It wasn’t a surprise to see Microsoft start their E3 Xbox press conference here at E3 with new footage of Halo 4.

We were treated to several minutes of live action story followed by a few minutes of gameplay – and it looked awesome.

Here are some more images from Halo 4 to keep you going.

This is of the commissioning of the new ship:

And these are other images from the game:

“Halo 4” marks the beginning of a new saga in the blockbuster franchise that has shaped entertainment history and defined a generation of gamers. Developed by 343 Industries exclusively for Xbox 360, “Halo 4” ushers in the return of mankind’s greatest hero, the Master Chief, in a newly envisioned, epic sci-fi adventure.

Set nearly five years after the events of “Halo 3,” “Halo 4” follows the Master Chief and his faithful artificial intelligence (AI) companion Cortana as they venture into a mysterious new world and discover an overpowering ancient evil that threatens to annihilate mankind. With humanity’s fate hanging in the balance, the Master Chief and Cortana are thrust into a desperate mission against overwhelming odds to save mankind from the threat of imminent extinction.

As one of the biggest video game franchises in history, the “Halo” series has sold more than 42 million games to date, generating nearly $3 billion in total franchise sales. “Halo 4” takes the award-winning series in a bold new direction, delivering its most epic and explorative campaign yet, together with a groundbreaking multiplayer offering rooted in “Halo” fiction —setting the stage for an epic new sci-fi saga.

Features: Top features include the following:

·   A new “Halo” saga begins. “Halo 4” marks the dawn of a blockbuster new game series, the Reclaimer Saga, centered on the Master Chief ashe embarks on an emotional journey fraught with personal demons and the most daunting challenges he’s ever faced. Featuring a darker and more personal story that reintroduces the iconic hero as a genuinely human character, “Halo 4” sets players on an epic sci-fi voyage that will span the next decade of “Halo” games.

As the story unfolds, the Master Chief and his relationship with Cortana will evolve in deep and meaningful ways that will resonate through the entire Reclaimer Saga.

·   A powerful and riveting campaign. Brace for a thrilling, action-packed adventure deep inside a mysterious new world to confront the gravest threat humanity has ever faced. Harness a vast arsenal of futuristic human and alien weaponry, abilities, and vehicles as you step back into the boots of the Master Chief and wage a desperate war against an overpowering new nemesis and a deadly new class of technologically advanced foes —the Prometheans —that will challenge you to employ innovative new combat tactics.2

With increased pace and action, greater epic encounters, new interactive story elements, and more combat freedom than ever before, “Halo 4” delivers the series’ most dynamic and explosive campaign yet —whether you take up the fight solo or launch a cooperative assault with up to four players over Xbox LIVE.

·   A revolutionary new multiplayer experience. “Halo 4” introduces the groundbreaking “Halo Infinity Multiplayer” offering that will redefine the award-winning series and revolutionize the way people think about storytelling and multiplayer gameplay.

–   Birth of your Spartan: Infinity. The hub of the “Halo 4” multiplayer experience is the UNSC Infinity —the largest starship in the UNSC fleet that serves as the center of your Spartan career. Here, you’ll build your custom Spartan-IV supersoldier and progress your multiplayer career across all “Halo 4” competitive and cooperative game modes. As you advance your Spartan career aboard the largest starship in the UNSC fleet, your multiplayer experience will be embedded in the fiction of “Halo” like never before, where your progress and game choices affect your appearance, your arsenal and your role on the battlefield.

–   Spartan Ops. The story of the UNSC Infinity intersects with the “Halo 4” campaign, and then continues on in a brand-new, story-driven experience known as Spartan Ops. A first-of-its-kind, exciting new addition to the “Halo” franchise,Spartan Ops is an episodic adventure that blends immersive storytelling, high-quality cinematics and action-packed gameplay to deliver an unprecedented serialized experience.

Through a weekly series of cinematic episodes, Spartan Ops will tell the continuing story of the UNSC Infinity, following the events of “Halo 4.” These episodes will center on the UNSC Infinity leaders and crew as well as a new team of Spartans —Majestic Squad. These cinematic episodes will provide the backdrop for the weekly Spartan Ops gameplay missions. Playable in single-player or cooperatively with up to four players, Spartan Ops lets you explore the corners of Requiem in objective-based missions and help uncover the secrets of the mysterious Forerunner world.

A massive-scale adventure that builds off the “Halo 4” story, access to Spartan Ops is included with “Halo 4” at no additional charge —effectively delivering two campaign experiences in one game.

–   War Games. The competitive multiplayer modes of “Halo 4,” known asWar Games,take place on the combat deck of the UNSC Infinity and revive the visceral and immersive experiences that “Halo” multiplayer is famous for. Featuring 10 diverse and action-packed new multiplayer maps at launch, “Halo 4” introduces a broad variety of immersive new game modes and strategies to help you progress your Spartan-IV career, while delivering an experience that’s distinctly “Halo.”

–   Total combat freedom and player progression. “Halo 4” features a vastly expanded suite of new multiplayer modes, weapons, vehicles and armor abilities; a new loadout and player progression system; and a new armor modification system that introduces gameplay-enhancing customizations for the first time in a “Halo” game. These advancements can be used in both Spartan Ops and certain War Games matchmaking playlists, empowering players’ choices, vastly expanding their creative options, and making the experience deeper for core fans and more approachable for newcomers.

The “Halo 4” player progression system goes beyond simple aesthetic upgrades, encouraging players to invest time and effort to create a Spartan that looks and plays the way they want. Players can obtain and activate combat enhancements called “Specializations” based on the style of play they engage in, from stealth to all-out assault and everything in between.

·   Redefining the “Halo” game engine. Built on the backbone of the engine that revolutionized the shooter genre and console gaming, “Halo 4” provides a more visceral and visually stunning “Halo” experience than ever before, taking a massive leap forward with all-new engine technology, including state-of-the-art graphics, lighting, animation, audio, physics, motion-capture cinematics and AI. All these systems have been dramatically overhauled or redesigned from the ground up to deliver the most visually striking and immersive “Halo” game to date.

·   Gripping music and audio. From acclaimed producer and composer Neil Davidge of the famed trip hop group Massive Attack comes a sweeping musical score that captures the heroic spirit and emotional intensity of the Master Chief’s adventure. Combined with all-new audio recordings for every weapon and sound effect in the game, the action gets up close and personal, delivering an impactful experience that resonates as powerfully as an epic Hollywood blockbuster.

·   Building on the “Halo” legacy. “Halo 4” delivers one of the most anticipated entertainment launches of the year, building on the “Halo” franchise that has accomplished the following:
–   Sold more than 42 million game copies to date
–   Made nearly $3 billion in franchise sales over its lifetime
–   Amassed more than 3.3 billion hours of Xbox LIVE gameplay
–   Inspired books, comics, graphic novels and strategy guides that have sold more than 9 million copies (Eight of the 10 novels are New York Times best-sellers.)
–   Garnered more than 580 media and industry awards, accolades and nominations

“Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn”

Availability:

– October 2012 (worldwide)debut of five weekly episodes available via the Machinima Prime channel on YouTube and Halo Waypoint
– Nov. 6, 2012 , launch of the “Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn” Special Edition, an extended edit with additional footage and bonus content as part of the “Halo 4” Limited Edition

Overview: Premiering this October on Machinima’s YouTube channel and on Halo Waypoint, “Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn” is a groundbreaking, live-action digital series that takes fans back to the terrifying beginning of the Human-Covenant wars, when the Master Chief inspired a young cadet who would eventually become a leader aboard the UNSC’s greatest vessel: the UNSC Infinity. “Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn” delivers an emotional, action-packed story of heroism and sacrifice that leads into the events of “Halo 4,” the biggest entertainment event of 2012.

The “Halo 4” Limited Edition will include access to the 90-minute “Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn” Special Edition via Halo Waypoint, with never-before-seen bonus footage, as well as bonus content and behind-the-scenes videos.