Microsoft announced today the availability of its Xbox 360 Halo 3 Special Edition console. The console features an exclusive "Spartan green and gold" finish and comes bundled with a matching Xbox 360 wireless controller, 20GB hard drive, wired headset, Play & Charge Kit, HDMI port, and exclusive Halo 3 Gamer Pics and Theme (available via Xbox LIVE download). The Halo console retails now for $399. The Halo 3 game is not included in the package.

September 23rd will be a great day for racing and gaming fans alike. David Stremme's #40 Dodge Avenger recently got a Microsoft sponsored Halo 3 themed paint job. David Stremme can hardly wait for the Nextel Cup on September 23rd, where he gets to race his new car.

I'm honored and excited to be running the Halo 3 car at Dover and can't wait to show off this awesome paint scheme," said Stremme. "It's going to be a special experience when the car rolls off the truck for the first time at Dover -- as a Halo fan, I'm thrilled.

However, Master Chief's Dodge Avenger will be facing some stiff competition: Nintendo sponsored a Ford Fusion, which will also be racing at the Nextel Cup on the 23rd.

It seems as though one of several Halo 3 sponsors decided that there was more to game publicity than making a knock-off product with a Halo 3 theme. On September 25th, Pontiac is sponsoring a gaming event where a lucky few get to play Halo 3 on an IMAX screen. The average IMAX screen is a 72.6 by 53.6 feet concave screen, designed to make the person watching the IMAX production feel as though they are immersed in a three-dimensional world.

If you live in New York or San Francisco and want to play Halo 3 on one of the largest screens in existence, please register for the "First to play/First to own" event here.

Microsoft today officially announced that Bungie's Xbox 360 sci-fi shooter sequel has gone gold and is on track for its September 25 worldwide release. After 3 years in development Halo 3 is now officially finished and 27 days away from all players.

This is a huge milestone for us and a big cause for celebration at Bungie and Microsoft Game Studios

This is the game we've always wanted to make and certainly the best game our studio has developed. We can't wait for gamers to get their hands on it on Sept. 25.

said Harold Ryan, Studio Head at Bungie Studios.

It seems as if there is no end to the Master Chief franchise. Microsoft recently developed an Xbox 360 specifically designed around Halo 3. £280 will get you an Xbox 360 Premium with a painstakingly detailed paint job. This console comes with a 20GB hard drive, a wired headset, a component-video AV cable, an Ethernet cable, an HDMI cable, an appropriately themed wireless controller, and exclusive Xbox Live content. Unfortunately, this console does not come with an actual copy of Halo 3. There is no reference as to when we can expect to see this console on store shelves.

Halo 3 is officially one of the fastest selling games in history, passing the 1 million mark for pre-orders over a month and a half before the September 25th release day. The only game that has sold faster than this is the most recent installment in the Halo series, Halo 2, with 1.5 million pre-orders before launch day. Halo 3 could easily surpass that, and Microsoft/Bungie couldn't be happier. All this popularity is putting Halo 3 on the fast lane to more time in the marketing spotlight than the most recent Simpsons movie. Mountain Dew will be making a special version of it's drink for the Master Chief, which will be known for it's "invigorating blast of citrus cherry flavor" and "added caffeine for maximum intensity". Pontiac will be making a special version of it's G6 SUV, and will be hosting several "Gamer Garage" events. And that's not all. At this point, we'll be able to see Halo 3 memorabilia from Doritos, Burger King, Comcast, and even the gas station 7-11.

Bungie Announces 4 Player Co-op Campaign in Halo 3

There is good news for fans of the Halo franchise. Bungie has revealed that its upcoming Halo 3 title will allow up to 4 players to game cooperatively in campaign mode via XBOX Live or System Link. As a result 3 new characters have been created to avoid every player looking the same. Bungie says that player 1 will control Master Chief, player 2 the Arbiter and players three and four will get the chance to control two brand new Elite characters, N'tho 'Sraom and Usze 'Taham. Each character has the same abilities but will start with different weapons.

The Halo 3 soundtrack is confirmed to see a form of commercial release. Whether it'll be on CD or in digital download form is uncertain, but in a recent chat, Brian Jarrard and Marty O'Donnell confirmed that there will definitely be some form of Halo 3 soundtrack available.

Marty O'Donnell is hard at work as we speak working on the music for the latest Halo title, a series which nobody can deny used some beautifully orchestrated music to great effect, and when quizzed about the release of the soundtrack said simply that "It'll happen. Sure."

Those of you who have waited for a video game to come out know how awesome a beta is. Unfortunately for Halo fans everywhere, the Halo 3 beta is only going to last three weeks. Obviously, most people with invites are wondering why it's going to be so short, especially after putting so much effort into getting a Beta invite. Bungie has this official answer to that question.

...obviously the number one reason is that the longer we're spending resources taking care of the Beta, the less time we're applying what we've learned from it to the final game. And statistically, three weeks is going to seem like a pretty long time when you look at the hours you log on the game.

In short? Enjoy it while it lasts.

HEXUS.tv was invited to Bungie and record what's going on there with the shaping up of the multi-player game Halo 3. It's really a shame that it will be exclusively released for the Xbox 360.
Anyway, if you are in the mood of more Halo 3 besides the HEXUS vblog then watch the Multiplayer Vidoc from Bungie.net. Halo 3 will hit your box' harddrive using the Xbox Live service on May 16th.

REDMOND, Wash. - April 10, 2007 - Microsoft Game Studios and Bungie Studios today confirmed the multiplayer beta of "Halo 3" will debut to audiences worldwide via Xbox LIVE on May 16 at 5 a.m. PDT and run through June 6 at 11:59 p.m. PDT. Coming exclusively to the Xbox 360 console this fall, "Halo 3" is the highly anticipated third chapter in the groundbreaking "Halo" trilogy from legendary developers Bungie. "Halo 3" lets gamers experience Master Chief's greatest battle as he launches an epic mission to stop the Covenant, destroy the impending Flood threat and ultimately save mankind.

Microsoft and Bungie have announced the full details behind the highly anticipated Xbox 360 version of Halo 3. There will be three three-edition releases of the game. First the limited Legendary Edition, now priced at $129.99, will provide two bonus discs with the game, the first of which will include both a HD 'Making of Halo 3' documentary and an audio-visual calibration tool "custom designed by the Halo 3 graphics and audio team to make the most of fans' high-definition home theaters. The second disc, exclusive to the Legendary Edition, will include remastered cinematic material from the first two volumes in the Halo series with developer commentary, as well as some exclusive contents. Next the Limited Edition of the game, set at $69.99 will come more modestly packaged in a metal case, and will include the 'Making Of' bonus disc seen in the legendary edition, as well as a Halo fiction and art book which serves as an 'elaborate' guide to the Halo universe with new art and story elements. Finally, a Standard Edition will be made available to consumers for $59.99 that will consist simply of the Halo 3 game with no bonus discs, books, or features. No release date was revealed in the edition information, but Halo 3 is expected to launch in fall of this year.

Anyone hoping to get a chance to experience the next chapter in the adventures of Master Chief can't get "invited" anymore. Bungie Studios have sent all 13,333 beta invitations that they wanted to. Serious Halo fans that want to play before Halo 3 is released sometime in November will have to buy the Xbox360 game Crackdown.

Although many Xbox 360 gamers may have been worried that the Halo 3 online beta would be hard to find, IGN is reporting that all versions of Crackdown will come bundled with the beta. Previous reports had suggested that only a few limited copies of the game will have the beta, but a Microsoft representative has confirmed that all initial copies of Crackdown will include an invite to test it out. This will probably give a boost to crackdown sales and give Xbox 360 fans the chance to get an early look at one of the most anticipated games of next-generation consoles.

Apparently, there was a Halo 3 beta key giveaway we missed. However, not to worry, as Microsoft is letting more people register for free entry into the Halo 3 beta program. All you have to do is play Halo 2 online. According to Microsoft's new "rule of three", you need to play Halo 2 for three hours between Thursday, Feb. 1, 2007, 12:01 a.m. EST and Feb. 3, 2007, 11:59 p.m. EST. If you do, then Microsoft will allow the first 13,333 who complete the three hours to get a free registration to the Halo 3 beta program. If you miss this opportunity, buying a copy of the Xbox360 game "Crackdown" will land you a free Halo 3 beta registration. When the Halo 3 beta is released, people who have Halo 3 beta registrations can download it through Xbox Live.

The first advertisement for Halo 3, which aired Monday night on ESPN's Monday Night Football, has been posted on Bungie.net. Bungie funded the CG animated commercial, which was produced by Digital Domain studios. The Halo 3 commercial will also be hosted in 720p quality on Xbox Live marketplace later. A public beta for the game is expected to arrive early 2007 for the USA, Europe, and all the world. You can see the commercial here (WMV file).