Halo: The Journey

"Your journey begins."

— Halo Xbox One announcement trailer

Halo: The Journey.

Halo: The Journey, or simply The Journey, is a multimedia series that comprises games, novels, comic book issues, live action and animated series, and promotional materials. Originally announced in 2013 with the Xbox One Halo announcement trailer, it officially started in 2014 with the release of Halo: The Master Chief Collection, and continued up to the release of Halo 5: Guardians in 2015.

The Journey refers to the Master Chief's personal journey after the events of Halo 4. To an extent, it also applies to the origin stories of the other major characters featured in Halo 5: Guardians.

Content

Halo: Escalation

Main article: Halo: Escalation

Halo: Escalation was a comic book series that started in late 2013. Its main purpose was to bridge the gap between Halo 4's Spartan Ops and Halo 5: Guardians, by continuing the story of the UNSC Infinity's crew and that of the alliance between Jul 'Mdama and Dr Halsey. However there were some specific story arcs that were explicitly tied to The Journey. "The Next 72 Hours" was a three-part arc that narrated the reunion between John-117 and Blue Team after the events of Halo 4, and their conflict against the Didact who had survived his first defeat. "The Glass Horizon" was a two-part arc that told the origin story of Holly Tanaka, a character set to appear in Halo 5: Guardians as part of Fireteam Osiris. "The Absolute Record" was a six-part arc that continued Tanaka's story after her becoming a Spartan-IV, connecting it more closely with the fate of Infinity, 'Mdama and Halsey.

Halo: The Master Chief Collection

Main article: Halo: The Master Chief Collection

Halo: The Master Chief Collection was the journey's first major step, and released on November 11, 2014 as the first core Halo game on Xbox One (Halo: Spartan Assault being the first Halo released on Xbox One a year before). The game was marketed as the first Halo title running at 1080p, 60 frames per second, on dedicated servers. It comprised Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, Halo 2: Anniversary, Halo 3, and Halo 4, and also included exclusive access to Halo: Nightfall and the Halo 5: Guardians Multiplayer Beta. In addition, Halo 2: Anniversary featured Terminals and bookend cinematics setting the story for Halo 5: Guardians, with a focus on Jameson Locke and Thel 'Vadam. Halo 3: ODST was added to the collection on May 30, 2015.

Halo: Nightfall

Main article: Halo: Nightfall

Halo: Nightfall was a digital series included with Halo: The Master Chief Collection. It was released on the Halo Channel on a weekly basis, between November 11 and December 9, 2014. A DVD and Blu-ray release later followed on March 17, 2015. Nightfall told the story of Jameson Locke, an ONI Acquisitions Specialist sent to a volatile Halo fragment for a perilous mission. The series served as an origin story for Locke, before his recruitment into the SPARTAN-IV program. Locke was set to appear as a playable character in Halo 5: Guardians.

Halo: New Blood

Main article: Halo: New Blood

Halo: New Blood was a novella released digitally on March 2, 2015. A follow-up to Halo 3: ODST, it told the story of Edward Buck and his squad, Alpha-Nine. Furthermore it detailed how the ODST became a Spartan-IV, how Alpha-Nine gradually broke up, and why Buck ended up being separated from his former teammates. It was later revealed that Buck would be a member of Fireteam Osiris in Halo 5: Guardians. A print version was released on March 15, 2016, with an additional coda narrating a discussion between Dare and Buck about the latter's reassignment to Fireteam Osiris.

Hunt the Truth

Main article: Hunt the Truth

Hunt the Truth was a marketing campaign for Halo 5: Guardians, mainly in the form of weekly podcasts. Season 1 was narrated by war reporter Benjamin Giraud, who thoroughly investigated the Master Chief in order to understand his true origins and current situation. Season 2 was narrated by FERO, and tied up more closely with Halo 5: Guardians and the Guardians' awakening. The Hunt the Truth campaign also included several trailers leading up to Halo 5: Guardians, namely the Bullet teaser, All Hail, and The Cost.

Halo: Hunters in the Dark

Main article: Halo: Hunters in the Dark

Halo: Hunters in the Dark was a novel released on June 16, 2015. It narrated the