Back at E3 2011 Microsoft made the shocking announcement that there would in fact be another Halo game, but we haven’t heard or seen much of Halo 4 since then. Well, that changed yesterday when Microsoft released a short video detailing the making of Halo 4. Don’t worry, the video’s not all talking heads telling you how rad Halo is — there’s also quite a bit of in-game footage. Hit the jump to check ‘er out…
If for some reason you don’t want to/can’t watch the video, here’s a little Halo 4 primer — it’s the first in a new trilogy and also the first to not be developed by Bungie (instead it’s being handled by 343 Industries, a studio set up by Microsoft specifically to handle the Halo franchise). The game will feature the return of Master Chief and according to 343 they’re looking to delve more deeply into his character and backstory. Halo 4 is set to arrive fall of 2012.
My impressions based on that video — the game’s certainly more visually impressive than the other Halo games this generation, and it looks like they’ve added a dash of Metroid Prime with the increased agility of Master Chief. I’m not exactly a Halo aficionado though — what do you guys think? Here’s another Halo 4 screenshot to look at as you mull over your response.
Why Master Chief…I don’t recall your armor textures being so…detailed before.
That’s not all the Microsoft news we’ve got for you. That Halo 4 video was first shown to the gaming press last week at Microsoft’s “Spring Showcase”. Hit up page 2 to read about some other stuff Microsoft unveiled at the press event…
– A new Forza game called “Forza Horizon” will be coming this fall. It’s supposed to be more “pick up and play” than the regular Forza games. In other words, it’s going to be an extra pretty Ridge Racer. So far all Microsoft has released to the public is this gameplay-free teaser…
Look at all the pretty lights…and is that a girl in a bikini? This game looks great!
– Fable: The Journey, the wacky Kinect-controlled FPS/wagon driving sim set in the Fable universe is still coming. A downloadable Fable game, Fable Heroes was also announced. It’s basically Gauntlet with a whimsical art style. In a kinda neat bit of connectivity, gold you collect in Fable Heroes can also be used in Fable: The Journey.
Where are the cute cartoony Fable prostitutes?
– Kinect Star Wars hasn’t been cancelled yet sadly.
– Capcom’s ridiculously complex Mech piloting series Steel Battalion will hit North American Xboxes this year. Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor, will use Kinect to replace the usual absurd Steel Battalion controller…
…which is actually one of the smarter uses of Kinect I’ve seen. Still — is Steel Battalion still Steel Battalion when it doesn’t come with a 60-button control panel?
Well, there you go Microsoft fans — hope you like Kinect and/or aren’t tired of Halo yet!
via Kotaku & Gameinformer