Halo: The Master Chief Collection Reviews
Once multiplayer is up and running without any sizeable hiccups, I easily foresee 'Halo: The Master Chief Collection' taking its place as one of the finest releases for the Xbox One to date. That said, it's a partially complete package sold to consumers at full price. As fantastic as the campaigns are, and as intriguing as the Halo Channel appears to be, I wouldn't necessarily say it's worth $60 out the gate. I intend to continually return to multiplayer in the coming days and weeks for two reasons: one I love the 'Halo' series and multiplayer experience and two, because like the game itself, this is an incomplete review. Once multiplayer has settled itself in a firm state, this review will see a complete overhaul and final ranking set in stone. Until then, 'The Master Chief Collection' is simply worth a look.
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.
Instead of capitalizing on it, 343 Industries failed both Halo fans and potential new fans with this collection. As a huge Halo fangirl myself, it absolutely breaks my heart to see Halo tarnished in this fashion. This should have been a solid slam dunk for 343, not an utter disappointment.
The Master Chief Collection's four campaigns are evergreen, but serious problems with online multiplayer are a blight on this compilation.
Halo: The Master Chief Collection is a fantastic compendium of the high-points in recent shooter history. With four complete multiplayer suites and over 100 maps, it's more than a bargain, it's a steal. The groundwork 343 has laid in this colossal experience, the scope of what it might still be, is truly something to admire. If the driving minds behind the collection can dedicate the kind of care and customer attentiveness that's always been associated with the Halo brand, and pull off the original vision, Halo: The Master Chief Collection multiplayer will easily be deserving of high praise equal to its campaign.
It's still Halo. Only with more bugs than you remember.
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.
Halo: The Master Chief Collection is an immense package, but a table falls when a leg is cut off.
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: Reach (via the Master Chief Collection on Steam) is like fine wine. It aged well - a perfect blend of old-school shooting, driven by nostalgia and backed with super solid gameplay and noteworthy additions. Case in point: dedicated servers to make the online experience as seamless as humanly possible.
If you disliked the original Halo games, odds are this collection and its new coat of paint will not convince you that a sci-fi FPS is right for you. If you loved the Halo games, odds are you have this title ordered already and are anxiously awaiting dozens of hours of story content and potentially hundreds of hours of online play.
Despite an unhealthy smattering of technical concerns, Halo: The Master Chief Collection really is an essential purchase for fans of the series, whether they're in it for the campaigns, the multiplayer, or the best of both worlds.
Your rose-tinted glasses won't slip much
The Master Chief Collection is a dazzling package, but the current issues around its online modes prevent us from issuing an unequivocal recommendation for the time being.
Despite some technical hiccups and a few nagging issues that were carried over from the original series, Halo: The Master Chief Collection is an excellent and remarkably well put together compilation.
The "Halo" series has had a pristine record when it came to online stability at launch, but now that record is tarnished. This review will be updated again once these multiplayer issues are rectified, but right now this is a major disappointment. This is a series that was built on multiplayer action, and the online features are a mess.
There's a lot of beauty in Halo 2: Anniversary, and even more if you consider the fact that all four titles are playable in a row. For new fans and old, the Master Chief Collection stands as a can't miss. And we haven't even considered the multiplayer yet.
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.
Halo: The Master Chief Collection has a handful of quirks and legacy issues, but those don't diminish the achievement. It's a stellar collection of some of the best games of the last few generations, with options galore and clever ideas like Playlists to breathe new life into old content. It's a must-have for Halo fans, and may rightly serve as a satisfying introduction for newcomers.