Halo2 posts (Subscribe to this feed)

Want a bigger friends list? Stop playing Halo 2 online!

by Ben Gilbert { Aug 10th 2009 at 7:00PM }

Speaking to G4 late last week, a "high-level Microsoft source" said that the real reason Microsoft hasn't upped the friends list limit on 360 thus far has more to do with people still playing Halo 2 on Xbox than limitations of its current console. Reportedly, the source says that Microsoft is still undecided on when to finally pull the plug and add a feature gamers have been requesting for a long time now.

The company has made it clear in the past that it would like to implement the feature, even going so far as to explain to us at CES 2009 that "original Xbox games were coded to be limited to 100 friends and that limit was brought into the current generation." According to G4's source, the shuttering of Halo 2's online could come after Halo 3: ODST drops this September, giving Microsoft two Halo titles to offer on the Xbox 360. The source also contends that the real decision to keep Halo 2 online is in the hands of gamers. What say you, gamers?!

[Via Shacknews]

Halo 2 finally joins Xbox 'Platinum Hits' collection

by Scott Jon Siegel { Feb 11th 2008 at 1:30PM }

As one of the strongest titles in the Xbox library, Bungie's Halo 2 has been notably absent from Microsoft's "Platinum Hits" series, which features high-selling games at reduced prices a few years after their release. Now, it seems that Halo 2 has finally gone "platinum," with the required ugly box art remix, and an expected price drop down to $19.99 USD. Said ugly box art remix was recently added to Microsoft's press site.

Currently priced at $29.99, Halo 2's inception into the Platinum Hits would certainly be a good thing in terms of price. The bad side? The slick cover art of Master Chief has been cropped to make way for all the Platinum Hits gobbledeegook, and includes a big ugly inset reminding everyone that it's the "Best Selling Xbox Game Ever." The new box also reminds players that Halo 2 is playable on 360 (provided you have a hard drive).

If you have yet to pick up this modern classic, the price drop certainly makes it a good time to reconsider a purchase. When this beauty hits brick-and-mortar shelves, though, we recommend hunting down the old-box versions and requesting the new lower price. Nothing says "uncool" like owning the "greatest hits" version.

[Update: Microsoft has confirmed the news. An official announcement is forthcoming.]

Brand new RvB mini-series headed to XBLM

by Dustin Burg { Oct 24th 2007 at 4:00PM }

Well, well, it looks like our Rooster Teeth friends haven't completely thrown in the Halo 2 machinama towel yet as they just announced plans to release a new mini-series onto the Xbox Live Marketplace.

In their latest blogging update, Burnie mentions that in the weeks to come, a new RvB mini-series entitled "Red vs Blue: Recovery One" will be releasing to the internets and onto the XBLM. "Recovery One" will mirror that of their "Out of Mind" project, but with new characters and it is going to officially be their final Halo 2 project (fighting ... back ... sadness and tears.) Burnie promises more information on "Recovery One" in a few days, but until then you should make the jump and check out their latest video that they made for the 2007 European Machinima Festival. We can only describe it as ... worldly.

[Thanks, Skandil]

Microsoft releases new statistics, expects 10m Live users by June 2008

by Scott Jon Siegel { Sep 20th 2007 at 7:20PM }

Amidst the hub-bub of the Tokyo Game Show, Microsoft has released some new statistics and numbers regarding the Xbox 360, which will have its second birthday this November. Worth noting are the stats on Xbox Live, which Microsoft reports has over 7 million subscribers so far, with 10 million anticipated by June of 2008.

According to the stats, the original Xbox's Halo 2 is still the most-played title on Xbox Live, followed by Epic's Gears of War. On Xbox Live Arcade, Aegis Wing is the most widely downloaded title, with family card classic Uno coming in second. It's clear that Microsoft considers Live to be the 360's killer app, boasting that 70% of connected console users download and play XBLA games. In terms of social networking, Microsoft is proud to have 2.6 million text and voice messages sent over their service every day, and claims that the average Live Gold user has 23 friends listed. It's no MySpace, but maybe that's a good thing...

Today's chiefiest sequel: Master Chief Sucks at Halo 2

by Kevin Kelly { Aug 20th 2007 at 2:00AM }

Warning, video language is not remotely safe for work, small children, or people operating heavy machinery.

Ladies and gentlemen, Master Chief is back. This time he's in for a double whammy, learning that The Arbiter taped over his movies with episodes of Everybody Loves Raymond, and finding out that the Halo 3 beta has expired. Poor Master Chief.

He tries to soothe the pain with some Halo 2 action, and also serves up today's video in the process. It's not quite as good as the original (not enough Master Chief laughing lolololololololololz), but it'll kill some time between now and the release of the retail version, which looms ever closer.

Playing Xbox 360 with your Wii remote

by Ross Miller { Aug 7th 2007 at 5:25PM }

An adventurous and skillful modder has managed to turn a Wii remote into an Xbox 360 controller with middleware help from the PS2 control scheme -- it's as if all the console makers are working in harmony for this one hack. Try humming this to the tune of "Dem Bones" (actually, don't, because we're not even going to try to fit the rhyme scheme):

The Xbox 360 is connected to the XFPS PS2 to 360 adapter
... which is connected to a big black box Microcontroller "with custom firmware emulating a PS2 controller"
... which is connected to a Samsung Q1 PC with custom Wii remote firmware
... which is connected via Bluetooth to the Wii remote itself.

Full details of the process can be found here. A video demonstration is embedded after the break that not only shows the control scheme work with Halo 2 but also the thought put into making it a comfortable and viable control scheme (such as anti-acceleration and smoothing algorithms).

[Via Engadget; thanks, Chris]

Continued →

Got a small fortune? Play Halo 2 with a Wiimote

by Richard Mitchell { Aug 7th 2007 at 4:00PM }

Modders, to put it lightly, are crazy. Case in point, a little project by someone known only as OBsIV. What project, you ask? Why, nothing more than to get a Wii remote to control Halo 2 on an Xbox 360. More impressive than the feat itself it the sheer amount of stuff required to do it. Behold:

Wiimote and Nunchuk
Xbox 360
PC
XFPS 360
Custom drivers
"Black box" (hard coded microcontroller with spliced PS2 cable)

As amazing as the mod is, we're almost more impressed that OBsIV found a good use for the XFPS 360. Check out a video of the mod in action after the break.

Continued →

Wii60 in action: Wiimote Halo 2

by Alisha Karabinus { Aug 7th 2007 at 3:55PM }

Wii60 aficionado OBsIV had a dream, a dream of consoles living and working together under one flag, sharing games and controls without any problems or hitches. Today, friends (actually, yesterday), that dream is a reality. After months of hard work, OBsIV was able to cruise around Lockout in Halo 2, battle rifle in tow ... and it was all powered by his trusty Wii remote and nunchuk combo. For the record, we approve of his taste in both weapons and control schemes. You can see it all for yourself in the video we've helpfully embedded after the break, but if you want to do this yourself, you'll need to head over and read the very detailed explanation. We hope you also happen to have a few chunks of spare time lying around, as welI as a lot of random equipment. This was a project, but after watching the video, we're sure you'll agree that it was well worth it.

Continued →

Halo 2 tournament at library causes ire

by Ross Miller { Jul 24th 2007 at 8:15PM }

A Halo 2 tournament occuring at a Chicago area library has sparked some criticism, according to Daily Herald. Dr. David Walsh of the National Institute on Media and the Family (NIMF) has taken issue with the permission slip that does "not spell out" that the shooter is rated M by the ESRB.

"I think it borders on irresponsibility for a public library to sponsor an activity for kids as young as 12 that the industry itself has said is for adults," he said.

The library's director Marilyn Genther stands by its tournament, which was recommend by the library's teen council, saying it's the responsibility of their parents to know what their kids are doing. Said teen director Rose Allen, "I've talked to a number of parents who thanked me for having the tournament. They said their son now wants to come to the library."

Maybe it should be mentioned on the permission slip that Halo 2 is rated M, but compared to other M-rated games, it could be a lot worse. The tournament is scheduled for Sunday at the Mount Prospect Public Library.

[Via GamePolitics]

Halo 2 wireless battlefield communication

by Dustin Burg { Jul 13th 2007 at 11:45AM }

The clever and very observative fanboy SRU Phil spotted a little mistake over on Xbox.com's accessory page pertaining to the ~~Halo 2~~ Halo 3 wireless headset. It's not called a Halo 2 headset guys and mistakes like that could so get a guy's hand chopped off or tongue ripped out. Unless of course the ad isn't a mistake and is really a leaked announcement. Maybe something along the idea that the Halo 3 wireless headset will come with a free copy of Halo 2 Vista. That's it! It's confirmed, buy the Halo 3 wireless headset and get Halo 2 Vista for free. Man, we're too good.

[Thanks, SRU Phil]

The end is here: Red Vs. Blue #100

by Richard Mitchell { Jun 28th 2007 at 3:15PM }

Well folks, today is the day: the end of The Blood Gulch Chronicles. Rooster Teeth promises that there will be a few one-off Red Vs. Blue episodes, but for now, the series as we know it is no more. Episode 100 is available now in all its 15 minute glory. The episode hasn't been released in embeddable format, so you might as well head over to Rooster Teeth, watch the episode, and join the already lengthy discussion. Yes, it is the end of an era. We wish the crew at Rooster Teeth the best of luck in their new endeavors.

[Thanks, NitroFrost]

Shadowrun now playable on XP

by Richard Mitchell { Jun 27th 2007 at 12:30PM }

X3F readers will recall that Falling Leaf was preparing to save Windows XP gamers a lot of cash by making the Windows Vista versions of Shadowrun and Halo 2 compatible with XP. Unfortunately for Falling Leaf, the hacking group Razor 1911 has already cracked* Shadowrun according to the Inquirer. Apparently, all the crack does is overwrite a few files in the installation directory. It should be noted that the crack only allows for single player against bots and multiplayer over LAN. As far as we know, online multiplayer is still restricted to Vista.

Falling Leaf expects its solution to arrive in late July.

[Via Joystiq]

*If you want the crack, you'll have to find it on your own; we're not linking it.

Vista-only Shadowrun cracked, playable on XP

by Ross Miller { Jun 26th 2007 at 5:55PM }

Beating Falling Leaf to the punch, members of the hacking group Razor1911 have managed to hack the Vista-only Shadowrun to work on Windows XP, the Inquirer reports. The crack, weighing in at less than 5 MB, reportedly removes the need for DirectX 10. (No, we're not linking to it -- you can find it yourself.)

With the crack, you can only play single-player against bots or multiplayer LAN games. Falling Leaf, who has stated they will be providing free code for those who purchase the game on Amazon via their pre-order page, still estimates cracks for Vista-only Shadowrun and Halo 2 by "late July."

Circuit City offers free copies of Shadowrun to Halo 2 Vista buyers

by Jared Rea { Jun 18th 2007 at 7:55PM }

Microsoft, for lack of better explanation, sent Shadowrun out to die last month. Not only was it released during the Halo 3 Beta, but on the same day as the considerably more anticipated racer, Forza Motorsport 2. And while it's too early to decide whether the suicide mission was a success or not (depending on how you look at it), Circuit City is dumping their Vista copies of Shadowrun for "free," as long as you don't mind it piggy-backing Halo 2 Vista for $39.99.

Shadowrun, like an episode of Ugly Betty, is proof that underneath it all is something worth getting to know, but not something worth getting for more than $20. Still, judging from reviews, this could be a way to get folks to spend their money, officially, on the much debated Halo 2 Vista port.

Regardless of whichever way you see it: $40 bucks for Halo 2 Vista or a free copy of Shadowrun, there seems to be a loser somewhere in this scenario.

Halo 2, Shadowrun made playable on XP

by Ross Miller { Jun 11th 2007 at 9:45PM }

Falling Leaf Studios is mad as hell and not going to take it anymore. What has caused them ire? Microsoft making Halo 2 and Shadowrun Vista-only. So they decided to make them XP-compatible.

The company is promising that if you buy one of the games through Amazon via the links on their page, then they will send you for free their initial release of compatibility software that will let you"run these Windows Vista titles on Windows XP," they claim.

Said Falling Leaf Systems CEO Brian Thomason, "first [Microsoft] claim that it was impossible to implement DirectX 10 compatibility atop Windows XP, and now they also want us to believe that they couldn't successfully launch two DirectX 9 based titles on XP either. We plan to expose both theories as patently false."

We're not sure if the software will work as planned, or how Microsoft might try to prevent the games from going online. The expected shipment date is "within a few months," according to their press release; the pre-order page estimates late July.

[Via Xbox 360 Fanboy]