Games Cheats and Reviews

CC: Bungie community manager Brian Jarrard says he’s surprised by how much content will actually be offered in the upcoming Beta.

In their latest issue, which hits subscribers and UK news stands, today, Edge reveals Halo: Reach. From today, they’ll be presenting excerpts from our interviews with the principal members of the team making Reach, covering the mission design, how Halo’s fabled ’sandbox’ combat design will be changing, the improvements to Halo 3’s engine, and its art style, a departure from the series traditional bright colours.

But they start with a discussion of Reach’s story, a dark tale of the destruction of a planet by the Covenant, with creative director Marcus Lehto, executive producer Joseph Tung and community director Brian Jarrard.

Very little information on Bungie’s latest game in development – possibly the last between Microsoft and Bungie as partners – Halo: Reach, has been released to the public, other than it may very well be the largest game yet from Bungie. What has been shown by Microsoft and Bungie is a small teaser that covers the fall of the planet Reach, a pivotal time point in Halo lore. When asked about the game, Bungie community manager Brian Jarrard answered:

"Reach is going to be a tough project for us to wrap just because the scope is really big – it’s up there," said Jarrard. "It’ll probably be our biggest game ever just in terms of the amount of people working on it and the expectations for it. I mean, it’s a big deal for us."

Personally, I thought this would be a small game, focused on the Halo universe; like Halo 3: ODST. The way Jerrard explains it, it seems like I was wrong, and that Reach will be much bigger than I ever imagined.

Bungie’s back in action following Halo 3: ODST

"I know just for at least the next year our hardcore focus is going to be on getting Reach done and awesome and hopefully getting people excited about it," he said.

G4TV doesn’t know much about Halo: Reach yet. Microsoft and Bungie showed off a teaser for the possibly final collaboration between the two companies at E3, which chronicles the fall of the planet Reach, a major part of Halo lore. At the Penny Arcade Expo, they had a chance to ask Bungie community manager Brian Jarrard about Halo: Reach.

"Reach is going to be a tough project for us to wrap just because the scope is really big — it’s up there," said Jarrard. "It’ll probably be our biggest game ever just in terms of the amount of people working on it and the expectations for it. I mean, it’s a big deal for us."

To be honest, G4TV thought it was a small, focused spin-off, ala Halo 3: ODST. It’s not. Halo: Reach sounds much bigger than I’d ever imagined, the way Jarrard puts it.

"I know just for at least the next year our hardcore focus is going to be on getting Reach done and awesome and hopefully getting people excited about it," he said.

Kotaku writes: "It’s full of Halo statues, Bungie awards and some commemorative alcohol. It’s the Bungie Studios lobby, shot during Kotaku’s visit to the studio yesterday, before the cops came, and before I tired more Halo 3: ODST.

Thanks to Bungie community director Brian Jarrard for showing me and the readers around with this video. Shame on former Kotaku writer Luke Smith, now a Bungie employee, for refusing to serve as the host. Luke said I could call him out. Consider it done.

Impressive place, no? And to think that Bungie is moving out of these digs in Kirkland, Washington. A new, larger headquarters is under construction."

VG247: Bungie’s community manager Brian Jarrard has told VG247 that Halo: Reach will be the final game the studio does on the "current" Halo trilogy.

GamesCom 2009 has been the place of unveiled gaming secrets this week, and it appears that Halo developer Bungie had a little secret to tell. According to an interview with VG247, Halo: Reach has been in development since the release of Halo. Not too surprising, but news all the same.

Bungie’s Brian Jarrard revealed the information while talking about Halo 3: ODST and Bungie’s recent break away from Microsoft Game Studios.

According to Brian, he stated that…