Halo: Reach

"From the beginning, you know the end."

- Game tagline

Halo: Reach is an upcoming first-person shooter video game set in the Halo universe and direct prequel to Halo: Combat Evolved, developed by Bungie, LLC. and published by Microsoft Game Studios for the Xbox 360 console. It was announced by Joe Staten during Microsoft's Media Briefing at E3 2009; Reach is set for release on September 14, 2010 in North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia with the exclusion of Japan whose release will be a day later.

The game focuses on a squad of SPARTAN supersoldiers, known as Noble Team, as they fight across the Human colony of Reach to prevent the destruction of the military stronghold from a collective of alien species known as the Covenant. The player assumes the role of the team's newest replacement member, Noble Six, a SPARTAN-III from Beta Company.

Characters and setting
Halo: Reach takes place in late 2552, during the Covenant invasion of the Human colony world Reach, which also serves as the main military center of the UNSC. The game follows Noble Team, a six-man special operations unit of one SPARTAN-II and five SPARTAN-III commandos. The player assumes the role of the team's newest member, SPARTAN-B312 or "Noble Six" and will be defending Reach from its ultimate downfall at the hands of the Covenant.

Over the course of the campaign, the players will visit various locales on and above planet Reach, including remote civilian homesteads, high-tech ONI facilities such as Sword Base, the metropolitan city of New Alexandria, as well as a segment of space combat in a Sabre fighter. The player will also encounter interactive indigenous creatures such as the Moa and the Gueta.

Plot
Halo: Reach takes place on the UNSC fortress world of Reach weeks prior to Halo: Combat Evolved. Noble Team; a group of SPARTAN supersoldiers, is called in to investigate the sudden loss of transmission from a communication relay. Expecting Insurrectionists, the team is baffled to discover that it is the work of the Covenant, and an invasion force becomes apparent. As Covenant begin their assault on the planet, the UNSC begin their heroic yet hopeless attempt to halt the brutal alien invaders.

Gameplay
Halo: Reach will feature many new additions to the Halo sandbox while still retaining the core gameplay. The player damage system will be similar to that of Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 3: ODST. The HUD will highlight environmental features and overlay information about them, and the motion sensor display will be three-dimensional. Halo: Reach also introduces a refined equipment system known as "Armor Abilities." Pieces of equipment can now be selected upon respawning (or picked up of the ground for certain gametypes and campaign); armor abilities will be reusable with a recharge time between uses. A new assassination system will also be featured, in which holding down the melee button will trigger a context-sensitive, third-person assassination animation. Simply tapping the melee button allows for the old-instant-kill assassination.

The weapon selection has been streamlined from that of Halo 3, so that every weapon has a specific role. The number of different grenade types has also been reduced from that of Halo 3, and incendiary grenades and spike grenades will not be returning. Human weapons all hit more or less instantly after pulling the trigger, giving them a more powerful feel. There will no longer be dual-wielding available in Halo: Reach, following the same path as Halo 3: ODST. Compensating for this, the weapons that were known as dual weapons in Halo 3 that are now in Halo: Reach became drastically stronger. The magnum, for example, is now almost as powerful as the M6D Pistol in Halo: CE, and has an even higher rate of fire.

Players will be able to personalize their character's armor with a greater variety of customization options, and the appearance will be consistent across campaign and multiplayer, unlike in Halo 3 where it would only be seen during multiplayer matches. Like in Halo 3, the armor permutations will only be cosmetic and will not affect gameplay. The design of multiplayer models in Halo: Reach differs than those previously used in Halo 3; players are limited to a SPARTAN multiplayer model but given the option of changing their character's gender. Players are given the option to play as an Elite multiplayer model, though only in specific gametypes such as Firefight Versus, Invasion and other Elite-specific gametypes. Both multiplayer models have different gameplay properties; the Elite multiplayer model are physically superior, has a fully recharging health and faster shield regeneration than their SPARTAN counterpart. Overall, their only disadvantage is their massive size which makes them much noticeable target.

While the rest of Noble Team will accompany the player for most of the game, Halo: Reach will not feature any kind of tactical squad mechanic. Much like the Arbiter Thel 'Vadam in Halo 3, the rest of the squad will fight alongside the player, but will not interact with the player, other than certain scripted actions and dialogue. The levels will be more open and teleportation in co-op will be far less strict.

As seen in the E3 2010 trailer, a small section of the Halo: Reach campaign level Long Night of Solace will involve space combats, a new element to the game. This space battle above Reach will be the first and only space combat level played in the saga.

Campaign
The campaign in Halo: Reach consists of ten levels, nine of which are playable.


 * 1) Noble Actual
 * 2) Winter Contingency
 * 3) Unknown
 * 4) Nightfall
 * 5) Tip of The Spear
 * 6) Long Night of Solace
 * 7) Unknown
 * 8) Unknown
 * 9) Unknown
 * 10) Unknown

Multiplayer
The exact number of the multiplayer maps in Halo: Reach is still unknown, but the following maps have been shown:


 * Multiplayer
 * Boardwalk
 * Boneyard
 * Countdown
 * Forge World
 * Powerhouse
 * Reflection
 * Spire
 * Sword Base
 * Zealot


 * Firefight
 * Beachhead
 * Corvette
 * Courtyard
 * Outpost
 * Overlook
 * Waterfront

Characters

 * Auntie Dot
 * Avery Junior Johnson
 * Carter-A259
 * Catherine-B320
 * Catherine Elizabeth Halsey
 * Cortana
 * Edward Buck
 * Emile-A239
 * John-117
 * Jorge-052
 * Jun-A266
 * Pete Stacker
 * SPARTAN-B312
 * Urban Holland

Events

 * Operation: TORPEDO
 * Operation: GUARDIAN LANCE
 * Fall of Reach
 * Operation: UPPERCUT

Locations

 * Epsilon Eridani System
 * Fermion Remote Scanning Outpost
 * Reach
 * Moons
 * Csodaszarvas
 * Turul
 * Eposz
 * Babd Catha Ice Shelf
 * Sword Base
 * Longhorn Valley
 * Manassas
 * New Alexandria
 * Unnamed Sabre launch facility
 * Ütközet
 * Szurdok Ridge
 * Unidentified hydroelectric power plant
 * Visegrad
 * Visegrad Relay
 * Lambda Serpentis System
 * Jericho VII
 * Harmony

Organizations

 * AMG Transport Dynamics
 * Covenant Empire
 * Covenant Army
 * Covenant Navy
 * Fleet of Particular Justice
 * Jotun Heavy Industries
 * Traxus Heavy Industries
 * United Nations Space Command
 * UNSC Army
 * Army Military Police
 * UNSC Marine Corps
 * Orbital Drop Shock Troopers
 * M/AAV-20
 * VMX-22
 * UNSC Navy
 * Epsilon Eridani Defense Fleet
 * Logistical Operations Command
 * Naval Special Warfare Command
 * SPARTAN-II Program
 * Office of Naval Intelligence
 * Beta-5 Division
 * Asymmetrical Action Group
 * Beta-5 Military Police
 * SPARTAN-III program
 * Sabre program
 * UNSC High Command
 * Special Warfare Command
 * Noble Team

Species

 * Gúta
 * Human
 * Huragok
 * Jiralhanae
 * Kig-yar
 * Skirmisher
 * Mgalekgolo
 * Moa
 * Sangheili
 * Unggoy
 * Yanme'e

Vehicles

 * Anchor 9
 * Assault Carrier
 * C709 Longsword-class Interceptor
 * Civilian vehicles
 * Covenant Corvette
 * Dropship 77-Troop Carrier
 * M12 Light Reconnaissance Vehicle
 * M12G1 Light Anti-Armor Vehicle
 * M274 Ultra-Light All-Terrain Vehicle
 * M808B Main Battle Tank
 * M831 Troop Transport
 * Rocket Warthog
 * Orbital Insertion Pod
 * S-2 Traxus Cargo Transporter
 * Sabre
 * Type-25 Assault Gun Carriage
 * Type-25 Troop Carrier
 * Type-26 Ground Support Aircraft
 * Type-32 Rapid Assault Vehicle
 * Type-47 Ultra Heavy Assault Platform
 * Type-48 Light Assault Gun Carriage
 * Type-52 Anti-Aircraft Artillery
 * Type-52 Troop Carrier
 * UH-144 Falcon
 * Unidentified flatbed truck
 * UNSC Frigate
 * Type-52 Troop Carrier
 * UH-144 Falcon
 * Unidentified flatbed truck
 * UNSC Frigate

Weapons

 * Combat Knife
 * Landmine
 * M6G Personal Defense Weapon System
 * M9 High-Explosive Dual-Purpose Grenade
 * M247H Heavy Machine Gun
 * M41 Light Anti-Aircraft Gun
 * M41 Surface-to-Surface Rocket Medium Anti-Vehicle/Assault Weapon
 * M45 Tactical Shotgun
 * M319 Individual Grenade Launcher
 * M392 Designated Marksman Rifle
 * MA37 Individual Combat Weapon System
 * MG460 Automatic Grenade Launcher
 * Sniper Rifle System 99 Anti-Matériel
 * Target Locator
 * Type-1 Antipersonnel Grenade
 * Type-1 Energy Weapon/Sword
 * Type-2 Energy Weapon/Hammer
 * Type-25 Carbine
 * Type-25 Directed Energy Pistol
 * Type-25 Directed Energy Rifle
 * Type-31 Rifle
 * Type-33 Guided Munitions Launcher
 * Type-33 Light Anti-Armor Weapon
 * Type-50 Directed Energy Rifle/Heavy
 * Type-51 Directed Energy Rifle/Improved
 * Type-52 Directed Energy Support Weapon
 * Type-52 Special Applications Rifle
 * Type-52 Guided Munitions Launcher/Explosive
 * Weapon/Anti-Vehicle Model 6 Grindell/Galileian Nonlinear Rifle

Equipment

 * Active Camouflage
 * Antigravity Pack
 * Drop Shield
 * Hologram
 * MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark IV
 * Mark IV(G) MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor
 * MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark V
 * Mark V(B) MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor
 * Mark V(B)/UA Multi-Threat variant
 * MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Commando variant
 * MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/CQC variant
 * MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/ODST variant
 * MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/CQB variant
 * MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/EOD variant
 * MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/O variant
 * MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/AA variant
 * MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/FJ/PARA variant
 * MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/HAZOP variant
 * MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/MP variant
 * MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/R variant
 * MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark VI
 * ODST Ballistic Battle Armor
 * Sangheili Combat Harness
 * Special Operations Harness
 * General Harness
 * Field Marshall Harness
 * Sprinting
 * Jetpack
 * Unnamed Shielding Attachment

Development
"Where there will be a full three-year cycle, it's got all-new tech, akin to the change from Halo 2 to Halo 3, not like ODST, which is just built on top of the foundation."

- Bungie Community Manager, Brian Jarrard.

Reach has been in development since the completion of Halo 3, in the tradition of a full three year cycle and will use a completely new game engine created specifically for the game. It was confirmed in October 2009 that Martin O'Donnell, Bungie's lead composer, had begun casting voice actors for Reach.

The Halo: Reach Multiplayer Beta, used to gather information and tweak gameplay features in the game, ran from May 3 through May 20, 2010. The Zero-bug release milestone in Halo: Reach's development was reached on June 24, 2010, and the game's audio, including soundtrack, voices and sound effects, was finished on July 15, 2010. As of August 5, 2010, Halo: Reach has "gone gold", meaning all development of the game has been completed and mass manufacturing of the game has begun. The game is currently on target for its September 14, 2010 release date.

Design
Bungie has taken a new design direction with Halo: Reach, aiming for a more somber and gritty atmosphere. The more serious tone is also reflected in camera angles; instead of long, sweeping shots, the cinematic camera angles are actually made to look as if shot with actual cameras.

In many ways, the character designs, especially those of Sangheili and human personnel, harken back to Halo: Combat Evolved. Models for enemies and allies boast remarkable levels of new detail in form of higher-resolution textures and more polygons. Enemies and allies will have more individual features to denote ranks and provide more visual variety, such as each soldier having an individual name tag in their BDUs. Bungie made an effort to make the Covenant feel more alien and threatening; for example, the Covenant will speak in their own languages instead of English.

Engine
Bungie is using a completely redone version of the Halo engine for Halo: Reach, with no component left untouched.

The environments, while larger than in the previous games, will be far more detailed. The graphical effects have been drastically improved, allowing for a new atmospheric effects system and more dynamic lighting for dramatic shadows and moving light sources in interiors. The engine was improved with "imposters" systems; this allows very cheap textures far away, and moving closer will make them improve. This was proved with the map, Forge World. Rain and fogging effects will also be improved. Halo: Reach also features a new animation system, which smoothly blends movement between standing, walking and running as well as jumps, grenade throws and firing. The facial animation system has been completely revamped, including motion capture. Weapon effects will be amplified to be more powerful and visceral than before, giving them a more serious tone. Human weapons will sound more powerful and emit smoke and showers of sparks. Plasma bolts will now burn through material as they hit, and explosions will throw clouds of dirt and debris around.

Halo: Reach's engine will be able to support up to 40 active AI characters and 20 vehicles with AI characters on screen at once, twice as many as in Halo 3. In addition, distant battles between AI characters will follow automated behavior models, which convert into scripted behaviors as the player gets closer, and finally convert to full AI.

Audio
"I want it to be more visceral, to have a bigger sense of loss, a personal feeling of sacrifice"

- Martin O'Donnell, on the audio design of Halo: Reach

A more serious and realistic approach has been taken in the audio design of Halo: Reach than in the previous Halo games.

The music of Reach was referred to as being more somber and more visceral, as the plot is more character-driven than previous Halo titles and that it focuses on a planet known to have fallen. As of now, it has been stated that the Halo Theme will not be heard in the game, but there is some foreshadowing of Halo themes.

The in-game effects such as weapon sounds have also been amplified to sound more powerful and realistic. In addition to various different audio filters for interiors and exteriors, the space environment in the level Long Night of Solace required an entirely new audio filter to make the environment feel more realistic. A significant improvement in the game's audio technology allows for more fluid transition between different layers of music; whereas the first Halo could barely manage more than two layers of music at once, Reach can run seven layers at once, coordinating which ones fade in and out based on relatively minor changes in the player's behavior.

It was announced by Bungie that the Halo: Reach Original Soundtrack would be released on September 28, 2010.

Matchmaking
Halo: Reach 's matchmaking allows players to compete with each other over the Xbox Live online service or System Link, for 16 players on the Xbox. The matchmaking system has been improved and redesigned from Halo 3; instead of having experience and rank as two separate features, Halo: Reach combines these two into a credit system where the player is scored on how well they play in each individual performance, instead of a win/loss system. As players gain credits, they achieve higher military rank, and are able to buy armor permutations to customize their SPARTAN and Elites character model. A new matchmaking system called the Arena is introduced for hardcore/competitive players where they will play in month-long seasons and be put into divisions of either Onyx, Gold, Silver, Bronze or Steel, depending on how well they play. Along with this, Bungie has announced that Campaign will also have matchmaking support as well, though there are not many details on how this will work.

The multiplayer mode features standard multiplayer gametypes such as Slayer, Capture the Flag and King of the Hill, as well as reintroducing Race, a gametype that was once made exclusive only to Halo: Combat Evolved. Firefight mode, a cooperative gameplay mode that was made present in Halo 3: ODST, will be featured in Halo: Reach with much more customizable features, from the skulls that turn on every round to the very enemies the player will face every wave, as well as having Matchmaking support. Halo: Reach also introduces new gametypes to multiplayer such as Invasion, Stockpile, and Headhunter.

The character models in Halo: Reach differs significantly than their previous architecture in Halo 3; both character models are now composed of different hitboxes and have different gameplay properties. The Elite character model are formidably larger, physically superior, having faster shield regeneration and the ability to regain health fully over time than their SPARTAN counterpart. SPARTANs are smaller and weaker than their Elite counterpart and would only regain health to thirds overtime unless they pick up a health pack. For these balancing issues, only specific gametypes in matchmaking allow SPARTANs and Elites to face each other in team-based games.

Halo: Reach Multiplayer Beta
The Halo: Reach Multiplayer Beta was a phase in the development of Halo: Reach, produced by Bungie, LLC and organized by Microsoft Game Studios. The beta was made available to those who bought Halo 3: ODST and it was released from May 3 through May 20, 2010. More than 2.7 million players participated in the beta during its three-week run on LIVE. After July 21, 2010, Bungie stopped supporting stats and files from the beta.

E3 2009 Announcement
Shortly after the Halo 3: ODST E3 2009 Trailer premiered, it was soon followed up by the first official announcement trailer for Halo: Reach.

2009 VGA Trailer
At the 2009 Spike TV Video Games Awards, the first official in-game trailer was shown. This 2:36 video was an opening cinematic that showed a glimpse of the new characters and graphics.

Once More Unto the Breach
The Once More Unto the Breach ViDoc focused on the graphical and gameplay changes to the game between Halo 3 and Halo: Reach. This 7:45 video showed the development of the series over the years.

Carnàge Carnivàle
The Carnàge Carnivàle ViDoc focused on the new multiplayer in Halo: Reach. This 8:20 video shows the many gameplay enhancements that have been added.

E3 2010 Demo
On June 14, 2010, at E3 2010, Bungie released a demo displaying a section of campaign in Reach. It introduced various new vehicles, and the new feature of space combat. A shorter gameplay trailer of the same level was also released.

Firefight 2.0
On June 16, 2010, Bungie released a collage of clips from Halo: Reach's Firefight feature.

Red vs. Blue Halo: Reach PSA: Deja View
On July 7, 2010, in honor of Bungie Day, Rooster Teeth, the creators of the popular Halo machinima Red vs. Blue, released a special PSA revealing the return of Blood Gulch, the classic Halo: Combat Evolved multiplayer map. The video teases the rest of Forge World in the form of a scene where Sarge stands on a cliff admiring the view and commenting on the map's large size.

Forge World
The Forge World ViDoc was released July 23, 2010. It was focused on the new multiplayer map, Forge World, the largest map in the Halo franchise.

The Battle Begins
The Battle Begins campaign trailer was released July 29, 2010. The 1:06 trailer showcased several cinematic scenes from the campaign.

A Spartan Will Rise
The 'A Spartan Will Rise' ViDoc was released August 17, 2010. The ViDoc focused on the characters of the game, with Dr. Halsey acting as the main narrator.

Birth of a Spartan
On April 26, 2010, a website was created by Microsoft as part of a viral marketing campaign to promote Halo: Reach. At first, the site merely consisted of a teaser image which showed the UNSC emblem washed out by static, with the words "Augmentation Begins April 28, 2010". On April 28, both the standard and extended versions of the Birth of a Spartan live-action trailer were released.

Remember Reach
An advertising campaign titled Remember Reach was launched on August 17, 2010. The campaign includes the website rememberreach.com, as well as several live-action shorts.

Merchandise and promotions
Halo: Reach is set to be released in three different versions. The Standard Edition comes with the game disc and manual. The Limited Edition is cased in an ONI "black box" and includes an exclusive Sangheili armor set for use in multiplayer modes and an artifact bag containing Dr. Halsey's personal journal and other classified documents and effects that unravel long-held secrets of the Halo universe. The Legendary Edition contains everything from the Limited Edition along with extra SPARTAN armor effect for use in the game, along with an exclusive hand-painted and numbered Noble Team statue by McFarlane Toys in UNSC-themed custom packaging. Those in North America who purchase Halo: Reach on launch day will receive a new variation of the coveted MJOLNIR Recon Armor. Recon will also be available to any who have pre-ordered the game. As a bonus, the UA Multi-Threat MJOLNIR Mark V(B) Armor will be given to customers who pre-order the game at GameStop.

In addition, Bungie has announced that players who have/buy a copy of Halo PC, can use that same authentication key to obtain a special in-game item or "Visual Flair", which has yet to be shown. Players of Xbox's Halo 2 before the April 14th, 2010 cutoff (Shutdown of Xbox Live v1 Service) will be awarded a special in-game item, or "Visual Flair", which has yet to be shown. If your current gamertag has changed since the last time you played Halo 2, or if your current gamertag never played Halo 2, you will not be receiving this item. Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, Bungie Pro, Halo: Reach Beta flairs are also displayable in a similar way.

Also, a Reach themed Xbox has been announced. The Xbox will include a 250-gigabyte hard drive, two Reach themed wireless controllers, headset, and a standard copy of Halo: Reach. The Reach Xbox 360 will also feature Exclusive Elite Armor, Waypoint Avatar Gear, and Halo: Legends Episode: "The Package", as well as custom Halo sound effects from the Xbox itself.

In addition the controllers and headset will be sold separately for $59.99 and $49.99 respectively. The controller will also bring a token for a downloadable animated Covenant Banshee avatar item. The theme includes ONI property tags and more, which according to Microsoft, is canon material in the Halo universe.

The game has brought the proposal for merchandise, such as action figures. McFarlane Toys had announced that they were planning to release a series of Reach 5-inch scaled figures in September 2010. Square Enix has also showcased several figures for their new Reach line of action figures.

A new comic book series, titled Halo: The Fall of Reach - Boot Camp, will be released alongside Halo: Reach. Boot Camp is a graphic novel adaptation of Halo: The Fall of Reach.

Trivia

 * Bungie has stated that Halo: Reach will be the last Halo game being released by them in the foreseeable future, as they are beginning a partnership with Activision, while 343 Industries has taken over the Halo franchise.
 * It was previously known as "Halo 4" by Microsoft Game Studios and 343 Industries marketing teams during the ONI Candidate Assessment Program V5.02A viral campaign.
 * Early on in the game's development, before coming up with the idea of a prequel for the Halo trilogy, Bungie considered making a follow-up to Halo 3, with John-117 as the protagonist.
 * In a couple of interviews with Worthplaying and G4, Brian Jarrard and Joseph Staten respectively hinted that Gunnery Sergeant Edward Buck, one of the main characters in ODST, may return in Reach. In another recent E3 interview with G4, Brian Jarrard confirmed that one of main characters from Halo 3: ODST will be making a cameo appearance in Halo: Reach; Bungie later confirmed that Buck is to appear as a Firefight voice in game.
 * On the project page for Reach, located in the "Multimedia" section, the soundtracks to a couple of Reach trailers, "Lone Wolf" and "Uphill, Both Ways" by Martin O'Donnell, are available for download for free from Bungie.net.
 * Halo: Reach will have 49 achievements, which is a reference to Bungie's love of the number seven $$(7x7=49)$$.
 * All of the Campaign achievement titles, along with many of the others, are quotations from the Halo games and books.
 * The game's release date, September 14, is the same day when Earth's Orbital Defense Platforms were activated in 2552.

Internal

 * Halo: The Fall of Reach
 * Halo: First Strike
 * Halo: Reach - Announcement Trailer
 * Halo: Reach Video Games Awards Trailer
 * Reach

External

 * Bungie.net: Official Halo: Reach project page
 * Welcome To NobleTeam: Viral Campaign