Microsoft has announced “Halo Legends,” a collection of short animated films by various Japanese animation studios.
Each short will explore “different times, themes and characters” in the universe with each having a distinct art style. Microsoft Game Studios is producing the series through the newly revealed 343 Studios, an internal house developer that will be dedicated entirely to the Halo franchise.
The company also announced a Xbox Live “destination” called “Halo Waypoint,” said to be an information portal that will give fans news, activities, behind-the-scenes videos, screenshots, and podcasts in addition to “a career system and player rankings tied to both in-game and out-of-game accomplishments related to Halo.”
A preview of “Halo Legends” will be available this fall through the “Halo Waypoint” with Warner Bros. yet to specify a release date to retailers.
The LA Times managed to obtain new details related to the various video shorts:
Studio4 C’s project, tentatively called “Origins,” is a two-parter that’s about 30 minutes long in total and tells the entire 100,000 year history of the Halo universe. Another, from Toei, is the only one outside of the official canon and pokes fun at some of the game’s characters.
Microsoft in the meantime offered information and background on the studios involved:
# Bones. Founded in 1998, Bones has become one of the top animation studios in Japan in less than a decade. The studio is best known for its incredible body of work on mega-hit franchises such as “Cowboy Bebop: The Movie,” “Fullmetal Alchemist,” “Sword of the Stranger” and “Eureka Seven.”
# Casio Entertainment. Casio Entertainment was founded in 2004 and is renowned for its visual effects work on the movie “Dai Nipponjin” (“Big Man of Japan”), which was officially invited to the 2007 Cannes Film Festival and nominated for Best Visual Effects at the 2008 Asian Film Awards. Casio Entertainment is also known for its computer-generated animation support work on several top Japanese video games.
# Production I.G. Production I.G has produced a number of acclaimed feature films, original video animation, TV shows and video games. For their storytelling and quality of animation, “Ghost in the Shell,” “Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade” and “Blood: The Last Vampire” have earned critical accolades in Japan and all around the world. “Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence,” directed by Mamoru Oshii in 2004, was the first Japanese animation feature ever to compete for the Palme d’Or at the Festival de Cannes.
# STUDIO4 C. STUDIO4 C is one of the top animation studios in Japan. Founded by the industry veteran Eiko Tanaka and acclaimed animation artist Koji Morimoto, it has become globally known for its uncanny ability to marry the spirit of high art with mainstream anime aesthetic. STUDIO4 C is known for works including “The Animatrix,” “Tekkonkinkreet” and “Batman: Gotham Knight.”
# Toei Animation. Toei Animation, established in 1956, is the oldest animation studio in Japan. Toei has produced the largest number of global hit TV anime series for kids, such as “Dragon Ball,” “Digimon,” “Sailor Moon,” “One Piece” and many more.
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