Speculation over a major announcement which Microsoft has pledged to make on
November 15th, the second anniversary of the Xbox launch date, points to the
launch of a new version of Halo with Xbox Live support.

A number of different rumours have circulated regarding the announcement,
including the rather unlikely possibility that the launch of Halo 2 -
currently scheduled for 2004 - might actually be pulled forward to
Christmas.

However, a member of the Bungie development team moved to quash such
rumours, stating that “I can confirm with absolute certainty that Halo 2 is
NOT coming out in 2003,” going on to question what “possible benefit” there
would be in a launch shrouded in such secrecy.

What does seem entirely possible, however, is another rumour circulating
about the announcement - namely that on November 15th Microsoft will roll
out a new version of Halo, branded as Halo Deluxe Edition, which will
feature online multiplayer capabilities over Xbox Live for the first time.

This speculation gains credibility from the appearance of a Prima Official
Strategy Guide for Halo Deluxe Edition on the publishing company’s website,
with a launch date of December 2003 - an embarrassing mistake by Prima if
they turn out to have blown Microsoft’s surprise, but surely a pointer that
MS has something Halo-related in the works.

An online version of Halo would make sense. The game already enjoys
significant popularity online through the unofficial Xbox Connect tunnelling
software, which fools Halo into believing that other systems on the Internet
are actually on a LAN with it, but this connection can be unreliable and
laggy at times. The launch of Deluxe Edition - which would presumably arrive
at a budget price point - would also be a perfect opportunity for Microsoft
to bundle a demo of Halo 2, building anticipation of its biggest 2004 title
even further.

We’ll know for sure in two days when Xbox celebrates its second birthday
in the USA.