Even if the Halo movie project can be considered dropped at this point, it's still pleasant to know that there are still some details left to know about the much-awaited film. And according to this new tidbit, Master Chief will play a supporting role in the movie adaptation of Halo. Details in the full article!

If you can't get enough of Bungie and Microsoft's Halo universe and Halo 3 just isn't enough to fill your craving, there's a good chance that you're one of the many who got a copy of Joseph Staten's Halo: Contact Harvest. The fifth novel based on the Halo series has been out since October 30 and is now ranked fourth in the prestigious New York Times Best Seller list.

The novel Halo: Contact Harvest has just been released today under Tor Books, an imprint of sci-fi publisher Tom Doherty Associates, LLC. The work of fiction authored by Joseph Staten, Bungie Studios' lead writer, will take players back through time to the days of humanity's first contact with the zealous Covenant at planet Harvest.

This publishing of Staten's work marks his first official novel since the first day he created the story that became Halo. Halo: Contact Harvest will dive into the human interstellar empire sometime before the Convenant invasion and depict the Halo universe through the eyes of Staff Sergeant Avery Johnson.

Eric Raab, editor at Tor Books, says a bit about the novel:

In the novel, Joseph not only reveals exciting nuances of known events and characters such as Sgt. Johnson. But he also breaks new ground-takes readers on an action-packed journey to a little-known but vital part of the Halo universe: the far-flung, ill-fated word of Harvest.

The paperback will set back interested fans for US$ 14.95, though through the Audio Renaissance Unabridged CD, you could have the piece in digital form for US$ 29.95. The book ships to all major bookstore retail around the "English speaking world."

Without giving away anything major that could probably spoil the entire story for us, Bungie">Joseph Staten recently sat down with Bungie's Frankie for an interview about the highly-anticipated "Halo: Contact Harvest", the book slated for a fall release. We're here to get you the skinny on what's to expect with the upcoming novel of all things Master-Chiefy (or possibly not).

Joseph - or Joe, as he's more commonly referred to - began the interview by explaining the premise of the book, which as the title says, is all about first contact. An ensemble piece, it aims to tell the story of how things began in multiple viewpoints, both human and alien, all the while retaining a "lead character" - a role filled by none other than UNSC Staff Seargent Avery Johnson.

When asked to give a few juicy tidbits of info about the book's plot and its characters, Joe declined, opting to mention things which will NOT be in the book (smart, yet sneaky of him) - namely Master Chief or any of the Spartans.

Now, before you panic, Joe explains that since the book itself is set 30 years before the events of Halo, the green-armored dude and his comrades are still in their early teens and getting ready to fight against an insurrection, and that puts them out of the book's scope itself. He DID mention that besides Avery Johnson, there would be major Covenant characters from Halo 2 making appearances. Just who, he didn't specify - that "No" he replied with when the name "Arbiter" was dropped read as suspiciously hesitant...

In any case, you can check out the whole interview at the Read link we've provided below.