User:BaconShelf/Sandbox7

This page discusses elements of deleted material and cut content. Some information on the page is sourced from game files and may not be verifiable through external sources. Where possible, such information should be clearly-marked and replaced with a proper external source as soon as one is available.

The evolution of the Master Chief, from RTS-era Cyborg to the Spartan known in the final game.

This article is part of a series on Halo: Combat Evolved cut content

Deleted material

Pre-Xbox Halo
Cut characters
Cut dialogue
Cut enemies and ambient life
Cut levels
Cut medals
Cut vehicles

Cut weapons

Development

Combat Evolved development
Concept art
Storyboards
PC patches
Beta 1749
Beta 2247

Beta 2276

To check out cut content for other Halo games, see here!

v • d • e

During the game's production, the various characters of Halo: Combat Evolved went through significant iteration. This article predominantly focuses on the creation of the named characters and human allies in Combat Evolved. For a breakdown of the evolution of the Covenant, Flood and ambient life in Halo, see here.

John-117

https://twitter.com/docabominable/status/1538050280092315648

Another design done by Paul Russel some time after 1999 involved a combat medic Spartan with a chest plate capable of unfolding to reveal a medical scanner and a surgical tool tray. Currently, the design remains MIA.

RTS Cyborg (1997-1998)

The earliest sketches were done by Marcus Lehto, based on his experiences with BMX biking - which influenced the helmet design.

• 

  Marcus Lehto's earliest sketches.
• 

  C.1997 concept art by Marcus Lehto.
• 

  C.1997 concept art by Marcus Lehto.
• 

  C.1997 concept art by Marcus Lehto.
• 

  C.1998 concept art by Shi Kai Wang.
• 
• 
• 

Third person cyborg (1999)

• 
• 

First person Master Chief (2000-2001)

Early revisions of the Mark V armour were covered in the emblem of the Shriners. Their concepts date back to early 2000, with a sketch produced by Marcus Lehto of the earliest recognisable Mark V produced at the beginning of April in this year.

---

First revision

The first major versions of the Mark V armor, as it would come to be known, were fairly finalised from their first creation. The major differences from the final design are the massively redesigned backpack - which takes the form of a single "hump" instead of the two distinctive shoulders as in later revisions. As such, it has a slimmer and less bulky silhouette. Some screenshots from this era showcase the armor as covered in the logos of the Shriners - presumably a placeholder emblem not intended for final release.

The texturework on this design has some more detail than the final iteration, with more (and different) segmentation patterns on the boots and legs in particular. The colours are deeper and more saturated than their final counterparts, with the model as a whole taking on more of a matte painted appearance (complete with scratches and chips) rather than the iridescent sheen seen in later builds. The forearms have some light secondary blue colouration.

• 

  C.1999 sketches of MJOLNIR armor by Paul Russel, predating Lehto's final design but done after the RTS and third-person eras.
• 

  Concept art of the early Mark V, with a pronounced backpack and lower-back knife, by Marcus Lehto (April 1, 2000).
• 

  A screenshot of an early take on the Mark V armor, with the Shriners logo visible.
• 

  A look at this design from the front (middle).
• 

  The early Mark V design holding an SMG.

---

Second revision

The second revision of the Mark V armor more closely resembles the final game, refining on the details of the previous round of details in a few areas. The pattern of the armour plating is now finalised and the shape of the back and chest are fully-finalised into the form they would take in the final game. The major differences of this era from the Master Chief encountered in the final release of Combat Evolved include a small antenna mounted on the right shoulder and the presence of a deep blue secondary colour - something which may have been the inspiration for the Chief's inclusion in Blue Team in the tie-in novel Halo: The Fall of Reach.

The blue patterning took on different forms in different builds, before being ultimately dropped in final release.

• 

  Mark V concept art by Shi Kai Wang.
• 

  More developed concept art,