Barenaked, Red and Blue

Even if you don't like the Barenaked Ladies, you have to admit that Pinch Me is one of the best summer songs ever recorded. But you WILL like the Barenaked Ladies once you realize they're top-level Halo fans or at least, Red Vs. Blue fans. The "Ladies" are on tour right now, and showing exclusive, never-before-seen Red Vs. Blue videos at each tour venue! Weird, awesome and completely true. Support your local rock band, and find out more about the tour dates HERE

Bungie Weekly Update!!!

This week you can check out more antics happening in and around Bungie towers over at [url=http://forum.teamxbox.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=247748]Teamxbox.com[/url] with a look at digital sound, a brief chat about dual wielding and some great news about the Halo 2 action figures! If you haven't seen the updates before, check out our [url=/Games/Halo2/page.aspx?section=FAQInfo&subsection=WeeklyUpdate&page=1]archive[/url] right now. And our apologies in advance, once more for the Mister Chief "art."

VOTE FOR MARATHON!

GameSpy is running a poll to decide which is the ultimate first person shooter between Doom and Marathon. Get over there now and make it a real contest by voting for you know what!!! And tell your friends!

Bungie Weekly Update!!!

This week you can check out the goings on inside Bungie towers over at [url=http://www.343gs.com] 343GS.com[/url] (343 Guilty Spark, get it?) with a look at creating big worlds, dual weapon wielding, new art projects, script progression and voice recording and lots more! If you haven't seen the updates before, check out our [url=/Games/Halo2/page.aspx?section=FAQInfo&subsection=WeeklyUpdate&page=1]archive[/url] right now. And our apologies in advance, once more for the Mister Chief "art."

Halo PC Championships - Update

The Halo PC Worldwide Championships are in full swing today down in sunny Los Angeles, CA. As I mentioned last week, contestants from 19 different countries have converged on the Internet PC Cafe to fight it out for the title of World Champion .

Players were broken up into 3 pools this morning and all competed in a series of Slayer matches across 4 different maps. The top 4 finishers of each heat then moved on to the semi-finals, which are underway at this very moment.

If you're interested in seeing how each country is stacking up, head over to the iGames site for the latest results (updated throughout the day). Naturally, being a US citizen, I have to root for our hometown hero to represent. So far he's doing us proud. It looks like it's shaping up to be a showdown between the US, UK and Japan players as they have more or less been dominating all day.

And remember, if you live in the area, you're invited to come down later this afternoon to watch the finals and then enjoy some Halo PC freeplay for the rest of the night.

Internet PC Cafe
1451 W. Artesia Blvd. #3
Gardena, CA 90248
(310) 324-5525

Check back later this week for a full wrap-up report from the finals.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to grab my pom-poms and resume my cheering. U-S-A! U-S-A!

Bungie Weekly Update!!!

This week you can check out the goings on inside Bungie towers over at [url=http://rampancy.net/node/view/6770]Rampancy.net[/url] with a look inside the dark world of lighting, and the frugal, understated efforts of the marketing department, as well as catching up with Marty's sound escapades, a new Mister Chief 3D action game and lots, lots more. If you haven't read our Weekly Updates before, check out our [url=/Games/Halo2/page.aspx?section=FAQInfo&subsection=WeeklyUpdate&page=1]archive[/url] right now. And our apologies in advance for the Mister Chief "art."

Massive Toy Update!

Toy Fair, the toy industry equivalent of E3, kicks off today in New York and JoyRide Studios is there to show off their super 2004 lineup. Since we can't be there to check out the scene in person, we've sent in one of our operatives to send back the first ever glimpses of some VERY cool figures. All of the Toy Fair 2004 images have been added to our gallery.

First up is the soon to be released Wave 3 assortment which includes the blue Master Chief, Sgt. Johnson and 2 other Marines, and the Banshee. We revealed pictures of these figures several months ago but their release date is now right around the corner. =)

What's after Wave 3? Wave 4! We posted pics of the Grunt in an early form a while ago but now it has finished deco and is looking better than ever. Also on display from Wave 4 is the Rocket Warthog (from Halo PC), a white Master Chief w/ flamethrower, and a red Elite. There isn't a firm date for the Wave 4 release yet but expect it sometime this Spring.

Finally, we have Wave 5. These figures are still a ways off but damn I can't wait to get my hands on that Flood Carrier Form! The rest of Wave 5 will include variants of the Grunt and Elite and possibly one or two other goodies.

If the mini figures are more up your alley, there are plenty of cool new figures to look forward to there as well.

And, just when you thought it was safe to put your wallet away - BAM! - the first ever pics from the upcoming Halo 2 line! The new Master Chief, Warthog and a Brute prototype are all on display.

Better start saving those pennies... These next few months could be pretty expensive for Halo fans. =) Stay tuned to Bungie.net for the latest info on all of the new JoyRide products.

Halo PC Worldwide Championships

Remember a few months ago when we told you about the Halo PC Worldwide Championship? Starting late last year, players all across the globe began competing at their local iGames centers to try and secure a spot in the championship match. All of the qualifying rounds have been completed and now 19 gamers are converging on Los Angeles for the title match next week.

France, India, Japan, Brazil, Denmark, Ireland, and Mexico are just some of the countries being represented. This truly is a worldwide event and someone will be crowned the best Halo PC player on the planet.

The finals will take place on Tuesday, 2/17, at the Internet PC Cafe in Gardena, CA (a suburb of LA). Anyone who lives in the area is invited to come down and watch this awesome clash of culture and style on the Halo battlefield.

The fun begins at 10:00 AM with a series of practice matches and quater-final competition. Play will continue throughout the day until the grand finale at 3:00 PM.

If you live near the area, do come by and check out the action and say hello! On 2/17, from 6:00 PM to 10:00 PM, the entire venue will be converted to "free play" for anyone and everyone to come and enjoy some Halo PC goodness.

Check back with Bungie.net later next week for the full scoop on the event and the results!

Event Details

Halo PC Worldwide Championship
Tuesday, 2/17, 2004

Internet PC Cafe
1451 W. Artesia Blvd. #3
Gardena, CA 90248
(310) 324-5525

10:00 AM -12:00 noon - Practice and quarterfinals

12:30 PM - 2:30 PM - Semifinals

3:00 PM - 4:30 - Championship

6:00 PM - 10:00 PM - Halo PC Free Play

Halo PC Security Hot Fix

Within the next hour, a special [i]hot fix [/i] is being released for Halo PC via the auto-update system. In order to play with the updated clients, all Halo PC dedicated servers will need to be updated as well. Here are the official release notes: [b]Gamespy Secuirty Hot-Fix for Halo PC and Halo PC Dedicated Server [/b] [i]The GameSpy Security Hot-Fix for Halo PC addresses a rare crash bug that could occur if a malicious individual (hacker) purposely tried to exploit the GameSpy CDKey SDK. This Hot-Fix changes the version number of Halo PC and Halo PC Dedicated Server to 1.04 from 1.031. [/i] The updated version of the dedicated server can be downloaded [url=http://download.microsoft.com/download/6/a/4/6a4edb62-c6f8-491f-95ea-5a4b28cb77cb/haloded.exe]HERE.[/url] The actual game update will be applied automatically the next time you attempt to play online. Please keep in mind that it will take some time for all of the Halo PC server admins to upgrade their servers. Until this happens, you may encounter problems when trying to join a server still running the older version. Things should return to normal once the update gets circulated throughout the community. All of the BUNGIE [url=/Games/HaloPC/page.aspx?section=FAQInfo&subsection=Online&page=1]servers[/url] have already been updated and are available for play.

Weekly Bungie Update!

Yet another cold week draws to a close, but we warm ourselves in front of a piping hot Halo 2 multiplayer match and ask the boys and girls what they've been doing all week. As usual, we're hosting the Weekly Update at a Halo fansite forum, and this week it's [url=http://www.forumplanet.com/3DActionPlanet/halo/topic.asp?fid=1729&tid=1284527]Battleground Halo[/url]. If you haven't read our Weekly Updates before, check out our [url=/Games/Halo2/page.aspx?section=FAQInfo&subsection=WeeklyUpdate&page=1]archive[/url] right now.

Grunty Shirts

Grunt lovers rejoice! Everyone's favorite Covenant cannon fodder have made their way to a brand new t-shirt in the Bungie Store. You've already satisfied your Grunty Thirst, now you can satisfy your Grunty Shirtlessness. Get em while they're hot!