Voting is now open for Spike’s 2009 VGAs, with 28 categories awaiting your input to help determine this year’s winners, though according to a Keighley tweet, Halo fans are already winners. The latest installment in the Halo saga, Halo: Reach, will be premiering during the show, giving fans their first look at the game since the rather vague E3 2009 teaser video.

The 2009 Spike VGAs will air live on December 12 8pm (December 13, 2pm AEDT). I will once again completely forget about them, kicking myself about it the next day.

MLG forums dweller “ToM MoReLLo” — probably not his real name — claims to have played the 2010 game at Microsoft headquarters, taking pictures of an early version of Halo: Reach and exhibiting serious MS Paint drawing skills. It’s unclear whether these shots are from the multiplayer beta promised to those who pre-ordered Halo 3: ODST, but since one shot shows a menu screen offering access to a Solo Game and Activities, we’re wagering it’s a portion of the campaign.

But he’s the one who’s supposedly played the thing.

They’re certainly not what we’d call quality shots — it’s doubtful that Bungie or Microsoft would be pleased about the leak, given their quality — but at least it gives the hardcore Halo fans a taste of what to expect when Halo: Reach ships next year.

The halo reach BR (real picture inside) [MLG Forums]

The two names that stuck out in the thanks list were Bungie and Infinity Ward.

Bungie stuck out because corporate structure has made it such that the company has traditionally only developed for the Xbox 360. Modern Warfare developer Infinity Ward makes multi-platform games, so it wasn’t such a big deal to see them — more like, oh hey, Infinity Ward!

Naughty Dog’s Neil Druckmann explains the end credit list in a live chat with fans: “We try to be quite open with our technology and our process. We exchanged technology and ideas with other developers. We wanted to make sure we thanked everyone that helped us out in some way.”

Naughty Dog? More like Really Generous And Good Dog.

Naughty Dog explains why they thanked Bungie and Infinity Ward. [Giant Bomb] [Pic]

Fortunately, thanks to the folks at Bungie, we’re all that much more knowledgeable about the DIY Power Wheels modder set. All it took was one M12 Light Reconnaissance Vehicle—better known as the Warthog—fashioned from the guts of a Power Wheels miniature truck—a “very used 2001 G3740 Street Scene Silverado”, according to its creator.

That creator, flux83, has done a capable job of turning that Silverado into a teeny-tiny Warthog that looks to seat a maximum of two wee Spartans. You can see it in action in the YouTube clip below or hit up the Modified Power Wheels forums for the blow-by-blow building process and even more embedded YouTube clips.

Hey, it’s no WETA Warthog, but it’s cool enough for the kids.

Halo Warthog a.k.a. Chupa Thingy [Modified Power Wheels forum via Bungie]

The Halo franchise has sold more than 25 million copies combined so far, with Halo 3: ODST, the recently released standalone game, making up a good 10% of that in just two weeks on store shelves. Along with next year’s prequel Halo: Reach, Bungie and Microsoft have a whole lot of Halo going on. There’s a new comic book series, Blood Line, kicking off in December, the Halo Legends anime, the Halo: Evolution anthology novel, and the trilogy from acclaimed science fiction author Greg Bear, due out next year. And you know Todd McFarlane isn’t going to stop milking the franchise anytime soon.

But with all of this Halo merchandising, there’s still something missing. Where’s Master Chief? Bungie’s Frank O’Connor says that everyone’s favourite Spartan can’t possibly be gone for long.

As for Master Chief, odds are he will be seen again. “I think that (his) fate, Cortana’s fate and the identity of that giant, dark planet at the ending (on the game’s hardest skill level) – that’s a spoiler – are probably big mysteries that would be irritating if they were just cliffhangers,” O’Connor says. “We do have a plan that goes out at least six years,” he says. “Eventually, it will become very apparent that there is a plan for the way the canon all ties together and the way the comic books and the novels all tie together.”

See? They have a plan, and once it comes to fruition, the world will tremble at their feet…or at least be really happy to see MC and Cortana again.

Video game ‘Halo’ spins off books, action figures and more [USA Today]

Moonshot Games is keen on taking years of experience working on AAA console titles and applying it to the downloadable games market in order to create something out of this world. Managing director Michel Bastien was the production lead for Halo 2 and 3. Director of technology Damián Isla was Bungie’s AI and gameplay engineering lead. Creative director Rob Stokes was a writer, mission designer and design lead for the Halo franchise. Together they hope to prove that the little guys can be great as well.

“The Moonshot team firmly believes that the stars need not be limited to multimillion-dollar projects supported by armies of ground crew. There is a place in history for that small, nimble craft, built smartly on a modest budget, and piloted by expert hands. ”

A team with this sort of pedigree is definitely worth keeping an eye on. Check out Moonshot Games’ official website to see how good they are at stretching a metaphor.

Halo 3: ODST’s amazing live action trailer didn’t just happen by itself. No, it took dozens of people, hundreds of man hours and a light sprinkling of movie magic to create. Here’s how.

This behind-the-scenes look at the creation of the Halo 3: ODST spot offers more than just a peek at how Brute’s are made into living, breathing, tiny motor-driven things. There’s also a brief live action sequence from the spot left on the cutting room floor, one that Halo fans will probably want to watch frame by frame.

As of the time this post was written, ODST’s 24-hour figure for total players was 949,306; the 24-hour total for games played was 5,708,031. Divided out, that’s six games per player, on a school night/in the middle of a work week. And you know there were some out there blowing the curve and staying up all night with this.

For comparison’s sake, Halo 3 saw 1,340,550 games yesterday, so, ODST more than quadrupled that. Some have tried to hazard quick guesses on ODST’s first day sales; we’ll wait for NPD. But if this is any indication, yeah, it’s probably gonna do land office business.

Halo 3: ODST Logs Over 900,000 Players in One Day [Joystiq]

It’s a new Halo game, and to celebrate, there’s a new Halo theme, featuring the sights of O.D.S.T.’s New Mombasa. It’s yours free of charge, as long as you are a paying Xbox Live Gold subscriber. Behold the official description:

ODSTs aren’t the only ones getting their hands on upgraded gear to prepare for the upcoming Firefight. Available only for a limited time and free of charge for Xbox LIVE Gold Subscribers, this expertly crafted Halo 3: ODST Premium Theme will get your Xbox 360 ready for a combat drop into the city of New Mombasa.

The free O.D.S.T. theme is now available for download, either on your 360 itself, or the lazy way.

That’s not news to hardcore fans (it’s all over the Halo wikis), but O’Donnell’s past as an adman deliver some neat details in this writeup of Bungie’s oldest (by age; he is 54) employee. He’s worked on the series since Bungie began work on it 10 years ago. And Halo 3: ODST bestowed an achievement in his honour; “Be Like Marty” awards 10 Gamerscore to anyone completing a Firefight round without killing a single enemy.

O’Donnell vows revenge for that.

Most of the young punks here have this unfounded belief that, because of my age, I’m not good at ‘Halo.’ This of course is not true. … The truth is, Marty has never actually “been like Marty.” At some point in the future, when they least expect it, I will pay them back for this.

I’d take that threat seriously, coming from the man who wrote the marching song for a generation of kids 10 million strong – and grooooowing.

‘Halo’ Wouldn’t be the Same without Evocative Music of Marty O’Donnell [Seattle Post-Intelligencer, thanks Ted]