Halo Campaign Evolved Review – A Faithful Remake Missing Multiplayer

Admittedly, when Halo Studios announced that it would be remaking the original Halo yet again, I was a bit standoffish. This is because it has already been released multiple times, and The Master Chief Collection felt like a faithful way to experience such an iconic story. But after spending some time with the game and seeing everything it has to offer, I’m happy to admit that I was wrong and there’s still plenty of story for the studio to explore while remaining faithful to the original.

Outside the game, Halo: Campaign Evolved offers many customizations that weren’t available originally. I spent a good chunk of time exploring the settings and adjusting them to my liking by changing the field of view, turning off specific camera effects, and adjusting the size and colors here and there. But one thing that felt unnecessary was the number of skins in a campaign-only game.

I spent a good amount of time looking through all the cosmetic items I had at my disposal; they ranged from guns to character skins. Sure, they were fun to look at, but for a game that was story-driven, a lot of this felt pointless and could have honestly done without. Even though I changed a few skins, I never felt the need to go back and see how the others looked once I started playing the full game.

The second I loaded into the actual game, it was hard not to be impressed with how great it looked. Halo is a franchise that I know like the back of my hand; that said, I genuinely enjoyed seeing the first game through a new lens. A lot of the level designs are still true to the original, but are more polished and better fit to what we are used to in 2026.

One of the biggest new additions is the ability for Master Chief to run. Although this may seem like a no-brainer to add, it’s something the series hasn’t had for some time. Being able to sprint around gave into that power fantasy that you’d want when playing as the Master Chief. This was only elevated by the fact that I can now also hijack enemy vehicles, which wasn’t originally possible until the second installment of the series.

Perhaps what I enjoy most is the added cutscenes and dialogue in Campaign Evolved. I was a bit taken aback by this initially because I wasn’t sure if my memory was playing tricks on me. But the more I played, the more I enjoyed it. It adds more context to certain scenes that were missing.

Without diving too deep into spoiler territory, at the start of the second level, everyone around you is dead. In the original, there’s a quick one-line that explains what happens to your crew. Now that’s no longer the case. At the start of the level, we now have a full, cinematic cutscene that shows them all dying one by one, and it doesn’t take away from the major story beat at all.

This was a constant thing I enjoyed because it gave an already iconic game more flavor I didn’t know it needed. This trend continues well into the gameplay as well. As I was running around Halo, it was nice to hear new witty one-liners from Cortana and Captain Keyes.

Playing through the story, it was hard not to smile. Everything about it took me back to when I was a child. Hearing the iconic music that I’ve grown up with was nothing less than heartwarming, and it made me realize how much I’ve missed playing a proper Halo game. That only grew more once I got to the latter half of the game with the Flood.

Seeing them through a modern gaming lens was great because I didn’t realize I’d missed them until then. This was a recurring theme I encountered while playing. I was filled with joy and nostalgia because it reminded me of how great Halo can be if given the proper time.

The same can even be said about the bonus levels Halo Studios threw into Campaign Evolved. I’m a sucker for any Halo lore, and these three levels gave me more than what I could have asked for.

Playing as Chief before the events of Halo was great because it showed him in a new light with Sargent Johnson. Without giving too much away, the three levels essentially have the two going deep into Covenant territory to find key blueprints that can help them turn the tide of the war.

As you continue throughout the three levels, you get to see a younger version of the two talk and banter with one another. It gives even more context to why the two are as close as they are. On top of that, I enjoyed seeing Master Chief without Cortana in his head. In a lot of ways, it felt like him in his early days, before he became the legend we all know from the games.

One of the things that I love about the Halo lore is the tension between the ODST Troopers and Spartans, and this is something that the bonus levels hit on hard. This is thanks to the introduction of Williams, an ODST who you rescue along the way. Seeing her character arc throughout these missions was something I really enjoyed because it further showed the bonds these soldiers form by fighting alongside one another.

By the end of this mini-story, I found myself attached to everyone involved. It made me wish this was fleshed out a bit more, because it proved that Halo still has more stories to tell, even if they are prequels. Once it was all said and done, I found myself wanting more side stories like this, and I hope to see more in the future.

As fun as the game is, it has some flaws that need to be addressed. It’s hard to imagine a Halo game launching with just a story mode. After you beat the game, there’s very little reason to go back and replay it. Sure, the newly added Skulls do give some fun twists and replayability, but other than that, you’ve experienced all that was meant to be played.

Multiplayer has always been a cornerstone of the franchise; to have a game without it (apart from campaign co-op) seems wrong. Even more so when you consider that ODST, a spin-off game released in 2009, at least had Firefight. A multiplayer mode that would throw endless waves of enemies at you. Having at least that would have given the game some life after completing both stories.