Halo Campaign Evolved preview: remake feels brand-new after two hours

Halo: Campaign Evolved is a remake of 2001’s Halo: Combat Evolved, planned for a July 28 release on PlayStation 5 (a series first), Windows PC, and Xbox Series X. Halo Studios is rebuilding the game’s entire campaign in Unreal Engine and, for the first time in the series, will not include a competitive multiplayer component.

In a remote preview running on an Xbox Series X I played two levels: the beach island The Silent Cartographer and the arctic canyon Assault on the Control Room; the demo also made 18 skulls — gameplay modifiers — available from the start. One skull, Perspective, switches the camera to third-person.

Decades of Halo campaigns have been experienced through Master Chief’s visor; this is the first time players can see the world beyond his boots. Viewed from third-person, the magnetism and slippery rules of Halo’s physics carry a different weight, and the action feels more like directing a sequence than acting in one.

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