The Making Of Halo Illuminated

Thanks to Gamesradar for their Edge-reprinted feature on the making of Bungie's seminal Xbox FPS, Halo. According to a Bungie producer, the team "...decided they wanted to go back to the roots of a game like Marathon, combining it with some of the things we learnt from Myth." Other topics include the originally impossible tutorial level ("I actually had several play testers decide they wanted to quit playing the game and go home, rather than go through the opening level"), and the relative disappointment of The Library level ("A lot of the little things like that added up to make the Library a lot less than what we wanted it to be.")

Comments

Re:gamesradar.msn.co.uk

[sebi]

Since the piece originated in Edge magazine I suppose that little factoid is meaningless. In case you have never read it: Edge is by far the best computer and video gaming magazine in existence. They writers are not always objective--they are fans after all--but they are independent. They might praise one system and condemn another, but it feels like they are doing it because they believe and not because someone paid them off. It also is, as far as I know, the only one you can safely read in public because of the fantastic art-direction.

Their web-presence is not really representative so I urge you to check it out on a news-stand if you ever have the chance. In the recent tenth anniversary issue they had a story on the origins of the magazine. According to official gospel it was not launched to make money, but to simply be the best gaming mag in existence. I cannot judge whether or not this is true, but it certainly feels that way. And yes, I am a fanboy, but a truly well done magazine is such a rare thing that I simply have to cherish it.