Warthog (Halo)

The M12 LRV Warthog is a fictional vehicle that appears in the Halo video game franchise. A military light utility vehicle with a rear-mounted weapon turret, it appears in most major Halo titles as a driveable vehicle. Several working replicas of the Warthog were later created in real life, including by Weta Workshop for use in the cancelled Halo film. Playing an important role in defining the level design and genre of Halo: Combat Evolved during development, the Warthog is an iconic aspect of the Halo series and praised for its design, though the manner in which it has been integrated into the series' gameplay has received a mixed response.

Warthog
Halo vehicle
A real Warthog replica created by Microsoft at the Halo 4 E3 booth
First appearanceHalo: Combat Evolved
Last appearanceHalo Infinite
Created byBungie Studios
General characteristics
ArmamentsMachine gun, rocket, gauss cannon

Development

When Halo was still in development as an RTS, the Warthog was originally concepted as a tank that Master Chief, then called the "Super-Soldier", would run alongside. It was later changed to its current design, with Master Chief being made more detailed for third-person driving sections.[1] Designer Jaime Griesemer stated that "I think the Warthog is the real reason Halo became an action game", saying that "it was so cool to watch a squad of jeeps driving across the terrain [that] we wanted to drive them ourselves". Crediting the entirety of the final design of Halo to the Warthog, he stated that "in some ways, Halo is the story of the Warthog and the universe we built to drive it around in".[2]

Depiction

The Warthog is described as a fast and maneuverable light reconnaissance vehicle.[3] It is a four-wheeled all-terrain vehicle with a 12.7mm three-barreled machine-gun mounted in the rear. The Warthog can be crewed by three people; a driver, an armed passenger and a gunner. Halo 2 added the ability to pull a power slide in the Warthog, and an anti-armour variant (the M12G1 LAAV) armed with a 25mm gauss cannon.[4] In the games, UNSC soldiers will climb into the Warthog when prompted to provide support to the main character, such as manning the turret.[2]

In Halo Wars, the Warthog is a fast scouting unit which can run over enemies.[5]

In other media

A life-sized Warthog replica was constructed by Weta Workshop for use in director Neill Blomkamp's cancelled Halo movie. It was based on a Nissan Patrol 4x4 truck platform and was fully functional with a six-cylinder diesel engine, four-wheel drive, custom chassis and matching body armor.[6]

The Warthog appears in Forza Motorsport 4, but it is not drivable. According to Turn 10 chief Dan Greenawalt "... it's got some technology that's built into Halo that would have been a big investment for us to then build into the game only to support one vehicle."

The Warthog also appears as a playable vehicle in a crossover with Forza Horizon 3 and Forza Horizon 4,[7][8] and in Rocket League on Xbox One.[9]

Merchandise

WizKids released a Warthog model for their Halo ActionClix collectable miniatures game.[10]

Reception

The Warthog has been called a "fan favorite",[11][12] and "iconic" by critics.[13][14][7] Kristen Lee of Jalopnik stated that "the fun of the Warthog [...] is to drive around and mow down enemies with the big gun", but criticized the vehicle's handling, saying that it was "slow, sloppy in turns" and "a handful to manage", and that it had not been changed across the series.[15] Nicole Carpenter from Polygon criticized AI drivers in the series, remarking that they "have always been pretty bad" with regards to their ability to maneuver the Warthog competently, and singled out Halo: Reach as the worst of the series in this regard.[16]

Cultural influence

The Warthog replica built by Weta Workshop was displayed at Sydney Harbour in early August 2009.[17] Another Warthog replica was built by Halo fan Bryant Havercamp and is street-legal.[18][19] A Warthog appeared along with a reveler dressed as a Spartan soldier at the 2013 Seattle Pride Parade, which was endorsed by a representative from 343 Industries.[20]

In January 2008, Kotaku reported that the design of the then-newly unveiled Hummer HX was very similar to the Warthog, though Carl Zipfel, GM's director of exterior design denied the association.[21] Elon Musk stated on Twitter that the Tesla Cybertruck was also inspired by the design of the Warthog, calling it "Warthog irl!"[22]

References
  1. Simmons, Nathan (May 12, 2020). "We finally know the origins of Master Chief". SVG.com. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  2. OXM Staff (October 27, 2015). "How the original Halo was nearly a very different game". gamesradar. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  3. "Getting Around on Halo". Halo: Combat Evolved manual. Microsoft. p. 22.
  4. "UNSC Ground Transport". Halo 2 manual. p. 16.
  5. Nate Ralph (November 18, 2008). "Hands On: Halo Wars, for Couch-Based Commanders". Wired. Retrieved November 22, 2008.
  6. Flatley, Joseph L. (February 2, 2009). "Real life Halo Warthog goes for a test drive". Engadget. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  7. Biery, Thomas (August 30, 2016). "Halo's Warthog drifting into Forza Horizon 3". Polygon. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  8. Khan, Imran (September 10, 2018). "Forza Horizon 4 Adds Halo Crossover Mission Using The Warthog". Game Informer. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  9. Prell, Sam (February 17, 2016). "Drive Halo's Warthog in Rocket League on Xbox One, available now". gamesradar. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  10. Burg, Dustin (September 19, 2007). "Go get your Halo ActionClix today". Engadget. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  11. "Vicious Sid" (January 11, 2007). "Bungie talks up new Halo 3 vehicle "Mongoose"". GamePro. Archived from the original on January 18, 2007. Retrieved August 27, 2008.
  12. Matt Liebl (September 14, 2012). "Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn vignette takes the Warthog for a 'Joyride'". GameZone. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  13. "Halo Warthog included in Forza 4". MCV/DEVELOP. August 26, 2011. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  14. Rick Lane (August 13, 2018). "Forza Horizon 4 leak shows potential event inspired by Halo's Silent Cartographer mission". PC Gamer. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  15. Lee, Kristen (June 11, 2018). "Dammit The Halo 6: Infinite Trailer Has The Hateful Warthog Again". Jalopnik. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  16. Carpenter, Nicole (January 10, 2020). "First rule of Halo: Reach — don't let the AI drive". Polygon. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  17. Sliwinski, Alexander (August 6, 2009). "Check out Weta's Halo Warthog this weekend in Sydney Harbor". Engadget. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  18. Ethan Gach (August 21, 2017). "Halo Fan Loves The Warthog So Much He Built His Own". Kotaku. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  19. Vitelli, Jesse (September 18, 2018). "Halo Fan Builds a Real Life, and Street Legal, Warthog". Twinfinite. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  20. Kietzmann, Ludwig Kietzmann (July 2, 2013). "Halo Warthog gets rainbow colors in Seattle Pride parade". Engadget. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  21. Michael McWhertor (January 14, 2008). "Hummer Designers Deny Halo Influence On New Concept Truck". Kotaku. Archived from the original on April 30, 2008. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  22. Felicia, Miranda (November 25, 2019). "Elon Musk Says the Tesla Cybertruck Is 'Inspired by Games Like Halo'". IGN. Retrieved October 10, 2020.

See also
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