FPS General

343 Industries has released a brand new trailer for their upcoming first-person shooter, Halo 4. The trailer is the last in a series of videos focusing on the weapons in Halo 4, this time around focusing on Forerunner weapon technology.

There was a distinct challenge in creating these weapons for Halo 4, as it is a completely new suite of weapons, deviating from the tried and true Covenant and UNSC weaponry that Halo fans know and love. The weapons in Halo games past have always been meticulously balanced and ensure that everyone is on an even playing field as far as their gear goes. It has been what makes Halo multiplayer so skill focused.

With these new weapons, 343 Industries was taking a trip into uncharted waters...

343 Industries

One of the best components of Halo has always been the combat sandbox, so it was both scary and challenging to create a whole new suite of weapons from scratch that were interesting, unique and balanced with the rest of the offerings.

Before settling on the final list, the team made concepts for approximately two hundred weapons. One of the biggest struggles was figuring out the high level vision and what made these alien weapons different from the Covenant and Brute weapons seen in past games. The vision we had for the Forerunner weapons was that they should feel technologically superior while still maintaining mechanical elements that made them visceral and relatable.

We wanted them to evoke a sense of wonder and awe in the hands of players, similar to how you feel when you encounter Forerunner structures in the game. We also wanted them to be adaptive – both to the user and with regard to how they can be used.

You can be the judge for yourself. Check out the Promethean Weapons trailer at the top of this post and let us know what you think. We're starting to get excited for Halo 4 and the game is due out in just over a month.

For more information, check out our Halo 4 hub.

343 Industries has released a brand new preview of Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn, entitled 'Lecture'. This preview is the latest in a string of previews giving fans a taste of what's to come with the full Forward Unto Dawn web series later this year.

In the video, General Black gives a lecture to his students at Corbulo Academy...

In 2526, the Insurrectionists believe that the people of one planet owe nothing to the people of another planet or even Earth—a philosophy which is violently contested by the UNSC. General Black, the leader of Corbulo Academy of Military Science, makes sure his students understand why.

Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn debuts on October 5th on Halo Waypoint! Follow FPS General on Facebook and Twitter to stay updated on future previews and behind the scenes features.

Geoff Keighley and the GTTV crew recently dropped by 343 Industries to take a look at Halo 4 and film an entire episode dedicated to the upcoming first-person shooter.

The episode, which you can stream above, includes interviews with some of the team at 343 Industries as well as a massive amount of new gameplay. For fans eagerly awaiting Halo 4's release in November, this is a must watch!

Halo 4 is set to release on November 6th and tells the story of the next chapter in Master Chief's life. The first Halo game developed entirely without Bungie Studios, Halo 4 has a lot to live up to and everything to prove. So far, however, the game looks great and we have every confidence that 343 Industries has a gem on their hands.

Be the judge yourself, however, and check out the latest episode of GTTV above!

343 Industries has released the latest preview for their upcoming live-action web series, Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn, entitled 'Joyride'. It may be self explanatory, but the latest installment of the Forward Unto Dawn preview features a Spartan Cadet's (very much unauthorized) joyride on a Warthog.

Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn is due to debut on October 5th, 2012 and will span events from the start of the Human-Covenant War and leading up through the goings-on of Halo 4. This will be a five-part, live action web series debuting on Machinima Prime and Halo Waypoint.

Check out the latest preview above and make sure to drop by our Halo 4 hub to see what else is happening in the world of Halo 4.

343 Industries has released the first episode of a multi-part behind-the-scenes video documentary, showing off a ton of Halo 4 footage and sharing some insight into the development of the next great chapter in Master Chief's life.

The video clocks in at 10:43, a little long for a 'typical' ViDoc but we're confident that Halo fans will be dying for more by the time the first episode is all done. 

Featured in the ViDoc above is commentary from 343 Industries' Kiki Wolfkill, Christopher Schlerf, Josh Holmes, Lindsay Lockhart and more of the team working on Halo 4 as we speak. We get behind the scenes looks at motion capture, some brand new footage of the game and, most importantly, a great level of insight on what went into designing this new chapter in Halo canon.

Check it out above and drop by http://halo.xbox.com/ for more information on Halo 4!

Halo 4's Forward Unto Dawn live-action series is a little over a month away from debuting, but 343 Industries wants us to get familiar with some of the characters that we'll come to know when the four-part web series debuts in October.

In the video above, we see a handful of young men enlisting for duty in the ranks of United Nations Space Command. The future isn't so different from the present, it seems. These men sit down in their barber shop style chairs to get their hair cut to regulation and the fear is plain in their eyes. Not all of these men will live to grow their hair back out after the war is finished.

Ultimately, the men get outfitted with Spartan armor, doubtless hoping that it will help them make it through.

Forward Unto Dawn debuts on October 5th - be sure to stay tuned as we'll be bringing you updates on Halo 4 and the Forward Unto Dawn web series!

343 Industries has released a great new video over on Halo Waypoint, discussing the sound design that went into the UNSC weapons in Halo 4.

Rather than simply recycling old sound effects like other current first-person shooters, 343 Industries opted to rebuild the sound from the ground up, providing a truly fresh experience in Halo 4's weaponry. In the video above, you can check out the excellent sound design in person. There's no behind-the-scenes insight or anything, just straight up sonic goodness for audiophiles around the world.

If you are looking for some behind the scenes insight, check out http://halo.xbox.com/. The latest Halo Bulletin has some really insightful information from the development team.

Titan Books is gearing up to release a gorgeous art book entitled Awakening: The Art of Halo 4, alongside Halo 4 when it launches in November of this year.

Awakening will feature concept art from the world of Halo 4, and is being produced in conjunction with 343 Industries and Microsoft to ensure the highest standard for quality. In addition to the artwork, the book is going to feature behind the scenes commentary from the team at 343 Industries. If you've been wondering what the book will actually look like, click the image above or scroll down to check out the full cover image that Titan Books has chosen.

Titan Books will be releasing Awakening: The Art of Halo 4 in November, alongside the game itself. Stay tuned for more information!

It's no secret that Microsoft and 343 Industries has a great showing at E3 this year with Halo 4. The gameplay demo looked great, the trailers were awesome and the announcements were exciting but the brand new Accolades Trailer gives you a better idea of how the game fared with critics at E3.

The game took home several honors including Best Action Game and Best Shooter from E3, as you can see in the trailer above. In Halo 4, Master Chief returns to the forefront to battle 'an ancient evil bent on vengeance and annihilation.' Halo 4's campaign looks like a really great entry into Halo canon, but multiplayer is where our money's at. The new Infinity Multiplayer mode is going to give Halo a breath of fresh air, while staying true to the core fundamentals that make Halo such a special franchise to begin with.

If you haven't followed Halo 4, be sure to check out our hub for more information on the game, and visit the forums to discuss Halo 4! 

Today, we have some brand new information on the Limited Edition Halo 4 Xbox 360, as well as some gorgeous photos of the custom-skinned console and controllers.

The project came about from a collaboration between Claire Gerhardt, from the Xbox 360 hardware team, Art Director Kenneth Scott, Executive Producer Kiki Wolfkill and the audio team who assisted in deciding which sounds to use for the console startup and disc tray opening. After dozens of design changes and hundreds of varying elements, the team settled on the final design seen above.

The Limited Edition Halo 4 Xbox 360 Console comes with the console, two Forerunner-themed controllers, a wired headset and a copy of the standard edition of Halo 4. Along with all that, players get a ton of digital items for their Xbox Live Avatar.

Interestingly, the main inspiration for the console design comes from an object in Halo 4 that we haven't been introduced to yet. The object is important to the story, but we'll have to wait to learn just how. Keep reading for a photo gallery and more on how the controllers came into being.

For a while there, Microsoft had listed the official Halo 4 Collector's Edition Xbox 360 on their website, but apparently it wasn't fit for public consumption yet as the listing has since been removed.

The bundle, pictured above, will run you $400 but you do get quite a bit for your money. Including in the Halo 4 Xbox 360 bundle is:

• 320GB Xbox 360 console, custom designed with Halo 4 in mind. This includes custom system sounds taken from the Halo universe.
• A copy of Halo 4, standard edition.
• Two wireless Xbox 360 controllers, with blue LED's and custom designed to match the console.
• A black wired Xbox 360 headset for hurling inappropriate comments at your friends online.

Halo 4's web series Forward Unto Dawn is easily one of the most ambitious video game related projects we've seen ina  long time. The episodic series follows the story of a young UNSC cadet and has cost Microsoft upwards of $5 million dollars.

In the latest trailer, embedded above, we get a chance to see the first full-length preview of what we'll be enjoying this October. To begin with, Forward Unto Dawn will be made up of five episodes. After those episodes are released, an unabridged version will be made available. The unabridged Forward Unto Dawn will clock in at around 90 minutes and will serve as the Halo film that we never got.

Check out the trailer above and stay tuned for more!

Meet Daniel Cudmore, a man you might recognize from his role as Colossus from X-Men: The Last Stand or as a guy named Felix in some movie called Twilight.

Daniel is getting ready to add another role to his resume, as he gears up to play Halo 4's Master Chief in Microsoft's upcoming Forward Unto Dawn series.

Cudmore, pictured to the right, stands at 6'6" and seems like a great man for the job considering all he has to do is be big and wear Spartan armor. Steve Downes, the in-game voice of Master Chief, will be doing voice work for Forward Unto Dawn so Cudmore will only serve as the physical actor for Master Chief.

Forward Unto Dawn will follow the story of a young UNSC cadet who is inspired by Master Chief and eventually is given leadership of a UNSC ship.

Forward Unto Dawn is expected to show up in full force at San Diego Comic Con which technically gets underway today. Stay tuned!

Last month, Microsoft and 343 Industries brought Halo 4 to E3 2012 in a very big way. Part of their presence at the gaming conference was to invite some of the world's finest MLG players.

In the video above, released this morning, you can get a good look at Halo 4's multiplayer component as well as some impressions from the professionals. The MLG players were able to spend some time playing two of Halo 4's brand new game modes, Infinity Slayer and Regicide, on three new maps; Haven, Adrift and Longbow. No surprises here, but Halo 4 looks incredible and we can't wait for the game to hit shelves this Fall.

Check out the video to hear these players impressions of the game and drop by our forums to share your own!

This one threw us for a loop; according to Xbox.com, Halo 4's multiplayer component will require 8GB of free hard drive space internally or via a USB flash drive.

This is just for multiplayer. We have personally not heard of a multiplayer component being so big, but Halo 4's multiplayer does offer a lot of bang for your buck. Between the new game modes, the fact that multiplayer action takes place on a UNSC ship, cooperative game modes and the Spartan Ops episodic missions, Halo 4 multiplayer is going to be the deepest multiplayer offering in any Halo game to date.

We are personally wondering if this is simply an opportunity for Microsoft to start marketing peripherals and Xbox 360 bundles in advance of the game's release this Fall, or whether you truly need the full 8GB of free space. We'll see!

Forward Unto Dawn is both the name of the UNSC frigate in Halo and the upcoming live-action series based around Halo 4. While the UNSC ship is just as important, today we're focusing on the upcoming web series.

Forward Unto Dawn is currently in production and will follow the story of a young UNSC cadet who is inspired by Master Chief to aspire for greatness. Eventually, the cadet is given leadership on the UNSC Infinity. Forward Unto Dawn is built as both a vessel to market Halo 4 with and a way for new players and old players alike to feel connected to the characters and universe in Halo 4 and its subsequent releases.

Debuting this fall, Forward Unto Dawn will get a full reveal next week at San Diego Comic Con which kicks off on July 11th!