Hasta La Gadget!

Halo 4 has gotten a lot of people talking.

After Microsoft ousted Bungie to take over the Halo franchise, there was rampant speculation over what the future might look like for the world-renowned games. Would they deliver a new experience? Would they follow in Bungie’s footsteps? Would they try to tread new ground?

With Halo 4, we have an answer. Microsoft’s 343 Industries game studio has decided that it wants to take the Halo franchise to new heights with a trilogy that will follow the first one developed by Bungie. A lot was riding on 343 to deliver a worthwhile Halo experience. And so far, it appears the company delivered.

Don’t believe me? According to Metacritic, a site that compiles all game reviews in one spot, Halo 4 has received a Metascore of 87 from critics. Gamers have nearly universally celebrated the game’s graphics and fun. Sales are believed to be strong and could have won the month if not for Call of Duty: Black Ops II. By all measure, Halo 4 is a success.

That success requires us to give credit where it’s due. Bungie should be credited with creating a franchise that so many people across the world enjoy. Microsoft should be credited with understanding how important it is to deliver a high-quality experience. 343 Industries should be credited with carrying the torch bravely and effectively.

“For a long time, fans believed only Bungie could deliver the Halo experience”

But perhaps this saga goes beyond just one good game. The outpouring of love for Halo 4 can’t help but make me think that Bungie is negatively affected here. For a long time, gaming fans believed only Bungie could deliver a gaming experience that players would want. Now, it’s clear that’s not the case. And since Microsoft owns the Halo franchise, with each new launch, Bungie’s inspiration on the game will only be diminished.

Therefore, I have to pose a question I thought I never would: does Halo 4’s success make Bungie irrelevant?

Bungie fans who are displeased with the way Microsoft has treated the company will of course say I’m losing it. But think about it. Gamers responded extremely favorably to the game, despite protests over Bungie’s treatment. In fact, Halo 4 is one of the most popular games on store shelves right now.

So, maybe gamers really don’t care about Bungie or fairness. Perhaps today’s gamer cares most about entertainment value and they couldn’t care less which company is behind a title.

A similar scenario played out with the Call of Duty franchise. After Infinity Ward was left in shambles with the ouster of Jason West and Vince Zampella, the studio’s leaders, some believed that Call of Duty would die. Gamers, those folks said, would never buy a game from a company that, in their minds, treated the brains behind Call of Duty so poorly.

However, since Zampella and West have been gone, Call of Duty has hit new heights. It turns out that West and Zampella mattered little. And now, gamers who play Call of Duty each day rarely think about them.

For the sake of all gamers, I hope Bungie comes back with bigger and better things in the coming years. But for now, I can’t help but wonder if Bungie has been relegated to an afterthought now that Microsoft has staked claim to Halo.

Does Halo 4 Make Bungie Irrelevant? is written by Don Reisinger & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

We knew the launch of Halo 4 was going to be a big one, especially after the excellent reviews started hitting, but today we’re finding out that it might be a bit too big for the folks at 343 Industries to handle. There are obviously a ton of people trying to play Halo 4 online right this very moment, and it seems that a number of them are experiencing issues with the multiplayer servers. This is hardly a surprise, considering that many big games hit a few road bumps on launch day, but it’s still a bummer nonetheless.

Fortunately, 343 Industries is aware of these issues and it’s already trying to iron them out, posting a message to the Halo Waypoint forums just a couple hours ago. In the message, it says it’s working on solving these issues, and asks gamers to describe the problems they’re having in the thread. The problem range, but it seems that a lot of players have having issues connecting with friends for multiplayer matches.

Another glitch in the system that’s currently making the rounds is knocking players’ SR level down to one, which is obviously proving to be a major annoyance. Players have flocked to the Halo Waypoint thread in the hours since 343 started it, with the current tally sitting at 13 pages of posts. That number is climbing quickly too, so it looks like a significant number of Halo 4 players are experiencing launch day server issues.

It’s a shame, but as we stated above, it isn’t entirely unexpected. A lot of big multiplayer games fall victim to kinks in the system on day one, and unfortunately Halo 4 is no different. We’ll update you if 343 Industries makes any progress combating these issues, but in the meantime, let us know if you’re experiencing any problems when trying to play Halo 4 online.

[via Kotaku]

Halo 4 launch day players greeted with server issues is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Welcome to the special Halloween edition of the Evening Wrap-Up! The Halloween edition is pretty much the same as regular Wrap-Ups, the only difference is that I’m dressed as Ginger Spice as I type this. Let’s spice up our lives with a recap, shall we? Microsoft is being sued over its Windows 8 live tiles, and Apple has removed delivery dates from iPad Mini LTE pre-orders, leading some to suspect that the company has been forced to delay them. T-Mobile and AT&T have opened up their networks in areas hit hard by Hurricane Sandy, letting customers of both carriers use either network – a respectable move by the two carriers in this time of need.

Google has added Amber Alerts to search and maps results, while we heard that the LG Nexus 4 will be landing at 02 UK on November 13. Apple released its iPhone 5 launch video earlier today, and Microsoft dropped a full list of devices that are compatible with Windows RT. Apple delayed turn-by-turn navigation in Australia today, while Samsung finally pulled the veil off the long-rumored Galaxy Premier I9260 smartphone.

ASUS says that close to 1 million Nexus 7 tablets are sold each and every month, which definitely isn’t bad, and Kickstarter has launched in the UK, so it’s officially time to get your crowd-funding on. RIM has started BlackBerry 10 testing with its carrier partners, and the Google Nexus Q has disappeared from the Nexus landing page, suggesting that the big G may have pulled the plug on the project. What may be the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 cleared testing today, and a new dock that turns the Galaxy Note II into a desktop has gone up for sale.

LG has a new touchscreen monitor ready for some Windows 8 action, and Curiosity has found that some of the dust on Mars is similar to Hawaiian volcanic basalt. Netflix made a pretty big error in one of its SEC filings today, while Microsoft was busy transforming Lichtenstein for the launch of Halo 4. Speaking of Halo 4, Microsoft announced today that the Halo series has sold 46 million copies worldwide, so Halo 4 has a lot to live up to when it launches next week.

Finally tonight, we have a couple of original posts for you to have a look at. Chris Burns checks out the Galaxy Note II’s gaming capabilities and goes hands-on with the Nokia Lumia 920 from AT&T. That does it for tonight’s Evening Wrap-Up, enjoy the rest of your night everyone!

SlashGear Evening Wrap-Up: October 31, 2012 is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Halo 4 is on the horizon, and just like most of the Halo games before it, we can expect an offering of DLC map packs to keep us playing well into the next year. Today, Microsoft announced the Halo 4 War Games Map Pass, which is just the company’s fancy name for those DLC season passes that seem to be so popular these days. By purchasing the Halo 4 War Games Map Pass, you save 15% on the cost of buying each of Halo 4‘s three map packs separately, so this is a good idea for those who already know they’ll be buying all of the Halo 4 DLC 343 Industries and Microsoft put out.

The Halo 4 War Games Map Pass comes with a price tag of 2000 Microsoft Points ($25), which means that the individual map packs will cost $10 (800 MSP) each. Microsoft also gave us the names of these three maps packs today: Crimson, Majestic, and Castle. Crimson features the Wreckage, Harvest, and Shatter maps; Majestic includes the Landfall, Monolith, and Skyline maps; while Castle will be adding the Daybreak, Outcast, and Perdition maps to the game.

Even better is that we were given release windows for all three packs today. Crimson will be out in December, Majestic in February, and Castle in April, so we’ll begin getting DLC shortly after Halo 4‘s release. There aren’t any specific release dates for these map packs available at the moment, probably due to the fact that none of them have been finished yet.

If you pick up the Halo 4 War Games Map Pass, Microsoft will also toss in a few extras on the side. Purchasers will get the Scanner and Strider helmets to use in-game, along with a new Falcon emblem that would otherwise be unobtainable. Microsoft’s announcement originally said that the Map Pass is included as part of the Halo 4 Limited Edition console bundle, but in the time since, 343′s David Ellis has clarified that it will be bonus with the Limited Edition game only, not the console. Will you be buying a Halo 4 War Games Map Pass?

Halo 4 War Games Map Pass detailed and priced is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Welcome back to Monday everyone – we’ve got a heaping helping of news to recap, so let’s dive right in. Today we found out that Apple’s manufacturing partnership with Samsung may not last much longer, and that the Google Nexus 7 might just be the best-selling Android tablet ever (which, given its immense popularity, doesn’t surprise us in the least). One Walmart store has its shelves fully stocked with copies of Windows 8, and this afternoon, we have reason to believe that a new, slimmer iMac may be in the pipeline.

By now, you’ve probably heard plenty of iPad Mini rumors, but today we found out that Apple may reveal a new Mac Mini alongside the bite-sized tablet. Today we saw some pictures that appear to have been snapped by the camera on the yet-unannounced Nexus 4, and Apple has managed to bring former Amazon executive William Stasior on to oversee the continuing development of Siri. Android 4.1.2 was sent out to eager Galaxy Nexus owners today, and just in case you missed Felix Baumgartner’s death-defying jump over the weekend, you can see the highlights again today – complete with terrifying shots from his helmet cam.

LG delivered its Jelly Bean update schedule for a few of its devices today, and speaking of LG, AT&T announced that the Optimus G goes up for pre-order tomorrow with a price tag of $200. We heard that Windows 8 is getting an underwhelming response from vendors today, and Nintendo dropped the price of the original Wii down to just $130 in anticipation of the holiday rush. A new study is claiming that file sharers actually buy more music than people who don’t partake in that rather controversial activity, and Microsoft released a brand new Windows 8 ad today.

Minecraft Xbox 360 Edition players found out that they’re in for a treat tomorrow, while Notch was busy showing off new footage from his upcoming game 0x10c and Microsoft was handing out Xbox Live bans to Halo 4 pirates. Activision announced today that Call of Duty Elite will be free with Black Ops II, and we were told that the Wii U gamepad boasts a latency of only 1/60 of a second. Google is in trouble in Europe over privacy concerns again, and we got to take a look at a new robotic wheelchair that can actually walk up stairs. How cool is that?

Finally tonight, we have quite a few original articles for you to have a look at. Chris Burns puts the Optimus G through its gaming paces with Wild Blood, and we pit Xbox Music, Spotify, iTunes, and Google Music against one another to see the strengths and weaknesses of all four. We’ve got a new review of the Huawei Ascend D1 quad XL by Chris Burns, and a review of the Motorola Electrify 2 by your humble wrapper-upper. That does it for tonight’s Evening Wrap-Up, enjoy the rest of your night folks!

SlashGear Evening Wrap-Up: October 15, 2012 is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.