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Halo 4 is the recently announced seventh installment in the bestselling Halo franchise.[1] A teaser trailer shown at Microsoft's E3 Media Briefing on June 6th, 2011 confirmed that Halo 4 is to be the first installment in a new trilogy of games,[3] which was identified as the Reclaimer Trilogy during Halo Fest at PAX Prime 2011.[4][5]
Plot
NORAH. THE HAM. IT IS WITHIN OUR GRASP, YOU SLY COOTER.
Development
Gameplay and design
Halo 4's creative director is Josh Holmes.[5] The game's creative team, which comprises nearly 200 individuals who have been developing the game for nearly two years, intend to continue the Halo series' tradition of inspiring wonder in the player while providing engaging, visceral gameplay. The game will utilize much of the "sandbox" that has been featured across all six prior Halo games and other media, in addition to introducing new characters, weapons, vehicles, and other elements.[5]
John-117's experience and the player's experience are meant to be intertwined, with the Master Chief essentially serving as the player's avatar within the Halo universe. John's character will also be explored and developed in more depth than in the prior games, and the relationship between John and Cortana will be heavily featured and greatly expanded. The new design of the Master Chief's armor has undergone a number of iterations, and it has been confirmed that the design from the announcement trailer is not the final version.[5]
The art director for Halo 4 is Kenneth Scott. He described the visual style of Halo 4 as being more ingrained in the expanded universe fiction, and more "mature" than before. With the game's increased focus on the Forerunners, the artists have invested heavily on the look and feel of Forerunner technology. It has also been stated that there will be more diversity to Forerunner structures, including fully active Forerunner technology as opposed to the mostly inert and abandoned structures seen in the earlier games.[5]
Audio
Sotaro Tojima, best known for his work on Konami's Castlevania: Circle of the Moon and Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, serves as Halo 4's audio director and composer.[5] The team has performed many live audio recording sessions, several of which occurred in Tasmania, Australia. Some of these recording sessions have taken place in generally inhospitable environments, such as underwater, in fire, and in ice, through the use of specially designed microphones;[5] other recording sessions have utilized "home made" explosives.[6] Tojima intends for the game's audio to be clearly grounded in the Halo universe, though to also have a more realistic quality than in past titles.[5] The game's music is meant to convey a clear sense of wonder and nostalgia that is present throughout the series, though it will also introduce new themes and styles.[5]
Trailers
Announcement trailer
- Main article: Awakening
Released during Microsoft's E3 2011 media briefing, the trailer depicts Cortana awakening John-117 from cryo sleep on the wreckage of Forward Unto Dawn, followed by John securing Cortana's storage chip and rushing through the wreckage to witness the ship being pulled into an enormous opening on the surface of a mysterious planet.
Director's cut
This version of the Awakening trailer, which was released during GamesCom 2011, features a few changes from the original version. The background melody is different from original video, and continues until the end of the trailer. When John reaches the holotank, he does not speak to Cortana. Near the end of the trailer, he throws away his weapon rather than reloading it.
Concept Art Glimpse
A video presenting several pieces of concept art was initially presented at Halo Fest and was subsequently released on Halo Waypoint.[7] The trailer presents concept art of an Earth-like alien world, several location drafts which feature buildings and ships that follow the Forerunners' style of architecture and design, concepts of the Forward Unto Dawn's wreckage, and some concepts of the unidentified planet. Two of these images were repurposed as the cover art for Halo: Cryptum and Halo: Primordium.[5]
Appearances
Characters
Locations
Vehicles
- Charon-class light frigate
- M12 Force Application Vehicle
- UNSC Infinity (First appearance)
Weapons
- Unidentified UNSC weapon (First appearance)
Gallery
Promotional images
A promotional image for Halo 4.
Early promotional art of John-117 in Halo 4.
John and Cortana aboard the Forward Unto Dawn.
John-117 standing at the edge of the Forward Unto Dawn's wreckage.
The Forward Unto Dawn being pulled into a mysterious object.
Concept art
- Halo4conceptart1.jpg
- Halo4conceptart2.jpg
- Halo4conceptart3.jpg
- Halo4conceptart4.jpg
- Halo4conceptart7.jpg
- Halo4conceptart8.jpg
- Halo4conceptart9.jpg
- Halo4conceptart11.jpg
- Halo4conceptart12.jpg
- Halo4conceptart13.jpg
- Halo4conceptart14.jpg
- Halo4conceptart15.jpg
- Halo4conceptart16.jpg
- UNSC Infinity.jpg
Sources
- ^ a b Halo Waypoint: Halo 4
- ^ Xbox.com: Halo 4
- ^ E3 2011
- ^ Halo Waypoint: Halo 4 Panel Opening Video
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j YouTube: Halo Fest: Halo 4 Panel
- ^ Halo Waypoint: Halo 4 Audio Field Recording
- ^ YouTube: Halo Fest: Halo 4 Concept Art Glimpse
- ^ GameTrailers: E3 2011: Halo Returns Interview (Stream) HD