Celebrating 20 Years of Halo 2: Developers Discuss Rebuilding Classic Maps and the Iconic Halo 2 E3 Demo

It’s almost been 20 years since the release of Halo 2, the legendary sequel that put us behind the eyes of both the Master Chief and the Arbiter for the first time, and propelled online console shooters to brand new heights. Two decades later, the Halo series is still going strong, and we absolutely couldn’t let the milestone pass by without a celebration of such a game-changing title. Grab your Mountain Dew and lock in for the ultimate Halo 2 birthday bash.

To mark the occasion, Halo Infinite sees the release of the Delta Arena, a playlist featuring recreations of some iconic Halo 2 multiplayer maps, complete with the same authentic gameplay inspired by that era. Outside of that, a fully playable version of the iconic Halo 2 demo shown at E3 2003, featuring gameplay that didn’t make it into the final version of the game, will be added to the Steam Workshop as a mod for the Halo: The Master Chief Collection for fans to play for the first time ever.

We also had the opportunity to chat with some core Halo Studios members about the celebrations, share some nostalgic memories, and revisit the importance of this groundbreaking title and the legacy it shoulders like a Brute Gravity Hammer.

“Halo 2 is a major pillar for the franchise that catapulted the series and community to new heights,” says Brian Jarrard, Community Director on Halo. “It was also a master class in games marketing at the time – creating a true worldwide pop culture phenomenon spanning celebrity appearances to musical crossovers and product partnerships to ARGs and cinematics and stories that rivalled Hollywood.

“The gameplay innovations, esports competitions, storytelling, online connectivity, and the overall cultural permeation fostered a new level of global fandom and community that elevated Halo beyond ‘just a game.’ As we look back on twenty years(!) it’s still remarkable how impactful Halo 2 was and how wide sweeping its impacts are even today.”

On Old Turf

Delta Arena launches into Halo Infinite on November 5 and features several modern recreations of classic multiplayer maps from Halo 2, lovingly and faithfully rebuilt in Forge with the help of key Halo community members known as Forgers. You’ll once again be able to hop around the hazy sniping spots of Ascension, duel with Energy Swords along the neon hallways of Midship, or get stuck in close quarters chaos within the structures of Lockout.

“The process began by looking at what had been recreated by the community and seeing what could work in tandem with the modes we were developing internally,” explains Evan Colson, Designer on Halo Infinite. “We ultimately strived to find fan favorites that were faithful to their original designs and that could play well within the Infinite environment. Each of these recreations have been given new life by the extraordinary Forgers behind them.”

Take a peek at some of the new maps below.

Nick Treitman, Producer on Halo Infinite, considers the selection a “healthy mix of maps,” with some adhering effortlessly to their original Halo 2 setting, and others opting for an artistic spin that works to enhance the map’s design, without sacrificing its legacy.

“Beaver Canyon feels exactly how you remember it and Conjurer takes the magical/wizard theme and cranks it to 11,” Treitman adds. “Midship has been one of our most requested maps and after finally getting the Covenant forge objects in game, it was a matter of time before a true-to-H2 version came together.”

Here’s the full list of maps with their original names, plus the updated names they’ll have in the Halo Infinite Delta Playlist:

• Ascension
  Credits: bullet2thehead9, DISTORTED JAKAL, MikRips
• Boulevard (Turf)
  Credits: UneeQ, Mr Greencastle, ArtNoob, MikRips
• Canopy (Lockout)
  Credits: UneeQ, Mr GreenCastle, MikRips, ArtNoob
• Conjurer (Warlock)
  Credits: MikRips, bullet2thehead9, DISTORTED JAKAL
• Inquisitor (Midship)
  Credits: UneeQ, Mr GreenCastle, MikRips, ArtNoob, WookieCookies
• Serenity (Sanctuary)
• Credits: UneeQ, Mr Greencastle, MikRips
• Beaver Canyon (Beaver Creek)
  Credits: UneeQ, Mr Greencastle, Azwilko1997, MikRips

Here’s the original Halo 2 Midship map, next to the brand new Inquisitor map coming to Halo Infinite.

Of course, it’s not classic Halo without the gameplay, and as such, settings in the Delta Arena Playlist have been adjusted to recreate the feel of Halo 2. With sprint and clamber disabled, a 120% jump height and friendly player collision enabled, you’ll be transported right back to those early online days of play.

“While utilizing custom game settings to recreate Halo 2’s movement is relatively easy, capturing that classic ‘feel’ was a bit harder to nail down,” says Colson. “Considering all the subtle difference between Halo Infinite and Halo 2, a 1:1 recreation was never quite in the cards, but what we did come to was that of an amalgamation between the two, with settings that move like legacy Halo, but plays with elements of the modern sandbox.”

These maps will of course be paired with iconic game modes – Spartans can jump into into rounds of Slayer, Oddball, Capture the Flag and King of the Hill inside the Delta Arena Playlist.

And an extra treat: The starting weapon in the Delta Arena playlist is the MA5K Avenger, a new addition to the Halo Infinite sandbox. Inspired by the Halo 2 SMG of the past and originally displayed 18 years ago on the cover of the novel, Halo: Ghosts of Onyx, the MA5K makes its debut as a playable weapon.

The E3 Demo

Many of us remember that iconic Halo 2 Demo shown at E3 way back in 2003. Not only was it an iconic moment for the gaming industry at the time, it also showcased what was possible not only in the Halo universe, but for the future of Xbox entirely. The demo was groundbreaking, and is fondly remembered by Halo fans today, but the effort to restore it has become a great journey in itself.

“The buzz and hype going into that event was off the charts and the stakes were higher than ever,” says Brian Jarrard, Community Director on Halo. “I have fond memories of so much playtesting and practicing, internal challenges to see who could take out every single enemy in a flawless playthrough.”

Now, for the first time ever, fans will be able step back to 2003 inside a recreation of the demo, playable inside the Halo: The Master Chief Collection via Steam.

“The response to the demo at E3 was electric, and nearly every Halo fan remembers that demo and where they were when they were first blinded by its majesty,” Jarrard adds. “Best of all, none of us ever would have expected that 20+ years later, a group of passionate community modders would bring this demo to life as a full-fledged mission.”

Several snags with technology have kept this demo locked away for many years, however, thanks to the work of the Digsite data archaeology archive and valiant efforts from the wider Halo community, the original assets and files were able to be recovered. But it wasn’t all smooth sailing from there either – the demo was built in a version of the Halo engine that no longer exists, and the assets were not compatible with any other existing versions of Halo 2.

“This put us in a bit of a quandary,” Halo Senior Franchise writer Kenneth Peters tells us. “Even the original executable is difficult to work with, as you need an Xbox developer kit to get it to boot, which is in increasingly short supply even within the studio. But now, in 2024, we have the Digsite-developed tools to analyze and automate up-porting old assets, and the unearthed knowledge to know why Bungie built things the way they did in the demo.”

“Steven Garcia (known to the community as General_101) was vital in getting this scenario stood up and even improved over the original. He was a one-man army and did a significant chunk of the work in developing tools, updating scripts, and even arting the levels. Digsite team members Ludus, Neo Te Aika, Sean T, xScruffyDaSasquatchx, and Killzone then provided finishing touches to replicate the original demo experience and test for bugs. Without them, we would probably have only had a rather unceremonious drop of raw assets and that was it.”

As part of the Digsite partnership between the studio and the modding community, players will be able to go hands-on with the remastered Halo 2 E3 Demo when this free mod releases on Steam Workshop on November 9.

Halo x Forza Celebrations

The celebrations are carrying over to other long-running Xbox franchises too. Halo and Forza have a strong history of partnership – the iconic Warthog vehicle made an appearance in Forza Motorsport 4 back in 2011, made its drivable debut in Forza Horizon 3, and in Forza Horizon 4, players were able to race it around a mission inspired by the environments of the Halo rings.

“The incredible potential of the EventLab tool in Forza Horizon 5 gives us an awesome opportunity to expand on this idea and allow payers to build their own Halo-themed tracks,” explains Corrinne Robinson, Franchise Development Director on Halo. “Our players have spent years creating amazing and inventive things in Forge within Halo and we can’t wait to see what the racing community does with the new toy box of Halo items at their disposal.”

The Halo 2 celebrations kick off on November 5 with the release of the Delta Arena Playlist as part of Halo Infinite – Operation: Great Journey.

Be sure to check out the Halo-themed Eventlab additions when they arrive in Forza Horizon 5 on November 7, and of course, the classic E3 Demo in Halo: The Master Chief Collection on Steam via the Steam Workshop mod when it launches on November 9. Get a good hold on that Covenant bomb Spartan, we’re diving in.