Cover art by Luxno_Art.

We’re back with another chapter of Your Halo Story, featuring fond memories from fellow Halo fans looking back on 25 years in the Halo community.

Keep up with past entries below:

• Your Halo Story: Chapter 1
• Your Halo Story: Chapter 2
• Your Halo Story: Chapter 3
• Your Halo Story: Chapter 4

Check out the next batch of fan submissions from our #Halo25Together haul below, and look for even more to come in next month's mail bag!

When Halo dropped 25 years ago, it was a game that brought my high school friends together. We would host LAN parties at our houses, lugging around CRT TVs and Xbox consoles as we spent hours trying to one-up each other. As I play Halo Infinite today, I often reflect on those early days of Halo and the late nights with old friends that are forever etched in my memories. From Battle Creek to Hang 'Em High, we had a blast while cracking jokes and trying not to wake our parents. Keep making Halo a game for community and thanks for all the memories.

Mark Beavers

Video games have been a special part in my heart and Halo has most of it. I love Halo the same as Master Chief loves destroying the Covenant's plans. I even talked about the Master Chief of Halo: Combat Evolved for schoolwork.

angelelmewtwo

Unlike other games I've played, Halo really stood out to me. It makes you feel like a real soldier, like a marine, like a Spartan. Thank you for making such an amazing and fair game series.

Ї

Il primo giorno in cui uscì Halo 3 lo presi subito, ma non avevo ancora internet, così imparai tutti i suoi easter egg e completai la modalità PvE in tutti i modi possibili. Ancora oggi, dopo più di 15 anni, ricordo ogni momento insieme a Chief e Cortana.

Grazie ❤️

Proloco#8480

2001. Playing this level on Legendary co-op. It felt like being in the middle of a real battle, a true war. Unforgettable feeling. Sniper rifle or rocket launcher for the final set piece? Always a tough choice.

Thank you, Halo.

Kzanol3995

Years ago I went to my cousin's house. He turned on his Xbox 360 and showed me Halo 4. I loved the game so much that I've played all the other ones. Loved Halo since.

Favoring5937

Being a person born in 2005, I came relatively late to play the first Halo games. I still remember watching my uncle play Halo: Combat Evolved on the old computer at my grandparent's house. It was the only game we knew from the series because it had been bought on CD and nobody was aware of video game news in our country at that time. The first time I was able to play it was around the age of six when I fell in love with the ring and the whole story it told.

It took me a long time to find out about the other installments, and when I saw that Halo 2 existed, the excitement was immense. Even so, I couldn't find a way to play it until I was 15. That year I discovered Halo: The Master Chief Collection and bought it without hesitation. I enjoyed it like a kid in a candy store, playing every campaign until I was exhausted.

After countless nights of gaming, we've arrived at today, where I'm still playing MCC with the same excitement as the first time, and I hope one day to have the necessary equipment to comfortably play Halo Infinite (something I can't do due to limitations of my very old PC). I'm eagerly hoping to get it while I still have time to enjoy its multiplayer before Halo: Campaign Evolved comes out. Something I'm eagerly anticipating is to relive that feeling of being in the ring as a child, but now more polished and detailed than ever.

PanConQuesso466

I remember playing Halo: Combat Evolved with my dad when I was 4–5 years old and enjoyed every second of it. It became a huge staple to my childhood and have played every game since and have stuck around for the future of Halo. I love everyone who has worked on it and appreciate them for giving us a wonderful experience.

Kamtastrophe

Han pasado 25 años desde que encendí mi primera Xbox, y esa emoción nunca se fue.

DJDavid9710

When I was 11 years old, my dad brought his first game, Halo: Combat Evolved. We played it on a PC, and I fell in love with this universe.

Nurbol 001

The best part was just being able to make friends and join up for events as part of the Hallows clan in Halo 5: Guardians.

StickiestGore

Twenty-five years of Halo is honestly hard to wrap my head around.

Back in the Halo: Reach days, Forge was my Halo. I spent countless late nights building racetrack maps under the gamertag iForger, obsessing over flow, jumps, and lines until everything felt just right. Maps like Hurricane Coaster, Downtown Drift, and Mountain Side were labors of love, and seeing them get featured a few times over the years is still one of those “I can’t believe that actually happened” moments for me.

I haven’t been active in the Forge scene for a long time, but lately I’ve found myself loading up those old maps just to relive that era—the creativity, the community, the feedback, and the feeling of watching people enjoy something I built from nothing.

Halo was never just a game to me. It was a creative outlet, a community, and a huge part of growing up. I’m incredibly grateful I got to be a small part of its history.

Here is a video link to one of my absolute favorite tracks I built:

Watch on Youtube

Happy 25th Anniversary, Halo.

iForger

Just remember going to my friend's house on weekends and playing Halo: Reach split-screen. We loved playing Invasion.

Ganstajeff

Halo has been a core part of my life since I can even remember existing. Halo: Combat Evolved was the very first game I ever played. It was with my uncle in around 2005. We were sitting on the floor in his living room, and I saw the games sitting by his original Xbox. I spotted that green Spartan on the front of the case and asked him what it was.

He said, "I'll show you."

From that moment, spending one of the last memories I have with him, was the greatest in my life. Escaping the Pillar of Autumn, taking those very first steps on the ring, taking in the views, and fighting off hordes of the Flood for the very first time. If I could go back and experience that all over again with him I would.

Thank you, Bungie and 343, for creating a masterpiece series that has stuck with me my whole life.

Jiggs343

Yo cuando conocí Halo, tenía algo así de 5 años. Fue Halo 3… No podía pasar de la primera misión, pero me sentía más pro que el propio Master Chief. Así me pasaba todo el día, y hasta ahora lo sigo haciendo. Pero ahora que compré la Master Chief Collection, soy más feliz. XD

xXDavidXx3002

Man, I still remember most of those days around 2015 to 2016 when I'd get a message from Microsoft saying I had a weekend of free Xbox Live to play any online game I wanted. I played Halo: Reach all night long with people. I don't remember their names, but they were great friends to have, and I wish I could talk to them again just to see how there doing and if they'd be down for one final match of SWAT. If you know the GamerTag goodluckschmuck, then please let me know!

Goodluckschmuck

Not all stories end happy. My brother took his own life, and the very best memories I remember most are the ones of Halo.

My strongest memory was the launch night of Halo: 3 ODST. I went round to his on launch and we pulled an all-nighter. We jumped feet-first into the epic story of ODST, laughing that Nathan Fillion was in it (we had just watched Firefly), and we spent days playing and mastering Firefight. Still my most favorite mode.

Halo is not just game, it's a bond, a way to bring people together. I find it hard playing Halo these days because I just want to cry but I always keep Halo close to me, it keeps my brother alive.

Biasdeathjam

Halo 3 was my stuff as a kid! Halo: Reach is my pinnacle best gameplay of any shooter ever, and recently I’ve been playing more and more with my buddies. I love this game and those dudes. Favorite long running memory/gag is saying one guy is in teal even though he’s cyan.

ManilaGnu485

I'll be honest. I missed out for nearly 15 years on what playing Halo and being part of Halo community was like.

I'm from Latin America and grew up with limited resources to buy an Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox One, etc. But the first time I met Halo with that breathtaking Halo 3 cinematic trailer, I got obsessed with the franchise. I watched all trailers repeatedly, learned about the lore, watched the movies, fan animations, the Red vs. Blue machinima series. I drew Master Chief so many times as a kid and even made a few animations with the old Pivot animation software that I never posted anywhere. I never played it, but I loved Halo and enjoyed it in my own way.

I never played it until 2015 I finally got my hands into a Windows copy of the first Halo at 17 years old and my dream came true. Five years later, Halo: The Master Chief Collection finally released on PC. Now, as an adult capable of buying my own games, I could finally play all Halo games and be part of this community.

Facku97

From as early as '01 or' 02, when my grandparents got my brother his Xbox and Halo: Combat Evolved, and middle school ,where I first read the Halo novels (which I still have tucked away safely, bent spine and all), Halo has always been a world that I've adored and loved. From the exploits of the Chief and Blue Team and their journey from Reach (Fall of Reach) to Reach (Shadows of Reach) where we see Blue Team as a full unit. To Veta and her Gammas now aboard the legendary Spirit of Fire and their fight on the Ark. Halo and its story, from start to finish, even the stories from its early development periods, where there are still some elements of classic Marathon sneaking in.

I've put time and effort learning and exploring its lore so much and there's always more. With every book I get more and more excited to see where these stories I've grown up with is going. I've made great friends, some of whom I consider the best people I've ever met, due to Halo. It will always be something I eagerly await the next entry of a game, a book, or even another TV show or collection of shorts akin to Halo Legends.

I may not have many words or specific memories, but Halo is something I can talk about all day. It's a passion of mine that makes it hard to put to words sometimes, and it's something no matter my age I think I'll be playing my entire life. Theres nothing like playing Combat Evolved and reliving the moments of my childhood favorite, the single game series where my brother and I would set aside or shared animosity to play through and make the Warthog run on Legendary.

Doven

My journey with Halo started all the way back in 2012, but you could honestly say it was probably around 2011 when my interest in the series started thanks to a certain popular machinima series about a certain group of Reds and Blues popping up in my YouTube feed one evening. But 2012 was absolutely when my journey truly began with Halo 4.

I had just gotten my Xbox 360 (I was a PS2 and Nintendo DS kinda boy growing up, so that’s why I was late to the party) and one of the games I really wanted was Halo 4. Initially for the multiplayer but because of a number of factors, I found myself spending most days after school replaying Halo 4 on repeat for about a year.

After that, I quickly found myself getting ahold of all the Xbox 360-era Halos and playing Combat Evolved and Halo 2 at a friend’s house. I also found myself quickly getting into the expanded-universe side of Halo buying whatever novels and comics I could for well over half my life now and found myself falling in love with the series.

It also wasn’t long for me to finally get an Xbox account and meeting my two best friends who I talk to regularly still. Though things weren’t always perfect, we’ve always had Halo to thank for us meeting one another. Even while typing this out, I’m with one of my best friends who I consider to be my younger brother (I’m about two years older than him) and we regularly do Halo playthroughs together. Thanks to Halo being on PC, we find ourselves playing a lot of mods and making even more memories together, even trying my hand at making my own mods whenever I’m not busy with university or other real-life responsibilities, but I can say it’s been a lot of fun meeting the modders adding new content to what is probably my favorite series!

So, overall, my journey with Halo has been one of ups and downs but one thing will always stay the same: my love for Halo will never fade away!

NomadicAllosaur

My first Halo game was Halo 2. I have fond memories of replaying campaign missions over and over again, or replaying checkpoints for hours on end just to watch the enemies fight. My love of the franchise went from there, and those enemy battles ultimately inspired me to become a writer in my own right.

MA5K CEO

Back in 2013 my parents bought an Xbox 360. It was quite rare to see one in Brazil and my dad had also bought a copy of Halo 4. Since I was young, he didn't plan on letting me play it but one day when he had to leave to do something, he left the game running. I picked up the controller and started walking around the Dawn, experimenting with the controls, and accidentally found out you could charge the plasma pistol. I got so excited in finding that out that I wanted to show it to him once he got back, and when he did and saw how happy I was, we ended up playing the whole game together on split-screen. It ended up being my favorite memories with Halo and one of the things that solidified my love for Halo 4. Reaching the ending made me really excited for the future, I can't thank enough for all the memories and happy times this franchise brought me.

Giovanni

Watch on Youtube

I’ll never forget the first night I played Halo: Combat Evolved at my aunt and uncle’s house in Oceanside, California. I originally heard Halo’s theme from a Bionicle video someone made prior to playing that campaign. Somewhere upstairs, my aunt and uncle had an original Xbox in one of their TV setups. They had a few Xbox games there—Star Wars: The Clone Wars, a racing game, and then Halo. As soon as I heard that Halo theme again on the main menu, little did I know I would end up as a Halo fan for years to come. I even did a PowerPoint presentation of Halo during college.

I’m still a fan to this very day and feel thankful for it from my own experiences. I went from playing most, if not all, the games. Then, read four Bungie-era Halo books, went to Halo: Outpost Discovery in Anaheim for a day, and went to San Jose State University from 2014–2017 in honor of the Spartan Program in the Halo Xbox series. I’ve been a Halo fan since 2005/2006 before Halo 3 was released. Still a fan today and my fandom for Halo overall is one of the best highlights ever.

sharksman504

For the last 25 years, Halo has been a fuel in my blood to fight the good fight. As I grew up, I wanted to get as close to the heroes I read about. I joined the military and worked with some of the best soldiers imaginable. All thanks to a story about hope and sacrifice. I couldn't have done any of my life's work without this amazing community. Thank you. For it all.

CPT David Camaja (FREELANCERDRC)

I have always come back to it in both good and bad times. My Instagram post did a good job expressing how I feel:

Natedaowg

Growing up in West Virginia, we didn't have too much. My mother came home from work one day when I was a little kid, maybe seven or eight, and had bought an original Xbox with quite a few games that one of her coworkers decided to let go for one reason or another. In that bunch of games, were Halo: Combat Evolved and a Steelbook® Halo 2.

I remember me and my brother absolutely going nuts playing co-op and local multiplayer, coming home from school I would sit down and play the story of Halo 2, exploring every inch of the map. It slowly became a comfort game.

Eventually we ended up with an Xbox 360 for Christmas. Halo: Reach had just released a month prior, and we were super excited. It was the first time playing online multiplayer and it was world-changing to us. The friends we created, the memories we shared with people, it was an amazing time and something I truly wish I could go back to and experience again for the first time.

I remember a match on Reach, the map Countdown, it was a Slayer match. We decided to use the mic for the first time and turn a Slayer match against one player we thought for sure was cheating. The whole lobby ganged up and stopped shooting each other to get after this one guy. He still won, but it was hilarious, and honestly one of my fondest memories of just how many fun and different people used to be online. Many nights were spent playing, and no one worried about tomorrow. It was just in the moment. And unfinished homework assignments, many... many unfinished assignments (lol).

SuperbElk99

Recuerdo cuando jugaba Halo 4 en la Xbox 360. Eran días muy felices jugando junto a mis hermanos, primos y vecino. Sin duda, Halo me regaló un montón de diversión y estoy más que feliz por darme tantas horas de diversión y sonrisas. (Gracias, Jefe Maestro, por tantas aventuras, gracias, Halo, por tanta historia y gracias a ustedes, los fans de Halo, y me incluyo, por mantener en la historia y en sus corazones un juego que trajo felicidad a todos nosotros). No tengo nada más que decir, gracias, Jefe, y la verdadera pregunta es: ¿cuál será la siguiente aventura del Jefe Maestro, alias. John-117?

Posdata: FEÑIZ 25 ANIVERSARIO DE HALO

NeoasisKid

When I discovered the Halo universe in 2013, the original trilogy already existed, but living in Brazil, Halo wasn't really a game listed as one I must have. But I remember that when met my first girlfriend we had a routine based on watching new series and giving our opinions about it. Well, even today I remember a night after a class I talking to her about a new show that was taking my attention. It was called Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn and was based on an FPS game called Halo. Since FPS were my favorite kind of games, I decided play Halo, learn the game universe, and then watch Forward Unto Dawn. I explained it to my ex, but never imagined that I would became obsessed with Halo. My first relationship lasted just three months; Halo became something that always will be with me.

Paladinopanda

It started when I went to play Halo 3 co-op with my Dad. I may or may not have committed war crimes with a Needler. Somehow, a fleeting moment had made such an impact on me that I decided to write stories amongst the stars. Alternative universes, dynamic characters, so on and so forth. I found a community that had done the same and we remain such close friends nowadays, it's hard to believe that without Halo, we would have never met at all.

We kept playing and kept writing. From Halo 3 to Halo Infinite. From Marines to Spartans.
Halo 3 came out like, what? 2008? I've been writing my stories for two decades now and they have brought so much joy to my friends and me.

So thank you, Halo, for existing. Wouldn't be the same person without you! Happy Birthday, Halo.

Seoulborne

When I first saw Master Chief as a child, I was blinded by his majesty. Sneaking downstairs as my dad was on the bridge of the Autumn, I thought the Mark V was the coolest armor I had ever seen.

Fast forward a few years and I was definitely "the Halo kid." I had the books and the Halo 3 Legendary Edition helmet, sure, but I also had a deep appreciation for the depths of storytelling and the power of hope the games conveyed.

When I started chemo as a young adult, I wore my Spartan training shirt. I felt like I was getting my augmentations (I made a now-deleted Reddit post in 2019). I have been cut open all sorts of ways and pumped full of chemicals. My first day of more serious chemo was the multiplayer launch of Halo Infinite, and I spent all day downloading it on hospital wi-fi. Survived a critical two weeks after that; I was DETERMINED to play the campaign! Now I’m coming up on four years cancer-free.

Having an immune system again FINALLY allowed me to get some tattoos: my Spartan-II designation in braille, the Mantle, and the sigil the shiny Elites in CE have on their backs. But my very first was the quote that resonated with me all those years ago and every day since: “Were It So Easy”, in Covenant script. Looking forward to even Greater Journeys ahead!

Richard-105

I first played Halo probably around age nine; it came with the Xbox my dad had bought for me and my new step-brother to bond with. It brought us together, and from the minute I landed on the ring I was hooked. It felt like playing through the best story I’d ever read.

I’ll admit, I was too scared to finish Halo: Combat Evolved as a kid; I made it out of the containment facility after meeting 343 Guilty Spark, but I couldn’t face the Library. So I went on playing multiplayer with my brother over and over, driving up and down Blood Gulch, endlessly playing with the settings, exploring the worlds, and replaying earlier levels.

When Halo 2 came out, I got it for my birthday. This time, I was going to do it. Chief and Cortana gave me strength. After finishing Halo 2, I went back and beat the Library, the Flood, and got to discover the wonders of Two Betrayals and really unlock the story. Rehooked, I started drawing pictures of the Flood and Chief, imagining what Halo 3 might be. And the Halo 3 E3 trailer? Well… what an imprint that left. As Halsey says, the “atavistic” stuck with me, and now as an artist, a core part of my practice is built on “I have defied Gods and Demons”.

Chief’s companionship with Cortana, the way the game taught a generation to think critically on dogma and war. To value things. Now I take the Mark VI Helmet I got with the Halo 3 Legendary Edition to the club with me. It still helped me make friends. It truly is an icon of our times.

There is infinitely more I could say.

Thank you. More than I can say.

You are my shield, you are my sword.

laboravi

The year was 2006. My friend had come over after school and showed me this game called Halo 2. At the time, I didn't know what it was; all I knew was that there were dual-welding guns and aliens. We played anytime we could. I moved away and asked my parents if I could get this game. We went to the Exchange and I found the Halo 2 platinum case with the behind-the-scenes DVD. I played the game so much from then on. I even would sit at the loading screen to watch the Covenant carrier hover above New Mombasa.

I played it with my sister and my closest friends, my original Gamertag being part of my name. Got an Xbox 360 and played Halo 3, Halo 2, Halo 3: ODST, Halo: Reach, and Halo 4. I still remember playing Halo 4 on Legendary split-screen with my friend and we stayed up till 2:00 a.m. to beat it for the Mk. VI armor. Now, many years later, I'm having new friends play it and I'm walking them through on how to do speed runs and beat par times on the levels.

I just recently went through Halo 2 on Steam with a friend who couldn't remember playing it. It was times like that I remember Spartans never die... they are just missing in action.

Draven

I first discovered Halo on Christmas Day with my acquisition of Halo 4 when I was like ten years old. After getting over my fear of the quick-time-event Elite that jumps out at you on the first mission of Halo 4, I also got Halo 3, Combat Evolved Anniversary, Halo: Reach, Halo 5: Guardians, and The Master Chief Collection. I remember inviting my friends over and we would screw around in Reach Forge, crushing each other with various objects and other chaotic shenanigans. Unfortunately, this didn’t last forever and we went to other games.

Fast forward to 2018, I watched the first trailer of Halo Infinite, and knew it was time to return to the franchise. I went on to meet many amazing people throughout the Halo community, like UberNick, iSpiteful, and their fans. Coming back to Halo was one of the greatest decisions of my life, even if times can get rough, and I would do it all over again. I went on to create new amazing memories with my newfound friends, and I hope to continue doing so for the foreseeable future.

ThelVadam224

Mis primeros recuerdos con Halo eran con aquella demo promocional, en la cual solo contaba con una misión de la campaña: el así llamado “El Cartógrafo Silencioso”, una misión que repetí incontables veces y la cual me hizo enamorar de esta hermosa saga.

deunvergasoXD66

My love for Halo began at three years old. My older brother got a copy of Halo 2 for his birthday, and I would sit there and watch him play for hours until he finally hooked up controller #2. We played for what felt like days. Instantly, I was enthralled with the universe and wanted to learn as much as I could. I'm 22 now and I still play the original trilogy constantly.

Steaksauce2085

I remember it like it was yesterday. It was just days after the release of the Xbox and Halo: Combat Evolved. I was nine years old, at my cousin’s birthday pool party, when she pulled me aside and said, “You have to come to Nan’s house after this. She just got a new console called an Xbox and a game called Halo.”

I said yes immediately and begged my parents to let me go to my grandmother’s house after the party. On the way there, one thought stuck in my head: Halo… is this a game about angels or something?
That night, the moment I arrived, my cousin rushed me into Nan’s sunken lounge room where the Xbox and TV were already set up. “We can play together,” my cousin said. “I’m stuck on this level and need your help.” That level turned out to be The Library—a baptism by fire.

Eventually, we restarted and began co-op from the very beginning on the Pillar of Autumn. We stayed up far later than we should have, completely hooked, the room lit only by the glow of the TV and the sound of plasma fire. A month or so later, I somehow convinced my parents to get me an Xbox and Halo for Christmas.

That night at Nan’s house didn’t just introduce me to a game—it started an obsession. Since then, I’ve read countless Halo novels, I still play regularly, and am still attending Halo 3 LAN parties with my friends to this day (Above: a photo from November 25).

Predator xo

Watch on Youtube

What makes Halo special to me is how fun they are to play with others. Since I moved and went to university roughly in 2022 or so I was not able to play with many friends in person, we would maybe play Minecraft or something but it wasn't the same as being with someone and doing split-screen multiplayer. The only game so far that has gotten close to that has been Halo: The Master Chief Collection.

I got into Halo back in 2018 and got to experience the original Xbox and Xbox 360 titles on the One X through The Master Chief Collection. By 2022 I had already moved on to PC and Halo by then was my favorite video game series of all time so I got my friends to play Halo MCC with me and it gave me a classic gaming experience that I had missed for a while. Over the years we tried Infinite and other games but we always came back to the MCC. It is just the perfect game to play with friends and honestly I wouldn't choose any other game other than their 360/Xbox counterpart!

CruderFiber30

As the title suggests, my favorite memory would have to be completing every FPS Halo game on Legendary (excluding Spartan Assault and Spartan Strike) and here is why.

I often like to think of myself as a determined and resilient individual and faced with a challenge unlike any other, I knew it was something that I wanted—no, needed—to accomplish and it wasn’t going to be easy but not impossible.

Whether it was by myself or with help from the Halo community, I faced many setbacks as you would expect and there were times when I felt I just couldn’t do it and was wasting my time.

However, the one thing I didn’t do was give up and just like the Master Chief, I pushed through the Covenant, Flood and Forerunners forces alike, saved the galaxy many times over and proved to myself that with a bit of patience, I am capable of achieving what I set my mind to.

Fulcrum 22

I was real young and was growing attached to Noble Team and slowly that happiness ended with the last objective as Noble Six: "Survive."

SSops void

A long time ago, back in the Halo 3 days, I joined Xbox Live for the first time. Shortly after, I met a few new friends. We all grew close as a group and played so much Halo together. We helped each other get the Recon Armor, we beat the games on Legendary, we created our own little silly Forge-based custom game. We even have a running joke that if one of our friends ever uninstalls a Halo game then the actual Covenant would drop out of Slipspace and glass our planet for real.

We put so many hours into Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, and later Halo: Reach. We even started a clan back in Halo: Reach. We were the “Reach Liberation Army.” Halo was our staple. Outside of gaming we’ve been to each other’s weddings, graduations, we mourned each other’s losses, and we celebrated each other’s successes.

This group including myself, Fox, Bama, Navy, T, and so many more actually STILL keep in touch!

Halo brought us together and for that, I will always be eternally grateful.

Tiberius1776

I was born mere weeks after the release of the very first Halo game. I like to say Halo was made, and then I was made to play it. I played my first campaign at seven years old on the floor of a childhood friend’s bedroom, not knowing that said game was about to completely change my brain chemistry for the rest of my life. I was immediately pulled in by not only the gameplay, but the gut-wrenching story surrounding the Master Chief.

If it weren’t for Halo, I probably never would have chosen to become an indie sci-fi author and published my first novel. Not only did Halo bring my life inspiration, but it also brought me the best group of friends one could ask for. It started in a Discord server years ago, and became plane tickets and hotel-booking to see people I had spent years hearing over multiplayer. I have friends in countries I’ve never been to. I’ve organized co-op campaigns spanning three separate time zones. I couldn’t ask for a better group of friends, and if it weren’t for Halo, I’d never have met some of the most amazing people in my life.

The Halo universe is a home to me. It’s familiar in ways I can’t describe. It’s the laughter in my friend’s voices over a live match, it’s the smell of the books I have read curled up in my reading chair, and it’s the characters I love so dearly.

GreenEyedWolf1

Halo has a very special spot in my heart. It feels very nostalgic to talk about it and connect with people who love the game as much as I do. I grew up with an older brother. I’m a girl (yes, girls play too!). He was playing Halo: Reach, and I knew nothing about it at first. I would get on his Xbox while he was at work and sneak in every moment I could. The times I couldn’t pass a level or do something, I would ask him for help.

Now, as adults, my brother and I collect old Halo toys together, and it’s become a really meaningful way for us to connect and relive those memories. I’ve recently tried playing most of the games again now that I’m older.

I still remember hearing about Halo 5: Guardians like it was yesterday. I was 15, just a couple of months after my birthday. By the way, my favorite weapons are the Needler and the Energy Sword from Halo: Reach!

Saudi larios

As a child—and to this day—I was always alone, rejected, marginalized, and excluded.

My only company was video games. As a child, I went through many negative experiences, some very painful. I'm almost 20 now, and I was 11 when my uncle gave me an Xbox 360. At that time, I knew nothing about Xbox or Halo. The first game I played was Halo 3, without knowing the huge impact seeing Master Chief would have. From the first moment, I was captivated: the story, the soundtrack, and all the emotion it conveyed.

But the most important thing was that's where I met my hero.

Someone who gave me hope when I needed it, who made me fight for life, keep my promises, become strong so I could protect my loved ones, and move forward with determination regardless of the pain.

Someone who never gives up, no matter the circumstances, who keeps his promises, who gives hope when all seems lost. The Master Chief.

When I played, I felt strong, brave, capable; I could spend hours playing. I took it as an inspiration, and ever since, I've been incredibly proud of my choice. I carry Master Chief in my heart; I always imagine myself wearing his armor. In my life projects and graduation, I mention Master Chief.

I became a huge Halo fan playing all the installments, and I would defend it tooth and nail. I love Halo; I grew up with it, and I will die with it. Halo became more than just a video game: it was companionship when loneliness weighed heavily and when the world seemed to be falling apart.

Every time I see the Halo 3 trailer, it's impossible not to get excited.

Because I don't just see a game… I see something that saved me.

Eco M

In June 2011, I posted to the “Age of Gratitude” page reflecting on 10 years of Halo.

Here I am, 15 years later, still enjoying the Halo universe, even more of a grizzled ancient, and online even less. I’ve devoured every Halo book and audio content (“I Love Bees”, anyone?) multiple times, and my Halo playlist continues to be my most popular music. In the same way that Halo games forged memories with my friends, they also forged memories with my children, now grown up. We played together in co-op and competitive across every Halo title, and we listened to audiobooks on long car rides. Sergeant Johnson quotes are a staple in our family banter.

My closing sentiment from that piece has not changed: “I look forward to seeing what comes next.”

oholiab

I tell this story often. People don't understand that Halo is more than a game for me. I was 12 when Halo came out and the second I started playing it something connected with me. I couldn't believe that the world I was exploring was not real, I got curious about how it was made.

I discovered 3D modeling and things started evolving from there. At 35 years old now, I still tell people how Halo inspired me to follow my career path in the engineering and visualization world. Thanks for creating a game we can all look back at, remember our late nights with friends and creating one of the best communities.

SkatERlion

I still remember the first time I saw Halo. My older brother and our cousin were playing it and I remember thinking, "That looks interesting." I didn't realize that soon my life would be forever changed!

That Christmas my younger brother and I were ecstatic we were gifted a Xbox. However it was our older brother who got Halo. That didn't stop us from playing. Many hours were spent co-op-ing trying to fight our way through the Covenant hordes and the nightmarish Flood. We were finally triumphant and became forever fans of this universe. I wish that I could say that we still played together, but unfortunately it wasn't meant to be. We did start out together co-op-ing Halo 2, but he decided to carry on without me. I did eventually start playing again, beating Combat Evolved and finally Halo 2. I have done the same with Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, Halo: Reach, Halo 4, and CE Anniversary.

In addition to the games, I bought many books. An early edition of the Halo Encyclopedia, the Forerunner Saga, the early series of books that started with The Fall of Reach and a few of the more recent novels. I do also own Halo Legends, Nightfall, Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn, and season one of the Paramount+ series. An unfortunate time in my life a few years ago forced me to sell quite a few things, some of which were my games. It was heartbreaking, but necessary. The love for the franchise, it still burns as deeply and brightly as it first did 25 years ago.

Recently I have become more financially stable and would love to get a newer Xbox console. (My 360 is on its last leg, but hanging in there.) My first game purchase? The Master Chief Collection, as well as the remaining four. As for my brothers, the older is not much of a gamer anymore, but his oldest son is and my younger still plays. I do share Halo stuff with him from time to time and remember the early days when we played together.

I almost forgot to mention that I still, to this day, obsess over the Halo soundtracks! Special shout out to Martin O'Donnell and Michael Salvatori for crafting some of the best pieces of music ever! Just thinking about the music is giving me goosebumps!

Holden

My earliest memory of Halo was when I was nine years old. It was the year 2014 and my aunt took me to a gaming store and we looked around a bunch. As I was looking, that's when I first saw the cover for Halo: Reach. I was confused at first at what the game was about, but I asked my aunt for it because the Spartans looked cool. My aunt bought it for me and I immediately rushed to my Xbox 360 to install it. My brother saw what I was doing and decided to join in. Even though we didn't get very far into the first mission, we still had a blast playing (even though we fought a lot in game)!

For the next few years, I decided to play through all the missions in the franchise and safe to say, it was the best franchise I have ever played. It led me to a community where I can nerd out with others and even helped me socialize in real life. Halo is truly the best franchise of all time.

Clem Jordan

I love telling this story.

Christmas of 2001, I was 6 years old, much like John when he was taken to become a Spartan. All I wanted for Christmas was an Xbox. I remember seeing commercials of it on TV. And that’s exactly what I got. Sometime that next year, I got a demo disc for a bunch of games, it was called ‘Exhibition’. One of the demos was for Halo: Combat Evolved for the mission Silent Cartographer. Now, I was only six, so I did not know this was a full-fledged game, but me and my friends spent hours playing that demo.

That Thanksgiving (2002) I was at my cousin's house. He had a copy of Halo CE, and instantly I recognized it, played the first mission, and was hooked even more. I told my mom that Christmas all I wanted was that game. I saved up my birthday money and at our local Walmart I found a greatest hits copy in the $20 bin and bought it right away.

This started my love for Halo, I’ve made so many friends, spent long nights on weekends and summer vacations playing Halo 2, Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, Halo: Reach, Halo 4, Halo 5: Guardians, and Halo Infinite. Later, I met my loving fiancée and got her to fall not just for me but for Halo also. Fun fact: we have a son together whose name is Benjamin, referencing Breaking Benjamin for the song they made for Halo 2! In the fall of 2024, I got to meet Steve Downes, Jen Taylor, Tim Dasani, and Jeff Steitzer! I got a picture and autograph from Steve and an autograph from Jen! I’ll end it with they both loved me and my fiancée's matching tattoos from our favorite quote from Halo 4. Steve even took a picture of it.

Me: “It was my job to take care of you…” (picture of Master Chiefs helmet)

Her: “We were supposed to take care of each other… and we did.” (Picture of Cortana’s chip)

DXSuperSonic95

Halo is very important to me.

I was six years old when I got my original Xbox with a copy of Halo: Combat Evolved (which I still own and cherish). From that point forward, Halo has been a part of my life ever since. I spent countless hours playing all the games with my friends throughout the years new and old.

Fast forward to 2026, and Halo will be celebrating its 25th anniversary—and it's just as important to me as it was after all these years.

So many memories come flooding back to me when I think about it. From countless hours playing Halo CE's campaign, countless hours playing Halo 3 on Xbox Live saving up my money to buy the legendary edition of Halo: Reach (that my grandpa went to go pick up for me at GameStop while I was at school) staying up for the midnight launch for Halo 5: Guardians with one of my old coworkers leading up to the Halo Infinite flight tests.

It might sound a bit sappy, but Halo Infinite really changed my life. I started making machinimas in Infinite which led to me meeting so many incredible people that I now consider to be very close friends of mine. I attended HCS the past few years, getting to meet so many amazing fans and creatives in the Halo community, getting to meet the developers of Halo Studios, getting to visit the Halo Museum, and most recently getting to play the demo for Halo: Campaign Evolved!

I am always excited to see where the future of Halo is heading and something tells me 2026 will be a big year for Halo. I can feel it! So here's to 25 years of the greatest game series ever made!

"I think we're just getting started." - Spartan 117

RoadDogTV

Halo has been around for my entire life. My parents played it on their first date, and I was raised with this franchise.

My first Halo event was HCS 2025 and it was the most surreal experience of my life. The community for this game is so strong and I am so appreciative of them. After 20 years of life, finally being able to meet so many of these people I've known online for years was so awesome.

McDonaldFork

Watching my dad play Combat Evolved is what really started it all. I remember pretty explicitly playing Halo 2 all the way through and talking to him about how much I loved it. That Christmas, I got an Xbox 360, and with it, I got Halo: Reach.

Halo: Reach, in short, changed my life forever. I fell in love with Noble Team rather quickly, and Carter-A259 stole the show as my favorite character ever. TWELVE YEARS LATER, and he's still my number one. Reach's story, characters and ending all are what inspired me to pursue a career in game writing, and is what really pushed me creatively as a whole. Everything comes back to Reach, to Halo.

It brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it. How different my life would be if I hadn't sat down and binged out Halo 2 and Halo: Reach in two sittings during winter break.

I wouldn't change the experience for the world because it really introduced me to some of my best friends, my love for creating, just all of it. Thank you, Halo, for absolutely everything.

Crane Rosalia

Watch on Youtube

I love that cutscene in Halo 2 where a CAS blows up a Marathon-class with its lance; it sparked in me the love for halo spaceships—so much so that I've been recreating them in Minecraft. Although I haven't built the CAS (yet) or the Marathon (yet), I've made a version instead with a CCS and two Halberds.

Person Named Jeck

Hello, my name is Jackson. I’m currently 24, and Halo has been a major part in my life as long as I can remember. Growing up, I had one brother (and a bunch of sisters). My brother and I played a lot of Halo: Combat Evolved split-screen growing up, mostly the campaign. I don’t know what got me hooked, honestly, I just knew from an early age that Halo was the best.

We later got Halo 2 for our Xbox and—oh, man!—something about that early 2000s rock and roll vibe just resonated with me. Even today, hearing that guitar in the "Mjolnir Mix" puts a smile on my face. We spent hours on the campaign trying Legendary runs and finding cool hidden glitches and Easter eggs. I remember my mom telling me I played that game so much that one day I’d wake up and be “Halo” in my mind. I would’ve loved to be like the Master Chief!

We also played a lot of the multiplayer! Sadly we didn’t have Xbox Live, but had a bunch of fun just playing against one another. Calling each other out for screen-peeking or being too good with the rocket launcher was a classic! I also would have my friends come over after school and we’d take turns playing for hours both in PvP and campaign.

I won’t go into too much detail about every game, but we kept playing Halo together for years. One memorable moment for me was coming home from school and going right to my brother's room. He was excited to show me he acquired the multiplayer beta for Halo: Reach. That was my first experience with online Halo PvP and I’ll never forget how excited it was! I was hooked and it’s all I wanted to play!

Even outside the games my friends and I played Halo on the playground pretending to be Marines, Elites, and Spartans. We collected the MEGA BLOKS sets, traded and bartered one another for the coolest mini figures. We still laugh about this to this day.

Fast forward to today, I still play Halo fairly regularly and I even collect merch and reminisce on how much I love Halo and all it means to me and the community. Halo has always meant so much to me and truly always will.

Thank you for reading my story!

Jackson

It was 2021 when I first found out about Halo. Ironically, my first game was Halo Infinite. I had known about Halo for a bit beforehand, my aunt had got me some MEGA BLOKS Halo around the time Halo 5: Guardians came out.

So, I went to my dad, see if he recognized it, and he did, he told me stories of the LAN parties he would play with his squad-mates when deployed in Okinawa back in 2002. Convinced, I downloaded and started playing, and it was like a whole new world opened up to me: the stories of heroism, sacrifice, and duty to humanity had me hook, line, and sinker.

2023 rolled around, and admittedly, my mental health took a steep nose dive, I had no idea what to do with my life at that moment, but the only escape I found… was Halo. I started getting involved with the community, met so many wonderful people who I call friends to this day: Ghost, Anchor, Darrian, Soul, Silent, etc. I got into the art side, started learning Blender more and more.

Then came this past year.

I've made myself known, and I know what I want to do with myself. I had the most enjoyable time of my life with H_Ghost_B204 during HCS Dallas in May of 2025, where I have never laughed so much in my life until I was with him. Then, this year, I have my HaloFest trip planned out where I'll meet so many more friends.

So, if I must say anything final, is the Halo really changed the trajectory of my life, and I will always hold it close and dear to me.

CurrentlyNotHere

Now, I didn't grow up playing the Bungie era of Halo; I wasn't even born yet until before Halo: Reach (I'm not saying when). I do remember my dad had given me toys from Halo 5: Guardians when I was young, those being Chief, an Athlon Spartan (the 12-inch-tall AND 3.75-inch) and the Warthog (for the 3.75-inch line). I didn't play Halo or collect any of the other toys until Summer 2021 when my dad gave me his Xbox One S, since he had gotten the Xbox Series S. He also introduced me to the Flood and the story of Master Chief thanks to a YouTube channel named Metanerdz lore. I had also found out about the toy line from Jazwares as well and started buying figures from that line. Later that year in November, Halo Infinte's multiplayer released.

Now, when I played it for the first time I loved it (despite its flaws). I literally played Halo Infinite's multiplayer nearly every day from season 1 to season 3. In 2022, I got MCC for Christmas and LOVED it. I loved it so much I replayed it after beating it on normal and somehow beat all of the games on Legendary. I collected quite a few of the World of Halo toys by Jazwares and I really liked them. I've even gotten the Halo Encyclopedia as well for my birthday in 2022 (or 2023 I can't remember) and read it front to back in less then a week. Yes, I wanted to know about the lore of Halo THAT MUCH.

In conclusion, Halo has had quite the impact on my life (despite not playing it till 2021!) and I've loved the franchise ever since. Thanks for 25 years of Halo, and thank you to my dad for introducing me to this awesome franchise and sci-fi in general.

Timothy

Haters gonna hate, but I was a loyal PS3, "Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare" gamer heading into my freshman year of college in 2007. (If you’re reading this and the PSN tag Mr-Nasty-Time- ever made you rage-quit, I’m sorry.)

I became best buds with a staunch Xbox 360 and Halo 3 supporter who ended up creating a guest Gamertag for me called KraabMeat. This, of course, paired beautifully with his, which was ClamStrip.

In our very first match together, while I was still trying to figure out how to hold that bulbous controller, I naturally gravitated toward a rather large chain gun mounted on the back of a vehicle driven by a complete stranger. When I immediately began mowing down enemy combatants with reckless abandon and surprising accuracy, my rideshare driver jumped onto his mic and began yelling “LET’S GO KRAAAAAAB MEAT!!” over and over until the mayhem ended. =

To my dear friend, and my unknown hype man, I love you both. We’re approaching 20 years since this happened and I will never ever forget the day that KraabMeat became an instant legend.

KraabMeat

All year long, we’ll be inviting Halo fans to share their favorite Halo memories, celebrate Halo's iconic legacy, and vote on community polls to help us tell the whole Halo story.

Whether you’re a battle-hardened Spartan or a Halo rookie, we hope you’ll join the fun by sharing your Halo story through our official submission form, on social media using hashtag #Halo25Together, in our official Discord server, or on r/Halo with the #Halo25Together tag.