Tech I Almost Went To A Halo 3 Launch Party
posted by on September 25 at 12:32 PM
And I’m so glad that I didn’t. Microsoft has done its damnedest to get the masses riled up for Halo 3, but even more so, they’re trying to give the game cultural weight. You may have seen those weird History Channel-styled commercials with old men waxing nostalgic about Master Chief and alien technology, and such an attempt at mature treatment is interesting. No game footage, no amped-up announcer, no lasers. It’s almost as if Microsoft wants you to consider the agony and regret of a soldier’s life before pressing the Start button.
But their PR attack hasn’t been unilateral in its maturity, lest you haven’t seen the “Game Fuel” version of Mountain Dew that has been caffeinating nerds for the past month or so. Which brings us to last night. Like most other nerd-friendly events, a Halo 3 midnight launch was inevitable, so Microsoft announced four late night launch parties around the country for the game’s official release early this morning. Since Bungie and Microsoft are from these here parts, one of those was in Bellevue. The announced draw for such an event? “Pre-launch playtime against celebrities, professional athletes and Bungie staff members.” So which side of Halo 3 would show up at this event—the one that wanted to elevate gaming culture into something worth celebrating? Or the one that assumes gamers will wait in line for just about anything?
According to this fan’s report, celebrities and athletes were nowhere near the Bellevue Best Buy last night (not even Dustin Diamond?). Just tables covered in pizza boxes and dudes shilling Mountain Dew. [EDIT: The blogger in question points us to this article, which reports that Bill Gates handed off the first copy, while ex-Husky quarterback Warren Moon was also on hand…but, shit, New York’s launch got Ludacris. Does he still Disturb Tha Peace?] Considering you can walk into most any electronics store and grab the game with little hassle today, it seems the “agony and regret” that Microsoft was aiming for might’ve been experienced by anxious geeks waiting for hours in the cold last night. But hey—at least there were a lot of anxious geeks.
To clarify, some celebrities did actually show up later (Bill Gates was there to hand out the first copy, and a number of other local celebrities were there as well.) I just didn't have the patience to bother staying long enough to see any of them.
I was astonished at how much press this release was getting this morning. On local outlets as well as national, it was in heavy rotation as a top story every 15 minutes.
Last week, one of newscast actually predicted that this would be "the biggest event in entertainment history", I shit you not.
I lurched.
You can watch it for free on www.g4tv.com if you need - or if you have Comcast, you can see it free on OnDemand (under Cutting Edge - G4 TV - and then select Halo 3 (various segments).
No need to lineup. It's not like it's the Wii after all.
I like those halo commercials with the minatures. I'd buy some, if i could.
The Wii is for pussies.
Warren Moon was there as well. I think a hall of fame QB counts as both an athlete and a celebrity. :)
Halo3 is expected to do bigger sales numbers than that insanely-hyped Harry Potter 7 book, and will easily outsell last weekend's movie box office.
It would be nice to get just a fifteenth of the coverage for the dozens of other locally-developed videogames, including the one I work on. Oh, well. I can't spite my friends at Bungie their accolades -- they murdered themselves all summer for this.
Re Warren Moon:
Exhibit A: http://www.lipstickalley.com/showthread.php?t=81081
Exhibit B:
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/1015894.html
Pardon me if I as a gamer am not won over by Moon's football record compared to all of that.
Re local games makers: Send your information and wares our way, please.
@5 - you say that like you don't like them.
I do, Mr. Poe.
Seems kinda counterintuitive to blow big money on these types of launches. I figured people that want the game are happy to just get a copy of it as soon as they can, then run home to be alone with it.
Oh hell, what's the harm? The game is fun and so what if people want to line up at midnight and buy it. @7, I hope you get the credit for your work, too.
Interesting that the "biggest event in entertainment history" dollar-wise is almost exclusively enjoyed by young white boys.
Each to his own...some people really had a great time! There were some celebrities there, and almost the whole Bungie team showed up on busses. It went well I think.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/gamerscore/sets/72157602154649651/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/imaginationispower/sets/72157602144795688/
Warning - disks may be scratched - check it at the store before going home.
I'm not dissing people that like video games, or doubting the logic of a bunch of people that have a common interest getting together (hey, professional sports don't seem to have a problem doing it, and require even less participation from its fans). It just strikes me as a little odd MSFT would put too much money into it - seems like they're gonna sell no matter what. I guess I missed the point.
Then again, it's not like they're advertising much of network TV, maybe they're already benefiting in this way.
I think y'all is crazy. Jamier @12 is right. Ya know what I'm sayin'?
Comments Closed
In order to combat spam, we are no longer accepting comments on this post (or any post more than 14 days old).