Microsoft developing live-action ‘Halo’ series for new XBox One console

On Tuesday, Microsoft lifted the veil on its brand-new, super-powerful, and ridiculously-named new gaming console XBox One, which we are around 95% certainly will melt the faces off of anyone who touches it when it hits shelves later this year.

We’re not a gaming site, though, so the point of this article is not to ogle the specs or its lineup of games (although we are doing that in our off time). Instead, we want to talk about the breaking news that a live-action version of the popular “Halo” game series is being developed for the console, with the help of executive producer Steven Spielberg. (This news was first reported by Variety.)

While it is extremely unlikely (as in impossible) that this series will be ready for launch anytime soon, it does show that the company, much like Netflix and Amazon, is trying to make a large push to produce original, scripted content on its streaming service. For them, this is a fantastic idea, since it offers a revenue stream that they do not have to share with anyone thanks to XBox Live subscriptions. For the consumer, not so much. It’s hard to particularly endorse any idea that requires a TV buff to not only have a premium cable package, but also Netflix, Amazon Prime, and now XBox Live in order to enjoy as much quality content as they want. You could make the argument that not everyone is going to want to check out every series in the same way that movies are not viewed by everyone, but it takes away some of the accessibility that was long touted as to why TV was so special as a medium in the first place. It was a unified of all walks of life and now it is turning into a model where only the truly wealthy can have their cake and eat it too.

If you want to take a look at some of the network content that is being produced for the fall, and that does not require some sort of additional subscription package, all you have to do is click here.

Photo: Microsoft