Halo Returns July 28 With Expanded Co-op Campaign

Halo is officially back next month with Halo: Campaign Evolved, a modernized remake of Halo: Combat Evolved’s campaign launching July 28 on most modern platforms—with five days of early access for Premium and Collector’s Edition buyers starting July 23. The ga

When the Halo comeback window finally opened, it came with dates instead of hype: Halo: Campaign Evolved is set to arrive on July 28. The release marks the first time the franchise has been playable on a PlayStation—and it won’t be locked behind a timed exclusivity deal.

For fans who grew up with Master Chief as Xbox’s signature mascot, the stakes feel personal. Halo began in 2001 with Halo: Combat Evolved, and since then the series has sold more than 81 million copies. John-117’s image is tightly tied to Microsoft’s gaming identity. even as the franchise and its console faced harder stretches in recent years.

Halo Infinite launched to a less-than-stellar reception and ended its “major” updates in November, despite a ten-year plan. Yet the Halo universe kept expanding anyway—through novels that fleshed out the war-torn world. a Paramount+ series built to match the sci-fi scale of Master Chief and the Spartans’ fight (also landing to less-than-stellar results). and collaborations that pushed the brand beyond traditional Halo gameplay. Master Chief has appeared in Fortnite, and Helldivers 2 introduced a tie-in connected to Halo: ODST and its titular shock troopers.

What makes Campaign Evolved feel like more than a repackage is the platform promise: the newest Halo will launch on all modern platforms, except the Nintendo Switch 2. Players on PlayStation, Xbox Series X|S, and PC will all get the remake on the same day—July 28.

There’s also an early start for buyers willing to pay extra. Those who purchase either the Premium Edition or the Collector’s Edition will receive five days of early access beginning July 23.

Halo: Campaign Evolved is described as “a faithful yet modernized remake of Halo: Combat Evolved’s campaign,” built in Unreal Engine 5. The campaign is centered on Master Chief’s original battle with the genocidal alien military alliance of the Covenant after crash-landing on the Halo ring-world.

The co-op experience is returning, but it’s bigger. The option to play through the campaign cooperatively is back and expanded, now allowing play with up to four players online.

Refresh comes through more than polish. The remake will fold in weapons. mechanics. and enemies from newer entries into the original missions. aiming to keep the feel of Halo: Combat Evolved while updating what players can expect moment to moment. The game also includes 42 skulls, which players can use to modify gameplay.

There’s one omission that will be hard to ignore for players who want the full modern package: online PVP multiplayer isn’t part of the plan.

That design choice sits alongside a second major change coming for the remake’s story. even before you reach the familiar moments from the original. Content for Campaign Evolved expands with a prequel arc called Operation Meteorite. which adds three new missions set before Master Chief is introduced in-game. The missions take place one year earlier in 2551.

Operation Meteorite focuses on the relationship between the Chief and one of his closest allies throughout the original Halo trilogy: Sgt. Avery Johnson. The missions center on a mission to retrieve data on the location of the Covenant home world. The new content also brings new environments and, according to preview footage, includes a massive space battle.

Senior franchise story lead Jeff Easterling discussed how Operation Meteorite was built to “retro” the dynamic between the Chief and Johnson into the feel of Halo: Combat Evolved. Easterling said the goal was to make the added missions feel natural to the story of Combat Evolved while also showing a clear connection to what comes next in Halo 2 and 3.

Easterling explained that Sgt. Johnson’s role in Combat Evolved is smaller compared to later games. adding that the team wanted to spend more time with him and to elevate Johnson into “the Johnson that we remember.” He credited veteran Halo novelist Troy Denning as part of the effort. saying Denning’s work helped shape those early dynamics and that Denning was involved because “Troy’s most popular” novels deal with the relationship between Sgt. Johnson and the Chief.

Campaign Evolved has been positioned with its story trailer as part of the rollout, and it’s available now for pre-order on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC ahead of release on July 28.

The sequence is clear: Halo’s return isn’t just a remake day-one. it’s a platform shift. a co-op upgrade. and a story expansion threaded into the original campaign’s timeline—up to and including Operation Meteorite’s three pre–Master Chief missions in 2551 focused on Sgt. Avery Johnson and the hunt for the Covenant home world.

And on July 28, the green spotlight that once defined Halo’s console wars will spill onto PlayStation too—without waiting for a next-generation exclusivity window to open first.

Halo Halo: Campaign Evolved Halo: Combat Evolved remake Master Chief Sgt. Avery Johnson Operation Meteorite co-op up to four players Unreal Engine 5 42 skulls PlayStation release July 28 early access July 23