SPOnG has a story that claims retail channels are being told that current Xbox hardware is being phased out; Major Nelson denies this in his blog, saying that shortages of Xbox hardware in the retail channel are due to the popularity of the console.
Stuntmutt's 300th One One Se7en comic is online today, along with a frightening afterword and shocking revelations.
The latest Narc's Retort is Bordering On Common Sense, about Bungie's downloadable content plans.
It's rather difficult for me to get a handle on exactly how I feel about the recently announced plans for new Halo 2 maps. Part of that is because of my own personal situation-- having been without decent DSL since before Halo 2's release, I'm only just now getting the hang of the multiplayer maps that shipped with the game; and even then, my higher-than-average ping and utter lack of skill or practice is still getting me massacred daily on maps I barely know and already paid for, to say nothing of maps that are yet to come.
Over at Bungie Sightings, mnemesis points out a King County Journal story that says that Bungie Studios will be moving out of the Microsoft Millennium Campus in Redmond and into the Kirkland Hardware Store, previously home to the longest-running retail business in the area, open from 1890 to 2000. The move is apparently designed to alleviate space concerns and "maintain camaraderie". The story quotes a Microsoft spokesperson and the Kirkland city manager, but no one from Bungie Studios itself.
UPDATE: Major Nelson also comments on the move; he says Kirkland is nice.
In other news:
A few news items before I logon to XBL:
Having finally gotten a halfway decent Internet connection at home, I'm at last able to actually connect to Xbox Live and have my worst fears about my Halo-playing ability confirmed.
Penny Arcade's side of the Humpday Challenge debacle is up now; responses come in both verbal and visual forms. Tycho thought that Bungie's triumphant victory would make up for their initial review of Halo 1.. but then Gabe seemed to take Frankie's rough treatment of the Fruit Fucker to heart, and felt a need to retaliate. As Frankie mentioned, they've asked Bungie for a rematch in Splinter Cell. (One might note that Penny Arcade's visuals have "marginally improved" since those days, as well--Ed.)
Robert Valdes has written a Halo 3 Wish List for the Games section of Stuffo, a part of the HowStuffWorks website. A lot of the wishes are standard: XBL Cooperative play, bots, the flamethrower; and many of them are illustrated with modified versions of Bungie's own screenshots. Thanks Frankie.
Louis Wu, courtesy of Dan Chosich's tipoff, points us to Gamasutra's freely-availably printer-friendly version of Handling Complexity in the Halo 2 AI, the GDC 2005 presentation by Bungie's Damian Isla. Lots of interesting diagrams.
The newest community Spotlight over at The Junkyard is on Richard "Sep7imus" Heppner, Jr. It's worth reading for bits like this:
You know how Anne Heche wasn't really a lesbian, she just liked Ellen Degeneres? That's me: not really a hardcore gamer, but in love with Halo.