It’s very unclear if Bungie will be returning to develop another entry into the Halo series, other then next year’s Halo: Reach. However, Microsoft is hellbent on continuing the franchise. So much, in fact, that they’re planning on continuing the Halo series well into the next decade with, or without, Bungie’s help.

“We do have a plan that goes out at least six years [2015],” 343 Industries’ Frank O’Connor reveals when speaking to USA Today. SPOILER! Specially, with Halo 3’s legendary ending, he thinks that, that will be a great point of continuation. “I think that [the Master Chief's] fate, Cortana’s fate and the identity of that giant, dark planet at the ending are probably big mysteries that would be irritating if they were just cliffhangers,” he continued.

[Thanks to GameSpot]

Just in time. Today, Microsoft revealed the “Epic” list of games that it will be showcasing during the Tokyo Game Show, which takes place in no place other then Japan. Thelist mostly consistencies of titles that are currently in playable form for the Japanese public to enjoy. Better yet, Microsoft will also be showcasing some of the top games for 2010 in video-only form – however, we’re not sure if the videos are new.  Here’s the list:

• Forza Motorsport 3 (Demo, Trailer)
• Alan Wake (Trailer)
• Fable III (Trailer)
• Halo 3: ODST (Demo, Trailer)
• Halo Legends (Trailer)
• Halo: Reach (Trailer)
• Crackdown 2 (Trailer)
• Borderlands (Trailer)
• Samurai Shodown Sen (Demo, Trailer)
• FIFA 10 (Demo, Trailer)
• Lost Planet 2 (Demo, Trailer)
• MUSHIHIME SAMA Futari Ver1.5 (Demo, Trailer)
• Shin Sangoku MULTI RAID Special (Demo, Trailer)
• Castlevania ~Lords of Shadow~ (Trailer)
• NINETY-NINE NIGHTS II (Demo, Trailer)
• Pro Evo 2010 (Demo, Trailer)
• FRONT MISSION EVOLVED (Demo, Trailer)
• Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 (Trailer)
• NeiR Gestalt (Demo, Trailer)
• BAYONETTA (Demo, Trailer)
• Resonance of Fate (Demo, Trailer)
• Assassin’s Creed II (Demo, Trailer)
• Splinter Cell Conviction (Trailer)
• Infernal (Demo, Trailer)
• Dragon Ball Rising Burst (Demo, Trailer)
• Tekken 6 (Demo, Trailer)
• STEINS;GATE (Demo, Trailer)

[Thanks to Kotaku]

And… the news about Halo: Reach just keeps coming, and coming. Probably one of the most noted things about Halo 3: ODST is its survival-like mode, Firefight. When speaking to Eurogamer, community lead Brian Jarrard revealed that Firefight isn’t set in stone for ODST, and it could make a reappearing in a future Halo title.

“I can’t talk too much about Reach specifics, but hopefully the game mode’s going to be received as well we think it will be, and people are going to enjoy it. I don’t think we’ve ever been known to really take things away from each successive release, so I think it’s safe to say that if Firefight gets a lot of traction and people love it, it probably has a good future home in our next title as well,” said Jarrard at PAX.

Announced back at E3, you would think that Bungie would be willing to reveal some new information having to do with Halo: Reach, other then its genre. However, on Thursday, they gave an explanation as to why they haven’t been flashing any new information about Halo: Reach. Stating that they’re in no rush to start talking about the game with Halo 3: ODST yet to release.

“Obviously right now what we’re excited about is the impending launch of ODST, so we don’t want to totally start talking about next year’s model before this one’s even off the assembly line,” community lead Brian Jarrard explained in answer to a fan’s question about Reach gameplay footage during the Penny Arcade Expo ODST panel. “But there is a beta that’s coming next year, so all you’ve got to do is sit tight. If you want to be part of Reach from the very beginning then you want to make sure you keep an ODST disc handy.”

[Bungie not ready to talk about Reach via Eurogamer]

Since Comic-Con, news that Neill Blomkamp and Peter Jackson had plans to bring Master Chief to the big screen sparked a little bit of attention around movie goers and gamers alike. However, than there’s the fact that Stuart Beattie, who worked on the recently released G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra movie – also a huge Halo fan – had possession of  a Halo movie script.

But, with G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra already finished, Stuart has put the Halo script on the market, and it has already has sparked interest in someone who isn’t Jerry Bruckheimer or Peter Jackson. According to IESB, Steven Spielberg is in negotiations for the movie:

“Spielberg is blown away by writer Stuart Beattie’s take on the game in his script entitled HALO THE FALL OF REACH. This coupled with the fact that his Dreamworks umbrella is looking for a big tent pole to help launch their newly independent studio with distribution over at Walt Disney Pictures after losing Transformers to Paramount in the separation, it’s the perfect combination.”

It’s good to know that the movie is still alive and getting attention, while I may not approve of Speilberg doing the movie over Peter Jackson, it’s good to know that the movie is still wanted by big name movie producers such as himself. Could we finally see Halo in 2011-12? Only time will tell.

As reported by so many sources stating that Gearbox maybe working on the next Halo project, which was unofficially titled Halo 4. It seems that you may scratch Gearbox off the list of developers that are making the next Halo title because on the official twitter account for Halo Waypoint, it confirmed that the developer is not involved in any upcoming Halo projects.

“For the record, Gearbox is NOT working on a Halo title for Microsoft,” the twitter feed read.

Microsoft was e-mail by IGN to confirmed this.

With its release back in 2001, Halo: Combat Evolved marked the franchise’s debut on the original Xbox. Basically, changing first person shooters. However, for more then 7 years, Bungie, its developers, have been working on building the franchise – releasing the second and third installments of the game . But, now, it seems that the developer is ready to move on.

“After Reach that’s it for us,” Bungie’s Lars Bakken told IGN. “We’re already working on a new IP that we can’t talk about yet, I don’t know when we’ll be talking about it – when we’re ready I suppose.”

Bakken was cryptic as to the nature of Bungie’s next game stating to IGN that, “If you look at Bungie’s past we’ve done a lot of different styles – first person to third person to RTS – so it could be anything.”

As you may already know, Halo 3: ODST, the next Halo title to release, is due out this September, while Halo: Reach – which goes back to the origins of the Halo story – is expected next autumn. Future Halo games will be overseen by the recently revealed 343 Industries, which is headed up by former Bungie employee Frank O’Connor.

And you thought you that you couldn’t get enough Halo. During the San Diego Comic-Con, Microsoft revealed its plans for an anime-style Halo miniseries entitled “Halo Legends“.

“Five production houses in Japan are handling the physical animation, but Microsoft’s creative staff is approving major visual and storytelling decisions,” said Frank O’Connor, creative director for 343 Industries, the Microsoft division that oversees all Halo products to the LA Times.

Those five well-known anime studios are Bones, Casio Entertainment, Production I.G, Studio4 C, and Toei Animation. They’ll be playing key parts in “Halo Legends” seven-part series product. “Halo Legends” will release on DVD and “digital platforms” in early 2010 through Warner Bros.

“If you look at how George Lucas held on to ‘Star Wars,’ not just to make money from action figures but to control the direction the universe went in, you can see why we think it’s pretty vital,” said O’Connor. “Luckily, Microsoft has the resources to enable us to do that.”

Lock and load! When Halo 3: ODST drops this September, it will deliver a completely new campaign, a new cooperative multiplayer entitled Firefight, the complete Halo 3 multiplayer experience on a standalone disc, and new competitive multiplayer maps for Halo 3 you won’t find anywhere else. That’s why Microsoft and Bungie today revealed the remaining three multiplayer maps which are sure to get fans around the world excited.

• Heretic returns players to familiar ground as the Halo 2 arena Midship makes its long-rumored debut in Halo 3. The stark interior of the Pious Inquisitor might appear austere on first glance, but Heretic’s symmetrical spaces require players to execute complex strategies in order to outplay their opponents.
• Citadel may be a long abandoned Forerunner stronghold, but its small, symmetrical confines are far from secure. Two opposing bases offer little safety for players looking for solace. Instead, Citadel forces small squads to stay in constant communication, keep their heads on a swivel, and be prepared to adjust combat tactics in close quarters.
• Longshore lacks the commercial ships that once made it a lucrative port for Old Mombasa, but it still bustles with activity. Designed for large scale combat and well suited for smaller affairs, Longshore’s multitude of industrial buildings, elevated walks, and open inlets conspire to create a complex battleground tailored for multiple combat scenarios.

[Show as slideshow]

If you were under the impression that Bungie’s upcoming shooter Halo 3: ODST would be a straight-forward linear shooter, you’re very mistaken, said Bungie to The Seattle Times in a recent interview.

“We’re doing a lot of pretty neat things in terms of mixing it up, introducing some non-linearity, some free exploration,” said Joseph Staten, writer and creative director of ODST.

“This is also a mystery story so there’s a lot more clue-finding and mystery-solving than you would normally find in a game of this kind – nothing that strays too far from the fun ‘Halo‘ experience, but we definitely decided to take a little bit of risk and have some fun with this one,” he continued.

Along with that, Bungie also got a early look at Project Natal, a motion-sensing controller that Microsoft is developing for the Xbox 360. Bungie Studio President Harold Ryan said, when speaking on Project Natal, that ” he absolutely think[s that] ‘Reach‘ could be enabled with it.”

You would’ve thought an announcement of a new Halo game would be huge news, but the reaction’s been a bit muted because many wanted to know what kind of game was it.

Now, Microsoft can at least confirm that the upcoming Halo: Reach is indeed what we wanted it to be.

Microsoft’s John Schappert has confirmed to Joystiq that “Of course, it’s an FPS”, when asked if Halo: Reach was a FPS.

[Halo: Reach is an FPS via Joystiq]

As expected by so many of us, during the Microsoft Keynote today in Los Angeles, Bungie revealed its development on the latest Halo title, Halo: Reach.

Thanks to the very short teaser trailer that was shown during the keynote, Halo: Reach is due for release in Fall 2010. Along with the reveal, it was said that if you buy the Halo 3 expansion, Halo: ODST, you’ll get an invite to the Reach MP beta.

Advertisement: Mountain Dew is teaming up with the people over at World of Warcraft to produce two new favors for the second version of Game Fuel. Anyway, by clicking here you can win gaming gear for your PC via their promotion site.

Remember Game Fuel? Well, it seems Mountain Dew is teaming up with folks over at World of Warcraft - instead of the people at Halo – to release two brand new flavors, which are Alliance Blue and Horde Red. These products will be available for a limited time, so they’re sure to be collectibles as well.

In addition, Dew and World of Warcraft have created an interactive microsite where they’re giving away swag and free trial memberships to World of Warcraft. You can check it out here: http://www.mountaindewgamefuel.com/

Halo 3: Recon might still technically be an expansion, but the looming questions is of the game price and distribution type. Here’s what Microsoft had to say “This new chapter in the Halo saga lets you experience events leading up to the epic story told in Halo 3 through the eyes of a new hero in the Halo universe,” this statement was taken from their website and it goes on to say that, “The stand-alone expansion, set to release in fall 2009, extends the award-winning Halo 3 experience with hours of new campaign excursions and multiplayer gameplay.” If you missed it they said that the game was a “stand-alone expansion”, which means that it will be going on sale by it’s self. Since this is basically a new game it can go for the price of $60 like any other retail game on the market. Halo 3: Recon will be making it’s release in fall of next year.

source

With now ex-Project Gotham Racing developer, Bizarre Creations, falling into the arms of Activision we can assure you that Bizarre Creations will not be making the Project Gotham 5. Now, takes to this rumor it looks like Turn 10 will be Developing this game for the Xbox 360. According to Addict Gaming, earlier today a reliable source close to the Development Studio “Turn 10″ told them with some very reliable evidence that Turn 10 will be developing Project Gotham 5. The evidence that was shown to them that not only is proof they are developing the latest addition to the Project Gotham series, but not only that it also showed that they will be announcing it “Within the next two week’s, depending on next weeks NXE announcement”.

Project Gotham is a racing game that was developed by Bizarre Creations published by Microsoft Game Studios for the Xbox gaming console only. The game made it’s first appearance on the original Xbox and was the second best to the original Halo, which was also on the original Xbox.

Not so long ago we heard word that Ryan Payton had lefted Kojima Productions were he was an Assistant Producer. Now, when he lefted Kojima Productions we didn’t know what he was going to work on. Well, today Kotaku is reporting that a very reliable source has told them that Payton has been hired by Microsoft to be the creative director on the upcoming Peter Jackson Halo game. This news comes right after the news that Gearbox Director of Technology Corrinne Yu has been hired by Microsoft Game Studios to be the Principle Engine Architect for Microsoft’s Halo Franchise Team. The news was then confirmed by Microsoft to be true so that, which kind of adds more credibility to the source.

Ryan Payton had previously worked at a freelancer at various magazines before joining Kojima Productions. Where he headed the podcast called, The Kojima Productions Report, which reports on various news within the company or rumors on the internet. When news was released that he lefted Kojima Productions he stated that he wanted find a job closer to his family here in the US. “I’m pretty satisifed with all I’ve accomplished at KP. I set my goals and hit almost every one. The dream has always been to get an original game concept green lit, but that’ll have to wait until I find a new home. The good news is that I’ve got plenty of exciting ideas that I’ve been keeping close to my chest.” said Payton when he lefted the company.

Doublesix announced it’s development of South Park for Xbox Live Arcade, which was recently announced by Microsoft at E3 last month. James Brooksby, Doublesix’s Studio Head, said, “We are incredibly pleased to be working with Microsoft Game Studios and South Park Digital Studios on this fantastic game. We have a high caliber team working (and laughing) away here and they can’t wait to let loose their creation on an unsuspecting world…”

With this announcement it was also made public that they won Best New UK/European Studio at the Develop Awards last week – reaffirming their status as leaders and innovators in digitally distributed game development.

Talk about one of the greatest exclusive of the year. According to Sarcastic Gamer, this morning Bungie leaked explosive news, they revealed that this next installment in the Halo series. The game will be following the early years of Master Chief. In other words it’s a prequel that follows Master Chief’s first battlefield experience. Yeah, that exactly what it is……….

Bungie described the game: “A younger Master Chief, in the armed forces learning his way. Full of wonder, John has to come to terms with his military upbringing and being one of the newly christened Spartan warriors. John will come of age with the player. The player will be with him every step of the way. From his first day at school, to his first kiss, to prom.”

And that’s not all. Bungie promises 17 levels, 2 player co-op where the second person will play Cortana, back then a teen runaway, with a heart of gold, that joined the army before becoming the A.I. that we’ve come to know.

But, wait there’s more. Sarcastic Gamer also obtained a title for the upcoming game intitled, Halo: The Wonder Years.

Isn’t it funny how many times inside sources are used in a rumor. According to Sarcastic Gamer’s “protected source”, Halo 4 is already in full development over at Bungie. The source didn’t get the chance to give them any details on the rumored game at this point, but he/she did confirm for sure that Halo 4 is an official project in development.

Activision has done World War 2 and Modern Warfare now it’s time for a new type of Warfare, Futuristic Warfare. It is rumored that Call of Duty 5 will take place in the future, if this rumor ends up being true Call of Duty 5 will be joining games like Gears of War, Resistance, Killzone and Halo.

Could this mean that Activision is trying to continue to dominate the other shooting genres? Only time can tell.

Update:06/10/08 WOW..we are getting alot of searches for call of duty 5 you may want to click here for GamerCenterOnline suprise

[Call of Duty 5: Futuristic warfare? via Pwnamon]