After months of rumors and speculation, Microsoft has officially confirmed that Halo: Campaign Evolved, a full remake of the original Halo: Combat Evolved, is in development — and yes, it’s coming to PlayStation 5.
The reveal, made during the 2025 Halo World Championship in Seattle on October 24, marks a historic moment for gaming: the Halo franchise — long seen as Xbox’s flagship exclusive — is officially crossing over to PlayStation platforms for the first time in its two-decade history.
However, this monumental news comes with a twist that’s already dividing fans. While Halo: Campaign Evolved will faithfully recreate the single-player and co-op campaign of the 2001 classic, it will not include the series’ defining PVP multiplayer mode.
A Remake for a New Era
Launching in 2026, Halo: Campaign Evolved will commemorate the 25th anniversary of the franchise that helped define console shooters. The remake is being developed using the Slipspace 2.0 engine, designed to deliver a completely modernized visual and audio experience while staying true to the feel of the original game.
According to Microsoft and Halo Studios, Campaign Evolved will launch simultaneously on Xbox Series X/S, PC, and PlayStation 5, marking a significant milestone in Xbox’s evolving multi-platform strategy.
“This is the beginning of a new chapter for Halo,” said Halo Studios’ creative director during the reveal event. “We want to honor the legacy of the series while opening the universe to an entirely new audience.”
No Multiplayer, No Problem?
While fans are thrilled to see Halo returning in such an ambitious form, the absence of a PVP multiplayer mode has raised eyebrows. Historically, Halo’s multiplayer — from Combat Evolved’s LAN parties to Halo Infinite’s live service battles — has been one of the franchise’s strongest pillars.
In Campaign Evolved, players will instead experience the campaign solo or with friends via co-op. The remake will include:
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Two-player split-screen co-op (console-exclusive)
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Four-player online co-op across all platforms
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Cross-play and shared progression between Xbox, PC, and PS5
The decision to omit traditional multiplayer modes, such as Slayer or Capture the Flag, was reportedly made to focus resources on the campaign’s technical rebuild and narrative expansions.
In a follow-up post on Xbox Wire, Halo Studios clarified that multiplayer isn’t gone forever — it’s simply being developed as a separate project, likely tied to a future Halo Infinite update or an entirely new Halo Online experience.
What’s New in Halo: Campaign Evolved
While the core story of Combat Evolved remains untouched, Campaign Evolved will expand the original narrative through three new prequel missions that set the stage for Master Chief’s arrival on Installation 04.
These new missions will focus on:
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Master Chief and Sgt. Johnson’s final mission before the Pillar of Autumn’s crash landing.
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Early Covenant encounters that establish key enemies in the game’s first act.
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A new cinematic prologue connecting Reach and Combat Evolved directly.
Each mission will be fully voiced, motion-captured, and canon to the broader Halo timeline. Microsoft emphasized that this isn’t just a graphical overhaul but a “reimagined retelling” designed for both veterans and newcomers.
A Demo of The Silent Cartographer Impresses Fans
Attendees at the 2025 Halo World Championship were treated to a playable demo of The Silent Cartographer — one of the most iconic missions in the series. Early impressions describe the level as both nostalgic and refreshingly new.
Built entirely from the ground up, the remake’s version of the island strike mission features:
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Ray-traced lighting and atmospheric effects that bring the beaches of Installation 04 to life.
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Dynamic AI coordination, with Covenant enemies reacting more strategically to flanking and vehicle usage.
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Enhanced physics and destructibility, allowing players to blow apart cover and vehicles in real time.
Fans who played the demo praised it for capturing “the exact feeling” of the 2001 original while offering smoother controls, improved gunplay, and vastly superior environmental detail.
Halo Finally Comes to PlayStation
The inclusion of Halo: Campaign Evolved on PS5 is arguably the biggest part of this announcement. For over twenty years, Halo has been synonymous with Xbox — it was the console’s launch title in 2001 and the reason many players bought an Xbox in the first place.
Now, with Microsoft’s broader push toward platform inclusivity, Halo joins other former exclusives like Sea of Thieves and Age of Empires IV in reaching new audiences.
This move follows Xbox CEO Phil Spencer’s recent comments that exclusivity “isn’t sustainable in the long term” and that Xbox’s goal is “to bring our worlds to as many players as possible.”
In that sense, Halo: Campaign Evolved isn’t just a remake — it’s a statement about the future of Xbox and cross-platform gaming.
What About the Rest of the Series?
Halo Studios has confirmed that this is “only the beginning.” Future Halo releases — including the next mainline entry currently in pre-production — will also release simultaneously on PlayStation and Xbox.
While Campaign Evolved will focus exclusively on the first game’s campaign, the studio teased that additional remakes or remasters could follow, depending on player response. Halo 2 and Halo 3 remain prime candidates for similar treatment, though Microsoft has not confirmed any plans yet.
For now, fans can expect Campaign Evolved to deliver a complete retelling of the original story, including all missions, co-op support, and several narrative additions.
A New Era for Halo and Xbox
Whether you’re a long-time Spartan or a PlayStation player experiencing Halo for the first time, Campaign Evolved represents both nostalgia and progress. The absence of traditional multiplayer may disappoint competitive fans, but for those who fell in love with Halo’s story, atmosphere, and music, this could be the definitive way to experience the classic that started it all.
As the game approaches its 2026 release window, one thing is certain: Halo is no longer just an Xbox icon — it’s becoming a truly global franchise.
