Tor Books forging Halo short-story comp

Halo fans looking for a way to sate their thirst for the sci-fi series will have something to tide them over between next month's launch of Halo 3: ODST and next year's release of Halo: Reach. Veteran publishing house Tor Books today announced that it will publish two books set in the war-torn...

Halo fans looking for a way to sate their thirst for the sci-fi series will have something to tide them over between next month's launch of Halo 3: ODST and next year's release of Halo: Reach. Veteran publishing house Tor Books today announced that it will publish two books set in the war-torn universe created by Bungie Studios.

The first book, Halo: Evolutions, will go on sale this November. Rather than being a full-fledged novel, the book will feature several short stories inspired by the series from three authors, two of which have penned Halo novels before: Tobias Buckell (Halo: The Cole Protocol) and Eric Nylund (Halo: The Fall of Reach, Halo: First Strike, and Halo: Ghosts of Onyx). Nylund also cowrote the storyline for Epic Games' franchise-establishing shooter Gears of War, GameSpot's 2006 Game of the Year. A third author, best-selling writer Karen Traviss (Legacy of the Force: Revelation), will also contribute.

In addition to Halo: Evolutions, Tor Books has commissioned a trilogy of new Halo novels from Greg Bear, author of such acclaimed books as Blood Music and The Forge of God. The first installment will arrive in 2010, presumably right around the time the Halo: Reach beta, keys for which are packed in with Halo 3: ODST, goes live.

47 Comments

  • sywi

    Posted Oct 20, 2009 1:26 am PT

    You can't seriously think books are only good for fuel. (Ever read "Fahrenheit 451"?) Halo towers over fancier, newer FPs's, even with their cutting-edge graphics and physics, etc., because of the quality of the story element. The characters, the little touches like the names of ships. ("The Pillar of Autumn" is an amazing, evocative name for a great, doomed starship -- who knows what it means, but it works.) And check out touches like the episode titles in Halo 1. That is literature, and literature is what that is. Sorry for the foul language. But those guys at Bungie could *write,* and you don't get that without reading a ton and a half, and that's what sets Halo apart from the pack. (The gameplay is terrific fun; but it's not mold-breaking, and the games are.)

  • goldglover1025

    Posted Aug 27, 2009 8:44 am PT

    i think that guy driving a ghost at the end like a moron set that video off, lol

  • RESG

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 8:46 pm PT

    These books are going to be really good.

  • dracosummoner

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 5:28 pm PT

    YES, please. Thank you, God! I love these novels ...

  • PingwonCcb

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 4:57 pm PT

    NAYYYYYY

  • Scooter_6_7

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 3:44 pm PT

    Awesome!

  • denolitions

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 3:02 pm PT

    hmm... i havent heard of T. Buckell, but i am a fan of Traviss' and Nyland's work!!! so this should be good!

  • NuKkU

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 10:18 am PT

    thats awesome i guess

  • xstaggerxleex

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 10:01 am PT

    omg this is awesome... i love the halo world and the gears world... good stuff

  • Niner0

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 9:54 am PT

    I think literature is good because if there is another ice age, you can burn books and such to keep warm. I know it works, they did it in the day after tomorrow.

  • gameguy0697

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 9:38 am PT

    !$@&&#**@(%$((&@^$#@#!#*#*!^%#!@@!2!$@$%!3&@%%.......idk i just don't know!

  • NightRaVeN75

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 9:27 am PT

    oh please...Im a gamer and I still read novels like these halo novels, Ive read fall of reach, flood and first strike, currently reading Ghosts of Onyx

  • bastian97

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 9:26 am PT

    i havennt even read the books i sold my 360 and i am regreting doing that

  • mr0806

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 9:05 am PT

    I like exercise my thumbs not my brain...

  • k2theswiss posted Aug 13, 2009 8:19 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    k2theswiss

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 8:19 am PT (hide)

    ok... we are gamers so therefor no dang book will hold us over sorry

  • Spartan1017

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 7:41 am PT

    saweet!
    the return of nylund!!!!!!!!!

  • konradak

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 7:09 am PT

    Wow, this is a lot of stuff. Luckily, I love the Halo universe and this will keep me reading

  • drim_vells

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 7:07 am PT

    @Starlight
    The Flood was the most boring novel of them all. Probably because Dietz was restricted to stay within the main events of the game. Maybe for other reasons. But Nylund does a much better job with the series.

  • StarlightHunter

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 6:18 am PT

    I have read all of the Halo novels so far and I think The Flood was by far the best one, For thoses who don't know The Flood novel is basicly based on the first Halo game. Seems like a good way to learn more about Halo lore until ODST drops.

  • RexDart817

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 5:23 am PT

    I think literature is a broad and self-imposed term. Whether you think they are lit or not is meaningless. Just enjoy them. Oh, and read a little bit...it might spark something. Maybe you could come up with a Halo-esque world someday...

  • BladeTrinity114

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 4:13 am PT

    Sounds good. I don't read books at all but I think books to do with games are more interesting... Oh and ODST is looking stunning

  • LeChief posted Aug 13, 2009 2:59 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    LeChief

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 2:59 am PT (hide)

    @ Feroz_Wolf:

    The Halo novels surely are not entirely original in nature simply because the are Genre Fiction and probably shouldnt be called literature in most (if not all) cases. And yes, while the game's storyline and content are not absolutely original in terms of ideas either, they are, wihout doubt, highly entertaining and provide a setting and background for that fast and exciting game we know as Halo. And yes, I know this, because I have played the games and all the books up to Cole Protocol. Eg: Eric Nylund's writing style certainly juiced up the universe and the action of a military sci-fi novel (albeit being licensed fiction). I think some may misunderstand and brand the Halo novels literature simply because they are a good read to whom it may concern, and there is nothing wrong with saying a work of fiction was good simply because it was entertaining in one way or another. In this case we may simply assume that calling Halo novels 'literature' or literary art may have been a caused by a brief moment of misinformation on the subject and not simply due to blind ignorance or being a huge fan of the Halo franchise in general. Perhaps they established 'the very high quality' with a great sense of pace and a bit of thinking and perhaps a bit of information which must be inferred from previous sections or novels in the same series. Indeed, I loved Eric Nylund's Halo novels, (and his own work, A Signal Shattered) because they were well-penned and paced.

  • firehawk998

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 2:04 am PT

    I read the Fall of Reach Book. Amazing source materail for the Halo : reach game. This news may not sound much to the average gamer but for people who read the books this is good news.

  • pete_merlin

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 1:31 am PT

    Its not about books! ITs about the games!!!

  • Ovirew

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 1:25 am PT

    So will they release these new maps as DLC then?

  • PrestoFrog posted Aug 13, 2009 1:21 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    PrestoFrog

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 1:21 am PT (hide)

    Books? F*ck books, I can't read!

  • Feroz_Wolf posted Aug 13, 2009 1:15 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Feroz_Wolf

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 1:15 am PT (hide)

    carp93, no, I'm all for diversification of IPs. The thing that bothers me is Halo books being classified as literature. Halo books have no spot next to quality modern works like Life of Pi in any way, shape, or form.

    As for Halo being 'one of the most interesting sci-fi universes ever created', I've got to disagree again. To me, Halo is the Eragon of sci-fi; it has no original material, just bits and pieces pulled from every other influential work before it. Seriously--I dare you to name one original thing Halo did to the sci-fi genre.

    Don't get me wrong, though, I enjoy the Halo games--they simply don't deserve the amount of praise they get from the general public.

    Anyhow, have fun with the thumbs down button, fanboys--if you can manage to read through this whole message, that is.

  • carp93

    Posted Aug 13, 2009 12:22 am PT

    @ Feroz_Wolf

    Are you insulting the diversification of IP's across multiple forms of media? Excuse me while I go pity you for excluding yourself from one of the most interesting Sci-fi universes ever created. (StarWars still has it beat though )

  • Treadstone71

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 10:34 pm PT

    Greg Bear is one of the best Sci Fi author's out there. The Eon books and Forge of God storyline were incredibly cool. If he's writing in the Halo Universe, this is a good thing...

  • SR71halo

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 10:13 pm PT

    Cool, more Halo is always welcome, whether it be books or games.

  • DarthSnipa posted Aug 12, 2009 10:10 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    DarthSnipa

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 10:10 pm PT (hide)

    I HATE Tobias Buckell. He is a terrible writer and all his characters have Mexican names.

  • Beastcake

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 10:00 pm PT

    So... a continuation of the Halo Graphic Novel?

  • Pete5506 posted Aug 12, 2009 9:54 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Pete5506

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 9:54 pm PT (hide)

    Well I am going to pass on this

  • moose_knuckler

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 9:20 pm PT

    Excited for Longshore as long as it has more vehicle options than just ghosts. Heck even Prowlers could work nicely with CTF

  • Just-Adam

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 8:53 pm PT

    haha I thought it had to do with Tor from this site as well ..

  • Vanshluuugnheim

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 8:49 pm PT

    It seems Like Most People Don't Understand That There IS More to Halo than Just Amazing Games. Bungie Created an Entire Universe. There is So Much More Then Just Games. All of the Books Are Amazing, and Your Not a True Fan Unless you've Read At Least One of them. The More Halo The Better!

  • Excedra

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 8:35 pm PT

    Halos cool, and deserves to be in a graphic novel, its the 360's best selling game, and microsoft is doing more to support it. but heck, i dont have the time to read a book, i have a 360 to play with.

    @Narutofan30 I agree, i read much either, but some people would actually care.

  • baystatethrashr

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 8:31 pm PT

    @Echofoxz

    fyi the first halo book was published in 2001. thanks for being ignorant

  • MetalGearExile

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 8:30 pm PT

    cool, midship is back!

  • Feroz_Wolf posted Aug 12, 2009 8:23 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Feroz_Wolf

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 8:23 pm PT (hide)

    Roger_Smith, are you calling the Halo books literature? Excuse me while I go weep for modern culture.

  • Narutofan30 posted Aug 12, 2009 8:20 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Narutofan30

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 8:20 pm PT (hide)

    Roger Smith, I dont blame him Litature sucks......... That why the invented THE INTERNET! So You dont actually have to read long books just artical about the BOOK!

  • Roger_Smith

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 8:06 pm PT

    Echofoxz, it's people like you that kill literature.

  • stickiey

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 7:44 pm PT

    Karen Traviss also wrote the Gears of War novel.

  • Pokemon18986

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 7:21 pm PT

    i loved all the books!!! im excited

  • Echofoxz posted Aug 12, 2009 6:43 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Echofoxz

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 6:43 pm PT (hide)

    books now?!

    they should actually just focus on making the game

  • thorsen-ink GameSpot staff member

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 6:37 pm PT

    Sadly, no.

  • galerian86

    Posted Aug 12, 2009 6:35 pm PT

    Ah darn it! I thought it was our own Mr. Thorsen

advertisement

Hot Stories

Newsmakers

Featured Stories

Submit News

Got tips? Send them in!

Related Game

Halo: Reach Boxshot
Halo: Reach

Game Stats

  • Rank:
    107 of 78,795
    (down by 58)
    X360 Rank:
    24 of 1,933
    Highest Rank:
    1 in 2009
    Tracking:
    3,698 Track It»
    Wishlists:
    1,743 Wish It»
  • Number of Players:

    1-4, 16 Online | Offline Modes: Competitive, Cooperative, Team Oriented | Online Modes: Competitive, Cooperative, Team Oriented

  • Top 5 User Tags:
    1. halo
    2. reach
    3. halo reach
    4. bungie software
    5. bungie
Full Game Details »Close

Related Games

Site Blogs