2026 has been a year full of ups and downs for the industry, yet here I am able to review a fully remade Halo game on the PlayStation 5. It’s a perk not lost on me, as I remember my 13-year-old self watching my cousins play Halo when they first got their Xbox systems at the turn of the century. Funnily enough, as a teenager the graphics seemed out of this world. Yet any comparison video between Campaign and Combat (the names attached to the games) would quickly reveal the enhancements made in the remake. While I watched them play for many hours and occasionally took the sticks for a run across the circular planet, I don’t hold the nostalgia many do for the series and therefore this review tackles the content purely as a 2026 game, providing no lenience through any rose (or perhaps green) coloured glasses. After recent reviews of Gothic 1 Remake and Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced, it is an opportunity to assess how well Halo: Campaign Evolved plays as a shooter with current gen sheen. With three new bonus missions, a graphical overhaul, new voice lines and many QOL updates, is Halo a competitor to the shooters of today?
The story, music and cinematics have always been lauded when it comes to Halo, especially the first game. Master Chief, a figure synonymous with the Xbox that is essentially an enhanced super soldier, is called upon to assist against the attacking Covenant (an alien race that seems obsessed with wiping out humans). The ship soon crash lands on a ring-shaped planet, which is soon revealed to be called Halo – the Covenant believe there are superweapons here that will grant them salvation. A race against the Covenant ensues alongside a range of other missions across different biomes. Both want access. The story is solid and the voice acting is excellent. It’s nothing groundbreaking now despite clear sci-fi influence, though may very well have been groundbreaking in the early 00s. The music is fantastic, a highlight, and really ramps up the energy on some of the epic fights. Master Chief’s relationship with the captain and also the AI Cortana are the main draws across the campaign, though most story beats serve to introduce the player to the next biome and mission. If looking to its original conception, the storytelling is fairly advanced for a shooter and guarantees a level of varying investment. Now, it remains beneficial to the purpose.
Gameplay boils down to two core functions: Gunplay and Car-play. Most on-foot missions have Master Chief on foot either navigating through the tunnels of a ship, or freely moving across the surface of Halo. In those latter missions, you’ll often have more freedom – which sees the deployment of the Warthog, which is a war jeep fitted with a turret. As the surface can be quite large (even though this is a linear game) having the jeep makes all the difference in navigating from point A to B. It slips around on mud and you’re reliant on AI shooting when on stick, yet it adds some variety in a game that can struggle with depth. What do I mean by this?
Master Chief can carry two guns at a time. When ammo starts to deplete, you’ll discard that gun and pick up another gun rather than find additional ammo. Every enemy drops a certain type of gun – magnum, pistol, rifle, needle-shooter, energy sword, etc. – which makes sure that guns are always accessible during and after a fight. There are a couple of types of grenades and shield/camouflage options, plus some surprises further into the game. But there is no stat-based focus, no upgrade tree or improvements to your arsenal as all is discarded, providing no real tracker of increased power between levels. I suddenly realised this mid-way through mission two. It’s a stripped-back, scenario focused approach that always evens the playing field and asks you to plan. Yet it causes repetition as the hordes attack. Weapons from other Halo games have been added here, which is thankful as the barebones offerings do need more. The guns themselves all feel unique and fire differently. The Dual Sense is fantastic in this regard and puts you right in the battle. Yet with the same enemies always on screen, there does need to be more involved. You can man enemy turrets, sneak up and whack someone, or simply focus on recharging your shield behind barriers before returning. Yet the environment needs to provide more in the moment-to-moment combat to really make each section feel fresh.
Performance-wise, the game runs smoothly. On base PS5 I had performance mode on and the visuals continued to be impressive all the way through. This did drop below 60 when really pushing the limits, particularly in the snow area, but there is a real emphasis on smooth movement and gunplay. The environments on the surface, such as the beach, captured my attention and I found myself taking more camera shots than gunshots. The clouds!! Looking off into the distance sees fog around mountains and the night sky in its brooding best. There is a heap of settings, both in gameplay and visually, to really push the game into your direction. Wearing headphones was a treat with the orchestral soundtrack and the cut-scenes looked like they were straight out of a blockbuster. There is little wonder why the IP is now a TV series.
I do envy those that have the nostalgia attached to this game. They will play a historic favourite in its fully realised version. In looks, it sits comfortably in 2026. In gameplay, it lingers behind as the depth in newer shooters has expanded beyond many of the choices here. Still, it is always well paced and enjoyable in missions that last approximately 45 minutes (and there are 13 of them – 10 original and 3 new). The new missions and the old missions blurred into one for me, though you can see some of the tricks tried in the fresh ‘prequel’ additions. Telling a prequel story makes sense, especially as there are already many stories told in other games within the Halo franchise. This was the required step. The current multiplayer option is co-op. It allows you and friends to join the fight and complete the same missions. I wonder what the plans may be for a wider multiplayer experience. How the series moves from here really interests me.
Halo: Campaign Evolved is a certified remake of a game that originally scored 97 on Metacritic and thrusted this IP into the spotlight as the leader of Xbox’s corner of gaming. Now available on the PlayStation and full of 2026 bells and whistles, the sci-fi shooter confidently navigates Master Chief through 10+ hours of solid gameplay alone or with a friend. With co-op available and no doubt more to come, now is a great time to jump on the green Halo train if you’ve never experienced Xbox’s flagship experience prior – though that comes with a caveat that one of its main drawcards is nostalgia. I enjoyed my time shooting the Covenant and exploring the ring-shaped world, understanding why this story and approach would have blown everyone’s socks off more than two decades ago. Even now, it holds a charm that will win over most that have enjoyed short shooter campaigns across their gaming life.
Pros
- Stunning to look at!
- Nostalgia for those who came before
- Tight gunplay
Cons
- Despite the beauty, the gameplay depth can feel outdated
- Nostalgia (in terms of those who didn’t come before)
