Say, you wouldn't happen to be planning to play a lot of Halo 4, would you? If so, you're in luck, as Microsoft is offering a stack of free MS Points through its Xbox Live Rewards programme simply for playing the latest shooty-shoots. If you're not that bothered about Halo 4 and just want the free points, well, there are probably better uses for your time.

The offer (via Destructoid) gives you until November 30 to score a maximum of 800 points (worth $10) by playing Halo 4's multiplayer and buying DLC. Playing at least 35 hours of multiplayer will get you 100 Points (80¢), which becomes 300 ($3.75) when you pass 70 hours, then 600 ($7.50) when you hit 140. If you're not keen on Halo 4 but desparely want more MS Points, at 5¢/hour you're probably better off getting a paper round.

You can top this up by buying Halo stuff from the Xbox Live Marketplace, returning 100 Points if you spend at least 1500 ($18.75) or 200 if you cough up 3000 MSP ($37.50). It's hardly the biggest of returns, but if you're planning to spend that anyway, hey, at least it's something.

You'll need to be signed up to the Rewards scheme, of course. American Express is also offering free money for playing Halo 4. The game, which launched yesterday, has a pretty big marketing campaign, see.