Halo 2 Scoop!
 

Still no firm word on street date, but I do know they are in Alpha Testing which consists of 2-3 hours per day of "testing". Which we all know is a fancy word for 2-3 hours of playing per day.
They aren't in the Beta Phase yet, all playing is still done on Xbox development boxes which differ greatly from the retail version.

*** Waiting patiently ***

Check out the Blood Gulch Chronicles for some more HALO entertainment while waiting. I just saw the first season and the first 8 minutes of the second season at Lincoln Center Saturday night. Funny shit.

Electronic Gaming Monthly said that Halo 2 is officially delayed until Fall 2004, but no matter what, it WILL ship before Christmas of this year. Get ready guys, only a few months away!! Damn, I can't wait, especially after seeing the E3 video.

-Lasereth

Same source that mentioned Alpha testing indicated a street date of this summer. Earlier than september, later than april. Not sure if the vagueness was project related or if my source was being purposely vague. Either way, I am getting into thumb calesthenics now! :)
BTW, been promised I will get on the beta IF (big if) they have one. Keep watching, I will be more than happy to report on what I see/hear.

IF you by chance get into the Beta Testing is it really worth blabbing about the game? Doing so will make you liable to get your balls cut off.

Depends Deflock... If I have to sign a confidentiality more than likely won't say a word. However, if it was like XBL Live Beta Test I will be more than happy to share! Rest assured I will not "cut my balls off" just to "blab" about a game. The lure of future beta testing is worth more than sharing.

For what it's worth, Electronics Boutique, in its conference call with analysts today, said it had heard that Halo 2 - along with Doom 3 and Half-Life 2 - has slipped to July or later.

I would rather wait longer for a quality game then have a rushed game that sucks. I don't mind the wait myself :).

patience is a virtue.

www.gamerankings.com : Release Date: April, 2004
but i dont care because i'm waiting for the pc version.

Why would you wait for the PC version!? Halo is much better on the XBox, so I imagine the second one will probably do the same. Come on...you know you want it for XBox! :)

-Lasereth

Don't like the controls for FPS's on a controller, level of accuracy dimishes incredibly, but you're right, Halo 2 is going to be much better on the Box than the PC, that is if the port is anything like the port for Halo 1.

Burner, thanks a bunch for the scoop, I don't think I have waited with this much anticipation for anything, save for the birth of my kids. Keep the good scoops coming.

I just cant wait until Halo 2 comes out. Im sure the gameplay the graohics and the story wil be nothing less then perfect which will probably make it Xbox game of the year either that or Fable
.

Man...It can not get here quick enough.

July or later???? :mad:

And I prefer the PC over any console, always. Face it, your accuracy is so much better with a keyboard and mouse, and no console will ever beat a PC with a good video card.

I prefer an Xbox for the reasons of:

Surround sound
Bigger TV
Comfy couch to sit in :)

Your argument may hold true for first-person-shooters, but PCs by no means have better controls on racing, action, puzzle, and various other types of videogames. On top of that, some first-person-shooters simply control better on console (Halo).

-Lasereth

Some people grew up as hardcore FPS gamers for PC. They will die hardcore FPS gamers for PC. Anyways, my friends and I are seriously worried that the release of HALO 2 will come around the same time as finals, because even though I am a man of much self control and discipline, HALO 2 will inevitably be my weakness. I know that we are going to have an insane HALO 2 bash/LAN party the day it comes out, come heaven or hell, rain or shine, exams or no exams. If HALO 2 is released around the same time as exams, I will have to ask you guys to help me pull through and encourage me to stay away from my X-box. For some people, smoking is a serious problem even though it seems really silly to me; I always tell myself that if I was a smoker, I'd just quit cold turkey. Well being posessed by HALO 2 may seem silly to some people, but to me it is a serious issue. I hope there are people out there that understand :)

Actually I think some games run better on consoles than PC (Take Deus Ex II and Halo) no matter what the vid card you have, or how badass it is drivers sometimes blow ass. Games on console are meant to run optimzied under the conditions of the console.

I've argued that point for years, but no one believes me. You're actually the first I've heard say that besides me. :) I've seen Halo on some pretty bad-ass computers, and none of them compared to the XBox version which is old now. The XBox has one purpose -- playing games. It uses every known resources in the machine to make the game run perfectly. The only thing I'll give computer games is better frame rates in most cases, but when it comes to the overall look of a game, consoles are simply unrivaled in many cases.

-Lasereth

meh.. Halo was overrated anyways.. It was fun yes, but fps' are always better on pc (its the mouse) :D

Geeze... I've pretty much held off getting other games, because I knew Halo2 would take all my spare time away (especially if it's xbox live enabled). Now I gotta wait longer. Oh well...

Bungie has already announced Xbox Live support.

i think that was one of the major reasons it got delayed again was because of Xbox Live support. Mostly because it was causing the game to run shitty or some such reason.

Halo 2 Update II
 

They are still in Alpha Testing on Dev boxes. Unlike current FPS games that require fat pipes for hosting 8+ players, a DSL line hosted 10+ with no lag. That same DSL line can only host 6 on GRIT.
Release update is now August/Sept/ MAYBE October. MS is telling the game companies earlier dates because they are afraid people are going to drop LIVE before they can ship HALO II. This is a big fear for them, and as such are using the donkey and carrot aproach.
In one more month they are hoping to extend the Alpha to all MS Employees with Xbox Dev Boxes (Basically just the Xbox Group ) or roughly 1500 employees.
Sometime this summer they are CONTEMPLATING offering Beta Testing out to Live customers that have been there from the start as a customer loyalty / reward program. More info on that when I get it. Good news to those of us that have had Live since the start.
SO FAR they haven't been able to integrate an online Co-op version of the game. They want it, they think they need it, but so far it isn't part of the game.
That is all for now.. I will let you know more as I get it. And don't share this on other boards (especially MS Hosted Boards). Last thing I need is for someone to get in trouble for providing us with current inside info to satisfy our desire for info!

Man, I hope they can get the online co-op working, but right now, I'll take whatever they feel that they can deliver without sacrificing quality.

Thanks for the input burner! Man, I hope they can get Co-op in. It's one of the funnest ways to play Halo. An Internet version would simply kick ass.

-Lasereth

Great news. This the first I have heard of it, so thanks for the plug! (yeah...I'm out of it. go figure)

Hey burner, thanks much for the info. Like a lot of folks I want this game, but I'm willing to wait for perfection.

Keep those super scoops coming!

And to everyone else, DO keep this on the QT, I'd rather know the info and keep quiet, than try to impress everyone else with it and lose my source.

Oh yeah, forgot something.. They are kicking around the idea of having pure dedicated servers to run the game on (MS hosted). BTW, word is it is SWEET!
There has been a rumor of 64 person deathmatch capability.. Been told that is bogus.

Ive gotten accustomed to the fact that it will never come out.

But when it does, it will be good. Bungie is an excellent company, they are just too hurried by their users and Microsoft.

You have someone on the inside? Thanks for sharing :)

I can't wait till Halo 2 comes out... guess I'll just have to play regular Halo on Xbox Connect to fulfill my Halo cravings for now. :/

I hope they do dedicated hosting, and online Co-Op would own, I just really hope there's multiplayer bots though...

Numist: Actually, the only reason MS is rushing Bungie is because they figure bunches of people will cancel Live if Halo 2 doesn't come out soon. Otherwise, Billy G has stated he wants this version to be as ground breaking as the first was, and not to release it until it is. MS knows deep down (they won't admit it at least!) they really only have one true distinct game, Halo. If they screw that up.... Well, rest assured it won't be released until it is SLICK!
Deflock: Let's just say it pays to keep in touch with friends.. Remember those guys you used to think were dorks because they got 3 masters degrees? Those are they guys that work for MS now! :) Actually have a few buddies who work for MS, all on the platform side. One takes his vow of silence to the extreme, but if you talk to him during Live games he sometimes forgets what he is/isn't allowed to say. The rest are straight up guys that have no issue answering most of my questions.
Darkfalzsux: Lemme ask for ya. Can't promise a quick answer, but I do talk to some people daily.

duke nukem forever must rock in that case :p

I'm fairly sure this game is just a myth now. It's like an urban video game legend.

Soon enough it'll be pushed back to 2005.
lol