Staff Picks
Minigame Competition
A while ago, we mentioned that we had 5 more Avatar Ghost codes to give away after the minigame competition had finished. Today, we're announcing the competition's Staff Picks - a collection of favorite minigames from that competition that were enjoyed, personally, by some of the staff members. If you entered a map into the competition, and didn't make it into the finals or semi-finals, you've still got a chance at taking away some sweet avatar goodness! Read below to see if you've won! 
Insane54's Pick - Kamikaze Banshees by Rabid MidgetMan
Although it narrowly got knocked out of Group 2 in the first round by Circumvention, I really love the mix of originality, simplicity, and detail put into Kamikaze Banshees. As the Flood, try to fly Banshees into humans, killing them with the ensuing explosion (if you've been living under a rock, the Banshee explosion is surprisingly awesome). On the human side, your goal is to destroy and dodge the incoming Banshees before they get close enough to you to kill, using ordinance and heavy weaponry. The game is surprisingly deep and decently balanced, and it is a challenge on both sides -- teamwork is rewarded, but not too much that it isn't fun for both sides. The game is full of explosions, splatters, chaos, and laughter, but at the same time, there are definitely strategic and skill factors involved. Unfortunately, the map isn't exactly visually stunning, and there's not really any distinctive structures on either side. This makes the map feel a little tired, and it really hurts potential communication among your team members. However, regardless of aesthetic complaints, this is one of the best games I saw in the competition -- with a little visual sprucing up, this could easily be a standard staple of any Halo 4 minigame lobby.
xAudienceofone's Pick - Ultimate- by Vincent Torre
The ultimate game is not afraid to call itself what it truly is. It holds its head high, even if others look down on it, and it knows that it is the superior throwing-and-catching game. Vincent Torre's Halo version of this brutal and unforgiving battle is among the best things I've yet played in Halo 4. It promotes teamwork and brutal strategy and cunning. For these reasons, and possibly others I cannot think of at the moment, Ultimate is my Staff Pick.
Dax's Pick - Trajectory Range - by Indie Anthias
As I understand it, this was a map that was previously very popular during Halo: Reach, to be remade for Halo 4 by Indie Anthias. In Halo 4, this time around, the addition of binary rifles make for some really neat laser shows. Even if you're bad at the game, it was just a beautiful map to mess around on. While one team stood by, shooting at the passing players, it was good fun to either try your hand at long-range moving-target sniping, or close your eyes and pray for a snapshot. Good times are had when somebody's bound to scream "SNAPSHOT! WHOOOOO!" and it's just generally a great way to pass the time. Even for the targets, the team flying past with the flags, the game was buckets of fun. As a flag carrier, you get a real rush of adrenaline with binary blasts and lasers flying past you, and you still manage to score a goal. Even if you're not carrying the flag, you can try your hardest at sniping the offensive team, and defend your carrier as you fly right past with them. All in all, Trajectory Range is a real bunch of fun, and I really enjoyed playing it!
Free your friends was one of those games that feels simple, but also leaves room for a lot of strategy. The mechanics of rescuing your friends once they die leaves a lot of room for teamwork, planning, and even team roles and positions! I'm honestly don't know why this isn't a more popular competitive sport than Grifball - it's just so goood!
Gyramind is just one of those minigames that does well to embody what makes Halo 4 minigames so fun. The rush, the laughter, and of course the clever use of Halo 4 gravity volumes. As a player, it's a mighty confusing experience to be worried about falling up rather than down. It's just so weird! Anyway, the whole piece of novelty was a great laugh for the entire party, as defenders scream, shimmy, and boost their way to survival. Survive long enough, and they get a chance at taking out their tormentor. Great rewards! Even as a human, where you're shooting concussion shots at the squirming flood, the minigame is a load of fun as you hear your efforts directly freak out the rest of the lobby. Once again, this is just one of those maps that you can load up with a bunch of friends, and immediately have a good time.
Congratulations to all the winners, and thanks for the fun times! You should find that Ghost Code sitting in your inbox. Enjoy!
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