Halo 5: Guardians Announced, Hitting Fall 2015

halo 5 reveal

In what is probably the least exciting Halo game announcement of all time, Bonnie Ross, General Manager of 343 Industries, took over the Xbox Wire to reveal Halo 5: Guardians which will be coming to the Xbox One in the Fall of 2015.

Continuing the story of Master Chief from where we left him in Halo 4, Halo 5: Guardians is being built with a completely new engine and will deliver a 60 frame-per-second performance, a first for the series. A Halo TV series is also teased to be released in a similar time-frame to Halo 5: Guardians.

The Spartan on the top of the box art will apparently be a new character according to series Executive Producer Josh Holmes on Twitter.

Microsoft is certainly getting a lot out of the way for E3. Typically a Halo reveal is a big to-do and Bonnie Ross promises that more will be revealed at E3 this year, but I can’t help but feel a little deflated that a game series that once commanded attention is now relegated to blog post unveilings.

Source – Xbox Wire

Xbox One Rumor Dump Contains Halo News, Titanfall Bundle

neogaf xbox one rumors

On the whole I really don’t know what to make of NeoGAF, but whenever there’s a juicy rumor these days it seems to originate from there. Recently, a whole bunch of Xbox One rumors got posted to the message board including a Halo 2 Anniversary, Halo 5 being delayed to next year, Black Tusk’s (the new Gears of War studio) canceled Shangheist game and a Titanfall Xbox One bundle.

You can go read the whole thing yourself, but if some of these turned out to be true it wouldn’t surprise me. I’ve had the feeling that a Halo 2 Anniversary was pretty much a given and Halo 5 being delayed to 2015 makes sense. Crackdown 3 doesn’t necessarily make me excited, given that 2 was kind of a flop, but with more development time Ruffian might be able make the next one a must-have for One owners.

Check out the rumor list for yourself. What seems legit to you?

Source – NeoGAF

Random Encounters IV

Beyond Jodie

1. The outrage over the VGX, while some understandable in parts, is also overblown in others. Look, it’s Spike TV; you really shouldn’t expect something elegant for video game awards. But that doesn’t mean you should sit there and be insulted or talked down to. My suggestion is let Geoff Keighly host by himself. He is capable and serious enough to do it. Also, three hours is way too long. Have the awards, have the world premieres and trim it to an hour and half, maybe two. Cut some of that crap. A new character for Donkey Kong? Cut it. Pewdiepie? Cut it. Be smart. Know your audience.

2. It’s a good thing that that the Xbox One and PS4 are selling like hotcakes. Despite what some articles would have you believe, there is no clear winner and there won’t be for several years and even then, who cares? Pick your console and enjoy it. Don’t let anyone ruin your fun and don’t ruin anyone else’s.

3. That said, I love my PS4 and I have zero interest in the Xbox One. It sounds like it is exactly what some people want and bless them all. But it doesn’t really speak to me and as I have less and less time to play games, I need to start being more rigid in what I can play. Money isn’t the issue, but time is and I need to prioritize the kinds of experiences I want.

4. I hate to be That Guy, but now that I have a next-gen console, I am really looking forward to seeing next-gen sequels to beloved franchises. Imagine what the next Fallout or Elder Scrolls or Mass Effect will look like. Imagine what they will be able to do with the new power at their disposal. Even God of War, a franchise I am tired of, could be given new life with the power of PS4. Same with Halo on the Xbox One. It’s all potential right now, but the mind reels at what we could have in our hands in the coming years.

5. I really enjoyed streaming Final Fantasy VII with Eddy back when that was happening, but I’ve never really streamed anything myself until getting a PS4. And wow. The ease of it and the experience of people watching along, commenting and cheering you on is pretty incredible. Make no mistake: streaming is the killer app for the PS4. I know the Xbox One will have it eventually sometime in 2014, but for those people who say it is not a big deal, you clearly have not tried it on the PS4.

6. Recently started Beyond: Two Souls and while I am only 2 hours into the game, I am really impressed. The story, told in a non-linear fashion, has kept me interested more than I expected and the jumping around the timeline is a smart way to keep the player doing different things, thus preventing the gameplay from becoming stale. The QTE’s have also been streamlined in a smart, elegant way. Look forward to playing more.

These are the things on my mind these days. What about you? Anything you want to get off your chests? The doctor is in.