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[∀ Narayan]

So, what's the deal with the SPARTANs in the cinematic - as far as SPARTAN class goes? The Lieutenant is assumed to be a SPARTAN-III while the others, other than Jorge-052, are second class SPARTAN-IIs?

 

[BerserkerBarage]

Alright, I'm trying to catch up on my complaining, so help me out. Are we trying to say that games in the same series on the same system (ie FF7 on PS1 to FF9 on PS1) show little to no improvement OR are we trying to say that games on the same system (Perfect Dark Zero on 360 and MW2 on 360) show little to no improvement.

Either way, both are wrong. Obviously games continue to grow in prowess the longer they are operating on the same system. There is no way that the games put on on launch day of any system tapped the same amount of resources that games put out years later do. It was especially that way in regards to the PS2. Looking at when that system first came out and the games that came with in as compared to God of War 2 or Shadow of the Colossus and you can see that the difference is extreme. If you want to limit that down even more by saying it has to be the same series, you can look at the difference graphically between FF7 and FF9. Same system. Same series. But the difference between character models in those games are night and day.

I'm not saying you're completely wrong Juices, because there obviously is a "wall" in regards to things that consoles can do. However, even with that wall, if a developer spends enough time working on something, they figure out different ways to navigate around it. At least partially. Again, Shadow of the Colossus if you want an example.

~B.B.

 

[scently]

One thing i would like in reach is the option to turn off the HUD, that would be nice.

 

[NemesisPrime]

So, what's the deal with the SPARTANs in the cinematic - as far as SPARTAN class goes? The Lieutenant is assumed to be a SPARTAN-III while the others, other than Jorge-052, are second class SPARTAN-IIs?

Errr... SpartanII > SpartanIII

We don't know anyway... my guess is that just one of those (the player) is a superior model Spartan II.

 

[TheOddOne]

The difference in Halo CE vs Halo 2 was a big difference... Yes the Halo 2 that was shown at E3 early was different then the Halo 2 we actually got, but still the final Halo 2 product improved upon Halo CE.

It shouldn't be a suprise to expect the same improvement from Halo: Reach that we got with Halo 2 (graphically). If anyone remembers the PAX Panel on ODST, Bungie mentioned some of the changes they made in ODST to improve the lighting/effects. They were limited in ODST to the changes since it was the Halo 3 engine, but they mention that Reach will have improvements since it is a new engine (fyi new engine means they didn't copy paste the old one onto a new game disc).

For those that missed the Bungie PAX Panel: HERE

The artwork is amazing.

Is it available on the net?

 

[∀ Narayan]

Errr... SpartanII > SpartanIII p

I never said that S3s were better than S2s. I know which one is better. By "second class" - I literally mean that there is a second class of SPARTAN-IIs.

 

[scently]

Another thing to take note of is that bungie has published a number of papers on graphic techniques over the past two years. Also the difference between what they showed for halo 2 and 3 in comparison to reach is that the former were trailers while the latter is ingame cinematics. Take a look at detailed gun models from the leaked screenshot, reach is going to look significantly better than halo 3.

 

[Popeck]

Errr... SpartanII > SpartanIII

We don't know anyway... my guess is that just one of those (the player) is a superior model Spartan II.

It has already been confirmed that players jump in the boots of a Spartan III.

 

[J-Rod]

I'm sorry if this stuff has already been answered. I haven't been keeping up on this topic closely, and I didn't see the answers in the OP or video.

Do we know where in the timeline the events of Reach take place?

Is MC featured in this game? Was he that 'new guy' joining the squad in the trailer?

 

[Shake Appeal]

While it's true that Bungie failed to deliver on what we all thought the final game was going to look like going off the Halo 3 E306 trailer, it was also Bungie's first experience developing a game on the 360 hardware. No doubt a good majority of it was foreign, which could explain why, at one time, they thought they could deliver on the visuals shown there but eventually didn't. Reach, however, is going to be their third developed game on the 360. By this point, they should know what does and doesn't work, and just how far they can push the hardware.

With a new engine taking advantage of the 360's power, in ways they may have not known how to in Halo 3, I think it's possible the visuals of Reach will come very, very close to what we all saw (AA, aside).

Oh, I have my fingers crossed, but the Halo 3 announce trailer is the exact same trick of using actual assets, in-engine, but rendered at a much higher resolution with all bells and whistles on, then scaled down (this is also pretty much what they pull with in-game "screenshots", although there the trick is appreciated). Fool me once..

 

[Diablohead]

I'm certain it will be Halo 3 announcement trailer tendencies all over again when the game is finally out. I doubt people will really care though, if the game is good.

I had no problem with Halo3 at the time, great game but after a few months it slowly sinks in what the game could have looked like at full 720p with some AA and a few more months in the oven.

 

[∀ Narayan]

It has already been confirmed that players jump in the boots of a Spartan III.

Which, if true, raises the question as to which armor the Lieutenant is using. Is it MJOLNIR armor or is it a souped up version of the SPI armor? If the leaked screenshots are any indication, then energy shielding will definitely play a role on a gameplay spectrum. I'm hoping for some elaboration, but knowing Bungie - we will, most likely, not receive it.

I'm sorry if this stuff has already been answered. I haven't been keeping up on this topic closely, and I didn't see the answers in the OP or video.

Do we know where in the timeline the events of Reach take place?

Directly before Halo 1. The gap between Reach and and Halo 1 will probably be a couple of days.

Is MC featured in this game? Was he that 'new guy' joining the squad in the trailer?

No. The Master Chief is with Blue Team - whose mission is to board a space station orbiting Reach in order to destroy navigational data that could lead the Covenant to Earth.

 

[squidhands]

It has already been confirmed that players jump in the boots of a Spartan III.

Really?

Step into the boots of a Spartan II and prepare for the first look at "Halo: Reach," the highly anticipated prequel to the "Halo" trilogy from acclaimed developer Bungie coming fall 2010.

There's a typo somewhere.

 

[CerberusE]

Guys, he's right. In my day to day programming I have about 20 indows open, and I copy paste from one window to another, all day long. It's like LEGO, you just find different wayt to put them together, alright? Yeah.

In other news, people who can't program should not act like they know anything about it. Just makes you look stupid.

 

[BerserkerBarage]

I'm sorry if this stuff has already been answered. I haven't been keeping up on this topic closely, and I didn't see the answers in the OP or video.

Do we know where in the timeline the events of Reach take place?

Is MC featured in this game? Was he that 'new guy' joining the squad in the trailer?

Chances are that MC won't be featured, but he certainly could be mentioned and shown as an auxiliary.

The battle of Reach, and the subsequent retreat is what leads up to the events of HaloCE. The Pillar of Autumn (ie the ship MC is on) takes a "blind" (not really if you followed Cortana's story) slipspace jump that lands them next to the first Halo ring.

From the buzz around the internets, the "New Guy" is a Spartan 3 when MC is a Spartan 2.

Hopefully that was clear.

~B.B.

 

[Mr. Sam]

Can't say I'd buy it - I've made a habit of not buying Halo games. I will play it for hours on end at a friend's house though. It's just how I roll.

 

[BlueScrote]

Errr... SpartanII > SpartanIII

We don't know anyway... my guess is that just one of those (the player) is a superior model Spartan II.

I was under the assumption (After reading Halo: Fall of Reach many many eons ago) that Spartan I, II, III, etc were named after the order the soliders were recruited to the program.

Talking about this makes me wish that the core Halo games did a better job explaining the fiction. The "extended" universe is very fleshed out, but you wouldn't be able to tell from just playing the core games.

Also, looks like they recruited ghost from MW2 into the spartan program :lol

EDIT: where is a good place to read up on the universe's fiction?

 

[NemesisPrime]

Which, if true, raises the question as to which armor the Lieutenant is using. Is it MJOLNIR armor or is it a souped up version of the SPI armor? If the leaked screenshots are any indication, then energy shielding will definitely play a role on a gameplay spectrum. I'm hoping for some elaboration, but knowing Bungie - we will, most likely, not receive it.

Spartan IIIs do not have Mjolnir armour, they have SPI armour. So if they are Spartan IIIs it will be configurable SPI. TBH they still look like SIIs to me and their armour looks MJolnir mostly.

 

[∀ Narayan]

Spartan IIIs do not have Mjolnir armour, they have SPI armour. So if they are Spartan IIIs it will be configurable SPI.

I know. I pretty much said exactly this in my post.

They look like SPARTAN-IIs to me as well. Probably just a second class of S2s.

 

[DrBo42]

I know. I pretty much said exactly this in my post.

They look like SPARTAN-IIs to me as well. Probably just a second class of S2s.

SPARTAN-IIIs weren't even in the field until after Reach if I remember correctly.

 

[NemesisPrime]

I know. I pretty much said exactly this in my post.

They look like SPARTAN-IIs to me as well. Probably just a second class of S2s.

Looks like we agree Hence my original post that this looks like SIIs.

Anyway.. I guess we will find out early 2010. I would prefer to play SIIs to be honest... that might give to option to team op with MC on some missions.

 

[Lostconfused]

SPARTAN-IIIs weren't even in the field until after Reach if I remember correctly.

Nope. Operation Torpedo took place several years before the battle of Reach. Almost all of the first group of Spartan IIIs died during that one.

Really?

There's a typo somewhere.

Yup some guy who read/copied the original press release, where it said that the main character is a Spartan III, made a typo.

 

[∀ Narayan]

SPARTAN-IIIs weren't even in the field until after Reach if I remember correctly.

"Didn't think anyone survived Pegasi sir."

If Jorge is talking about Pegasi Delta, then the possibility of the Lieutenant being a S3 is high. If Jorge is talking about another planet in the Pegasi system, then he's probably a S2.

Anyway.. I guess we will find out early 2010. I would prefer to play SIIs to be honest... that might give to option to team op with MC on some missions.

Most likely scenario is that this won't happen. See below.

The Master Chief is with Blue Team - whose mission is to board a space station orbiting Reach in order to destroy navigational data that could lead the Covenant to Earth.

 

[Metroidvania]

One thing i would like in reach is the option to turn off the HUD, that would be nice.

Skulls are likely to be your best friend in that case.

 

[Falagard]

NM, my sarcasm meter is off.

*edit* Actually no I can't tell if he's kidding or not, so I'm going to reply.

Guys, he's right. In my day to day programming I have about 20 indows open, and I copy paste from one window to another, all day long. It's like LEGO, you just find different wayt to put them together, alright? Yeah.

In other news, people who can't program should not act like they know anything about it. Just makes you look stupid.

If you're serious, please tell me your name so I know not to hire you, even as a junior programmer.

 

[Zeouterlimits]

Seems like I missed some fun over the past few pages.

:lol wow, fantastic job. :lol

 

[BerserkerBarage]

EDIT: where is a good place to read up on the universe's fiction?

I'd suggest kidnapping Cocop and Voc and making them explain everything in small but concise talks.

If that fails, you can try Halopedia LINK
Or HBO although I don't know what all Wu has in the form of outside the games.

~B.B.

 

[Philthy]

I just want to get on another Halo to be honest. That's all I want.

 

[feel]

THATS EXACTLY WHAT IM FUCKING GETTING AT.

NEW GAMES = BETTER GRAPHICS

DONT RUN AS GOOD ON SAME HARDWARE.

REALLY THAT HARD TO UNDERSTAND BRO?

You think this game will run better than Halo 3 did even tho it looks way fucking better...ON THE SAME 360 system?!

Most sequels to early gen games look much improved, and run about the same.

Spoiler

sorry about quoting this again, just wanted to use the gif really

So are all those characters in the trailer actual Spartans? seeing two of their faces seems rather odd to me, I always thought a spartan lost it's skin colour and looked slightly deformed from all the makings of a spartan.

I'm not big on Halo lore, but I think these (Spartan IIIs) are like lite Spartans, who didn't undergo the brutal training and augmentations in captivity most of their lives (like previous Spartans?), but are instead part of some kind of UNSC program to create Spartans faster. The big guy, Jorge, is a Spartan II, we don't see his face but he probably looks fucked up.

 

[Diablohead]

So are all those characters in the trailer actual Spartans? seeing two of their faces seems rather odd to me, I always thought a spartan lost it's skin colour and looked slightly deformed from all the makings of a spartan.

 

[J-Rod]

Cool, thanks folks. I feel like I understand the setting now.

 

[Chorazin]

Looks like we agree Hence my original post that this looks like SIIs.

Anyway.. I guess we will find out early 2010. I would prefer to play SIIs to be honest... that might give to option to team op with MC on some missions.

Considering MC is in space this entire time, I highly doubt that we will team up with the Chief no matter what Spartan class the LWG is.

I really hope maybe we hear reports of him attacking the space station though, that would be sweet.

 

[Lostconfused]

So are all those characters in the trailer actual Spartans? seeing two of their faces seems rather odd to me, I always thought a spartan lost it's skin colour and looked slightly deformed from all the makings of a spartan.

Well yeah they should be a lot more pale than that. But not necessarily deformed.

 

[DrBo42]

So are all those characters in the trailer actual Spartans? seeing two of their faces seems rather odd to me, I always thought a spartan lost it's skin colour and looked slightly deformed from all the makings of a spartan.

For the II's, yeah. I don't think the III's had anything that bad. But my memory has already failed me once.

 

[Slightly Live]

I'm sorry if this stuff has already been answered. I haven't been keeping up on this topic closely, and I didn't see the answers in the OP or video.

Do we know where in the timeline the events of Reach take place?

Is MC featured in this game? Was he that 'new guy' joining the squad in the trailer?

I know folks have already answered this, so I'm just re-alliterating.

The game takes place just before the opening of Halo CE.

Master Chief is not the main attraction of the game, you are stepping into the boots of a new character in the Halo universe. He wears Spartan armour, but nobody know his true identity just yet, for now we know him only as "Lone Wolf". He may be a Spartan III (different type of Spartan than Master Chief).

The recently trailer shows that "Lone Wolf" is the new sixth member of "Noble Team" - a team of what appears to be Spartans II's (like Master Chief). These Spartans and Noble Team are also new to the Halo universe (we haven't know about them until the latest trailer revealed them).

We already know the story of the Fall of Reach, we know how it ends. Reach falls, Master Chief escapes, seemingly the only Spartan to survive. However, we have never known Noble Team, we do not know their story and ultimately we do not know their fate.

Will Noble Team fall with Reach? Will other well known characters make an appearance?

We'll find out when we play it. =)

I will be adding an FAQ section to the newly re-designed OP very shortly.

 

[Amneisac]

Considering MC is in space this entire time, I highly doubt that we will team up with the Chief no matter what Spartan class the LWG is.

I really hope maybe we hear reports of him attacking the space station though, that would be sweet.

Master Chief Space Assault DLC 1 all sales records destroyed confirmed?

 

[∀ Narayan]

Master Chief Space Assault DLC 1 all sales records destroyed confirmed?

It would seriously be cool if Bungie went the episodic content route with Reach.

 

[Popeck]

This has already been linked & pasted here, but just to be sure:

Step into the boots of a Spartan III and prepare for the first look at “Halo: Reach,” the highly anticipated prequel to the “Halo” trilogy from acclaimed developer Bungie coming fall 2010. The very first “Halo: Reach” video had its worldwide debut last night during the Spike TV Video Game Awards by actress Tricia Helfer, offering gamers a taste of the story to come.

Taken from part of the game’s opening cinematic, the video provides the first look at the story of “Halo: Reach,” which introduces players to Noble Team, a squad of battle-hardened Spartan soldiers. “Halo: Reach” charts the story of Noble Team in their heroic stand to defend the planet Reach, its people and secrets against a ruthless assault by an alien collective known as the Covenant.

“Halo: Reach” is being published by Microsoft Game Studios and launches in the fall of 2010 exclusively on Xbox 360. The “Halo: Reach” multiplayer beta is coming spring 2010, which players can access exclusively through “Halo 3: ODST.”

http://gamerscoreblog.com/press/default.aspx

Of course it would be nice for Bungie to say something. Oh well, maybe in mid-January.

 

[Arpharmd B]

Console games generally tend to improve over the course of a generation as teams and studios get a better handle on the hardware and how to eke the best results out of it.

There are limits, of course, and this Reach trailer far surpasses the 360's limitations. As DigitalFoundry said, the trailer is likely rendered at a very high resolution with maxed-out AA/AF, then later scaled down to 720p. And there also may well be post-processing effects (film grain, additional blurring on edges) that will not be present in gameplay. Simply put, the clarity and crispness on the edges of things (there is no aliasing present, virtually none), and also the clarity and crispness of dynamic lighting/shadowing, is impossible on this or any other current-gen console, and on most PCs.

That's not to say Reach won't look better than Halo 3 (God, I'd be disgusted if it didn't), but it will not, indeed can not, look as good as it does in this "in-engine" cutscene.

I don't know about that. If you watch Resident Evil 5 cutscene it looks that good or better with similar iq. The 360 is certainly capable of that.

Most impressive parts to me were the animation and lighting. I'll admit, the shadows were a little to 'perfect', especially by 360 standards, but I remain optomistic. Honestly, I didn't believe Forza 3 looked as good as it did until I had the demo running in front of my eyes. And I still didn't believe what I was seeing lol.

I'm not going to say it wasn't "enhanced" a bit, but honestly Framework MT cutscenes look that good or better, even in untouched form.

 

[squidhands]

It would seriously be cool if Bungie went the episodic content route with Reach.

Reissuing a reconstructed Halo CE level at an episode? I'm in.

 

[∀ Narayan]

Reissuing a reconstructed Halo CE level at an episode? I'm in.

Yes, please.

 

[Zeouterlimits]

Reissuing a reconstructed Halo CE level at an episode? I'm in.

It's nice to want things.

Spoiler

:'(

 

[Kamaki]

Can't say I'd buy it - I've made a habit of not buying Halo games. I will play it for hours on end at a friend's house though. It's just how I roll.

Actually, I don't think you will.

 

[Exypher]

Am I right in assuming that all ODST copies will come with the Reach beta? I was thinking of picking it up right before the beta gets going, and would hate to miss out on it.

 

[Major Williams]

Spartan IIIs do not have Mjolnir armour, they have SPI armour. So if they are Spartan IIIs it will be configurable SPI. TBH they still look like SIIs to me and their armour looks MJolnir mostly.

The Spartan IIIs who were deployed en masse in GoO had SPI armor, yes. However, if there was a need for a lone S3 to join a group of Spartan-IIs for an important mission on Reach while the Covenant were attacking, I would think the UNSC would fit him with some spiffy new/used Mjolnir armor - hence why he was looking at his helmet in the Warthog in the beginning.

Seems plausible enough at least...

 

[Zeouterlimits]

Am I right in assuming that all ODST copies will come with the Reach beta? I was thinking of picking it up right before the beta gets going, and would hate to miss out on it.

You are indeed, it's not a code or anything, just the disk itself.

 

[Dabanton]

Am I right in assuming that all ODST copies will come with the Reach beta? I was thinking of picking it up right before the beta gets going, and would hate to miss out on it.

It does say 'limited time offer' on the box.

Wouldn't surprise me to see MS pull that offer two - three months before the Beta approches to build up more hype and anticipation.

Then let the hype and the impressions Build up the hype to breaking point then let people who brought ODST late, back in for the tail end of the beta.

 

[Exypher]

You are indeed, it's not a code or anything, just the disk itself.

Thanks for the answer, I'm sure it's been asked before but Halo threads tend to be huge. Perhaps the beta will cause a sales spike for ODST come spring.

EDIT:

It does say 'limited time offer' on the box.

Wouldn't surprise me to see MS pull that offer two - three months before the Beta approches to build up more hype and anticipation.

Then let the hype and the impressions Build up the hype to breaking point then let people who brought ODST late, back in for the tail end of the beta.

That would suck. How did this pan out with the Halo 3 beta?

 

[Diablohead]

They would be silly to not allow all the ODST's being sold for christmas into the beta, but look at how crackdown handled the h3 mp beta, all discs could access it even with that limited sticker on the box.

 

[Magni]

Can't say I'd buy it - I've made a habit of not buying Halo games. I will play it for hours on end at a friend's house though. If it were PC I'd probably pirate it though. It's just how I roll.

fixed and GTFO

I need another leak if we're not getting anything till late January :lol