Microsoft previously announced they'd be cutting the ability to play original Xbox games on the 360 online earlier this year, which meant, among other things, no more Halo 2 multiplayer. This, quite reasonably, caused quite a few pairs of sweaty panties to bunch up. If there's one particular market of gamer that Microsoft doesn't want to offend, it's their Halo fanbase. Today we learned just how those affected by the service change would be compensated for their loss. That's right folks, because Microsoft wants to change they way their current online service works, and that might mean some people have to play a game made in the last three years, they feel compelled to give away three months of Xbox Live Gold, 400 , and an invite to the Halo: Reach multiplayer beta.

Now I'm not nearly as sour about this as that last sentence may have made it appear. I actually think this is pretty cool of Microsoft. They don't have to do a damn thing for people who won't be able to play Halo 2 anymore, but they are because those fans have stuck by the company's biggest exclusive money-maker for the last few years. Personally, I don't think I'll ever be regularly playing a game that's going on six years old as much as these guys (and girls) play Halo 2. Of course, this offer only extends to "avid" players, meaning those of you who just put Halo 2 into your disc tray to try and get some free stuff won't be eligible. I don't know what Microsoft is using to determine the bounds of what "avid" means for this particular offer, but I can imagine with all the insane stat tracking that Halo games usually offer, Microsoft's got a pretty good idea about just who will be getting these great perks. It's likely that the die-hards playing this game already have ODST, and an invite to the Reach beta, so if you do know someone who religiously plays Halo 2, now might be the time to suck up to them for their extra invite.

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