Halo 4 details everywhere!

It was inevitable. Halo 4 is leaking info like a cracked water pipe. With any super-anticipated AAA title, guarded details will always find a way into the public domain ahead of any planned embargos or schedules.

The latest digital edition of Game Informer is set to land in subscriber’s inboxes on April 10. However, it appears that some lucky folks have acquired early access. In their own words, here’s a tantalising glimpse of what you can expect from Halo 4.

The text in the pictures reads:

During our visit to 343 Industries, three game informer editors settled in with five 343 developers to try the new competitive multiplayer mode.

Halo 4’s Infinity multiplayer begins with your own personal Spartan IV soldier. While the early build we played didn’t include most of the planned cosmetic armor adjustments, it allowed for extensive customization of a personal loadout. Choosing primary weapon, secondary weapon, grenade type, and armor ability were all available, and a fifth grayed out section revealed the option for modifications.

Wether as part of a loadout or as pick-ups during matches we saw weapons including the assault rifle, battle rifle, DMR, assault carbine, Covenant carbine, shotgun, rocket launcher, sniper rifle, magnum, and plasma pistol, but were also told that numerous unrevealed weapons will change up the battlefield.

Armor abilities include a hologram that can charge forward to distract enemies, a jetpack to send you roaring over them, Forerunner vision to let you see through walls, and the classic active camo to stay hidden. Interestingly the sprint ability was nowhere to be found. Why? Sprint is now a standard ability available at all times.

Once out of the menus, we jumped into a new game mode called (idk if i read this right put i think it says Regicide), a variation on familiar free-for-all action, Regicide sets the leading scorer as the king. Every opponent that the king kills raises his bounty; other players have to kill the king to claim the reward.

We played several frantic matches of Regicide on the new Wraparound map. Set on a Forerunner solar power facility, the entire environment is suffused in a bright white glow. Structurally, the map is a tight and fast=paced arena built around vertical play spaces, with lots of opportunities to shoot up to higher levels or drop down to lower ones. A deadly center area inevitably draws players into brutal throw downs unless you’re cautious enough to stay ensconced in the outer corridors.

Later, we jumped over to enjoy some old=fashioned Team Slayer in a new map called (Whore)House. The abandoned UNSC manufacturing facility is dominated by a hulking and inoperable Cyclops mech at its center, Tight corners and plenty of twists and turns in the surrounding chambers assure a lot of close quarters face-offs ideal for shotguns, assault rifle, and melee-focused players. Three stories tall, with lots of external platforms at the outer edges, (Whore)Houses small size and many turns will take some time to master.

As we did our best to hold our own against the folks who designed these environments, the action felt the way it should. After playing hundreds of hours of halo multiplayer over the years, these new maps kept with the fast pace and frantic energy that has always made halo matches so much fun.

That’s not to say 343 industries isn’t mixing up the gameplay. For one, there’s no delay on respawn after death; a tap on the x button sends you right back into the action. Another fun new feature is weapons drops; powerful items like sniper rifles or rocket launchers will show up at random drop points around the map, and players can fight for the prize. This gives the matches other focal points, and it also helps alleviate the advantage that longtime players always used to have over newer recruits; the best weapons are not always going to be found at the same spawn points.

We also love the new post-game reward system, which shells out medals and spartan points for all sorts of in game actions. We saw medals for things such as assists on a kill, revenge kills, and even causing distractions. Like Battlefield, even players without an immaculate kill/death ratio should be able to earn ranks and points. The developers have also implemented a new matchmaking feature for joining games in progress, which should dramatically improve the legacy issue of team members who quit half-….

Source: DigitalGigolo