Forge 2.0: Forge Harder

Halo: Reach hits stores on September 14th, and in addition to a new campaign and more of the frantic multiplayer action we’ve come to expect, Bungie is also building on the Forge map editor that they introduced in Halo 3. We here at O514 haven’t done much Forging, but we might just have to give it a try now that there are improved controls and better tools.

 The new Forge isn’t just easier to use; it also includes an expanded palette of parts and pieces for map builders to play with.

 In classic Halo style, there will be a few remakes of old favourites, and Bungie knew just where to start:

 But what do they mean, “outside the canyon”? It turns out that in addition to all the multiplayer maps that will be available for editing, Bungie has also created a truly massive sandbox area for people to build and play in. The canyon represents about 20% of this ForgeWorld.

 The big reveal was at SDCC:

ForgeWorld started out as several distinct and separate areas that were eventually put together to create a single enormous world for people to build and play in. The five original maps have become marquee areas of ForgeWorld, such as the Rock (the island in the background is another marquee area, big enough for “Sidewinder” or “Avalanche”-type maps):

 

 It may not look like much right now, but with a bit of plywood and a fresh coat of paint, I bet we could turn it into something great.

 Look familiar?

Of course, you won’t be limited to only building in the marquee spots. You’ll be able to create maps anywhere you like. Thanks to new tools, you can fix objects in space or ‘phase’ them into each other. Want to channel Tribes and make all your structures float 500 feet in the air? No problem. Would you prefer a series of platforms jutting out of a cliff face? You can do that, too. And unlike “Foundry” and “Sandbox” (the current ‘blank slate’ maps) it’s no longer necessary to carefully box in your play area to keep people from getting to places they shouldn’t be: ForgeWorld allows you to define the boundaries of your map; players that wander out of bounds can either be given 10 seconds to get back to the play area, or be killed outright.

 One of the Bungie guys is trying his hand at ForgeWorld and is chronicling his progress. Check out the evolution of his map, “Riptide” over several days:

The glowing red dudes are spawn points and demonstrate the size of a Spartan on the map.

Maybe this is the opportunity we’ve been waiting for to finally recreate some maps of ages past: “Prisoner”, “Boarding Action”, “Hang ‘Em High”?

You May Not Believe This S**t

So you like videos, eh? Sounds good. Here’re some vids from the world of gaming.

The first Just Cause game was kind of fun, but failed to live up to much of its potential. Eidos clearly wants some of the sandbox game action, so they’ve decided to give Rico Rodriguez another go:

Ok … that actually looks pretty awesome. Just Cause 2 will be out next Friday, March 26.

Hey, remember when we were in university? We’d all pile into my basement to play Perfect Dark on the N64? Remember the ill-conceived and poorly executed Xbox 360 sequel? Wouldn’t it be awesome if we could just play the original, with slightly updated graphics, split-screen play and online multiplayer?

Oh, wait:

And finally, Bungie is returning to the well once more with Halo: Reach. Naturally, solid multiplayer will be a major feature. But what could possibly be added to the multiplayer that’s been polished through Halo, Halo 2, Halo 3 and ODST?

How about new maps, weapons and game modes? How about truly big team battles? How about animated assassinations? How about muthaf***ing jetpacks?