So Microsoft is apparently going to remake Halo: Combat Evolved, and may even bring it to the PlayStation. At first glance, this may sound like the most boring direction possible for them to take the franchise, but I think there's more going on here. First off, let's be clear that this is probably not going to be just a strictly visual upgrade. CE already got one of those, and even if it wasn't very good, Microsoft isn't going to spend several years and hundreds of millions of dollars addressing fan complaints from over a decade ago. Also, while CE is a rightly beloved game that still holds up pretty well, it's also two decades old.

So it's probably going to be more in line with the recent Resident Evil remakes, which made changes to both the gameplay and story. Which makes sense, since the REmakes have been big hits that helped make Resident Evil just as relevant now as it was in the '90s and aughts, and Halo has been struggling with relevancy ever since Noble 6's last stand. But aside from boosting their popularity in the short-term, the REmakes are also giving Capcom a pretty significant opportunity to clean up and revamp the series continuity. Ask yourself: do you expect them to release a follow-up to the RE:4 remake? Of course. Do you expect it to be a straight remake of RE:5? And what about RE:6?

THAT'S the real opportunity Microsoft sees by remaking the first Halo: If it's successful, then not only is the future of the entire franchise is secure for several years to come thanks to straightforward remakes of Halo 2, 3, possibly Reach, maybe ODST... but they've also got a chance to effectively wash their hands of the entire 343 era, and go in a hopefully more popular direction. Not only that, but with the games releasing on the PlayStation (and probably also the Switch 2, let's get real), it could potentially make Halo popular in an even more widespread way than in its heyday. Assuming of course, that Microsoft doesn't fuck everything up by rushing the devs. Or forcing in live-service elements. Or soft-dropping the game on Gamepasss and then shutting down the studio when it doesn't sell enough. Or...