Watch the Full Demo of Halo: Campaign Evolved’s “Assault on the Control Room”

The media blitz surrounding Halo: Campaign Evolved — a modern reworking of the original Halo campaign in Unreal Engine — has really picked up in the last week or so. Each day seems to bring some new trailer or video highlighting the game’s new features (e.g., updated mechanics, new levels). But this 28-minute playthrough of the “Assault on the Control Room” level offers our most thorough look yet at what Halo: Campaign Evolved will offer players — and it looks pretty sweet.

First off, the visuals look nice and shiny. (Perhaps even too shiny?) Halo Studios is really leaning hard on Unreal Engine to build out and enhance the look of pretty much everything you see on-screen, from the environments (like the ice cave) to the character designs to the various visual effects. (I love the plasma grenades’ goopiness.) And it’s also throwing in some modern features, like sprinting, that have become a given thanks to the last few Halo games.

In addition to the “Assault on the Control Room” playthrough, Halo Studios has also posted a shorter playthrough video of the “Silent Cartographer” level that highlights the game’s new third-person view, which can be unlocked with one of the game’s skulls. Polygon’s Ari Notis got a chance to play the updated “Silent Cartographer” level, and came away with a favorable impression, even calling it “revolutionary.” On the other hand, GameSpot’s Jean-Luc Seipke had a far more underwhelmed reaction.

The rest of us will be able to decide for ourselves on July 28, 2026, when Halo: Campaign Evolved is finally released for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S.