Halo’s New Third‑Person Perspective Makes the Case for Campaign Evolved More Than Anything Else

The inclusion of 42 unique feature modifying Skulls in Halo: Campaign Evolved allows players to customize their gameplay, including shifting their perspective from first to third-person. As one of the most influential FPS titles ever made, seeing missions from the original Combat Evolved by played in third-person is almost sacrilegious, at least if you’re a diehard fan of the series’ roots. However, opening up the Halo experience like this shows how the remake is innovating the franchise, creating new avenues of play that justify retreading old ground.

The arrival of the Halo series to PlayStation consoles through Campaign Evolved was one of the first signs that the game was shifting from “traditional” ideas surrounding its origin. While console exclusivity might return in Halo‘s future, developers have made it clear that Campaign Evolved is a remake that wasn’t afraid to change many elements of Combat Evolved‘s design. Iconic mission levels have been completely overhauled, with modern Halo mechanics also being integrated, to the conflicting ire and support of fans of the franchise.

Halo: Campaign Evolved Introduces A Third-Person Perspective From An Unlockable Skull

The “Perspective” Skull is a gameplay modifier you can unlock in Campaign Evolved by discovering a physical Skull in one of the game’s mission levels. Much like past games in Halo‘s history, by carrying a Skull all the way to the end of a mission, you unlock whatever modifier is attached to it. In the case of Perspective, simply activating it before a mission changes Master Chief’s field-of-view to third-person instead of the traditional first-person players have seen since Halo‘s inception.

On the surface, this third-person mode is nothing too grand, as it simply switches player perspective to the same viewpoint they would see spectating another player in past Halo games. For example, getting killed and running out of lives in Halo: Reach‘s multiplayer Firefight mode saw one player gain an over-the-shoulder view of whoever was still fighting, which they could change to be similar to Campaign Evolved‘s third-person angle.

Although this was more of a free camera, it existed in online multiplayer matches as well, sometimes giving players an idea of where they might spawn in next depending on their teammate’s position. That being said, Campaign Evolved‘s newest feature gives players full control of a character while in third-person, rather than it being locked to observation only. Out of all the Skulls shown for the remake, Perspective is arguably the most interesting, as it introduces something completely new in a game that mainly seeks to recreate past content.

Multiple Mechanics Provide Significant Modifications For Players To Adjust Their Experience

Perspective is only one of many Skulls that lets players adjust how their Halo experience works in Campaign Evolved. By many measurements, this remake introduces far more variety in the “standard” Halo experience, allowing players to customize which parts of the game to engage with. New players who come from third-person shooters might find Perspective a more comfortable option to use, while longtime Halo fans might never engage with it.

Likewise, older fans can activate Skulls to return Campaign Evolved‘s gameplay to traditional systems. Disabling the modern sprinting from later Halo games, giving the Assault Rifle 60 rounds in a magazine again, and making UNSC vehicles invincible like the original Combat Evolved are all things that Skulls in Campaign Evolved makes possible. This shapes the remake to not just be a “better” version of Combat Evolved or its Anniversary edition, but rather a playground of options to experience Halo in whatever way a player chooses.

Broad Audience Appeal Through Limitless Customization Of Gameplay Seems To Be Campaign Evolved’s Core Philosophy

Many arguments rightfully criticize Campaign Evolved for being a step backwards for the series, but the reveal of the Perspective Skull and other gameplay modifiers shows a clearer direction the remake is going for. By giving players the power to shape their own gameplay experience, the game can appeal to a much broader audience of new and old fans alike. Along with brand-new prequel missions to introduce new story content to Halo as a series, the nostalgic remade content can be experienced in fresh ways.

Simply going back to Combat Evolved for the remastered visuals of missions would lose its novelty to fans who weren’t extremely knowledgeable of every little improvement. Beyond exciting missions, the remake seems focused on giving players of all kinds the means to enjoy the game in whatever fashion they think is best. Although players won’t get access to modifiers like Perspective right away in Halo: Campaign Evolved, the extra options to unlock and mold gameplay to your favor is appealing enough to make Halo‘s past exciting once again.

What do you think of the Perspective Skull and other gameplay modifiers in Campaign Evolved? Leave a comment below or join the conversation in the ComicBook Forum!

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