OK, so we’ll take a break from press releases of new and upcoming games for all platforms for the moment, as there is even more groundbreaking news to consider. Microsoft has announced that they will be working with top anime studios in creating a collection of original short films that take the ‘Halo’ franchise to new frontiers. In other words, Microsoft could potentially stumble upon a new way of milking their cash cow, by taking advantage of the Halo franchise’s huge fanbase (for granted, others might say). According to Microsoft, this collaboration will include some of the most acclaimed anime creators, and has dubbed the new project as “Halo Legends”. This isn’t something new, as the Matrix trilogy also saw the introduction of the Animatrix which showed snippets of other parts of the Matrix universe in several original anime short films.

“Halo Legends,” which will officially debut at a panel presentation today at Comic-Con International in San Diego, is being produced by Microsoft’s 343 Industries and features creative direction from anime pioneer Shinji Aramaki, director of the critically acclaimed “Appleseed” and “Appleseed EX Machina” anime features, and Mamoru Oshii, director of the landmark “Ghost in the Shell” movies, with additional production from Joseph Chou of J-Spec Pictures. The compilation will include a series of short stories that explore different times, themes and characters from the “Halo” universe and will be distributed globally by Warner Home Video, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. company. Influential studios that are part of the project include the creators behind some of the most popular and celebrated anime to come from Japan, such as “The Animatrix,” “Cowboy Bebop,” “Fullmetal Alchemist,” “Ghost in the Shell,” “Dragon Ball” and more.

Selected “Halo Legends” episodes will be available on a preview basis on (where else) but Xbox LIVE from this fall onwards through a new experience known as Halo Waypoint. This is the epicenter of all things Halo, where it will include a career system alongside player rankings that are tied to both in-game and out-of-game accomplishments related to “Halo.”

Press Release

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