Spotlight: December 14, 2023
Welcome to our final Spotlight issue for 2023!
Once more, with feeling—let's take a look at a selection of the incredible artwork that the community has been creating recently.
CRÈME DE LA CRÈME
Kicking things off, we have this stunning piece from TexD41 that pays tribute to the Halo Legends episode "Prototype"—a story that, in many ways, feels like it laid some of the groundwork for the themes and ideas that would be explored around the Master Chief in Halo 4 and beyond.
Next up, voidspawn01 has blessed us with this incredible portrait of the Weapon. It seems that today also happens to be voidspawn's birthday, so let's all send her our very best wishes!
Buzboz takes the concept of a Flood-infected Spartan in a gloriously macabre direction! The shattered visor looking like sharp teeth in terrifying maw? Brilliant!
AAAAHHHHHWUBADUGH!! ezmozstawmezididle. WAAAAAAAHHHH. Wort wort wort.
No translation is required for the noises above that we all naturally made upon seeing qwertzzzxd's fantastic take on a Halo 2 Elite.
Speaking of Elites, gaze upon the glory of Jega 'Rdomnai as illustrated by Azulg_Arts... now with BOTH blades!
A wonderful thing about Halo is the communities that we find and form, the friendships that come from our shared enjoyment of various elements of this generational franchise.
On that subject: ImJ3N3R1C has put together a collage of 203 members of Women of Halo, a group dedicated to creating a safe and positive space for women and non-binary gamers in the Halo community.
Millisworlds returns with a view of the Ark, as witnessed by a certain fan-favorite Sergeant Major and his fellow Marines.
It's like a postcard!
And there's an alternative version taken under cover of night. New wallpaper: unlocked!
VALIANT VIDEOS
Mellohyelloh has made a new friend in Halo Infinite. I do hope nothing bad happens to them...
Legendary Animations has put together a combination of machinima and 3D animation for a nine-minute comedy-action short set around a multiplayer match in Halo: Reach.
Magpie Leon wants one of those newfangled Shock Rifles that people seem to be getting lots of snazzy headshots with...
HARUSPINE HANDICRAFTS
Fresh off the back of our latest Community Corner issue with GCustomsCreations, the man returns once again with a new figure of Horatius—the Jiralhanae who many consider to be the true final boss of Halo Infinite.
For Christmas, Spartan Lloyd and his husband made "Uni-Chief" for their little Spartan (feat. an assault rifle enriched with pizza toppings). One of the best things I've seen this year!
GalacticArmory has begun a great journey to build a life-sized Arbiter statue. GalacticArmory notes that he is 6'3 while Arbiter Thel 'Vadam is 8'2, just so you have some scale reference.
"Fully 3D printed in PLA on CR-10v2 printers Sanded and smoothed to 800 grit, then the armor was painted with alumaluster and the rest of the body in various colors."
Life imitates art, as you can see with negativecacti's cosplay take on their Halo Infinite Spartan (bonus points for the pose!)
"Turn, Heretic!"
"Arbiter, I would rather die by your hand than let the Prophets lead me to slaughter."
"Who has taught you these lies?"
Lord Zoinks has recreated the confrontation between Arbiter Thel 'Vadam and Heretic leader Sesa 'Refumee from Halo 2 in miniature toy form with exquisite attention to detail!
Jess of OSDesignShop has concocted another jar of awesomeness, featuring a pink cat-eared Spartan helmet that also glows in the dark.
WATERCOLOR WONDERS
Have you ever wondered how watercolor and oil canvas paintings and Halo gameplay screenshots go together?
ArtistRyker has painted these two gorgeous pieces inspired by Halo 3, from Forge on Valhalla to the epic final Warthog Run in the campaign.
"For my painting class, we had a project that was memory based and could be literally anything. Thought it would be interesting to paint a Halo Reach split screen memory my good friend and I had playing on this map called Ellul, where we sat in corners with active camo and energy swords. Thought someone might appreciate this!"
A GATHERING OF GREATNESS
FIN
And that's a wrap on the Halo Spotlight for 2023.
A huge thank you and endless awe goes out to the passionate and talented folks in our community who dedicate their time and talent towards artistically expressing their love for the Halo universe. These Spotlights happen because of you—whether you're a seasoned artist or just picking up a pen to draw for the first time, sharing your creations is a joy and privilege unto itself.
All of you who had something featured in this installment should be sure to fill out the submission form so we can grant you your Unicorn of Fire rewards!
See you in 2024!