We are in a very strange era for Halo right now, with Master Chief once the face of the Xbox brand, but having taken a backseat since 2021. The exception has been revisiting old games, and that’s true today with the release of Halo: Campaign Evolved. Reviews have just come in, coalescing into a Metacritic score.
As it stands, and this is rather amusing, Halo: Campaign Evolved has an 80 Metacritic score on PS5, where most of the reviews are in for the release. The game has an 86 on Xbox Series X and a 77 on PC. Those will fluctuate in time, but the result here appears to be “pretty good.” And sure, that’s probably good enough for a release like this. Want a breakdown of other Halo releases?
- Halo CE – 97
- Halo 2 – 95
- Halo 3 – 94
- Halo: Reach – 91
- Halo: The Master Chief Collection ODST – 91
- Halo Infinite – 87
- Halo 4 – 87
- Halo: The Master Chief Collection – 85
- Halo 5 – 84
- Halo 3: ODST – 83
- Halo: Campaign Evolved – 80-86
So, I mean, it’s in the range. Not some sort of huge miss or anything, and this should encourage players who may have been on the fence. And I mean, how often do you get to play Halo on PS5? More lately, but still.
Halo: Campaign Evolved is part of Microsoft’s multiplatform release strategy, one that is being walked back at least to some degree by the new administration, but nothing has changed here. CE was announced long ago for PS5, and Master Chief will be roaming around over on PlayStation, something once believed unthinkable.
Play Puzzles & Games on Forbes
In terms of a true, mainline Halo game to come, we have essentially…no information. Microsoft has spoken in exactly zero official capacity about the future of Halo and Master Chief, only that there is one. Behind-the-scenes reporting includes talk of cancelled projects and aimless direction. A recent, severe set of layoffs obviously could have impacted plans, were there any concrete plans in the first place. So for now, what we get are releases like Campaign Evolved. That’s not bad! It’s good! But it’s also not a new Halo game we probably should already be playing at this point, if Xbox was at all on top of this situation and was managing Halo Studios properly.
Here are a few takes on Halo: Campaign Evolved:
- VGC (10/10) – “Halo Studios’ Unreal Engine 5-powered upgrade of the original Halo campaign elevates the original with sublime visuals, smart tweaks, and broad respect for the gameplay feel, design, and aesthetic that makes this game so beloved.”
- Game Informer (8.5/10) – “The core game shows its age in some notable ways, but there’s no mistaking the magic that made this formula work all those years ago is still very much intact.”
- Insider Gaming (7/10) – “Halo: Campaign Evolved is a must-play game for newcomers to Halo, and it’s a great-sounding, amazing-looking first-person shooter with a highly enjoyable story.”
So, head back to Halo, and await the next mainline release. You will be waiting a while.
Follow me on Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram.
Pick up my sci-fi novels the Herokiller series and The Earthborn Trilogy.