New Halo game given huge map creation mode

(All rights reserved - Microsoft Game Studios / Bungie)

Bungie, creator of the best-selling Halo franchise, has revealed further details regarding the next (and final) game in the series, Halo: Reach, blowing the barn doors wide open on an improved map creation mode named 'Forge 2.0'.

The company used its presentation slot at San Diego's Comic-Con event on July 22 to go over improvements made to the original Forge toolset included in 2007's Halo 3.

Instead of making five separate multiplayer maps that players could tinker around with, lead designers at Bungie decided to connect them all up, making one massive play area centered around the series' classic environment Blood Gulch.

The new mode should keep fans happy for some time, given that after the September 14 release of Halo: Reach, Bungie is set to work on an entirely new project for new publishing partners Activision.

Big-name rivals in the first-person shooter genre are saving themselves for later in the year. Activision's own Call of Duty: Black Ops is out on November 9 and Electronic Arts' Medal of Honor follows on October 12.

Both are expected to be hits on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC, while Halo: Reach is exclusive to Microsoft platforms. In fact, Microsoft is also bringing out a Reach-themed edition of the Xbox 360 as a result of the current deal with Bungie.

A developer walkthrough for Halo: Reach's Forge 2.0 can be seen at YouTube.com/user/Bungie.