Been playing since I was four years old back when Halo 3 released and never stopped. Here's my honest review of Halo: The Master Chief Collection as a literal lifetime Halo fan.

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Definitely worth it for the campaigns/firefight, even if they aren't exactly one-to-one with their original Xbox and Xbox 360 counterparts. Lookin' at you, Halo 2 and Halo: Reach. Hundreds of hours of content, cutscenes, and challenges all for just $40 (and sometimes $10 when it goes on sale).

If you're looking to experience each games' multiplayer proper, this probably isn't the pickup for you. A couple of reasons:
- The population is a fraction of what it was when the games were in their prime in the 2000s, and everyone ends up playing either Halo 3 or Reach.
- Because the population is so small and fractured, it's exceedingly common to get matched with people like Tylenul who no-life matchmaking and curb-stomp any enjoyment you might have had. No shade to him, by the way, it's just the hands us casuals are dealt.
- The Custom Games browser is often dominated by the same few lobbies who play the same customs they've been playing for almost 20 years. Another symptom of the low population, but one nonetheless.
This isn't to say you CAN'T enjoy Halo's multiplayer nowadays, but unfortunately, onboarding is a humiliation ritual unless you have a friend who can teach you the differences between Halo and the modern shooters of today.

100% worth a pickup for the Steam Workshop alone. Rest in peace, Digsite. The Collection may have its issues, but one thing Halo Studios absolutely did right was drop the mod tools for every single game and let the modding community run wild. Personally, I'm ecstatic to play Ruby's Rebalanced Halo 2 when it releases, and I really think it'll be the #1 mod on the game's workshop until the end of time.

So overall, I recommend picking up MCC, but if you really want the definitive Halo experience, pick up an OG Xbox or a 360 and play the games via Insignia or Sunrise, or check out Custom Edition, Project Cartographer, or ElDewrito.