As 2020 continues, another piece of Halo: The Master Chief Collection trickles onto the PC platform. With Reach, 1, and 2 already pleasing tons of gamers, 3 looks to capture the nostalgia of 2007 Xbox Live custom games that thousands have held dear in their memories. Personally, I spent more time in the Halo series within the campaigns, finding skulls and exploring the levels in great detail, so I will be examining the third iteration’s today.

Like the rest of the series on the PC so far, Halo 3 runs like a dream. With high framerates and a fresh coat of paint, it’s a looker, for sure. Unfortunately, this time around, the cutscenes are not up to snuff with Blur Studios’ efforts in Halo 2 Anniversary. While they are rendered in-game and maintain the high framerate, some character models, such as Lord Hood and Sergeant Johnson, look positively atrocious for a 2020 game. I almost prefer the 2007 version in this regard.

The gunplay in Halo 3 is just as good as it felt back in the day, if not better with my mastery of the mouse/keyboard combo now. With new weapons in this iteration, such as the Spartan Laser and the choice between the Assault Rifle and SMG, Master Chief has never felt more powerful. I will say, though, some weapons take much more priority than others at points, as it’s hard to tear through The Flood without a shotgun or Energy Sword.

As the trilogy reaches its climax, it’s a treat to experience the game more than a decade after my previous playthrough. I can pick up on things like The Prophet’s motivations, the unease between The Elites and The UNSC, and why The Flood teamed up with me at one point in the game. It’s a narrative experience for sure, as Chief and Cortana’s relationship takes precedence, but never distracts from the tight gameplay.

Technically-speaking, I didn’t encounter a single bug in my run through the campaign. For 343 Industries and Microsoft Studios to release The Master Chief Collection in such a polished state as rapidly as they are is a sigh of relief, seeing AAA games get glossed over for their PC ports quite frequently nowadays. I might even be excited to play the fourth game, even though it doesn’t evoke the same emotions as the original trilogy did.

I managed to beat this campaign in one night, as the ~10 levels are a breeze, especially if you run past enemy encounters in vehicle sections. The short length didn’t make for a bad experience though, as there’s ample replayability with all of the skulls being accessible at any point. My playthrough included two of the leisure skulls, enabling for rare dialogue and heightened explosions, but some skulls amp the difficulty up immensely for masochists.

I’m thrilled to say that Halo 3 is another fantastic classic coming to PC that holds up spectacularly. Of the original three, it’s my least favorite, but only because of the extra attention given to those entries. 3 will still give the player a blast and is more than worth its paltry price point. There are some reports of issues with online co-op, so if that’s your goal, your mileage may vary. Nevertheless, it’s worth it to finish the fight one more time.

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Halo 3

$9.99

8.5

Score

8.5/10

Pros

• Prolific Experience
• Runs Perfectly
• Replayability is High

Cons

• Can be Beat in a Sitting
• No Extra Polish