@goodownmike's review of Halo: Campaign Evolved
★★½
5/10 - The OG Halo trilogy is one of my most nostalgic gaming memories. While Halo 3 will likely always be my favorite game of all time purely based off the years of memories attached to it during my most formative years as a gamer, it all started with Halo CE on the original Xbox in middle school. Overall, the main campaign is largely faithful to its OG Halo CE, and that is a good thing. Some really smart additions have been made as well with use of energy sword and some weapons originally introduced in Halo 2/3. While I remember the introduction of sprint being jarring in Reach, the passage of time has numbed me to a sprint in Halo and it feels second nature in the game. I’ve seen complaints online regarding the art direction of the for certain levels but nothing stuck out to me, and those that did were very positive (looking at you Library). Played through the main campaign with 4 player online coop, and this unfortunately is where the negatives start. The online connectivity is BAD. We would be lucky to get through a level without one of my friends losing connection. In this split screen less world, online connectivity must remain a priority for developers and Halo Studios (formally 343) has absolutely dropped the ball. This studio has a long history of publishing games with abysmal online connectivity with Halo MCC being the most notorious. Speaking of online connectivity with friends, the absence of any online PvP matchmaking is a lingering ghost that just kept haunting me while playing with friends. Halo’s PvP is a core pillar of the Halo franchise and is arguably its biggest contributing factor for its legacy. Publishing a Halo game without any online matchmaking is a sin arguably worthy of gaming excommunicado. While I understand that this game is being sold at a “budget” price, I and arguably many more would have gladly paid an extra $10 or so if it meant the inclusion of online PvP matchmaking. In the absence of online PvP matchmaking, Halo studios crafted new campaign levels set prior to the events of the original campaign. These new levels are FINE. It feels weird seeing the Brutes and other enemies introduced later Halo games. Brutes in Halo 2 felt like a brand new threat not only to the player but to the Earth/ humans in general within the Halo universe. There may be lore explanation for this in the Halo books or side games but this felt jarring. The new characters introduced are okay and the level design is also fine but nothing comes close to the OG campaign. Feels like filler content thrown together as an excuse for the lack of PvP. The main campaign absolutely holds up 25 years later, however as a celebration of the original release, the package as a whole feels rushed with the absence of online PvP matchmaking. Feels like a missed opportunityto have just thrown Halo MCC to PS5 and used the resources for this game towards the next big Halo game. While I consider myself a legacy Halo enthusiast, I have felt little love for the series since the early 2010s. Halo Studios continues to prove they are out of their depth with 5 years since Halo Infinite and this release feeling half assed. I’ll always root for this franchise to get back on its feet but the future is BLEAK. I’d only recommend this game if you don’t have an Xbox or PC to play MCC and this game was on a deep discount, max $20. Big disappointment.
Open this review on Memorycard
Download Memorycard on the App Store Get Memorycard on Google Play