Chronique:BWU 25/04/2008

Posted by Sketch at 4/25/2008 5:25 PM PDT

In spite of Luke's European Vacation, we managed to cobble together a brief batch of news to reduce the snooze.

Frankie writes:

Luke is in Europe, listening to Depeche Mode and being Emo, so the Weekly Update is not its usual lusty self today, but that does not mean that nothing’s happening in Bungie Land.

You may have noticed some hubbub earlier this week as Microsoft posted several job descriptions aimed at building up a new internal Halo development team within MGS. The initial speculation was that this project was actually the long awaited yet highly mysterious Halo/Peter Jackson game (rumored to have been dubbed "Chronicles") that was first announced nearly two years ago. This was confirmed by MS who said the following:

"A Peter Jackson-helmed Halo project was announced at X06 in Barcelona,” said a Microsoft spokesperson. “Since then, Microsoft Game Studios has been hard at work collaborating with Peter Jackson and Bungie on the development of that project. At this time, it’s necessary to grow the internal team to keep pace with development. Bungie will continue to remain involved in multiple aspects of the Halo Universe with MGS."

So what does this all mean? In a nutshell, Microsoft is building a development team to work on future Halo game titles - the first one being collaboration with Peter Jackson. Just like the upcoming Halo Wars from Ensemble, this isn't "our" game. However, having worked with him already, we are possibly more excited than you are to see what someone of Peter Jackson’s imagination, talent and resources can bring to a Halo game experience. Bungie will, however, continue to remain very much involved in multiple aspects the Halo Universe as part of our ongoing relationship with Microsoft.

Meanwhile, we're damn busy ourselves with a variety of projects underway within the studio including one that you'll be hearing more about in the very near future. Now that we control our own destiny we also have other longer term, top secret plans afoot. The wait for that may be a tad longer though.

Bungie is still hiring too and we need talented people to join our ranks if we're to accelerate our march to world domination, and get all these cool projects out the door. You can find more information here.

How Not to Get Recon, Revisited, by Hieronymus J Shishka Esq.

I see I have your attention. Good! This is the first stop on the road to glory. However, it seems I need to clarify exactly what the situation is. I’ve received a lot of panicked messages from people who think I’m going to ban them from Recon because they asked for it a month ago, which is not the case. Let’s be clear; the people that get themselves on the list are the scum and villains that wretched hives are built to contain. Pestering me about Recon merely annoys me.

To be true, we’ve never been very clear on how to get Recon, or how not to get it. I’m going to resolve that issue right now.

To get Recon:

Do something that makes a big enough impression on Bungie and/or the Halo Community to make us think “Hey, this guy deserves Recon.” At that point Bungie will simply decide to award it, based on opinion and emotional feeling – NOT on any specific achievable criteria.

What doesn’t get you Recon:

• Asking for it, no matter how nicely (Or how rudely) you ask. No Live messages, no emails, no phone calls, no asking. Do NOT contact Bungie directly to ask for Recon under any circumstances.
• Matching with a Bungie employee and then killing them. Remember, if you see a flaming head in a game – the best thing to do is simply sacrifice yourself to them.
• Getting a film clip, screenshot, game or map variant into Bungie Favorites or Matchmaking.†
• Reaching General or level 50 in any playlist.
• Annoying the hell out of someone with Recon by chasing them around saying “Hey, wait! Hey, wait! Hey, wait!” instead of playing the game. This is not Zelda, and you are not Navi.

What gets you BANNED from Recon:

• Being caught using any of the standard methods of cheating.
• Getting a voice ban in matchmaking.
• Getting an upload ban for hosting inappropriate content in your file share.
• Being caught in your filthy lies like the shell of a human being you (hypothetically) are.

† It might, sure, but it’s certainly not a guarantee and likely won’t – so don’t make stuff for favorites if you just want Recon. And since we’ve been asked directly: No, getting a temporary QOS ban because you hosted some pretty laggy games with people on another continent isn’t going to get you banned from Recon. A short history of a few laggy games gives you the benefit of the doubt.

And I say this with all the vim, venom and vinegar I can muster when I point out that we can give you Recon, and we can also take it away. Play nice out there. Don’t sell it. Don’t blackmail people with it. Don’t do anything other than use it yourself. Okay?

May: Coming Soon to a Calendar Near You

May is just around the corner, and with it comes the May playlist update. The big ticket items of interest to most people are the establishment of a full-time SWAT playlist and a month full of Double EXP weekends. Just as a reminder to everyone, the Team SWAT playlist will be ranked, and will require Heroic and Legendary DLC. Further, with the exception of Grifball, future Weekend playlists will all require the latest DLC as well. The other item of note is that the skill matching threshold of Ranked Big Team Battle has been expanded to 15 from the range of 10 normally used, in an attempt to increase matchmaking frequency.

As always, I look forward to your comments and suggestions (assuming they’re worded well and are civil). If you have an idea for a Weekend playlist, a gametype for your favorite existing playlist, or any other piece of input, the best place to make it is in Optimatch here on Bungie.net.

Xbox.com, your destination for all things Xbox-related, is doing a neat community contest this week to promote the Legendary Map Pack. The details are below. And below them, something as tragic as it is adorable.

Play & Win Sweepstakes

Register your gamertag now and get ready for a whole weekend of fun and competition! From 12:01 A.M. (ET) on Friday, April 25 until 11:59 P.M. (ET) on April 27, you'll get an entry into the sweepstakes when you play a multiplayer Halo 3 match on one of the new Legendary Maps on Xbox LIVE®.

We've got some great Halo merchandise in the prize packages, like an ActionClix Scarab Vehicle Pack, action figures from MacFarlane Toys, replica laser tag Covenant Plasma Pistols, and lots more. Lots of collectible Halo merchandise is up for grabs.

You can also register for the sweepstakes by downloading the free Legendary Registration Gamer Picture from Xbox LIVE Marketplace.

Get more details on the Play & Win Sweepstakes.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Open only to legal residents of the 50 United States (includes the District of Columbia) and Canada 18+. Skill-testing question required for Canadian entrants. Game ends April 27, 2008. For details including free, alternate method of entry, see the Official Rules.