Halo 3 is the third game in the Halo Trilogy and the thrilling conclusion to the events begun in Halo: Combat Evolved. Master Chief returns to finish the fight, bringing the epic conflict between the Covenant, the Flood, and the entire human race to a dramatic, pulse-pounding climax. The Covenant occupation of Earth has uncovered a massive and ancient object beneath the African sands - an object whose secrets have yet to be revealed. Earth's forces are battered and beaten. The Master Chief's AI companion Cortana is still trapped in the clutches of the Gravemind - a horrifying Flood intelligence, and a civil war is raging in the heart of the Covenant. It's all been building to this -- a desperate, final war that leads to a soul-shattering climax of epic proportions. Take control of Master Chief to defeat the Covenant and destroy the Flood to prevent the annihilation of the human race.

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Adding to Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2, the epic saga continues with Halo 3, the amazingly anticipated sequel to the highly successful and critically acclaimed Halo franchise. In this third chapter of the Halo trilogy, Master Chief returns to finish the fight, bringing the epic conflict between the Covenant, the Flood, and the entire human race to a dramatic, pulse-pounding climax.

Get ready. The Chief is back.

HDR lighting, self-shadowing, and more make Halo 3 look and feel realistic. View larger.

Mystery abounds with the return of Cortana. View larger.

Earth is conquered. The Covenant is everywhere. Halo 3 promises to be an epic journey. View larger.

Game developer Bungie announced that Halo 3 will be released for Microsoft's Xbox 360 sometime in 2007. The game was revealed to the world at the Microsoft press conference held at Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood, CA in May 2006. To gamer's delight, the announcement was a complete surprise. The rumors have been abound for the past year, as everyone wondered when the next installment would be ready. Bungie and Microsoft did a stellar job keeping their lips sealed, and fans benefited from their first glimpse of the hallowed third and final installment.

The short presentation was delivered in real-time on the Xbox 360 using the current version of the Halo 3 game engine. That's right, no studio production video, Bungie and Microsoft delivered the real deal: what they showed at the announcement is what gamers will see when they play Halo 3 in 2007. The HDR lighting, self-shadowing, GPU-run particle system and many other effects are rumored to show up in full effect in the final game. Needless to say, the gaming community is salivating.

CJ Cowan, Bungie's director of cinematics discussed one of the most startling moments of the presentation: the return of Cortana. "Given the variety of character and story arcs at the end of Halo 2, we wanted to boil down our announcement to a few key threads. Cortana and the Chief being a galaxy apart is a situation we haven't seen before, and is something that is a powerful component to Halo 3. We are using her transmissions in the demo to give the viewer a few subtle clues to her situation and state of mind, without revealing any specifics we want to save for the game itself."

Graphically, the game closely follows in the tradition of Halo 2, although it has been upgraded to take advantage of the Xbox 360's more prodigious visual abilities. As art direct Marcus Lehto explained, "[The presentation] was intended to be an understated announcement of Halo 3 -- the tone is that of mystery and suspense -- the calm before the storm. I wanted to make sure that we reintroduced the Chief, showed that Earth was thoroughly conquered, with Covenant everywhere, and that there is a glorious, ancient artifact buried under the Earth's crust which will provide Halo 3 with the epic journey which we all want."

Taking full advantage of the power of Xbox 360, Halo 3 expands on everything that has made the franchise great, adding a wealth of technical and gameplay advancements. The game design has evolved with next-generation, high-definition visuals, enhanced A.I., an advanced real-time lighting engine, and, of course, new weapons, characters, and challenges. Halo 3 promises an unparalleled first-person shooter experience and, in the end, the most compelling and engrossing story in the franchise's history. Last, but certainly not least, Halo 3 builds upon the unique social multiplayer experience and innovative, evolving online gameplay of Halo 2. Rest assured, you'll still be able to run with your clan and battle with (or against) your buddies from coast to coast.

A new and highly virulent strain of the rabies virus emerges and spreads through the human population with frightening speed. The pandemic's victims become grotesquely disfigured widely violent psychopaths, attacking the uninfected on sight. As one of the "lucky" few apparently immune to the sickness, you, unfortunately, are also trapped in a city crawling with thousands of the bloodthirsty Infected. Alone, you're dead. But together with a handful of fellow survivors, you might just fight your way to safety.

Players can play as a Survivor or as one of four types of Boss Infected, each of whom possess a unique mutant ability, such as a 50-foot tongue lasso or a giant belly full of explosive methane gas. The gameplay of L4D is set across four massive campaigns. The zombie population of each mission is choreographed by an AI Director that monitors the human players' actions and creates a unique and dramatic experience for them on the fly.

Carnival Games brings home all the excitement and fanfare of a day at the carnival. All the fun and games of a day at a carnival is yours -- without spending a lot of money or dealing with annoying crowds. Play fun multi-player games and collect prizes, just like at a real carnival.

From the Manufacturer 

Step right up! All the fun and excitement of your favorite Carnival Games is coming to Wii this summer. It’s the perfect multi-player game for moms, dads and kids of all ages. Are you ready to rack up the points in a game of classic Alley Ball? Got the muscle to ring the bell in Test of Strength? Been practicing your accuracy for the famed Milk Bottle Throw? Ready to get wet in the Dunk Tank? If yes, then join the action as your Wii remote transforms from a sledgehammer to a frog flinger. Master all the classic carnival games and the ultimate prize could be yours – the virtual goldfish in a bag!

Features:

• Over 20 family-friendly games including: Frog Leap, Clown Splash, Ring Toss, Dunk Tank, Day at the Races, Lucky Cups, Hoops, Shooting Gallery, Hole-in-One, Nerves of Steel and even The Great Swami, the mysterious fortune teller
• Advanced game physics combined with innovative Wii controller actions
• Win over 250 virtual carnival prizes like goldfish, pirate swords and giant stuffed animals!
• Have fun personalizing your in-game characters with wearable rewards like the famous Viking horns and "Bling" necklace

Imagine a world that's yours to shape, build and explore. LittleBigPlanet puts the power of absolute creation into your own hands. If you can see it, you can enhance it. If you can't see it, you can invent it. Start by learning about your character's powers to interact physically with the environment. There are places to explore, creative resources to collect and puzzles to solve - all requiring a combination of brains and collaborative teamwork. Characters have the power to move anything in this glued and stitched-together 3D landscape; they have the power to design, shape and build both objects and entire locations for others to view and play. There's no complicated level editor; all of these skills can be learned by simply playing the game. Immerse yourself in an organic world that's just waiting to be personalized. Make your world as open or as secretive to explore as you like. When it's ready, you can invite anyone within the LittleBigPlanet community to come and explore your patch - or you can go and explore everybody else's.

Unlimited possibilities for user-created content - customize everything - your characters, the landscape around them and your own patch on LittleBigPlanet Online and offline multiplayer modes - play alone, work as a team or get competitive LittleBigPlanet global community to get involved with - includes player comments, rankings and easy communication with new and existing friends

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Imagine a World with no Limits

Imagine a world that's yours to shape, build and explore. Imagine the possibilities, then jump head first into the reality. LittleBigPlanet puts the power of absolute creation into your own hands. If you can see it, you can enhance it. If you can't see it, you can invent it.

The LittleBigPlanet experience starts with players learning about their character's powers to interact physically with the environment. There are places to explore, creative resources to collect and puzzles to solve - all requiring a combination of brains and collaborative teamwork. As soon as players begin, their creative skills will grow and they will soon be ready to start creating and modifying their surroundings - the first step to sharing them with the whole community.

Characters have the power to move anything in this glued and stitched-together 3D landscape; they have the power to design, shape and build both objects and entire locations for others to view and play. There's no complicated level editor; all of these skills can be learned by simply playing the game. Creativity is part of the game play experience and playing is part of the creative experience.

Fathom out ways to overcome tricky obstacles as you interact with the surrounding environment, or compose inspirational locations and objects that are totally unique to you. Immerse yourself in an organic world that's just waiting to be personalized.

Players can make their world as open or as secretive to explore as they like. When it's ready, they can invite anyone within the LittleBigPlanet community to come and explore their patch - or can go and explore everybody else's.

Key Features Meet Sackboy, an iconic new character that you can customize to reflect your own personality Dive into a brand new gaming genre that unleashes the creativity in everyone Explore over 50 awesome levels which will inspire and teach you the skills to build your own content Share your creations and enjoy access to unlimited content - a new experience is waiting to happen every single time you go online There’s not just one way to play. Players craft their own individual experience based on their own creativity Unlimited possibilities for user-created content - players can customize everything: their characters, the landscape around them and their own patch on LittleBigPlanet Online and offline multiplayer modes - play alone, work as a team or get competitive. LittleBigPlanet global community for players to get involved with: includes player comments, rankings and easy communication with new and existing friends

Create Your World View larger image Customize Everything View larger image