Halo 2 PC Tech Review - The Master Chief Collection's Best Port Yet?

Fortunes have been mixed with the PC conversions of Halo Reach and Halo: Combat Evolved - so how does the latest release fare? Alex Battaglia revisits Halo 2, the Anniversary Edition improvements and rates the technical proficiency of this new PC port.
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[@samuelnathan312]

Second Half of 2004: Doom 3, Half Life 2 and Halo 2 First Half of 2020: Doom Eternal, Half Life Alyx and Halo 2 MCC Remaster

[@jarg8]

But also Halo 2 has been remastered since 2014 so no.

[@turnerd.jennings5987]

@@jarg8 But Halo 2 MCC is now on PC, along with Doom Eternal and Half Life Alyx. So, it counts

[@5dloljared]

@@turnerd.jennings5987 but Halo 2 PC only came out in 2007 :(

[@doubtinglee105]

@@5dloljared But this Anniversary Edition is remastered/remade graphics on the PC version. So different.

[@cynicalgold9992]

@@jarg8 what do you mean by "so no"? So, its just not happening right now or something?

[@DylanFromAZ]

The cinematic cut scenes are gorgeous. It's gonna be mind blowing when those cut scenes turn into gameplay one day

[@DBTHEPLUG]

Halo Infinite

[@penumbrum3135]

@@DBTHEPLUG X to doubt.

[@awesome9174]

@@DBTHEPLUG lol no. Squadron 42 is probably the closest to looking that good.

[@alexjay8257]

@@awesome9174 Oh when does that come out? : ]

[@scissortongue5772]

Awesome! When it’s out.

[@Clockwork0nions]

"Guess we'll be waiting for fixes then" the tagline of the MCC since it was released.

[@alexanderbattaglia6048]

unfortunately :(

[@mitchellp7739]

@Dayko sad that the only decent thing 343 has brought to the Halo franchise is just remastering Bungie’s Halo games

[@MajoraZ]

@@mitchellp7739 I have issues with 343i, they do mess 1 thing up for every 1 thing they do right, but that's just hyperbolic nonsense. Off the top of my head, here's a list of postive things they've done: Halo 4: >The live action commercial >The sense of atmosphere and environmental design in general >The skyboxes >The lighting and shaders, generally looks good on a technical level even if the UNSC art design is trashed >the soundtrack, even if it's not marty level >The Storm rifle >The redesign for the Carbine, Plasma Pistol, and Beam rifle >The introduction of the Prometheans/didact in the campaign > the moment when you get out of the cave in mission 2 >Regicide >The scoreboard changes Halo 5: >The weapon balance (Pre-TU) >The ARG >Getting rid of 4's loadouts, perks, killstreaks, etc >Return to even starts with weapons and powerups on map >Brings back the golden triangle of guns, melee, and nades with no equipment or armor abilities >new movement options add a ton of skilljumps >The Trials music >The ambient dialog in the campaign >Blue team/Argent moon >Free DLC >Everything relating to forge >Everything relating to customs >like seriously holy fuck forge and custom potential is insane >Seat swapping >Health visibility >Shield recharge indicator EU stuff: >Halo evolutions >Bits of Legends >Cryptum >Primordium >Silentium >Half of Glasslands and Thursday War >Broken Circle >Last Light >Fractures >Mythos >Warfleet >A bunch of other books/comics that are apparently good but I haven't read yet Infinite >Going back to more classic visual design Other >CEA's sound design >H2A in general >Working with/allowing some fangames/fanmods, such as sins of the prophets >The community feedback program and their degree of community interaction >MCC update initiative is super throughugh, but this is negated by MCC being broke to begin with >Bringing MCC to PC, but this is somewhat negated by rushing the ports even after a year of saying "they are taking their time with it to do it right"

[@kamilpotato3764]

@@dayko.He forgot to mention weird audio issues. Missing sounds when firing sometimes, central channel definitely too quite and few other problems

[@Baxtexx]

@@dayko. yeah and then it's never fixed. They still haven't fixed the muffled sound in Reach or plasma pistol bugs in CE.

[@RonkeyRong]

One of the best remasters in terms of keeping the original visual tone. Looking forward to watching this right now

[@yobro6053]

I think the overall best I have seen is the gears ultimate remaster, it looks gorgeous, like a game that released this gen.

[@Awaks]

yes, but actually no that flat look Vs the needed vibrant proper look

[@alexsilva28]

Not a remaster but a remake. Although I agree. Every artistic choice feels consistent and respectful to the original game unlike CEA where they took many liberties (I still love it tho)

[@ArabianFreedom]

@S. TThe AI in that game is easily one of the worst. I've played PS2 games that has superior AI.

[@user-qe7bt9dz1l]

Movefasta Bro Nah the RE1 Remake Remaster is really good! Probably the best!

[@omgomgomgd]

6:10 thanks for using the correct skin for the correct music player

[@Solruc_]

Winamp gang rise

[@NanoBite]

It really whips the llama's ass.

[@xmaverickhunterkx]

Wait.... there are other music players?

[@gamerxt333]

7 out of 10 boomers agree, winamp or get out

[@EonsArt]

It isn’t perfect but it is as fun as ever. I just wish they’d fix that ambient occlusion dithering bug.

[@treywar25]

The what?

[@noobishmacgaming]

treywar25 if you have the graphics set to “enhanced” with the new graphics and look at shadows up close, they will almost always be a pattern of small dots. It’s noticeable on NPC / enemy models skin, and weapons, but it’s really all over the place. Also that way in anniversary graphics of halo 1.

[@justfitz08]

Get in line. Everyone has that one bug they really want fixed badly. Halo 2 Classics MP needs love first!

[@PhyrexJ]

@@hihowrya370 I do feel I'm only playing 3 different maps in 4v4

[@davemccombs]

You can shoot the floor on any map with any gun and kill enemies. It's the glitchiest piece of shit launch in Halo history and you're worried about "ambient occlusion dithering"

[@rubiantary]

Everytime i saw master chief, it always reminds me of my friend saying "Strong enough to lift a tank, but can't handle smg recoil" 😅

[@3dmarth]

...and dies if a slow-moving hoverbike grazes the side of his armour.

[@shreder75]

Lol So true

[@blindrezo]

Winamp, it really whips the llama's ass!

[@GraveUypo]

funny seeing people getting all nostalgic for the music player i never dropped.

[@mduckernz]

2.73 fo lyfe

[@blairlohnes8103]

Still use it.

[@Jaqen-HGhar]

@@GraveUypo so you probably have a rootkit on your pc...unless you somehow managed to keep the exact copy of winamp you originally downloaded back in the early 2000's and even then without patches it's a huge security flaw.

[@UnknownUser-fg3fs]

Boomer

[@stefdevs]

Best of all: They didn't butcher the art style.

[@cactusmann1268]

I feel like they should add splitscreen support this year.

[@prithvigill3827]

It is there on Xbox

[@stealthmaster6472]

He is obviously talking about pc.

[@stahl1624]

PC Master race lmao Have not even got Split screen

[@thegreenbastard1]

Kerberos Consoles lmao Cant even have mods! Lol

[@cactusmann1268]

@@stahl1624 Nobody mentioned PC master race. 343 Industries, Saber Interactive and Bungie have collectively decided *not* to add in support for the release of all the games featured in the MCC. Blame the developers for being short-sighted and not supporting such a trivial feature from the Halo franchise upon porting it. Because of such actions, PC gamers have no other option but to either run the games on an emulator or - in the case of Halo: CE (the only Halo port that has multiplayer functioning normally) you have to set up a janky virtual machine and then split 2-4 instances of the game onto 1 display. Feel free to forward this to the developers.

[@LateNightHalo]

I’m surprised you guys didn’t notice the music timing issues and AI behavior bugs

[@NazmusLabs]

Umm, late night...AI the dual weilding bug has been fixed for the first time since MCC 2014 released. It’s even mentioned in their blog post. Elites duel wield in game in Halo 2: Anniversary on PC

[@gabenewell3955]

NazmusLabs okay but not on Xbox so what’s your point

[@joshuak5798]

@@gabenewell3955 the point is that this is a video on the PC port.

[@gabenewell3955]

Josh Wilson and shows that the Xbox version has been downgraded for example the frame rate yet 343 doesn’t give a shit

[@Luke-ih1oc]

Hey LNG; do you know if H2 on PC suffers from the same poor audio encoding issues as Reach (and I assume also CE)? Supposedly an issue that a third-party company is remedying or in the process thereof, but I don't know if H2 has the same issue or not.

[@cad3nce]

Just finished playing this and it was glorious. Why can't they make single player FPS games like this any more. Also the remastered soundtrack is incredible. I'd forgotten how great the music in halo 2 is.

[@josemartha5977]

make the games like how? with poorly tested mechanics caused by a tight deadline?

[@bizalicioso8990]

@@josemartha5977 yesn't

[@PhyrexJ]

@@josemartha5977 The game itself, smartass. Halo 2 still is a great game to date.

[@josh223]

@@josemartha5977 despite the development hell the game turned out spectacular.. unlike some modern releases *cough* Anthem *cough*

[@josh223]

@@josemartha5977 part of it also is the emphasis on gameplay, story, and a sandbox. Rather than shoving RPG mechanics into every game that exists and calling it a day

[@4horsemenoftheapocalypse58]

MS should make Gears 2 &3 Ultimate for PC

[@Balnazzardi]

Perhaps but I think there should be a limit to remaster and remakes....doing too much of them isnt something I would like to see either.

[@victorsegoviapalacios4710]

Yeah, they should launch a "Gears of War - Classics Collection" or something.

[@oneeyedlittleman]

I doubt it. They got so much praise for releasing on steam and it's not like epic is going to cooperate with them releasing an epic made game anywhere other than the epic store.

[@miikasuominen3845]

If it's anything like the first one, then maybe not... On the other hand, if it's made like Nathan Drake collection, then go ahead...

[@shth34d57]

@@Balnazzardi remakes? Gears 2 and 3 never came to pc

[@Hits9Nine]

After playing Halo 2, I can't wait for 3 and ODST

[@sharpshooter5417]

Replayed ODST again on legendary during Christmas holidays with Dolby Atmos and reaffirmed my love and assertion that it is the most atmospheric Halo game. Imagine it on PC

[@alexsilva28]

@@sharpshooter5417 GOD they better not mess that one too 😩

[@eticket48]

@@alexsilva28 fingers crossed

[@skirmich]

I am not trilled with H3.. Considering 343 already confirmed there wont be an Anniversary edition... This means you have played the best looking and sounding halo of the original trilogy of the MCC which is truly a shame since H3 looks like dog shit compared to H2AMCC.

[@eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeo]

I cant wait to play Halo 3 for the first time. I loved 1 and 2 at the time. Idk why I skipped to 4 (and didn't beat it) 😂

[@buckshotgaming4066]

I'm so glad to hear that I'm not the only one getting hitching issues, thought it was a problem on my end.

[@ZSTE]

Breaking Benjamin, energy sword, and the hog is why I play in classic.

[@alexsilva28]

Same, but the music is incredibly messed up. It plays and loops at the wrong moment and the audio is glitchy

[@Reach4God1]

Agreed, though the sword is the biggest offender to me. I hate the new sounds and miss the pink/purple of the old model.

[@JaronActual]

I see a person of refined tastes . . .

[@eticket48]

Yeah, the energy sword sounded to much like a lightsaber

[@cynicalgold9992]

@S. T so is classical version not there for people to use or something?

[@Edmundostudios]

Halo 2 Classic multiplayer is completely messed up

[@ArabianFreedom]

How?

[@philipbanks632]

@@ArabianFreedom You can shoot at the ground and kill random people, both teammates and enemies alike.

[@UnL1k3]

@@ArabianFreedom Ground shooting lmao

[@aacob2]

@@ArabianFreedom I shot a rocket downwards at an enemy and it disappeared and i betrayed a teammate lmao

[@Edmundostudios]

Philip Banks Also grenades and hits just not registering at all consistently.

[@TheLifeoflink]

It would be nice to see a final review and analysis of the MCC after it's all released.

[@carlospinto5845]

So much for quality assurance. Those frame drops look major!

[@noa670]

Can't wait for Halo 3.

[@MrGRmask]

After 13 years of waiting, we're gonna finish this fight.

[@Brandon-gz9nx]

Can't wait for Halo 3 to launch bugged and/or broken just like every other PC launch game. And also no forge for a year and a half because it's so hard for 343 to do their job

[@user-qe7bt9dz1l]

I can’t wait for another great Halo game like Halo Combat Evolved... the rest pretty much sucked imo...

[@Jamesssssssssssssss]

"Guess we'll be waiting for fixes then".... is what i said with Reach and nothing has been fixed.

[@mrnelsonius5631]

I’m kind of shocked how good this looks. I’ve become a huge fan of Saber Interactive. All this stuff about Raytracing... and I’m more impressed with their porting of a 2016 game to Switch and their tech/artistic choices updating a Halo game from 2004 😂. But really, they are doing amazing work and I wish Reach had gotten this same treatment.

[@Baxtexx]

Yeah I agree, reach looks awful. H2A actually looks something like Bungie intended it to look! HCEA on the other hand wasn't that good. I think the design was changed too much.

[@BlindTrustProject]

@@Baxtexx I Agree. Saber butchered Halo CE anniversary art direction and lighting with a frankenstein monster made of out-of-place REACH assets and new poorly made assets that looks nothing like Halo. And the framerate on xbox 360 was worse than the OG Halo. The worst kind of remaster you can think of. Fortunately they came to their senses with Halo 2 Anniversary with a way more respectful remade assets and lighting. I wish both 343i and Saber would acknowledge that HaloCEA was reworked with bad taste and would ditch it and work on a way more faithfull remake.

[@rickygforce4217]

@@BlindTrustProject I think Halo 3 should get the anniversary treatment first, 2022 is coming around the corner for the 15th anniversary, and those facial animations could do with a touch up

[@robertyoung406]

What game on the Switch are you referring to?

[@thingsiplay]

While I enjoy the work and upgrade they have done in the remade graphics, I also really like the fact you can switch to old look (and sound) with a press of a key. I saw this in Monkey Island Special Edition as well and wish more developer would do this. I really really love like this.

[@thingsiplay]

@referral madness Is this a positive or negative face?^^ Edit: Now I know its a positive one. lol

[@darthmarticusLFC]

I just finished a co-op playthrough of Halo 2 Anniversary on my X and it never once felt like 60fps.

[@TheJakeSweede]

when i played through the campaign, i switched a lot between classic and anniversary. In short: sometimes its better on classic, sometimes its better on anniversary. Overall i think the anniversary remaster for halo 2 is a lot better than the anniversary for halo:CE. If the audio or music sounds really weird, try switching to classic. Best example i can think of is when you enter that room and the classic plays a breaking benjamin song (that is really good) but the anniversary plays some other song that is not as good. I think it depends on what type of experience you are after. I like the nostalgic feel of the classic graphics, so i am prone to play on classic. Martys music is sometimes better than the new score, so whenever you hear music, i reccommend switching to see the differences. Overall i switched around a lot just to compare the versions, and if i liked on version better, i played that part of the level on that version. I got the "play every mission on both classic and anniversary graphics" achievement on steam the moment i finished the campaign. I think the MCC on PC is WELL worth the price now, even if you are only interested in the single player campaign.

[@zak-ur6yy]

I switched a lot so I could actually see stuff. The contrast in anniversary is way out there and muzzle flash on the BR and SMG almost covers up the crosshair. Was disappointed to see that there are still walls that got visually smaller in enhanced graphics but the hitbox of the wall is the size that it is on the OG graphics

[@WaxsteinOriginal]

I was waiting for this, thank you :)

[@8Paul7]

I am playing it now and it is MINDBOGGLING how amazing the presentation is. Visuals, Audio, Cutscenes - everything is 10/10. Saber and Blur did AMAZING JOB.

[@livingthedream915]

@Digital Foundry The reason for those stutters is because on remaster graphics the game keeps the distant level geometry rendered (no occlusion culling) at some kind of unusually high level of detail. This is especially noticeable on High Charity because you can see fully rendered distant platforms on the left in full detail after you go down the very first gravity lift outside the weird Prophet conference. On classic graphics the models and textures aren't loaded in until you get close, which means A: Occlusion culling is broken or B: Anniversary graphics mode loads THE ENTIRE LEVEL in memory and holds it there instead of loading it in sections like classic. Glad you noticed the stuttering.

[@WrathDrago]

This may be a late reply, but could that also be why my 1070 is using 6.3gb of 8gb of vram because the remastered graphics are loading the entire level, hence why I get the big hitching?

[@livingthedream915]

@@WrathDrago IDK about the vram but I know that the hitching is caused by massive amounts of level geometry being rendered when it shouldn't. I've been trying to get word of this bug out but whatever, classic mode is better anyway, especially if you adjust brightness

[@alexjay8257]

I'm all for new and better audio... But the sniper rifle shot was kind of iconic. Eh, I'll get used to it.

[@MajoraZ]

Halo 2's sniper rifle audio was always pretty low and not very punchy, though?

[@MrPerson61]

@@MajoraZ I always liked the high pitch Bark that it made after each shot, it sounded so cool. Combo the Bass from the new one with the Bark from the old and I would be very happy

[@budthecyborg4575]

Iconic, yes, the new one sounds pretty darn good though.

[@scottcooper9089]

Serious, I had the same thought. That original really brings you back.

[@Headgear]

I also enjoyed the old audio for the sniper more

[@SolarMechanic]

It has online connectivity issues? It really is just like 2007, hoo-rah!

[@user-ky9ou5dz9q]

It's funny that no one seems to remember how trash the connections were in all of bungie halo games and how completely broken host was and how bad hit detection could be. Halo 2 and 3 were the first games were as a kid I'd scream at the tv and run into theater because I know for a fact I hit that guy lol. Good times.

[@SamH94]

The remade sounds make as much of a difference as the remade visuals, it's incredible how much better it sounds, especially the music

[@GameplayandTalk]

Great to see this is a solid conversion. I've got to say, the older versions of the game are tough to go back to. I picked up the Vista port and man, while it can look *okay*, it controls poorly. Just judging by the footage here, it seems they really improved it in that regard. And man, does this new version look really good. Looking forward to trying it out!

[@cynicalgold9992]

Og halo 2 on xbox still plays smoother than most shooters nowadays. Playing a pc port of a console game might be the issue. Halo 2 has a lot of issues, but poor controls are NOT one of those issues

[@gonzo4637]

This "solid conversion" is full of piss poor decisions and rushed design philosophy. Not too mention the numerous bugs which have presented themselves that dont even exist on the other ports EVEN THE VISTA. Also the fact forge still isnt in these ports is telling. Im just giving you a fair warning, Id wait for a sale on this one muh dude.

[@LiNK52500]

Honestly playing Halo 2 Anniversary on a standard X1 via MCC would be better than Halo 2 Vista even with the performance tradeoff.

[@BLAZINGwaffle56]

Honestly looks amazing, running it on enhanced at 120fps+ with my GTX 970. It feels amazing.

[@FatSacks]

I really wish I could play the remastered graphics with classic sounds. I love how the new game looks with the remade visuals, but the soundtrack in Halo 2 is by far my favorite and I much prefer Marty's music to the remastered stuff.

[@fourthdirective]

I remember the 2007 pc release included achievements which of cause were missing from the og game. Looks really good.

[@jogaraven]

Thank you for great work! Always watching your reviews! Hopefully fixes will be released soon

[@paterson90]

The campaign anniversary graphics look amazing, especially the cutscenes. I hope they used this for inspiration for Infinite.

[@Lb8068]

Any updates on the frame timing and hitching issues? I’m still suffering from terrible stuttering in Halo 2 MCC’s Anniversary graphics.

[@fishwithlipslipson8945]

I got this as my only game alongside my pc around 2011/2012. The multiplayer was already dead when I started playing because windows vista was a damn PAIN to manage. But I still fondly remember the campaign. As my only game for a couple of months I did a lot of campaign. The dual wielding and vehicles were so much fun!

[@N8TM8T]

A note about the campaign co-op lag. A friend and I have been paying through it and the lag spikes always seem to happen in parts of the map where I would expect it to be loading assets for the next part of the level. This may be coincidental though.

[@someonespotatohmm9513]

No this is the cause. Its even in the release known bug list.

[@bdcbenjie]

It honestly sounds like they captured real weapon audio for several weapons in the remaster. I was even able to recognize a few weapon sounds from my time in the infantry lol much better than the halo 2 original sounds

[@whodatninja439]

No. The original sounds are iconic. but it's nice to have the option

[@rickygforce4217]

@Who Dat Ninja *iconic and easily recognisable due to how bad they are. Hell, the H3 sniper sound is way better than the H2 sniper even though it used the exact same base sound. Halo 2's sound engineering was just abysmal, nothing had weight to it. The only people who like them are the ones that grew up with those sounds, and even I, who grew up with these games, cringe everytime I hear something like the H2 SMG

[@potatotablet727]

They did record real weapon sounds for this remaster, go check out their behind-the-scenes.

[@Arnaud57915]

@@rickygforce4217 I grew up with it and I agree

[@Luke-ih1oc]

@@whodatninja439 what do you mean "no" ? Lol, you are disagreeing with a point that he didn't even make.

[@wc999]

probably the best remake we will ever see in our lifetimes, those cutscenes are beyond gorgeous

[@alumlovescake]

Demon Souls, Nier and Crisis Core were pretty good remasters too though they dont have prerendered cutscenes like that

[@wc999]

@@alumlovescake imo the demon souls remake sucked because it took alot out of the art direction of the original and crisis core has new VAs that suck havent played nier

[@JJ_Khailha]

Great video, thanks. Am playing through MCC on PC and am nearing the end of Reach and am thoroughly enjoying it.

[@Nilzzzon]

Just started playing it. Graphics looks really neat, cinematics are compeltely re-made and the audio is more punchy. The ability to switch from old to remaster with the flip of a switch (tab) is also very nostalgic. Thinking of buying it? GO!

[@GoldSrc_]

"waiting for fixes", have they fixed Reach's audio on PC? lol.

[@gamerxt333]

what audio issues ? - Steam forums

[@mango40000]

@@gamerxt333 works on my machine

[@zenoncma]

i have played Halo Reach and CE with no issues , now playing Halo 2 and no problems so far ...

[@FUnzzies1]

@@zenoncma people just want to complain :/

[@sinizzl]

@@FUnzzies1 Teh audio mix in reach is absolute dog shit and doesn't do the game justice.

[@SerdceDanko]

Best port? It stutters all the time.

[@moses3167]

In regards to the audio design changes, I think I saw somewhere that for later games Marty O Donnell had them make the guns less loud so the music would stand out better. It was in an interview or vidoc or something like that. Makes sense considering music has had to share its place in game audio with more and more things as time has passed.

[@andymath89]

this video flooded me with nostalgia, damn...thank you so much for the review.

[@Dashadvent]

With regards to the hitching, I found that the game tended to hitch when vram was near maxing out. I'm running on a GTX 970, and at 1080p a couple game levels maxed out vram on the "enhanced" graphic setting.

[@sean8102]

Yeah I've noticed this game uses a large amount of VRAM for some reason. On my GTX 1080 at 1440p it stays around 6.5 - 7+ GB of VRAM usage (or at least requested).

[@WrathDrago]

Yay I have the same problem is there fix for it or do you think 343 will ever fix it, I know year late reply?

[@Dashadvent]

@@WrathDrago are you monitoring your vram usage? If it's close to being maxed out, try lowering the texture quality. Otherwise, check your RAM usage.

[@WrathDrago]

@@Dashadvent system ram is fine afterburner states about 6gb is used. But the vram on the gpu is high over 6gb on a 8gb 1070 is used playing at 1080p. Thats when I notice frame hitching happening. Oh forgot to mention I have 16gb of system ram.

[@Dashadvent]

@@WrathDrago have you tried reducing texture quality? I think on max quality the game loads 4k textures- which would explain why it gobbles up all vram at max regardless of render resolution

[@Pedro_The_Neco]

The framerate on Halo CEA, Halo 2A and halo 3 has been broken since the reach update.

[@rickygforce4217]

"Fixed" says 343, Im just waiting on that patch to come out

[@CC42_]

@@rickygforce4217 fixed my ass! are they really saying that?

[@user-qe7bt9dz1l]

They need to fix some of the animations in Halo CE like the Gatling gun blast fire doesn’t stay aligned with the gun while driving and blasting in classic graphics and also the in game cutscenes at the beginning of the stage seems to have off frame rate on your gun and the onscreen characters like the intro to The Silent Cartographer. Very annoying!

[@Pedro_The_Neco]

Fix is coming later today, apparently!!!

[@rickygforce4217]

@@CC42_ bruh, fixed as in they've found the reason for it and have made a fix to it in a test build, not as in they've released the update already. Calm down man lmao

[@JetKNINE]

The stuttering or hitching on delta halo is a sharder cache related problem. If the shader cache size is changed. The results of the stuttering changes

[@DuckmanR10]

Love the spotlight on Misha's songs in this.

[@WhiteInk47]

Though the Blur cinematic’s and the remade graphics are beautiful, I still prefer the original graphics somehow. I like Cortana’s model better, and there’s a lot of nostalgia for me in the original graphics. Really love what they did with the remade visuals though, and very glad Halo 2 has made it’s return to PC. I loved playing the OG PC Halo 2.

[@IainsTheName]

Halo 2 Anni in-game Cortana model really is atrocious, no idea what they did there 🤷🏽‍♂️. It’s like they took Halo 3’s model then slapped a horrible texture over it which didn’t quite fit

[@Luke-ih1oc]

@referral madness check out Project Cartographer (it's free)

[@PhalasaGames]

How does 343 not donate to this channel for blatantly play-testing and doing the legwork of highlighting fixes for future patches?????

[@x4MatCx]

Das "und auf Wiedersehen" hat mich voll aus dem Konzept gebracht :D. Schönes Video :)! Die Ruckeleinlagen scheinen wirklich bei jedem zu sein. Hatte es auch, mein Koop-Partner auch, wir beide nutzen auch einen 3900X. Aber hey, das Spiel macht verdammt viel Laune :)!

[@stephennorthway8017]

Thanks for analyzing Halo 2 Anniversary on Xbox One X! I knew there was something wrong, the same issues are also present on the CE Anniversary graphics. I didn't notice these issues until December with the Reach patch.

[@Finger112]

Yep that was around the time I noticed as well when I went back to play the new crossgame playlists on Xbox One X with Reach added. I think the reason is because 343 mentioned alot last year adding Reach into the collection caused memory allocation issues (or maxing out on memory usage) so the engines are more strained now than before.

[@IainsTheName]

Series X can’t come quick enough! (It’s disgusting we’ll probably need new hardware for this game to run ok, but I’m getting SX anyway and have MCC so I’m looking forward to seeing what Back Compat does for it!)

[@MrH-GB]

I'm getting big lurches where the game just chugs and hitches. It'll be running fine at 144FPS then plummet to 40FPS whilst it freezes for a second or two. I'm using a RTX 3080 and 10700K @ 4.9GHz. The Delta Halo map has been the worst so far too.

[@dimaz3]

Yep. Same but on a RTX 2060 for me. Starting of the mission Delta Halo and Regret chugs hard.

[@KarimLikes2Play]

Hello everyone Actually iam expériencing thé same with my halo mcc on one x At first i tought it was my hardware but it is. Brand new almostI played and finished the complete mcc collection 3 month prior to halo reach being added to it . The gameplay was just fine and I never noticed any stutering or framer drop at that time ... I finished halo reach when it came out in December 2019 the game was running quiete well also and now I decide to play the complet collection once again and started noticing stutering and frame drop on halo 1 anniversaryI also noticed few days ago an update of 23 GB was made to the collection but I'm now really frustrated! This game is no longer what it was few month ago... Can anyone tell what is happening? Frame drops and string in halo 1 anniv halo 2 anniv and overal in general! So frustrating!

[@CC42_]

they fucked us over on the One X. After the Reach update they broke the framerate in Halo 1 and Halo 2 campaigns. They're now focused on the PC release instead of remedying tge situation for their original buyers of their game. It's really bad look on their part.

[@themannis3749]

@@CC42_ ce and reach is ducked on pc too dude, not fps wise but visually

[@JDoG867]

Hopefully they fix the frame rate for the OneX. I have been experiencing frame rate issues since the Halo Reach update.

[@ScarthyUK]

Same. It’s so annoying

[@TilSkywalker]

Noticed those weird hitches aswell... besides that I had such a great time with the game. As you showed the audio is just sublime and the redone SOundtrack is insane! Trapped in Amber is still one of my personal favourite Halo tracks!

[@TeknoRiderF1RE]

Can't wait for Halo 4. Cmon i know im not the only one, right ...?

[@justonaut5622]

It's always awesome seeing Halo getting covered on DF! The port does seem pretty decent from what I've played and the Anniversary graphics look stellar. When playing on my personal rig with an RTX 2070 paired with an i7-6700 I was getting major stuttering when trying to play at 144fps, when locking it to 60 in game it all seemed to work fine. Think it was on Delta Halo too so that definitely seems to be a problematic level which is a shame. Great analysis as always Alex!

[@lahma69]

That original grenade sound effect is so iconic though.. it literally transports my mind back to a much, much younger time.. Nostalgia is weird...

[@Inkerlink]

I'm pretty sure that the hitching issue on Delta Halo you experienced was the same one I experienced, but the problem only seemed to occur when I had the frame rate set to Unlimited. I set it to 60 and the level played buttery smooth for me from there on out. It's definitely something that should be fixed.

[@riaz8783]

The soundtrack in H2A is so badass. Props for featuring some of the best tracks in the game.

[@Vartazian360]

You really need to try the multiplayer.. its locked at 60fps even in unlocked fps and its completely broken. Shame because the campaign doesn't have this problem

[@sameerkhatri588]

Locked? Mine runs at 144 most of the time with drops to 120. And I capped it at 144

[@Vartazian360]

@@sameerkhatri588 the mouse movement is unlocked but the motion of the world players and reload animations is all locked to 60fps without interpolation. It feels terrible. The campaign does not exhibit this issue. It's not a performance problem it's an engine problem. Been on 144hz for 8 years and recently switched to 240hz. I can instantly that it is not behaving as it should and it feels terrible. It's not just the fact that the counter shows 180fps. The way they have implemented it is trash.

[@MlSTERSANDMAN]

lets not forget about aim assist too. no point using mkb on a pc game feels like

[@reticulating_splines]

Love to see you using Winamp, it really does [still] whip the Llama's ass hunh?

[@MrMightyZ]

Very well spoken and extremely well written. A great video, Alex. A worthy addition to Digital Foundry’s greatness. 10/10.

[@albal156]

The constant frame drops not just on Delta Halo for me make this game kinda of unplayable in all honesty. I recently had to switch back to Clasic graphics because it was so bad.

[@sdewey4152]

Oh Winamp, nostalgia shot right there. Lol @ them attempting a DOOM 3 lighting and shadow systems, MC can't shake being DOOM Guys clone can he.

[@ok-hd1fk]

Who's trying to be a Doom guy clone?

[@cremvursti]

Dayum, Misha slaps on this one. Wasn't even planning on picking up the collection but now it's a guaranteed buy.

[@Eclipzify]

Appreciate the technical breakdown and impressive attention to detail in the video! Interesting points about performance hitching later in the video, perhaps 343 haven't optimised the occlusion of world data. It looks like they need to either stream levels progressively or simply occlude data over a specific distance away from the player if it's blocked by another object - though I suspect DLODS and progressive streaming will be the winner.

[@lucapassalacqua2762]

I didn't know Misha made some music for this! Maybe he could replace Mick Gordon for future Doom things?

[@MrPerson61]

I love everything about the new visuals in the remaster, but I actually like the older weapon sounds more. Sure they aren't as punchy, but I like how different and unique each weapon sounds from one another. All the human weapons sound like generic real weapons that you could hear in a Battlefield game or something, which while it fits there, doesn't so much in a sci-fi world where you can make a weapon sound like whatever you want. The Covenant weapons all sound like they use some sort of same base sound effect and just changed slightly per weapon making them all feel same-y. While Classic Halo 2 weapon sounds aren't the best in quality or "punchyness" they all sound completely unique and you can tell what gun is going off and from where just from the first time you hear it shoot. Also the Tank shell firing seems to be the opposite, the Classic tank sounds way more impactful than the remaster that sounds like your shooting something with no recoil or force behind it. I also prefer some of the classic music tracks as well. The Choir in the remakes seems WAY too loud over the rest of the instruments, and while their replacements are still pretty great, I will always prefer "Blow Me Away" and "Follow" over their replacements. If they had an option to play with the remastered graphics with classic audio like Halo CE:A does, I'd be a happy camper.

[@user-qe7bt9dz1l]

So you like bland sounding guns?!?? I personally prefer Halo CE classic gun sounds the best. The anniversaries and Halo 2 classic sounds fake.

[@ThePurpleSquares1]

I Can also confirm hitching on Delta Halo and other missions using a 3800X/1080. As well as particle effects playing in what looks like slow motion when using classic graphics

[@dmoneyballa]

This was so well made. I very much appreciate it.

[@Lionlovesunity]

9:50 that was the first time I’ve EVER seen 120 FPS vs 60 FPS. Now 60 looks slow 😂😂😂😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

[@DriveCancelDC]

That wasn't 120 vs. 60, it was 120 at 12-25% playback speed

[@granatengeorg]

What is it with developers obsession to remove splitscreen for PCs.

[@frankwren8215]

It's more a consistent disregard for consumers and playing blame games with the person literally one rung higher on the corporate ladder.

[@granatengeorg]

@@frankwren8215 y tho. It's not like happy customers are more likely to attract new ones down the line or anything...

[@jensonian2148]

Good breakdown. I had no idea the new soundtrack absolutely slaps. Guess I have to pick it up

[@sidremus]

I really felt the same about the audio. It took me a little to accept that the weapon balancing hadn't been changed, because just from the new sound alone some I could have sworn some guns to be more powerful..

[@miladesn]

Halo: Waiting for Fixes Collection

[@gabenewell3955]

lol 😂

[@ScarthyUK]

Xbox one x is still broken! Performance is awful on all anniversary campaigns, this occurred when reach was added a year ago and still isn’t fixed :(

[@scotchwhisky6094]

Get a series x then.

[@ScarthyUK]

@@scotchwhisky6094 ermm no. How about 343 fix the game that used to run at locked 60fps on the one x and now plays like garbage...

[@scotchwhisky6094]

@@ScarthyUK Well the CPU on the one x is trash so they can't fix it.

[@ScarthyUK]

@@scotchwhisky6094 what a stupid comment. How did it run perfectly before? There are also performance issues on the series X on the anniversary campaigns so it needs work. Blindly telling people to buy a series x is not the answer here

[@scotchwhisky6094]

@@ScarthyUK Well xbox updated the operating system. It now has more features and uses more of your CPU. So sorry to say but your one x will always have these problems. Hence why you should just get a Series X.

[@fiftybottles]

Interestingly, I noticed the every-other-frame hand refresh on even a 60Hz monitor. I'm not sure what's causing it but it doesn't seem to occur if vsync is on / framerate is locked to 60. Going unlimited and switching sync off however, it was IMMEDIATELY apparent and genuinely made me think frames were being dropped, even at a 60Hz refresh.

[@brethnew]

A friend and I played all the way through on coop. We only had input latency right after loading, it always went away before 60 seconds.

[@WonderMePartyStrip]

hahaha they believe 343i will fix this XD

[@mrpiratefox4497]

They did

[@zackariasevertson7733]

@@mrpiratefox4497 They didn't, One X version is still broken

[@automatik25]

I don't like how the new version puts more hard edges on the guns while the old versions looks more rounded and sleek. They should've kept the rounded look form the original.

[@user-qe7bt9dz1l]

Exactly they should’ve kept the art style simple yet detailed like Halo 1 in classic mode. Halo 1 Anniversary and Halo 2 Anniversary look TOO busy in its graphics. Almost hurts my eyes!

[@BRIANSTECHTHERAPY]

How about some HDR? When the MCC update on XBOXONEX had it at launch?

[@Ponlets]

adding Screen Space RT with a specific shader also improves the look even more :)

[@buttermilk5364]

And the MCC is still horribly fucked on xbox one x...

[@gabenewell3955]

Go on halo waypoint and make a thread

[@H.E.M.]

Is still fucked. They’re not gonna fix it at this point. Especially since they have to go back to fixing halo infinite which looked like a 360 game on the “worlds most powerful console”

[@Snadzies]

343 studios are a joke. Classic mode of Halo CE is based on the god awful Gearbox port. A press release with a mile long list of known bugs in the Halo 2 port and rather than delay it to fix the bug they say they are going to ship it as is and fix it later.

[@gamerman644]

i was without my pc for a week and was playing on my xbox one s and i noticed it was really smooth with free sync on

[@Hunpriest]

Did you find issues with Dolby Atmos on PC? For me it is playing in stereo when I set the output to Dolby Atmos for Home Theater, it only gives proper surround sound if the output is set to 5.1, 7.1. Other titles in MCC works fine with Dolby Atmos setting.

[@6ch6ris6]

the game is almost unplayable at certain points. incredible framerate drops and freezes up to over a second.

[@SpomalenyClovek]

Xbox one x frame rafe is still trash

[@WrenchMonkey91]

damn, i didn't expect that kind of improvement over the anniversary that's awesome, but I wish Reach had gotten this treatment.

[@mrratchet]

Did you get any issues on H2 Classic mode Alex? With an unlocked framerate all the animations for weapons and plasma fire play in slow motion. None of these issues occur on H2A mode though. I've not tried MP so these issues only occurred in campaign for me.

[@GetToThePointAlready]

*And once again, Xbox One X wins.* *Xbox is the best box.*

[@PCG117]

As a person who love to get 100% of the achievements of the games im trying to do it in the MCC on Steam but with every single launch there's an achievement bugged, in Reach 1 achievement (but they fixed, it can be obtained now), in CE 1 achievement bugged (still not fixed), and now in H2 I got 8 achievements bugged (cant be obtained), thats frustrating as hell

[@MrbdWzrdOjos]

Has any one else experienced frame rate drops tied to Bluetooth connection issues. I have suffered poor performance as my controller gets further away from the Bluetooth dongle and looses connectivity. Issues are non-present if the controller is connected through USB wire.

[@Zzzooooppp]

Damn, what a thoughtful review. This earned a sub, great job DF and to the author