UPDATE: The Halo 5 teaser site has been updated and reveals more details on the countdown content.

Apparently the ARG is focused on a journalist/war photographer named Benjamin Giraud who’s investigating the Master Chief’s legacy.

The update consists of a new three-minute voice recording that chronicles Giraud’s encounter with John 117, and kicks off his investigation on the legendary hero.

Below we have a transcription of Giraud’s bio that gives a brief look at the ARG:

“For decades, I’ve served the galaxy as a journalist and war photographer. I’ve covered human-interest stories on Earth and in the Inner and Outer Colonies.

“I’ve also contracted for the government, covering military affairs. I was at New Mombasa when the Master Chief first appeared to combat the Covenant attack.”

The site should be updated in the coming weeks with fresh recordings. 

Original story is as follows.

Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) has launched a curious new teaser Tumblr post for 343i’s Halo 5: Guardians that prompts gamers to “hunt the truth”.

The page is accompanied by a 15-second teaser trailer that looks to be symbolic war propaganda from the UNSC (or possibly the Office of Naval Intelligence) that ultimately demonizes Master Chief, labeling him a “traitor” presumably after he went rogue as a result of the events of Halo 4.

The post also has a cryptic Twitter hastag entitled #HuntTheTruth, which has seen widespread coverage.

It’s been speculated that the page is kicking off a new viral marketing campaign for Halo 5 somewhat similar to Bungie’s infamous ilovebees AR campaign for Halo 2.

This time around it looks like the viral campaign will be focused in the perspective of the game’s interplanetary military force, possibly delving into the socio-political aftermath of Earth losing one of it’s most beloved heroes.

What’s even more curious is a timer that’s counting down for Sunday, March 22 at 9:00 pm EST (6:00 pm PST) when, presumably, the page will be updated with new info or possibly a new trailer.

In other Halo news, 343i executive producer Josh Holmes confirmed that Halo 5 will have dedicated servers for online multiplayer and custom games, and peer-to-peer network will be nixed.

Also Agent Locke’s voice-over artist and mo-cap actor Mike Colter revealed that Cortana might make an appearance in Halo 5, and that Locke will be returning in future Halo games.

We’ll be sure to report on any new developments once the #HuntTheTruth page is updated, and it’ll be interesting to see what 343i has up their sleeves this time around.

Halo 5: Guardians is slated to release later this year exclusively on the Xbox One.

The post UNSC Labels Master Chief A Traitor In New Halo 5 Teaser appeared first on VR World.

Spoiler Warning: Major plot spoilers for Halo 4 are included below. If you haven’t finished the game yet be sure to turn away!

It looks like Cortana will make an appearance in 343 Industries’ new continuation of the sci-fi franchise, Halo 5: Guardians.

Mike Colter, the actor that portrays one of the game’s principal protagonists Agent Locke, name-dropped the iconic AI in a recent interview with IGN.

Although the interview was primarily focused on Colter’s Spartan hero, he mentioned that Cortana will be “involved” in Halo 5 despite the events that unfolded in Master Chief’s previous adventure:

“When he goes into Halo 5, you’ll see him transition into a Spartan, a super soldier. It’s a prominent role within the game. Obviously Master Chief will be involved, Cortana, but Locke will be one of the playable characters in Halo 5.

Now that’s just a brief tiny snippet with no actual substantial info, just what looks like a confirmation that Cortana’s in the game. We don’t know in what capacity, though, and she could easily appear in a flashback sequence on Master Chief’s side.

What we do know, though, is that gamers will see plenty of Commander James Locke during Halo 5‘s multi-faceted campaign. Colter also affirms Locke is here to stay for the forseeable future, and will return in future Halo games as well.

“He’ll have a prominent role. He’s one of the new additions that will be featured throughout the next couple of video games So you’ll see a lot of Commander James Locke.”

That last bit is kind of tricky. Does this mean Locke will replace Master Chief? Can Spartan 117 ever be replaced? Also will Halo 5 be the first game we don’t play as John 117?

I personally don’t think so, and it just won’t be the same without MC at the helm. Then again the franchise has to move forward and our old luck-infused “demon” can’t live forever…and Locke might be the next to carry the Mantle of Responsibility as Halo‘s new flagship icon.

The Halo 5 multiplayer beta test was a rousing success, generating some impressive stats and arming 343 Industries with valuable data.

In other exciting Halo news, executive producer Josh Holmes revealed that Halo 5 will have dedicated servers for everything from online matchmaking to custom games. Holmes confirmed that 343i plans to do away with the peer-to-peer style networking, eliminating the dreaded “host advantage” scenario.

“We only have dedicated servers for MP in Halo 5: Guardians,” Holmes confirmed in a post on the Beyond Entertainment forums. “That’s true for matchmaking AND customs. There is no P2P.”

No one knows exactly what’s in store for Halo fans when Guardians releases exclusively on Xbox One later this year, but everyone’s excited.

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