Halo 3 Forum
This topic has moved here: Subject: Mysterious red light that blinks on weapons?!?
  • Subject: Mysterious red light that blinks on weapons?!?
Subject: Mysterious red light that blinks on weapons?!?

Okay, I've been trying to figure this out over at the WIllClan4Food forum, but we're all stumped. Maybe someone at Bungie knows something?

THE PHENOMENON: When playing Halo 3 Multiplayer (Mythic disc) I sometimes see a little red light that blinks briefly on my weapon. It's nothing to do with low/empty ammo. I have the vague sense that it's somehow correlated with situations of danger (e.g., maybe an opponent nearby, or opponent seeing you, or targeting you...). But it's such a quick flash and it happens in the periphery of attention, so that it's barely perceptible. So far, no one else I've talked to has reported ever having seen the red light. I've searched the web and bungie.net forums but see no mention of this phenomenon (though it's hard to wade through all the stuff about blinking/flashing red lights/rings of doom on the console itself). But I've documented that it exists (at least on my console & disc & AV setup), see below.

DOCUMENTATION:
Here is my report of a more detailed investigation from August 1st, 2010:
THE BLINKING RED LIGHT EXISTS!!
And it's even more bamboozling than I thought.

I noticed it happen again last night in a game of social big team, so I noted the game-time and saved the film of that game, and went back in Theater mode to see if the red light blink happens in the saved film. Well, it DID, but only INTERMITTENTLY! That is, it didn't happen every time I replayed the film. And it wouldn't always happen at the exact same point in game-time. Add to that the fact that the red light appears very briefly (maybe 50msec!?), and I couldn't manage to pause the film in the right instant to take a screenshot in the traditional way (via the Xbox360).

Wait, it gets weirder. So I paused the film around the game-time when the red light had appeared on a few playbacks (no red light on screen in this paused instant), and I sat in bemused contemplation. As I was thinking, I was staring at the PAUSED film on the screen... and the red light frickin' blinked!! Absolutely STUPEFYING. It kept happening at apparently irregular intervals, so I propped a digital camera up in front of the TV and recorded video until I caught one. And thus, you may all see the proof of this bizarre phenomenon:

Here is a video clip:
Halo3RedLight.mov

Here is an image of just the one frame in which the red light appears:
Halo3RedLightSnap.jpg

The blink happens about 3.5 seconds into the video and is very brief. The assault rifle is equipped (full clip) and the light appears just to the bottom left of the ammo counter on the weapon. Note how the film is PAUSED: nothing is moving (e.g., water, update messages). You can't really see it, but the expanding circles in the motion tracker display are actually animating, and that's the only thing that changes on the screen beside the red light blink.

So what the hell does it mean?
Anecdotally, I'm pretty sure (but have no proof) that I've seen the red light blink happen also on the battle rifle, and the hammer; thus, I don't think it's weapon-specific. Since it happens during a paused film screen, it thus can't logically be related to anything about gameplay (e.g., ammo, opponents). What does that leave? Weird possibilities that I've thought of include: controller battery level, network connectivity or activity, friends logging off/on or doing stuff, or perhaps just a strange bug. Also, until someone else ever reports seeing this, we don't know that it happens on any other console but mine.

In conclusion: WTF!!!???!!!

  • 08.28.2010 9:29 AM PDT

Two possibilities come to mind right off the bat.
For starters, perhaps there is an issue with your TV screen. There is a visual issue where dots appear on players' screens when there is an issue with the... blast I don't know it's name. The cord with the red, white, and yellow ends. You know the one. Try switching that cord out (AV cord is it called?).

Secondly... lighting. It could just be lighting off of something. The game's pretty detailed like that. It's kinda nice, actually. A spartan laser, a red guy... who knows?
Eh.

  • 08.28.2010 9:44 AM PDT

I've noticed it too, and thought that it was just something on the gun, but the fact that it happens when paused is weird.

  • 08.28.2010 9:59 AM PDT

DakkaDakka.com - For all things 40k!

NOT me -----> The Sacred Flea

Interesting find OP, but to be honest I've never experienced anything similar. Cool though.

  • 08.28.2010 11:34 AM PDT

____________(˜˜˜||˜˜˜˜||˜˜˜˜˜)_∏______
l ---------____.`=====.-.~:________\___|================[oo]
|_|||___/___/_/~```|_|_|_|``(o)----------<)

Im Russian, deal with it.
Im not responsible for what you do with my advice.

i have no idea

[Edited on 08.28.2010 11:39 AM PDT]

  • 08.28.2010 11:39 AM PDT

I've noticed it on the BR, but I just thought it activated when ammo was low.

  • 08.28.2010 11:39 AM PDT