Halo: Campaign Evolved

Halo: Campaign Evolved co-op: player counts, split-screen and crossplay explained

By the New Games Guide team · Last updated 2026-08-03

Campaign Evolved's co-op is more generous than the original ever was, with one notable subtraction. The short version:

Split-screen is back, on console#

This is the headline for a lot of people: local two-player split-screen on Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5, and it works offline. No internet required, no accounts to link, two controllers and a sofa.

PC does not have split-screen. If couch co-op is the reason you are buying, buy it on console. There is no workaround.

The combination rule is the genuinely nice part: two players sharing a console can join two more players online. Two people on your sofa plus two friends elsewhere is a legal four-player fireteam.

Crossplay and the Microsoft account requirement#

Crossplay works across Xbox, PlayStation and PC — but playing with friends on other platforms requires linking a Microsoft account to the game.

That catches PlayStation players out in particular. If your friend on PS5 cannot see your invite, the Microsoft account link is the first thing to check, before you start blaming matchmaking or your NAT type.

Do the account linking before you plan a session, not during one. It is a five-minute job that becomes a forty-minute job when four people are sitting in a party waiting.

There is no PvP in this release#

Campaign Evolved dropped competitive multiplayer entirely. It is a campaign product: the remade Combat Evolved campaign plus the Operation: METEORITE bonus missions, playable solo or co-op.

If you want Halo PvP, this is not the release for it. That is a deliberate scope decision rather than something being patched in later, and it is worth knowing before you buy.

Co-op and collectibles#

A second player genuinely speeds up a skull run — skulls are found by an audio cue with no map marker, so two people sweeping in parallel covers ground much faster than one.

One caveat worth stating honestly: in Halo games historically, campaign progress and achievement credit have not always applied equally to every player in a session, with the host favoured in some configurations. We have not been able to confirm how Campaign Evolved handles this specifically. Until you have verified it on your own account, the safe approach is the one that has always worked in this series:

If everyone wants completion credit, everyone hosts a session. Plan the run as two passes with the hosting swapped, or accept that one of you is playing for fun rather than progress.

Getting a session working#

If co-op will not connect, the order of checks that saves the most time:

1. Confirm everyone is on the same game version. A mid-session patch on one side produces failures that look like network problems.
2. Confirm the Microsoft account link on every non-Xbox player.
3. Check NAT type. A strict or Type 3 NAT blocks co-op even when sign-in works fine — enable UPnP on the router first, before touching port lists. Full steps are in the connection guide.
4. Have the other person host. If problems follow one machine, you have isolated it.
5. Wire the host. Packet loss on the hosting connection affects everyone in the session and frequently presents as a crash rather than as lag — see the crash guide.

Difficulty and mission select#

As in every Halo campaign co-op, the host controls difficulty and mission selection. Agree both before you start. This matters more than usual here, because several achievements are tied to difficulty and to playing with skulls active — starting a run on the wrong difficulty means doing it again.

FAQ#

How many players can play Halo: Campaign Evolved co-op?#

Up to four online, across PC, Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5. On console you can also have two players in split-screen on one machine, and those two can join two more players online for a full four-player fireteam.

Does Halo: Campaign Evolved have split-screen?#

Yes on Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5, for two players, and it works offline. No on PC — the PC version has no split-screen at all.

Is there crossplay between PC, Xbox and PlayStation?#

Yes, full crossplay across all three. Playing with friends on another platform requires linking a Microsoft account to the game, which is the step PlayStation players most often miss.

Does Campaign Evolved have PvP multiplayer?#

No. This release is campaign-only — the remade Combat Evolved campaign plus the Operation: METEORITE missions. Competitive multiplayer was dropped from scope.

Do I need PlayStation Plus or Xbox Game Pass Core for online co-op?#

Online multiplayer on consoles generally requires the platform's subscription. Split-screen does not, since it runs entirely offline on one machine — which makes couch co-op the free option if nobody in the room has an active subscription.

Sources: Halo Support — co-op in Campaign Evolved · GameRant — co-op and crossplay · GamesHub — co-op and split-screen · Dexerto — couch co-op returns