E3 08 Rumor Alerts

Halo, Geometry Wars Rumors ahead of MS Presser

There are two somewhat major rumors ahead of Microsoft’s E3 press conference, scheduled to begin at about 1:30PM ET.

The first involves the next installment in the Halo franchise.  Master Chief is not expected to return in this edition.  Instead, the game will be more of a tactical shooter with a darker story and a bloodier tone.  Gamespot reports that this new title may allow players to co-op as an entire squad throughout, with up to 8 players potentially allowed in the action.

Indeed, something new is coming in Halo land.  A Joystiq report cites an internal Wal-Mart list of upcoming releases as including “Halo Blue,” with what’s presumed to be a placeholder release date of late September.  It’s unclear however if this will actually be announced during E3, be it by Microsoft or by Bungie.

The second rumor concerns the popular Geometry Wars series.  According to a source close to Joystiq, Microsoft may announce Geometry Wars 2 for XBOX Live during its presser today–with the possibility that gamers can get their hands on it later this week.  A proper follow-up to the top selling XBOX 360 launch title makes sense, and achievements for said game were leaked on Xbox.com.

Microsoft’s official conference begins in just a few hours.  We’ll have coverage here on the web and on our special radio broadcast beginning at 5PM ET.