In the beginning was the word, and the word was... BLAM!.

Bungie Software's association with the word blam or blam! can be traced back to 1992. More recently however it was the codename for Halo.

It is perhaps apt that Bungie should have chosen the word blam as the codename since it is, to quote Alexander Seropian (Bungie CEO), one of the "immortal phrases". Introduced by Rob McLees (Art Director) blam is commonly used by Bungie folks as "an exclamation upon decisively killing someone in a netgame".

The word itself has also featured in a number of odd places. Many of these occurrences have been reported to the Marathon's Story page over the years. Since there have been alot it would seem appropriate to gather these up into one section. Thus below in chronological order are the many submissions made to the Story page on the subject of blam or blam!.

And so it began...

May 19, 1998

Alex Rosenberg <alexr@goonsquad.spies.com>, formerly of Bungie Software, writes: Bungie recently registered blam.org and blam.net with the Internic. It clearly has something to do with the conspiracy. ;) Yes indeed. This issue was brought up on the IMG Chat Forum with Tuncer Deniz. The infamous Kusanagi asked Tuncer the following question: Kusanagi: QUESTION: Why did Bungie register the domain "Blam.com"? tuncer: we registered blam? cool! Odd stuff. Why would one so high in the echelons of Bungie not know about the registration of Blam? Was Tuncer telling the tru7h? Simon Brownlee <simon.brownlee@pobox.com> points out that blam.org and blam.net were registered by Bungie Software, 1935 S. Halsted St. #204, Chicago back in Mar '98. Why would Bungie want to register blam.org and blam.net and keep it a secret? ;-) blam.com is a different story altogether. As an aside Simon notes that Alexander Seropian (CEO Bungie Software) has registered seropian.com. Make of that what you will.

May 20, 1998

Alex Rosenberg <alexr@goonsquad.spies.com> writes again concerning Bungie's recent registration of "Blam": Note that Bungie registered serendia.com on behalf of Eric Klein (actually his wife Anne). Since "Blam" is one of Rob McLees' favorite exclamations, it may well be a personal registration. Of course, "Blam" would be a reasonably good name for a game as well. Yes indeed... a good name for a game. Simon Brownlee <simon.brownlee@pobox.com> dug deep and came up with the pfhat on Bungie's Domain name registration dealings. You can read it here. Some interesting points - Bungie registered bungie.com back in June 13th 1995 and bungie.net in Apr 22nd 1997.

May 21, 1998

E3 is fast approaching. What are Bungie going to reveal? A game called Blam perhaps? Unlikely says Francesco Poli <bpoli@mbox.vol.it> since there is already a game with a similar name. Francesco writes: There was another Blam, namely Blam! Machinehead, by Core Design (yes, the guys of Tomb Raider), published in 1997. It was a WEIRD game: it looked just like a well-below-average 3D shooter - unless you looked at the atmosphere, something so out I don't think anybody actually comprehended it! It centered around a strange machine, that could levitate about 5 feet off the floor. The machine, codenamed 'Vorpal Blade', was actually a nuke bomb (!) with various weapons mounted on it, including a post for the pilot. The bomb was to be delivered to Machinehead, a normal everyday worker that had injected himself with nanotechonology, rendering him a near-God (!?!), allowing him to cover the entire planet with a goo dubbed 'Machinehead Virus' and create horrendous monsters. You, as Dr. Kimberly Stride - Lara Croft's cousin :) - had to blow everything to hell, before the bomb you were sitting one decided it had taken too much abuse and blow up! You can find out more about the game called "Blam! Machinehead" from the following sites. http://www.mds.mdh.se/~eko93pjn/reviews/blam.htm http://www.hyper-world.com/hyper-world/labarticles/blamhead.html http://binky.paragon.co.uk/reviews/PlayStation_rv/BlamMHead.rv.html Alex Rosenberg <alexr@goonsquad.spies.com> pointed out yesterday that "Blam" is one of Rob McLees' favorite exclamations. Interesting to note that one of Roy Lichtenstein's famous 'cartoon' paintings is entitled Blam

July 20, 1998

Muhsin Miski <mmiski@hotmail.com> writes: Under the credits section of the Marathon Infinity manual (p.67) you see the word "blam" under Final Thoughts. Could this have any relations with the blam.net that they registered? It's a long shot, but Bungie is always unpredictable in mysterious ways.

Feb 19, 1999

Jeff Campen <jcampen@shrike.depaul.edu> writes: I'm not sure how many people know this, (I'm sure you probably do but just in case) the code name for the new game is Blam. I found out during the Myth2 beta and several of the bungie guys that were online had the order name "Blam Development" and said that they were working on the new project. Almost goes with the quote "Not with a bang but a whimper." Although that is probably taking it too far; making an allusion to an allusion =) On the same subject Miguel Chavez <jmchavez@aol.com> writes: "This is the way the world ends / Not with a bang but a whimper." If I recall correctly, doesn't Bungie have some association with the word "blam!"? Yes. Back in May 19, 1998 Alex Rosenberg a former employee at Bungie Software pointed out that Bungie had recently registered blam.org and blam.net.

Feb 20, 1999

Jeff Campen <jcampen@shrike.depaul.edu> writes: I also noticed something in the MythII scripting. For the teleport out using the world knot visibility the flag is (once again) "blam". Jeff is referring to the line World Knot Visibility Flag (blam, flag) in Myth II.

Feb 21, 1999

John Woods <jfw@jfwhome.funhouse.com> writes: In one Myth II level, "With Friends Like These", you get to play a game of Territories against 3 stone giants (Trow). According to the script, these particular Trow are named: the trow { Link myth trow oni trow blam trow } Myth. Oni. And Blam. (Although when you play the game, they get the traditional Latin Trow names.) And a further tidbit: If you play Total Carnage (err, Legendary), you get a fourth trow opponent -- who is controlled by the Blam scripts. So I guess this means Blam is going to be the hard game of the three... So the word "Blam" appears again! What's up here? A quick search of the Story page reveals an interesting history behind Bungie's use of the word "Blam". Back in May 19, 1998 Alex Rosenberg, a former employee of Bungie Software, pointed out that Bungie had recently registered blam.org and blam.net with the Internic. A day later he wrote again saying: Note that Bungie registered serendia.com on behalf of Eric Klein (actually his wife Anne). Since "Blam" is one of Rob McLees' favorite exclamations, it may well be a personal registration. Of course, "Blam" would be a reasonably good name for a game as well. A Bungie game called "Blam"? Makes sense considering Bungie had registered blam.org and blam.net. However Francesco Poli <bpoli@mbox.vol.it> pointed out that there was another game with a similar name. Francesco wrote: There was another Blam, namely Blam! Machinehead, by Core Design (yes, the guys of Tomb Raider), published in 1997... However this might not stop Bungie distributing a new game simply called... "Blam". Then in July 20, 1998 Muhsin Miski <mmiski@hotmail.com> wrote: Under the credits section of the Marathon Infinity manual (p.67) you see the word "blam" under Final Thoughts. Could this have any relations with the blam.net that they registered? It's a long shot, but Bungie is always unpredictable in mysterious ways. Note also that under the same section in the Trilogy Box Set manual we read the following: Final Thoughts Is this the end? I guess so. That's too bad. But it's only the beginning. Really? Sure, what the hell. Stop it! Is that really it? I mean, really it? Wait and see... So "blam" is a favorite word of Rob McLees and has entered the Bungie lexicon to such a point that it is now a possible title for a new game from Bungie. Perhaps Rob McLees (artist) is a fan of the artwork of Roy Lichtenstein and Blam is in fact a new flight sim game. Ah speculation! ;-)

Mar 1, 1999

Chris Camacho <chrispynacho@earthlink.net> writes: Looking in the back of the Infinity maunual I see the Final Thoughts that Muhsin Miski was talking about. The text is as follows: Final Thoughts:   Blam   Your Mom   Dink Now we know Blam and Your Mom are common words around the Bungie campus, but what is Dink? I can only assume it's also a favorite phrase of some one at Bungie. Perhaps the sound of a shell hitting the ground after the BLAM of a gun firing. If so -- BLAM "Your mom!" DINK -- would make some since. I also remember a survey or something on Bungie's webpage, you know the one that gave you a seemingly random response no matter how you answered? Well, if I'm not mistaken, the last question was "Dink or Blam?" Odd stuff. Only Rob McLees knows the tru7h behind the word "dink". Rob Schultz <silvertail@howling.com> writes: Just curious as to why the word "blam" appears again on the bottom right-hand corner of the last page in the Marathon Scrapbook in itty-bitty white text. Itty-bitty is right... you could easily miss this. Nobody believed me when I said the Scrapbook was full of hidden stuff.

Mar 2, 1999

Miguel Chavez <jmchavez@aol.com> writes: This is, I'm sure, way off topic, but DINK is known here in the states to stand for "Double Income, No Kids." You would use this acronym when referring to a pair of employed 20 or 30-somethings that are living together or married, but sans kids. This couple, the thinking goes, would be raking in money since their living expenses would be quite low. There are other, equally bizarre, acronyms for other sorts of stereotypical U. S. American social categories. All are offshoots of the typical Classified Ad-speak that we've all come to know and love. SWF, DWF, GMM, etc. (you figger it out :) Just more info for the story page! :-) (Maybe BLAM stands for something as well?)

Mar 3, 1999

Nick Bousfield <LE8096@qmw.ac.uk> writes: Regarding the 'dink'... I always assumed this was the sound of the shellcase hitting the ground. Y'know.. Blam (get shot) You Mom (your dying thought) and Dink (the last sound you'll ever hear).

Mar 4, 1999

Jared Cash <jcash@graceland.edu> writes concerning Bungie's use of the word "Dink": I don't know if anyone remembers, but there was a reference to "dink" in an old Bungievision newsletter that defined the word and used it in a sentence. I can't remember the exact definition, but it was meant to emphasize your point, as in: "Man, I just SPNKed you! *DINK*" Check those Bungievisions for the tru7h.

Mar 6, 1999

Rob Schultz <silvertail_wolf@hotmail.com> writes: 'Blam' is an example (which can be argued) of an onomatopoeia, or a word that sounds like the thing it's describing. [examples are 'zap' or 'bang'] 'Dink' could also, arguably, fall into this catagory. So, comparing these two common Bungie words, one wonders.. might there be another Bungie game out there code-named 'Dink'? On the same theme John Zero <jzero@onramp.net> points out that 'Dink' sounds somewhat like the Marathon terminal logon/logoff sound. Curiouser and Curiouser...

Mar 22, 1999

John Zero <jzero@onramp.net> puts a new slant on the 2nd Cortana message: More speculation on 'the fourth' of Cortana's second message. I think it refers to a previously undocumented stage of Rampancy. Cortana says: There will be no more Sadness. No more Anger. No more Envy. and then: There was a fourth. You couldn't have known. And I haven't forgotten. It is a blurred line that lies at the edge of Godhood and Insanity. Guess which side of it I am on. These quotes, when placed in proximity, seem to be related, but that could just be context, couldn't it? Whatever the case, something is UP. Cortana definitely seems to be related to Durandal (sporting the same attitude), but perhaps it is an AI who has progressed past any known level of self-advancement. (Toward Jjaro-ness?) My guess is that the 'End of The World' release date refers to December 31, 2000, or some other supposedly-apocalyptic date. Nostradamus afficionados, start your search engines. If the Cortana stuff is indeed a teaser linked to Bungie East's new game, I would speculate that it does have something to do with the Marathon storyline, and in fact with issues left loose after Infinity. Bungie are subtle enough guys that they would find a new and interesting way to respond to the cries for a new Marathon by doing a brand new game that deals with a similar backstory, but which is anything BUT 'a new Marathon'. I recently attended the Game Developer's Conference and talked to a non-Marathon Bungie East denizen, whom I will not name. I asked him about 'Blam', and he said that it is the code name of their new project, but covered his own mouth before he revealed the Real Name of the product. I told him I didn't want to know. (I came THAT CLOSE!) He also mused, "Blam... I wonder how that got out?" Leaks!... They're Everywhere! ;-) More Soul madness. Christopher Allene <cwis@dial.oleane.com> writes: Question: what is blam? The soul says: You think you're smarter than you really are. Note this is *not* a generic answer. Moreover: Question: who is blam? The soul says: Can we change the subject please. I don't think this is a generic answer, but I'm not sure. I got this while talking about sex and things like that. Just a theory... maybe "blam" is someone, and not something, as we always had always thought.

Mar 30, 1999

Josh Petrie <kapwrite@voicenet.com> writes: ...awhile ago I was looking around inside the Myth II tag files and found a dwarf sound I hadn't heard before - I've been unable to confirm whether or not it appears in the actual game, it is interesting none the less... The sound is in the 'sound' type list, and is called: "12 (dwarf) he hee BLAM eh ehehe (12dj)". The dwarf says "BLAM!". This may or may not be a coincidence... Just thought you'd like to know. Josh later identified the level: Looking around in the tags file, I figured out that the level the sound is from is that cool snow level where you have to ambush numerous waves of thrall and mauls. Ah yes... The Stair of Grief.

Mar 31, 1999

Jeff Campen <jcampen@shrike.depaul.edu> writes: I remembered reading all of the speculation about the word "Dink" and just a bit ago noticed the back of the Bungie "carnage" shirt. At the bottom of the carnage sign are the letters "BDINK". An artist's signature of some sort?

May 2, 1999

Forrest Cameranesi <forrest@west.net> writes: Also, some things regarding dink and blam. The old survey on Bungie's page, mentioned before, had a question "Dink or Blam?", and no matter which you chose, it always told you that it was the wrong answer. (I believe the correct answer is "Your Mom". Also note that this is similar to a quote I recall from somewhere, I believe it was a conversation between Greg and Jason. "Hey Jason" - "What?" - "Your Mom" - "Hey Greg" - "What?" - "No, YOUR Mom").

May 7, 1999

Jared Cash <jcash@graceland.edu> writes: I was reading the "Day In The Life Of Bungie" post on the story page and I noticed that, when the Bungie programmers couldn't find out what letter comes after zeta, they created one. It's name.... "Blamma"! So, Blam has been around all this time, eh? Maybe Bungie will succeed in taking over the world sooner than we had hoped.

May 14, 1999

E3 news! As expected Bungie confirmed that they were working on a new action game, codenamed Blam! The game has been in development since the release of Myth. Since it's a Jason Jones original Bungie fans can expect something... very special! :-) For more info on Blam! check the Cortana section.

May 15, 1999

More E3 news. Miguel Chavez <jmchavez@aol.com> writes: I finally get a chance to sit on a computer and I see that everyone has pretty much gotten whatever news scoops were to be had... perhaps.... :) Anyway, the lid on Blam is very tight. Jason Jones and friends are giving demo's behind closed doors. NDA's are signed. The Bungie Action Sack should be out in July. The packaging that people have seen is *probably* final. I have yet to corner Matt Soell. And when I asked other Bungie folks about the 3 events I was greeted with dumb stares. "One will be, to you long-timers, unimpressive. The second will probably cause great joy among some segments of the populace. And the third is...well, Cortana talks about that one. #1 is memories, #2 is wishes, #3 is dreams. #1 and #3 are revealed: The Action Sack and Blam. What is the third??? hmmm More as it develops.

May 18, 1999

Blam news. Harry Al-Shakarchi <harry.al-shakarchi@teleweb.at> writes: On IMG's E3 page <http://www.imgmagazine.com/news/e3/e3.html> I came across this tidbit: "In addition to Oni, Bungie is currently working on a new title. At E3 Bungie was showing the game behind closed doors to print media (to secure future previews). Not much is known about this title except that the codename is "Blam". Here's what we do know..."Blam" is Jason Jones next game, whose previous titles include Marathon and Myth. The game has been in development for more than a year and it is expected to be released sometime in the year 2000. And from what we've heard, "Blam" is not set in the Marathon or Myth world." So, that leaves to hope that #2 is Marathon related :) If IMG are correct and "Blam" is not set in the Marathon world then what are all the Cortana emails about? Matt Soell has gone on record saying that #3 was a new game and that the Cortana emails were related to this. Given the many Marathon-related references in the Cortana emails you might wonder what is actually going on here. And just what happened to #2?

May 19, 1999

More Blam news. I had the opportunity to talk to Matt Soell (Bungie Software) yesterday concerning IMGs E3 report that "Blam" was not connected to Marathon. Was this true? Surely the Cortana emails would suggest otherwise? Matt replied: I think if you read the Cortana emails it is obvious that there's a connection. :-) I think that without knowing the story, they [IMG] can only report on basic generalities.... And if all one knows about Blam is the tiny bit of info which has gotten out, it would certainly seem that there is no obvious connection. Matt also had this to say about plot connections in Bungie's games: ...things are often more related than they may first appear. For example, there's no obvious similarity or connection between the Marathon world and the Myth one.... ...but then there's the Great Devoid. The Great Devoid was the big hole in the ground at the end of Myth:TFL. How did it get there? Matt wouldn't reveal what was at the bottom of the hole! Concerning the reported postponement of 'event' #2 Matt said: It hasn't been deliberately postponed or anything. Still on the list of things to do. It's just that, with the crush of E3 and a few other things, I suspect it will be a little while before it happens. What is the expected release date? Matt replied: No announcement yet. It's one of those things that could happen at any time. Will Bungie be needing beta testers for #2? Matt answered: It's not the sort of thing that will need beta-testers. Matt's final remarks about #2 are worth repeating. I'm very eager to see #2 happen....I'm looking forward to seeing what happens afterward. ...happens afterward? Sounds intriguing.

May 20, 1999

Joshua Jansen <jejansen@yahoo.com> writes: just a few things to say. 1. go to http://www.mythii.com [a dead site][?] 2. "holy damn" [response to #1] 3. Halo = new game? BLAM's real name? it is an astrophysical term, referring to the possible composition of dark matter, and, of course, is a term describing the matter on the outskirts of a galaxy, among other things. 4. the image is a blurred, enlarged image of the mythcodex image good luck on your investigation into this...

May 21, 1999

Concerning mythii.com and the references to Halo and Blam, Harry Al-Shakarchi <harry.al-shakarchi@teleweb.at> writes: This recent talk of Halo got me thinking. When we look at what a Halo is, it's a circle of light round luminous body, especiallly a sun or moon; a circle ring or the disc of light surrounding head of a saint (the angels always have them.) We should especially look at the angels, because if you can remember in Marathon, the first splash screen says: "somewhere in the heavens...they are waiting" They are waiting indeed, and maybe now they will come? Note also the reference to an angel in the Cortana transcripts: I have walked the edge of the Abyss. I have governed the unwilling. I have witnessed countless empires break before me. I have seen the most courageous soldiers fall away in fear. [I was there with the Angel at the tomb]

May 22, 1999

Joshua Jansen <ejansen@yahoo.com> points out that the Halo/Blam graphic seen over the last few days at mythii.com has gone. Phhht! Just like that. Joshua remarks: i'm betting that this (Halo) is considered a SNAFU at bungie, the reason they took it off.

May 25, 1999

Sam Clark <samclark@hotmail.com> writes Check out the BLAM reference in Rob McLees's rant at Bungie's soapbox. It was put up on Jan 21, 1997. Rob McLees wrote in his Soapbox article: "so I snuck up behind him and BLAM... that was cool"

May 27, 1999

More Blam News. Back in May 19, 1998 Alex Rosenberg (formerly of Bungie Software) wrote to the Story page saying: Bungie recently registered blam.org and blam.net with the Internic. It clearly has something to do with the conspiracy. ;) Simon Brownlee followed this up and found that blam.org and blam.net were in fact registered by Bungie back in Mar '98. The big question at the time was what were Bungie up to? Of course we now know... or do we? Sarwat Khan <sarwat@interlog.com> points out that while blam.org and blam.net are still registered by Bungie the name Halo isn't. It has been suggested that Halo was another (real?) name for Blam. Of course this could be mere speculation. But what is odd about all this is that Blam is suppose to be a codename. If it is and Bungie release a game with a different title then why did Bungie bother to register blam.org and blam.net in the first place? Something to think about. ;-)

May 28, 1999

Joshua Jansen <jejansen@yahoo.com> writes: Just one thing Go to http://www.bungie.net BLAM! Your Mom... Dink!, Do I have to say more? check the polls quick (as they change daily) and, by the way, they are watching.

June 1, 1999

Since this has become something of a FAQ in the last few months I have created a blam page to gather together all the submissions to the Story page on the subject of blam. Many thanks to all those who wrote in. This section is dedicated to you. Enjoy. Check out the Blam sites at: blam.bungie.org core.gamestats.com mojo.fortunecity.com/blam More Halo business at www.mythii.com

June 4, 1999

Bungie have posted an E3 movie with some interesting behind the scenes shots. You'll find a link on www.bungie.net or try ftp.bungie.com/pub/movies/ The Blam Boys are at it again. This time they've posted some News. Nice find. They're also messing with the graphics again.

June 8, 1999

Onicore have put up an interesting interview with Bungie West members Quinn Sandra Dunki (AI programmer) and David Dunn (3D artist/level designer). One comment by David Dunn is of interest to Blam fans: Darkus: Have you ever come across something in a game that just blows your mind, and what was it? Dunn: Well when I first came to Bungie I really wasn't a gamer so everything about games and how advanced they were compared to what I'd imagined them to be kind of blew my mind. Now that I've played a bunch now and have become thoroughly jaded it's much harder to wow me. I was impressed with the amount of detail in the scripting that the Valve people did for Half-Life and with how much fun the teamplay is in Team Fortress Classic as well as the raw speed of Q3A. Recently I was totally blown away by the other new Bungie project under construction, but I can't say why. (Sorry, company rules) hehehe... rules? What's all this about rules?

June 18, 1999

Etienne Després <heady@videotron.ca> writes: Here's the message you get when you register your secret email alias (see IMG's news page for details) on bungie.net: "Your bungie.net email alias is now active. A confirmation letter has been sent via your alias account. This free service was brought to you by Bungie Software, bungie.net, and the letter blamma. Thank you. Have a nice day." Letter Blamma eh?

June 19, 1999

Nathan Scheck <SScheck@aol.com> writes concerning "the letter blamma" mentioned when you register for a bungie.net email alias on bungie.net: In the "Blasts from the Past" section, under "Early Marathon usenet humor", is the document that explains the "TRUE Story behind the Marathon delay". Here is an excerpt: 2:19PM There are new features to test, but programmers pour through reference materials to find out which letter follows zeta. 2:25PM In state of panic, a new letter is created, 'blamma'. The blamma version is posted on the mainframe, and random lots are drawn to determine the next lucky c.s.m.g. subscriber to receive it in their mailbox without even asking for it. It's fun! Yes this comp.sys.mac.games post by David Barabe dates back to Nov 1994 long before Rob McLees joined Bungie and introduced the word "blam" into the Bungie lexicon. Seems that Bungie have also taken a shining to the word "blamma" as well. Back in '94 the word described perfectly the online madness caused by long delays and leaked Marathon betas. Ah those were the days! ;-)

June 20, 1999

Not another "blam" sighting at the Story page? Omer Shenker <imperator@myther.com> found another piece of usenet humor from Dec '94 with a reference to Bungie and "blam". You can see it at here. The author of the comp.sys.mac.games post Omer refers to is Tim Thomas and it pokes fun at Bungie's long delay at getting Marathon out and the leaked betas. They shoot beta testers don't they? ;-)

June 23, 1999

Blam! Cola? Mike Gilley <nssa@erols.com> sends in a screenshot from a game called HyperBlade. In it is an ad for Blam!. Mike writes: The Screen Shot is from when I was playing in the Gauntlet of Hyper Blade It is made by Activision for the PC(Windows95). I don't know if the is a Mac version out... I hope there is. The game was released in fall of 96 and here is the site: http://www4.activision.com/games/hyperblade/

June 25, 1999

More Oni news. Chelsea Bridge (MGL Contributing Writer) writes to say that he has just posted an interview with Lorraine Reyes (Art Director/Creative Director of Marketing at Bungie Software). The interview focuses on Oni and Lorraine's artwork. You can read it at http://macledge.com/interviews/oni-reyes/index.chtml At the end of the interview Lorraine indicates that her next project will be Blam!

June 27, 1999

Another Blam sighting! Omer Shenker <imperator@myther.com> writes: I don't remember if this has been mentioned, but Acrappa pointed me to a Blam Sighting in the Myth: TFL manual. If you look at the screenshot on page 30, you'll notice a 4-person coop on Crow's Bridge named "blam ding". Blam... It's Everywhere! ;-)

July 7, 1999

Blam tidbit from MacAddict. Chris Camacho <chrispynacho@earthlink.net> writes: August/99 MacAddict (#36) Section : Power Play Page : 74 E3 and Macs - Two Great Tastes [here's the relevant bit] Although companies made tons of Mac game announcements during E3 -- we've chronicled our top 10 favorites below -- the coolest, most exciting thing that we saw we can't talk about, other than to say that it's from Bungie, and it's going to be very, very cool. Bungie could (and did) show us more of Oni, which combines the ease of first-person shooters with wild hand-to-hand fighting moves normally reserved for games such as Mortal Kombat. The latest builds look great, and play great as well. All that a bag o' anime-style rendered characters? Count us in. Note the line... the coolest, most exciting thing that we saw we can't talk about, other than to say that it's from Bungie, and it's going to be very, very cool. More Blam for your money! James Lanfear <jclanfear@presys.com> writes: Game-Interviews.com has an interview (imagine that ;-) with Alex Okita at http://www.game-interviews.com/miniviews/oni.htm. It's mostly about Oni, but the last question is kinda interesting: "Myth 3 anytime soon?" "AO: Quite frankly I don't know. There's little projects going on, I don't know too much information about either of them. I haven't even seen the coolest stuff yet" So this tells us 1) Something interesting is happening at Bungie, and apparently they aren't even telling their own people about it. 2) It probably isn't a Myth sequel. And 3) "projects" and "either"; two, then. (BTW, the -795th anniversary of the attack on the Marathon is coming up, we should have a party ;-)

July 8, 1999

Hot on the heels of the fifth Cortana letter we now have... Blam demo by January? Ike Gilbert <igilbert@scf-fs.usc.edu> writes: This was posted on www.macosrumors.com in a report on the forthcoming OS X, discussing game demos that will most likely be bundled on the CD: Details are lacking, but the boys at Bungie have often hinted that Myth II, Oni, and their top-secret "next big thing" (dreams of Marathon III abound, but our friends at Bungie aren't particularly forthcoming -- and we don't blame them!) may be ready in time if Apple provides them with enough tools, testbeds, and information about what game developers can expect from Quartz, OS X's graphics system. OS X is slated for release in January 2000, which means Bungie will release a playable Blam demo in less than 6 months!

July 9, 1999

Barrel Launched Adaptive Munition (BLAM). A bullet that can duck around corners to find its mark? James Gurnee <harness@access1.net> provides some interesting URLs relating the USAF's Blam Project. James writes: "Barrel Launched Adaptive Munition" http://www.eng.auburn.edu/department/ae/labinfo/AAL/blam.html http://www.eng.auburn.edu/department/ae/labinfo/AAL/blam_concept.html http://www.eng.auburn.edu/department/ae/labinfo/AAL/blam_work.html http://www.eng.auburn.edu/department/ae/labinfo/AAL/blam_future.html An ABCNews report on the subject: http://archive.abcnews.go.com/sections/science/MadRad/madrad0920.html

July 21, 1999

Chris Camacho <chrispynacho@earthlink.net> writes:

This may be a little late, but go to the Bungie Events page (http://www.bungie.com/inside/Events.html). Historical Monument No.7? What's that?

The full text on Bungie's Events page reads:

MacWorld Expo
July 21-23, New York, NY
We'll be stompin' around the show floor screaming obscenities and yelling "Blam! Blam! Blam!" so be sure not to miss it. Plus you can get your hands on our Sack for the first time-we're selling the Mac Action Sack directly from our booth. Six of our best selling action titles, including the entire Marathon trilogy, for under $20 bucks! Of course we'll also be showing off Oni, hosting thrilling deathmatches over our network. Come to the show... fight vicous 3rd-person battles... worship Historical Monument No. 7... cower in awe of our sack!

July 22, 1999

Thanks to Jane Vardaro <jvardaro@erols.com>, Dalan Galma <dalangalma@tmbg.org>, Stefan Stadlberger <stadlberger@yadur.com> and a host of others for pointing out that the Soul is a little more informative when you ask it about "Halo" and "Blam". Question: What is Blam? The Soul says: Blam is the codename for Halo, the latest action game from the creators of Myth and Marathon.

Aug 18, 1999

I pinched this off the halo.bungie.org forums. Guido Baldoni <pacoman@telemacus.it> posted the following interesting Halo tidbit: On halo-demo.mov, at 00:00, what is the name of the application that appears at the top of the screen? Blam 32?? or what?

Aug 19, 1999

Miguel Chavez <jmchavez@aol.com> writes concerning yesterday's "Blam 32" Halo tidbit from halo.bungie.org: I can say with almost 100% certainty that the application name "Blam 32" refers to the bitdepth of the game. I recall Joseph Statton saying as much when he showed me the demo personally: (paraphrasing) "The textures you're looking at are 32-bit lo-res images" I imagine they have a Blam 16 also handy in case they want to show Halo running a little faster or for lower-powered machines.

Sept 17, 1999

Both Miguel Chavez <JMChavez@aol.com> and Alan Greene <alan@rifted.com> write to point out that Bungie have posted a series of pics from their annual company picnic: Bungie Picnic Madness. Miguel writes: Also, ALERT: notice in the play-by-play reporting the continous mention of: "team formerly known as Myth II" Hmm, I wonder what this group is REALLY called nowadays? Similarly Alan writes: ... one of the teams competing in the Tug of War was "the Team formerly known as Myth II". Well, what are they now? Something not to be revealed? :) Note that the Halo team pic is called blam.gif. Can you put a name to the faces on the Halo team? Where's Nathan?

Nov 28, 1999

Tim Milke <tmilke1@rochester.rr.com> and David Retchless <tretchless@home.net> both point out that the letters on the bottom of the Abuse box are MOMDINKBLAM. This doesn't appear to be an acronym but rather a combination of some of Bungie's favorite expressions.

Dec 2, 1999

Cortana reference in Oni? David Leong <wateya@taiko.com> writes: I don't know if this has been covered before, but perhaps this is of interest. I got out my Oni notepad tonight (the freebie from the Action Sack) and the faint Kanji (Japanese characters) caught my eye. Behind the image of Konoko there are faint vertical lines of Japanese text faintly visable. Faintly is the operating word here. There are several words seperated by ones and zeros in each line. After squinting at these line for a while, I managed to translate a couple of them. Now these lines repeat, both within the "sentence" and also across the page. So while there looks like there are about 20 lines or so, there are only six unique "sentences" that I can pick out. They are: shinrai ni atai suru hito inai (there is no one I can trust) kiki (this is the Oni kanji repeated twice) ... kurai shorai (dark future) kako no aru onna (a woman with a past) furu kontakuto akushon (full contact action) buramu (blam) korutana (cortana) warui keikan (bad cop) I don't know but I suspect this is the same kanji used in the trailer. There are a number of versions of the Oni notepaper. Here are Mike Cramer's <jupiter6@flash.net> Oni notepaper scans (Lo-res and Hi-res) and Samantha Lynn's <jeremiasd@earthlink.net> Oni notepaper scan. Got a different version? Then send it in.

Dec 3, 1999

Many thanks to David Leong <wateya@taiko.com> and Michael Lake <beorn@thegrid.net> for both sending in scans of a third version of the Oni notepaper. You can see it here. This is the version Harry Al-Shakarchi described back in Sept 18, 1999 but we didn't have a scan of it. Yesterday David noted (excuse the pun) that one of the Kanji lines on the notepaper reads: buramu (blam) korutana (cortana) Other versions of the notepaper can be found here and here. Thanks to Mike Cramer and Samantha Lynn for these. David writes: The kanji on all three are exactly the same, down to the position of the individual characters. It just looks like they dropped in a different picture of Konoko on all three versions.

Jan 18, 2000

Ben Reiter <ben.reiter@voyager.net> writes concerning a Blam reference in the recently released Marathon 2 source code: Found this in weapons.c (part of the weapon firing sequence that plays a sound when a weapon is fired): /* Blam */ play_weapon_sound(player_index, trigger_definition->firing_sound, FIXED_ONE);

Jan 23, 2000 (Sunday)

Another Blam reference in Halo. Mike Schapiro <mikeschappy@ameritech.net> writes:

Hmmm.... In the shot of the marine with the minigun, the top right corner of the HUD changes slightly. If you look at it double sized, it looks faintly like it could be saying "Blam!" Perhaps the "You Killed Sumpin'!" message in the version bungie has right now?

You can see the screenshot Mike is referring to here. Note the letters at the top left.

Jan 24, 2000 (Monday)

Concerning yesterday's Halo screenshot with the words "Blam" Miguel Chavez <JMChavez@aol.com> writes:

Thought I'd drop a line and offer what little insight I can. I was fortunate enough to be looking over Joe's shoulder (with his permission of course!) when he was playing with the latest Halo build. The word BLAM seems to be 'fill-in' for the name of the weapon you are using. At one point Joe pressed a key that filled the left side of his screen with several translucent weapon 'slots', all saying BLAM and each highlighting as he switched between several weapons.

Jan 31, 2000 (Monday)

Another Blam reference. Jacob Aberg <Jacob_Aberg@excite.com> writes:

I also found another "Blam" reference in the Minotaur Read Me file, describing a Minotaur multiplayer game:

Alex: "Hey Jason, what number do you have?"

Jason: "Number 5."

Alex: "Chucky?"

Chucky: "Number 4."

Alex: "Err...no good dude, I have number 4 too."

Chucky: "Then switch, fool."

Alex: "(CENSORED) me! I'm the host. You switch numbers!"

Chucky: "Oh yeah? Well you can (CENSORED) me too! Number 4 is my favorite!"

Jason: "It doesn't matter which number you have, chump. I'm gonna spank you anyway."

Alex: "Hee hee"

Chucky: "Fine, fine. I'll switch to number 2. Bunch of whining...(incoherent grumbling)"

Alex: "Sweet. Here we go...prepare to diiiiie!!"

Jason: "BLAM!"

Mar 21, 2000 (Tuesday)

Troy Lawlor <articape@alaska.net> writes:

Not sure if this has been mentioned, but...

I got out my old Myth: TFL CD and remembered an old Blam refrence (that seems to have been largely forgotten) I had found and submitted to the Total Codex oh so long ago... and after doing a bit of research found it again.

The passage is at address 86D080 in tags.gor. It's nestled in the level code for Myth 1's secret level, "A Long Awaited Party":

"balanced skill and time just about
right, so can i forget Colony Ship
after All Roads Lead to Sol and, now,
The Great Devoid? the guilt has been
pursuing me like a cloud a angry
hornets for, ah, how many years is
that now? three? four?

18 (this one, mocking Tolkien) is my
last level for myth and it's getting a
little of the cut and paste treatment
like you'd expect. mark and i really
brought it together on 25, though, so
don't judge us by this one.

blam."

Anyway, it's just a little passage that's noteworthy if only for sentiment. It's obvious that Jason Jones is writing, and the fact that he made The Great Devoid may strike a chord with the comments Matt made about the Devoid relating to Marathon. The one that sticks out, of course, is the "blam." at the end. Funny that Jason would be writing that word while still hammering out Myth levels. It also is a little horrifying to think what challenges he'll bring to Halo... here's hoping your final goal in Halo isn't to run about the entire ring flipping switches with precise timing to raise platforms to your escape craft.