Halo World Championship prize pool now at $1,500,000
343 Industries has been doing everything they can to bring back the competitive Halo community. A few months ago, they announced that the prize pool for the Halo Championship Series was at 1 million dollars and would be funded by a percentage of the money spent on REQ Packs. Today, they announced that due to the crowdfunding and success of REQ Packs, they are increasing the prize pull by half a million dollars, bringing the total to an outrages amount of $1,500,000! And if that wasn’t enough, they stated that the total continues to grow daily! Qualification for the tournament starts in December and the grand finals begin in March of 2016. With a prize pool as large as this, we can say with confidence that competitive Halo is back!
Games Hubs on the New Xbox One Experience
Xbox has released a video with Larry Hryb and Richard Irving a thorough look at Game Hubs on the New Xbox One Experience. Each Xbox One game has it’s own Game Hub with basic information about the game, Activity Feed, Achievements, Friends who play the game and Captures. In a Game Hub you have the ability to follow a game which will allow you to view any updates from the developer in your Activity Feed. Under Achievements you can compare Achievements with friends, see time played, leader boards and other game specific stats. Captures allow you to view most popular screenshots or clips and view your own for the game.
Halo 5 could show PC gamers some love
There has been an outgoing interest in bringing more Halo games to the PC. There is still a player base for the PC versions of Halo: CE and Halo 2. With how Microsoft has put a focus on PC with Windows 10, it wouldn’t be much of a surprise to see more Halo appear on the platform. Microsoft is already bringing Halo Wars 2 to the PC and we already have games like Spartan Assault and Spartan Strike. In an interview with GamesRadar on Twitch, Frank O’Connor around the 1:13 mark, put forward the possibility of Halo 5: Guardians coming to the PC: “You know, Microsoft has made a huge commitment trying sort of… I think normalize the Windows experience across multiple platforms. You see the elements of Windows 10 are going to appear in Xbox and Cortana and stuff like that. There is plenty of chance that Halo 5 could appear on the PC. Nothing to announce at this point. It’s absolutely not out the bounds of reason, but you know, we developed the game on an Intel platform. It wouldn’t be the hardest thing in the world to move it to PC and take advantage of PC stuff. But nothing I announce today on this chat.” O’Connor did not announce anything in the chat, but with Microsoft’s commitment to Windows 10 it is very likely we will see Halo 5 launch on PC later down the road. It would be great to see a new collection of all the games release on PC allowing gamers who may of missed out the ability to catch up on the campaign. As a primarily Xbox One gamer who occasionally plays PC games, I know I would jump on Halo 5 on PC in a heartbeat. Would you get Halo 5 on the PC?
First Xbox One Elite Controller accessories announced
We will see the release of the Elite Controller on October 27th and one of the most interesting features of the device is being able to customize it to fit your gaming needs. When Microsoft first announced the Elite Controller, they also stated that there will be 3rd party parts made to allow you to customize it even more. Last week, Microsoft announced a partnership with Scuf, making Scuf the exclusive 3rd party accessories partner for the controller. Today Microsoft announced that while the Xbox team works with Scuf, PowerA will release a Charging Stand that comes with a 1400mAh battery and battery door this month for $39.99. In early December, PowerA will release a limted run of Halo 5: Guardians Component Kits. The kit includes Halo 5 themed thumbsticks, paddles, and D-Pads and will retail for $29.99. Look forward to a review of the Elite Controller from the Rectify Gaming team soon! Do you plan on getting an Elite Controller? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
Halo Channel launches for Windows Phone
The Halo Channel has been available on Xbox, Windows 8/10, iOS and Android for some time now. Finally, fans of Halo who happen to be a Windows Phone user can join in on the fun! With the Halo 5: Guardians launch just around the corner, more Halo fans can enjoy content on the go! For those who are not familiar with The Halo Channel, Microsoft describes it as: The Halo Channel is an all-new interactive digital network that provides unprecedented, personalized access to the Halo Universe. Seamlessly transition between game and other Halo experiences including existing and upcoming original programming (Halo: Nightfall), as well as community content, and discover deep background information using the Halo Encyclopedia. Featuring full Twitch integration, broadcast your gameplay or watch feeds from the Halo community – from competitive multiplayer matches and campaign walkthroughs to speed runs. This is your home for Halo. Giving the market of Windows Phone, it’s understandable why a Windows Phone version wasn’t a priority and that The Halo Channel hit other mobile platforms first. This is good news though for those have stuck it out on Windows Phone. Do you have a Windows Phone? If so, download the app and let us know how it runs! Windows Store
Halo API Announced
343 industries has announced a public stats API that will allow developers in the Halo community to incorporate stats and data from Halo 5 into websites and apps. The API has been in private beta and is currently being testing by ESL, MLG, and Halo Tracker. Stats that will be supported with the API: Service Record (Life-to-date stats for each player) Match History (Access to each match played) Carnage Report (Complete statistical breakdown for each player in a match) We should expect to see the API go public with the launch of Halo 5. As a developer, I know having tools that are open like this, allow a community to grow in a creative way. What are some websites, tools or apps that you would like to see made for Halo 5? You can read more on the API over at Halo Waypoint.
Microsoft HoloLens development kit launches Q1 2016
Today Microsoft announced that the HoloLens development kit will begin shipping to developers in the first quarter of 2016. Microsoft stated that they will be taking applications as of today. If selected, a developer will be able to purchase up to two kits for $3000 each. No consumer price was announced, but we should expect to see the consumer price below the $3000 kit price. The kits are only available to developers in the United States and Canada. No timeline was announced for other countries. The prerequisites to apply: You are a developer in the United States (including Puerto Rico) or Canada where the Development Edition will first be available. You are a Windows Insider. By participating in the Windows Insider program, you agree to provide feedback and work with us to define the future of holographic computing. Please note that the Development Edition hardware and experiences are in English only. As a developer, I believe HoloLens has a lot of potential as long as Microsoft can get developers to believe in the device. How do you feel about HoloLens? Do you see yourself getting one in the future, specifically for games? Let us know in the comments section below!
