Ladies and gentlemen, it’s finally here. Bungie’s last installment in the Halo universe has just released, thanks to eager retailers selling the much anticipated shooter Halo: Reach at midnight across the U.S.A. and abroad on this early morning.

The Xbox 360 game is expected to see sales in the millions, as tens of thousands of retail locations across 25 countries open their doors at 12:01am to patiently waiting, heavily breathing fans. There’s little doubt the Halo prequel will achieve both critical acclaim and massive sales records, serving as one of the most iconic shooter franchises in history.

“When it comes to the size and scope of a franchise and especially the dedication of the fans, no game is bigger than Halo,” said Phil Spencer, corporate VP of Microsoft Game Studios at Microsoft Corp. “With Halo: Reach, we’re delivering on our promise to redefine blockbuster entertainment experiences and ultimately help make this year the biggest ever in Xbox history.”

Are you at a Halo: Reach event right now? Feel free to send us photos with your smiling faces to jason@thetanooki.com.

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They’re cute, they’re rubber, they’re colorful as hell, and they’re not just for girls anymore. Hasbro’s My Little Pony toys have long since been marketed towards a more feminine crowd, but some newly modded ponies are setting out to conquer the hearts of boys everywhere.

As seen on Gear Fuse, these video game influenced ponies are the perfect custom toys for boys and girls alike. Here are a bunch for your viewing pleasure, with ponies influenced by games like Halo, The Legend of Zelda and Silent Hill. They even tackled the pop culture phenomenon Star Wars, and knocked it out of the park. You can also bid on these suckers, if they’re still available.

Prices range between $30 to a mere $125. But that still seems like a small price to pay for a true piece of gaming treasure. Check out a bunch in our gallery below.

GearFuse

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When Snake was revealed to be included in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, the floodgates opened for third-party characters that fans wanted to see included in the game. While the only other addition to this category ended up being Sonic, rumors were flying about other characters filling up the now-”Random” spot, rumors including Geno and Mega Man, among others.

The only requirement? They had to have appeared previously on a Nintendo system. Alas, had this not been a rule and if it weren’t for big egos, the characters in the video above would have at least had a glimmer of hope for inclusion. For now, though, you can just watch and see what it might have been like if Master Chief and Cloud managed to get into the game. If the creators had included Mario and Sonic, this video would have been even more perfect.

Kitty Corp: Meow Mix
via Joystiq

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We’re all aware that past attempts at a Halo film have fallen through – a Halo film would likely command a large budget, and everyone knows that film adaptations of video games don’t have a great track record. Currently, 343 Industries holds the rights to make a Halo movie. Nothing’s moving forward at the moment, but creative director Frank O’Connor says it’s only a matter of time.

“We’re going to make a movie when the time is right. We own the IP. If we want to make a movie, the scale of all the other stuff that we do changes dramatically. We make tens and tens of millions of dollars on ancillary stuff, toys, apparel, music and publishing. If we do a movie all of that will grow exponentially. We have some numbers if we do a movie, but it changes everything. It also changes our target and age demographic.”

I, for one, would love see a film based on Halo, but the property is so huge and the scope is so large that any movie attempt would have 110% dedication to doing it right. Otherwise, there’s no need to tarnish the franchise.

1UP.com

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Not quite sure how this intrigued me for seven minutes. I know people that just sit around at their computers watching YouTube videos of other people play through games – an odd practice if you ask me. Perhaps it’s the crossover aspect of this video. There’s just something about Link’s voice and grunts coming out of someone other than Link that just seems to mess with my head.

Then again, maybe I just enjoy Halo-related machinima. I think I’ll go watch The Blood Gulch Chronicles again.

YouTube
via Kotaku

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Minimalist interpretations of our most favorite and beloved geek icons have been all the rage on the ‘Net lately, and these images made by InfiniteContinues are my favorite example. Inspired by a recent set of Star Wars minimalist posters (you may have seen ‘em), the artist set out to create a bare bones portrait of various video game characters, from Samus Aran to T-Hawk.

Which is your favorite? Which would you like to see? I’m a big fan of the Samus Aran one but I’d love to see a print inspired by Legend of Zelda, Pikmin, or Final Fantasy. Or Pac Man, even. Just a yellow piece of paper with a line through it.

InfiniteContinues
via Flickr

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Video game music has evolved dramatically over the past thirty-some years to the point where it’s become a completely legitimate musical art. It’s also become a viable way to encourage and teach music education.

Remember the guy from the previous video? This week, he’s off the piano bench and onto the conductor’s podium to conduct the concert band arrangement of “Video Games Live – Part I” with a high school wind symphony. He’s just a student teacher in this video, and apparently that’s the real band director making a surprise cameo in the Halo movement (composed by Marty O’Donnell and Mike Salvatori). Other movements include music from Civilization IV (“Coronation” and “Baba Yetu” composed by Christopher Tin) and Kingdom Hearts (by Yoko Shimomura).

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