Microsoft's mad keen to let you know about Halo 4, providing all you want to know is: "will it have Master Chief", "will it be out on Xbox 360" and "will there be outer space and stuff". Sensible that this is 343 Industries' first proper crack at the franchise, the publisher's spent the months since the E3 reveal in full detail lockdown, wary of conveying a partial picture. Beyond the debut trailer, there's very little to go on.
Fortunately, we happen to be (a) masters of deduction and (b) the foremost Halo scholars, having published a massive Chief-themed edition of our magazine earlier this year. We've been harvesting key snippets of 343 insight over the past few weeks, reading between the lines and putting two and two together. The result: another blisteringly comprehensive 12 for 2012 Q&A.; In this endeavour, OXM High Command gratefully acknowledges the hard work and sleuthing of editorial intern David Cornish, a man so at home with Halo he calls Master Chief "Johnny". Good grief.
Will Halo 4's story follow directly on from the events of Halo 3?
It certainly will. Specifically, it'll follow on from the events of Halo 3 when you complete it on Legendary. The "Legendary Planet" glimpsed after Master Chief goes into hibernation aboard the ruptured Forward Unto Dawn is the same structure you see at the close of the Halo 4 Awakening trailer.
And Master Chief's still the hero, right? No last-minute Spartan swap-ins?
Yes, he's still the hero. Stop "Reaching", arf arf. Well aware of fan displeasure over the Chief's absence in Bungie's final Halo game, Microsoft and 343 are focussing squarely on John 117 this time. He's changed though.
How?
Difficult to say. Fans quickly picked up on changes to the Chief's armour in the Awakening trailer - rather amusingly, he's missing a codpiece. There's some speculation over how this happened - Cortana passing the time while the Chief slept? - and what it bodes, which could be enormously little. O'Connor has said he's happy to mess with Halo's lore providing it makes for a better game, and this could be a minor instance of that, to loosen technical overheads. Yes, we're aware cutting back on a character's underwear is an odd way to loosen technical overheads. Yes, we're aware we've just suggested that the Chief's junk is too large for Halo 4's memory allowance.
9 comments so far...
bamozzy on 23 Dec '11 said:
Another one of the games on my watch list for 2012. Interested to see what the new developers will bring to the series as it has got a bit stale for me (this is just MY opinion). I have had most Halo games since the original Halo on the xbox - didn't get Halo: Wars (but played the demo) or the anniversary combat evolved (yet) but have all the others. Halo 3 for me was glitched and quite short - I completed the game but the gamer points stopped after level 2 and was therefore very surprised to see the ending (I thought I was still on level 3 LOL)
Anyway this will remain on my watch list only for now.....
CHIEFRAPTOR on 23 Dec '11 said:
me... need... now
KernowDevil23 on 23 Dec '11 said:
I'll probably be called out as a hypocrite because I'm posting in a Halo 4 thread but I can quite honestly say I'm not in the slightest bit interested in yet another Halo game.
I've never found them to be anything special at all and I can't see my opinion changing any time soon.
msbhvn on 23 Dec '11 said:
Microsort? A typo in the first word of an article?
Organic Carrot on 23 Dec '11 said:
They said that the Forerunner books (a new saga of books detailing the history of the Forerunners) along with the Halo CEA terminals and another series of books depicting the aftermath of Halo 3, allude to the story in Halo 4. The from the terminals, there is reference to a alien ghost ship, prehaps of no relevance and the Didact, the supreme head of the Forerunner army when they were still around before they activated the Halos. In the Forerunner saga, the Didact was in a suspended state of animation when he was woken up by another Forerunner called Born, who absorbs all of the Didact's memories and skills before he is killed, becoming the Didact himself. The Didact is also mentioned in the CEA terminals to be worse than the flood because Spark says they (the chief and Cortana) might almost prefer the flood). From this suspended animation tech to the transference of memory along with the scariness of the Didact there may be many forerunner hibernating in this planet with the Didact, ready to take over the galaxy.
Also in the Forerunner saga there is reference to the Precursors, those who existed before the Forerunners. The Forerunners destroyed them for an unknown reason but there is reference to one last Precursor discovered by the Forerunners. There tech was more advanced than the forerunners so perhaps the forerunners hide some precursor technology in the planet which if activated may begin to destroy all forerunners and there "reclaimers" aka humans.
Also in halo lore Humanity once had a ancient interstellar empire. They discovered the Flood and used it to make their pets more docile until the Flood mutated and began destroying them. In the CEA terminals they are referred to as "my makers (forerunners) ancient enemy". Because they were being attacked by the Flood they were forced to invade Forerunner space resulting in a war which the Forerunner won, devolving humanity and diversifying it into many different ethnic groups so they would never be as strong. They are seen in the forerunner saga at the start on earth in a neolithic tech state. Before they lost they managed to make a cure against the Flood, destroying it in the process. As a insult to the Forerunner the destroyed the cure so the forerunner couldn't use it, resulting in the halos being built instead. So humanity maybe the enemy referenced to in the synopsis.
Sorry its so long, just thought i'd share so stuff.
More books for forerunner and aftermath of halo 3 will be released next year.
ATATCCU on 25 Dec '11 said:
Troll!
ATATCCU on 25 Dec '11 said:
I may have a reason for Cortana going on the skitz. She's been playing around with Johhny boy and not just in his egg salad. Imagine an AI operating her prime function in life and being a tiny bit hormonal into the bargain. Little wonder the baddies are running scared! Hell hath no fury like an AI with a toot on!
Waffles2541 on 25 Dec '11 said:
If they once again involve the flood as the main antagonist I can guarantee I will not be playing these. Halo Odst and Halo Reach were brilliant because they didn't involve the flood, just the covenant. Fingers crossed that the covenant will be making some form of return or that there will be a brand new enemy out there for us to fight, one that is considerably more interesting and fun to fight than the flood. Even in halo wars the flood were just irritating and stupid to fight. Please 343, please, remove the sins of the past and don't recreate the flood beyond anything more than a minor side line enemy.
republiclancer on 16 Apr '12 said:
I can't wait until this game comes out. I just have a few concerns though. One would be the enemies and another would be the story. What could it be about? Anyone gotta clue?