Rumor: 2006 NOT the year of Halo 3?

  • By TimSpot, GameSpot
  • Posted Jan 30, 2006 11:56 am PT

Source: A GameStop company e-mail scanned and displayed on gaming blog Kotaku.com. The official story: Microsoft had not responded to e-mails as of press time. What we heard: Now that the public knows that Brangelina is expecting sometime in June, we can focus on important stuff--like the release...

Source: A GameStop company e-mail scanned and displayed on gaming blog Kotaku.com.

The official story: Microsoft had not responded to e-mails as of press time.

What we heard: Now that the public knows that Brangelina is expecting sometime in June, we can focus on important stuff--like the release date for Halo 3 for the Xbox 360. Given that the date is under tighter lock and key than the plot to Lost, most speculation is sculpted from when we know it won't be out.

Pre-E3 last year, Microsoft chairman Bill Gates told Time magazine that not only would Master Chief be taking on The Covenant, but he'd also be battling the launch of the PlayStation 3. While others in the know scratched their heads at his comment, it took Bill a little longer to swallow his words and admit that the game would be done "when it's ready."

This obviously means that Halo 3 will be released this November, Microsoft's month of choice for gaming, right? Not only is it the optimal release date to take advantage of the holiday crunch, but it's also the time of year that previous Halo games were released, both Xboxes hit stores, and Xbox Live was launched.

Not so fast, according to a company e-mail sent to employees of GameStop. Gaming blog Kotaku.com got word from a source at GameStop that the retailer was flatly told by Microsoft that "Halo 3 will NOT be released in 2006" (emphasis in original). Kotaku posted a scan of the e-mail, whose simple layout could be easily forged. However, a well-placed mole inside the GameStop organization confirmed to GameSpot that the e-mail is indeed legitimate.

That said, GameStop.com is still listing the game as coming out on October 3, 2006. So did the guy who updates product release dates not get the memo? One possibility is that the e-mail is merely a guide to employees on how common questions should be answered, such as, "Sorry, that's for paying customers only" or "No, a middle-school ID won't let you buy M-rated games."

Of course, Microsoft has not commented on the situation, so nothing is official. But given that Microsoft execs have gone from saying that Halo 3 will be a PS3-killer to saying it will be ready when Bungie says its ready, and given that Bungie is still denying that it's working on Halo 3, pushing Halo 3 into 2007 doesn't seem so far off. Remember Halo 2's delays?

Lastly, the GameStop memo gives further validity to the current entertainment-synergy theory spun by industry-watchers, who say the game will be released in tandem with the Halo film. Studios Fox and Universal have tentatively slated the surefire blockbuster, which is being executive produced by King Kong director Peter Jackson, for summer 2007.

Bogus or not bogus?: Abstain. While a holiday 2006 release and a 360 price drop would be the perfect one-two punch to blunt the PS3 launch, Bungie is one organization that will not be rushed.

413 Comments

  • 73X

    Posted Sep 17, 2008 7:23 pm PT

    2 years later.

  • baseballer28

    Posted May 30, 2007 6:33 am PT

    posted 1 year later........

  • stricklandfan22

    Posted May 6, 2006 8:30 am PT

    Pushing the game back would be a good idea if they make the online play good with no lag and glitches like other next-gen games! i can wait until 2007 if they can perfect the online game play!

  • ratpad

    Posted May 2, 2006 9:25 pm PT

    I was deepley hurt when they changed the pistol in the first halo it was bungie's pride, and joy.
    I look for great gameplay, perfect detail, not too bad graphics, and perfect detail,
    like i found in HALO combat evolved

  • ratpad

    Posted May 2, 2006 9:20 pm PT

    just as long as it is not as bad as halo2, and they go back to the detail of halo combat evolved

  • leonardoV

    Posted Apr 28, 2006 10:05 am PT

    It's better when they release the game when it's ready and not like halo 2, because the single player in halo 2 was made in a hurry.

    Halo is a quality product and shouldn't be made in a hurry!!

    mzzl, leonardoV

  • leonardoV

    Posted Apr 28, 2006 10:05 am PT

    It's better when they release the game when it's ready and not like halo 2, because the single player in halo 2 was made in a hurry.

    Halo is a quality product and shouldn't be made in a hurry!!

  • terdoo

    Posted Apr 23, 2006 6:10 pm PT

    HULK WANT DEMO!!!

  • conkeracechris

    Posted Apr 15, 2006 5:44 pm PT

    nooooooooo i thought it was going to be released this year not 2007 i cant wait that long i wanted to see the new graphics for it the graphics that the xbox 360 could provide

  • D-Mazing-D

    Posted Apr 14, 2006 10:09 pm PT

    Bungie, please take your time and make this game an absolute MASTERPEICE!

  • Beta117

    Posted Apr 13, 2006 6:30 pm PT

    omg lol u guys relly think that? 1.it is coming june, october or november 2 or 2007 becuz ther making a halo movie and it has megabudget so wait

  • markotts

    Posted Apr 4, 2006 1:18 am PT

    pure marketing, if halo 3 is a flop than thtas the main incentive to buy a 360 gone but if you wait until after the ps3 comes out than people have bought their 360s and are waiting for halo 3, but i waited a long time for halo 2 i cant wait an extra couple of months for 3

  • xDUMPYx

    Posted Apr 2, 2006 12:37 am PT

    im posting again because i can, and i have one thing to add. Most of you seem to think that making halo3 will take bungie more time than it took them to make halo2. why would you think that? what are you basing that on? if you owned microsoft (they own bungie now), would you not double bungies staff size? Yeah, halo2 did take 3 years to make, but how long did it take bungie to make the first halo? also, halo one was not the success that halo2 was. sure it sold alot of xboxs, and was deffinately the most popular game on that console till halo2. but halo2 changed the way alot of people thought about video games. how many of you played xbox live everyday, or even had xbox live, b4 halo2 came out? When you have a product that successfull you dont just leave the company that made it alone and say "hey guys it sure would be great if you could make us another game like that one". You put bank into that cash cow, you give raises and promotions and increased budgets. One constant in the entertainment business is this; the more successfull the franchise, the faster the sequels come. Just look at any other franchise..... GTA, DOA, Final Fantasy (cough, obvious), dynasty warriors, resident evil, and it goes on, and on, and on........... (plz feel free to include ALL Electronic Arts games in that list also. shoot, EA pops out more sequels than a friday the 13th movie)

  • xDUMPYx

    Posted Apr 2, 2006 12:11 am PT

    ok, i hope ppl read this, even though its at the end of like 5000 other comments. Think for a sec about what we have seen from bungie and microsoft in the past, especially with halo2. If Bungie is denying its even working on halo3, and the "release date" is the most closly guarded secret. Then why would bungie or microsoft send an email, to gamestop of all places, about the "release date" of this game, which technically isnt being made? I would bet money that this email was sent KNOWING it would be leaked! I mean cmon, they wont talk about it with gamespot. they wont talk about it with game informer. they wont talk about it with IGN. But they WILL send an email to gamestop not only confirming halo3, but also giving a clue as to the release? thats just retarded. we are being played. given little "leaked" rumors to keep our interest. Halo3 will be out when PS3 comes out. watch. Bill Gates let it slip at E3. all that came after is them trying to hide thier cards after Bill accidently let his ace show b4 the betting was finished. They dont want sony to be expecting to compete with halo3. better to suprise them at lauch, catch them off guard. which im sure was the plan b4 old cocky Bill let it slip at E3. just watch.

  • BATMAN2049

    Posted Mar 21, 2006 5:56 pm PT

    But since no one knows when the hell PS3 is coming out in reality. Halo 3 could still counter it or even come out before the fabled PS3.

  • BATMAN2049

    Posted Mar 21, 2006 5:56 pm PT

    But since no one knows when the hell PS3 is coming out in reality. Halo 3 could still counter it or even come out before the fabled PS3.

  • DrJekyll

    Posted Mar 20, 2006 8:56 am PT

    Havent u all learned by now? The upper level execs have no clue whats going on (Halo 3 will release when the PS3 launches); game releases and console releases will be delayed; each console is only going to have

  • sprunt2

    Posted Mar 18, 2006 6:48 pm PT

    Three years is a good thing casue i am still waiting to buy me an x360

  • Hamdog51885

    Posted Mar 16, 2006 9:24 am PT

    My god people just wait, let them do their thing. Good things happen to people who wait.

  • Saget_God

    Posted Mar 4, 2006 4:50 am PT

    i can wait however long it takes them...i also dont have a 360 i plan to get it wen halo 3 comes out. anyone who wants it to come out in 2006 are morons because it will be rushed and suck and u will say they shouldnt have rushed it so let them take as long as they want to make a masterpiece.

  • phsknights08

    Posted Mar 2, 2006 5:14 pm PT

    every1 makin a com,ent in this is definitely a loser(includin me) but halo 3 will come out either a little b4 the movie or a little after but they better have a level like zanzibar, i also think they should have like detonating bombs n trip mines n motion bombs like james bond. Halo 3 better b the best game ever invented considerin every1 is sayin that this game is goin to b awesome. MS can take as long as they want bcuz the longer they wait the better they can make the game n the more we r goin to want it.

  • ghettogamer1107

    Posted Feb 24, 2006 2:18 pm PT

    I guess I can wait that long....... I hope lol. Halo 2 online is the best game ever created for multiplayer, although it prob. has the worst storyline in single player. Bungie: here is what you have to do to make my wait worth it- GET RID OF THE MODDERS!!!! Its so sad that if your actually THAT BAD IN HALO that you have to mod. Please, please clean up Live Microsoft!!!

  • disablefreeksho

    Posted Feb 24, 2006 10:15 am PT

    man halo3 is like zelda twilight princess keeps getting pushed back but it wil benefit the game but not us =/ well it better be one hell of a game.......;-)

  • freakykidd

    Posted Feb 20, 2006 1:40 pm PT

    I aint complaining. The more time Bungie gets on Halo 3 the better

  • Zgm_90

    Posted Feb 19, 2006 7:13 pm PT

    Since Halo 3 is releasing out in 2007 (which really sucks). They better put Halo 3 with the X-Box 360 combo set.

  • Zgm_90

    Posted Feb 19, 2006 6:41 pm PT

    [This message was deleted at the request of the original poster]

  • MasterChief4249

    Posted Feb 19, 2006 8:24 am PT

    Hey guys, think about it, We waited a long time for Halo, and what did we get ONE HELL OF A GAME!! We waited what seemed to be forever for Halo 2 and what did we get, once again, ONE HELL OF A GAME!!!!!! I trust Bungie and their Development Team to do a excellent time with Halo 3! So no matter how much you guys gripe and moan, its not gonna make the game become finished any sooner!!!!!! So let them take there time, Yeah some of you guys say you cant wait that long, WELL YOU CAN, there is plenty of other games that will come out between then, and plus WE STILL HAVE HALO 2 TO PLAY!!!!!!!!! Geez guys GROW UP!! I want halo 3 so bad just like the rest of you, but i dont want it to be a rushed piece of crap game that we wont wanna play, and think about it, what if they rushed it just because of the millions of customers were gripping about it!!! Then you have the guilt hanging over your head!!

    Just think about what i just said, Just think about it!!

  • Grey_fx

    Posted Feb 19, 2006 3:47 am PT

    i wonder if its possible for halo 3 to be any better than the first two..i cant wait

  • FiFFeR86

    Posted Feb 16, 2006 11:27 pm PT

    Just wanted to mention one thing, there has been talk about Halo 3 riveling the PS3 at launch (laucning bout around the same time). And this is just rediculuss. No mater how good a game is, people arent going to pick it over a system. Honestly, figure the PS3 launches at 500$ what would an extra 60$ be to that price? Nothing. If it was me i would buy both. But if all i had was 500 then i would go with the PS3. Why? The PS3 is going to be alot harder to find then Halo 3 after launch. If you dont belive me, just think Halo 2 Special Edition. And just to put my view in perspective. If you had the choice to buy a very nice car with everything included (the PS3), or just the engine to put in a difrent car, i think most people would just go with getting the car.

  • FiFFeR86

    Posted Feb 16, 2006 11:19 pm PT

    I just wanted to mention, that it is possable for Halo 3 to be launched this year, 2006. Im curently in Full Sail, in the 3D animation degree program, and i know that it would be highly possable to launch the 360 version of Halo (Halo 3), in time for the holidays. But this would only be possable if they use the same archatecture that they used for halo 3. That way they wouldnt have to work from the ground up. And also since the relaes of halo 2, they have the workflow down, and know how they can optimize time, and to be honest, with the 360's power riveiling that of the PS3's (trust me on this, if your a fanboy that thinks the PS3 is THAT much more powerfull, go look up specs for it, as of now they are very evenly matched CPU wise, the big difrence is the Video card, not that one is that much more powerfull, just more of a Nvidia vs. ATI kind of thing) 3d modelers wont have to worry about crunching in the highest polly count without making the system overflow. So yes it would be possable to launch by christmas, but all in all i dont think they would do this, mostly because of this. I doubt Bungie would want to make a game that ends they story so a movie can pick up from it. Instead it would make more since, to make a movie that takes place between halo2 and halo3. And have the game finish off the story, if it truly is the end.

  • Coolkow19

    Posted Feb 14, 2006 12:26 pm PT

    I'm pretty sad that it probably won't come out until 2007, but then Bungie has no excuses if this game dosen't meet gamers expectations.

  • metroid_dragon

    Posted Feb 9, 2006 12:26 pm PT

    A delayed game will be good eventually, a bad game will be bad forever.

    I would prefer to wait untill 2007 and have an excellent Halo 3 that doesn't lack in the campaign, rather than have it rushed out and have a half hearted campaign be thrown into it like in Halo 2.

  • xboxer490

    Posted Feb 9, 2006 11:10 am PT

    Hey LoneSierra, I'm with you man. If people could wait for halo 2 for three years after halo: combat evolved, then they can wait for less than 3 years for halo 3. I want bungie to take as long as they need, to make the game good. I can play my other games in the meantime.

  • xboxer490

    Posted Feb 9, 2006 11:09 am PT

    Hey LoneSierra, I'm with you man. If people could wait for halo 2 for three years after halo: combat evolved, then they can wait for less than 3 years for halo 3. I want bungie to take as long as they need, to make the game good. I can play my other games in the meantime.

  • xboxer490

    Posted Feb 9, 2006 11:05 am PT

    I don't care when Halo 3 comes out as long as it doesn't take two years. I just want the storyline to be good and not suck like it did in halo 2. If I can ask one thing from bungie, it would be to enable people to make customizable maps and weapons in the game. That would be awesome. And for all of the ps3 fans out there, ps3 is gonna suck. Both playstation's sucked and they don't have any good games. If I were you, i'd buy a 360 and wait for halo 3 to come out; and if you can wait that long, you're too obsessed with videogames. Just go play another good game. There's plenty out there, IF YOU HAVE AN XBOX.

  • LoneSierra

    Posted Feb 9, 2006 6:52 am PT

    I don't know why anyone would have been surprised. Remember the solid year of delays on H2? And of course we were all upset, but...take H2 and subtract a year of work. Where the hell would that game have ended up? We shouldn't be too upset about an H3 delay. How many years did we have H1 before 2...3 years? It's only been a smidge over a year since 2 came out. And I know I'm not tired of it. I still play campaign, and online all the time. So, if we can deal with 1 for 3 years, we can deal with 2 for...2 or so years.
    The only thought I had, is maybe they were somehow working on 3, while doing 2 so thats why it took so long, but...who knows.
    Take your time, do it right, and we can deal with the other good games comming out. Even new XBOX games, such as Black. We'll be good!

  • spasticus162

    Posted Feb 8, 2006 8:05 am PT

    This so stupid you are all waiting for a game that bungie hasnt even confirmed exists yet.Last i heard bungie said they were working on something else.And all this talk of delays,something can only be delayed if it misses its intended release date.This game does not exist yet(or does it).Besides my main concern with the halo series is that bungie are TOO concerned with the online game.Halo 2 was great but the level design was sorely lacking(we were bullied continuously along one route by hordes of enemies)The online is important but peoples love of the halo universe and characters comes from the campaign NOT the online.
    I have a 360 and am eagerly waiting for heaps of great games.Oblivion,gears of war,ghost recon,Dark project,PREY,Huxley,The outfit,resi 5,Test drive unlimeted,and a whole heap of other games and sequels to get us excited.And as for those sony fans posting negative comments on a halo 3 page you must be excited too to be on the 360 section of gamespot to begin with.Undoubtably ps3 will be awsome but right now name a killer game that actually exists outside of a gta sequel or turismo sequel and you are struggling but like 360 new series will appear even games that could surpass the Turismos,gothams and GTA games whos to say a game wont come along and kill Halo 3.After all no one saw Halo coming.
    Sorry for rambling im as excited as everybody. enjoy whatever console(s) you buy its all good baby.

  • JohnnyRebel33

    Posted Feb 6, 2006 1:37 pm PT

    guys, youve gotta remember halo one took a relatively short time to make because they reused levels by making you retrace your steps in several levels (such as the maw being used to make the first level). the second halo took 3 years to make because they made a new game engine and they made sure that every level was unique and different from other levels.

  • regulesblade

    Posted Feb 6, 2006 6:06 am PT

    I expected it to be out by 06

  • Hawk_eye77

    Posted Feb 5, 2006 9:37 pm PT

    i want them to take their time so it won't be like halo 2 i want it to be perfect so therefor i will wait

  • terry_tate

    Posted Feb 5, 2006 6:58 pm PT

    im totally with patton101, why come to a HALO LINK, if your a ps2, ps3 fanboy? and to the ppl that say halo3 is gonna be the only good game for 360, i say this: wat games are U looking forward to for the ps3 eh? Killzone 2? BAH.

  • comthitnuong

    Posted Feb 5, 2006 6:24 pm PT

    well if it is better than they should take all the time they need

  • 677325

    Posted Feb 5, 2006 9:56 am PT

    NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • vpacalypse

    Posted Feb 5, 2006 9:31 am PT

    If the first two were rubbish, then why wait for the third. But then again it will be on the xbox 360. wow no more graphical issues. This might be good. hopin will come out asap, but we all know the same old story:- 06 then 07 then 08, and then if bungie really wanna tick us off- 2009.

  • ChrisCross1989

    Posted Feb 5, 2006 7:21 am PT

    I think halo 3 will be released Q4 of 2006, this is because bungie now have a twice as big a team working on halo 3 that they had working on halo2. maybe there will be one delay because the people at bungie are just slow workers, but it won't come out in 2008 or something like that.

  • rabarint

    Posted Feb 4, 2006 2:00 pm PT

    Meh, it's alright. As long as it's good.

  • Zorak000

    Posted Feb 4, 2006 11:28 am PT

    perfection can never be rushed

  • mityman50

    Posted Feb 4, 2006 9:52 am PT

    This sucks, man =( I have my 360 and then i saw that halo 3 was comin. I look here and now it aint comin till 2007! By all means dont rush the game and screw it up but, crap, this sucks!

  • Maze2004

    Posted Feb 3, 2006 5:45 pm PT

    oh well it'll be out soon. as long as it's as good as both the first two i can wait.

  • canada2000

    Posted Feb 3, 2006 3:02 pm PT

    Bungie should just giving us a release date when ever it is.

advertisement

Hot Stories

Newsmakers

Featured Stories

Submit News

Got tips? Send them in!