Where to start?

[Frosty]

And i saw someone said play with the OG sound and models, though i never played the OG games. Are these games are all remastered?

[Falleax]

Play in release order with original visuals enabled. The anniversary visuals and sound design range from awful to missing the point to somewhat tolerable, only Halo 1 and 2 have anniversary modes and you can switch between the two with a press of a button anytime during gameplay.

Release order is:
Halo Combat Evolved
Halo 2
Halo 3
Halo Wars (an RTS not part of the MCC but still great and worth playing)
Halo 3 ODST
Halo Reach

Yes Reach is a prequel but it was designed as a swan song to end the series and book ends everything together.

[Frosty]

thank you so much fellas

[Frosty]

Originally posted by Falleax:

Play in release order with original visuals enabled. The anniversary visuals and sound design range from awful to missing the point to somewhat tolerable, only Halo 1 and 2 have anniversary modes and you can switch between the two with a press of a button anytime during gameplay.

Release order is:
Halo Combat Evolved
Halo 2
Halo 3
Halo Wars (an RTS not part of the MCC but still great and worth playing)
Halo 3 ODST
Halo Reach

Yes Reach is a prequel but it was designed as a swan song to end the series and book ends everything together.

So where is Halo 4 though

[Falleax]

Originally posted by Riptide:

Originally posted by Falleax:

Play in release order with original visuals enabled. The anniversary visuals and sound design range from awful to missing the point to somewhat tolerable, only Halo 1 and 2 have anniversary modes and you can switch between the two with a press of a button anytime during gameplay.

Release order is:
Halo Combat Evolved
Halo 2
Halo 3
Halo Wars (an RTS not part of the MCC but still great and worth playing)
Halo 3 ODST
Halo Reach

Yes Reach is a prequel but it was designed as a swan song to end the series and book ends everything together.

So where is Halo 4 though

I don't recommend it.
Halo 4 was made by new devs who turned Halo into Call of Duty and retconned several important story and lore details for no good reason.
Also I forgot to mention that if you do choose to play Halo 2 with the anniversary visuals enabled, the game starts with an advertisement for Halo 5 that spoils a serious plot twist for Halo 2, so keep that in mind.

[Denuvo Knoeibestendigheid]

Originally posted by Falleax:

Also I forgot to mention that if you do choose to play Halo 2 with the anniversary visuals enabled, the game starts with an advertisement for Halo 5 that spoils a serious plot twist for Halo 2, so keep that in mind.

That video was thankfully removed in an update two years ago. https://gamerant.com/halo-2-anniversary-arbiter-locke-scenes-removed/

[Falleax]

Originally posted by Denuvo Anti-Tamper:

Originally posted by Falleax:

Also I forgot to mention that if you do choose to play Halo 2 with the anniversary visuals enabled, the game starts with an advertisement for Halo 5 that spoils a serious plot twist for Halo 2, so keep that in mind.

That video was thankfully removed in an update two years ago. https://gamerant.com/halo-2-anniversary-arbiter-locke-scenes-removed/

Oh was it? I never use the anniversary visuals so I never knew. Good, but it's still really stupid that it existed in the first place.

[acSiegemaster]

Originally posted by Riptide:

Originally posted by Falleax:

Play in release order with original visuals enabled. The anniversary visuals and sound design range from awful to missing the point to somewhat tolerable, only Halo 1 and 2 have anniversary modes and you can switch between the two with a press of a button anytime during gameplay.

Release order is:
Halo Combat Evolved
Halo 2
Halo 3
Halo Wars (an RTS not part of the MCC but still great and worth playing)
Halo 3 ODST
Halo Reach

Yes Reach is a prequel but it was designed as a swan song to end the series and book ends everything together.

So where is Halo 4 though

Halo 4 would be after Reach in release order. Nothing important was retconned or changed, unless you think "zomg the forerunners were human" with nothing beyond it + mystery for mystery's sake is the pinnacle of storytelling. Meanwhile, Halo Reach was a testbed for destiny because bungie was sick of making halo. H:R doesn't even adhere to prior, clearly established canon.

Anyways, halo 4's MP is superficially like CoD at best, but as someone who actually played some CoD and doesn't just consoom leddit talking points, it's still Halo.

[Denuvo Knoeibestendigheid]

Originally posted by acSiegemaster:

Originally posted by Riptide:

So where is Halo 4 though

Halo 4 would be after Reach in release order. Nothing important was retconned or changed, unless you think "zomg the forerunners were human" with nothing beyond it + mystery for mystery's sake is the pinnacle of storytelling. Meanwhile, Halo Reach was a testbed for destiny because bungie was sick of making halo. H:R doesn't even adhere to prior, clearly established canon.

Anyways, halo 4's MP is superficially like CoD at best, but as someone who actually played some CoD and doesn't just consoom leddit talking points, it's still Halo.

Halo: Reach contradicts the books but that's because Bungie never considered the books canon.

IMO the main problem with Halo 4 isn't the multiplayer - I prefer its Oddball mode over the other games actually - but what Microsoft did with Cortana. "Let's sexualize her and do a love story with her even though she's basically Master Chief's sister" That damaged the series so much I caught wind of it even as someone who had never used an Xbox.

And yes what they did with the Forerunners is dumb too, it reminds me of the plot of the Super Mario Bros. live action film.

[Frosty]

Originally posted by Zubovnikov:

No specific play order is strictly necessary. I for one jumped around between titles haphazardly like a confused time traveler.

I don't know nothing about Halo's lore lol

[xeekei]

I played the MCC games in chronological order (Reach first and ODST before H3), and in my opinion it's the definitive way to experience the story, but if want to do release order that's fine.