As Halo approaches its 25th anniversary alongside the launch of the first Xbox—a pairing at the time which was a reinvigorating catalyst for the first-person shooter genre—Halo Studios is returning to where it all began. Built in Unreal Engine 5, Halo: Campaign Evolved rebuilds the classic game in a way aimed to satisfy longtime fans while also enticing a new wave of players and preserving the DNA that cemented Master Chief’s first adventure in the video game culture zeitgeist.

Halo: Campaign Evolved also marks another new venture for the studio as it arrives on PlayStation for the first time in the series’ history, creating a new avenue for people who have never experienced the series before on the console. In modernizing the game, Halo Studios’ executive producer Damon Conn explains that the main mission was to do so without losing the feel that has defined the series throughout its iterations. That philosophy guided everything from rebuilding environments and cinematics to evaluating gameplay additions like sprint and modernized vehicle controls, with the team constantly asking a simple question: “Does this still feel like Halo?” Here, Conn speaks to Deadline about bringing Halo to PlayStation and keeping the legacy intact.

DEADLINE: Talk about some of those early conversations about balancing what would be preserved or reinvented with Halo: Campaign Evolved? 

CONN: We’ve worked on the original Halo: Combat Evolved years before, but this is a newer version called Campaign Evolved. It’s built in Unreal Engine 5, which is a much more advanced engine than the one we used for Halo Infinite. One of the really cool things is that, while Unreal provides all the advanced rendering and visual technology, the original game engine is still running underneath it. The DNA of the original game is still there, and that’s where we started.

We rebuilt everything from the ground up. We recreated the environments, reworked enemy encounters so they matched the original experience, and redid the cinematics with new motion capture and performance capture. Everything has been brought up to a much higher level of fidelity. The key throughout the process was preserving what made the original so special. We didn’t want to invalidate any of that while modernizing it. We also had to acknowledge that players today are used to things like sprinting. Back when Halo originally launched, it was a slower game. Players today are much more comfortable sprinting, zooming around, and moving faster, so we introduced those elements.

But every time we considered a change, we asked ourselves, “Does this still feel like Halo?” If the answer was no—even after exploring the idea—we scrapped it. That became our guiding principle. A good example is the Warthog, our iconic Jeep-like vehicle. Longtime fans love the original control scheme because it’s part of that era. But during testing, we found that newer players struggled with it, so we added a modern control option in the settings. Players can choose either the classic controls or the updated version with separate steering and acceleration.

Sometimes the answer was giving players both options. Other times we realized a change simply didn’t feel like Halo, so we threw it away. It was a delicate balance throughout development.

DEADLINE: This marks the first Halo game launching on PlayStation. Can you talk about the decision behind bringing the series to Sony? 

CONN: As a game maker, I want our games to reach as many players as possible. Now we’re launching on PlayStation alongside Xbox, PC, Steam, Steam Deck, and the ROG handhelds. That means a lot more people can experience Halo—including players who may never have owned an Xbox or gaming PC. That’s incredibly exciting for the team. 

At the same time, longtime fans who have been with us since 2001 will still be able to play together because we support cross-platform online co-op. Four players can team up across PlayStation, Xbox, and PC and share those experiences together. To me, Halo has always been about creating memorable moments with friends. Whether you’re reconnecting with someone you’ve played with for years or introducing someone to the series for the first time, that’s what we’re trying to enable.

DEADLINE: Was there a level that you all decided had to remain untouched no matter what? 

CONN: I would say we actually approached it from the opposite direction. We only wanted to make changes where we genuinely felt we could improve something. The original Halo: Combat Evolved is such a legendary, iconic game that we were very careful not to step too far out of place. Where we did decide to make changes was in areas that, over the years, we felt could be improved. A good example is a level called The Library, which is notoriously repetitive. There were parts of that mission that we felt needed some attention, so we worked really hard to make it less repetitive and to add stronger visual indicators so players would have a better sense of where they were.

At the time, that design was accepted, and it’s still an important part of the game’s pacing, but we felt we could improve the overall experience. That’s one area where we really dove in and did more work.

DEADLINE: Where does Halo: Campaign Evolved fit as a stepping stone for where Halo Studios sees the future of the franchise? Is there anything you can tease about where the series is headed?

CONN: I would say that Halo: Campaign Evolved honors the legacy of the original while paving the way for new Halo games. It’s a bridge between eras. What I can’t say is what’s next.But I’m excited about what’s coming. More information to follow later on.

DEADLINE: What do you hope longtime Halo fans appreciate most after finishing Halo: Campaign Evolved?

CONN: I think a lot of us on the team got into games because of Halo. For many people here [at XBOX], it was one of the first major games they ever played, and it inspired them to pursue a career making games. It certainly has a deep place in my heart. I remember playing it early in my career and always wanting to work on something like it. Being able to rebuild it, remake it, and stay true to the original was incredibly important to all of us.

 I can’t wait to hear the players’ reactions. It’s always exciting and nerve wracking when people finally get their hands on something you’ve spent years making. You had a chance to play it a month ago, and that was exciting for us because we were finally putting it in front of people. Personally, what I hope is that players get to experience the feeling they had 25 years ago—but in a new way. I hope they feel that sense of nostalgia, but not nostalgia for its own sake. There’s an amazing story here and amazing characters, and we’ve tried to bring all of that into the modern era of games.

I hope their imagination is captured again, just like it was years ago. I also hope they enjoy the new stories we’re telling through Operation: Meteorite, the three additional missions we’ve included in the game. If players come away with those kinds of water-cooler moments—whether they’re playing online co-op or sitting on a couch playing split-screen with their kids or friends—that’s incredibly powerful. That’s what I’m truly hoping for. I just want people to be smiling from ear to ear.

DEADLINE: What do you hope those players experience that helps them understand why Halo has become such a landmark franchise?

CONN: I think it’s exciting if there’s someone out there who’s never heard of the Master Chief, Cortana or Halo. This is a wonderful opportunity and a great entry point into the Halo universe. It’s such a big, wonderful world.There are so many stories built around not only Master Chief and Cortana, who are the classic characters, but also so many other areas to explore. There’s the UNSC, our science-fiction military force, the Covenant, our misunderstood, or perhaps ideal, bad guys, and so many other characters, species and sub-factions. It’s such a grand sci-fi universe that’s waiting for new players to discover.

I get a little nostalgic talking about it because it’s had such a big impact on me. When I first started working here 13 years ago, I remember writing an email where I got to type “Master Chief” and “Cortana” in an official message to my boss. I was blown away just doing that because I’d grown up with these games, and simply getting to work with those characters meant so much to me. From a fan’s perspective, I still get caught up in who Chief is, what he represents, his stoic heroism and his commitment to the greater good of humanity. It’s such a great time for new players to jump in, and I’m excited to hear what they think. I hope they read some of the books, watch the TV series and play the other Halo games. That would be incredible. This is a unique opportunity, and I can’t wait to hear how people respond.

Halo: Campaign Evolved is now available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and Series S, Xbox Cloud Gaming, Microsoft Windows.

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