Halo: The Master Chief Collection Reviews
In the end, The Master Chief Collection brings a better version of the first Anniversary, a similar treatment for Halo 2 producing even more impressive results, and tweaked versions of Halo 3 and 4 for good measure. That's a no-brainer for both singleplayer and cooperative fans, but the weight of the multiplayer – re-capturing the gameplay and maps of Halo 2 to the finest detail – can't be underestimated.
The port of Halo 3 to PC is excellent across the board, and the addition of new features and content make it the best the game has ever felt to play.
Today on PC, the campaign for Halo 3: ODST is a mere $4.99. A majority of the troopers may not be the most engaging, but the combat and music are a treat. The weapons, from the Spartan Laser to the Brute Plasma Rifle, are a blast to use. The game also brings ODST Firefight mode to The Master Chief Collection for all of your survival needs.
If this is your first time playing Halo 4, prepare for a treat. Gameplay remains identical to previous installments, but with some additions enhancing the experience. The story is also a big highlight. With this game, it's hard not to consider Master Chief and Cortana as gaming's greatest duo. Halo 4 caps off The Master Chief Collection on PC nearly perfectly.
Halo 3 is a very good game. As a conclusion to the storyline, it's hard not to be engaged with how things play out with the UNSC, Covenant, and Flood all appearing. Gameplay is very satisfying. Nothing beats sniping enemies, or dual-wielding and taking out the brutes. Although the campaign is shorter than in Halo 2, most players should feel satisfied with the amount of content overall. Multiplayer is a lot of fun. Finally, as a PC port, Halo 3 comes with no notable complaints whatsoever.
The Halo 3: ODST port on PC is essentially perfect, and so far, it's 343 Industries' best work with the Master Chief Collection.
Connection issues have blighted the multiplayer so far, but this is otherwise a brilliant and generous compilation of one of the industry's most influential video games.
If you like games that are so big you can immerse yourselves in them for months, The Master Chief Collection offers excellent value. It's an absolute monolith of a package, beautifully presented for the 21st century.
Not since Valve’s The Orange Box collection has a game's singular price tag offered so much bang for your buck. Whether you're after a spruced-up trip down memory lane, or entering the series for the first time ahead of Halo 5's launch, the Master Chief Collection is a stunning, meticulously crafted deal.
Halo 3 for PC is an excellent re-release of an already amazing FPS, despite being held back by a few issues (no advanced graphics settings and the heavy changes of the netcode).
Review in Italian | Read full review
An awesome Halo package with a temporary caveat thanks to multiplayer instability.
If it weren't for the multiplayer options, The Master Chief Collection would have garnered a much lower score. The multiplayer suite is truly the saving grace of this package and worth the price of admission alone.
For me, being able to finally play Halo 2 multiplayer again was worth the price of admission, but toss in 100 maps, Forge, Spartan Ops (coming) and four of the best FPS campaigns in history and it is impossible not to recommend this. If you own an Xbox One this game is a must own. If not, it might be time to buy one.
Fans of the series will no doubt feel that this is the ultimate tribute to Master Chief and his adventures so far while those who have yet to experience the Halo franchise will enjoy all it has to offer, but in one simple package. The added benefit of the Xbox One hardware also makes it better, with improved visuals in campaign and new Halo 2 Anniversary maps, as well as the control options. Add to this that the amount of extras are long and lasting, and you have a total package that makes for quite a high benchmark for all developers/publishers to meet when considering releasing a collection of a game series.
Halo: The Master Chief Collection is as close to a masterclass in the field of remastered collections as we've seen to date. It's lacking in some areas - like those pesky (just about) untouched versions of Halo 3 and 4 - and there's the odd glitch here and there, but that's just nitpicking. The interface alone (kudos to co-developer United Front Games, there) blows away these concerns, and you don't even shoot anything with that.
Halo 3 therefore proves to be a re-edition perfectly in line with the standards to which the guys of 343 Industries have accustomed us in recent years, which will be attractive both in the eyes of old fans and those of any newbies eager to recover one of the most valuable pieces in the videogame history of the last twenty years.
Review in Italian | Read full review
We are still facing one of the best games of the last generation. With the caveat that it now has more chances and arrives with a brilliant facelift. There's no reason not to recommend Halo Reach to almost any player who likes shooters, it's a veteran who has aged great and is simply a must-have. The milestone of bringing the entire Master Chief Collection to PC will give the franchise a breath of fresh air, and it's good that the first title to arrive is Reach.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
In conclusion, Halo 3 comes to PC in a really good way, with a version that takes advantage of the platform on which it runs and that with a decent PC allows us to play it in a really fluid and pleasant way but with the addition of the keyboard and mouse, which is undoubtedly a very different experience to what we are used to having using the Xbox controller.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Halo: The Master Chief Collection's multiplayer launch problems are an unfortunate blight on what would otherwise be an exciting way to experience the franchise's evolution—online and off—in one smartly executed package.
Halo used to be one of the big franchises that other companies wanted to kill, but 343 Industries may have done that itself with a rushed, incomplete port of four Halo classics that is compromised by bugs, and muddled multiplayer.