Halo Legends

[sharkey360]

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An early 2010 release is scheduled in North America.

As for Asia, let's hope the studio releases it on both DVD and Blu-ray.

[ßattousai]

good one.. interesado pud ko ani..

[sharkey360]

Go deeper into the Halo universe than ever before with Halo Legends, an all-new, CG and traditional anime PG-13 experience that presents enthralling new stories from one of the world’s most popular video game franchises. Produced by 343 Industries, a part of Microsoft Game Studios, the exciting tales-beyond-the-games will be distributed February 9, 2010 by Warner Home Video as a Special Edition 2-disc version on DVD and Blu-Ray™ for $29.98 (SRP) and $34.99 (SRP), respectively, as well as single disc DVD for $19.98 (SRP) due date for all versions is January 5, 2010. The chapters will also be available On Demand and Digital Download.

Halo Legends is a seven-story anthology – told across eight spectacular episodes – that explores the origin and historical events of the Halo universe and its intriguing characters. Halo Legends has been created in the same breakthrough format as The Animatrix and Batman Gotham Knight with each individual episode imagined by a cutting-edge, renowned Japanese anime director/animator, including Shinji Aramaki, Mamoru Oshii, Hideki Futamura, Tomoki Kyoda and Yasushi Muraki. The stories are inspired and produced by the creative minds of 343 Industries, including Halo franchise development director Frank O’Connor and managing editor Kevin Grace.

The individual episodes fall within Halo’s 26th Century mythology as the battle between humanity and aliens rages on in an attempt to protect Earth and mankind’s expansive number of space colonies. The dramatic, action-packed stories feature characters and locales familiar to Halo fans, and episodes range in length between 10 and 17 minutes – resulting in nearly two hours of animated adventures.

The episodes are animated by some of the world’s most respected studios and directors in anime today. The studios range from Production I.G. (Ghost in the Shell, Batman Gotham Knight), Bones (Cowboy Bebop, Fell Metal Alchemist) and Toei Animation (Dragonball Z, Digimon) to Studio 4oC (The Animatrix, Batman Gotham Knight) and Casio Entertainment. The stellar roster of animation talent on Halo Legends is highlighted by creative supervisors Shinji Aramaki (Appleseed) and Mamoru Oshii (Ghost in the Shell); directors Shinji Aramaki (Appleseed), Hideki Futamura (The Animatrix), Daisuke Nishio (Dragonball Z), Hiroshi Yamazaki (Karas), Toshiyuki Kanno (Black Lagoon), Koichi Mashimo (Blade of the Immortal) and Koji Sawai (Patlabor); directors/action designers Tomoki Kyoda (Eureka Seven, Evangelion 1.0) and Yasushi Muraki (Macross Plus, Vampire Hunter D); and writer Dai Sato (Cowboy Bebop).

Halo is a centerpiece in the world of video games, selling more than 27 million units to a devoted legion of fans – including the latest hit Halo 3:ODST. The Halo franchise has driven more than $1 billion in revenue from its award winning Xbox games, New York Times best-selling novels and comics and a wide variety of other merchandise.

Halo Legends - 2 Disc Special Edition version will have several hours of incredible bonus features, including:


•The Making of Halo Legends – An introduction to Halo Legends followed by a making-of segment for each episode.


•Halo: Gaming Evolved – Explaining the Halo phenomenon from its inception as an Xbox video game to a present day entertainment franchise.


•Audio Commentary with directors Frank O’Connor and Joseph Chou


•Widescreen (1.78:1)


Halo Legends Blu-Ray versions will be loaded with bonus materials, including all the great extras from the 2-disc Special Edition as well as Halo: The Story so Far, an overview of the Halo universe up until the end of Halo 3

“Halo Legends offers fans stunning, new creative visions of the popular video game’s expansive universe, providing added depth and perspective to these beloved characters and thrilling environments,” said Halo franchise development director Frank O’Connor. “Halo Legends is a perfect complement to the game’s growing canon of ancillary entertainment options.”

“Warner Home Video is proud to partner with Microsoft to bring this video game phenomenon to fans in an altogether different entertainment medium,” said Amit Desai, WHV Vice President of Family, Animation & Partner Brands Marketing. “The great storytelling, memorable characters and truly astounding CG/Anime make Halo Legends a must-have for the fans.”

Source - Halo Legends Animated Short Films Details - Xbox

[sharkey360]

I sure wish this anime DVD will hit store shelves here in Cebu

[sharkey360]

Halo Legends is coming to DVD and Blu-ray on February 9, 2010!

[endless eight]

I usually do not watch anime adaptations of video games which I have not yet played, but considering that the studios and directors involved in the production are all big names with notable works, I decided to give this a shot. After watching three episodes, here are my thoughts:

(This post does not really contain spoilers that mention specific events of the film, just a per-episode opinion on art, animation, and the progress of the story in each episode)

Spoiler! 

First episode was so-so. The story was direct to the point and the art style/animation is good. (But compared to the quality in Spriggan and Genius Party Beyond, this obviously was not the best that Studio 4°C is capable of)

The second episode made me feel like dropping this title, thinking that this is a title that only Halo fans would understand. Although I have read that this would be an anthology of different Halo short stories, I did not immediately see a connection to the first episode. The different art style that Production I.G. used, which is somewhat a mix of 3D and 2D, is another thing that I initially did not like (with this being the first 3D animation of Production I.G. that I have seen). The art style was like oil painting, but the first thing that I likened it to was 3D-like sprites on SNES games (Killer Instinct, Primal Rage). But after watching this episode for the second time, I realized that the art style fits the mood set on this episode.

Third episode was a blast, literally. (since they blasted outerspace, heh) In this episode, the connection between the first and second episodes is illustrated. (I think I also get what to expect on the next episodes based on this episode). Not really a fan of 3D animation, but I think the animation in this episode was pretty good. The only things that I did not like are some of the sound effects used.

I'm looking forward to how Bones and Toei Animation worked on the next episodes.

As for the story, the three episodes were enough to introduce the war between humans and the alien covenant. I am expecting that it will go deeper on the next episodes.

I do not know whether fans of the Halo video game franchise liked this, (I read a lot of 'it sucks' comments) but for me, who initially watched this to satisfy my curiosity on how the different studios worked on this, it was enjoyable and I'm interested on the next episodes. (It must be because this reminds me of Starcraft)

[sharkey360]

Halo Legends will eventually succeed and even get non-enthusiasts to like anime or Halo.

My only concern is that there is little chance that local retailers would import Halo Legends. There are not too many anime DVDs on the shelves (I'm talking originals) of Astrovision, Odyssey, etc. If they would import and sell it locally, that would be great!

[sharkey360]

Halo Legends offered through Amazon

Amazon.com: Halo Legends [Blu-ray]: Andy McAvin, Daisuke Nishio, Frank O'Connor, Hideki Futamura, Hiroshi Yamazki, Koji Sawai, Kôichi Mashimo, Mamoru Oshii, Shinji Aramaki, Tomoki Kyôda, Toshiyuki Kanno, Yasushi Muraki, Dai Sato, Eiji Umehara, Hirosh

Amazon.com: Halo Legends (Single-Disc Edition): Andy McAvin, Daisuke Nishio, Frank O'Connor, Hideki Futamura, Hiroshi Yamazki, Koji Sawai, Kôichi Mashimo, Mamoru Oshii, Shinji Aramaki, Tomoki Kyôda, Toshiyuki Kanno, Yasushi Muraki, Dai Sato, Eiji Ume

Amazon.com: Halo Legends (Two-Disc Special Edition): Andy McAvin, Daisuke Nishio, Frank O'Connor, Hideki Futamura, Hiroshi Yamazki, Koji Sawai, Kôichi Mashimo, Mamoru Oshii, Shinji Aramaki, Tomoki Kyôda, Toshiyuki Kanno, Yasushi Muraki, Koichi Mashim


How I wish a local distributor will pick this one up.

[sharkey360]

Hey anime fans!

Check out this preview of Halo Legends! You will see a few scenes with dialogue, art and effects!

YouTube - Halo Legends - Spike Exclusive Trailer

Enjoy!

[sharkey360]

I am hearing rumors that Magnavision is going to distribute Halo Legends locally.