More on Reach

Bungie's latest update answered many of the questions raised by their MP trailer I blogged about a while back as well as clarifying many other things. Highlights:

• Elites and Spartans will have very different models and characteristics. At first blush, Elites appear to pwn face.
• Loadouts (0:14) explained: Ability to choose armor and weapon configs at round start and with every respawn.
• Active Camo (0:29): Degrades with movement and jams radar, so others will be aware it's in operation.
• Armor Lock (0:22): Makes you temporarily invincible, even to splatters, which explains how the one guy blew up the Ghost in the trailer instead of getting splattered.
• Evade (0:11): These are the dive rolls that may only be available to Elites.
• Jet Packs (0:14): New details released including the implication of fall damage and needing to reserve jet pack fuel to soften the landing. Also susceptible to EMP damage. Note that the green gun can generate the normal EMP, but that the new grenade launcher can also generate EMP! (maybe this is seen at 0:28 - in-air rocket kill)
  
• Sprint: Run faster but can't shoot

New weapons:

• Plasma Repeater: Looks like dual wielding has been removed, so this is similar to two Plasma Rifles. It will not conk out when it overheats, will just slow down. Analogous to UNSC Assault Rifle.
  
• Plasma Launcher (0:47): Sends up to four plasma bombs, and appears more similar to the UNSC Rocket Launcher than the Brute Shot. Rounds have slight target tracking ability.
• Focus Rifle (1:16): This is that crazy rail gun looking thing. Basically merges a beam rifle with the sentinel beam.
• Grenade Launcher (0:45, 1:04): Bungie puts quotes around this as the "Pro Pipe" but that may be an ironic reference to this as a "n00b cannon." Interestingly, you can hold the trigger after you fire a round and it won't detonate until you release the trigger. As mentioned above, these grenades also have an EMP blast, so you can use this pop jet packs out of the air.

Vehicles:

• Warthog: Probably the biggest (and saddest) news for our clan. The Warthog chaingun can now overheat. Suck.
• Scorpion (0:07): Gunner is now secondary and exposed.