We first got a look at Halo 4's Master Chief with this epic picture of him being born from an exploding robot womb, and the physical version made by McFarlane Toys stays true to that rendition, right down to the placement of the chink in his armor. If Microsoft approves this prototype, Halo 4 will mark a departure from previous armor designs, which have generally offered more coverage around Master Chief's vital organs, and more mobility around the neck and shoulders. Because that's what armor should do.

For example, the Halo 4 version offers a squishy black bullseye over Master Chief's heart, while in Halo 3 that area was covered in sturdy green armor. The bicep patches in the above design look large enough to carry your emblem of choice (unicorn), but not to stop advanced-technology bullets from piercing your skin as previous armor versions do. Also, he's fighting a galactic war, not practicing advanced yoga -- there is no reason for that much uncovered space on his hips.

Microsoft will decide if this prototype is close enough to in-game reality before it launches in the fall as part of McFarlane's Halo 4 lineup, which will include brand new weapons, characters and vehicles. This year McFarlane also plans to drop two new product lines based in the Halo universe: Micro Ops, which offers classic figures at 1:100 standard size, and Halo Avatars, 2.5-inch physical renditions of Xbox Live avatars.