Is Bungie bleak or what? First they give us a live action trailer that demonstrates futile perseverance in the face of certain defeat and now they tell us about two casualties of war before Halo: Reach has even been released.

They really want to make their final foray into the Halo universe an emotional one, that’s for sure. While in the final game, players will encounter five members of Noble Team, there were originally plans for seven.

Early on, Bungie was thinking of having the seven members of Noble Team take on a role similar to what you would find in the Magnificent Seven or Seven Samurai. Instead, the sassy Rosetta and the cowboy Tom were left on the cutting room floor. No word on why these two members were sent packing but I can imagine it might have been fear of cluttering the play experience with too many characters to keep up on.

The biggest disappointment about this announcement is thinking about the abilities these two characters might have possessed. With the other members of Noble Team having everything from jet backs to power shields, one can only dream that awesome tricks were up Bungie’s sleeve.

Halo: Reach puts players in the role of Noble Six, the final member of a Spartan unit fighting off the Covenant invasion on the planet of Reach. As the culmination of Bungie’s greatest efforts, they are keeping the hits coming. The multiplayer, based on the beta alone, brings a new element of fun to the experience and the cooperative matchmaking will keep everyone connected.

While you might want to spoil the experience by watching the ending to Halo: Reach, I recommend you restrain yourself. If you can’t do it for yourself, do it for Rosetta and Tommy, our first casualties of war. There is no comfort in knowing we will never meet these characters but thankfully a monument is being constructed in their honor to ensure they will live on in our hearts.

What awesome power-ups did these two casualties of Noble Team possess Ranters? Speculate in the comments below.

Halo: Reach makes its last stand on September 14th on the Xbox 360.

Source: Joystiq