11th CEA Terminal (Threshold)

I know it's a little late, but this is for those of you who still havent heard of this yet. In the following video, you will see how to watch a secret 11th Terminal from CEA, as well as get 100k CR in Halo Reach.

Surviving The Library

  
       Halo: CE's The Library is arguably one of Halo's hardest, most terrifying levels - besides Cortana. I remember dying countless times in the Library. Sometimes I would rage-quit, other times I would keep at it. Here, I'm going to give you the tips I've learned and heard that will help you get through The Library in one peice.

•        Take it a little at a time.

The first time I played The Library, I didn't know it was so long. So, I just started running, throwing grenades at my feet. This, of course, didn't work. So I tried a new tactic, and I've used this ever since. By taking it one "segment" at a time, and backing against a wall, I found that I didn't get surrounded. I would get in front of one "Flood duct", which spawned the Flood forms, and when they started coming out, I ran to the wall. Throw a grenade into their midst to thin them out, then go for the Combat forms first.

• Use the Shotgun/Assault Rifle combo.

 The Shotgun is great against the Combat/Carrier forms, and the ammo can sometimes be scarce, so I don't like to waste it on the Infection forms. So I use the Shotgun on the Combat/Carrier, and short bursts of the Assault Rifle for the Infection forms. Sometimes, if there aren't that many, and I feel relatively safe, I'll just let the Infection forms pop themselves on me to conserve ammo.

•  Play it safe.

If you see a particularly large horde coming at you, throw a grenade or two (preferably Frag) to cut some of them down. Don't go in guns-a-blazing, because it will be moot.

•  Help the Sentinels.

When the Sentinels come to help you, don't let them do all the work. Go for the Combat forms with your Shotgun, because sometimes they jump up and "kill" the Sentinels. Then, leave the Carrier/Infection forms to them. And remember to stay out of their way. A few intersecting Sentinel Beams can take out your shields, and sometimes (in my experience) kill you.

       So, that's all I have for now, but I may add/edit it sometime in the future. Keep an eye out, because I have several new posts coming soon, including: Halo Evolutions review, Halo Graphic Novel review, and Halo CEA Terminal and Skull locations.

Review: Halo Combat Evolved Anniversary

    
       Ten years. Ten years since we first laid eyes on a vast alien ringworld, and we knew. We knew this was to be the start of somthing big. We stepped into the boots of Master Chief Petty Officer John-117, and onto the dirt of Halo, even though we knew nothing about it. But we were going to change that. We fought off the Covenant, found the Silent Cartographer, breached the Control Room, discovered the Flood, stopped Halo from firing, and ultimately destroyed the Flood. We spent thousands of hours slaying Spartans, activating bombs, and capturing flags. And now, here we are. Ten years later, and Halo is still going strong. To celebrate Halo's Tenth Anniversary, 343 Industries released Halo: Combat Evolved - Anniversary. Here's my review.

       I suppose the first thing to talk about is the graphics. Simply put, they're stunning. One neat feature is that you can switch back and forth between the old and new graphics with a push of a button. Before CEA was released, 343i described the feature as "seamlessly". I was dissappointed to find that it is'nt. You push the button, and yeah, there may not be any load times, but the screen goes black for about 1-3 seconds. Not bad, but I'd like it better if it was instant, so you can notice how massive of a change the graphics went through. Sound/audio effects are great, with noticable difference. In the cutscenes, the graphics are great, but the animation is still the same. For example, not much mouth movement during someone talking. While playing, you forget it's a decade-old game, but during the cutscenes, you are reminded of that fact.

       The actual gameplay has held up well. It's still fun, but it really does still feel like you're playing the original Halo. The addition of skulls, easter eggs, achievments, and terminals help add more to the game, and keep it fresh. I like the way the Terminals are creatively placed. The Terminal on the bridge of the Pillar of Autumn has a message from 343 Guilty Spark to the humans, and the Terminal inside the Truth and Reconciliation has a message from 343 GS to the Covenant. There are thirteen Gold skulls (14 including Grunt Funeral) in all, 10 Gold, and 3 Silver. There are ten campaign Terminals, as well as one Terminal that can only be accessed via a secret function in Halo Waypoint. I'll have an article on it later this week. There are 37 campaign achievments, three Terminal achievments, and four Skull achievments, totaling 44 achievments in all, and earning the standard 1000 G.

       And now, on to the maps. There are six in total, with two
variants each.

First, there's Battle Canyon/Beaver Creek. It is a remake of Halo CE's Battle Creek, and Halo 2's Beaver Creek, located on Installation 04. As you can see, it's quite symetrical, which is good for team games. There are two bases, with a large rock formation in the middle. On top of the rock is a Rocket Launcher, and to the side is a Sniper's Roost and an SRS99-AM. It's a moderately small map, good for 2-6 players, I'd say.

Then you have Breakneck/Headlong, my personal favorite. It's a remake of Halo 2's Headlong, located in New Mombassa. It's a pretty large map, with several vehicles, including a Banshee, Ghosts, and others. Weapons include Rocket Launcher, SRS99-AM, DMR, Magnum, MA5B, Shotgun, Plasma Launcher, Energy Sword, Needler, Plasma Rifle, and Needle Rifle. There are probably a couple others I forgot about. There are several sniper spots, the best in my opinion being on the top floor of either building, on the "balcony" looking out over the map. There's plenty of room for vehicular warfare, but I dont think they should've included the Banshee, as there is barely enough room to maneuver it. Even though it's such a big map, I had tons of fun on it just me and one friend. I think it's good for 2-12 players.

Then comes High Noon/Hang 'Em High. High Noon is a remake of Hang 'Em High from Halo CE. I didnt really care for this one, because is was basically one level. The highest point was maybe 20 feet, and the lowest was about -15 feet. There are plenty of cover-spots, but no good sniping point. There was a sniper rifle, though, and this confused me. There arent any vehicles, or aircraft. There's one Rocket Launcher, and plenty of DMRs to go around. This map was obviously built for large Free-for-all, on-foot games. There's also tons of grenades, and many other weapons. It doesnt look that good for any team matches, because there isnt any definite base. I think it would be good for 4-16 players.


Now we move on to Penance, a remake of Damnation from Halo CE. Penance has good depth to it. It's devided up into a lot of rooms, with a couple good sniper spots. Weapons include Energy Sword, DMR, Shotgun, Needler, Needle Rifle, MA5B, SRS99-AM, and others. There are no vehicles. The map could support CTF and Assault Matches, although it wouldnt be ideal. Recommended for small to medium Team or FFA matches, 2-8 players.





Which brings us to Ridgeline. Being a remake of the Halo PC's Timberland, not many Halo fans know about it. It's really a pretty good map. It has two definite well-protected bases, with a creek/brook in between. Each base has a main building, with an area above for "sniping" even though there are no Sniper Rifles on the map. A few feet in front of the base is a Machine Gun Turret, and to the side is another "sniper" spot. But with the presence of Mongeese, Warthogs, and especially Ghosts, the Turret is basically moot. This is a great map for CTF and Assault, and even Free-for-All matches. 4-12 players.



And finally, we have Solitary. A remake of Halo CE's Prisoner, Solitary is one of my favorite Anniversary maps, and the first Anniversary map I played on. It has good depth/hight, and has a good sniper spot. The map is semi-symetrical. Weapons include Shotgun, Rocket Launcher (in the very middle), Sniper Rifle, DMR, Pistol, Needle Rifle, Energy Sword (I think), Needler, and Plasma Pistol. Even though the map is symetrical, it's not a good map for CTF or Assault, as there is no definite Red or Blue base. I'd say the map is good for 2-8 players.


       I, and many other Halo fans were disappointed that there was no Blood Gulch remake. This is arguably one of the best Halo maps. Ever. I was also disappointed that there was only one Firefight map, Installation-04, and that the game didnt come with all the Reach maps, like 3: ODST. That would have been awesome.      


       But, all in all, Halo Anniversary is a great game, and the skulls, easter eggs, achievments, Terminals, maps, and of course, updated graphics/sound make it well worth the $40. 5 out of 5, 9 out of 10.

Star Wars and Halo

       The other day, while standing in line for the Halo CEA launch party, I was thinking about all the Halo Media and merchandise. And then, I realized something. Halo is approaching Star Wars status.

       Just think. Halo may not have any movies out, (except for Halo Legends) but it's sure made up for that in video games. There are currently seven (nine, if you count Halo Custom Edition, and 2 Vista) games on the market, along with a couple cancelled projects. Then, at least three are on the way, as well as rumors of a Halo Wars 2. Then, there are nine novels out, with at least three on the way. There are six comics out, along with two on the way. There are seven official game guides, as well as five reference books, including The Art of Halo 3, which has become outstandingly collectible, going for anywhere from $200-over $1000. Halo 2, 3, and Reach all have Limited Editons, with 3 and Reach having a Legendary Edition as well, being even more collectible. There's soundtracks, numerous behind-the-scenes videos, and the famous Halo comedy, Red vs Blue. There are Mega Blocks, action figures, costumes, Limited Edition statues, Xbox consoles, controllers, as well as tons of little things including stickers, magnets, skins, computer wallpapers, posters, shirts, stuffed Grunts, etc.


       Give Halo a few year's time, and I think it will reach Star Wars status, if it hasn't already. So keep it up, all you Master Chiefs, Arbiters, Noble-Sixes, Rookies, and Cortanas out there. Keep playing, reading, watching, laughing, building, collecting, looking, waiting in line, modding, and forging. Because it isn't always the merchandise that makes up a franchise, it's the ones who buy it.

Halo CEA launch party

I went to the Halo CEA launch party at Microsoft Store. It was awesome! The first 100 in the door got a red (or blue) wristband, and a special CEA poster. 1st 100 to pre order the game got $5 off, a $25 Microsoft Store gift card, and a plush Grunt! It started at 10pm, and went through to 1am. Monster Energy came, and handed out free Monster, Pizza My Heart delivered pizza.





Kid trying out Halo CEA.












The line.













They're just missing in action....













Multiplayer.












Halo reaches all age groups!

You can see more pictures on wild949.com (then click on "photos"). And more pictures and video on the facebook page.

"Good" News! (for Reach players)

343 Industries announced last week that an Anniversary Map Pack will be available for Halo Reach. This means that Reach players wont have to buy Halo CEA to get the remastered maps. The pack will include six classic Halo maps, and one new Firefight map. It will release same-day as Halo CEA, for 1200 Microsoft Points. But anyone who buys Halo CEA will get a download code to add the map pack to Halo Reach.

Halo Combat Evolved Anniversary launch party!

Yes, it's true. Microsoft will be throwing launch parties for CEA at 13 of their stores across the US. It will be at 10 pm on Nov 14th. The 1st 100 will get a bunch of Halo goodies, and the 1st 100 to buy the game will get a stuffed Grunt. (No, not a real one... v.v).

Halo Anniversary Launch Party on Halo Waypoint (bottom)

CEA Launch Party on Facebook

Halo 4 story clues

         I'm sure if you're a Halo fan, you can't wait for Halo 4. You probably wonder what the story is going to be about. Here are some clues from other Halo media as to what it may be about.

          Halo 4. Set to release "Holiday 2012", part of a the new Reclaimer Trilogy. 343 says that it will "definitely" have "resonant connections" with Halo Glasslands, Halo Primordium, and the Terminals in Halo CEA. Based on what I know about Glasslands and Primordium, this gives a pretty good picture of Halo 4. Halo 4 will explore Master Cheif's character, who he is, and his relationship with Cortana.
          Many people think that the Legendary Planet is Onyx. That is a poor assumption, because the Onyx Shield world is located in slipspace. Many also think we will fight against the Forerunners. I hope not, I'd rather fight alongside the Forerunners. We could possibly see flood and covie stragglers, new enemies, and maybe even Precursors....

          Halo Glasslands was released yesterday, and is to be part of the "post-war series" by Karen Traviss. I read the first 2 chapters online, as well as other articles. It's going to be about humanity getting back on their feet after the nearly three decade war with the Covenant. We will also read about the Spartan III's and Dr. Halsey in the Shield world.

         Halo Primordium is to be released January 3rd, 2012. It will be the second book of the three-book series called the Forerunner Saga. It will follow the humans Chakas and Morning Riser, after Mendicant Bias' assault on the Forerunner capital. It will also delve deeper into the story of the Precursors and the Timeless One.

Halo CEA is set for release ten years to the day from Halo CE, November 15th, 2011. It runs on the same engine as the original, so it plays and feels exactly like CE. It has HD like in Halo 3. Don't know why they dropped it in Reach.... It will have Terminals like in Halo 3, which 343 has hinted will give insight and clues about the story of Halo 4.