News Archives - July 2007

HeavenGames Appoints Sergio Prado as New CEO
Posted by WatchWood on July 31, AD 2007 @ 7:53 PM

LOMBARD, IL - HeavenGames LLC, an internet leader in strategy fansites, today announced it has appointed Sergio "Socvazius" Prado to the position of Chief Executive Officer, effective July 28, 2007. Mr. Prado, a driven executive with considerable experience in the gaming industry, has worked at HeavenGames for 7 years in addition to Vivendi Universal's brand marketing department. He currently is a college junior at Harvard University. Prior to this appointment at HeavenGames, Mr. Prado served as the company's Chief Content Officer on the executive board, ensuring the professional quality of content present across the network. He also headed six of its sites: for Age of Empires III, Age of Mythology, Age of Kings, Age of Empires, Rome: Total War, and Cossacks. During his employ at Vivendi Universal, Mr. Prado worked to market World in Conflict and Empire Earth III, two of the biggest strategy titles of 2007.

Tom Mescher, the exiting CEO, served as HeavenGames' leader since its incorporation in October of 2000. He is moving on to continue his career in the IT industry.

ABOUT HEAVENGAMES, LLC
HeavenGames LLC (http://www.heavengames.com), based in Lombard, Illinois, is a privately owned web-content publisher geared towards the creation of special-interest sites for Real-Time Strategy and City-Builder games. Its sites, content, vast amounts of resources, as well as a dedicated staff & management team make HeavenGames' sites recognized by developers and press alike as one of the premier destinations for gamers worldwide.

Halo 3 Co-op confusion put to rest
Posted by Botolf on July 31, AD 2007 @ 5:56 PM
After the internet meltdown following speculation online co-op wouldn't be in Halo 3, the fate of this wanted feature hung in the air, until today, that is. Bungie has released a mid-week update that confirms that not only will there be online co-op in Halo 3, but up to 4 people will be able to play, over Xbox Live or System Link (2 players on one console). And no, there won't be 3 Master Chief clones running around this time. Player one will get the Chief, of course, Player two controls the Arbiter, and Players three and four will control two new Elite characters, with their own backstory. Read the update in full here.
Bungie Weekly Update
Posted by Botolf on July 28, AD 2007 @ 2:39 AM
The latest Bungie Weekly Update came out earlier today, significantly vaguer than most we've seen the past few months. Various on-goings within Bungie, how the Brutes are going to scale walls and make your Spartan weep like a baby before the end, and Halo lasertag. Who would want to play lasertag with plasma pistols and plasma rifles you ask? Really, who wouldn't?

Bungie Weekly Update
Posted by Botolf on July 20, AD 2007 @ 9:28 PM
Bungie.net update time! This week's update from Bungie is a really mixed bag, ranging from the widespread "No online co-op in Halo 3!!1!1" misinterpretation clutching the internet, to a vague, new Halo 3 energy sword tweak (perhaps something to do with the bulltrue medal?), to WETA workshop and it's latest project, a working and properly scaled warthog. I wouldn't mind owning one, myself, but I'd imagine it costs a pretty penny to have one custom built (You'd probably need permits to tow a heavy machine gun on top, too!).

Halo Wars demo
Posted by Botolf on July 16, AD 2007 @ 2:54 PM
A demo for Halo Wars has been confirmed in a Joystiq article to be coming sometime before the game's release, which will let players try out the game, and Ensemble's from-the-ground-up control scheme specifically designed for use with the Xbox 360's controller. Read the full article here.
HaloWars.com
Posted by WatchWood on July 11, AD 2007 @ 1:42 PM
The official Halo Wars site has undergone a major change, and now packs all kinds of sweet new goodness. Including imagery.

Also? Gamespot has a trailer.
Fan Fiction Contest
Posted by WatchWood on July 10, AD 2007 @ 7:29 PM

The fan fiction contest draws to a close in a few days, on the 15th. Make sure you get your entries in, or put them up on our new Fan Fiction Database for all to see and just send us the link in the forums.Also? We're playing DnD in the forums and need a few players. Nublets are welcome.

Bungie Day
Posted by Botolf on July 7, AD 2007 @ 1:01 PM
Today is what they call Bungie Day, and as predicted, Bungie has released a few goodies for fans. On the Xbox Live Marketplace, you'll find for this day only, special Gamer Pics and a new dashboard theme. At Bungie.net, you'll find a new concept art wallpaper and 3d Quicktime "Click and Rotate" images of the two new Spartan armor variants and the Brute Chopper. The latter reveals a bit more about Shrine, you'll notice it's on the raised metallic platform within the level, and you can see a Banshee spawn point, and a wrecked Wraith in the distance.

Bungie Weekly Update
Posted by Botolf on July 6, AD 2007 @ 10:39 PM
Alongside Ensemble Studios' project update today, Bungie has released another edition of it's weekly update onto the masses. The two Halo 1 remake maps are becoming free tomorrow, so be sure to grab Tombstone and Desolation while they're hot. Goodies like gamer pics and a theme will become available tomorrow for one day only (7/7/07), and some extras are going to pop up at Bungie.net. The update also includes a bit about the new Halo 3 screenshot, Halo 3 action figures (pictures included), the departure of one of Bungie's own, and the confirmed return of the Bungie podcast.
Halo Wars Update
Posted by Botolf on July 6, AD 2007 @ 5:33 PM
The monthly Halo Wars update has been posted at HaloWars.com. The update confirms that Halo Wars will be at E3, where the gaming press will be treated to a short demo of the game. Screenshots and videos will then make it's way into in the hands of the public, at which point we'll get our first look at what Ensemble Studios has been working on. Also next week, the Halo Wars website will see aesthetic changes, maybe an updated FAQ?

We’ve been working towards a mini-milestone of sorts, called the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3). The good news for Halo Wars fans who have been hanging in there waiting for more information and or images from the game is that we will be showing a small demo of the game for select members of the press at E3. The team here at Ensemble Studios has been at work on preparing the demo for the last couple of weeks and it has come together nicely. It just shows a small slice of our game off to give the press an idea of what we’re all about.

Thanks to E3, we will likely see some first impression articles about the game appearing on the web or in magazines in the days and weeks to follow. This is also about the time that we’ll be going live with a new version of our Halo Wars website, which will largely just be a visual change, but reflect some of the new stuff revealed at E3.

E3 takes place in Los Angeles next week, so the wait is going to be relatively short!
Halo 3 Campaign Screenshot
Posted by Botolf on July 5, AD 2007 @ 2:58 PM
A new Halo 3 screenshot has surfaced at Bungie.net, but this is of the most guarded element of Halo 3, the single player campaign. IN what appears to be a forest or jungle, Master Chief poses in the foreground, mountains and cloudy sky fill the vast scenery. Behold!