Mark your calenders folks, we’re only four days away from the sign-up to beta test the multiplayer of Halo 3. This monday, Bungie will allow North American gamers to sign up, however, they have already stated that only a fraction will be accepted, so even if you get your sign up in, its no guarantee you’ll be in the beta.

The opening of the beta coincides nicely with the new Halo 3 trailer that will be aired on the same monday during Monday Night Football, nice, eh?

So, clear you schedules now, hunker down at your pc, watch the new trailer, and get ready to fill in that sign up form asap!

Got some major time to kill over Thanksgiving break? Maybe you check out 1UP”s newest epic podcast in which they talk with Bungie about Halo 3 for an astounding 1 and 1/2 hours. Yup, 90 minutes of pure Halo 3 goodness, almost as good as that pumpkin pie I had yesterday. I’d like to say I listened to the entire thing, but I simply don’t have enough time. Maybe you can listen to it all and tell me about it? Check it out here: Halo 3 Podcast

In other news, 1UP also had a major Q&A session with Bungie about how Halo 3 would handle match making. Bungie talks about how the system will be similar to that of Halo 2, however, they will also be adding in new safeguards against those dirty cheaters everyone hates, as well as other new features (you can’t have next gen without oodles of new stuff!). Check it out here: Halo 3 Matchmaking

1Up’s Episode 56 marks the end of their Halo coverage for this week, but boy do they go out with a bang. In this episode, they talk in great depth (and I mean GREAT depth, like analyzing the map on a white board depth) about 3 of Halo 3’s multiplayer maps, being High Ground, Snow Bound, and Valhalla. Start memorizing now, as they also give you lots of strategies to maximize your pwnage in Halo 3.

Now, for a little summary of the maps:

You can check out the entire 1UP Episode here: 1UP Episode 56
Or, if you want just the Halo part, go here: Halo 3 Maps

It’s here! 1UP has just posted the newest episode of the 1UP show, Season 4, Episode 5. In it, they talk about the multiplayer gameplay in Halo 3. Thats right! Actual details about the game, no more cruel teasers. This is the only place you can get this info, as the visit to Bungie was exclusive to EGM.

Unfortunately, if you’re expecting new videos or trailers, you’re gonna be dissapointed. The video is a discussion between some of the EGM staff who were lucky enough to visit Bungie. They simply talk about what they saw, what they thought, and how they reacted during the visit.

If you want to watch the episode, I suggest you get downloading, as the video is very large, approximately 344 - 977 mb, depending on format and resolution. You can check out this exclusive video here: Halo 3 Multiplayer

Well, after reading my horrible reference “Lions and Tigers and Bears, oh my!”, we can get into today’s post.

First off, IGN 1UP has released some detailed descriptions of a few of Halo 3’s multiplayer maps. The maps they go over are Valhalla, Snowbound, and High Ground, all of which sound absolutely fantastic. Don’t take my word for it though, read all about it here: Halo 3 Map Descriptions

Now for the screenshots. Screenshots is kind’ve misleading, as they aren’t actually screenshots, instead they are a mixture of concept art and cutouts. You can check out these four new screenshots at 1UP.com here: Halo 3 Images

And now finally, we get to talk about armor. Some lucky person named Supernova over at bungie.org snagged himself an awesome set of Mjolnir armor. I don’t know where you buy such a great collectible, but I’d sure like to find out. Read Supernova’s original post here: Halo 3 Armor