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About That Halo Couple From The Best Buy Ad…
I saw two movies at two movie theaters this weekend and the same Best Buy commercial aired before both of them. I usually tune out the commercials at the movies (strange that we can avoid commercials on TV but get smacked with them in theaters, no?). This big-screen commercial did get my attention since…. wow!…
By Stephen Totilo Published November 27, 2012 -
This German Screenshot Reportedly Says When Halo 4’s Map Packs Are Dropping
Lots of players—including Kotaku’s own Tina Amini—think that Halo 4 needs more maps. 343 Industries has said that additional multiplayer environments are coming but hasn’t clued anyone in as to the exact arrival times. But the screenshot above from a German Xbox 360 dashboard appears to reveal dates for the next three sets of maps…
By Evan Narcisse Published November 26, 2012 -
Why We Like To Shoot
A few days after the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops II, the first-person shooter game’s publisher, Activision, released their annual braggadocious press release about the success of their most successful video game series. “Life-to-date sales for the Call of Duty franchise have exceeded worldwide theatrical box office receipts for ‘Harry Potter’ and ‘Star…
By Stephen Totilo Published November 21, 2012 -
Halo 4 Was Shaped, At Least In Part, By One Of The World’s Great Concept Artists
You’re in for a treat today. Today, we’re looking at a collection of Halo 4 art by Nicolas “Sparth” Bouvier, aka one of the most talented concept artists in the world, regardless of the industry. Sparth’s ability to convey not just the look of a sci-fi setting but its mood is legendary, so it was…
By Luke Plunkett Published November 21, 2012 -
Reviews
Halo 4‘s Multiplayer Is At Its Best When Players Break the Rules
Now that Halo 4 has been out in the wild for over a week, it’s proper timing to accurately assess its multiplayer prowess. I had a lot of fun messing around with the various modes during my review event, but how does being in a room full of gamers compare to lounging on my bed…
By Tina Amini Published November 20, 2012 -
Play the Halo Theme Song And This Impressive Master Chief Stained-Glass Window is Even Cooler
Seventy hours. Two hundred pieces of glass. 250 feet of copper. An estimated one million colours. That’s the work that went into this Halo stained-glass window, and it was totally worth it. Not sure if the medium was intentional given the religious overtones of the series’ theme song, but that’s exactly why this works. 70…
By Luke Plunkett Published November 19, 2012 -
This Might Be The Most Incredible Suit Of Halo Armour Ever Created
This suit. Wow. When you try and create a replica of Kat’s suit of armour from Halo: Reach, you have some choices to make. One is to half arse it, another is to give up. Another is to spend 10 months creating the most incredible suit of armour we’ve ever seen. LilTyrant from the 405th…
By Mark Serrels Published November 18, 2012 -
More Than a Million People Beat Halo 4‘s Campaign in the First Five Days of Its Release
In the first five days since Halo 4‘s release on Nov. 6, 1,116,882 people completed the game’s campaign, or roughly one out of every four persons who played campaign at some point in that span. Some 4.5 billion kills were recorded by all these players, roughly two-thirds of the projected population of Earth. About 13.5…
By Owen Good Published November 17, 2012 -
Tell President Obama to Honor the Veterans of Halo 4
The White House’s bullshit feel-good “We the People” initiative is, like all Internet petitions, worth the paper it is printed on.* Most of the petitions lodged there demand things the executive branch cannot effect on its own. The remainder are protest tantrums, like the secessionist fantasies a bored and distended mainstream media are indulging in…
By Owen Good Published November 16, 2012 -
Backhanded Box Quotes: When ‘Best Call of Duty Ever!’ Isn’t a Compliment
Welcome back to “Backhanded Box Quotes,” a collection of measured, thoughtful criticism from the user reviews of Metacritic. This week we examine games from two series that frequently are accused of impersonating each other: Call of Duty: Black Ops II, and Halo 4 Call of Duty: Black Ops II Released: Nov. 13. Critic: MasterOfMetroid (Metacritic)…
By Owen Good Published November 16, 2012 -
I May Not Be A Fan Of Halo 4‘s Spartan Ops, But I Sure Do Love The Episodes That Come With It
So far, I only like Halo 4‘s mission-based Spartan Ops mode in theory. A new episode every week? Wait, every week? Amazing, I love the dedication. The missions, on the other hand, have so far been boring and bland and monotonous. Fortunately the episodes that come with them are, like the game itself, gorgeous. So…
By Tina Amini Published November 14, 2012 -
Here’s the Best Way to Travel in Halo 4’s Mongoose
Pity the lowly Mongoose. It’s outshadowed by the flying vehicles in Halo 4. And it’s not even the coolest ground transportation in the game, either. This humble ATV is what you use when nothing better is available. But Achievement Hunters found a way to make the Mongoose one of the more exciting travel options in…
By Evan Narcisse Published November 14, 2012 -
Culture
Yes, Master Chief, I Know You’re Part Robot, But I Want You To Get In This Bigger Robot
My sincerest apologies if you’ve had your fill of Halo 4 concept art over the past week because, well, I have not. As is common, now that the game is on shelves the artists involved can begin sharing more of their work. One of those artists is Chris Durso, whose stuff you’ll be seeing today.…
By Luke Plunkett Published November 14, 2012 -
Too Many People Are Stealing This Terrible Call of Duty/Halo Joke
Boy, those young men sure do love video games, don’t they? And wouldn’t you know it, two of the biggest games of the year, Halo 4 and Black Ops II, just came out! Surely there is some pithy joke to be made here, some quick gibe about how men will be playing those games and…
By Kirk Hamilton Published November 13, 2012 -
Halo 4‘s Remote Detonator Has Already Reached Its Logical Conclusion
It stands to reason that most people who picked up the remote detonator in Halo 4 thought to use it in this way; but it was TheM0M0show who first documented the technique and put it on YouTube. Next time you see a mongoose cruising towards you, watch out. It may explode in your face.
By Kirk Hamilton Published November 12, 2012 -
The Craziest Feats Of Halo 4 Multiplayer Get Mythbusted
Do you ever wonder about really specific theoretical feats in Halo 4‘s multiplayer? Like, say, whether or not you can deflect an oddball with a gravity hammer, or trick an auto-sentry with a hologram? Wonder no longer: The folks at Defendthehouse have got you covered with the first episode of Halo 4 Mythbusters This must’ve…
By Kirk Hamilton Published November 12, 2012 -
Alternative Halo 4 Launch Trailer Captures What’s Great About The Campaign
Most people probably play Halo titles for the multiplayer. I don’t blame them. But the singleplayer campaign in Halo 4 is too excellent to ignore. The legitimate launch trailer—which focuses on the storyline—is pretty good on its own. It’s simple, it alludes to the main threat and theme of the game. But I like this…
By Tina Amini Published November 12, 2012 -
Pinch Me, I’m Excited About Halo 4’s DLC
Excited? About DLC? I’d normally rather throw myself under a bus, seeing as 90% of the stuff is usually over-priced fluff, but 343 look to be putting a ton of effort into Halo 4’s fancy Spartan Ops game mode. An episodic series of co-op and multiplayer experiences, I knew they’d have some sort of narrative…
By Luke Plunkett Published November 12, 2012 -
Culture
It’s Like a Reference Book. Only, For Halo’s Spartans.
I have a long-standing love of old-fashioned reference books. Like, the ones where the whole thing, cover-to-cover, is devoted entirely to illustrations of, say, Napoleonic cavalry uniforms. One day I’ll sort out just what that fetish means, but in the meantime, I’m going to indulge it with these pieces of Halo 4 concept art by…
By Luke Plunkett Published November 12, 2012 -
Halo 4 Launching in Japan Is Pretty Much What You’d Expect
Japan has never been crazy about the Xbox 360, save for the few instances when it had exclusive role-playing games folks wanted to play. But generally speaking, it’s been an uphill battle. That being said, Halo 3 did okay! For a first-person shooter. On the Xbox 360. In Japan. Earlier this week, Halo 4 launched…
By Brian Ashcraft Published November 10, 2012