List of discrepancies between Halo: Combat Evolved versions

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Halo: Combat Evolved has been released on a number of platforms since its original Xbox release in 2001. Some of these versions have become infamous for diverging from the original game in some areas. This page contains a list of discrepancies between these versions of Halo: Combat Evolved.

Versions of the game[edit]

The following is a list of the different versions of the game that have been officially released:

Halo: Combat Evolved (for original Xbox)
Halo Demo (for original Xbox)
Halo: Combat Evolved (for PC)
Halo: Combat Evolved for Macintosh
Halo: Combat Evolved Trial (for PC)
Halo: Combat Evolved Trial (for Mac)
Halo Custom Edition
Halo: Combat Evolved (for Xbox 360, via backward compatibility)
Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary (for Xbox 360)
Halo: The Master Chief Collection (for Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S)
Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary (for Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S, via backward compatibility)
Halo: The Master Chief Collection (for PC)

Background and history[edit]

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List of discrepancies[edit]

Discrepancy	Halo: CE Xbox	Halo PC PC, Mac	Custom Edition PC, Mac	Halo: CE 360 BC	CEA 360, XB1	MCC XB1, XSX\|S	MCC PC
Graphical[edit]
Resolution	640x480^[1]	User-determined	User-determined	640x480^[1]	1152x648^[1]	1920x1080^S 3840x2160^X	User-determined
Frame rate target	30 fps	Hardware-dependent	Hardware-dependent	30 fps	30 fps	60 fps^One 120 fps^{Series X/S}	Hardware-dependent
Animation frame rate	30 fps	30 fps	30 fps	30 fps	30 fps	Dependant on Frame rate^{Season 6}	Dependant on Frame rate^{Season 6}
Jackal point defence gauntlets and Covenant portable shields lack the rippling energy effect on their surface.^[2]	-	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes (2014) No (2021)^[3]	Yes (2014) No (2021)^[3]
Water shaders do not render correctly, causing water to lack details such as ripples.^[2]	-	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes (2014) No (c. 2018)	No
Bump mapping is not present for ambient light sources - only the player's flashlight and plasma weaponry affect it.	-	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes (2014) No (2021)^[3]	Yes (2014) No (2021)^[3]
Materials such as the Pelican hull, assault rifle shroud, Master Chief's MJOLNIR Mk. V armour and others appear different, due to shader adjustments.	-	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes (2014) No (2021)^[3]	Yes (2014) No (2021)^[3]
The sun appears a different size in the sky, due to resolution differences.^[2]	-	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes
Jacob Keyes' model is slightly modified, and he sports a different uniform on The Pillar of Autumn.	-	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes (2014) No (2021)^[3]	Yes (2014) No (2021)^[3]
The skybox used on The Truth and Reconciliation is lower resolution, and the Halo ring is much brighter.^[2]	-	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Assault on the Control Room lacks the fog above the map, leading to the black clifftops contrasting starkly against the sky.^[2]	-	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes (2014) No (2021)^[3]	Yes (2014) No (2021)^[3]
The game uses a higher-resolution version of the original HUD, with slight modifications to certain elements.	-	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No
The game uses the Halo: CEA HUD, a completely overhauled version of the original HUD.	-	No	No	No	Yes	Yes (2014) User-determined (2021)	Yes (2014) User-determined (2021)
Level layout[edit]
On the map Hang 'em High, the small lips at the edges of the trench in the middle of the map have been removed.	-	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
On the map Sidewinder, the one-way teleporter pair leading from each base to the far corner of the map have been replaced by two-way teleporters.	-	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Gameplay[edit]
Bloom on certain weapons such as the magnum has been increased, and is dependent on framerate.	-	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes

^S On Xbox One, Xbox One S and Xbox Series S.

^X On Xbox One X and Xbox Series X

^One On any Xbox One console

^{Series X/S} On any Xbox Series X|S console

^{Season 6} Prior to Season 6, some animations were not interpolated and remained at 30FPS

Gallery[edit]

John-117's armor with missing details introduced in the PC port.
John-117's armor with corrected details during the flighting of Season 7: Elite for Halo: The Master Chief Collection.
The older Jacob Keyes character model used in the PC port.
The correct Jacob Keyes character model during the flighting of Season 7: Elite.
Another view of the character model of Keyes in the PC port. Also note the transparency levels of the background monitor and viewport window.
Another view of the corrected character model of Keyes during the flighting of Season 7: Elite. Also note the greater transparency of the background objects.
D77-TC Pelicans and seawater with incorrect shader adjustments introduced in the PC port.
D77-TC Pelicans and seawater with shaders adjusted to better resemble their original appearances during the flighting of Season 7: Elite.