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‘Halo 5: Guardians’ Arrives on Xbox One in 2015
It’s official. The Master Chief’s great adventure won’t continue until 2015. Halo 5: Guardians has been confirmed as an Xbox One exclusive, and while we don’t know much about it, what we do know is developer 343 Industries is investing a lot into making it the ultimate Halo experience — if you’re into that. I am, because in a sea of shooters that rarely stray from their monotonous brown and grey color palettes in an effort to strive for “realism,” I I’ve always preferred this series because it does the opposite.
It’s fantastical environments, alien weapons, and the story — specifically in Halo 4, which smartly focused on the Chief and his AI companion Cortana — have always appealed to me more than the myriad modern military shooters like Call of Duty, Medal of Honor, and Battlefield.
There’s a bit of a wait left to endure before Guardians drops, so I hope you’re patient. Even if you aren’t, there’s more Halo on the way.
We won’t know what they mean by “Your Journey Begins in 2014” until it’s unveiled at Microsoft’s pre-E3 media briefing next month, but if the following words from 343 studio head Bonnie Ross are anything to go by, it sounds substantial.
“Many fans noted that I was very deliberate with my phrasing on stage at E3 last year. I spoke about a “journey,” rather than a destination – and that journey definitely begins in 2014 with a giant leap, rather than one small step. We’ll give you much more information about our plans for this year at the Xbox E3 2014 Media Briefing on June 9, and we’re confident that “Halo” fans will be pretty excited about the special plans we have in store.”
There have been rumblings of a Halo 2 remake, which I would wholeheartedly welcome. I only hope it isn’t an overpriced Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes-style prologue. If I was a Metal Gear fan, that would’ve been more than a little frustrating.
How about you — are you looking forward to Halo 5, or not so much? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
You should also enjoy this first bit of concept art.
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Legendary Grimdark ‘Warhammer 40,000’ Artist John Blanche Has Passed Away at 78
In the grim darkness of the far future there is only war, but it was a cheerful illustrator from England who helped to define the terrifying war-torn imagery that inspired what we now know as Grimdark (a hybrid genre combining horror with sci-fi/fantasy).
Unfortunately for fans of Warhammer 40,000, Trench Crusade and countless other sources of Grimdark thrills, veteran artist John Blanche passed away this week after struggling with health issues for the past few years.
While the artist retired back in 2023, he leaves us with an enormous legacy of iconic artwork that continues to inspire gamers and storytellers around the world to this very day.
The news is especially gloomy as it was only last year that Daniel Lowman and Napoleon Dynamite himself Jon Heder released The Grim & the Dark: The Search for John Blanche, a documentary following Heder’s exploration of the Grimdark genre culminating in a heartwarming encounter with Blanche in his own home.
Below is one of my favorite pieces by Blanche, his highly influential depiction of Warhammer 40k’s God-Emperor of Mankind on his Golden Throne.
We send our deepest condolences to John Blanche’s family, friends, and fans.




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