Chronique:BWU 29/10/2004

Red Vs. Blue came in today. They're great. They're great in a way that works independently of Halo and Halo things. As a matter of fact, it troubles me sorely that they could up and leave us any time, and make their amusing pastiches of human foibles on some other game. Seriously. They're smart and talented enough to make Red Vs. Blue work on any game with pro and ant agonists. Conceivably, Red Vs. Blue could be done with Pac-Man and Blinky. Obviously it would be called Yellow Vs. Blue, but I digress.

They came in for a preview of what they can expect for future generations of the series. Think about that. They now have access to emblems, custom colored armor and even Covenant models. All the new levels and features might give them something to think about - like an explanation for the fan in Zanzibar...

Now, I can't pretend to know what they're going to do. All this new stuff might inspire them, or they might simply look for ways to hide it all. But what I do know, is that while they were positioning characters, working through script ideas and planning the next episode of the series, Cam, our marketing manager, blundered into their game and started sniping them. We somehow don't expect that footage to make it in there.

Mat Noguchi is bored. Which is roughly equivalent to a wasp being angry, or a pitbull being bitey in terms of its overall effect on a household. He wanders over here, on the hour, every hour, to announce that he has nothing to do. Normally Mat is in charge of tools for the game, which means he's up to his elbows in audio, engine and graphics code. Mat, as it turns out has a mind exactly like his desk - filled to the brim with everything he comes across. One unexpected bonus on that front is his knowledge of cool Halo 2 secrets. He showed us something on Old Mombassa that made us pee, just a little bit.

Mat, to sate his thirst for distraction from the boredom of an empty office, is going to be answering your questions either today, or early next week. That should be interesting.

Brian and I are still working on marketing and PR support. All those print ads, TV campaigns and magazine articles need information, and we're the gatekeepers for a lot of that. Which means that every time we check our email, somebody wants a 600 word description of something. Or a render. Or our blood plasma. And we give, generously.

We're also working on a heavy content schedule for the launch of the game. When a bunch of our online stat and clan features go live, we're expecting heavy traffic to the site and we want to be prepared. There are some neat features in stats - including one (and this could change before launch, guys) that lets you see what emblem you were wearing when your individual stats were recorded. Cool and useful.

Piracy and spoilers continue somewhat abated. Most players are either hiding from spoilers or doing their best to avoid accidentally seeing stuff they don't want to. We've had a couple of readers point out that they think the TV spot is full of spoilers, but we can assure you, it's not. There's a lot of teasers in there, but nothing to ruin a plot twist or surprise. It was carefully vetted and edited with that in mind, so feel free to go through it frame by frame if you like.

Halloween is coming, so our office is decked out all spooky by Amanda and Alta, the only two real adults in the studio. Now, as some of you may know, I'm foreign, so while we had Halloween in Scotland, it was a very minor business and there was no trick or treating. Not when I was a nipper, anyway. So when the children of Seattle get to my door and I hand out hot steaming morsels of fun-size Haggis, eat it up and you'll grow up to be pale and angry, just like me.

So, in this, the penultimate update before the game launches, we appreciate the spookier side of Mister Chief, and happy birthday to Shishka.