H3 Double Team Arrives, Ranked Big Team Goes Live

Last week in the Halo 3 Beta, we ushered Big Team Training into the fold and this week we're launching a ranked version of Big Team action. Additionally, we've added a nouveau classique to the Matchmaking Playlist -- Double Team Training. In Double Team Training, players will pair off and square off in 2v2 games of the Slayer and Skirmish variety. In case you've lost track of the Playlists during the truffle shuffle of adjustments and tweaks we've been making, here's the current breakdown:

Social Matches

* Big Team Training
* Double Team Training
* Team Training

Ranked Matches

* Team Slayer
* Big Team Battle
* Rumble Pit

Posted by lukems at 5/28/2007 11:23 AM PDT on Bungie.net

Gears of War Tournaments

I came across this site today, and think it could be the answer to our How Will We Keep Track of a tournament debate?

I would like to find some guys that are interested and try it out. It would be cool to practice and play with the same guys and get a good team goin.

What do yall think?

Check it out here

Halo 3 Killionaire

Look at these medals. I will never here most of these on my 360 but I thought it was a cool video to see.

Halo 3 Beta Code Confirms 4 Player Co-Op Over Xbox Live

Some of the secrets that Bungie hid into the Halo 3 beta are coming to light. Geeks are scrolling through code to reveal game secrets and new weapons.

Many of the 300,000 users that are currently playing the Halo 3 beta are skillful modders who over the last few days have been examining the beta's code. They have found references to unannounced weapons, new vehicles and game types but probably their most precious finding is the fact that Halo 3 will support up to four players co-op on Xbox Live and System Link.

Scrolling through the list of on-screen text for party menus, one sentence revealed the following:

The game cannot start because all players are set to observer. Too many players for splitscreen. Only 2 players may play splitscreen coop on the same Xbox 360 console. The party size is too large to start the game. Up to 4 players may play coop on Xbox Live or System Link. Loading information from Xbox Live…

Four player online coop? Can you say Legendary?

Red vs. Blue Halo 3 Beta

Halo 3 Service Tags

Read below. We need to decide on our UNSC Service Tag for our clan!!!! Any suggestions please put in comments.

Also for great Beta info click the link to this article. Loads of info from Bungie!

Raider X

Halo 3 Beta: Appearance and Identity

Posted by Frankie at 5/15/2007 1:43 PM PDT

As with Halo 2, the Halo 3 Public Beta allows you to customize your armor and emblem colors and appearance. In the shipping game, we’ll give you a lot more control over your appearance, but for now, we have implemented a simpler and easier to use color and emblem selection screen.

Customizing Armor

The armor customization screen gives you a simple and easily navigable way to adjust and customize your armor. Results are displayed immediately in a secondary window, so you can try out schemes to see if they're too your liking, or abandon them if they're too garish. Players should think about how visible their scheme makes them, and remember that in Team games, the Team color overrides your custom choice.

Colors are now easier to choose and you’ll see results instantly.

To choose a new hue for your Spartan (No Elite models in the Beta) simply press Start and go to the settings tab. From here, select “Appearance” and decide between “Emblem” and “Colors.” You can now play around with mixing and matching colors and emblems to get a combination you’re happy with. NOTE: You can’t change your color or appearance in-game. This must be done before you begin playing. It can however be done in the game’s various lobbies.

The emblem editor is just one of the ways you’ll customize your Spartan in Halo 3.

UNSC Service Tags

A new way to recognize team members in game, and more importantly, to recognize strangers who happen to be on your team, is the UNSC Service Tag. This is a simple three digit code that the player chooses to identify him or herself. An example would be “M15” so that you can yell instructions quickly, to someone who isn’t ordinarily on your team. “Hey, M15, go get the Spartan Laser!” These are simple to read and remember, and they always appear above the heads or locations of friendly players.

As you get closer to a friendly player, the Service Tag will resolve into a stack of two identifiers, with the more traditional Gamertag appearing too. Enemy combatants will appear (when targeted correctly) with a red Gamertag identifier above their heads. You will not see their Service Tag at all.

It’s important to pick a tag you’re going to remember. The example here, of MI5 is exactly what you might want to avoid, since about 20% of British kids who like spy fiction will choose it by default. There are plenty of possibilities, so choose one you like, one you think isn’t going to be too common and one that your team mates can quickly identify. Remember, you need to know what your Service Tag is so that you recognize yourself when called upon.

Choose a Service Tag that’s easy to identify and easy to remember.

Team Fortress 2 'Heavy Weapons' HD

Halo 3 Videos

Halo 3 Beta Bungie "Leaked" Video

From Bungie.net

Mr. Jukes' Halo 3 Betalicious Video!
Posted by SketchFactor at 5/10/2007 5:15 PM PDT
Maybe you've heard of him, maybe you haven't... but around Microsoft, Mr. Jukes has established a name for himself as a tireless, hardcore and fanatical player of Halo who isn't too shabby in the video production department either.

Over the last few months, Jukes' logged an incredible (bordering on inhuman) amount of games through the internal Alpha and Beta tests for Halo 3 and he was just as
involved in the first ever Halo 2 online tests as well. In addition to playing the games, Mr. Jukes also became known for his entertaining videos - most of which focused on jumping. Yes, jumping. It doesn't sound like much but some of the jumps and tricks he pulls in the games had to be seen to be believed.

I asked Mr. Jukes a few questions to help us get to know the man behind the controller and pass along some of his insights into the Halo 3 beta....

When you're not playing Halo 3, what do you actually do at Microsoft?
Mr. Jukes: I am a developer on the Windows Core User Experience Team. I was responsible for the Start Menu that shipped in Vista and am busy working on the next version of Windows.

How did you get started making wacky jump videos for Halo?
Jukes: During the Halo 2 Beta I found a couple of jumps on Zanzibar that really opened my eyes to the tactical possibilities of taking the less obvious route. I showed them to some of my friends and they thought the jumps could come in pretty handy. From that point on, I was always on the lookout for alternative ways to reach a destination. I had fully explored most of the maps that shipped with Halo 2 and found a lot of useful jumps by the time it went public so I thought it would be cool to set up a site and make some videos to share with the community.

Why do you love jumping so much?
Jukes: I enjoy the social aspect of playing a custom game with friends where we aren't trying to kill each other. I also enjoy the challenge of completing a really difficult jump after many failed attempts. I am totally psyched for the (Halo 3) Saved FIlms feature. This video was made with a very early and basic version... I can't wait to see the videos people will end up making with the full feature. Never again will I miss a shot because I didn't have my capture device recording!

What was your fondest memory playing the Halo 3 internal beta?
Jukes: (NOTE: His real answer was too secret to reveal, so here's his backup answer) -- Playing until 4 a.m. with some friends while trying to break the leveling system. In the process we lined up some sweet Spartan Laser kills and had some fun with the Trip Mine and Fusion Cores.

How many games of Halo 3 do you reckon you've played thus far?
Jukes: If you include the Halo 3 Alpha and Beta, I think I logged about 1,100 games.

What advice would you give to the rest of world as they prepare to play Halo 3 for the first time?
Jukes: Have fun and don't be a douche.

Oh, and one more thing... is it true that you can destroy New001 at Halo 3?
Jukes: Oh man... a chance to bash New001 in a public forum with no recourse for retaliation. It feels like Christmas. In all honesty, I don't think anybody involved in a game with New ends up winning in the end... no matter the outcome.


Before you check out Mr. Jukes' Halo 3 video debut, please keep in mind that this video was produced using the internal beta version of Halo 3. This means it's a bit older than what the rest of the world will start playing in the next few days. It also means that it has all sorts of debug text all over it - this won't be in the version you get your hands on. And, this was fully sanctioned and approved by Bungie - unlike some of those other "leaked" videos that have ended up online.


Check out Mr. Jukes' Halo 3 "Betalicious" Video HERE!

We hope you enjoy it - we did. And a huge thanks to Mr. Jukes for putting this together for our amusement.

See you online soon!

Two Worlds Combat Trailer

Xbox Live Spring 07 Update Walkthrough

Dirt Online Multiplayer is Going to Suck

When I read this I was really disapionted. I was looking forward to a good racing game that would support the evergrowing number of our group. From what I have read, the online multiplayer will not feature side by side racing, but instead a time trial type competition.

Also, it won't does'nt even support chat.

Check it out.

The Lanlord

Halo 3 Bringin the Pistol Back.....Yea

According to the computerandvideogames.com the pistol may be making a comback in Halo 3.

The word around town is that it received the power boost it was missing in Halo 2 along with a 2x zoom feature. This is good news to me because It was the main part of my game.

Some other sweet new stuff is revealed on these video's, like the new use of the x button aka decoy radar dots and more.

check it out here here here and here.
Oh, and you bums out there that won't pony up a few bucks for crackdown to get the beta, go trade some games in and bite the bullet.

YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE.

New Gears of War Screenshots

New Map Screens

Prepare for battle on the "Gears of War," "Hidden Fronts" Multiplayer Map Pack

On Thursday, May 3, at 9 a.m. GMT, Xbox LIVE® gamers should ready their weapons and prepare for battle as “Gears of War®”, rated M for Mature, releases four new action-packed multiplayer maps in the thrilling “Hidden Fronts” Multiplayer Map Pack. For 800 Microsoft points, COG soldiers and the Locust Horde will clash once again for control of these four dynamic new areas, including Bullet Marsh, Garden, Process and Subway.

Bullet Marsh: In this Kryll-infested swamp, an old generator still powers the area lights. A few stray bullets could easily knock out the generator, leaving combatants to fend for themselves against the Kryll.

Garden: This overgrown and crumbling conservatory still has a working fertilization and pesticide system. This system can pose a serious hazard to anyone who ventures into the greenhouse without first venting the air.

Process: Teams must fight for control of this subterranean Imulsion processing plant, still active despite the cessation of the Pendulum wars.

Subway: Timgad’s Central Subway station used to serve as a central hub for commuters. Now the tunnels are crawling with Locust.


The “Hidden Fronts” Multiplayer Map Pack will explode onto Xbox LIVE Marketplace on May 3 for 800 Microsoft Points as gamers steady their aim, pull the pin from their grenades and get ready to battle once more! All four of the new maps will be made available at no cost over Xbox LIVE on Sept. 3, 2007.

Report: Gears of War screenplay emerges

In November 2005, Latinoreview.com announced it had acquired quite the scoop. That's when the popular film-script site posted a detailed breakdown of the original version of the Halo movie script, penned by novelist and 28 Days Later writer Alex Garland. Latinoreview.com editor El Mayimbe hailed the screenplay as "a tour de force"...which made the eventual indefinite delay of the Master Chief's big-screen debut all the more heartbreaking.

Now, Latinoreview.com claims to have come into possession of the treatment for the Gears of War film's script, which was first revealed back in March. Written by Stuart Beattie (Collateral, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End), the Gears treatment weighs in at 22 pages, according to a reader going by the handle "Gearhead."

Gearhead reports that the Gears film begins as the planet Sera's last human-on-human war is concluding. After 79 years of constant conflict, mankind finally knows world peace...until the Locust horde emerge from their underground realm and begin slaughtering the celebrating surface populace.

The film begins with heroes Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago already in the army of the Coalition of Ordered Governments (COG). However, it shows other characters from the game, including thrashball star Augustus "Cole Train" Cole, prior to their military service. The film also features Fenix's wife Maria, who goes missing during the chaos of Emergence Day along with his children.

To learn more about the Gears of War film, which currently does not have a release date, read the treatment review on Latinoreview.com. Though it contains some spoilers, the review covers only the first third of the script treatment. (Thanks Hgreca.)