Halo: CE remake a real thing, Battlefield 3 announced and some crazy controller

It was confirmed by several gaming news outlets earlier that, as reported on here, Bungie will be releasing a remake of “Halo: Combat Evolved” this winter. It is allegedly being made with “new art assets” to assuage fears that this will just be the original game running in 1080p. The remake’s development is being handled by Sabre Interactive, developers of “TimeShift” and the upcoming “Inversion.” Though it hasn’t been specified yet, the game is apparently running on an engine other than that of “Halo: Reach’s.”

Right now, the release date is set for November 15, 2011 – the ten year anniversary of Halo’s launch along side the original Xbox. No word on any multiplayer modes, though, but it will most likely feature online co-op.

I’m definitely going to be keeping my eye on this one. I might not end up picking it up in the end (since I still own a copy of the original game) but I’ll be curious to see whether this is a download-only title or if it’ll be pushed as a full, stand-alone disc. If there is multiplayer, original Halo: CE maps and the engine is similar to the original, I might end up picking up a copy of it after all.

Hot on the heels of the Halo remake announcement, EA DICE also dropped a bomb of their own – announcing that Battlefield 3 will be hitting PS3, 360 and the PC this fall. The true successor to Battlefield 2 (which was released in 2005 - remember, there have been two BF: Bad Company games since then), BF3 will see the return of jets to the game, the return of the prone position as well as 64-player multiplayer (on the PC, womp womp).

I never really played much of the Battlefield series before the first Bad Company. From what my friends have told me, I would’ve fell in love with the series from the very beginning but was one of those things I just missed out on somehow. I wasn’t too impressed with BC1’s multiplayer but thought the single player was fun enough to check out the second. Luckily I did because Bad Company 2’s multiplayer is a-maze-ing. Seriously, I’ve never had more fun in an FPS. I can jump into a game any time, by myself or with friends, and have a stupid amount of fun. Every match, be it Rush or Conquest, is intense and heart-pounding. Having vehicles and destructible environments sounds so inconsequential but the way EA DICE implemented them into BC2 is nothing short of incredible.

A short trailer was also released along with the announcement of BF3 but doesn’t really show anything. You can check it out here, along with more info, at EA’s Battlefield Blog:

http://blogs.battlefield.ea.com/battlefield_bad_company/archive/2011/02/04/battlefield-3-is-coming-preorder-now.aspx##

My last bit of news for today concerns the N-Control Avenger. A more fitting name for it would be what I (and I’m guessing many others) said when they first saw it – “What is this I don’t even.” Seriously, look at that thing. What is it even supposed to do? Well, obviously that's rhetorical – it’s supposed to make it so you don’t need to take your thumbs off the joysticks to press face buttons. But, c’mon man – that thing is ridiculous. I’d be afraid to even strap it to my controller, let alone try to get used to using it.

It’s available now for the Xbox 360 for the discounted price of $39.99 (lucky us) and a PS3 version is due out later this year. All I’m saying is, if you’re serious about gaming and you’ve been doing it a while now, you should be pretty well versed in moving your fingers nimbly from one button to another. I’m pretty sure the .00025 seconds you save pulling a lever with your left index finger to hit the X button instead of just pressing it with your right thumb won’t result in your online murder. Pretty sure, anyway, because I’m never going to buy one to find out.