Halo: Reach was first released on December 3 on the PC as part of the Halo: The Master Chief Collection. While the game is largely identical to the console counterpart, developer 343 Industries has already confirmed that it would support community mods in the PC version of the game. The first sign of this support is the easy way to disable Halo: Reach’s anti-cheat.
This may sound dangerous to players who only want to use the standard multiplayer mode of the game, but this is not the case. This is a creative solution that allows players to use modifications and play modified cards in custom match and campaign mode. To ensure competitiveness, players who do not have the game’s anti-cheat software enabled can not play match-making game modes.
The anti-cheat launch option for the Steam version of The Master Chief Collection343 Industries on Polygon
Players launching The Master Chief Collection on Steam will see a pop-up asking if they want to play the game with or without anti-cheat. For players using the Xbox app, there are two separate programs available, one named “Halo: The Master Chief Collection” and one labeled “Halo: MCC Anti-Cheat Disabled.”
This news is a welcome addition to longtime Halo PC fans who have always known Modding as part of the game. Halo: Combat Evolved modders have opened new sections of familiar maps like the Cliffs high above Blood Gulch and modified weapons to make machine-gun rocket launchers or sniper rifles fired like tanks.
Modding eventually became so popular in the PC community that the developer, who originally ported Halo: Combat Evolved to the platform, Gearbox Software (yes, the Borderlands developer) released a new multiplayer version of the game called Halo: Custom Edition brought out essentially an extension, which is intended as a playground for modder.
While only basic modifications were possible in Combat Evolved, Custom Edition players were able to import a large number of new assets. In the Custom Edition, the modders recreated the Call of Duty levels, created completely new maps and game modes, and even created fully pilotable longsword spaceships for players to fly.
Most of the mods created by Halo: Custom Edition gamers were created using the Halo Editing Kit, a software Gearbox has developed specifically for creating maps for modders. 343 Industries has announced that it will also be working on custom modding tools for Halo: Reach developers to launch shortly after the game.
