Halo Waypoint, the new virtual home for all things “Halo,” launches today on Xbox LIVE, and will be the exclusive destination for full-episode previews of “Halo Legends” beginning Saturday, Nov. 7. Available for “Halo” fans worldwide following a successful preview period, Halo Waypoint brings all the richness of the “Halo” universe together in one place.
Halo Waypoint features daily updates of fresh, exciting content such as developer interviews, trailers and screenshots, exclusive video footage, community activities and the latest “Halo” news.
In addition, Halo Waypoint includes an innovative career system that tracks players’ accomplishments across multiple “Halo” games and gives them new ways to show off their heroic gameplay feats. By downloading and “enlisting” in Halo Waypoint, players will be rewarded with a variety of Bungie-created “Halo 3: ODST” Avatar Awardables for attaining specific Achievements in the game. Rewards vary from stylish T-shirts to full sets of ODST armor. The experience is retroactive, so if players have already unlocked the requisite Achievements, the awards will be ready for them once they enlist in Halo Waypoint.
Players can unlock the following Achievements to gain access to “Halo 3: ODST” Avatar Awardables.
Halo Awardables
Achievement Title: Tourist
Achievement Description: Accessed and downloaded the city map to your VISR.
Achievement Awardable: ODST Black T-shirt
Achievement Title: Dark Times
Achievement Description: Killed 5 enemies while using VISR mode.
Achievement Awardable: ODST hoodie
Achievement Title: Campaign Complete: Normal
Achievement Description: Completed the Campaign on Normal difficulty.
Achievement Awardable: ODST Rookie Helmet
Achievement Title: Good Samaritan
Achievement Description: Killed no Engineers in the city at night during entire campaign, alone or with another ODST.
Achievement Awardable: ODST Full Body Armor
Achievement Title: Vidmaster Challenge: Endure
Achievement Description: In Firefight, on any mission, pass the 4th Set on 4-player Heroic LIVE co-op
Achievement Awardable: ODST Dare Helmet (Female)
Achievement Awardable: Recon Helmet (Male)
As a bonus for enlisting to Halo Waypoint, fans will receive a Monitor accessory for their Avatars modeled after the “Halo” character, 343 Guilty Spark. The Monitor will help fans find their way around Halo Waypoint, the new destination for all things “Halo” on Xbox LIVE.
The rollout of exciting new “Halo” content doesn’t stop there. This Saturday, the first preview episode of the highly anticipated anime series, “Halo Legends,” will debut only on Halo Waypoint. Set to be distributed in early 2010 by Warner Home Video, the rich anthology of anime short films will tell all-new stories in the epic “Halo” saga.
Written and created by an array of renowned anime studios and produced by 343 Industries, “Halo Legends” will explore never-before-told stories based on themes and characters in the vast “Halo” universe. Sponsored by the U.S. Air Force, previews of four new “Halo Legends” episodes will be available only on Halo Waypoint during 24-hour live-streaming events on Xbox LIVE over the next three months.
The first “Halo Legends” preview episode, “The Babysitter,” is created by famed anime house STUDIO4˚C, and follows the story of a group of ODST’s who reluctantly accept a Spartan sniper into their strike team. As they embark on a perilous mission to assassinate a high-ranking Covenant Prophet, old rivalries must be reexamined if the mission is to succeed. Watch what happens as the mission progresses into hostile territory, and both the Spartan and the ODST’s discover something important about the other.
Following each preview episode on Xbox LIVE, fans will receive exclusive behind-the-scenes looks at each studio’s creative process through “making of” specials. Below is the current broadcast schedule of upcoming “Halo Legends” live-streaming events (subject to change):
Episode Airing Date (24-hour)
- Introduction to “Halo Legends” 11/05/09
- “The Babysitter” 11/07/09
- Making of “The Babysitter” 11/14/09
- “The Duel” 11/21/09
- Making of “The Duel” 11/28/09
- “The Package” Part 1 12/5/09
- Making of “The Package” 12/12/09
- “The Package” Part 2 12/19/09
- Making of ‘The Package” 12/26/09
- “Origins” Part 1 1/2/10
- Making of “Origins” 1/9/10
- Trailers of upcoming episodes 2/2/10
To learn more about “Halo Legends,” visit http://halolegends.com and http://halolegendsdvd.com. For the latest updates on the “Halo” franchise, follow the Halo Waypoint Twitter @HaloWaypoint or visit the Halo Waypoint Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/HaloWaypoint.
According to Bungie's latest stats, you and about 2,533,978 of your closest friends have already cooperatively played through 47,000,000 online games.
"Some new numbers made it out onto the interweb this week that chart the sales progress of our latest little title, Halo 3: ODST. Word is that it's already reached a tremendously stupendous tally of 2.5 million copies sold. When Miller said it was dropping into all stores, everywhere, turns out he wasn't kidding around.
According to our online stats page, you and about 2,533,978 of your closest friends have already cooperatively chewed though a thoroughly frightening forty seven million online games. You've collectively banded together to purge the galaxy of over one billion Brutes and over 1.5 billion Grunts. You, dear friends, are a freakishly-focused and digitally genocidal conglomeration of alien exterminatin' maniacs. The Covenant ain't got nothin' on you. We're just glad that you're on our side.
We're also glad you're playing. Great news like this reminds the hardworking men and ladies on the Bungie team why they do what they do. Thanks for picking up our game."
The guys over at Games.On have just published a interview with Modern Warfare 2's lead multiplayer designer Todd Alderman in which he talks about bringing Halo 3 like video sharing options to MW2 as DLC amongst a lot of other matchmaking, default class and other information.
Modern Warfare 2 is undisputedly the most anticipated game of 2009. We were lucky enough to get an invite to Hollywood, Los Angeles, to get some hands-on time with the multiplayer half of the game, where we caught up with lead designer Todd Alderman. As expected, the online part of the game is amazing: a true evolution of what we experienced in the original and without a doubt the must-own frag-fest of the year. We hit Todd up with a few questions about matchmaking, Aussie lag issues and video sharing. Here is what he had to say.
games.on.net: So, this is your baby? I’ve just been playing the hell out of it, it’s awesome!
Todd Alderman: Yes it is my baby, and thank you.
games.on.net: I have a concern though about the disparity between gamers that are about to play for the first time versus those that have levelled through the unlock system. With all these new features how do you ensure newcomers can come in and be competitive and not just be the cannon-fodder for dudes with red-dot sights and all the perks?
TA: The first way we do it is by ensuring the matchmaking system is good. When we matchmake, we match you with players of your skill. So when it is your first time playing online you will be playing against people who, for the most part, are enjoying their first online game as well. We try to find people who are like you.
Another thing we do is give the default classes a lot of stuff that you wouldn’t normally unlock until later. So every default class is a super pro version of that class. They are simply there so you can compete and have things that other people have, but which you might not get for a while in the create-a-class option. You can use these to level-up. For example, one of the classes has the new Tactical Insertion equipment option (a brilliant new device that allows you to mark your next spawn point) which you do not unlock for a while, but new players can experience it straight away.
You might not know what it is at first, but when you see guys spawning all over the place you’ll start wondering, ‘why does that guy get to spawn wherever he wants, that’s not fair, how did he get that?’ That is definitely a big change we’ve made from the last game: everything that was in the default class last game is unlocked as you progress this game. We actually went to our resident pro players that are really, really good and gathered this great information. They told us what they used and why they used it, and helped us define which default class load-out would work best across all game rules.
Click the read more link if you are on the 360-HQ homepage to view the entire interview from games.on
So there you have it gamers, from the horse’s mouth. It’s particularly interesting that a video sharing feature may be added via DLC down the track. While the lack of an option to region select is worrying, Infinity Ward believe their new matchmaking will make this a non-issue, and hopefully their Aussie employee will raise the alarm if necessary. Later on in the game session we managed to catch up with the networking lead for a casual chat about many things including the X Server, and he expressed enthusiasm about looking into it as a possible option for territories like Australia. We’ll keep you updated if we hear anything more.
Here is the latest report on Xbox 360 LIVE Activity for the week of September 21st, 2008. This includes Xbox Live & 360-HQ Xbox Live statistics combined.
Where we can, we will also display our own list of most played games on XBOX LIVE as tracked by the 360-HQ.com website with all LIVE Activity news..:)
The 360-HQ Xbox LIVE top 10 list is compiled automatically by our the HQ server which tracks each and every gamercard on our site and what game they are playing or have played most recently.
The list below are statistics from XBOX LIVE itself.. Read on..:)
Xbox 360 Top Live Titles
1. Halo 3
2. Halo 3: ODST
3. Call of Duty 4
4. Call of Duty: WaW
5. Gears of War 2
6. Forza 3 Demo (Download the demo)
7. Madden NFL 10 (Download the demo)
8. GTA IV
9. FIFA Soccer 10 Demo (Download the demo)
10. FIFA 09
The above arcade list is based on full versions purchased.
As always for more of the latest gaming info, screenshots, trailers & videos, cheats and much more check back to our site or download and install our FREE 360-HQ toolbar for Internet Explorer, Firefox and most other browsers..
TGS09: 'Project Natal' Awakens Imagination of Video-Game Industry - Here is the latest Project Natal Press Release from TGS09.
Xbox 360 today announced widespread enthusiasm from the world's leading video-game publishers for "Project Natal," a whole new way to play -- no controller required. Developers across the globe have embraced the technology and have begun work on titles that will deliver extraordinary entertainment experiences for everyone to enjoy. Coming just three months after "Project Natal" was unveiled at E3, the announcements at the Tokyo Game Show underscore the swift industry support for the revolutionary controller-free experiences being developed exclusively for Xbox 360, the premier games and entertainment system.
Among the elite publishers actively working on games for "Project Natal" are Activision Blizzard, Bethesda Softworks, CAPCOM, Disney Interactive, Electronic Arts, Konami, MTV Games, Namco Bandai, Sega, Square Enix, THQ Inc. and Ubisoft. Together, these publishers account for more than 70 percent of third-party software sales for this generation of console and most of the world's most recognized video game franchises.
"'Project Natal' gives the industry's creators and storytellers the freedom to dream of new experiences and to tell stories never before possible," said Don Mattrick, senior vice president for the Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft Corp. "The support of these creative partners testifies to the excitement that 'Project Natal' is generating among the most innovative minds in the industry, and is proof that Xbox 360 not only offers the best games and entertainment today, but will lead with innovation and new ways to have fun in the future."
Further details of publishers' new "Project Natal"-inspired projects will be released at a later date.
Underscoring the widespread enthusiasm for "Project Natal" among the industry's top creative forces, Xbox 360 is hosting a high-powered panel at the Tokyo Game Show featuring three acclaimed Japanese industry luminaries: CAPCOM's Keiji Inafune, creator of "Mega Man" and "Dead Rising," Sega's Toshihiro Nagoshi, creator of "Super Monkey Ball," and Konami's Hideo Kojima, creator of the "Metal Gear Solid" series. The three developers will discuss the possibilities for the groundbreaking new experiences that can only be achieved with "Project Natal."
Unveiled for the first time in June, "Project Natal" is a code name for a whole new way to play. Combining an RGB camera, depth sensor and multi-array microphone running proprietary software, "Project Natal" enables gamers to play in a natural and inviting new way, free from the boundaries of a controller through the use of sight, sound and motion.
Publishers, who received development kits from Microsoft in early June, used the opening of the Tokyo Game Show to voice their excitement about "Project Natal."
"Microsoft 'Project Natal' could fundamentally change the way players experience sports games," said EA Sports President Peter Moore. "At EA, some of our top development teams are experimenting with these tools with the goal of delivering a completely fresh take on genres like sports and racing."
"Activision is encouraged by the innovation that Project Natal will bring to the industry and how it can transform consumers' video games experience. We have development teams working on Project Natal development kits to explore the creative possibilities this new technology affords," said Dusty Welch, senior vice president and head of Publishing at Activision/Blizzard.
"I strongly feel that 'Project Natal' will expand the possibilities of gaming. It's yet another component that adds to the appeal of Xbox 360 and demonstrates to users the broad level of entertainment it provides," said Keiji Inafune, managing corporate officer and head of Research & Development Management Group at CAPCOM. "Personally, I too am extremely excited about 'Project Natal.' It's really going to stir up our creative spirits. I think it's going to bring new ways to play and new surprises to Xbox 360 fans and help further the development of completely original content. 'Project Natal' is definitely something people should look out for."
"Ubisoft sees enormous opportunities with 'Project Natal.' With the 3-D camera, your body can become the interface," said Yves Guillemot, chief executive officer of Ubisoft. "Any barrier related to the use of pad controllers that may have existed for potential gamers is now abolished. Ubisoft is already taking advantage of this major evolution to design new types of gaming experiences and attract more people to play video games."
In addition to the broad industry support, Microsoft Game Studios is busy at work creating a diverse slate of experiences that will appeal to a wide variety of entertainment interests.
"'Project Natal' is enabling our team of developers to create experiences we couldn't have accomplished before," said Phil Spencer, corporate vice president, Microsoft Game Studios. "Microsoft Game Studios will help lead the way in bringing 'Project Natal' to life."
While laying the foundation for tomorrow with "Project Natal," Xbox 360 remains the premier device for home entertainment today. Hot new titles for Xbox LIVE Arcade were also unveiled at the Tokyo Game Show, including "Toy Soldiers," "Snoopy Flying Ace," "Bomberman Live: Battlefest" and "RayStormHD," positioning Xbox LIVE Arcade as the premier destination to enjoy the most innovative downloadable games.
Xbox 360 is also set to deliver the best new gaming, entertainment and social experiences for consumers this fall. Not only is Xbox 360 home to the most-anticipated exclusive games such as "Halo 3: ODST," "Forza Motorsport 3," "Left 4 Dead 2," and new content from Rockstar Games including the Xbox retail exclusive "Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City" featuring "The Ballad of Gay Tony," which will also be available for download over Xbox LIVE, it will also be the only place to watch instant-on HD in 1080p1 with Zune video, and listen to personalized streaming radio right in the living room with Last.fm on Xbox LIVE. And with new social experiences custom-made for the television, Xbox LIVE continues to offer the most ways of any console to connect and share with friends and family on Facebook, and post tweets on Twitter.2
Additional information about Xbox 360 at the Tokyo Game Show can be found at http://www.xbox.com/en-us/press/2009/tgs.
“Halo 3: ODST” Releases Worldwide, Marking Bold New Chapter for Critically Acclaimed “Halo” Franchise.
The latest addition to the blockbuster Xbox 360 series delights fans and critics alike with a gripping new story and riveting cooperative multiplayer gameplay
The wait is finally over. Today, a new chapter in the legendary “Halo” saga opens up with the highly anticipated launch of “Halo 3: ODST.” After finishing the fight with Master Chief in “Halo 3,” players now have the opportunity to take a step back in time and experience the “Halo” universe from a whole new perspective.
Last night, more than 7,000 retail stores in the United States and a host of retailers in other countries opened their doors at midnight to usher in a flood of fans who sought to be the first to play the critically acclaimed title. Launch festivities were capped off with a “Halo” franchise celebration at the Experience Music Project | Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame in Seattle, where Bungie and 343 Industries luminaries were on hand to meet and greet fans and celebrate the launch together.
Xbox 360 exclusive “Halo 3: ODST” is already winning critical acclaim from the nation’s top media outlets. Here’s what they are saying about the game:
“The best Halo game yet,” and “An action-packed thrill ride from start to finish.”
--Game Pro
“It's part Blade Runner, part Saving Private Ryan, and yet in the end it's still definitely Halo.”
--1UP.com
“ODST is simply an excellent game.”
--G4TV’s X-Play
With “Halo 3: ODST,” developer Bungie takes the “Halo” franchise into all new territory. Players are put in the boots of an Orbital Drop Shock Trooper, some of the toughest and bravest soldiers of the UNSC. Players must search for clues to find out what happened to their squad when a drop into the city of New Mombosa goes wrong, and discover the secret behind the Covenant’s interest in the city.
In addition to a full-fledged campaign, “Halo 3: ODST” introduces Firefight, a new cooperative multiplayer mode where up to four players battle waves of unrelenting Covenant onslaughts. The game also introduces three new “Halo 3” competitive multiplayer maps and contains the complete, standalone “Halo 3” multiplayer experience on a second disc. “Halo 3: ODST” will also act as a key to entry into the “Halo: Reach” multiplayer beta at a later date.
The “Halo” franchise is an award-winning collection of properties that have grown into a global entertainment phenomenon. Beginning with the original “Halo: Combat Evolved” for Xbox in 2001, the rich fiction of the franchise has since inspired a series of blockbuster Xbox and Xbox 360 video games, New York Times best-selling novels, comic books, action figures, apparel and more.
Published by Microsoft Game Studios, the “Halo” franchise of games is exclusive to the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system and the games are optimized for the Xbox LIVE online entertainment network. To date, more than 27 million copies of “Halo” games have been sold worldwide, driving more than 2 billion hours of gameplay by people connected to Xbox LIVE.
To keep abreast of the latest “Halo” news, follow the Halo Waypoint Twitter @HaloWaypoint. You can also learn more by visiting the Halo Waypoint page at http://www.facebook.com/HaloWaypoint. For more information about Bungie, visit www.bungie.net.
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