Back in November of 2001, Halo: Combat Evolved rocked the gaming community with a Mjolnir armor-clad forearm bash and set new standards for what a first-person shooter game could be. Since then, the Halo franchise has produced many, many mainline games, spinoff titles and compellations.
Twenty-five years after that stalwart beginning, Halo Studios has released an updated and refreshed version of the initial adventure, now called Halo: Campaign Evolved.
For those who played the original game, Campaign Evolved delivers upgraded graphics, some redesigned missions, additional vocal tracks from the original cast and new movement options and mechanics. Those who never played the original will get a sci-fi movie-wrapped-in-a-game experience that sets up the massive storyline of Master Chief and his ongoing battle against the alien hordes.
At the start of the story, Master Chief—a genetically and surgically enhanced super soldier—is called forth from his cryotube aboard a United Nations Space Command starship. This military flagship is under massive attack from a fanatical religious alien alliance called the Covenant. Master Chief and his crewmates fight the boarding attackers, but the crippled ship ends up crashing down on a mysterious planet-like ring called Halo.
Gamers play as the 7-foot-tall Master Chief, of course, and while battling through the various biomes of this gigantic world, they slowly start to piece together the truth about Halo (with the help of an artificial intelligence helpmate named Cortana).
The Covenant believe this ancient structure is a religious relic that will grant them god-like power. But in fact, Halo’s ancient and advanced builders, the Forerunners, had a much darker purpose in mind.
Campaign Evolved strips down the original adventure and rebuilds it with new gaming technology. The visuals are crisp and clean. The game now gives players the ability to sprint, and there are new weapons to pick up. In-game health regenerates over time this go ‘round—rather than always requiring the use of scarce med packs. This new game even lets Master Chief climb up and pilot a variety of human and alien vehicles that he couldn’t unlock in the past.
The original game featured a competitive PvP multiplayer gameplay that Campaign Evolved cuts out. Instead, Halo: Campaign Evolved supports two-player split-screen co-op on local consoles, alongside up to four-player online co-op. (You can play the game offline with no internet connection, if you choose.) The game also supports online cross-play across PC, Xbox Series X/S, and PlayStation 5.
There’s heroics galore here as Master Chief and other humans fight valiantly to prevent the extinction of the human race. And many marines bravely volunteer to protect others, knowing that they themselves will likely not live through the action.
In addition, the game features sparkling graphics and fluid mechanics. And it offers three brand-new missions in the story campaign.
Halo: Campaign Evolved is, however, primarily a first-person shooter (with other unlockable perspectives) that continually blasts swarms of onrushing alien foes and splashes colored gunk around. The creature blood is blue and green but there are some areas spattered with large quantities of red gore.
The frenetic battles are punctuated by constant gunfire, huge explosions and cries of pain. Master Chief also has access to a wide variety of weapons from sniper rifles to explosive RPGs to machine guns, pistols, grenades and a variety of futuristic weapons that disintegrate and dismember foes. Heads and bodies sometimes spurt open like a burst balloon. Gamers also have the ability to shoot friendly characters with an errant shot.
Later in the game, a new foe called the Flood arises. The Flood is a parasitic, hive-mind organism that consumes and assimilates any sentient life. And not only does it control a literal flood of small swarming creatures that burst like gory boils, but it creates mutated monstrosities that were once human and/or Covenant aliens.
Foul language is present throughout the story dialogue. The profanities aren’t constant, but we hear uses of “d–n,” “h—,” “b–tards,” “a–” and “mother of God” in the mix. Even the aliens will sometimes mumble out human crudities amid their growls and alien lingo.
The original Halo game has long been thought of as a classic. And it still is. But in Halo: Campaign Evolved, the story takes on a more viscerally graphic feel. And that’s true even if you’re a mom or dad with fond gaming memories.
After spending more than two decades touring, directing, writing and producing for Christian theater and radio (most recently for Adventures in Odyssey, which he still contributes to), Bob joined the Plugged In staff to help us focus more heavily on video games. He is also one of our primary movie reviewers.
