent damage.
• In the trailer, Master Chief's Mark VI armor is battle-worn and laser-scored. Developer Marcus Letho's response: "The Chief is shown as warrior who has seen horrific battle – and it shows. The Earth is dry, barren, ravaged by the Covenant."
• Halo 3, as Bungie has stated, will be the conclusion to the current story arc, which doesn't rule out other Halo games. "Bungie announces Halo 3, the third and final game in the Halo Trilogy" [7]. However, it should be noted that in a FAQ[8] on the official Bungie website it says, "Q: Is this the last ever Halo game? A: It is the conclusion to this story arc." This leaves open the possibility of future Halo games.
• With the release of the trailer Bungie has declared publicly that Gravemind, who originally appeared midway through Halo 2, is an intelligence of Flood origin.
• Bungie has confirmed the following basic plot points from what the teaser trailer revealed: Master Chief is back on a throughly conquered and controlled Covenant Earth. Cortana is still a prisoner of the Gravemind. Finally, the Covenant ships are hovering over an excavation site only a few miles from New Mombasa. [9]
• Bungie has also stated that the rising structure seen in the trailer should be familiar to Halo fans. To that end, seven pairs of tower structures ringing the dome call to mind the Rampancy logo. In addition, speculation suggests that it might also be the mysterious "Ark" mentioned at the end of Halo 2.
• The Master Chief from Halo and Halo 2 is confirmed to be the Spartan in the Halo 3 trailer. Bungie have yet to release any information on the whereabouts of Will, Fred, Linda, or Kelly.
• The surface the trailer takes place is in fact Earth, or more specifically, New Mombasa in Kenya, Africa. Mount Kilimanjaro can be seen in the background.
• Halo 3 and the Halo movie could come out at the same time, however "The two will not affect each other in terms of release dates." [10]

Speculation

• Bungie refused to deny or confirm whether the Elites and their followers (Grunts & Hunters) are allied with the Humans now, due to the rift developed between the Prophets and the Elites in Halo 2. However, due to the fact that the Arbiter worked with Sergeant Johnson to kill Tartarus and to prevent the activation of Delta Halo, an alliance is very likely. Two Banshees also fly very close to the Master Chief, apparently without reaction. Though if we are seeing a depiction of the Great Journey, they might not have bothered, since the 'Demon' is too late to stop it.
• Master Chief may carry a refined version of the original Halo: Combat Evolved video game's MA5B Assault Rifle.

Media

Audio from Halo 3 teaser Trailer

External links

• Halo 3 Revealed! on Xbox.com
• Halo 3 Story on IGN
• Image Press Kit Zip file containing high resolution images, logo, cutouts and storyboards (Direct download link - 102mb)

Videos

• Halo 3 Outline on Gamespot (Included with small trailer)
• High Resolution E3 Trailer on Bungie (Direct download link - 98MB)
• Halo 3 Flash Trailer (Fast Load - Good Quality)