Some have reported that select few attendees at the I Love Bees "training" events have been receiving special items. Some received commemorative DVDs, others got Limited Edition copies of Halo 2 before anybody else. Lucky buggers.

UPDATE: Several attendees at these events have said that although grand prize winners did get a copy of Halo 2, they did not receive it at the event. Some were told the game would be sent later by mail, and others got a voucher to be redeemed at a store. It seems the only legitimate copies of Halo 2 currently in circulation (and there are some) were sold early at some Midwestern stores.

GameSpot is reporting that some stores in Midwestern states of the USA are breaking the November 9 embargo on Halo 2 and letting some consumers buy it now.

Several such purported copies are listed now on eBay; one has sold for over $250.

IGN's newest Halo 2 article tracks down where the first Halo 2 launch events will be around the world; time zones being what they are, the first customers to get their hands on Halo 2 will be in New Zealand and Australia. Last up are parts of Europe and Japan on November 11.

Tyson "Ferrex" Green pointed out a post by SiRRis in the TeamXbox forums. It shows boxes of Halo 2, having arrived in some stores already, cleary marked "Do not sell before 11/09/04". Apparently the charge for breaking this rule is equivalent to manslaughter. Just kidding.

Xbox.com has put up a Halo 2 Midnight Madness Store Locator to help you find a store near you that will open at midnight on November 9 to start selling Halo 2.

UPDATE: Blackstar points out that this "locator" actually just goes to EB's list of stores; but since some stores on the list are not opening at midnight, you should call the store beforehand and check.

Uriel notes that Microsoft in Germany is apparently unable to provide Halo 2 Limited Editions to all those who preordered, and are resorting to airlifting UK versions in to cover the shortfall. Thanks Louis Wu. Editor's Note: The item seems to indicate that at the very least, versions of the game primarily in English may in fact be multilingual. Might then even be subtitled? That would be neat, and a feature we asked for specifically.

Over at HBO, mnemesis posted that the Bungie Store is now accepting preorders for three Halo 2 figures: the Brute, the Master Chief, and the Warthog. Stock should ship after November 9. Each figure is $14.99.

Notorious peripherals maker Lik Sang is now promoting a device called the SmartJoy designed to allow gamers to use a mouse and keyboard instead of the usual controller to play games on an Xbox, including Halo. HBO pointed out some salient points about the item, and so has TeamXbox. Our take? While we were big supporters of the keyboard and mouse combo prior to Halo's release, we've now become so used to it that using WASD in front of the TV just wouldn't seem AOK.

As far as whether or not using a mouse and keyboard would give a player an advantage over those using gamepads, this post seems to indicate that Bungie may already have considered this and has a way to deal with it by limiting turn radius.