Halo is looking for a fresh start, and today’s livestream of the Halo 2025 Project Update may provide it.
Almost four years have passed since the premiere Hello Infinitegaming fans from all corners of the industry are eagerly awaiting today’s Halo World Championship 2025 festivities for a glimpse into the future of the flagship Xbox franchise. What exactly do the developers at Halo Studios (formerly known as 343 Industries) cooking remains to be seen, but judging by this tease shared tardy last monthit looks like the Halo universe may soon be entering uncharted territory.
“Just like last year, we’ll be on the Main Stage to talk about it, but this year there’s also a deep dive panel scheduled on the Community Stage that you won’t want to miss,” Halo Studios announced in Halo landmark post last month.
The Halo World Championship 2024 showcase was fans’ introduction to Halo in Unreal Engine 5, taking the series in a fresh direction. We’ll be following everything Microsoft and Halo Studios have to announce here during the Halo 2025 Project Update broadcast, so be sure to tune in at 1:00 PM PT/4:00 PM ET for all the latest news.
What is Microsoft’s mysterious Halo Studios project update?
The Halo World Championship 2025 broadcast is slightly delayed, but that’s not stopping Microsoft from releasing the news that Halo: Campaign Evolved is on the way. Some Xbox Store Page for the game, which is described as a “faithful yet modernized remake of the Halo: Combat Evolved campaign,” appeared online today, just moments after the Halo Project Update broadcast began.
“Experience the original story rebuilt with high-definition graphics, updated cinematics and improved controls, as well as three all-new prequel missions featuring the Master Chief and Sgt. Johnson,” says the official description. “A wider arsenal of weapons, vehicles, enemies and gameplay-modifying ‘Skulls’ – optional modifiers that change up combat in fun and challenging ways – add fresh tactics and endless replayability.”
As revealed in the trailer shown on the store page, Halo: Campaign Evolved is set to launch in 2026 on platforms including PC and Xbox Series X | S – and even PlayStation 5.
This is really happening
That’s right – Halo is coming to PlayStation for the first time in 24 years. It’s an achievement that many believed would never happen, as console manufacturers pushed for exclusive experiences throughout the 2010s. Everything will change in 2026, with the release of Halo: Campaign Evolved. No specific release date has been announced yet, but there’s plenty to discuss until more is announced.
While multiplayer isn’t included in Halo Studios’ Unreal Engine 5 Halo remake, there is fresh story content. Three missions specifically are said to be in development, and the developers promise that players can look forward to exploring a story focusing on Master Chief and Sergeant Johnson. It’s unclear how much Halo: Campaign Evolved will cost or how these fresh missions will be implemented.
“Join Master Chief and Sgt. Johnson in an all-new story set before the events of Halo: Combat Evolved, featuring new environments, gameplay, characters and enemies,” says the official description.
However, Halo fans are no strangers to remastered versions of classic Bungie games. The Master Chief Collection remastered Combat Evolved and other Halo games on Xbox and PC many years ago. There’s no word on other Halo games like the 2021 games Hello Infinite or the beloved from 2010 Hello: Reach outit will also be available on PlayStation 5 in the future.
What is Halo: Campaign Evolved?
IGN had the opportunity to go hands-on with Halo: Campaign Evolved to see how Halo Studios has transformed the classic FPS ahead of its 25th anniversary. Our preview included a gameplay demo focused primarily on the Silent Cartographer, an early mission that takes Master Chief to serene beaches now polluted by Grunts and Covenant Elites. It’s a familiar scene that’s been recreated even with UNSC soldiers and the iconic Warthog intact, all for longtime Halo fans and newcomers alike.
The Halo remake was created with state-of-the-art audiences in mind, but it no longer provides the same experience. Under the hood improvements include hijackable vehicles, and for the first time the Wraith can also be driven in the original Halo. Of course, the main difference between Halo: Campaign Evolved and the original Combat Evolved is the sleek fresh graphics it brings thanks to the power of Unreal Engine 5. In addition, the main cast from the original also returns.
“Iconic landscapes, alien architecture and science fiction wonders are reborn with all-new graphics, cinematics and animations,” says the official description. “The soundtrack has been remastered, the sound design has been updated for greater immersion, and new voices have been recorded with the main cast.”
The Halo Project update live stream begins
After a tardy start fueled by some tense Halo Infinite matches, Halo Studios took to the main stage of the Halo World Championship 2025 to talk about their not-so-secret project update. Developers include Halo Studios’ Brian Jarrard, Max Szlagor and Damon Conn, who have finally officially pulled back the curtain on Halo: Campaign Evolved.
The team’s Halo World Championship 2025 debut for the Halo remake includes behind-the-scenes details about the project, including interviews with the developers in which they promise two-player couch co-op on consoles and four-player online co-op. Don’t worry, Warthog has been updated to accommodate larger groups.
Interviews with the team also reveal how Halo Studios has returned to the classic stories fans know and love. This includes clips of Steve Downes (Master Chief) and Jen Taylor (Cortana) returning to the studio to re-record some of their most iconic lines. As for the feature films themselves, fans can expect the Halo remake to deliver something familiar yet fresh.
“We want to tell an authentic story and we want to improve upon the source film,” says Halo Studios. “When we created this, we didn’t just put a new coat of paint on the original videos. We ended up re-examining exactly how they were blocked, how they were sequenced, how they were put together, and we did that in all areas.”
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Michael Cripe is a freelance writer at IGN. He is best known for his work on sites such as The Pitch, The Escapist and OnlySP. Be sure to follow him on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).
