Chronique:BWU 30/01/2009

Posted by urk at 1/30/2009 3:50 PM PST

Fresh off last week's comprehensive Halo 3: ODST intelligence dump, we're dialing back the briefings once again to the tiny trickle of information you've become accustomed to. Those who clamored for the one-off update to end all updates might find that their once-full canteen could have been slowly supped during the long and bleak walk through a desert that now stretches to the blinding horizon. Fall is a long way off.

But do not despair. We're going to drop a few waypoints from time to time to guide you along your journey. Points of interest to hold you over as you place one foot after the other along your dogged march into uncharted lands. We'll use the shade of these small oases to provide you, our loyal, wayfaring travelers, with as much respite as we can as you trudge along with us, heading forward unto dawn.

Daybreak looms on the horizon.

Mythic Map Pack Mirage[modifier]

You might find one of those shaded sanctuaries in Halo 3's Mythic Map Pack, set for initial release this Spring bundled with the Halo Wars Limited Collector's Edition, and then a short time later by way of Xbox Live Marketplace as standalone downloadable content. By now, you've probably laid eyes on the Xbox.com Newsflash which comes saddled with the first official Sandbox screenshot (now in our gallery and embedded below).

Though the verbiage included is light on the specifics you've been demanding for so long, keep in mind this is only the opening salvo. Between now and March, there's plenty more to come. We're bringing our MAC cannons online and we're targeting next week.

From the press release:

"Sandbox combines large-scale vehicular combat with a limitless amount of Forge customization. Boasting a tiered, open-world layout, "Halo 3" players will be able to build their own unique game experiences using the Forge map editor. Sandbox is a map unlike any Bungie has ever created."

Consider this the popping of the lid.

Though you may feel as though you've been condemned to stand chin-deep in cool, refreshing waters your lips can never touch, sweetly-scented orbs of fruit dangling overhead ever out of reach, the cruel torment will end soon enough. The mythical tantalizing will fade away like sand after a windstorm, becoming nothing more than a distant memory.

The Mythic Map Pack is no mirage. It's real, and it's spectacular.

Halo 3: ODST[modifier]

No grand exposition on skyboxes, decorators, or visual aid treatments this week, but development continues posthaste on Halo 3: ODST. But don't let the root word "haste" color any of your perceptions. Though the team is busily busting out new and better builds at a blistering pace, Halo 3: ODST's development remains as focused as ever. An internal countdown hangs over the studio proper to demonstrate just how confident Jones and his team are that they can predict precisely when they'll reach the next internal milestone.

And while we're not at liberty to provide details, or even vague hints, about what this digitally descending timer ultimately denotes, or even when whatever it is charting comes to a close, we can say with confidence that the crimson counter offers an optimistic view of Halo 3: ODST's progression. Things are moving along like clockwork.

But stop right there.

Just one second, please. We know where your own mind's machinery is going to take this new and ambiguous information. You're thinking to yourself that this counter and subsequent bravado associated must mean that Halo 3: ODST is set to see an early release. We're not saying that. In fact, even the least astute observers among us will recall that the release of Halo 3: ODST has yet to be marked with an official date. There's nothing so solid attached to this secret and mysterious clock. Internal use only.

Continue to set your own internal expectations for Fall 2009. That's the time frame we're targeting. That's the time frame you should continue to expect.

IDENT PROC 13262.0 MBARAKI.2552

The "unseen thing" we described in last week's update is now in full view in the sky over New Mombasa. Its hollow core reveals a dark chasm broken only by the coils of energy and vapor. Electricity ripples upward along a concentric framework before dissipating into a bruised sky.

Back on the ground, a small grotto and a series of stone pillars tells a story we're reserving for another day.

Alas, Poor Yorick[modifier]

It seems our recent updates are incomplete without a small modicum of dream crushing. We apologize, but we're forced to stand on principle. It is the way of the world.

Like the court jester that this section's heading pays homage to, the "Pimp Chieftains" of previous update fame are no more. Though the hairy apes were indeed, "fellows of infinite jest," they are now nothing more than a distant memory - a bug in a build long since put out to pasture. If "to be or not to be?" is the question, the answer, my dear unfortunate friend, remains unchanged since it was immortalized by Bill Shakespeare's quill. The Pimp Chieftain has shuffled off this mortal coil.

No videos were taken immemorial. No screenshots snapped to mark their passing. The only soliloquy to be offered is one of mere words.

Last week you wept for the Elites. Now grieve for your pimps. As with all our losses, we must mark how fragile and brief our moments really are. In a way, we all have a digital timer hanging above our heads. How morbid.

Da Player[modifier]

giv me recon armor and flaming helmets
Posted by Anonymous User (Deleted) at 1/27/2009 7:09 PM PST

"please giv it to me im da player u want to giv it to."

Dear Anonymous User,

We regret to inform you that your request has been denied. After careful consideration, we have decided that though your application was both thorough and concise, we cannot distribute either the Recon armor variant, nor the flaming chest armor typically reserved for Bungie staff.

We would also like to take a moment to thank you for writing in to us via our Submit News applet. By the time this communication reaches you, you should have already received your reward. Enjoy your vacation.

Love,

Bungie

And with that, we're once again off into the weekend sunset.