Gaming News "It's going to be incredible. We promise." - Bungie

So much exciting news today for the whole gaming world! Thanks to Microsoft, never thought I'd ever say that until the Xbox and Halo series. Ow and not to mention it's all very relevant to this weeks great lecture and tutorial.

Sooo to the news

Peter Jackson has created his own game studio "Wingnut Interactive" which has partnered with Microsoft Xbox to create a new Halo game. Toted by Microsoft Game Studio's Vice President, Shane Kim, as some sort of gaming revolution "I don't want to classify it as a game. I'm hoping to stretch the definition of interactive entertainment to go beyond the game... It's about making interactive entertainment a mainstream form of entertainment."

Now I here all you Halo fans saying WTF! "How can they announce a new Halo without releasing Halo 3 already? is there gonna be a Halo 4? - But Microsoft said Halo 3 was the end.arrrrr!!" Well the details are sketchy but here's what Bungie said "This raises as many questions as it answers – will it be a sequel? A prequel? A side-story? We won’t squeal, but we can tell you it will be a blend of gameplay and storytelling quite unlike anything the games industry has ever seen before. And Wingnut Interactive isn’t stopping at Halo – the newly formed gaming behemoth will also be working closely with Microsoft to introduce a brand-new gaming IP created by Wingnut themselves."

So as we talked about the problems with games in the tutorials and lectures, about the database structure, perhaps we are about see a change in the coming years. Thing is well they don't even know how they are going to do it yet "I feel like we haven't figured it out, to be honest" - Shane Kim. It's so early in time that speculation is a waste of time. I myself think all this big talk is perhaps rubbish and the real news is that the Halo series is going to continue hopefully as a FPS in some form! YAY! Definitely be watching this space people and don't forget Peter Jackson is also producing the Halo film, due 2007.

What news could possibly be worth mentioning along with this?? Well there's one other development today and that’s new information on yet ANOTHER Halo game, Halo Wars. This is however not a FPS but a RTS game created not by Bungie but Ensemble Studios. So for RTS fans this is awesome news!

Feel free to post speculation and ways that the Peter Jackson and Microsoft partnership could improve and totally change gaming. I myself never liked the idea of movies interfering with gaming or the other way around. They are 2 separate entities that evoke different feelings and emotional states and I have to say I prefer gaming to movies. Gaming offers far greater emotional involvement through personal in-game experience not to mention gaming being an actual sport to many people who play online skill based games such as Halo and Counter Strike. Fellow players know the adrenaline that runs through you when in sudden death during a CTF match, something not felt in Soccer or Rugby to the same intense extent, well maybe but it’s not sudden death its dead ball time aint it? Anyway, I’m to passionate.

Now for the people who hate games or really couldn’t care less. To try and introduce you if you want to play and experience an amazing game borrow either Half-Life 2 or Halo 1 or 2 from friends. They are 2 of the greatest games of all time. You have to want to play them to enjoy them though, so give it a go, put yourself in a room, turn up the speakers, spend some time learning the controls and provided you are not a total unco (is that how you spell it haha?) then you should joyfully immerse yourself I hope.

Time to go kill online. (www.xbconnect.com if you have a Xbox and want to play online without forking out $$$$ for XBOX live, see ya there).

Increase the peace

References:
http://www.bungie.net/News/TopStory.aspx?link=bungieatx06 http://www.smh.com.au/news/games/peter-jackson-to-develop-xbox-game/2006/09/28/1159337258750.html
www.bungie.com
www.valve.com
www.halowars.com/