Forum:Hunt the Truth

I'm sure by now we've all experienced the not-quite-ARG for Halo 5. The general concept alone is intriguing but for 343i to bring back such an obscure character is nothing short of amazing - a great example of the I've come to expect from them. It's also thrilling to hear Keegan-Michael Key in a serious role. I'm so used to him being funny it's kind of a shock, sort of like Keaton!Batman supposedly was in the late '80s; I'm totally on board with the choice, though. And what's this about anomalies in deep space? I think we all know where Halo 5 is headed. -- Our vengeance is at hand.  ( Talk to me. ) 12:20, 23 March 2015 (EDT)


 * And I thought they had done something spectacular when they brought Petra to Escalation... Good. I like 343's choices. Imrane-117 (talk) 14:21, 23 March 2015 (EDT)


 * Looking at the site my train of thought went something like follows: "Huh, so there's yet another war journalist who saw the Chief in New Mombasa... Wait a second, 'Giraud'? That sounds familiar... oh, right." That is some genius reuse of an existing character right there, and the casting is indeed spot on as well. --Jugus (Talk  | Contribs ) 14:45, 23 March 2015 (EDT)

It's going to be curious to see what this "untold backstory of the Master Chief" will be. Will it be the same old child soldier story we've heard since The Fall of Reach? Or are they going to retcon in something new and strange? Or is what we'll hear even necessarily truthful? Who knows so far.

With Giraud now back, perhaps 343 will let us know soon what happened to Maria-062. Hopefully it won't be through "death by Catalog"... Tuckerscreator (stalk ) 14:30, 23 March 2015 (EDT)


 * I think it's a given that we can't take everything we hear at face value as this whole campaign seems to be about keeping people guessing. So even if they introduce some all-new backstory through Giraud's podcast it should take more than that to overwrite what we've known for 10+ years.
 * It's apparent 343i have become a lot more careful with Catalog, at least when it comes to revealing character statuses. It's unlikely they'll off anyone in a forum post anymore, though Team Black-style killings are still possible. I, for one, fear for the safety of Blue Team in Guardians. Though it's obvious they won't get as unceremonious deaths as Black did, it is possible that they're there merely as loose ends to be tied up. --Jugus (Talk  | Contribs ) 14:45, 23 March 2015 (EDT)

The choice of this particular person to break this story is hardly coincidental. Giraud's backstory gives a very clear example of ONI's policy of never telling the whole truth. He will uncover what they want him to uncover and reveal to the public. He and his readers will think it's some shocking revelation as ONI spoon-feeds him these "threads" that are unraveling the "mystery" surrounding the Chief; a mystery that they themselves created and maintained. We, the players will of course know more than Giraud or his readers, but I am certain that things will be left vague enough to sow doubt and uncertainty as to the actual truth, because the fact is that ONI themselves don't know the whole truth, now that the Chief has gone off the reservation. "Contain, Control and Investigate" is a time-honored tactic in the intelligence community: When faced with an unknown, you first contain the situation to prevent outside access and interference, then you control the flow of information related to the situation in order to conduct counterespionage and (if necessary) sway public opinion, all while investigating the situation in order to make as accurate an assessment as possible. If this ad campaign is well-enough conceived and constructed, then the newer players will be questioning the Chief's motives while the more hard-core fans will be left wondering if the inconsistencies they're seeing are actually that or if they're supposed to be deliberate obfuscation on ONI's part. To that end, I believe any new info will be intended to draw these old-school fanboys (myself included) in. DJenser (talk) 09:59, 27 March 2015 (EDT)


 * Indeed. Giraud's "search for the truth" may come across as sincere but given his past activities we can't be fully sure about the veracity of anything he says. As an aside, I really liked that they used this opportunity to reintroduce Sully as well (in a way that didn't amount to "KIA by falling rocks"). --Jugus (Talk  | Contribs ) 12:38, 29 March 2015 (EDT)


 * I'm sure if we ask nicely we can still get Grey Team killed off in a Catalog post. ;) Sith-venator Wavingstrider  Fett helmet.jpg ( Commlink ) 12:43, 29 March 2015 (EDT)

Second Sunrise Over New Mombasa
With the Hunt the Truth campaign I was reminded of how much I like this story. Aside from being the first and still one of the few forays into civilian life in the Halo universe, the writing works very well for such a short piece and it's full of fun little details. The art is very outlandish but Moebius' signature style has a clear sense of identity and the visual storytelling is very well executed. And unlike in a more conventionally illustrated comic there's no ambiguity that the visuals are not meant to be a 100% accurate representation. In any case I don't think this story would've worked as well or been as memorable without Moebius.

If they're going to show Key as a live-action Giraud (which is perfectly possible) I'm wondering if they'll be keeping his blue hair, sleek one-piece shades (he'd had time to get new ones) and forehead patches. I've always wondered what those things on his forehead are supposed to be. They could be a futuristic fashion thing, something like tattoos, or (as I like to think) cybernetics or wearable computing devices that have to do with his job — perhaps memory or sensory augments. Halo could use some exploration of how the private sector has applied cybernetics, though from what we've seen they don't appear to be very widespread. --Jugus (Talk  | Contribs ) 03:47, 25 March 2015 (EDT)
 * Like a 26th Century Google Glass? Interesting...  DJenser (talk) 09:59, 27 March 2015 (EDT)

New Hunt the Truth Trailers
Guys, you need to check these out right now.

Alright, if you've watched them now, here's what I think.

OH MY GOD!!! So much information, but nothing concrete, just enough to set you're taste buds on fire, right? Me personally? Well, from what I can tell, based on the videos, whatever it is that Chief does, causes some sort of cataclysm. What that cataclysm is, I don't know. Chief seems to be upset with Locke, while Locke is just downright furious, and possibly resentful. What do you guys think? Siphon 117 23:00, 29 March 2015 (EDT)

The videos seem to be almost exact mirrors of each other, much like the picture I attached. It's impossible to see which side is "true". I don't think this was meant to give us information, but more a general feel. To "set our taste buds on fire" as you put it. It seems like both MC and Locke are going to fight each other, and then realize that ONI is really the big bad (maybe with Palmer aiding them in her fight against ONI, due to her character development that resulted from her encounter with Halsey). I was a little disappointed with the music. It was mostly atmospheric, so we didn't get anything like the ODST trailer, which I still love. Granted, it was amazing atmospherics, but still... --Weeping Angel (talk) 23:24, 29 March 2015 (EDT)

Hunt the Truth: Episode One
So this was certainly an intriguing entry, and we've got some insight into the direction of the ARG.

My questions:
 * Is Ellie not a fake, since Giraud found her on his own? If so, why didn't she say anything about John's "death"?
 * Could Thomas Wu also be an ONI plant, meant to exaggerate the Innies' methods and spread anti-propaganda about them torturing civilians?
 * Giraud and others appear to not be aware of the Spartans' true backstory, or even of their existence prior to the Battle of Earth. But why is that, since Spartans were made public in 2547? Is the lack of knowledge about their abduction meant to be a retcon, suggesting that Parangosky and Osman didn't actually reveal the S-IIs origins but gave the populace a false backstory? Maybe the true backstory was only revealed amongst the military? (as some of Majestic knew who Halsey was.)

My speculation
 * Fellow Spartans will be interviewed. Or at least, folks who claim they're fellow Spartans.
 * Giraud's search for how John "died" might lead him to Lt. Parisa, who has an account of that.
 * The Believe marketing campaign will be canonized as a false account of how humanity won the war and how the Chief died.
 * Around this time, Giraud's London contact found and interviewed a Grunt who claimed to have fought and survived against the Chief because he was "smarter, faster, stronger than the Master Chief..."

Also, Subtank, I guess you win that debate from six years ago about whether Kelly was that girl in the Starry Night trailer. :D Tuckerscreator (stalk ) 00:48, 30 March 2015 (EDT)