Round-Up: Halo Script, Ryzom Ring, Head2Head, Tetris 360

Today's wrap-up includes publicity stunts to help sell the Halo movie, an expansion for MMO Saga Of Ryzom which includes player-created content, a networked expansion for the Breeders' Cup - Tournament Edition arcade machine, and a particularly state-of-the-art game announcement for the Xbox 360, as well as the latest product and job news. - The latest progress on the Halo movie front involves a unique publicity stunt on Creative Artists Agency's part: copies of Alex Garland's script for the film have been delivered to movie studios by couriers dressed in full Master Chief armor. The script comes with a request for its recipients to read the draft and submit a bid for the film by the same afternoon, which could spark an instant bidding war if the gambit succeeds. - Nevrax, developers of the MMORPG The Saga of Ryzom, has announced an unusual expansion for the game: The Ryzom Ring is a toolkit for creating and sharing maps for the game, which can be either reserved for private use amongst a few players or integrated into the "real" world of Atys for any player to explore. "One of our goals is not only to make the players be truly a part of the world of Atys by giving them the tools to create their own areas, but also to make it easy and fun to do so," said David Cohen Corval, CEO of Nevrax. The Ryzom Ring expansion will be available late 2005 or early 2006. - UltraCade Technologies, creators of the multi-game UltraCade arcade machines, has launched their Head2Head network with the release of Breeders' Cup - Tournament Edition. The networked horse racing game will allow players in arcades all over the country to compete in real-time races, rather than simply have a national leaderboard. The launch of the game seems to have been a success, judging by comments from Ultracade CEO David R. Foley: "We witnessed several locations that experienced non-stop game play for over twelve hours on each day of the weekend." - One of the lowest-tech games is making its way to the next-generation of consoles: Japanese developer Arika is bringing Tetris to the Xbox 360. The 360 version, which carries the current working title of T4, will be based on the Tetris: The Grand Master series of arcade games. T4 will feature online play with an unspecified number of competitors, and will allow players to "hold" one brick in reserve for when they need it. - Also updated today: product news including an updated demo for the hobbyist Ca3D Engine, confirmation of Xbox 360 support for AI.implant, and updated job postings including new positions from Blue Fang Games, Factor 5, Gameloft, Monolith Productions, Red Storm Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc, and Spark Unlimited.