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:
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!
Something Worse Than the Flood
I started playing Halo at a very young age, about 5 years old, on our family computer. My parents let me play through the demo of the original Combat Evolved PC port, and after a while we got the full game. I spent countless hours playing through the campaign, fighting off Covenant and blitzing through Warthog Runs like it was nothing.
Given the fact that I was just starting kindergarten at about this time, you would think that I would be absolutely terrified of the Flood. I mean, who wasn’t? One moment, you’re fighting against familiar enemies and then out of nowhere these monsters start swarming you. But I was never afraid of the Flood. They went down just as easily as everything else, and I’d played the game so many times that their fear and surprise factors just became part of the regular game for me.
No, the Flood was never the scariest thing in Halo CE to 5-year-old me.
That honor goes to the HUNTERS.
Fighting the Flood, to me, is the exact same experience as fighting the rest of the Covenant. They move around the combat space similarly, they can use weapons all the same as other enemies, the only difference is how many you fight at one time and their love of trying to punch you. Hunters are a completely different encounter. I cannot tell you how many times I’d round a corner or enter a room and see a gigantic red enemy dot appear on the motion tracker before it blips out of existence. Every single time I saw it, even before laying eyes on the Hunters themselves, I knew I was in trouble. Then we would finally face each other, and one of two things would happen; either two big green rockets would come flying at my face and kill me instantly, or one of them would sprint directly at the screen and crush me with their shield.
It’s a funny thing to look back on now, considering the widespread knowledge of a Hunter’s Achilles Heel in the form of one pistol shot to the orange worm bits. But what happens when you don’t know that trick exists? What happens when you enter into a room purpose-built around two walking tanks, armed with rocket launchers and insta-death melee attacks, ones that you can’t just run past or shoot down as easily as you could anything else? My answer: you face easily the most terrifying part of Halo: Combat Evolved.
Oh, and I wasn’t alone in thinking this at the time. Hunters always scared the living daylights out of my parents, too. My mom and dad would always call me into the room to help kill them when I eventually figured out how to beat them. How many video game enemies do you know of that can scare a parent so much they ask their child for help?
So, in summary, Hunters are scarier than the Flood. Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.
Halo is my life. I love Halo and every game. It showed me a lot about life. It showed me to love every battle no matter the out come of the war.
Growing up, I played Halo with my brothers. Killing each other on slayer with 4 players on one tv on one Xbox was something else. Not even today can one experience such a thing. Moments that will be engraved in my heart although I was really young when Halo came out. I was born in 2002, but I am thankful i got a taste of it. I had a 2017 mustang 5.0 coyote which i named Cortana… I lost her, just like Master Chief. It killed me. Then Master Chief gets another AI. Then I felt happy I didn’t feel so dead because I lost my car and my gf at the time. I had to move back with my parents.
Although I had many battles, Halo showed me to keep going even when the battle is lost because there is still a war to win. Now I am on the hunt for a new Mustang GT, which I will name Joy. Halo single handedly helped me out of a dark place I could’ve fallen into. That goes for everything in life for life. Now no matter what, I will make sure to be the best Spartan out there for myself and those around me. I will never back down until we win the war.
Watching My Brother Come Second
I may be remembering wrong, but I believe it was with release of Halo 2.
My brother and I were shopping at our local Walmart when we came across a competition. I wanted to play in it but I was too young. I forgot what the prizes were, I was like 9 years old, but I remember my brother signing up to play in it for me. I watched him, cheered him on, and he made it to the final round.
He and this other guy were almost neck and neck, final round my brother managed to kill him which tied the score they were about to go into overtime.
The guy let loose a grenade as he went down, my brother was slow to react and they killed each other at the same time. It was such a close game. They shook hands and we went on our way but I never forgot just how close it was.
Me and my brother still play Halo but life happens and we don’t get as much time to play, but we try.
Halo, to me, was the first Xbox game I played with my brothers before they quit being decent brothers. It was the very first FPS multiplayer game I ever played so it holds a special place in my heart. I remember the first time I ever beat it on legendary with my brother and now I feel confident playing legend by myself.
Sometimes I miss those days.
Forging the Future
Halo has brought us many incredible memories, from community game nights to forging deep into the night, meeting new friends and forging new relationships, Halo has made such a huge mark on all of our lives and for that we will be forever grateful.
Halo Infinite especially, working with Halo Studios and delivering alongside them for the community has been an honour, thank you for an amazing 25 years of Halo, and to the next 25 years of Halo, we cannot wait to see where it goes and be a part of it all the same.
Chief
I was about 3 years old when I played my first ever video game, and that would be Halo 3. The moment I played that campaign, I was hooked. My father and I would play splitscreen all the time. I became so huge of a fan, I even started collecting all sorts of Halo related figures and Megabloks. I was so obsessed with Halo, that over the years, to this day, my father calls me “Chief.”
Halo Through the Years
I remember the first time hearing about Halo from a friend. When I finally got to try it, it was at my youth group and I was hooked. I went out and bought an Xbox and Halo the first chance I got. We lived in a small town so we always had to go to a bigger city to get games and consoles. All through my high school years we would bring our Xboxes to youth group to play LAN with CE. On the weekends, in my basement we had 4 TVs set up and chairs all around. It was an amazing time. Over time we moved to Halo 2 and then 3.
Right about then was when I was in my last few years of high-school and many people had left but it was always me and my two brothers up for a playthrough of the campaigns. Halo became a way to connect with my brothers on some Saturdays and as we have gotten older, and have our own homes and families for some. Every once in a while its nice to get online load up MCC or play through some of Infinite together online. Halo has been part of my childhood all along and I can’t wait for my son to be old enough to experience the joy of co-op video games with his dad. When the time is right I’ll get to experience the joy of Halo for the first time again with him.
Born Into Halo
When I was a kid, my dad always played Halo with his friends and family. Every evening I’d always watch my father play. Me, being young and not knowing how to use a controller, I always imagined I was playing with friends and family. Me and my dad doing a 4v4 custom game slayer on Lockout in Halo 2 (which is literally tradition to play on that map and only on Halo 2/MCC).
Now, leading to a present day, I fell in love with all the campaign. My fav was Halo 3, and I started to play multiplayer by myself until my dad invited to play with him and a couple of my cousins and family friends. So we loaded up the game and we had blast it was one of the greatest core memories I ever had in my life.
Blinded By the Majesty
I remember being in the sixth grade and going to a neighbor’s house to play split-screen with my brother and his friend. We played on Blood Gulch, of course. It was like nothing I ever experienced. Wait, you can get IN the tanks and out when you please? And that was just the multiplayer. I convinced my parents to get this console, and it began a lifelong obsession that continues to this day at age thirty-three. Playing the campaign for the first time was an ethereal experience; the Gregorian chants and ancient monolithic structures of the Forerunners…it also just pairs so well together. I absorbed the Halo novels like a sponge and remember reading The Fall of Reach, First Strike, and The Flood in my sixth grade study hall. Soon LAN parties followed for the birthdays of my friends and I (complete with pizza, of course).
I remember the days of waiting for Halo 2 to release. In Science class I would draw Master Chief doodles and count down the days to release. My mom took me to an EB games at our local mall. I clutched my pre-order receipt like it was the most important document in the world. There was a statue of the Chief dual-wielding SMGs in the store. What followed were many days and nights on XBL playing my first online multiplayer game.
Next was the wait for Halo 3, Reach, ODST, Halo Wars, 4, the MCC, 5, and Infinite. I just have so many memories of this franchise that has meant the world to me. It’s gotten me through rough times and has given me hope for the future. Halo is more than a game, truly. It is a deep universe that you can escape into and also make friends in. There is something special about Halo, as evidence with its community.
Halo is familiar and comforting. It’s like coming home after a long day. It’s like that chicken soup that your grandmother used to make. It’s like talking to the childhood friend that you haven’t talked to for years, but it seems like no time has passed at all. Growing up playing Halo in middle school and high school with my friends has given me memories I will never forget. Thank you to all the developers from Bungie, 343i, and now Halo Studios for everything your hard work has created. I would also like to thank all the authors who have contributed to the lore over the years as well. I cannot wait to play Campaign Evolved later this year and read Parasite’s Wake!!
“I think we’re just getting started.” -The Master Chief
Halo Custom Games and Machinima
I grew up with Halo at a very young age, probably 5 years old, with my brothers. I remember my brother hosting LAN parties in our house and being able to play with them and their friends.
For me it introduced my passion for gaming and Halo. The Sci-fi, the story. Everything that came with it made me happy. To the point that I began watching Machinimas that arrived on Youtube or other platforms. To the point I began at a young age developing my own minor Roleplays. This would lead me to make my closest friends who I deeply grew close to. Creating a Roleplay that lasted over 5+ years called Siren. All in Halo 5 Custom Games. My favorite was on our off time going to Master Chief Collection and playing all of the Custom Browsers that offered. My love and joy started with Halo at such a young age
Now I am 21 years old and can’t wait to see the future of Halo and continuing my favorite Roleplays and memories with my friends. All thanks to Halo 🙂
I can’t wait to see what the future holds. Happy 25 years!!
Halo 3 UK Press Kit
So something I ended up coming across by pure chance and after lots of investigation it turns out I actually have the only remaining Halo 3 UK press kit. On it is loads of content, including working countdown wallpapers but also what now was the missing step 2 of the IRIS ARG which has allowed the Halo Wiki to finally be fully updated after 16 years. It’s also something I’d like to get out there for people to enjoy as its pretty much never seen the light of day
Marines Tontos
Estaba pasándome Éxodo y un marine lanzó una granada, pero le rebotó porque la lanzó a una pared muy cercana y se mató el bro con como 3 marines más y 2 civiles xD.
A Natural
At a young age where much of my life was uncertain, the few times I saw my father he was playing Halo: Reach on our old Xbox 360. When he finally let me on the splitscreen to play his favorite online mode of SWAT, I “dominated” as much as a 6 year old could. I got more kills than him and he had a little tantrum 😂. Since then, video games, especially Halo and SWAT, have been a core bonding experience for me and a father always trying to rekindle a broken relationship. Halo meant the world to me as a kid, and will continue to mean the world to me for all of my life.
Connection to Halo
The first time I ever played Halo was in 2007 when Halo 3 came out. I got it a couple months after launch and I loved the universe and ever since. I’ve been apart of the community and played every Halo game and have stayed with the same custom helmet since Halo: Reach. I’ve always gone with ODST and I loved the community and games and story. Halo will always be my favourite.
Embarrassing Yet Funny
When I was much younger, I’d always be on Halo 3 with my brothers playing forge, campaign (sometimes glitching it for four player screen campaign), and all that stuff. I loved it. But it got to a point where at my church one time I threw myself on the ground and called a kid a monster and had to explain myself to the teacher.
Halo Throughout
My dad first showed me Halo back in 2017 when I got my Xbox One. I was only seven years old at the time, and I’ve been playing ever since. I spend a lot of time playing with my friends, just like my dad did back in college. He has been a fan since Halo: Combat Evolved launched on the original Xbox.
Since then, I’ve played Halo 2 through Insignia and even appeared on stream with RealLifeSpartan. I’ve also built a massive Halo collection that includes several limited-edition consoles: the Halo 3 Edition Xbox 360, the original Halo Edition Xbox, and the Halo Infinite Edition Xbox Series X.
I absolutely love Xbox and the Halo franchise!!!!
Halo 3 is my GOAT.
Making Us Human
From the moment I locked eyes with the cover art of Halo 3, I was hooked. I was only about seven years old, and I knew as soon as I inserted that disk and started the campaign (before my parents let me use Xbox Live!) that this was something special. Growing up, Halo became an intrinsic part of my life. This franchise is the reason I became invested in writing as an art form; I hold two degrees now, in no small part, because of the bittersweet story of Chief and Cortana. I pursued digital art because of Halo. I moved states to meet someone I met through Halo, and ended up finding the love of my life because of that rippling decision.
When I returned back home, my mom invited me to see her give a graduation speech. She works at a high school and said there was something special in the speech, a nod to me. For context, my father passed away in 2025. I watched my mom get on stage, in front of thousands of people, and recite a line from Halo Infinite. She echoed Chief’s line to Esparza, “We all make mistakes. It’s what makes us human.”
I was beyond moved. For her to research this franchise and leave such a special nod to me, and to our relationship through the games that shaped me, left me completely floored. It reminded me of how Halo has shaped so many lives by existing as this immersive, compelling, emotional universe filled with relatable characters. In many ways, this franchise has guided me. Like Esparza, even with my mistakes, I’ve kept moving and growing. I can’t wait to see how Halo evolves in my life, and the lives of the people I share it with.
My Memory
I have been playing Halo since a few months after Halo 3 came out, it was even my first game on Xbox. My first Xbox Live game was Halo 3 and made my first 10 friends on it. Halo Legends was a loved movie in my opinion.
I would roleplay on EVERY Halo after I met one friend and had so much fun with him and others. I would love to say that whilst I love 3 and Halo Wars, I love Reach the most for the story, letting Kat drive, and the credits and ranking up to unlock new armor. It was all a sense of accomplishment and competition to say, “I unlocked Chief’s helmet.” “Oh yeah, I just earned enough credits to get it first.” I guess above all that, it was the challenges. “Complete Tip of the Spire LASO.” You not only earned XP, but credits too. That hopeless feeling drove you to beat it and when the reward was big enough, then it made you lean back, sit or lie down. It made you learn new tactics and shoot grenades midair with snipers and DMRs. I guess that is it and all I have to say now is to all that lost a comrade to never getting back on. “Spartans never die, they’re only missing in action.”
Halo Es Mas Que un Juego
Mi historia y testimonio es que he sido una persona que ha pasado por muchísimas adversidades y problemas, pero en las noches en las que me sentía triste o vacío, lo que hacía era jugar Halo: CE, y realmente era algo calmante y lindo el poder, aunque fuera por un rato, escapar de mis problemas jugando.
Introduction to Grunt Humor
After fighting Grunts the first time, I had started hearing them say things as I went on a hall clearing rampage. One clearly stated, “He’s got potato chips with salt!”
One Halo to Betray Them All
Back to Christmas 2004, in a city named Boulazac in France. I was 9 years old, and Santa gave me the best present of my entire life: the Xbox pack with Halo 2. Since that day, I never stopped playing Halo. I tried to get all achievements of all Halo games, and I nearly got it. I just can’t have Spartan Assault on iOS and Windows Phone because it is unobtainable anymore…
My best memories on Halo are recent. I play Halo with these 3 bad boys since 16 years now. The last 3 years, we used to play every Wednesday night on MCC to get the last rank. And honestly, it was my favorite memories, we always used to betray all of us in campaign just for fun, and it was a big waste of time because we had to retry so many times just for one mission ! But I’m glad to have those guys, because to this day, they are more than just Xbox Live friends.
Big shoutout to ORION117, Shadow Spadasin, and xDARKSAWx.
Halo, The Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me
2012. It was an afternoon like any other at my grandparents’ house, until I entered in my cousin’s room! That day I learned the term “love at first sight” when I saw my cousin Dany playing something called… “Halo: Reach”!!
At the moment when I asked Dany, “What are you playing?”; and he replied, “Do you want to play too?”, my life changed completely!
Thanks to him, Halo has been a great reference point in my life, as the franchise has accompanied me throughout my journey to this days!
Halo made me understand the importance of friendship and brotherhood, allowing me to connect more with my loved ones and people all over the world, especially with my nephew Paulo (who by the way, chose me to be his godfather for his first communion with God).
Thank you Halo for so many lessons and so many unforgettable memories. You will always be a part of me, and you will always be in my heart.
Thank you for everything Bungie & 343 Industries / Halo Studios.
From Guadalajara Jalisco, Mexico, with so much love and nostalgia!
Forgive My Memory
I attended a local Halo Convention at a Holiday Inn hotel 2011 in Knoxville, TN. Rows and rows of white desktops, KIA demo cars on display with other vendors everywhere. I took pictures with my phone and sent them to my 16yr old son in Kingsport, TN. He loved them while he was spending time with his mom.
The next year at Kingsport’s mall, they had a gaming a Gaming Convention! His mom’s boyfriend took him there where he entered and WON😁🤖😃🖥️🕹️🏆🎮
My Memory of a Great Game
When I was little, like 5 years old, I would always go to my uncle’s to spend time with him. We played Halo 3 and Reach all the time. That’s why I love Halo and it will always be in my heart as a good series.
First Time
When I was about 6-ish years old, my cousin and I played Halo: CE for the first time. We played for about 3 hours, getting up to 343 Guilty Spark. I later finished the game over the next few days with my dad.
Then there was Halo 3. Halo at its peak. That was the first Halo game I played all by myself except for Cortana. I was almost 7, and that level scared me to death. Now, 8 years later, I can beat it no problem. Something that would have made the game so much better is if you played as the Arbiter in the level Covenant. Getting to the climax and killing Truth yourself would’ve been really cool.
After 25 years of great games, I have to say the best game thus far is either Combat Evolved or Halo 3. Comabat Evolved because it’s the OG! It has such great gameplay, even though there are only 8 weapons available. Halo 3, mostly because of the gameplay and campaign. It was a perfect end to the trilogy.
I am so excited about Campaign Evolved, can’t wait for the game to come out.
Halo es el Juego Más Increíble
Halo… es el juego más nostálgico. Recuerdo haberlo jugado en mi Xbox clásica. Siempre jugaba Halo 2, ese sí me encanta. Me gustaba la música del menú del juego.
Chief Tower
In the days of Halo CE, we loved to face off against each other, but at the time we could only play 2v2 because there was no internet connections between consoles. To fix this, for one glorious night we invited everyone we knew to my friend’s apartment and told them to bring their TVs, Xboxes, and whatever controllers they had available. We connected 4 consoles, 4 TVs, and 16 controllers and played 16 player deathmatches for one glorious night!
Once the night was over and there were only a few of us left, we decided to mess around with the 16 players we had access to. We wanted to know what the announcer would say if you killed 15 people at the same time. We discovered that if you jump on someone while they are crouched, you can land on their head to make a 2-person stack. This started our Chief tower and we spent an hour making it as tall and wide as we could. We would jump from controller to controller to try to gather everyone up into a giant pile. Finally, we had someone in a Scorpion take the winning shot. The announcer said all of the things, double kill, triple kill, etc. But then he said “Killimanjaro” and we all lost it.
That was such an amazing night, and I miss hanging out with Mark and Scott like we used to.
My First LAN Party
Greetings Halo Studios!
Epocas de Estudiante
Recuerdo cuando estaba en la secundaria y me escapaba de clases para jugar en el ciber.
Playing Halo With My Dad
I remember my earliest memories of Halo was Halo: CE with my dad back in the early 2000s. He would let me stay up on school nights, we’d play 2 levels a night until we finished the game. We did that with Halo: CE, Halo 2 and Halo 3. Some of my best memories of Halo is with my dad and later on with my friends.
To this day I will still make time to play some Halo with my dad, even if it’s a couple of levels here and there. Just the thought of playing with him makes me so happy.
I cannot wait to carry on this tradition with my own children soon.
I Thought I’d Try Shooting My Way Out. Mix Things Up a Little.
- Youth Group LAN parties.
- A 22-game winning streak, late at night in college, with randoms with actual mics in matchmaking in Halo: The Master Chief Collection. Booyah!
- My local launch party (BRING THEM BACK MICROSOFT PLS) for Halo: Reach.
- 12 player Octagon matches where you eat sniper bullets every 1.5 seconds.
- Beating the mainline games up to Infinite on Legendary Solo. I WILL get that last one done. 🙂
- Zooming along Custom Racetracks with my brother way back in the Halo 3 and Reach days.
Mmm, I remember them well.
I can’t just pick one memory. I mean, from this epic story to the 27 books I’ve read in the expanded universe, from so many knuckle-tense matches online – these games have brought me a lot of joy, moments of competitive trash talking, and hours of just sitting in shock at the latest plot twist. The depth of the story that Bungie created – and you at the studios continue to explore – has amazed me, through the highs and the valleys.
Playing these games inspired me in my own writing. I began to pursue game writing as a career. Its inspired what people I play with (shout-out to the Discord servers JumperScape, Love Thy Nerd, and A Fine Addition), and sometimes how I write science fiction. Oh, and hoping for announcement trailers at E3 (RIP) and Summer Games Fest. The hype for Halo 4, for Halo Infinite? Legendary!
Its been a ride!
We’ve been floored by the overwhelming response to our anniversary testimonial series. Since we still have countless fan stories to share in future installments of Your Halo Story, we’ve decided to close the submissions portal on August 18, 2026—but we’ll continue celebrating Halo’s iconic legacy with new video quizzes and community polls on Discord!
