Custom Games Browser For Halo 5 Forge Post-Launch
Build Your Own Halo
Halo 5 might have skipped PC but the Forge creation tools arrive this week. The free release is coming to Windows 10 and contains Forge "along with a host of awesome new features, including mouse and keyboard support, 4k resolution display capability, a brand new content browser that makes showcasing and sharing your creations easier than ever before, and the ability play your creations with friends online". PCGamesN spotted a NeoGAF post from Frank O'Connor, the Halo franchise director, in which he confirms a "custom games browser" post-launch.
IGN have a first look at Forge on PC, as seen at PAX West.
This looks like a very different proposition to DOOM's Snapmap, which is my way of saying I will never manage to make more than a box with some guns in it. If you're the kind of person who enjoys digging into architectural design and scripting, it looks like Forge will let you make hearty, complex levels though. And not just 'levels', whatever that might mean.
The blog post that announced that Forge was coming to PC refers to the tools as a "level-creation experience". Alice tells me it's more like Garry's Mod though, allowing for custom game modes and the creation of scripted scenarios for Machinima and the like. A " Halo sandbox creation suite", I would have called it if I'd written that blogpost.
Look, here's someone recreating the best bit from the best Star Wars film in Forge:
And here's Rio Olympics break-out hit sport Quidditch:
AND VEHICULAR SUMO:
Nothing quite as good as Quake Rally, obviously, but I'd love to see some of this inventiveness on PC. Master Chief Jenga, please.
As well as the Master Chief and chums stuff that has been a part of Forge since day one, the PC release will contain Covenant building materials, which are the latest addition to the Xbox version, so you'll be able to use huge throbbing purple ships (presumably; purple ships is my main memory of Halo's aliens) for your Jenga rather than Warthogs.
It sounds like the series is making a home on PC. With Forge launching this week and RTS Halo Wars 2 coming to Windows 10 in February 2017, there will be a central app to manage all things Halo. The app "lets you quickly and easily find, download, and launch Halo games available on Windows PCs".