Remember Nathanial? Microsoft’s repair center senseless erased the valuable signatures and cool artwork he had painstakingly collected on his XBox 360. When Bungie, the maker of Halo, saw what happened, they wanted to help—even though they had nothing to do with the calamity. They decided to ship Nathanial an awesome swag bag stuffed with signature-adorned freebies.
The bag contained:
- Legendary Edition Helmet signed by most-if not all-of the studio staff
- Halo 3 Soundtrack (two disc) signed by Marty O’Donnel (with “DO NOT ERASE!” written under his name)
- Bungie Jacket
- Bungie T-Shirt
- Halo 3 Messenger Bag
- Two Halo 3 Limited Edition Wireless Controllers (one covenant, one human)
- Halo 3 Faceplate and Skins for Xbox 360
- Four McFarlane Action Figures (MC, EVA Spartan, Brute Chieftan, Jackal Sniper)
- Halo Actionclix Preview pack (Target exclusive sticker on the front)
- Halo Actionclix Game Pack 4
- Halo 3 Wall Graffix
- Halo 3: Ghosts of Onyx Novel
- Halo Graphic Novel
- Halo 3 Wristband
- Halo 3 Hackeysack
Nathanial is quite satisfied. In a letter to the gaming community he wrote, in part:
And finally, to the staff of Bungie Studios:I cannot thank you enough for the outpouring of support that you have lavished upon me in the aftermath of the release of my story. Long have I known of your dedication to your fans and community, but I find this single act of kindness mind boggling. Apart from the fact that a few of you had signatures adorning my console, you had no involvement in what occurred. As such, you have far surpassed any response I could have anticipated. I don’t think I could ever repay you for this.
Thank you all for what you have done for me. I wish each and every one of you continued success in your future endeavors.
P.S. Marty, I love the soundtrack, and I promise you that I will do as you’ve requested and not erase any of it.
Thanks, Bungie, for showing us that gaming isn’t just about blasting apart marauding alien invaders. No, it’s about heart, too.
Nathanial’s full letter and more pictures of the swag are posted on Hawty McBloggy.
Bungie Unscrews Previously Screwed Gamer [Hawty McBloggy]
PREVIOUSLY: Microsoft Scrubs All The Valuable Signatures And Artwork Off Your XBOX 360 Case
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I sure hope this kid isnt pulling the con of the century since there is some dispute about how damaged his console was before he sent it off and how when he got it back there was no said dents.
Fact is, Bungie was a Mac game maker, and a wildly successful one. Prior to the buyout they had produced one game for Windows 95 (Marathon 2). Microsoft made a wildly inflated offer to buy Bungie. The offer was accepted, which effectively killed Mac gaming and provided Microsoft with a “star” game developer for their upcoming console.
So, with a little money (by MS standards) Redmond accomplished two things that were fairly high on their priorities list.
@clevershark: the investment certainly paid off. the halo series propelled both iterations of their console thus far. i must admit that i traded in my gamecube & a stack of not-so-fun games for a halo special edition xbox. i’ve played all 3 & in true bungie style – they are solid games. some people critique them heavily & harp on the slightest flaw, but they are really great games.
fyi, marathon 2 wasn’t their only pc game. the widely popular myth series was also released on windows platform.
marathon was well ahead of its time – while the pc fps industry was focusing on lone space marines delving into weak story lines, bungie succeeded in intertwining a massive plot – marathon wasn’t just a game; it was an epic space story. & the inclusion of forge & anvil in infinity was a revolutionary step by a developer.
perhaps if apple had realized the ingenuity of the team, they would have ponied up some cash to block the buyout. it could be argued that jobs’ absence from the company in the early 90′s led them astray from the importance that gaming had on their community. regardless, history is history. perhaps their new found freedom will usher in a new era of mac gaming.
What a nice ending to that. Again its good to see there are people in the industry who have plenty of heart.
@mac-phisto: Good point, I had totally forgotten about Myth.
The Halo series (1 and 2 at least) still has stylistic remnants of the old Marathon games, especially when it comes to the environment design.
That’s very classy of them, which is in tune with how Bungie’s always been, and i’m not even a gamer. (I did however work with them on some network latency issues, in the spirit of full disclosure.)
The DO NOT ERASE is truly hilarious. And yes, though i’m an Apple geek, they were forthright that the MS buyout created the pressure and they gave in, taking responsibility when they didn’t really have to. Just like in this case. MS might eventually “come up” with an answer, but Bungie poured its cute little gaming heart out when they so didn’t have to, and that’s pure awesome.
I’ve always respected Bungie for their spectacular influence on gaming even though I’m not a big fan of the Halo Series. This just takes my respect for them that much higher.
Bungie, you have restored some of my faith in humanity today. Thank you for your warm generosity and kindness. P.S. Halo 3 ROCKS!!!
WOAH think of all the street cred this kid is gonna get while wearing his
# Bungie Jacket
# Bungie T-Shirt
# Halo 3 Messenger Bag
# Halo 3 Wristband
All while playing with his
# Halo 3 Hackeysack
While listening to his
Halo 3 Soundtrack (two disc) signed by Marty O’Donnel (with “DO NOT ERASE!” written under his name)
In other words he is a freakin walking billboard
nice ending, congratulations.
So how long till gamerboy sends this stuff uninsured over the mail somewhere, or leaves it in an unlocked car at a gamecon, or where he lives (his parents’ basement) floods and it’s all hosed. How long until he otherwise loses/ruins it?
My point being, had he insured his original collectible art specifically under a personal articles policy, he would have recourse for the loss by MS (other than crying on the webs). Did he learn anything from the first cruel lesson?
My guess is probably not. Rock on dude, you got a free pass this time, now grow up and protect the things you value a little bit.
I wouldn’t have sent the unit in to be repaired by those Micro$oft goons, given that the artwork was more valuable than the cost of another xbox. However, it would be nice to see those smug pricks apologize.
Wow! Sweet!
Those guys at Bungie rock…!
HA! That’s PR at its best! Nice work.
Also not a big Halo fan, but this is just a hardcore classy move. Huge props.
@mac-phisto: Nice overview of Bungie’s history, btw. Tip o’ the hat, sir.
And, for the record, I’m a yammering village idiot brandishing a torch in one hand and a pitchfork in the other when Apple blows it. Power supplies, batteries, etc. It’s just that it’s a rare occasion. Esp compared to MS, Dell, etc. (shrug)
Bungie rocks! Microsoft’s Xbox 360 support infrastructure takes another slap in the face.
Wow, I consider myself to be a pretty cold-hearted bastard however this article manages to make me smile. Good work Bungie. Thanks Consumerist for bringing it to our attention.
Holy Smokes! I feel like saying thank you to Bungie! WTF? I don’t know what else to say. Are we sure MSFT isn’t doing this as a PR stunt?
I have no interest in video games but Im going to buy SOMETHING from Bungie right now. This level of customer involvement and appreciation must be applauded!
Alright, that’s awesome that he got a ton of stuff that’s actually worth something when his original console was… fucking worthless!
Get a clue, no one would buy your console with some legit autographs, mostly autographs from friends, and “fan art.” That’s worth about as much as me signing a Michael Jordan card that he’s already signed, and also I’ll draw a funny little mustache on him for you! Plus, no one actually cares that a few Bungie people signed it, so any value for the original console was based entirely on that fanboy’s nostalgia, which we all know is completely worthless (if not, I have a collection of old Mac’s and Nintendo games that will surely fetch a darling price).
P.S. Fuck you Bungie, you bailed on the platform that made you into an actual company, Mac OS. Yeah, none of you remember, so what? Where do you think Halo came from, if not Marathon? You sold out to the MAIN COMPETITOR of the company that made it possible for you to eat food, buy cars, and sleep with expensive prostitutes. Seriously, fuck you Bungie.
P.S.S. Make Halo 4 Mac OS exclusive and you’re forgiven.
Aww. Bungie hasn’t lost it’s soul.
But I AM still waiting for my Marathon Infinity sequel on teh Apples……..
@wav3form: You come on a consumer website and deride someone for being a consumer, and that’s not trolling how?