Microsoft recently filed a complaint with the National Arbitration Forum in order to get the domain name halo4beta dot net (don’t visit the site, it’s a phishing scam). The site claims to offer Halo 4 beta access, but it’s in fact just a way of scamming users. It’s not the first time we’ve seen something like this, and it’s good that Microsoft is taking swift action. Unfortunately, this being the Internet, it can be quite difficult to track down the owner and operator of the domain.

Halo 4 on the PC might be a possibility, according to a new rumor emerging from developer 343 Industries. The rumor comes from an “inside source” sent to DigitalBattle, suggesting that 343i has a “team looking into the possibility of porting Halo 4 to the PC” and that Microsoft is interested in this in order to “breathe life back into Games For Windows Live”. While 343 has yet to release a PC game, many developers from the defunct Pandemic studio left for 343, developers with a lot of PC experience (Pandemic shipped some 10 PC titles over the years) — so 343 definitely has the capacity and talent to work on the PC platform.

Halo hasn’t seen a Windows PC release since Halo 2 back in 2004. Since then, it’s been an Xbox 360 exclusive, even Halo Wars, an RTS, was only released on the Xbox 360.

Naturally, take this rumor with a grain of salt. Halo has been a system seller for the Xbox 360 over the years, and even if we see a Halo 4 PC release, don’t expect it to be simultaneous with the Xbox 360. Perhaps a year down the line, 2013, we might see Halo 4 on the PC. Might.

10: Counter-Strike: Global Offensive

Last time a Counter-Strike game was released was almost 8 years ago, back in 2004. Despite its age, a lot of gamers still play Counter-Strike, it’s one of the purest shooters on the market today, and even the decade old Counter Strike 1.6 has an avid player base. This year, we’re getting the long awaited sequel, called Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, which will hit all major platforms: PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Mac OS X. Release date: May.

9: Max Payne 3

No other games have been able to pull off the neo-noir style like Max Payne and Max Payne 2. Max Payne 3 will bring many changes, chief of which is the setting: Max Payne has left New York and, as Rockstar puts it, has “drifted from bad to worse”. Release date: March.

8: Mass Effect 3

Mass Effect 3 is the final game in the BioWare’s sci-fi series, and as expected, continues from where Mass Effect 2 left off. Mass Effect 3 will feature refined combat, and will offer a multiplayer co-op mode as well. Release date: March.

7: Mario Party 9

The Mario Party series spans 14 games, and 2012 will see the 15th entry in the franchise — a franchise that has sold over 50 million units worldwide. Mario Party 9 for the Wii brings back the usual cast of Mario, Luigi, and some 30 other playable characters. On top of that, Mario Party 9 will feature 30 mini games as well. Release date: March.

6: Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance

Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is set between Metal Gear Solid 2 and MGS 4, and follows Raiden, a Katana-wielding cyborg ninja. Let’s repeat that again: you’ll be playing as a Katana-wielding cyborg ninja. What else is there to say? Release date: November.

5: Hitman Absolution

We haven’t seen much from the Hitman series for over half a decade since Hitman: Blood Money was released. The new game is called Hitman Absolution, but details of the story and setting are vague at this point. All we know is that it’s built using a brand new engine, and that Agent 47 is finally back in action. Release date: July.

4: Halo 4

Halo 4 is the first Halo game not developed by Bungie, which means the pressure on developer 343 Industries is immense. Halo 4 is set right after Halo 3, and marks the return of Master Chief as the main protagonist. Release date: September.

3: BioShock Infinite

The prequel to what’s arguably one of the best games of the 2000s, BioShock Infinite takes place several decades before BioShock, and centers around the floating city of Columbia. Release date: September.

2: Diablo 3

It’s been over a decade since we’ve last seen anything from the Diablo franchise. Diablo 3 will follow in the footsteps of its predecessors, and focus on dungeon crawling and hack and slash gameplay. With five different character classes, tons of dungeons, and PVP combat as well, Diablo 3 is the most anticipated RPG of the year.
Release date: July.

1: Grand Theft Auto V

There are popular game franchises, and then there are popular game franchises. And then there’s Grand Theft Auto, a series that has sold over 120 million copies to date. Grand Theft Auto 5 returns to Los Angeles, or rather “Los Santos”, as the fictional city is called. Expect tons of missions, cars, weapons, and may, just maybe, a bowling mini-game. Release date: October.

Halo is one of the biggest video game franchises of all time and definitely a contender for the biggest franchise on the Xbox 360 in general. However, if you’ve been paying attention you’ll know that Bungie pulled out of Halo’s development not too long ago handing the project off to 343 Studios. Well today is E3 and one of the biggest announcements to come from the conference so far is Halo 4.

That’s right, Master Chief and Cortana will be returning in Halo 4 which is set for release sometime next year. Unfortunately there hasn’t really been much information to go by regarding what exactly the game will include so we’ll have to keep you posted on that front.

Who’s excited?

In addition to announcing the continuation to the Halo series, Halo: Reach, Bungie also released a teaser trailer for the game that didn’t emerge on the internet until now.

Additionally, Microsoft announced that if you purchase Halo 3: ODST later this year you will be invited to test out a Halo: Reach multiplayer beta, much like the Halo 3 beta included with Crackdown prior to its release.

Anyways, watch the trailer and gawk over Halo‘s return.

No, not really, sorry to get you excited. But it is a possiblity that Bungie will release another game starring the Chief, let me tell you why.

Frank O’Connor recently spoke with USA Today about the upcoming Halo 3: ODST, but the key phrase that came out of his mouth was ”I doubt we have seen the last of Master Chief.” Sounds pretty sneaky to slip that in right at the end of the interview. Let the rumors fly boys.

Other than that, O’Connor commented on ODST, saying it:

“is significantly more than an add-on. It’s a lot of game. You play the game through the point of view of an ODST. They are dropped into combat from orbit. They have a rivalry with the Spartans that is well known to the fans of the fiction. We finally let you into their boots as it were. …It’s kind of a detective story in a way. But it is much more action-packed than that.”

Read (USA Today)

Joystiq, going by a rumor in the latest issue of Official Xbox Magazine, reports that Halo 4 is in development at Gearbox Software and will launch alongside the Xbox 720, or whatever it is called by Microsoft.

Gearbox is best known for its work on the original Brothers in Arms, which has a sequel on the way; it will soon release Samba de Amigo and its future lineup consists of Aliens: Colonial Marines and Borderlands.

Meanwhile, Halo creator Bungie has revealed that it is working on a new game in the shooter series, though no details have been released yet. Two more Halo titles are also in the works – Halo Wars and a project from Peter Jackson.