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Darren Waters

Bungie: Life after Halo 3

  • Darren Waters
  • 18 Feb 08, 21:28 GMT

Bungie remain one of the games industry's great enigmas: starting life as a Mac developer, they embraced the PC, got bought by the world's most powerful software company (Microsoft), produced one of the world's biggest entertainment franchises (Halo) and then decided they wanted to be an independent studio once more and left the warm embrace of Gates et al.

Chris Butcher, the firm's engineering lead, is at the Game Developers' Conference to give a post-mortem on Halo 3 - what lessons did they learn?

I sat down with Chris to talk about life after Master Chief and it turns out that Bungie and the green giant are still very much an item.

Bungie plans on supporting Halo 3 for some time to come, with downloadable content and updates to the game's play system. The firm has always had its community in mind and has no intention of abandoning Halo.

It's a lesson other developers should learn - far too often companies release titles then wash their hands of the product, or stay strangely silent on "issues" in the game found by players.

Bungie remains tight lipped on what is come from the studio. Chris did say that the company was committed to remaining small - so don't expect the company to be working on a number of new projects all at once.

Comments

  • 1.
  • At 08:51 AM on 19 Feb 2008,
  • Mike Brown wrote:

Hopefully they will produce Halo 3 for PC...after all Halo was originally a PC game before Gates bought Bungie...and made us PC gamers wait a year after the x-box release to play the damn thing....even though it was complete and ready to roll

  • 2.
  • At 09:22 AM on 19 Feb 2008,
  • PepFujasProModel wrote:

Happened to me within 3 months of buying one!

Still, three year warranty anyway

  • 3.
  • At 09:28 AM on 19 Feb 2008,
  • Ian wrote:

Errrrrr, and the point of this article is?..

Didn't we already know all that about 3 month ago?

  • 4.
  • At 10:38 AM on 19 Feb 2008,
  • Julian wrote:

I'm so glad Bungie have broken free again...

Back in the day we all used to play Marathon (all three titles) over the network in the office and then Bungie produced Myth - The Fallen Lords and the Myth Soulblighter and even more hours were spent after office hours battling it out with my colleagues!!

Can't wait to see what Bungie come up with next, and hopefully they'll remember their roots and i'll be able to play it on my Mac again... here's hoping!

Go Durandal!!

  • 5.
  • At 11:21 AM on 19 Feb 2008,
  • Scott Downie wrote:

Halo can be used as a bench mark of how games should be. An excellent solo adventure and a well supported multi play experience

  • 6.
  • At 11:45 AM on 19 Feb 2008,
  • Adrekan wrote:

Game player of over 15 years and follow basically all the developers. I can honestly say that of every one bungie is the most faithful to its fan base. Never known such an intimate coorparation and will buy every game they ever bring out.

Lots of people are swithcing from halo unfortunately though for Call of Duty 4. Got that aswell.

Good game but to be honest i dont believe its a halo killer.

Halo matchmaking is the most reliable, user friendly and enjoyable systems wwith some of the most balance weapons and maps i have seen in 15 years. To be honest, i can see myself playing this game still in 5 years time.

  • 7.
  • At 12:17 PM on 19 Feb 2008,
  • Terry Glover wrote:

Aren't Bungie producing Halo Wars RTS game?

  • 8.
  • At 12:55 PM on 19 Feb 2008,
  • Jonathan wrote:

Bungie should go back to where it all started and re-make Marathon.

  • 9.
  • At 01:43 PM on 19 Feb 2008,
  • Mark wrote:

I think Bungie should re-make Marathon. That was a fantastic game when it came out and i still play it to this day!

  • 10.
  • At 01:49 PM on 19 Feb 2008,
  • Steven Anderson wrote:

7. Bungie are not producing Halo Wars its Ensemble Studios.

  • 11.
  • At 01:57 PM on 19 Feb 2008,
  • Beeb Maz wrote:

bungie are good at making games but they should start developing games for the pc aswell.

maz

  • 12.
  • At 02:10 PM on 19 Feb 2008,
  • Tom wrote:

I game on the PS3 and although some people are petty and argue whose console is better i personally go on games.

I have admired Bungie, Halo being an un-deniable good game with strong fan base. Their customer care also very commendable.

So i am looking forward to the possibility that maybe Bungie may consider doing a title for the PS3.

And no matter what anyone says, your never beat the Megadrive!

  • 13.
  • At 03:10 PM on 19 Feb 2008,
  • wrote:

As far as im aware Bungie will support halo up to 2010..and then they will release a spin off titled "The Last Spartan".

And Steven Anderson is correct. Bungie is not doing halo wars.

  • 14.
  • At 06:11 PM on 19 Feb 2008,
  • Amar singh wrote:

I think bunjie should at least consider making Halo 4 as at the end of the game after the long end credits it shows that the cheif spartan or whatevere he is called survives but is miles away from earth.

  • 15.
  • At 10:55 PM on 19 Feb 2008,
  • Enjoi Bruce wrote:

i just want bungie to talk to lucus and see if they can get that Lego Halo going on. i would buy that game with the quickness.

  • 16.
  • At 11:12 PM on 19 Feb 2008,
  • Cody wrote:

As long as that little teaser at the end of Halo 3 is actually part of a future Bungie project then I dont care whats to come.

  • 17.
  • At 07:49 AM on 20 Feb 2008,
  • CD wrote:

Halo is old hat, and frankly bored me rigid.

crysis and bioshock annihilate it graphics wise, and even thought crysis is frankly, boring after the first few chapters (run,jungle,kil,kill,jungle,run,kill,jungle,jungle..familiar to crysis and farcry players surely!) bioshocks storyline is superb and much more refreshing than the usual "evil aliens" halo drudgery.

oh, and call of duty 4's multiplayer is the best multiplayer ive seen in recent times.

ALL on a PC.. still the refuge of REAL SERIOUS gaming.

;)

  • 18.
  • At 12:19 AM on 21 Feb 2008,
  • Rorkimaru wrote:

Bungie will (probably) never make PS3 games. They released a statement saying they would keep making 360 exclusives despite the split (i think, needs confermation)

Halo is hardly the pinical of gaming. H3 had a woefully short campain but all the rampant fanboy reviewers still gave it perfect scores. many have scince admitted to overshooting the mark just a bit. the fact is online gameing used to be an extra that you played after the campain was over. H3 is practicly online only! this isnt a trend i perticularly like.

The fact is the PS3 doesent need Halo. There are fantastic shooters on the console such as Unreal, Resistance (and soon R:FOM2 which will set a benchmark with 60 player deathmatch) and Call of Duty 4. COD4 is the game that knocked Halo from its dominating throne so the "Best" FPSof the day is multiplatform.

  • 19.
  • At 07:13 PM on 22 Feb 2008,
  • CD wrote:

RE: resistance 2 60 player benchmark:

the battlefield series of games on the PC have had up to 64 players per server for years.

its a hardly groundbreaking..

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