All Halo Games in Order: Release Order, Story Chronology, and the TV Series

Halo is one of Xbox's biggest franchises and a whole universe that has been running for 25 years: the main saga about Master Chief, real-time strategy spin-offs, pocket-sized side games, a big classics collection, a remake of the first game, and even a live-action TV series. Figuring out what comes after what is tricky — especially if you're new to the series.

There are two orders here, and it's worth getting that straight up front. There's the release order, which is the easiest way to watch the series grow and change from the original Xbox to today. And there's the in-universe chronology — the order events actually happen in the story, which is noticeably different from the release dates. Below you'll find both orders, a breakdown of every game with the key facts, what's canon (and what isn't) about the show, and where to start in 2026.

The simplest way through the series is by release year. That way you'll see how the mechanics and visuals evolved and won't get lost in the callbacks — almost every entry builds on the previous one. Here's the full list of main-line, spin-off and re-release dates, year by year:

This is the backbone of the universe — six numbered games in which the Spartan John-117 and the AI Cortana fight the alien religious alliance known as the Covenant and an ancient threat called the Flood. If you want one continuous story and don't want to spread yourself thin, play these in order.

This is where it all began. Bungie set the template for the console shooter: a two-weapon limit, a recharging shield instead of health packs, vehicles you can hijack, and huge open arenas instead of cramped corridors. The story introduces Master Chief, the ringworld called Halo, and a mystery the Covenant will burn half the galaxy to protect.

The sequel added a second playable hero — the Arbiter from within the Covenant — showed the conflict from both sides, and turned online play into the main event on Xbox Live. It ends on a bold cliff-edge that kept fans waiting a full three years, until Halo 3.

The finale of the original trilogy under the "Finish the Fight" banner. It wraps up the Flood and the Prophets and hands you the Forge map editor and the Theater replay mode — tools a huge community formed around for years. It feels like the most complete and epic of the old games.

The first numbered game made by 343 Industries after Bungie left. It opens the Reclaimer Saga: a new enemy faction, the Prometheans, arrives, and the story centers on Cortana's humanity and her "rampancy" illness. The tone is more personal and dramatic than Bungie's trilogy.

The story splits between two fireteams: the Spartan Locke hunts the Chief, and the game keeps swapping you between them. The plot got a cool reception at the time, but the multiplayer and the Warzone mode were solid. Dropping split-screen co-op was a controversial call.

Halo Infinite moved the Chief onto the half-ruined Zeta Halo, handing him a grappling hook and an open world of towers and outposts. Its multiplayer is free-to-play and lives separately from the campaign. The series hasn't put out a new numbered entry since.

Beyond the numbered games, Halo has a set of side projects. They aren't essential for the story, but they add depth to the universe — and many fans consider Reach the best entry point of all.

An expansion that grew into its own game. You're not a super-soldier here but an ordinary ODST trooper wandering a nighttime New Mombasa while the city is under invasion. A slower, noir-tinged pace that runs alongside the events of Halo 2 and before the start of Halo 3.

A prequel to the whole saga and Bungie's farewell to the series. You play as Noble Team during the fall of the planet Reach — a story with a tragic ending you already know is coming. Many people suggest starting here: it stands on its own, and in the timeline it comes before the first game.

The first attempt to take Halo into the strategy genre. The story is a prequel set in 2531, 21 years before Combat Evolved, following the crew of the ship Spirit of Fire. The controls are built for a gamepad, and for a console strategy game it turned out surprisingly comfortable.

A sequel whose story takes place after Halo 5. The Spirit of Fire crew runs into a charismatic new villain — Atriox and his army, the Banished. For strategy fans, it's a great way to see the universe from a different angle.

The first of two pocket-sized top-down spin-offs. Story-wise it's set in 2554, between Halo 3 and Halo 4, as a new wave of Spartans heads into its first battle. It launched on phones and tablets first, then came to PC and consoles. Not required for the main story.

A follow-up to the pocket duology in the same style. Its campaign is framed as a set of combat simulations: first the defense of New Mombasa in 2552, then a jump to 2557 and the Promethean invasion of the city of New Phoenix. Also optional, but a nice bit of extra lore.

Over 25 years the older games have been re-released more than once. If you're getting into the series now, knowing these bundles is more useful than tracking down the 2000s originals.

The series' main bundle and the best way to play the classics. It gathers the core games from Combat Evolved to Halo 4, and over time added Reach and ODST — each with upgraded visuals and all of the multiplayer. It's on Xbox and PC.

An anniversary re-release of the first game for its tenth birthday: upgraded visuals and audio with a one-button switch back to the original. It's long been part of The Master Chief Collection, so there's no need to hunt it down separately.

The same treatment for the second game: sharper visuals and fully re-rendered cutscenes. It also lives inside the Master Chief Collection and doesn't need a separate purchase.

A re-release of the first strategy game with upgraded visuals and all the add-ons included. If you want to try Halo's strategy branch on modern platforms, this is where to start.

A remake of the very first Halo's campaign, built in Unreal Engine 5. The reworked story adds three extra prequel missions (set roughly a year before Combat Evolved) and co-op, but there's no full multiplayer. One thing stands out: this is the first Halo to launch on PlayStation 5, not just on Xbox and PC. Reception was mixed — we broke down why a pretty coat of paint is being sold as a remake when it's closer to a remaster in our Halo: Campaign Evolved review. If you plan to play it, our Campaign Evolved length guide will come in handy.

If you care about the order of events rather than release dates, the picture changes. Reach came out ninth, but chronologically it's one of the earliest, and the strategy games take us back centuries. Here are all the games by in-universe chronology:

This order is handy for a second playthrough — once the story is familiar and you want to piece the whole mosaic together.

Halo also has a live-action TV series. Pablo Schreiber plays Master Chief, and two seasons aired — the first in 2022 and the second in 2024. It ran on Paramount+ and later showed up on Netflix, but it's leaving the US Netflix catalog on October 1, 2026.

The key thing about canon: the show is not a sequel to or a retelling of the games. The developers deliberately placed it in a separate branch — the "Silver Timeline." That freed the hands of both the show's writers and the games' authors: events, characters' fates, and even how people look can diverge from the originals without breaking the main universe. There won't be a third season — the project was cancelled after two.

There's no single right answer — it depends on what you're after.

Want the Chief's full story from the very beginning?

Grab The Master Chief Collection and play in release order: Combat Evolved, Halo 2, Halo 3, Halo 4. It's the core of the saga in one package, with upgraded visuals and on convenient platforms.

Want to find out whether the universe grabs you first?

Start with Reach. It stands on its own, it has a strong, dramatic story, and in the timeline it comes before the first game — a great entry point for a newcomer.

Want the most modern visuals right now?

Look at Halo: Campaign Evolved — it's that same first Halo rebuilt, and the only entry available to PlayStation 5 owners. Just keep in mind it's only the debut game's campaign, not the whole saga.

Prefer strategy over shooters?

Halo Wars and Halo Wars 2 give you the same universe from a top-down, real-time angle.

Quick answers to the questions people ask most about the order of the Halo games.

The easiest way is by release year, from Combat Evolved to Halo Infinite, so each game follows on from the last. If you'd rather go by story chronology, the order is different: Halo Wars, then Reach, and only then the first Halo and the rest of the numbered games.

There are two good options. Halo: Reach is a self-contained story and a prequel to the whole saga. Or Halo: Combat Evolved inside The Master Chief Collection, if you want to play the main line strictly from the beginning.

Twelve full games: six numbered entries (Combat Evolved, Halo 2, Halo 3, Halo 4, Halo 5, Infinite) and six spin-offs (ODST, Reach, the two Halo Wars games, and the two pocket Spartan titles). Separately there's The Master Chief Collection, the anniversary remasters, and the Campaign Evolved remake — whether you count those as standalone releases is up to you.

Officially it's a remake of the first game's campaign in Unreal Engine 5, with extra missions and co-op, but many people saw it as more of a pretty remaster. There's a full breakdown in our Halo: Campaign Evolved review.

Yes, but only one game: Halo: Campaign Evolved is the first entry in the series to launch on PlayStation 5. The rest of Halo still stays on Xbox and PC. We dug into what that means for the console rivalry in Halo on PlayStation: The End of the Console Wars?

There's no Halo feature film. The franchise has only been adapted as a TV series, which ran for two seasons.

No. The series exists in a separate "Silver Timeline" and isn't tied to the games' story, so it has no bearing on the main plot.