Halo 2 patched already

With the cellophane still lying in a crumpled heap where you tore it off with your teeth and Halo 2 only a week out of Bungie's womb, the myth-making developer has already announced the game's first patch.

The auto update contains a small piece of software that should help people with high definition TVs see the whole game, speed up the time taken to find friends and foes in Matchmaking and introduces an extra map.

But it isn't a new level, oh no. Known as Foundation, this small map is taken from an old and rather obscure MS game for the Mac called Marathon - but that isn't necessarily where you will have seen it. For this is the bonus level that is given to any player who's already completed the game and activated the training mission on the final level.

The update package will be automatically downloaded the next time you log on with Halo 2 on Xbox Live, provided that you give your permission. Anyone who isn't a net vet yet can still download the update by using the free two-month Xbox Live trial card that came in the box or borrow a mate's Live-powered machine to condense the tiny package on to a memory card.

Halo 2 is out now for Xbox while the Halo 2 auto-update is available now from Bungie.