GameLog Page

Please sign in or sign up!

...blogs for gamers

Find a GameLog

... by game	... by platform

[ advanced search ]

HOME	GAMES	LOGS	MEMBERS			ABOUT	HELP

dkirschner's Halo: Campaign Evolved (PC)

[August 17, 2026 10:34:27 AM]

Halo felt like a standard shooter. In that way, it is authentic to the original (standard now, perhaps, but revolutionary at the time). I was never a massive Halo fan. I played some multiplayer in college, but never actually played the franchise until I was like 30 years old. I played the original Halo when it was remastered for Xbox 360. So, I can look at this without nostalgia. And the simplicity was striking. There are no RPG mechanics, no loot, no parries or dodges, no cover. I remember when each of these features was added to FPS games; it’s weird seeing none of them present!

You can sprint through levels just like in the original Halo, but that gets hard in the tunnels with all the Flood. Some of those later Flood missions were really annoying with so many enemies crowded into corridors. All the hallway/tunnel areas were pretty abysmal. I’m surprised they didn’t change them. The game adds three new bonus missions. In those, you cannot sprint through everything! You always either have to kill all enemies (then the exit would unlock) or have Johnson unlock the exit (after all enemies were dead).

New missions added a some modern elements, but were a bit jank. For example, Johnson had trouble following me. I had to go find him a few times. One time, I had cleared enemies in an area, and he said “alright, let’s go!” and the exit door opened, but he wasn’t there. Then no other door after the exit door would open. I traced my steps back to the beginning of the area, and there is Johnson, stuck on a door (how I heard him say anything, I do not know; perhaps he’s an expert at throwing his voice). I had to reload to get him loose. Another time, I was supposed to clear all enemies in an area. After doing so, the exit wouldn’t trigger, so I was running around, thinking it was because I lost Johnson again. An enemy materialized out of a turret. Killed him. Exit opened. Another time the opposite happened, where the exit opened, as if I’d killed all the enemies, but there was still a red dot on my map. Followed the dot, and it was an enemy, who promptly killed me. Had to start over. I think he was stuck in a corner and the game read him as dead for some reason.

So…this was…fine. I feel a bit like I wasted 10 hours. I don’t feel any more knowledgeable about Halo. I just feel like I ran through an old, buggy shooter. But you know what? My (at least) 5-year-old laptop ran a brand new AAA Unreal Engine 5 game on low settings. Go go laptop!