Halo 4 War Games Map Pass and DLC revealed, detailed, and priced

343 Industries has announced their downloadable content plans for Halo 4, which includes three separate map packs that will be made available some time between December 2012 and April 2013. The three map packs, each consisting of three maps each, will be offered as part of the Halo 4 War Games Map Pass for $24.99 (2,000 Microsoft Points); this totals to a 15% total discount and provides a unique in-game Falcon emblem.

For those who have purchased the Halo 4 Limited Edition version, the War Games Map Pass will be included. If you purchase the Pass separately, two unique in-game helmets (Scanner and Strider) will be thrown in.

So now, let's get down to the details. The first pack, The Crimson Map Pack will be released in December 2012 and will include three maps: Wreckage, Harvest, and Shatter.

Witness the chaos of a clash of civilizations in Wreckage, with its blend of claustrophobic spaces and dangerous exposures and venture into the human colony environs of Harvest, and explore a human foray on an alien moon in Shatter.

The next map pack will be the Majestic Map Pack, and that is due out in February 2013. It includes the maps: Landfall, Monolith, and Skyline.

Landfall’s emphasis is on infantry battles against a glittering ocean on a distant world, while Monolith exposes you to the naked vacuum of space – and the firepower of opposing teams, and Skyline’s distinctly industrial feel provides new challenges in somewhat familiar, but occasionally confined spaces.

The last map pack will arrive in April 2013 and is called the Castle Map Pack. Again, it offers three maps: Daybreak, Outcast, and Perdition.

Daybreak is set in a military facility against the backdrop of an idyllic mountain range, while Outcast plunges you into the warrens, canyons and arches of an alien edifice, and Perdition takes players into the heart of an urban sprawl, with tactical speed and situational awareness its key features.

In addition to all of these maps, 343 Industries has plans to release 50 separate missions over the course of 10 weeks in a mode called Spartan Ops. This episodic adventure, which follows the Majestic Squad aboard the UNSC Infinity, is said to add up to 12 hours of incremental gameplay in addition to the Halo 4 campaign.

Halo 4 is set to release on November 6, 2012.