Friends in High Places Jun 28 - Installation 01 Team

Before the fun begins, we need to make sure we get the important legal disclaimer out of the way first. It’s better this way, we promise.

Installation 01 is a completely separate entity from 343 Industries and Microsoft Studios and neither 343 Industries nor Microsoft Studios is formally funding or partnering with this project.

343 Industries prides itself on following community and fan activity, and as such Installation 01 has not gone unnoticed by the great Halo gods in the sky. Well, in Redmond, Washington. But close enough. After sending 419 pictures of Bean’s face via fax machine, they finally caved and gave us a response. It turns out they think we’re pretty dope. We’ve been in contact with some representatives from 343 for a little while now, and we’re excited to finally be sharing this with all of you!

Recently, our mascot, Lead Producer TheChunkierBean, along with Lead Director Church (but not from RvB don’t sue us) were invited to a shady backdoor deal in which they exchanged the entirety of Installation 01’s source code for a lifetime supply of baked beans. Unfortunately, the deal went sour and they instead opted for a simple Skype call with some of the 343 staff and their burly legal bodyguards. We can’t really release the details of said call, but Church can say this:

“Installation 01 has been maintaining a level of contact with 343 Industries over the past several months. We initially reached out to a company representative and spoke with him about getting into contact with Microsoft/343's legal department to answer a few inquiries we had about the legality of our project. This representative has acted as a kind of liaison between our team and 343 since then, and we have maintained a level of transparency with 343 Industries (through our contact) regarding Installation 01's plans, the scope of the project, our goals, and how we as a team aim to meet and support those goals long-term.

Over the past few months, we've shared details of our development plans with 343: our release schedule, planned content, and more. Up until very recently, this was a one-way street, with us sending them information and them thanking us for maintaining contact and keeping them informed. This changed recently. 343 Industries gave us an opportunity to participate in a call with a few company higher-ups to engage in a meet-and-greet and involved discussion about the future of our project. They also gave us an opportunity to ask a lot of questions about the ongoing legal status of the project.

We are happy to announce that the outcome of the call was both incredibly informational and very positive! Through these interactions we have been ensured that Installation 01 is not under imminent legal threat, provided we remain non-commercial in nature and scope, and continue to follow Microsoft’s Game Content Usage Rules to the letter. We are now able to say with certainty that Installation 01 will never be accepting donations. We also will not be selling i01 or Halo related merchandise. This is to keep a respectful distance between us and Microsoft’s intellectual property. It is also important to note that these rules and assurances from 343 are specific to Installation 01 as a project, and should not be interpreted to apply elsewhere. Through ongoing communication with 343 Industries we hope that we, as a fan project, can continue to be a positive driving force within the Halo community.”

– Church, Lead Game Director

Now, with Church’s Great Wall of Text out of the way, it’s time to answer some of those burning questions in a Q&A Lightning Round. Ding. Ding. Ding.

Q: So now Installation 01 isn’t getting destroyed to the fullest extent of the law?

A: As of right now, we’re in the clear. According to 343 Industries, everything we have done to date has been fully within the bounds of those trusty Game Content Usage Rules. Installation 01, as a project, is not in immediate danger of legal repercussions if we carefully continue to do what we’ve been doing.

Q: 343 Industries supports Installation 01?!

A: Refer back to that legal bit at the top. We’re going to say that they support us as potential fans just as you all support the project right now. They like what they see from the project, and they are certainly open to playing with us and all of us Soon™. 1v1 me, Bonnie Ross.

Q: Does this mean 343 Industries supports all fan-made Halo projects?

A: Not necessarily. The discussions and circumstances surrounding Installation 01 are meant specifically for this project alone. We can’t speak for anyone else. Our standing with 343 Industries does not automatically pave the way for other projects to be approved or viewed the same as Installation 01. The 343 reps also informed us that they simply don’t have the time or bandwidth to engage with every other fan project, as much as they’d love to.

Q: Where can I donate money and love so that the project can continue to grow?

A: You can donate all of the love your heart can send us, but we can never accept your money for this project. Sorry everyone, but we want to avoid “The Man” coming down here and stomping all over our beautiful game.

Q: How about Installation 01 merchandise? Is there a place I can purchase that?

A: Unfortunately, you will probably never see any official Installation 01 merchandise being sold online. However, merchandising in regards to the team and our community isn’t 100% out of the question...we may revisit this later.

We are truly thankful for the opportunity to speak with executive staff from 343 Industries, and for the time and consideration we have been given both now and into the future. Most importantly, we are forever thankful for the support you all have provided the project. Especially the memes. Keep em’ coming.

The Installation 01 Team