Halo: Campaign Evolved isn't too far away now, and it marks Halo's debut on a PlayStation console, launching on PlayStation 5 alongside every other platform.
Last night, Halo Studios published a detailed Q&A on Halo Waypoint covering what fans can expect at launch. I've already covered some of the bigger announcements elsewhere, but one particular detail has left fans online, myself included, absolutely bewildered.
That detail is Halo: Campaign Evolved's split-screen requirements on PlayStation 5, and no, Halo fans aren't just upset because they're Halo fans.
On Xbox, split-screen works as you’d expect, though both players do need a Microsoft account. You can enjoy couch co-op without the need for Xbox Game Pass; however, on the PlayStation side of things, it’s a bit more complicated. According to Halo Studios, to do couch co-op, where two players play on one console in split-screen, both players will need to have a PSN account, both of which need to be linked to a Microsoft account, and both also need to have an active PlayStation+ subscription.
So, to play offline with a friend on the same console, both players need to be actively subscribed to PlayStation Plus. That's absolutely beyond stupid, no?
Surely most people can agree that's not an unreasonable thing to criticize, and I don't think Halo fans are expecting too much here. This is Halo's first-ever debut on PlayStation, and requiring two active subscriptions just to enjoy local split-screen feels completely at odds with what couch co-op is supposed to be.
I'm fully aware that split-screen likely represents a minority of players these days, but that's kind of beside the point. The issue isn't how many people use the feature; it's the principle of locking local multiplayer behind two paid subscriptions.
To me, this just reeks of poor decision-making somewhere along the line, or perhaps even a rushed one. Could this somehow be related to Sony's infrastructure or account requirements? Maybe. It's possible, especially if the game needs to be always online, but I find that highly unlikely.
Look, I'm excited for Halo: Campaign Evolved, and I'll be picking it up on both PC and Xbox. That doesn't change the fact that this situation sucks for PlayStation players, and I genuinely hope Halo Studios or whoever is responsible for this can address it before launch.
With that said, let me know your thoughts in the comments, and be sure to take part in our poll above!
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