Halo 2 Anniversary vs. Halo 2 Comparison Screens Show Sharp, Jaw-Dropping Visual Upgrades

Halo 2 is getting the full anniversary treatment later this year, on the Halo: Master Chief Collection. We compare and analyze screenshots of the two games.

[Haki1112]

Looking great!

[georgeenoob]

AND it's in 1080p 60fps, I never been so excited for a game since Gears 3 or maybe MW2.

[InactiveUser]

Actually Halo 2, which is what the article is about, is supposedly struggling to hit 1080p. The rest look like they will be, but that's still not solidly confirmed.

I can't find the exact article I read yesterday or recently, but here's this one from eurogamer:
http://www.eurogamer.net/ar...

"Crucially, all four games run at 60 frames per second. But 343 still isn't sure if it'll get all four games to output at 1080p resolution. It's looking good for Halo 1, 3 and 4, but Halo 2 is the sticking point, which I find slightly bizarre.

"We're heading for 1080p," Ries says. "That's what we want to do, but I can't commit to that right now.

"Some of the levels in Halo 4 are already running at 1080p. I'm confident some of the games will get there. I'm not confident in all of them."

"The only open question right now is Halo 2 Anniversary mode," O'Connor adds, "because we have the two frame buffers, and we're doing Xbox One level of graphics. The idea is we try and get it to 1080p but we may have to sacrifice the resolution on that to have that mode. Our target is to get to 1080p.""

[tuglu_pati]

@EeJLP-

i dont know why you're getting disagrees, what you said is in the article, which makes me wonder, if they cant get the Halo 2 Anniversary mode to the 1080p mark then what resolution will H5 be...

[Nolando]

I think the reason why it would not be 1080P is because they are running two graphics engines at the same time.

But wither way this looks great!

[Eonjay]

These comparisons are getting ridiculous. Of course it looks better. Next up, Shadow of the Beast then and now lol. I expected nothing less.

[4Sh0w]

Yeah but look how awesome Halo2 looks:
http://www.twinfinite.net/w...
http://www.twinfinite.net/w...
http://www.twinfinite.net/w...
http://www.twinfinite.net/w...
http://www.twinfinite.net/w...

-Wow, CG has been completely overhauled, and the graphics have been dramatically upgraded for the Halo2 Anniversary Remaster, it looks amazing regardless of res. Hats off to micro for this. I can't wait for this MCC, its quickly become my most anticipated game this year, which says alot considering I've played the story, albeit it's been ages since I've had the chance to get my hands on the masterpiece that was the original and Halo2. Now I get all 4 in 1 place so I'm f-ing loving this.

[Mystogan]

Seems faster...

(WPcentral fans will get it)

[BallsEye]

Considering it's an original old halo 2 engine, just bumped up that's awesome. Can't wait to see what they pull off with Halo 5. 1080p 60fps already confirmed.

[3-4-5]

Please Stop using the phrase " Jaw Dropping".

That almost literally NEVER happens, outside a rare occasion and this is definitely NOT one of them, no matter how awesome it is.

[OwnageDC650]

Wow! What an improvement! Collection is a day 1 purchase for me.

[Aces17]

Should be one for everyone with an Xbox One. Best collection I have ever seen.

[Panthers]

It would make me buy a XBONE but it lacks ODST and Reach, the two Halo games I havent played. Still looks amazing and I might get a ONE for it anyways.

[Haki1112]

You're not missing much Panthers ODST and Reach was the worst of Halo

[HugoDrax]

@PANTHERS

It's called THE MASTER CHIEF COLLECTION for a reason. So why would ODST or REACH be included? Have you even played every HALO GAME?

[MarkusMcNugen]

@HugoDrax

Whoa buddy. Calm down. It was just a guy making a statement that he has played all of them other than ODST and Reach.

[Prime157]

Whoa, HugoDrax, Maybe he didn't know that MC was missing from those two games... Chill.

[HugoDrax]

@MarkusMcNugen
@Prime 157

Ooooops! Sorry guys, I actually was calm but may have been a little hype when I wrote that reply. Due to watching the Brazil vs Mexico matchup :-|. Also I was replying from my iPhone, my bad.

[Pinkdolphinyfg]

It should be noted that some of those comparisons while, impressive are from cgi cutscenes done by Blur the studio who did the cgi for halo wars and not in-game visuals. Still fully expect that halo 5 will rival those visuals though.

[marlinfan10]

it is noted, in the article

[GGeasy]

That's how Hd remakes should be like!!! amazing!!

[air1]

Looks good! But why no love to the other games?

[Aces17]

They don't have the time for all the other games and its Halo 2 anniversary. Plus Halo 2 need it the most.

[MRHARDON]

The assets for the Halo 3 and 4 were already in high definition. So all they had to do is change the visual settings like you would for a PC thus looks much better.

[air1]

Oh ok so the others will get improved visuals too just not as much as halo 2, I'm good with that.

[jayswolo]

COMPLETELY redone CG scenes by Blur. Not ingame. Bullshit article.

[phantomxll]

Yes some are CG but a couple are in game and its a huge improvement. The article even mentions which ones are CG and in game.

[True_Samurai]

I'm pretty sure if you read the article it mentions cg

[kingtroy]

Wow great screenshot

[CaptainPunch]

Now if all HD remakes looked this good.

[Funantic1]

It looks like a whole other game.

[DoesUs]

What, like Fable or something?

[supes_24]

That's what I was gonna say. It'll be like a whole new experience and feel like a new game. It's been so long since I played any of the titles, with the upgraded graphics, it'll feel like a series all together.

[Gamer777]

I wonder what the Brutes and Jackals will look like in the remake,since those 2 aliens get redesigned more than the other species in the sequels/prequels.

[Panthers]

Gameplay doesnt look as clean as Halo 4 but it is still a big improvement. CGI looks amazing.

[True_Samurai]

When you say gameplay do you mean the mechanics? Because they've already stated they will leave the core mechanics alone

[Aussiebeachbabe]

Best value bundle ever!!!

[Plagasx]

Even with the upgrades, Halo 2 still doesn't look as good as the E3 2003 reveal... -_-

[OpieWinston]

Sarcasm?
The 2003 reveal looked like a better detailed Halo CE.

This anniversary edition blows it out of the water in terms of detail.

[Ipunchbabiesforfun]

WOW! That is a HUGE difference, the cutscenes are going to be cool to see.

Honest question though. Am I the only one that notices the textures look different? The palette is completely different in spots, textures are different and things look added. Just kind of odd I guess.

[0P-Tigrex]

CGI looks great. Gameplay looks how i expected.

[Gezmoyassine]

It looks great! I wish the rest of the games in the collection got the same treatment but i'm sure it would have cost them a lot of money to do so and they would probably need more time to work on them.

[LAWSON72]

Halo 3 and 4 are unnecessary and will look perfectly fine at 1080p. As for Halo 1 it looks fantastic running on the Halo Reach engine

[Illusive_Man]

Wonder if we'll get a Gears Collection.

[OpieWinston]

2016 = 10 year anniversary for Gears.

And it's got a lot of votes on the "Xbox Feedback" site.

I could see them doing something similar to MC Collection with Gears by offering Gears 4 Beta with Gears Trilogy remastered on UE4 with 1080p@60FPS.

Anniversary editions rule!

[Gezmoyassine]

I was wondering the same thing.I think they will release it at some point.

[Redrum059]

If and when I get an XboxOne, this is a must buy . Did not play too much of the halo games but I remember very much enjoying the campaign I barely got a chance to play , oh and the soundtrack is spectacular.

[Geekman]

You can switch to original graphics, right? I doubt that feature will be used.

[nerdman67]

You can, just like the Halo 1, just press the back button or whatever they call it on the X1 to switch between remaster and original graphics

[mogwaii]

comparing CG to in game is a bit much dont you think, of course its gonna look light years ahead. stupid article.

[tangers]

I once was a Halo fan and played the one and two endlessly but have no desire to play them again just for the shiny graphics, especially having played the Destiny Alpha which feel very similar but has shiny new elements.

[Sloth-Eater]

This is all good for fans of halo and new-comers. I've never been a halo fan, but therrs no denying it - this is a great bundle. It's strange as I'm really looking forward to Destiny.

[SoulSercher620]

The Halo 2 remastering is good it almost looks like a remake. This is definitely a must buy.

[SilentNegotiator]

The CG is a massive improvement, but the differences in gameplay aren't that big, aside from lighting improvements: http://www.twinfinite.net/w...

[bahabeast]

this is a real H.D collection this is how it should be done.

[jnemesh]

WOW! Look at the improved graphics on that 10 year old game! I can't wait to replay (again) a game I put to bed a decade ago! WOW! This totally justifies that $400 MS is asking for their console! WOW! /s

[Infamazdre]

Day one buy even if it was original graphics idc it's halo 2 online

[Flames76]

Damn that looks amazing and running to engines very impressive 343.Bungie leaving microsoft was the best thing to ever happen to the halo universe.Already pre ordered just waiting for november 11

[Badassbab]

Reason Halo 2 may not be 1080p is because it's the only one being overhauled with Xbox One graphics while running the original Halo 2 at the same time. All the others are 360 ports so hitting 1080p isn't as hard.

I think it will look odd playing them in sequence because Halo 2 will probably look the best! Still I'm excited to be playing all those ports @ 1080p/60fps, the textures and post process effects will really pop out more. Roll on ODST, Reach and Wars updates!

[RedSoakedSponge]

im slightly disappointed that most of those shots are CG, but the ingame shots do look better.

[_FantasmA_]

My jaw didn't even move, its still shut. A 2014 game that looks better than the version that came out a decade ago looks better? No way! This must be first time thats happened!