Halo: Reach Message Board older than one year ago

#halo September 14 is Halo Reach launch day worldwide (except in Japan), according to an AP report. Reach just enjoyed a popular and now-completed multiplayer beta. More »

According to an Associated Press report, Bungie has revealed that Halo: Reach will hit store shelves worldwide on September 14 (with the exception of Japan, where it will launch the following day). That's going to be a rough, rough way to start your school year.

The report also reveals that over 2.7 million players logged more than 16 million hours and 1.1 billion kills in the Reach beta during its 18 days of availability. Some may see that as a precursor to Reach's certain retail success -- we see it as a testament to Halo players' startling murder efficiency.

[Via VG247]

#books The publisher of the original Halo novelizations will reissue the original trilogy "with updates and all new original content" in August, beginning with Halo: The Fall of Reach, the prequel that predates the upcoming game by almost a decade More »

Some of our favorite user screenshots from the past week

Bungie gives fans one more day.

We'll keep this quick: Bungie's Brian Jarrard has just informed Joystiq, "Our official plans as of now are to turn off the Reach beta on Thursday, 5/20 at 10AM PDT." Previously, the beta was scheduled to end tomorrow.

That's what we call a reprieve! Get back into the fight, folks.

The Halo: Reach beta has less than a week to go, and now you have one more reason to put a few more hours into it: Generator Defense. The new playlist is now live, presenting players with a 3-on-3 match of Spartans vs. Elites. The objective is simple: Elites attack the generators and Spartans defend them. Be sure to remember that the actual playlist is called "Network Test 1" -- an apt title, if our first few laggy games were any indication. But hey, what's a little lag when the survival of the whole human race is at stake?

In other news, a second episode of Halo: Reach Betabusters is available, and it includes plenty of things you might not know about in the beta (including the ability to assassinate players through glass). Find it after the break.

If you've been playing the Halo: Reach beta -- and, statistically, you probably have -- you've likely noticed a lot a changes compared to Halo 3. Look a little closer and you'll find something more sinister: bugs, glitches, issues. Of course, it is a beta test, so such things are expected. Still, in the latest weekly update, the folks at Bungie decided to calm our fears and explain that things will be fixed for the final release this fall. Among the issues addressed: teammates stealing flags in Stockpile, barely visible aiming reticules and the ad nauseam barrage of "Flag taken ... flag dropped" in CTF matches. Bungie assures fans that these and other issues have already been fixed in the current build of Reach.

In other Reach news, Bungie has posted a handy beta survival guide compiled buy community member Shake Appeal. If you're having trouble adjusting to the new weapons, abilities and overall feel of Halo: Reach, you may want to give the guide a once over.

Source - Bungie Weekly Update 5.07.10
Source - Halo: Reach beta survival guide

Another batch of must-see images.

#halo While the Halo: Reach beta is largely a blast, not everything is perfect. Thankfully Bungie knows this, and is letting us know the things that will be fixed by the time the final game rolls around. More »

Use those melee attacks while you can.

#wellplayed Last week more than a million people logged in to their Xbox 360s, plopped down and got a taste of upcoming first-person shooter Halo: Reach. And that was just on the first day. More »

#clips Gameplay mode Invasion went live today for Bungie's Halo Reach beta bringing with it multi-objective team gameplay with a few interesting twists and lots of lag. More »

If you've been waiting to lay waste to some split-jawed Elites -- or, conversely, to some uppity Spartans -- then today is your lucky day. Bungie has tweetted that Invasion mode will be added to the Halo: Reach beta at "around 11am PDT" today.

Lest you forgot how Invasion mode works, it's a 6-on-6, Spartan vs. Elite gametype that sees the Elites on the offensive, trying to take objectives and unlock new sections of the map. The Spartans, obviously, have to defend said objectives. Also, unlike most other modes in Reach, Invasion allows players to respawn next to a designated teammate (out of combat), adding to the strategic possibilities. On paper, it sounds a bit like Bad Company 2's Rush mode. In the beta, Invasion takes place solely on a new map, Boneyard, a huge map with lots of vehicles and progressively deadlier weaponry.

In other words, clear your schedule. You have plans tonight.

There's more to life than Team Slayer and Shotty Snipers.

#clips We've shown you some glitches, some really bad gameplay and some amazing screenshots, but here are some of Bungie's favorite gameplay moments from the Halo Reach Beta. More »

It looks like Bungie is well on its way to engaging its expected three million plus players for the Halo: Reach beta. According to a recent news post on Bungie.net, the ongoing Reach beta logged well over a million players on its first public day. Specifically, the beta saw 1,170,112 total players, who manage to frag, stick, headshot, pummel or otherwise maim one another 157,972,986 times over the 14,205,611 games played, totaling 936,864,266 seconds of play time. That's 260,240 man hours or over 29 man years.

If you prefer your jaw-dropping facts to be less numerical, Bungie concluded that the Reach beta saw more action on its first day than the Halo 3 beta did over its entire three-week run.

One stat missing from the rundown: How many jet packs were used? We're presuming the number is incalculable.

Our favorite user created images, so far.

Are you an Xbox Live Silver member? Have you been staring with green-eyed envy at all your Gold-subscribing friends currently enjoying the Halo: Reach multiplayer beta? If so, we've got some good news, because Shacknews reports that the Reach beta will be opening up to Xbox Live Silver members next week. Starting May 14 at 9:00am PT, Silver members with a copy of Halo 3: ODST will be able to access the beta. You'd better get as much as you can though, because the party ends on May 17 at 9:00am PT, two days before the beta closes for everyone else. But hey, some Reach is better than no Reach, right?

For as much as you've been tirelessly playing (or trying to play) the Halo: Reach beta, we're sure there are some things you didn't know. Example: did you know that you can actually kill somebody by hitting them in the face with a grenade? Yup, totally possible. How about a tried-and-true way to avoid fall damage? It's a lot simpler than you may think!

Thanks to Defend The House -- of Modern Warfare 2 Mythbusters fame -- we now know how. And you too can feel the Quickening-like surge of power that is knowledge by simply heading past the break and watching the first episode of Halo: Reach Betabusters. Enjoy!

#halo While some us got our jetpacks dirty last week, for most, the Halo: Reach beta began in earnest on Monday. Meaning many of you are probably knee-deep in teabags by now. Which begs the question: what do you think? More »

#glitches It is true that betas are allowed to have glitches. That doesn't make them any less entertaining to watch. And, hey, who can complain if Halo Reach still has bugs? What people are playing now is just a beta. More »

Game Betas are serious business.

#howto Who the hell shoots and tosses grenades at their own team? Someone who wants to fail in the Halo Reach beta, that's who. Here's a few handy tips for folks who really want to suck. More »

If you were trying to get your Halo: Reach on last night, you probably remember that crucial point in time when it just plain stopped working. It was a dark time, to say the least, but Bungie is working hard to get things in order.

A recent post on its forums states that while you should still expect "suboptimal performance," you can at least get into some games now. While we'd certainly appreciate a fully-functional beta, we're not complaining -- playing a few matches is better than playing no matches, after all.

Reach could be Bungie's last Halo. Here's why it might also be the best Halo yet.

Launch of anticipated beta runs into server issues.

All the info, all in one spot.

#haloreach Can't complain when things go bad in a beta, can we? Word from Bungie is that intense server activity is gumming up the works: More »

#betawatch The Halo: Reach beta is finally live, and we've assembled some handy information to help you get started in what could be the biggest console game beta ever. More »