Chronique:Halo Bulletin 12/12/2012

12 Décembre

Original

Tis the Season

People assume I enjoy the holidays because of the overabundance of seeds nestled in shells. While I think they are delicious when roasted over an open fire and the ballet version is more than worth the two-hour time investment (not to mention that the act of gently bouncing them against a lifeless opponent's face is oddly satisfying), there's more to December than just nuts. In fact, the following things all happened in just the last 12 days:

• Some Seahawks stopped by the studio to play everybody's favorite virtual sport, and after several games, they proved they know their way around balls, whether they are of the foot or Grif variety. (It's also worth noting that after visiting the studio, the Seahawks went on to score an uncontested all-time franchise record against Arizona. Coincidence? I think not.)

• DJ Skee wanted to check out the Crimson Map Pack so he came to the studio and decided to stop dropping beats long enough to instead drop some lead… directly into our faces.

• Jen Taylor (and Steve Downes, in spirit) joined us for the 2012 Child's Play Dinner Auction, helping us raise more than $15,000 from our numerous Halo-themed lots. The proceeds from this event go toward improving the lives of children with toys and games in over 70 hospitals worldwide.

While I could go on and on about the aforementioned festivities, I will instead let the following picture, which was a silent auction item from this year's Child's Play Dinner Auction, speak for itself. I would ask if you're jealous of its proud new (343) owner but let's face it: There's no way you couldn't be. 'Cause it's just that awesome.

Now, we have a lot to talk about in not a lot of time so whad'ya say we cut the chit-chat and get straight to the news? I know, I know. You thought I'd never ask!

Weekend Award Wrap-up

Last Friday at the VGAs, amidst sharply dressed gamers and numerous world premiere videos, we released a trailer for Spartan Ops Episodes 6-10. The second half of Spartan Ops Season 1 returns on January 21, and while you can't get hands-on with the all-new environments and locales yet, you can watch a special version of the original trailer by pressing play on the above video.

That night Halo 4 had the honor of walking away with two different awards and since then, a few more virtual medals have been pinned to our collective chest. Below are the awards Halo 4 took home over the weekend.

• VGAs – Best Xbox 360 Game

• VGAs – Best Graphics

• GamesRadar – Shooter of the Year

• Inside Gaming Awards – Best Sound Design

• Inside Gaming Awards – Best Competitive Multiplayer

• Inside Gaming Awards – Game of the Year

We continue to be overwhelmed at the response to Halo 4. In the whole scheme of things, though, if you are enjoying our game, that's all that matters to us. So thank you to those of you traversing our virtual battlefields. We wouldn't want to make this journey without you.

Next Week's Matchmaking Playlist Update

The Halo 4 Infinity Challenge starts in five days. Localized registration sites opened this morning so regardless of what region you call home, head on over to the official Halo 4 Infinity Challenge site and sign up today. Go ahead, I'll wait…

While some of you are completing the registration process, I'll go ahead and talk to the rest of you about the prizes that are up for grabs in this free-to-enter tournament. There are two grand prizes - a UNSC-themed, V8-powered 2013 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor truck and an appearance in a future Halo game - and more than 2,800 smaller prizes. Since the truck has garnered the most interest thus far, here is some additional information about this Halo-themed real life vehicle that may one day be yours.

Already packed with premium features, such as front and rear-view cameras, remote keyless entry, and a 10-speaker 700W Sony audio system, our 2013 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor has been further reimagined to live in the fiction of Halo. It was given a custom paint job that matches the style of the UNSC, and we are adding custom exhaust with electric cutouts, twin rear entertainment screens and an Xbox.

Here is a handy-dandy list of all the features:

• Exterior matte olive paint with flat black trim
• Ride leveling kit
• 18" custom Halo wheels
• 35" tires
• Exhaust with electric exhaust cut outs
• Raised hood vents
• UNSC grille
• UNSC front push bar with LEDs
• Bed roll cage with spare tire holder
• Gas can and mounts in bed
• Color-match spray-in bed liner
• Interior two-tone seats with rugged military look
• Painted trim and chrome to look like bare metal
• Wrap steering wheel and swap Ford logo to UNSC
• Diamond plate sill plates on all four doors
• Custom rubber floor mats
• Mobile hotspot
• UNSC graphics on start-up screen
• Xbox 360 integration
• Roush supercharger engine

If you are wondering why the Halo 4 Infinity Challenge information is in the "Next Week's Matchmaking Playlist Update" section of the Bulletin, here is your answer: Matchmaking playlist updates from December 17 to January 19 (the duration of the tournament) will focus on the Halo 4 Infinity Challenge. Each week of the Infinity Challenge, there will be a featured playlist for you to compete in. Infinity Slayer will be kicking off the festivities, so dust off your loadouts and prepare your D-pad for some serious ordnance action.

To get to our preferred number of playlists, we will be removing Team Slayer Pro on Monday. We plan to bring it back next year, after we have time to fine-tune it and make it a more optimal competitive experience. We'll talk more about that when the time gets closer - and that goes for Double Team, Grifball, the addition of more small maps into Matchmaking and the other things we have planned for early 2013 as well.

Many of you have been asking about our design philosophies as they pertain to Halo 4 Matchmaking, so continue reading if you'd like some insight into that particular subject.