Halo campaigns are best played in co-op

My family grew up playing Halo and I still love co-op. It doesn’t matter that Master Chief can only survive, as there are cutscenes to highlight this fact. The best way to play the game is through co-op.

When I say ideal, I’m not talking about the satisfaction of a solo campaign with difficulty clocked up to Legendary. You can have the best, most fun and most chaotic play, as well as the experience of going through mission after task without any friction. It’s also a great way to welcome newcomers who may be unfamiliar with how to play but want to try.

When I think of Halo, I think of LAN parties with school friends, and the sweaty summers I spent in suburban Michigan with my cousin, churning through missions on the Xbox, and walloping my best friend’s older brother and his friends in Blood Gulch and then Lockout. When I speak to Halo fan friends, it seems that this nostalgic feeling is a common sentiment.

I recently replayed all the Halo games in co-op to see if they were as good as I remembered (even though my my cousin — my original co-op partner — is now too busy with medical school for video games). These games were remastered. The Master Chief Collection by Halo, and although the remaster on PC doesn’t support split-screen play, I still had tons of fun playing with my partner on separate computers. Here’s why I still think co-op is the best possible way to play.

Create chaos with your plays

Perhaps the most compelling reason to join co-op is its ability to let your hair down and play as you please without the need to strategize. Halo allows you to respawn even if your campaign-mate has not been in combat. Do you enjoy running in the chaos, no matter how much ammo? You might prefer to be a cleaner and stay in the back. All of these options are possible. The Halo universe is your oyster when you have a friend.

Image: 343 Industries/Microsoft Studios

The numerous save points across Halo are generous enough that dying in a single-player run isn’t damning; the last checkpoint tends to be fairly recent. Once your partner has eliminated all of the enemy players in the room, the co-op mode allows you to immediately jump back into the game without loading screens. Another option is to have your partner go backtrack so you can respawn, which can prove tedious and time-consuming.

To test out campaign map shortcuts, I took advantage of my quick respawn and tried them. I then reported back to my squadmate. I have also jumped off of ledges that seemed like they’d promise nice views, even though they also absolutely result in death. Also, I’ve gotten to do more of the highly underrated melee gun punch, which is an incredibly satisfying way to take down foes, although it’s risky, since Covenant enemies tend to be much stronger than you. The respawn process is simple and offers so much enjoyment, why waste it?

Play strategic games

Alternatively, co-op offers the chance to be extremely strategic about how you’ll approach a scenario. One of Halo’s strengths is the sheer volume of campaign missions and the various tactical options you have in each one, plus how much the difficulty level modifies the amount of strategy that’s actually worth the effort. You can also just do things that feel “strategic” but mostly make you seem like you’re in an action film. It’s fun to stand back to back in a room that’s crawling with enemies, knowing that each of you has a clear sight line and area to be responsible for.

The vehicles are just so much more luxurious

Image: 343 Industries/Microsoft Studios

Play alone, and your choices are more limited for the game’s most famous three-person vehicle, the M12 Chaingun Warthog. It is likely that you will either be driving the Warthog, or operating the turret.

The Warthog is a crucial part of the series. It’s also the basis for the many iterations. The steering can be a bit sloppy (and the laws of physics laughable), but it is still a great vehicle. Combat evolvedAnd whoever drives is the one who takes it for the team. And yes, other vehicles have this “do I shoot or drive” dynamic; the Falcon helicopter is a particularly fun one. For the Warthog specifically, it is much more enjoyable to have one friend. Two friends means that one must agree to be the passenger on a regular firearm (No Warthog fun).

My favorite Halo vehicle are Covenant spacecraft, which can be manned by one person. I’m a huge fan of the Ghosts, which are very maneuverable and pleasantly small, so I drive them into buildings where they aren’t supposed to go. Because I enjoy flying barrel rolls and flying, banshees make a great choice. These are my favorite.

Protect your friends…or kill your friends

Nothing, and I mean nothing, feels better than having your buddy’s back by spotting an enemy running toward them — while they’re unaware, a sitting duck — and taking the enemy out. This is especially true for Covenant aliens, like Stalkers, when they’re being pesky and invisible, detectable only as an unsettling shimmer. Final scene from Reach Halo This game is feverish as you battle against unending waves of enemies to survive. The game only ends when you’ve finally been wiped out.

Alternately, if you’re an asshole, you can make it your mission to deploy friendly fire and then steal your partner’s ammo and grenades — not that I have done this. You are staring at me that way! I’m innocent!

Invite new friends

Image: 343 Industries/Microsoft Studios

It’s tricky to create a co-op experience that feels doable for newcomers or a pair with very different skill levels. If you’re looking for something truly suited to that big mismatch in skill or investment, Halo is not the best place to look. The reigning champion for this type of co-op is Nintendo, who has solid player two assistance in Super Mario Galaxy. Super Mario Odyssey, and features like building a house on someone else’s Animal Crossing – New HorizonsIsland

But if there’s a friend in your life who is new to first-person shooters and genuinely interested in learning, playing a Halo campaign in co-op — particularly at an easy difficulty setting — is a great way for them to dip their toes in the water. An experienced player may be able to guide them through the process, while a newer player might just want to try it.