Halo 3 delayed until 2007 -- to launch alongside movie
by James Ransom-Wiley 
{ Aug 23rd 2005 at 1:00PM }
Fox And Universal have come to terms with Microsoft, finalizing the Halo movie contract and agreeing on a Summer
2007 release. It was also noted that MS is planning to launch Halo 3 at the same time as the movie to "optimize
marketing potential". Could this be true? Has Microsoft abandoned its original plan to coincide the game's launch with
that of the PS3? We need answers!
[Thanks, variablesunknown]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Privo @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
Look Ransom, stop coming up with this depressing damn news! First the Zelda delay and now this! Who knows if I'll even be alive in 2007! Cheese N Crackers! someone needs to slap the ish out of these marketing fg/hags and tell them to get their ish on track! Holla! It's hard out here for a x-box pimp...
Not Impressed (Dmitri) @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
I hope it is true. It would be smart for bungie to fine tune everything and make it perfect. Besides, PS3 doesn't need Halo 3 to make itself a complete disaster.
Vella @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
Well, I think I'll wait until the game is actually ANNOUNCED to start getting anxious over a potential release date.
(God, I hope they don't change the Chief's voice for Halo 3 to match the movie.)
SickNic @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
I'm sorry, I am too excited for PD0, PGR3, GR3, COD2, Quake IV, Condemned, oblivion ..etc to give a damn about halo 3 right now. How cares about halo 3 with all these other awesome games coming out? Microsoft is trying to prove that they don't need to rely on the halo series to succeed, and they seem to be on the right track...
Andrew @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
The Movie will blow.
Completely.
Why, you ask? Because videogame plots are absolute rubbish written by computer geeks. C'mon, defend earth from the Alien invaders? That's been done a million times. The real reason games are popular is because of the gameplay..
Because Hollywood and Microsoft are a bunch of money grubbling faggots, they will still make the movie. And what's even worse is that millions of people will actually see it.
Ah, Fanboys, the low of society.
Duniyadnd @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
Doesn't sound surprising. Employees of Bungie were shaking their heads when Bill Gates said they're going to release Halo 3 at the same time as PS3 next year, Steve Balmer himself saying that's something Gates shouldn't have said.
Venomous @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
I always thought that 2006 was too early to lauch Halo360. Not that I wouldnt mind, it seems too short to develope the next level in halo. Well, lets hope that we wont notice as much with the help of some killer games in 2006.
Threnody @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
"Because Hollywood and Microsoft are a bunch of money grubbling faggots, they will still make the movie. And what's even worse is that millions of people will actually see it.
Ah, Fanboys, the low of society."
I'll take fanboys over homophobic bigotry any day.
SickNic @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
I'm sorry, I am too excited for PD0, PGR3, GR3, COD2, Quake IV, Condemned, oblivion ..etc to give a damn about halo 3 right now. How cares about halo 3 with all these other awesome games coming out? Microsoft is trying to prove that they don't need to rely on the halo series to succeed, and they seem to be on the right track...
Venomous @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
Hey Andrew, No one asked why. Money grubbling faggots? I think that should discredit any thing you say. I for one think the movie might really be good. You see I like Halo, and so do a few million other people. And yeah, fanboys are the low of a society. No I think negitive doom and gloomers, are what brings us all down...not fanboys
ROG27 @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
Both Nintendo's and Sony's Machines will own the X-Flop...so far it's just a bitter disappointment...they are jumping the gun to get the the X-Flop out, totally fucking up any positive marketing they could have done, and having so many terrible sequals coming out at launch...only a handful of new stuff and it doesn't even look that good (Kameo looks horrible). I love those who nothing about the other two upcoming consoles and condemn them out of sheer ignorance to what they have to offer. Past experience means naught. It's a whole new ballgame this time around. I'm already disappointed by the X-Flop. You really can't say the same for the other two consoles.
metal_gear_jello @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
Andrew:
"Why, you ask? Because videogame plots are absolute rubbish written by computer geeks. C'mon, defend earth from the Alien invaders? That's been done a million times. The real reason games are popular is because of the gameplay.."
I think this is the most intelligent thing said in this thread so far.
SickNic @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
How can you be disapointed in somethig that doesn't exsist yet? *Cough* Fanboy *Cough*
nod @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
This will not happen - the game will be released when it's finished, and not to coincide with a movie. That's naive of Joystiq to post, like Variety knows so much about the video game business.
There is no guarantee that the Halo movie will be finished by Summer 2007. Movie production could be delayed, etc. Do you really think Microsoft would hold-on to a finished product and wait for the movie?
My guess is that we'll see Halo 3 for Xmas 2006, but that's just a guess. You can rest assured though, Halo 3 will be release when it's done, and it won't coincide with any other event (PS3, movie, etc.) unless it's a coincidence.
thies @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
Maybe they need the xbox360 premium plus pack which comes with a hd-dvd drive for a release of Halo3 and that's why they wait?
Sanitarium @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
I didn't even know the game was confirmed for 06, so this wouldn't be a "delay" in my mind.
And how can we be sure M$ won't release the xbox 720 backflip by 07? They're putting the 360 out pretty early instead of letting the xbox live out its full lifespan. If the next gen systems weren't coming so soon, the current gen systems and games would still be selling well, but since all the hype over the next gen systems launching so early is being built up, people dont care about the current gen systems, till they see the prices of the next gen systems (Revolution excluded since they're going for the 200$ range).
Crimson @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
I <3 idiots
Vella @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
(BTW, if anyone wants to continue being an idiot like "Grubbling Faggots" Andrew, or yell about a video game console, take it to a forum please. We're commenting on the Halo movie.)
Link to Bungie.net Movie Update:
http://www.bungie.net/News/TopStory.aspx?story=greathollywoodjourney1&p=4542384
Nigma @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
My guess... Halo 3 at the PS3 launch, Halo 3.5 or 4 released at or near the movie. They turned out Halo 2 much faster than the original after they worked out most of the tech for the original and reused most of the code and assets for Halo 2.
vaylen @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
Microsoft really stuck their foot in their mouth when they said Halo 3 would ship the day the PS3 came out. Giving Sony the ability to determine when Halo3 shipped was a horrible idea. If Sony rushed the PS3 to market before Halo3 was ready, they could turn M$'s biggest franchise into a colossal flop. Now it seems they have realized how stupid they were and are not letting Sony dictate their release date. Of course, tying this title to what will most likely be a horrible, pathetic movie (Wing Commander, anyone?) is almost as bad. It seems for every mistake M$ corrects, they make a new one.
jc @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
I can totally see MS running with this one in 2007... just imagine the game and the movie and the shirts and the x360 versions and the faceplates and the hats and every other branded knicknack and gadget coming out.
I smell a variatable smorgasborg of green and black tinted Halo plastic from sea to shining sea. And just like Slim Whittman, Bill Gates wants to be riding this bomb all the way down...
yahoo
(ps, I hope the game is at least good as the first one)
OTAM @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
It's amazing how a chat about a movie turns into business strategy between two companies.Let's see a headline for a new Nightmare on Elm Street movie and start complaining about the business moves of Paramount and New Line Cinema.Why not? It's along the same premise of this.
Now you see how stupid you sound.
As stated by someone earlier, I <3 Idiots.
Pretty Obvious @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
This is def an excellent move. Heres hoping the movie will actually be good. From what I heard Microsoft payed the scrib of 28 Days Later a million to write the script which had to be revised and OK'd by the guys over at Bungie.
They are taking alot of time, effort and money to make this movie, I even heard of them trying to get Ridley Scott to direct. This flick will not bomb. Hell even the Doom movies not looking so bad anymore.
Microsoft never had to release Halo alongside PS3. Sony has no chance in hell anyway against Microsoft. When their system drops next year and people see that the demos they showed at E3 look nothing like the final product. Well.. actions speak louder then words.
me @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
Hey wait, didn't they already come out with a Halo movie? Wasn't it called "Aliens" ?
Jason Cross @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
How can a game that has never had a release date, nor even officially announced, be "delayed?"
I mean sure Bill spouts off about how the game would coincide with the PS3 launch, but let's face it: Bill Gates doesn't run Xbox (thank god), and he isn't always entirely in the know about the planning there. He and Ballmer seem to be less informed about Xbox goings-on than we are. It's probably better that way.
DigitalStupor @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
While the Halo story isn't pulitzer material, it is a pretty good story compared to most of the drivel put out in the world of sci-fi. The first Halo had nothing to do with aliens invading earth - there may have been the aliens verse humans backstory - but the whole "Halo" (the ring world) setting was entirely fascinating. Elements like the mystery of what a Halo was, and the flood were pretty good pieces of the plot.
Halo 2 took a different spin, and brought us the Alien's side of the story, with things like the Arbiter, and a rebellion within the Covanent that had to be squashed. Again, not stunning, but a nice spin. It gives the aliens a bit of soul that otherwise is cast away. Instead of simple cannon fodder that have no concern about their own life, we got to see Aliens that actually think and maybe even have feelings? That side isn't taken too often!
While traditionally, most video games have little to no story nor original and fresh plots. Many titles ARE indeed trying to fuse great story with great interactivity. This is the future people - movies and video games are on a collision course, things are only getting more interesting from here. Don't be surprised if the Halo/Halo Movie becomes a giant leap forward in the right direction and gives us something none of us have seen yet!
funkonaut @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
If I buy the Xbox 360 Core Edition can I still watch Halo 3?
KINGCOBRA @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
I agree fully with DIGITAL. The story on HALO was fantastic and very intriguing. I think it could be an awesome movie. Should have a good story and some great Edge of your Seat thrills. Good Popcorn movie!!
Glenn @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
"They turned out Halo 2 much faster than the original after they worked out most of the tech for the original and reused most of the code and assets for Halo 2."
Why do people just make stuff up? Halo 1 was made in mere months (minus all the RTS stuff they through away) while Halo 2 took over 3 years and reused almost no code or assets from Halo 1.
And to ROG27 - Kameo looks horrible? I saw it at E3 on a 50" plasma and my jaw hit the floor - have you seen it that way? or in a 240 x 320 streaming video? LOL
Spartacus @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
Consider what makes a game based movie a 'B' flick:
1. Bad script
2. Bad adaptation
3. Low budget
Now look at HALO's cedentials:
1. Script wriiten by Alex Garland and approved/editied by Bungie
2. Bungie has FULL creative rights to the film
3. MS has demanded a MINIMUM of 97 million dollar budget (that's not including actor's salaries).
If you ask me, this is an equation for success and a dang good movie, whether you like the game or not. Now, if they'd only do MechWarrior...
Nigma @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
"Why do people just make stuff up? Halo 1 was made in mere months (minus all the RTS stuff they through away) while Halo 2 took over 3 years and reused almost no code or assets from Halo 1."
Well, that's amazing that they ported it to XBox from an Apple platform in months and turned it to a FPS from a RTS in months? Amazing.
But, god damn, the master chief sure looks the same, as does the wart hog, and pretty much everything else between the first and second versions. More polys and normal mapping, yeah, but it's based on the orginial models and textures and game code. The vehicles drive the same, the controls feel the same and the game plays the same despite the improved looks. I wonder why that is, since they spent so much time re-doing everything for absolutely no reason, other than to back up you innane arguement. That's because they would be absolutely stupid to start completely from scratch with such a successful framework already in place.
Nigma @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
BTW, it took Halo 2 three years because they had to create the new storyline/levels and the improved assets (including the required new ones).
Additionally, they did not want to release it until they got every last cent out of the Halo 1 game and had XBox Live up and running and the online code tweaked to perfection.
Venator @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
Actually, my guess is that "Gears of War" will be conveniently delayed until the PS3 launch.
Now THAT is a game to sell systems!
Tig @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
was just confirming my 360 preorder with EB and they told me that they July 7 date is unchanged for H3
I think he said 7th but I know he said july
ROG27 @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
GLENN:
Saw it on IGN...straight from GC...the newest demonstration of Kameo (furthest along in dev):
javascript:popSizedWinProtected2('http://streamingmovies.ign.com/xbox360/article/644/644422/gc2005_081805_x360_wmvhighwide.wmv?wu=http%3A%2F%2Fmedia.xbox360.ign.com%2Fmedia%2F490%2F490038%2Fvid_1211807.html%3Fmu%3D%3CURL%2F%3E', '1211807', 320, 830, 610, 1)
It looks fucking horrible. HORRIBLE!!! I don't give a shit if the walls are shiny, the textures are normal mapped, or if there is atmostpheric lighting--this has all been done on XBOX 1 (Splinter Cell Chaos Theory anyone?). The level of detail in character models, art, world-physics, collision detection, level of interactivity etc. all suck, as well as the loading times between rooms!!! (no hdd standard sucks). This console is projecting a massively underwhelming image for the next generation of games, as weird as that sounds. I think MS has about as much creativity as a log with a huge pocketbook. It's been showing, severly, now for sometime.
I want no part of it. The general public wants no part of it. Only PC gaming geeks need apply, because that's what the majority of you XBOX fanfucks are. You should just market MS products because you obviously liked their flagship pos OS and platforms from the start. They've held the Personal Computer Industry back 10-20 years progress-wise in the software development arena with their shitty, dll-ridden, non-opensource OS's. And that's a fact Jack.
tr1gunn @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
owned. good old microsoft, always going for top dollar and global domination. i have a feeling that the halo movie will suck even though i love halo.
Christopher7xii @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
Ninty Nine Nights looks fun. Oblivion as well.
Halo movie won't win any oscars, doesn't mean it won't be entertaining. 98% of storylines for movies have all been done before, you just add a new flare or new characters to the mix. I thought people have realized by now that everything you can think of has already been done before. Hell, Halo itself seems like it was based off of the book Ringworld IMO. Loosely, but enough to be obvious inspiration.
Rare Hare @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
i remember when Gates first said that Bungie was disagreeing.
i thought that was the funniest thing i'd heard for a long time :D
i never believed it was going to launch alongside the PS3.
Sanitarium @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
OTAM, have you a life outside of attempting to make fun of people on the internet? You've gotta be just like that guy from malcolm in the middle who plays chess in the park in real life. I pity you, you must live such a sad and worthless life.
Honestly, you try and make fun of us for not talking about what is only said in the article, and yet, you look at any of your other comments, and all you do is single people out and attempt to make fun of them, thinking you're so much better and cooler than everybody else. You soooooo need a life.
Rare Hare @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
seriously OTAM, just because you aren't intelligent enough to understand the simplest of business manuevers or faults doesn't mean you have to put down those of us who not only can understand it but take interest in it.
fuck off.
DigitalStupor @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
Halo 1 was developed in mere months? Ummmm...yeah right! The game was officially slated for the PC (WINDOWS) back when Bungie was just a developer making a new game and seeking a publisher (or to self publish). I remember at LEAST two years before Xbox rolled out seeing video clips of Halo and the warthog "physics" as it drove around in an outdoor environment. I even remember thinking...."hmmmm...I'll need to keep an eye on this PC game!". Then, big papa Microsoft swooped down and bought Bungie, and the conversion from a complete PC game to an Xbox game was about a year I believe. End of story, one of the best shooters ever made!
Alkaiser @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
You knew this was going to happen.
Last week Uwe Boll talks about how video games need to release alongside the movie for greater tie-ins...then this announcement...
Coincidence? I think not.
eric @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
I sure hope they don't hold the game until the movie release, however if they release the NEXT version of Halo along with the movie thats OK with me.
Spartacus @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
ROG27:
Sounds like someone needs to take their pills and simmer down, lol. If you don't like the Xbox, that's fine, calling everyone else "fanfucks" is not only immature, but unnecessary. I especially like your comment that you made about the general public not being interested- I'm glad you know what the average consumer thinks, maybe you should sign on as a market researcher because all the ones that MS has hired obviously have no clue what they're talking about. Yeah, it's all been done before, just like Final Fantasy 60 and another reiteration of Metal Gear Solid.. And if the graphics are all you're worried about, you may want to stay away from Nintendo's new offering too. So at this point I'm wondering "Why does this guy hang around game blogs?"
BTW: How did a post on the HALO movie go off on this tangent?
MosquitoControl @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
"They've held the Personal Computer Industry back 10-20 years progress-wise in the software development arena with their shitty, dll-ridden, non-opensource OS's. And that's a fact Jack."
Disagreed. If Windows hadn't come along with a nice standard for developers we wouldn't have blown through the 90s as quickly as we had. There were no solid open-source competitors before Linux, and Linux is still way too complicated for your average soccermom PC user.
Without Windows providing an easy-to-use standard PCs would NOT be where they are now. If we had 5 or 6 open-source platforms competing the average buyer would be confused and the average developer would be unable to reach the mass market he currently can.
Although I still don't know why I respond to ROG. He's the only name I know on this board, and I know it because he posts such acidic responses about "fan boys," despite his posts being bearing the heaviest bias I've seen around here.
Glenn @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
"Saw it on IGN...straight from GC...the newest demonstration of Kameo (furthest along in dev):"
Thanks for proving my point. Watching a little 320x240 isn't anything. Seeing it live on a 50" HD plasma is amazing.
"this has all been done on XBOX 1 (Splinter Cell Chaos Theory anyone?)"
Play that same game on a 55" HDTV and you'll see you're wrong again.
"The general public wants no part of it."
LOL
"Only PC gaming geeks need apply, because that's what the majority of you XBOX fanfucks are."
I own every console ever produced from the Channel F and on - so I don't know where you're going here.
In any event, I wish the best for you. Perhaps one day you'll be able to transform you're anger into learning, get a higher paying job, and then be able to afford all of the systems. That way, you won't be angry at the systems that you don't own. Those evil systems that might take exclusive titles away from that one BEST SYSTEM EVER that you do own.
ill trooper @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
Sounds like a mediocre sci-fi movie to me; the story of Halo is slightly remedial, with the interesting things derivitive of the book "Ring World" by Larry Niven, the book and subsequent film 'Starship Troopers,' and, of course, the film 'Aliens.'
That being said, I like sci-fi, and if it's well made, I'll check it out. There is potential but I am not holding my breath - particularly since we're talking roughly a year and a half.
The interesting angle here for me is that for less money than this movie will cost (Guessing the movie will be over $100 mil, plus $30-40 for marketing and distro), Bungie was able to develop Halo 2, which upon release, instantly set records for entertainment profits - meaning Halo 2 sales generated the most money within a week for any entertainment venture ever - more than any movie or book before has in the same time frame. Of course, no major movie or best-seller book costs $50, so it's a matter of mathmatics but still the money was spent and records were set.
So why bother making a movie? Why not spend differently, putting $50 million toward Halo 3, which could even be considered overkill (that's like a $200 mil movie budget)? More money was made on focusing on the game and marketing it than any movie ever made in a week, so why not just stick with Halo3, the GAME?
Well, it would appear with this move Microsoft and Bungie are using the movie itself as a marketing campaign for the game, and if it tanks at the box office, who cares? The game will fly. But the awareness of the average person about Halo will be raised - more people know about movie releases than video game releases, and this will help bring people not so avidly interested in video games into the fold - probably taking Halo even more mass-market. And if the movie does well? Franchise situation, more money...
footnote: using this website for information:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A33792-2004Nov8.html?referrer%3Demail&sub=AR
Avatar @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
I'm not really surprised that they're not launching Halo2 until 2007. I hope this time they include some of the cool backstories which were in the viral game (anyone remember i love bees). They took a huge amount of time to go between halo 1 to halo 2, from what I can gather Bungie only started to use the xbox hardware properly with halo2. Obviously the xbox360 is going to have new gear for them to utilise the hardware properly so they're going to have to (if they want to do it properly) spend some serious time on porting the engine physics, hardware rendering etc. I agree that a large amount of time was spent on xboxlive this last time but I have a feeling this will not be the snagging point with xb360 as halo in any iteration is going to completely miss the new xblive launch window. halo 1 was 199?-2001 to develop, halo 2 was 2001 - 2004 to develop, halo 3 will be 2004 - 2007? Sounds about right so far as project life cycles roughly taking the same amount of time goes. As for the movie plot and story line... I love the halo story line the relation ship between Master Cheif and Courtana is very enjoyable. "Oh I'm sorry were you just about to kill something" springs to mind, and how sad it was when he left her behind at the end of halo2 and she said "don't make a girl a promise you can't keep". Also the fact that Master Cheif is a genetically engineered human has barely been touched on as yet. The halo story in general is extremely deep and well thought out. Not to mention its relevance in the politcal vs religion vs good guys, type times we live in. You could picture the covenant as the christians / islams / jewish / any other religion which kills in the name of their god and the humans as the rest of us which are not without their own faults also but trying to make things right. I see much of the hypocracy in religion in the covenant which is unquestioned by it's followers, I see violence from the humans also but as the gravemind said "This one is machine and nerve and has its mind concluded; this one is but flesh and faith and is the more deluded..." meaning that although Cheif may be just wires and nerves he thinks for himself. I think if more people started thinking for themselves about what is the right thing to do for the benefit of their society we would all be better off, not listening to some charismatic leader or church or written diety. Anyway I've raved enough about the humans vs covy relationship and probably pissed off most of the people in this room by bagging all organised religions. I haven't even began to talk about how cool the flood is as a plot device.
Spartacus @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
ill tropper:
MS and Bungie aren't spending 100 mil on the HALO movie, they're MAKING money off of it. MS spent 1 mil to get the script written, but the rest is pure profit for them, while spending 50 mil to make a game would be suicide, lol.
Karelia @ Dec 18th 2005 10:00PM
illtrooper:
"Sounds like a mediocre sci-fi movie to me; the story of Halo is slightly remedial, with the interesting things derivitive of the book "Ring World" by Larry Niven, the book and subsequent film 'Starship Troopers,' and, of course, the film 'Aliens.'"
Actually, Halo has nothing to do with Ring World or Starship Troopers. If you get into it enough, and read the books, you will come to realize that a lot of it has reference to the Bible, albeit indirect. Covenant? The Ark? The Flood? Cortana? All mentioned in the Bible, or in religious history.