Halo Studios has shared a big batch of new details for Halo Fest, the franchise’s 25th anniversary celebration in Seattle this December. The latest update on Halo Waypoint covers the anniversary concert, show hours, a Halo speedrunning stage with Games Done Quick, esports, art and a new companion app.
The 25th anniversary concert
Halo Fest kicks off with the 25th anniversary concert at Benaroya Hall on Friday, December 11. The show runs from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. PT, with a 20-minute intermission, and the setlist is built to walk through 25 years of Halo music. VIP ticketholders get access to a private lounge and a page of sheet music from the concert score as a keepsake. Halo Studios also says anyone going to both the concert and the convention can pick up their convention credentials a day early at the concert, which should save some time in line the next morning.
Show schedule
The convention itself takes over the Arch Building inside the Seattle Convention Center on December 12 and 13. Halo Studios says the space is more than double the size of last year’s Halo World Championship venue.
- Saturday, December 12: VIP doors 9:30 a.m., general admission 10 a.m., closes 8 p.m.
- Sunday, December 13: VIP doors 9:30 a.m., general admission 10 a.m., closes 7:30 p.m.
Halo Games Done Quick
Games Done Quick will run its own stage across both days, which Halo Studios calls the “Super Bowl” of Halo speedrunning. The early lineup includes a Halo: Combat Evolved LASO run by Chronos, Halo 2 Any% by MrMonopoli, Halo: Reach Legendary co-op by Qup, caboose, RogerKills and Koma, and Halo Infinite All Missions Legendary by Caitlin_HR, with more to come.
Guests, esports and art
The previously announced voice cast guests are confirmed: Steve Downes (Master Chief), Jen Taylor (Cortana), Tim Dadabo (343 Guilty Spark) and Jeff Steitzer (the multiplayer announcer). Several Halo novel authors will also join panels.
On the competitive side, all eight teams invited to the HCS Invitational have accepted, with $150,000 on the line and roster lock on October 26. Open competitions for attendees add another $50,000 in prizes across multiple Halo games.
Art gets a bigger spotlight than at past events. Two dozen commissioned artists are making new Halo Fest art, which will start being revealed next week, and the show will host its first artist alley for community artists, with four artists taking part, plus an art gallery.
A Halo Fest app
New in this update is a Halo Fest mobile app for Android and iOS, due in late November. It will handle things like meet-and-greet sign-ups and include a challenge system with prizes for doing activities around the venue. Short film contest entrants also have a deadline to note: submissions close November 2.
Halo Fest comes during a big transition for the series, which has seen Halo Studios end its Canon Fodder blog while promising to finish the Halo books.
