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First Halo 4 GI information (Spartan OPs, multi, etc) [Update: Campaign/More Details]

A

AdventureRacing

Member
Monumental said:
The rightful heir to the throne has returned.
Halo 4 will sell more than Black Ops 2 on the 360, bank on it.
Click to expand...

No chance. This is a very important game in the series though in terms of its popularity going forward. They really need to nail this one and then i think halo 5 on the 720 will have a chance to go back to the top.
 
D

Demoncarnotaur

Member
It would be interesting if they go into CoD territory with the release date.. They better have some cars up their sleeves and a kick ass marketing campaign if thats the case. I suppose we will find out today as I doubt the thing with Conan wouldn't have a release date tied to it.
 
T

TheOddOne

Member
CONFIRMED: Halo 4 launches worldwide on 6 November 2012
Spartans, get those holographic calendars out. Microsoft has announced that the highly anticipated sequel, and first entry in the Reclaimer saga, Halo 4, will be available worldwide on 6 November 2012.

"We are beginning a new saga with Halo 4 and embarking on a journey that will encompass the next decade of Halo games and experiences," said Phil Spencer, corporate vice president of Microsoft Studios. "Millions of fans worldwide have been eagerly awaiting the opportunity to step back into the boots of Master Chief, and, with Halo 4 leading the charge, we’re confident 2012 will be the most successful year in Xbox history."

Promising a "new standard for blockbuster interactive entertainment", Halo 4 sees the return of legendary hero Master Chief, as well as his artificial intelligence companion, Cortana, as they confront Chief's destiny and face an ancient evil that threatens the fate of the entire universe.
Click to expand...
 
T

TheOddOne

Member
image.axd


New Halo Bulletin with goodies!
 
S

Silly.Mikey

Banned
Monumental said:
The rightful heir to the throne has returned.
Halo 4 will sell more than Black Ops 2 on the 360, bank on it.
Click to expand...

It'll definitely do better than the previous ones. Its gonna depend how it shows at E3 and the fact that there's no beta will make more people wanna buy it for sure just out of hype and wanting to try it. And it doesn't hurt that its Halo 4 and not Halo reach 2.
 
S

specialguy

Banned
Nov 6 is ballsy. While selfishly I'd prefer Sep, I kinda like this too.

It's all about building that hype and anticipation to sky high levels. Moving to a Nov release, and no beta, is going to help do both imo.
 
S

specialguy

Banned
cjelly said:
This is good news because it means MS have every intention of going all-out.
Click to expand...

Yeah, Sep release (as recent Bungie Halo's was basically saying "we surrender to COD". "We play 2nd fiddle".

This is basically taking COD head on, and saying "we're not afraid". We'll see if it backfires.

I like the move. It's going back to what Halo used to be.
 
S

Silly.Mikey

Banned
From Waypoint:

Conan O’Brien celebrates this fall’s launch of Halo 4 tonight!

If you thought you only had to remember one date today (November 6, 2012, w00t!), you’re mistaken because you also need to mark April 17 on your calendar as well. Making that endeavor slightly easier is the fact that April 17 is TODAY.

Whether you like redheads, Irishmen, or slumbering Spartan super-soldiers, you should tune in to the popular late night program “CONAN” tonight at 11 p.m. Pacific Standard Time to find out how Conan O’Brien and his side-kick Andy Richter are connected to Master Chief and Halo 4 in a segment that features our very own Frank O’Connor and Kiki Wolfkill.

Since Conan supporters are collectively referred to as Team Coco, I think it’s only fitting that Frankie and Kiki be referred to as Team Friki for the purposes of the following behind-the-scenes interview. So without further ado, I'm proud to present a short Q&A with Team Friki, where they readily reveal all the juicy things that tend to happen when you appear on a late-night talk show.

Edit: Question is, do we get more tonight or just the release date again?
 
S

Satchel

Banned
Could ms be planning a megaton at E3 where they money hatted activision to release blops2 in October?

1 month timed exclusive?
 
M

monome

Member
I still don't understand the whole "Oh my god Halo 4 vs BLOPS2".

BLOPS will be a 6 hrs campaign, while Halo 4 will be a 10hrs affair.
Their respective MP are year long things.

Is there a Holiday in the US that makes BLOPS 2 release a week or two after Halo 4 impossible? Or BLOPS 2 can simply release a week or two before.

If there is at least one week between their releases most people will have finished the campaign of the first one to come.
And since both games were known to be due for the holidays, a MP fight was a given.

Now you have the question of spending 120$ instead of 60$ on day one, but apart from some special cases, many people will get them both or they will simply wait a month to get the other game.
This can have an impact on first day sales ; but apart from the publishers and devs, who cares?
Has gaming become like Sports where people bitch about their teams and look for the slightest excuse to boast superirority while the quality of matches become stale?

If a game needs to boast about 1st day sales to keep on selling, it's even sadder than on disc DLC.
 
M

monome

Member
Don't know if it's been posted beut thesse are the first details of Glasslands sequel, The Thursday War :

Tor Books said:
Tor Books has just announced the title and release date for the second novel in the Karen Traviss’s “Kilo-Five Trilogy” of Halo books, the follow-up to last October’s Halo: Glasslands. Halo: The Thursday War will release on October 2, 2012.

Halo: The Thursday War picks up immediately where Halo: Glasslands left off, with forces on Earth and among the Covenant threatening a peace that is precarious at best. With a splinter group among the Sangheili pushing for war, some human colonies rebel against earth authority; and as ONI policy continues to shift with the volatile situation in space, the discovery of a trove of Forerunner technology on Onyx provokes leaders on Earth to seek uses for it in the conflict. For the fight is far from over….

“I wanted to focus on what it feels like to operate in a fragile ceasefire that’s turning into a mass of small, unpredictable wars where the enemy is much harder to spot and define,” says author Karen Traviss. “It’s not about big set piece space battles, superheroes, and hardware; this is a messy conflict seen at close quarters by real people with their own problems, whether those people are human, alien, or artificial intelligences.”

“From the very first page, The Thursday War propels you into a universe on the brink of chaos,” says Frank O’Connor, Franchise Development Director, 343 Industries. “It will immerse you immediately and enthrallingly into the events and circumstances that will come to define the state of the Halo universe in Halo 4. I can’t wait for fans and newcomers alike to experience the sequel to Glasslands.”
Click to expand...
 
T

TheOddOne

Member
a74d0799801e31be8437ce953b237841b421901c.png


Sparkast #12 | Direct Link | Also available on Itunes and Zune.

Write-up of Sparkast #12:
Present during the podcast: Frank O’Conner (Franchise Development Director), Brad Welch (Lead Multiplayer Designer), Josh Holmes (Creative Director), Kevin Franklin (Lead Competitive Multiplayer Designer) and David Ellis (Designer).

Spawn system:
  • 343 has built from the ground up a new weapon spawning system, the big goal for creating it was to do it in the context of the infinity (spaceship the Spartan IV’s will be fighting on).
  • Another goal for the new spawning system is to make it accessible for new players, but also to classic Halo players.
Random weapon drops and player spawn time:
  • You will still have the initial weapon drops at the beginning of the match, this was done so there is still control over the openings. Especially in team games, so you can still go after the weapons right after you spawn.
  • Initially they didn’t have weapon drops at the beginning of the match, they discovered that everybody went to the center of the map and started chucking grenades. This, of course, ruined the flow of the maps.
  • When designing the multiplayer, they broke down it down to the core and saw how much they could differentiate from that experience before things fell apart.
  • The weapons that come into the map are not random, they have timers and there will be a lot done to communicate to the player that the weapons have respawned.
  • Every mode and map has its own specific weapons and drops that fit the play style. For example: smaller maps you will not randomly get a sniper, but more stuff accordingly like the sword and rocket launcher.
  • The weapon drop system is called “Ordinates”. They drop down from the skies (Frank mentions the ODST’s pods), they can kill the player if they are close when they’re landing. The player will be informed that it is incoming though.
  • They emphasize that like previous Halo’s its customizable and you can make your own variants (aka custom games). So all the new stuff implemented can be turned off (For example: the player spawn time).
  • That players get a heads up that new weapons have spawned and it has changed up the game to a certain extent, it takes away the knowledge advantage of players who have played longer . Which has brought back the pure skill of playing.
  • There is a lot of information coming in (on the hud), but they are not distracting and it takes about three of four games to get completely use to them.
  • The instant player respawn is up to the player, you can take your time choosing your loadout. However, if you want you can go back instantly you can.
  • The instant player respawn is not implemented in all modes, for example objective modes do not have it.
  • All the maps created for Halo 4 multiplayer can be used for any objective game type, but they have also made the maps in mind to one specific objective.
Load-outs:
  • The load-out system from Reach is back, this was done so people can cater to their own play style.
  • Unlocking of Armor Abilities and Weapons in system link are confirmed to be in there. Right out of the gate people can customize for tournaments and custom games.
  • There is a career mode in multiplayer, in which you must grind for experience points.
  • Via the load-out system you can get the Battle Rifle as start weapon, but this of course hast o be unlocked.
  • Not every weapon will be in the load-out, some of them will be exclusive to the “Ordinates”. For example: you can’t choose the rocket launcher. Again, this can still be done in custom games.
  • They will be balancing them so there isn’t one god-tier weapon to start out with.
  • There was internal debate whether both Battle Rifle and DMR both should return, because they both serve the same purpose. They have however found that there are subtle differences, they mostly say that sound really plays a huge role.
  • Another difference is that the DMR has a slower rate of fire (compared to Reach) and it is balanced against the Battle Rifle because that has a faster rate of fire.
  • With the Battle Rifle you have recoil, distance plays a big role. Mid range Battle rifle will win, outer range DMR will win.
  • Each weapon has its role, so there is no weapon that will rule them all.
Armor abilities:
  • Armor Abilities will return, but they have looked at how people have used (and abused) them in Reach.
  • Everybody has Sprint from the start, you have a Sprint meter so you can’t use it endlessly.
  • Maps have been designed on the basis of mobility.
  • There is a slow-down mechanic when you’re getting shot, so you can’t run up and double-melee without taking a face full of bullets. The slow-down mechanic also applies for people running away
  • You walk faster on base level ten you did in Reach.
  • They looked at Halo 1 and Halo 3 as benchmarks for specific things, for weapons they have looked at the Halo 1 and for speed and mobility at Halo 3. They love Halo 2 too though.
  • Forerunner vision is more like the visor mode from Halo 3: ODST and Batman Akham Asylum’s Detective mode .
  • Forerunner vision was built for situational awareness, the refer to it as a “motion tracker”. With the mode you can see where people are and if somebody is nearby. You can’t use other armor abilities with it.
  • Forerunner vision is more likened to sonar. So there is some delay before you get information. Another trade-off is that other players can hear you use it.
  • The armor abilities, for most part, have counters to other armor abilities. There is a more “Rock-paper-scissors” type of approach going on.
  • Armor Lock will not be returning.
Spartan Ops:
  • Spartan Ops is integral to single- and multiplayer. They say if you’re a fan of Firefight, then you will love Spartan Ops.
  • There is one consistent character development across all modes, so your ranking will carry over from modes. This was done intentionally to bridge that gap between single- and multiplayer.
  • Spartan Ops is more objective based compared to Firefight and they will bring story into it via a weekly CGI movie.
  • Although they put a lot of emphasis on story in multiplayer, they will not force people to watch story bits.
  • You will get experience for contributing, for example using different tactics, vehicles and guns.
  • There is another unannounced system that ties into the reward system, completionist players are going to dig it.
  • With the objectives in Spartan Ops, they will push the player to go in different areas and use different tactics.
  • The missions you play in Spartan Ops tie into the fiction and hopefully will appeal to people who love great science fiction and characters.
  • Spartan Ops is in ways an continuation of the Halo 4 campaign.
Other:
  • The map “War House” (The map with the huge Gundam in the middle) has been renamed.
  • They have a internal system called “Cortana’s Web”, a robust system for taking game play information and tweaking so can give out specific information, like advantages of weapons.
  • Weapon sounds have been upgraded, sound more menacing and scary.
  • The game will be at E3.
Notes: Some of the stuff was already clarified earlier via the community thread, but kept them in for the sake of putting everything in one place. The podcast is pretty interesting, nice hearing people behind the scenes talking about the though process. If you have the time, do listen to it. Like I said with my previous post, it is sometimes better to read this while listing to the podcast; it can make more sense in the context it is being said.

-Odd

19.04.2012 A small cleanup.
 
M

monome

Member
TheOddOne said:
They could not say much about Spartan Ops, they mostly gave vague details. No specifics.
Click to expand...

Was sad when heard there would be no more Firefight mode and secretly wished for a Forerunner something mode, guess my Forerunner Firefight mode won't happen but as a fan of the lore, Spartan Ops is warming its way up my heart real fast.
It will also alleviate my difficulty of maintaining MP interest since I don't have friends who play Halo MP and story bits and CG movie is too good to pass.
And mid-week mission release please! Week-Ends are for real life.
fluffydelusions said:
Isn't Wii U supposedly launching November too?
Click to expand...

Definitly close by anyways.
Choosing between Halo 4 and a new Nintendo console is impossible.
 
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