Xbox 360 Fanboy

Holiday be damned, Bungie has continued with its regular Weekly Update. This week the studio released 22 concept images for the upcoming Halo 3 story expansion, Halo 3: ODST. Multiple shots include city landscapes, character art and an up close shot of the new silenced SMG. It's a small update but a nice little holiday treat for people who are down with Halo.

Reason for the name change wasn't given (other than the fact that 3 and ODST have a nice flow), but we're sure the whole ODST name change makes the game's campaign a little more clear for those who like things more straightforward. Bungie also made it clear that the game's release, content and Recon armor giving will not be affected by the name change. Welcome Halo 3: ODST, say goodbye to Recon and long live Bungie.

[Thanks, to everyone that sent this in]

As you may have heard, the latest issue of Game Informer is just chock-full of new info about Halo 3: Recon. CVG has been kind enough to spill some of the beans -- gotta save some beans for the mag, after all -- the biggest of which is the fact that Recon will be an open world game. The story has players taking control of a rookie Orbital Drop Shock Trooper who's looking for his four other squad members in the city of New Mombasa, which you may remember from Halo 2. Using a new PDA, players can set waypoints to find the last known locations of each squad member. Upon arriving, players will discover clues that will trigger a playable flashback in which they take on the role of the missing squad member and find out what happened to him. The flashback levels will play more like a "traditional, linear" Halo level and "unravel the mystery of what went on in New Mombasa."

Of course, ODST are not Spartans, so players will have to make do without superhuman speed, jumping, and coordination (i.e no dual wielding). ODSTs also lose the benefit of a motion tracker. Oh, and no handy regenerating shields either, though health will still regenerate. As you might expect, this will make encounters with enemies like Brutes a little more intimidating, especially considering they will now all be much taller and faster than you.

Finally, one of the squad members will be played by Nathan Fillion. That is sweet.

[Via Joystiq]

All along, Bungie has hinted that those who earn the Halo 3 Vidmaster achievements will receive something of value and all along people have jokingly speculated that it would be Recon armor. Well, that's exactly what it is, Recon armor. But don't get too excited just yet, because all the Vidmaster achievements cannot be earned because there is a Vidmaster achievement tied to the Mythic Map Pack. So, possibly this February, you can haz Recon.

[Thanks, to everyone who sent this in]

After confirming plans to stick with its current Xbox 360 pricing, Microsoft UK head Stephen McGill has informed Videogamer that there's a "lot of great stuff" headed to the Xbox 360 in 2009. Secret, surprising stuff.

"I know a lot of the games coming out from us and our third parties. Most of them, in fact, have not been announced because everyone's very focused on what's out for Christmas" says McGill, admitting that "there's lots of great stuff coming in 2009 that people know about. Lots more, I'm sure that they don't know about." Hmm, lots more we don't know about huh?

True, we're all focused on the jam packed Holiday 2008 game lineup, but we've been keen to remember that 2009 will bring Halo Wars, Halo 3: Recon and even Resident Evil 5. But even more surprises in 2009? Unimaginable! We'll be accepting of these Xbox surprises, but we're not sure our bank account will be as understanding.

[Via Game Stooge]

This week's actual Bungie update is light on details but includes twice the podcast punch. As well as releasing a new episode of its popular podcast, Bungie has finally released the "Lost" E3 episode from its cage. After E3 plans to reveal an unnamed title were cancelled by Microsoft, which was later announced as Halo 3: Recon, Bungie has decided the time is right to let fans hear what they thought of what was supposed to be a newly announced title. Head over to the Bungie Weekly Update to download the shows directly and take a look at some Halloween inspired Halo 3 screenshots.

[Living Dead image via Bungie.net]

In an interview with gamesindustry.biz, Bungie's Brian Jarrard made it known that once Halo 3: Recon is complete, the team creating it is moving on to new projects that are not related to Halo. Jarrard stated that there are some map packs on the way, including the Halo 3 Mythic map pack as well as maps associated with Halo 3: Recon, but that the team will move on once the project is complete. According to Jarrard, part of the Recon team will move on to new projects, while others will be moved onto projects already in the works.

Of course, we don't know what any of those secret projects are, so we can't rule Halo out entirely, though Jarrard's words seem to imply that they aren't related to Halo. We'll just have to wait and see. The full interview also includes tidbits on Bungie's community building philosophy, the studio's independence, and how the company feels about the NXE. Hit the source link to check it out.

[Via Joystiq]

"No, we're not [tied into a specific platform for new IP]," said Jarrard explaining that "in theory we do have every means to go out and find the right ecosystem, the right partners, to align with. So who knows what the future will bring us." Though, Jarrard did praise the Xbox 360 and Xbox Live as a social platform for their past projects including the entire Halo franchise.

That said, we'll wager our entire IRA (which isn't worth much these days) that Bungie's new IP will make its way onto an Xbox platform. It's a no-brainer.