June 30, 2004 (Wednesday)

As mentioned in this Story forum post it would seem that from the latest issue of Weird magazine (July) that a UK gaming company is using Craig Mullins' opening screen to Marathon 2 to promote their upcoming game "Triangle". Claude Errera <errera@bungie.org> kindly scanned in the page in question from his copy of Wired magazine. You can see it here (191K).

June 4, 2004 (Friday)

Bungie Box Acronyms... they're back! The mysterious Enkidu <enkidu@bungie.org> writes in a Story forum post:

Is this the appropriate time to mention that HaloPC has a box acronym of its own? (Just reviewed that section of the story page, didn't see it mentioned... and didn't think to look until your post.)

ILWNL

Your guess is as good as mine!

May 30, 2004 (Sunday)

Joshua Bell <inexorabletash@hotmail.com> writes:

On Bungie.net's new Marathon pages (http://www.bungie.net/Games/Marathon/) if you click on Wallpapers there's a version of the Lh'owon chapter screen art by Mullins. The image is titled "Vic on a real bad day"

I searched your story site with Google - no mention of "Vic" anywhere. Is "Vic" a known name or slang for anything or anyone in the Marathon universe? Bear in mind that I've never seen the physical manual - I purchased the Action Sack to play the games with Aleph One - so it might be sitting on the first page in bold print.

Anyway, just curious - is "The Marine" named Vic?

("Vic" being typically slang for "victim", it's kinda catchy. Better than Master Chief any day.)

Tim Branin <Sonofhydra@aol.com> writes:

As you may be aware there is a web site called Homestarrunner.com. What it is, basically, is an online cartoon show updated weekly focusing around a collection of zany characters, the foremost of which is the lovable dimwit Homestar Runner. Again, if you already know what I'm talking about you might as well disregard the previous paragraph, if not I strongly suggest you Click the following link Everybody! Everybody! before continuing on with this E-mail.

Anyway, back to the business at hand. Using a Wallpaper JPEG provided by the site, Photo Shop, and my own mediocre drawing abilities, I have cruelly transformed all 11 original characters into Marathon characters. I had to do some stretching to fit to combine some characters but I feel It worked out quite well. Homestar looks quite dashing as the security officer, and Strong Mad was a perfect Yeti. I did end up having to use the S'pht compiler twice, but M1 Minor Coach Z, and M2/° Major King of Town still look great. All in all this is definitely worth updating the site for.

P.S. Here's a link to the original picture before I butchered it. http://homestarrunner.com/wallpapers/everybody1.jpg

Graham Lasseter <tyr02@hotmail.com> writes concerning the level name "Eat the Path":

Just writing for another interpretation of the level name Eat the Path. Made me think of Hansel and Gretel who used food to makeÊa path to return. If you eat the path you dont how to get out. Theres no going back. Kinda fitting for a mazey level i thought.

Ibrahim Halim <monotoilet@yahoo.co.in> writes concerning That Marathon Book:

Yes. That Marathon book. I was browsing your site for the of six of the seven remaining when I came across something interesting. The third Marathon book, titled "Homecoming" features an A.I. by the name of "Ozymandias".

This name is the subject of a poem.

"And on the pedestal the words appear:
'My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
look upon my works, ye mighty, and dispair!'
Nothing beside remains.
'Round the
Decay of that colossal wreck
Boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away."
-P.B. Shelly, 1817

The imagery is vaguely familiar... as if from an old dream.

May 11, 2004 (Tuesday)

On the Story forum... did Marathon Infinity predict Matrix Reloaded? Some interesting parallels between the mysterious dream terminals in Marathon Infinity and the Agent Smith clones in the Matrix Reloaded and Matrix Revolutions. And yes... the similarities are uncanny.

May 5, 2004 (Wednesday)

Thanks to all those who have written in about the odd goings on at enkidu.bungie.org. Some have likened it to Cortana Letters back in early 1999. You can find a very good summary of the Enkidu saga in this HBO forum post. There's also some discussion on the subject on the Story forum here and here. Nathaniel Rhein <space-cowboy@sbcglobal.net> notes that Enkidu is the name of Gilgamesh's companion.

Jeff N <jeffnosanov@yahoo.com> writes:

I signed up for a newsletter from Square Enix and I received a free PS2 game demo. The game is Front Mission 4, and it is about a future world where war is fought with, what else, giant fighting robots. However, interestingly enough, the institute that develops these machines for the European Union is called "Durandal".

Also on the Story forum

Those Story forum T-shirts are on there way... have you got one?s

And polyurethane Marathon keychains... what about those original 3ozs of killer steel?

And Red 1.1... join the discussion on the Story forum.

May 1, 2004 (Saturday)

Devin Sanera <ambrosia512@mac.com> writes concerning Robert Blake. See the Robert Blake section

A possible seventh ending on the Pathways Into Darkness page.