Halo Online

Halo Online was to be a multiplayer-focused Halo game developed by Saber Interactive and Innova Systems in collaboration with 343 Industries. It was officially announced in March 25, 2015, with a closed Alpha test that started on April 21, 2015 in Russia only. On December 28, 2015, a closed Beta test was suspended and on August 24, 2016, cancellation of the game in its current form was announced.

Synopsis

Halo Online takes place shortly after the events of Halo 3 around January 28, 2555. The game is set on a secret UNSC space installation called Anvil, where SPARTAN-IV and Sangheili soldiers train together in simulated war exercises to sharpen their battle skills and test experimental technology.

Appearances

Characters Terrence Hood (holographic projection only) Thel 'Vadam (holographic projection only) Species and entities Human Sangheili Organizations Covenant (Mentioned only) Covenant remnants Swords of Sanghelios Unified Earth Government United Nations Space Command UNSC Defense Force Spartan SPARTAN-IV program UNSC Navy Office of Naval Intelligence (Mentioned only) Locations Anvil Station (First appearance) Concord (Mentioned only) Epsilon Eridani system Reach (Mentioned only) Installation 00 New Carthage (Mentioned only) Partition Sol system Earth Africa Kenya Voi Memorial Asia Russia Tyumen Precinct 13 (First appearance)

Events Human-Covenant war Battle of Concord (Indirect mention) Treaty of 2552 ANVIL initiative Vehicles AV-14 Hornet CCS-class battlecruiser Charon-class light frigate UNSC Aegis Fate M12 Warthog M12 Warthog LRV M274 Mongoose M808 Scorpion Space station Type-25 Chopper Type-26B Banshee Type-26 Wraith Type-32 Ghost UNSC Aegis Fate Weapons AIE-486H machine gun BR55 battle rifle BR85HB battle rifle LAU-65D/SGM-151 missile pod M247H machine gun M395 DMR M41 rocket launcher M45D shotgun M6 Spartan Laser M6C/SOCOM M6H magnum M7 SMG M7S SMG M7057 flamethrower M9 fragmentation grenade MA5D assault rifle SRS99-S5 AM sniper rifle Type-1 energy sword Type-1 plasma grenade Type-2 gravity hammer Type-2 spike grenade Type-3 firebomb Type-25 plasma rifle Type-25 Brute plasma rifle Type-25 Brute Shot Type-25 Spiker Type-25 plasma pistol Type-27 beam rifle Type-33 Needler Type-51 carbine Type-52 Mauler Sentinel Beam Technology and equipment Active camouflage Deployable cover Flare M2705 regeneration field Man cannon MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor [GEN2] Air Assault variant Breaker variant Buzzsaw variant (First appearance) Cain variant (First appearance) Caladcholg variant (First appearance) Cyclops variant (First appearance) Defender variant EOD variant Flenser variant (First appearance) Gunslinger variant (First appearance) Halberd variant (First appearance) Hoplite variant Infiltrator variant Inquisitor variant (First appearance) Juggernaut variant (First appearance) Mirmillion variant (First appearance) Mongoose variant (First appearance) Ninja variant (First appearance) Omni variant (First appearance) Operator variant Oracle variant (First appearance) Paladin variant (First appearance) Pioneer variant Rampart variant (First appearance) Ranger variant Reaper variant Recon variant Recruit variant Renegade variant (First appearance) Rogue variant Samurai variant (First appearance) Sceptre variant (First appearance) Scout variant Soldier variant Spectrum variant (First appearance) Strider variant Tremor variant (First appearance) Venator variant Void Dancer variant War Master variant Warrior variant Widow Maker variant (First appearance) ODST armor (Mentioned only) Overshield Power core Power drain Radar jammer Sangheili combat harness Minor variant Sentinel Constructor variant TR/9 trip mine Type-27 hologram Visual Intelligence System, Reconnaissance‎ Z-2500 Autosentry Z-4190 bubble shield Z-5080 Promethean vision Z-90 hardlight shield (Mentioned only)

Gameplay

Halo Online will include "classic weapons and vehicles" from the Halo franchise, including the Hornet and the energy sword. Several new weapons will also be implemented into the game. Fan favorite multiplayer maps will return, along with several new maps—one of which is set in a Russian town. Halo Online is optimized for keyboard and mouse controls. Online matches can currently handle up to sixteen players, with four players being required for a match.

Players will be able to customize their loadouts, including armor, weapons and abilities. There are several variants of each weapon available for modification. Each weapon features variants with increased damage, accuracy, and rate of fire. Unlike most of Halo games, players will not be able to change their armor pieces individually, only as a whole set.

Similar to Halo 5: Guardians there is an ending animation for a match. Though in Halo Online it features only the top three players rather than the entire team.

Professions

In Halo Online three professions are available to the player: Assault, Sharpshooter, and Tactical. These professions dictate the player's starting equipment, such as primary weapon and armor

Multiplayer maps

Original Maps

• Diamondback
• Edge
• Icebox
• Reactor

Halo 3 Maps

• Bridge
• Closed Area
• Elevation
• Guardian
• Hangar
• Refuge
• Riverworld
• Sandtrap

Armor permutations

Main article: Armor permutations (Halo Online)

There are two player models which players can choose from, the standard SPARTAN model or an Elite model. Each model has several armor sets. Each armor set have different effects on gameplay, such as an increased motion tracker range or melee damage boost. Template:Armor/Permutation/HO

Development

Halo Online was powered by a highly modified version of the Halo 3 engine, optimized for smooth performance on lower-end PCs.

Closed Alpha

Main article: Halo Online Closed Alpha

On April 6, 2015 the Halo Online closed Alpha test started, and a special armor was given to people who played on that day during the Alpha to signify they were there day one. The Closed Alpha's servers were only active for small hours during the day. All players' stats and progress, were wiped after the closed alpha finished on September 11, 2015

Closed Beta

Main article: Halo Online Beta

On September 30, 2015 the closed beta started, and on December 28, 2015, the closed Beta test was suspended. The developers said that they encountered serious problems during the development of Halo Online, and with 343 Industries' counsel they decided to suspend testing and "send the game to a serious revision" for several months. Because of that, for people who bought the exclusive premium Beta tester kits, there was a compensation offer.

Unreleased updates

On October 9, 2015 a developer took an image of an upcoming update that had the user in an Armory on Anvil Station.

Future testing

On March 24, 2016 it was announced that testing will resume, and that an exact date, and detailed information about development will be announced on the official Halo Online VK account at a later date.

2015 build scrapped

On August 24, 2016 Innova Systems announced that Microsoft Studios still had not made a decision on the project's fate, and the game would never be released in its current form, making the project's fate uncertain. Therefore the publisher is shutting down the game's website and the page on social network vk.com. The community manager of Halo Online stated that "such project most likely won't ever exist at all, but only time will show", answering the question if the game is suspended indefinitely.

Marketing

Announce trailer

Main article: Halo Online Announce Trailer

An announcement trailer was revealed in March 26, 2015 on YouTube, showing the first in-game gameplay of Halo: Online, displaying the return of some weapons of Halo 3 and the introduction of new armors.

Press Conference (March 26th 2015)

On March 26, 2015 a press conference about Halo Online happened. At this press conference there were holographic pyramids with several renders of Halo Online content were in them.

Story Trailer

Main article: Halo Online Story Trailer

An story trailer was released around December 29, 2015 on the official Halo Online site. The trailer went though the story elements leading up to the training the Spartans and Elites on Anvil Station on January 28, 2555. The story trailer can be found here.

Gallery

Normal Gallery

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  Concept art of Halo Online.

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  SPARTAN-IVs on the game's website.

Development gallery

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  A developers look into the Armory of Anvil Station. (October 9, 2015)