Halo 3 for PC and The Master Chief Collection Update Release Early

07/14/2020 10:55 am EDT

Halo players got an early present from 343 Industries when Halo 3 and its accompanying update for The Master Chief Collection released ahead of schedule. The original plan was for the game and update to release later in the day on July 14th, but people noticed the acclaimed Halo game had become available on Steam hours before that. Some services included in the game weren't live at the time and wouldn't be until the game's official launch happened during the day, but Halo 3 itself was and is now available for the first time on the PC platform.

Halo 3's Steam page has live links for downloading the game now that it's been made available early. The base game itself is priced at $9.99 while The Master Chief Collection which comes with Halo: Reach, Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, Halo 2: Anniversary, Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, and Halo 4 is priced at $39.99. The game's been optimized for the PC platform and supports up to 4K UHG and 60+ FPS as well as other customization options.

Brian "ske7ch" Jarrard, community director at 343 Industries, confirmed the early release late Monday night and said people had waited long enough for the game and that it'd come out a bit early.

The buildup to Halo 3's PC release has been preceded by numerous flight tests as part of the ongoing additions to The Master Chief Collection. Things like a Halo 3 PC showcase have happened periodically as well to offer insights into the PC game's development and how it was shaping up.

Now that the wait for Halo 3 in The Master Chief Collection is over, Halo fans have another event to look forward to that pertains to Halo Infinite. The next Halo game that's also the first one from the franchise to release on the Xbox Series X will be part of Microsoft's upcoming Xbox event this month. The event will focus on the next-gen console and offer a look at games planned for it which include Halo Infinite. We learned recently that there will be a focus placed on the game's campaign mode during the event, though there could always be a surprise or two to show us more of other parts of the game.

Halo 3 is now on the PC platform as part of The Master Chief Collection.

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