Xbox Series X at launch this holiday, Halo fans can take some solace that the Master Chief Collection is still getting new updates, as it has throughout this console generation. The team has just released Halo 3: ODST into the collection on PC and ported a few new multiplayer weapons from that game into Halo 3 proper.
The next step in the Master Chief Collection journey is the last that has been announced, bringing Halo 4 to PC for the first time. 343 Industries have already promised that Master Chief Collection on PC would match its console counterpart by the end of the year, so players can expect the Halo 4 patch before New Year's Day. Each update has added content to both versions of the game, including new unlockable cosmetics, new weapons, and new game types. No one knows which game will get the boost in the next update, or if 343 will indeed reach to yet another Halo project for content.
In the latest development update on The Master Chief Collection, its Xbox 360 counterpart, there were several maps unique to the game that are unplayable anywhere else.
After talking about a few of the things coming in the near future of Master Chief Collection (including Halo: Reach helmets deleted from the original game and an improved Halo 4 Forge mode), Design Director Max Szlagor brought up Halo Online maps specifically as something the team was looking into for updates going into next year. Other features include nameplates with animations and customization in the game's single-player modes. The game will start its fourth season of content with the release of Halo 4 on PC, and the team is looking into several more seasons to come following that.
While there are certainly PC games that have lasted for decades, is Halo: The Master Chief Collection the first console-first game to receive big updates throughout an entire console's lifespan and beyond? The dedication to making this years-old collection into a live service for Halo fans is a joy to see, as is the introduction of so much content that has never been seen in these games before. While it will be sad that Halo 5 will likely never in on the fun, the entire collection stands as a perfect model for how traditional FPS games can remain relevant in a world of live services.
Source: Halo Waypoint
