*Halo4.co.uk Exclusive*

That's it folks. Finally we are able to announce the speculative date that Microsoft are releasing the hugely anticipated Halo 4.

In a Halo4.co.uk exclusive we are telling you readers to pencil in, cancel all dental appointments and book your holiday time for Wednesday 12th December, 2012.

We are the first, the original and the biggest to campaign for Microsoft to bring out a Halo 4 and it seems only right that we are the first to bring you this red hot gossip.

I mean - look at the picture above to see the kind of images we were releasing to promote for it back in the day. Now it feels so good that our hard work is materialising.

A source told us: "Competition in the gaming world in 2012 is going to be stifling hot with so many great titles to look out for."

"Halo is arguably the hottest property in the gaming market and it needs a date which can match its legendary status"

Our man went on to say: "December 12th is the perfect date to release Halo 4 in order to give the team at 343 enough time to put it through Beta but also to get it on to shop shelves before Christmas".

12/12/12 does seem like a fantastic date for the Halo team and we think sales are going to break all gaming records. That date alone should be stamped all over massive outdoor displays, shoppers will rush to buy a copy for Christmas and yet it still gives Microsoft enough time between now and then to iron out any bugs and to make the game truly epic.

We can't wait.

Amazon UK are currently taking pre-orders of Halo 4 over here.

Well there you have it. Halo 4: 12th December 2012? You heard it here first.

Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary's new terminals will fill in some of the background information on 343 Guilty Spark, but previously revealed ties to Halo 4 will only comprise a 'sneak peek' at ideas headed to the 2012 game, 343 industries as revealed.

343 General Manager Bonnie Ross Ziegler said in a new video: "We felt it would be an interesting opportunity to help tie the story in, so with the terminals, you'll get a couple of sneak peeks for things that we're thinking for Halo 4."

343 recently revealed how Kinect features would be integrated into Halo: CE Anniversary. The game hits Xbox 360 on 10 November.

Check out the Halo Waypoint Terminals video below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTwkrMUkNyk&feature=player_embedded

Ryan Payton is one of the narrative designers on the Halo franchise at 343 Industries. Having realized the Halo 4 being developed wasn't exactly what he hoped to make, he's decided to leave 343 to begin working on a dream project.

"I had a great run at Microsoft," Payton told Kotaku. "I don't regret one day of it. But after a few years, there came a point where I wasn't creatively excited about the project anymore."

He explained, "The Halo I wanted to build was fundamentally different and I don't think I had built enough credibility to see such a crazy endeavor through."

Payton previously worked in the games media before going to Japan and getting a job as international manager and then producer at Kojima Productions, where he played a big role in making sure Metal Gear Solid 4 controlled as well as it does. After his mother became ill, he left the company in 2008 and looked for work in the United States so he could be closer to his family. He joined Microsoft's Halo team shortly thereafter in 2008.

Even with Halo 4 not anywhere near done, he's leaving now after being inspired earlier this year by Jake Kazdal, a developer who worked at a number of companies, including EA LA on Steven Spielberg's LMNO. After that was canceled, he left EA to work on Skulls of the Shogun. According to Kotaku, seeing Kazdal work on a project he wanted to make -- and one that showed every game doesn't have to be a major triple-A project like MGS4 or Halo 4 -- planted a seed in Payton.

Payton isn't talking about what he's working on at Camouflaj just yet, though he did indicate there are two different projects in the works. Earlier today, he was featured in a talk at the Computer Entertainment Developers Conference in Yokohama, Japan entitled "My Western Game Dev Story."

"Some people say I'm crazy, but I want to make a game that one billion people play at once, and it's something that hits them harder than a great book or film," he said to Kotaku, while also acknowledging that such a thing might be decades away from being possible.

"I think time is the most valuable thing we have, and I've decided that I'm not going to waste one more day working on something that doesn't speak to my values."

TODAY Microsoft chiefs unveiled new artwork which will give fans a closer look at the 'new' Master Chief.

The image shows the big MC in full looking more emotional and human-like than ever before.

Here at Halo4.co.uk we think that the striking pose gives him that 'Ready for War' look. But considering Halo is an action shooter game, it's not much of a guess!

Either way. The artwork does look pretty awesome!