Since we announced Halo Fest back at HaloWC 2025 last year we’ve been providing near monthly updates on what to expect about the experience. Well, it’s been a year and we thought it’d be best to provide a recap on what we’ve announced to bring it all to one location. 

Without further ado, let’s get right into it.  

First, if you want to read all of the announcement posts in their original form, see below: 

• Announcement blog: https://www.halowaypoint.com/news/halo-fest-announced  

• Contests: https://www.halowaypoint.com/news/halo-fest-january  

• GDQ + Artists: https://www.halowaypoint.com/news/halo-fest-february  

• Esports: https://www.halowaypoint.com/news/halo-fest-march  

• Special Guests + Venue: https://www.halowaypoint.com/news/halo-fest-may  

• Artists: https://www.halowaypoint.com/news/halo-fest-june  

• Open Competition: https://www.halowaypoint.com/news/halo-fest-july  

• Forge Contest Finalists: https://www.halowaypoint.com/news/halo-fest-forge-finalists  

Kicking off Halo Fest is of course the 25^th anniversary concert at Benaroya Hall on December 11. We’ve been developing an entire setlist that takes players through 25 years of this incredible music.  

The show will begin at 7:00PM PT and will run until 9:30PM PT with a 20-minute intermission in the middle.  

VIP ticketholders will have access to an exclusive lounge and as a collectible keepsake each VIP ticketholder will also receive a page of sheet music from the Halo Fest concert score. Be sure to trade with others to find the part of the show that resonates with you the most! 

Finally, a logistical pro tip: for those attending the Concert and the Convention, you’ll be able to pick up your Convention credentials a day early at the Concert. This way you can skip some of the lines and go right into the Convention on Saturday. 

We’ve seen some conversations of folks thinking to “dress up” for the concert – we think this is awesome! However, for those that want to show up in more casual attire then by all means, go for it. You should dress how you want, and Benaroya has no formal dress code.  

As a reminder, Cosplay and Maker's Contest registration is now OPEN for all: 

• https://aka.ms/HF-CosplayForm  

• https://aka.ms/HF-MakersForm 

And for the Short Film contestants, don't forget that the submission window closes on November 2. 

Back in May we announced that venue will now be the Arch Building inside the Seattle Convention Center where we will have over double the square footage compared to HaloWC last year and over double the amount of attendees now as well. Let's jump into recapping the key details and releasing some new ones starting with the scheudule.

Saturday, December 12: 

• VIP Doors: 9:30 AM 

• General Admission Doors: 10:00 AM 

• Event Closed 8:00 PM 

Sunday, December 13: 

• VIP Doors: 9:30 AM 

• GA Doors: 10:00 AM 

• Event Closed 7:30 PM 

The amazing team at GDQ (Games Done Quick) will be in attendance for Halo Fest in what we’re envisioning is the “Super Bowl” of Halo speedrunning. This event will have its stage within Halo Fest for fans to watch one run or all of the runs. We’re working with GDQ as well to provide travel support for the speedrunners to ensure we get as many of the talented runners in the community over the event as possible to take part in the speedrunning festivities.  

We’ll be releasing the full schedule later but here’s a sneak peek for what you can expect: 

• Halo CE LASO by Chronos 

• Halo 2 Any% by MrMonopoli  

• Halo: Reach Legendary Co-op by Qup, caboose, RogerKills, and Koma 

• Halo Infinite All Missions Legendary by Caitlin_HR 

We’ve got two full days of runs plan so there’s much more to be shared later.  

In May we also announced four special guests that will be joining us at Halo Fest to be part of panels and interviews but more importantly to spend time meeting as many of you as possible. 

• Steve Downes – the voice of the Master Chief 
• Jen Taylor – the voice of Cortana 
• Tim Dadabo – the voice of 343 Guilty Spark 
• Jeff Steitzer – the voice of the Multiplayer announcer 

We will have plenty of posters and cards with art exclusively made for Halo Fest that you can use to get signatures but feel free to bring your own things you’d like signed as well!  

We’re also going to be hosting several authors from Halo’s beloved novels to participate in panels for your entertainment, but you’ll also get the chance to meet and chat with them as well. Be on the look out for details next week on what this looks like including the revamped Community Stage which will feature some key changes from iterations in the past that we’ll reveal starting next week.  

Halo Fest will also host the HCS Invitational tournament featuring the best 8 teams in the scene fighting for $150,000 in prize pool.  

Invites have already been rolling out and yesterday we confirmed that all 8 invitees have accepted and now are confirmed. Early next week, we'll be releasing a blog sharing who those invitees are among teams and top players. Roster lock will take place on October 26. 

At Halo Fest, there will be an HCS Stage and a smaller featured stage. Every match in group play and bracket stage will be broadcasted so fans in the venue and at home can enjoy the action.  

Format: 

• Saturday: 2 GSL double elimination groups of 4. Top 2 from each group move to Championship Bracket, bottom 2 are eliminated. 

• Sunday: Championship bracket continues with final 4 teams. 

All of the action will be broadcasted from the HCS YouTube as well as twitch.tv/hcs and twitch.tv/hcs_red 

$50,000 in prizing is up for grabs for all attendees across generations of Halo titles. Don’t forget to bring your controller! We'll share the full schedule in the coming weeks so you and your squad can plan ahead.

Artistry is a huge part of Halo and how fans connect to the franchise. At HaloWCs in the past we only dabbled with celebrating Halo’s art but for Halo Fest it will be a significant part of what fans can enjoy and learn more about.  

To start, we’ve commissioned two dozen artists and a small group of prior artists who have worked on Halo professionally to create all new art just for Halo Fest and in celebration of the franchise turning 25. You can see the full list here: https://www.halowaypoint.com/news/halo-fest-june 

Next week we will be revealing the art that we’ve commissioned which you will then later see around Halo Fest in various forms from signs, to banners, to postcards, and many more touch points. 

We’re also excited to confirm an artist alley where, for the first time, artists from the community will create all new art to showcase and sell at Halo Fest. We’ll share more about who the artists are and give a sneak peek at what they’ve been cooking up for all of you but we are absolutely delighted for the 4 artists to join us at Halo Fest, and we hope that you support them there! 

Finally, we will feature an art gallery for fans to enjoy even more art from the franchise.  

Here’s a bit of news that we haven’t shared in the past – we’re making a Halo Fest mobile app! The app is a companion to help you navigate and make the most out of the event. Not only will it feature the full floor plan but it also feature the full event schedule which you can customize your own personal schedule from.  

The app will also be where you register ahead of time for things like meet and greets with the special guests. Rather than waiting in line for half a day, you can just register for a timeslot and show up for the block of time when it’s your turn. Please note that there are not enough hours in the day to get every person to meet every special guests so prioritize your time wisely and make sure you register ahead of what you’re looking to do. 

The app will feature a challenge system where doing various things around the event will help you win some epic prizes.  

The app will be available in late November on for Android and iOS and we’ll have a full app preview just before it comes out so you can learn more about it. 

In addition to HCS and GDQ we will also have a Main Stage and a Community Stage. The broadcast schedule and programming will come later but want to take a moment to share a brief synopsis so you know what to expect. 

Main Stage: The Main Stage is your main portal into everything happening at the event. You’ll hear from all the special guests, you’ll get a view into all of the experiences, and with dedicated panels for two days of pure entertainment.  

Community Stage: The Community Stage is back but with a twist – all of the content on the Community Stage will be hosted by – you guessed it – the community. We will be hiring select folks from the community to host two days of panels, fireside chats, presentations, and more. We'll share more about the content schedule in November.

We want to thank everyone for their continued support of Halo and Halo Fest. We’re no longer just relying on the monthly blogs to communicate - each week we’re going to be releasing more and more information about event at a quicker pace. Halo is special to all of us – we want to celebrate this amazing franchise and it's even more amazing community. 

Thanks, 

Tashi