Terdod writes:

This Pelican's payload is pretty unusual.


Mayday!  Mayday!  She's comin' in hot!



GameVee - Pelican Dance

Helveck writes:

What do you get when you add fun to a montage?


"We all know amusing and very random things tend to happen while online, so I've decided to throw it all together in one big blob of interwebz goodness.

Thanks for watching."

Need one more artistic Halloween outlet?


Hawty McBloggy is soliciting 'shopped screenshots and silly paints of the much beloved Mister Chief for her blog:

"Many of you are probably counting down the hours until you get to visit a haunted house, attend a costume party, settle in for a marathon of horror movies, or continue the always fun (if slightly cold) tradition of trick or treating. In the festive spirit of Halloween, I thought it would be fun to take a break from our regular Friday Caption Fun and Halo 3 Heatmap Rorschach Inkblot Test activities to instead celebrate the spooky holiday with our much adored Mister Chief. So grab a spooky screenshot or start with a clean slate in Paint and create a Mister Chief with the best Halloween theme you can think of."

There's already a few works of art in the comments if you just want to check them out.

The final chapter of Red vs Blue Reconstruction.


Ascending Demon wrote in to tell us the final episode is now online. Hit the link and partake in the series' finale.

Red vs. Blue: Chapter 19

You have until tomorrow at midnight...


...to turn your pumpkins into sweet Halloween prizes.  HBO is once again hosting a Halo-related carving contest.  Got squash-slicing sklls?  Click on the links below to learn how to enter your submission.

From the contest page:

The History

The idea of pumpkins carved in Halo forms was started by Bungie, in 2003. The winning pumpkins were pretty cool. We followed suit in 2004, with the first annual Guilt O' Lantern contest. It was, by most accounts, a success. Then, again, in 2005. And 2006. And 2007. Definitely a tradition at this point.

The Contest

The rules are basic, and the same as they've always been: Carve the coolest Halo-related pumpkin you can think of. Please the community, win a prize. Check out the pages above for examples of what's won in the past.

The Prizes

Every year, we try to have cool prizes. Sometimes, we plan ahead, and good things happen. Other times, we space, but we get fantastic donations. And sometimes, we just fail.

First Prize:

* One Signed (by Bungie) Halo 3 Action Figure
* Craig Mullins 'Marathon Compiler' print, formatted by Anaphiel (framed, viewable here)
* One Copy of The Cole Protocol, signed by Tobias Buckell
* A 12 month subscription to Xbox Live
* One 'Traxus' T-shirt, L or XL (PAX Exclusive)
* Tim Dadabo, the voice of 343 Guilty Spark, will record a message of your choice on your home answering machine, in his character's voice

Second Prize:

* One Halo 3 Action Figure
* One Copy of The Cole Protocol, signed by Tobias Buckell
* One Master Chief Bobblehead
* A 12 month subscription to Xbox Live
* One 'Traxus' T-shirt, L or XL (PAX Exclusive - size depends on what First-Place winner chooses)

Third Prize:

* One Halo 3 Action Figure
* One Copy of The Cole Protocol, signed by Tobias Buckell
* A 12 month subscription to Xbox Live

Legacy Prize: (in case folks who won last year win again)

* One Halo 2 Active-Camo MC Action Figure
* A 12 month subscription to Xbox Live

343 Guilt O' Lantern: A Pumpkin Carving Contest

No planetarium or psychedelic rock required.


Hawty McBloggy sifted through the silt at Youtube and found an interesting "Light Show" using Halo 3 gameplay footage.  It's long and could use some judicious editing, but it's a unique concept that could yield colorful dividends.

Fair warning from Hawty:

"I can’t say it was pulled off to its full potential but it’s definitely worth a watch. Running a too long seven minutes, there are some absolutely  spectacular scenes but there’s also an equal amount of less interesting filler material. If you don’t want to invest that much time in this video, I highly recommend watching my personal favorites at the following time frames: :20-:40, 2:50-2:55, 3:25-3:35, and 5:10-5:30."




YouTube - A Halo 3 Light Show

Well, if it's starting this morning, I guess it's closer to "Dawn of the Ranked" or "Day of the Ranked." Wait, am I going to get sued?


Braaaaaains. Brrrrraaaaains. Brains? Braaaaains. Brains. BrAINs, buh-huh-rains. Braaaaaaains! Braaaaains. Brains. Braaaains, braaaaaaaains, brains. Braaaaaains 11:00am PDT braaaaaaaains, Monday 2:00am braiiiiiiiins.

For those of you that are still alive:

One year ago, Bungie celebrated Halloween with the first ever Double EXP weekend: Living Dead. To commemorate the brave men and women whose brains were consumed by the filthy un-living masses, we are bringing back Ranked Living Dead as a Double EXP weekend! And unlike last year's Double EXP, this year's will follow our standard format and will be available starting today, and lasting until Monday morning! Get out there and teach those zombies a thing or two about justice. Or love, if that's your thing. I'm not here to judge. You sick whackjob.

Anyway, if you missed last year's opportunity to get some Infection-specific medals in your ranked chest, now's your chance!

Ranked Living Dead is available now (11:00 am PDT, October 30th) until Monday 2:00 am, November 3rd. Heroic and Legendary map packs are required.

Also: Braaaaaaaains.

Not quite ready for prime time...


But getting close.  Tim Monro put up a brief video detailing the progress he's making on a new project - a master of the Halo 3 Hayabusa helmet variant.  Though it's not even half way done, it already looks pretty amazing.  Check it out.

MeSumBathinApes writes:

The Top Ten is back with 10 more of the craziest plays you've ever seen in Halo 3.

"Check them out and then submit your plays."




YouTube - MLG/ESPN Top Ten #12

MLGpro.com - MLG/ESPN Top Ten #12 (High Quality)

It needs more boxes.


If you missed the opening salvo fired by NeoGAF in last week's Community Spotlight, click on these here words to wind back time and get up to speed.  If you're already good to go, read on for their parting shots, week two of NeoGAF's community favorites are locked and loaded.  Head on over to Bungie Favorites to take a peak and queue them up for download.

While you're waiting, check out some insight into how one of their Forge creations came into being:

TJ Captain Blood has poured blood, sweat, and tears into his Forge creation, Arabella. Like any seasoned yachtsman preparing his vessel for a lengthy seafaring voyage, he’s tested each and every knot, stocked the galley to the gills, and yeah, thoroughly cleaned out the head. Before he shoves off, let’s have one last check of his manifest.

Q: What was your inspiration?

A: I really didn't go into the map making progress with much of a plan. I just kinda let things develop as I went. The one thing I knew was that I wanted to use a mancannon that would work somehow in that small space, without breaking the map.

Q: How long did it take to create?

A: I am not sure if it is done. Even though it is a relatively simple layout, Arabella has been a work in progress since Foundry was released. I am sure I will even be tweaking it after this.

Q: What aspect took the longest to get right?

A: I think the longest part of the map to get right was balance. I wanted to make sure that there wasn't a completely dominate spot of the map that people could camp. So I put a lot of time into playing custom games with friends and adjusting the map based on their feedback.

Q: How could Forge be improved?

A: Highlight objects and have the ability to copy/paste and mirror
Scalable objects. Allow the user to scale scenery objects’ height, width, et cetera
Add flooring objects that have customizable shapes and sizes
Customizable curved objects which can be used as hills
Different skins for scenery objects—gives map more variety and creativity
Make non-foundry-like maps more customizable
Customizable lighting sources
Interactive scenery: gates, doors, light-bridges, et cetera
Sentient life – birds, fish, butterflies, and infection forms
Ability to place soft walls and death barriers
Scenery like that moves (for example, conveyer belts)
Water

The NeoGAF crew also supplied an extensive list (a tome, really) of more down-to-Earth improvements they would like to see implemented in Forge. Items like like expansion or lifting of quota limitations, the addition of more destructible items, tools to facilitate interlocking, floating objects, snap-to grips, and other often discussed, often lamented omissions from the Forge sandbox. They labeled the coup de grace a pipe dream: “AI opponents with customizable spawns and triggers.”

Alas, as we’ve already stated, it just isn’t meant to be.  Read that sentence again, please.

They also attempted to sneak in a game variant for comedic effect: Two Boxes.  Designed by affable Irishman Shake Appeal, Two Boxes has a long and storied design history.  It's also total crap.  But there's a good chance it could coax a chuckle out of you.  Fair warning: if you are looking for a serious gametype and map, this is not for you.

Pushing the limits...


Episode 105 of the web comic Reclaimer has been uploaded for your perusal.  There's also a very large, very sweet Reclaimer desktop wallpaper to download.  Hit the links and check 'em out.

Thanks to HBO for the notification.

This artist utilizes an unusual palette.


Hawty McBloggy posted an interesting sit down with well known Forge artist, Predator5791.  Chances are you've already gawked at his amazing creations.  Click on to find out what motivates him, what inspires him, and just how much time he's investing in his craft.

Interview with Forge Artist Predator5791

Groovemeister writes:

It's stupid...and fun.  It's stupid fun!


Over at Tied The Leader, a new video is up showcasing the silly side of Halo 3.

From the blog:

"After a long hiatus, resident machinima producer TTL Hoovaloov is back with a piece that he calls the Stupid Fun ‘Tage.  You may remember this gamer from such previous works as Beta Carotage or Lagtacular. His most recent offering is a parade of evidence of the replayability of Halo 3 via Xbox Live."

The Stupid Fun 'Tage at the TTL Blog



YouTube Version

Get out your digital pumpkins and paring knives.


Halloween is fast approaching.  But before you head out for delicious, tooth decay inducing candy this Friday, why not spend a little time crafting some Holiday-themed goodies in Forge?  Who knows, if your ghoulish creation delights, you might earn a little disfigured face time in this week's Weekly Update.

We'll be looking for new content tagged with the word "Halloween."  No rehashing.  We know there are already some sweet gargoyles with Brute Shot wings perched upon Blackout's lonely spires out there, but we want to see what kind of tricks and treats you can pull off on short notice.

Here are a few existing examples Stosh already dumped into the bowl:

Average is such a relative term.


We’re not using it here to belittle or besmirch, but rather to distinguish. The people we’ll be spotlighting in this series are plucked from the community for a variety of reasons, none of which have anything to do with mediocrity. Far from it. These folks are some of the platelets flowing through the community's lifeblood—people who aren’t making the games, but rather celebrating them. These are the montage makers, the song writers, the fanfic authors, and the discerning men and women who make the forums paginate. They’re also the store clerks, the people who pull our teeth, and the men and women who make the world an interesting place.

First up, Bryan Simon, maestro of the musical tribute.

Q. Explain yourself?

A. My name is Bryan Simon and I’m an IT guy at a family owned Lumber & Hardware center. I say IT guy, but it really is a lot more complex since I’m considered part of the family. I clean the owner’s pool during the summer time (and accidentally fall in to cool myself off). I do the on-hold messages. I design the company newsletter. I organize the annual contractor dinner. Like Ron Burgandy would say, “I’m kind of a big deal.”

My hobbies consist of surfing the Internets (mainly Bungie.net, Xbox360Fanboy.com, Halo.Bungie.Org, and MLGPro.com), playing guitar, and trying to help Bungie take over the world.

Q. That's a 1337 gamertag, eh?

A. My gamertag is my actual name. Can you see it? b12y4n 51m0n. Some people can’t.  The 12 is an R. My actual name came from my mom. I love my mom. She’s a really sweet lady.

Q. What does your online schedule look like?

A. I am ALWAYS on Bungie.net. I think I would win an award for amount of time logged onto the forums. If my boss knew how much I surfed Bungie.net during the day, I would probably be excommunicated from the family and I’d have to find another job. I love the main Halo 3 forum, but there is just so much chaos in there. I’m a member of the group Halo 3 In The Workplace (H3ITWP) on Bungie.net. It’s an awesome group. Basically it consists of people who have jobs and families and balance their family life and their Halo life.

I’m a member of B5D, The General Public, and Mythbusters forums. I just recently joined http://www.real7alk.com and that’s a neat place as well. Lots of cool people to talk to. I just really enjoy talking to people. The Internet has given us such a huge opportunity to make friends with people and build relationships. Even though we may never physically meet the person on the other end, we can form bonds and speak into each other’s lives.

Q. What compels you to game? Do you game with friends and family? Co-workers?

A. I just love the satisfaction of seeing that 1st place standing. Nothing gives me more of a chubby (if I’m allowed to say that) than logging on to Bungie.net in the morning and seeing my game history full of 1st place finishes. I normally play with anyone who is willing to play Social Slayer or Skirmish. Those are my two favorite playlists. If you want to play them, I’ll play with you.

I tried to get my wife to play with me once. I showed her where the Needler was on Snowbound. I showed her how to pick it up and fire it. She killed me once and said, “This game is dumb. I’m going to go watch Friends on TV instead.” That was the end of her Halo gaming.

Q. What was the first Bungie title you played? How did you discover it? What was is specifically that sucked you in?

A. I played Halo CE for the PC a few months before Halo 3 came out. My buddy and I were in Wal-Mart and he told me to buy it because it was only $20 and it was awesome. I played it and really enjoyed it. Oddball on RatRace for the win!! I’ve always loved FPS games. Duke Nukem 3D, Doom, Shadow Warrior, they were all my favorites back in the day. Halo just seemed to be the best FPS I ever played.

Anyways Halo 3 came out, I went to Wal-Mart that night and bought an Xbox and Halo 3. I’ve logged hundreds of hours ever since and am very glad I made that decision. It’s the only game I own. If Bungie’s future games are as exciting and contain the same multiplayer experience, I’ll buy every one of them.

Q. Are you surprised by your level of community involvement?

A. Not really. People who are passionate about something will always tell others because of that passion. I really enjoy playing Halo. I’m pretty passionate about music. I fused the two together and wrote some tribute songs. I’ve written 10 songs about Halo and Bungie so far and as of 10/24/08 have reached 50,000 views on YouTube.

The thought first came to me to write a Halo song when I saw a video someone recorded about Geometry Wars on www.xbox360fanboy.com. I wrote “Thank You, Bungie” and it was pretty successful so I wrote another called “Teabag Me,” “I Bought My General,” “One Shot On My X,” and others. I’ve gotten a lot of positive response. I’ll probably write a few more cause there is always something to talk about. “I Just Can’t Kill That Banshee” will probably be one in the future.

Q. Are you involved with any other entertainment-related communities?

A. No. Not really. I used to play music at a church for a Saturday night service. You may be able to find the promo video on YouTube along with the songs if you search for my name! I had my first daughter and took a step down from certain commitments to spend more time with her. It’s been a while since I recorded tunes so I needed an outlet. Thus, the Halo 3/Bungie videos.

Q. Anything you would like to add? Wanna make a shout-out?

A. I just want to say that I really appreciate everything Bungie has done. I have no reason to suck up, really. I’ve been hooked up with the Mark VI MJOLNIR Armor /R variant, so that’s not why I’m thanking them publicly. They deal with a lot of crap from snotty nosed little kids about how their game sux0rz and how the BR is broken. Bungie really works hard to be involved in the Halo community and I think that they do a great job listening to everyone’s opinion and making things work for the best. Keep up the good work.

Shout’s out to H3ITWP on Bungie.net for helping me get the music into the public eye as well as Facility B5D. I appreciate everyone who has left me a comment on Youtube and everyone who sends me messages on Bungie.net and Xbox LIVE.

Lastly, I want to encourage everyone to become more positive and respectful on LIVE. There’s enough chaos and hate in the world. Getting online and gaming with each other should be like a vacation away from all that hate. Sure we get frustrated when headshots don’t land or maybe we’re teabagged, but let’s start a revolution to make online gameplay more enjoyable. KEEP IT CLEAN. Say good game. Pass it on.

And....scene.

Mad props to Bryan for taking time out to answer our questions.  Make sure you return the favor and subscribe to his video channel.  It's the least you can do.

Size matters with these sweet panoramas


This collection of panoramic shots comes to us from Hfr JoHnnY Be GooD, by way of HBO.  Expand your mind and your field of view by checking out this pretty robust Flickr gallery.

JoHnnY Be GooD's Panoramic Halo 3 Collection

'The Best Defense...'


Episode 7, eh?  You'll have to invest a small chunk of time (about ten minutes) if you want to ingest this episode, but the folks at  Young Street Productions have made sure it's worth your while by injecting it full of tasty goodness.

Naked except for an eyepatch and a sombrero.


DigitalPh33r's Hard Justice: Episode 3 went up a few days back, but was mysteriously yanked from YouTube's servers shortly thereafter.  Now It's back and ready for viewing.  It also contains strong language and perps playing loud music.  You've been warned.

Over 18,000 Spartan Laser kills?  It's montage time!


We checked and it turns out Sanctious really does have over 18,000 kills with the Spartan Laser.  To commemorate, he stitched a tiny sampling of them together for a four minute and forty-five second montage.  There was a time when LAZR CAT demanded, "MAWR LAZR."  I think kitty's demands have been met.



Youtube - The Sanctious Splasertage Vol. 1

You don't need a degree in Archeology to uncover the gems other players have left behind.


If you're not using the newly tweaked tag tools to dig up sweet content on Bungie.net, then you're doing it wrong.  But don't toss out your wool fedora just yet.  As we've already announced, the once daunting task of sifting and sorting content has been simplified.  From the All Tags link found under the Bungie Online heading, you can utilize the tools in your kit to conduct broad, category-wide searches, or to delicately dust off your artifacts with a supple brush and find the exact content you're looking for.




How do I drop-down?

You can fiddle with the various knobs and levers as much as you like.  Here's a somewhat refined assemblage of assets we discovered by searching for the Highest Rated files found under the tag "annual."


Achievement Boosting - Courtesy of the Covenant Ghost







And yeah, we know, you have way better screenshots in your fileshare. That's sweet because the same tools expounded on above allow you to tag your own awesome content. Do it properly and you won't have to rely on verbalization to sell your stuff - it'll automatically rise to the top as other player's start digging it up, rating it, and adding meaningful tags of their own.

Outmanned and Outgunned


The newest episode of Reclaimer has been published.  Hopefully, it won't leave you feeling a little queasy.

Reclaimer 104 - "Fight or Flight"

Head on over and check it out.  Thanks to HBO for the notification.

Follow the Rabbit.


Hawty McBloggy enlists the aid of the community to help spread awareness of Infantile Spasms:

"The Halo community has found themselves significantly moved by the plight of Marissa. Fairfax, her adorably sweet bunny who has been on an honorable mission to spread awareness of Infantile Spasms (the serious pediatric epileptic condition she suffers from), has touched us in a way only very special stuffed bunnies can. For Marissa, and for the amazing people whom love and care for her, we present the other fight that Fairfax has been waging, that which takes place in our favorite fictional Halo universe. Read up about Marissa’s story, then enjoy Fairfax’s Halo adventures."

Head on over, chuckle at the pics, and let Marissa and Fairfax tug at your heart strings.

Fairfax 'n' the Chief

Maimum FEAR writes:

Show off your creative side.  Help those in need.


"The Gamers in Action Lets Get Creative Competition [sic] gives you the chance to show off your creative skill.  Not only that but by taking part in the competition you'll be helping to raise money for Child's Play, a charity run by the guys from over at Penny Arcade that helps supply hospitals with toys and video games for ill children.

So head on over to the official competition page and learn how you can take part.  Halo fans have at least four categories they can send submissions into.  Whether you are musical, artistic or technical, there is something for you."