Halo 3

The departure of Bungie is just about the worst possible news that Microsoft could have received.

Forget about Microsoft retaining the rights to the Halo IP and Bungie continuing to make games for Microsoft.

Microsoft no longer has the power to order up Halo games at will from Bungie.

Bungie now has the freedom to say "no" when the Halo request comes over the transom.

What's more, how long will it take for a Bungie game to show up on a Nintendo or Sony platform with the words "From the creators of Halo" on the cover?

No matter how this gets spun -- and expect Microsoft to spin faster than a hula hoop on this announcement -- this is a terrible outcome for Microsoft.

The only way it could get worse is if Bungie gets bought by Sony or Nintendo.

After all, while Microsoft says it will be retaining an equity interest in Bungie, it's obviously no longer a controlling interest.

So there's nothing to stop Sony or Nintendo from stepping in and doing what Microsoft did when it bought Rare, which was until then a Nintendo-centric developer.

What a colossal, nearly-unmitigated disaster for Microsoft.

Now I'm starting to get excited about the movie.

Here's a screenshot I grabbed from my playthrough of the final campaign level on Halo 3.

Pretty cool stuff.

Well, if any of Microsoft's sites were working today, you could officially see that yesterday's 'Halo 3' launch raked in $170 million for the big M (strangely, that's the same amount of money Victor and Marc make every 24 hours (VICTOR COMMENT: Ha! Tell that to my withering bank account.)(MARC COMMENT: Strangely none of that income comes from Punchbutton...hmmmm).

Since you may not be able to read the info here, try C-Net's story here!

VICTOR UPDATE: I've added the official news release from Microsoft after the jump.

Continue reading "It's official. The launch of 'Halo 3' was the biggest 24 hours in entertainment history" »

I, unlike my blogging brethren, have to buy my own games... only on their official release dates. I get to stand in line for hours with a bunch of people that embarrass me and make me ashamed I love video games so much. So, only now, can I express my feelings about my last 24 hours with 'Halo 3.'

The game makes me sad.

Why am I sad? Because it's almost over. It's end of Seinfeld, the end of Harry Potter, the end of Star Wars, the end of the Lord of the Rings...it's the end of probably the most anticipated game, ever.

At the conclusion of the fourth chapter, Master Chief stands at the edge of a vast crater and the familiar 'Halo' piano passage plays and, wow, I was really emotionally moved. NO video game has every done that to me.

Don't get me wrong, I'm completely enjoying the game so far (I've just wrapped up Chapter 6 of 9), there's just the overwhelming feeling that it will be ending far too soon. That's also why at the end of each segment, I have to shut down the 360 and take an hour break... just to draw it out a little more.

Sigh.

Here are some random thoughts I've had about the game so far:

• The Legendary Edition, which I purchased, is absolutely HUGE. The planet-sized box is almost a big as the Halo Xbox. But, at least MY discs weren't scratched.
• (Start spoiler) Chapter 3. It's the equivalent of a racing game with reversed and mirrored tracks. You play the level forward, you then backtrack through the level and then you play it again... and it all looks exactly the same (end spoiler).
• The Warthog-toss game on the supplemental disc is strangely addictive.
• The graphics are amazing. I've read reviews complaining about the look of 'Halo 3' and I keep asking myself, "what game are you playing?"
• Ripping guns off turrets is the greatest joy I've had in a FPS in a long time. Wicked cool!
• The music is the best original score I've heard in years. I really equate game music to aural wallpaper... but here, it is totally a character in the game and it truly powers each level.
• I really want to find the 13 skulls hidden in the game.
• I still can't comprehend the supernatural skills of online players. Why can't I be that good?!
• Victor is right, the flame-thrower is jaw-dropping good. It's like recreating John Carpenter's "The Thing" over and over again.
• (Spoiler start) The journey into the Flood's ship is the creepiest thing I have ever seen in a video game. The claustrophobia is staggering; and, even though nothing really happens, my heart was in my throat the entire time (spoiler end).

Can this really be the end of 'Halo' FPS games? I know 'Halo Wars' is on the horizon, but will it really continue the passion that was felt in these last three games?

Double sigh.

Couldn't they at least get him a Spartan Laser to tote up there? We'd get this mortgage meltdown solved in a hurry.

It's here. Please contain your excitement.

That didn't take long.

Microsoft is now offering to replace for free any scratched Limited Edition Halo 3 discs.

The free replacement deal runs through Dec. 31. Just fill out the form and mail it back with your scratched disc.

You will have to wait two weeks to get the disc back, though.

From what I've been reading, most retailers seem to be aware of the problem and are simply offering replacement discs on the spot. So I'd try that before waiting a fortnight for a new disc to show up via snail mail.

Also, Microsoft, what the heck is going on in quality control? This is the biggest software launch in the gaming division's history, and the limited edition box was apparently designed by blind children. Good job!

So you haven't slept since Sunday, you were up all last night plowing through the entire Halo 3 campaign on legendary difficulty, and your thirst for Halo rages on.

Well, have you considered the Halo ActionClix game?

Each $10 pack contains four miniature Halo figurines, vehicles and weapons, four stat cards, a set of dice so small that you might have to worry about accidentally inhaling them, and a paper map.

I'm not much of a tabletop gamer myself, but the little figurines are kind of cool, and might be worth the 10 bucks just to complete your Halo shrine.

Additional cell phone pics after the jump.

Continue reading "Halo ActionClix tabletop game" »

When I got my Limited Edition copy of Halo 3 on Saturday, I noticed that the game disc was rattling around loose inside the box.

The plastic nub intended to hold the disc in place wasn't working, and I assumed it was just a problem with my copy. The disc itself looked (and played) fine.

But I was chatting with fellow Punchbutton blogger Marc Kravitz, and he said his limited edition was equally defective and his game disc was scratched (though still playable).

Uh oh.

Now comes word that the problem may be fairly widespread.

So far, there don't seem to be any reports of discs scratched so badly that they're unplayable, and neither the standard nor legendary editions seem to be affected.

But you might want to check your disc before you leave the store.

Yes. Yes, it did.

And my PR-meister at Nintendo called it almost to a T.

He was so clairvoyant that I kind of wonder if he popped the hood on the Halo car before the race and disconnected a heat sink or ventilation fan.

From my PR dude's self-congratulatory e-mail/victory lap:

Did the Wii car rock? Yes. Greg Biffle sped across the finish line just 0.0671 seconds behind the winner.

Did the Halo car fizzle out? Yes. Finished 39th of 43 with engine trouble.

...TexasGamer

Warning: I'm not very good (at least compared to the hard core players you see on Live), but I usually end the round with at least a few kills in my bag.

I also tend to make a lot of suicidal, one-man assaults on entrenched enemy positions.

Just remember: forewarned is forearmed!

My full review is running tomorrow, but after investing about 10 hours over the weekend in the game (I went to bed at 5 am this morning), I wanted to give you guys an early peek at my review.

Also, I wanted to beat Marc's review up onto the blog.

So, hah!

I think the best way to sum up my review is to list what I think will be the three stages of general reactions to this game: massive hype and excitement, then slight disappointment, and finally renewed appreciation and enjoyment.

You can't escape the hype, and it colors the way we all look at Halo 3 right now.

So we're expecting an epic entertainment experience, the greatest game of all time, and a life-changing dramatic tale all rolled into one.

Well, Halo 3 isn't that.

It's a lot of fun, already one of my favorite Xbox 360 games. But I don't know that it's necessarily better than Gears of War or Dead Rising or Oblivion or BioShock.

So I bet we'll hear some grumbling on the blogs soon after release, and it won't be long before the accepted wisdom is that the Halo franchise was always overrated.

But I'll also bet that, after the radioactive glow of Microsoft's hype campaign fades away, gamers will realize that Halo 3 is, warts and all, entertaining as hell.

My score: A-

I'll post a link to my full review once it's up on dallasnews.com.

UPDATE: Some Halo 3 screens after the jump, if you actually haven't had your fill yet.

Continue reading "Halo 3 -- better than Halo 2" »

Thanks to our friends at Microsoft, we just recieved our reviewable of HALO3. We're going to tear into the shrink wrap just as sooon as I hit the post button for this entry and run Master Cheif through his paces. Check back in the next few days for our Texas Gamer review.