Say what you will about AI-generated or “vibe-coded” projects, but sometimes, just sometimes, they’re pretty cool. One of which is Apollo – Halo CE Decomp, which was originally released earlier this week as a decompilation for Windows, Linux, and Android.
Since then, it’s taken on a mind of its own, as the project has been forked to create working versions for your browser and even retro handhelds. Starting with the browser version, you can check it out for yourself here, and once everything is finished loading, you’re presented with the original starting screen from Halo: Combat Evolved.
Jump right into a campaign, if you want, or tinker around with the settings to make sure that your controls are mapped properly. But the real surprise is that this web build of Halo allows you to actually play Multiplayer with others from around the world. There’s a dedicated window in the top left corner of the webpage that shows how many people are playing, along with a button that aptly says “Play Online.”
According to @mitchellhynes, multiplayer is said to be working with “up to 128 players,” in addition to the standard “Splitscreen Co-op.” You can host a game yourself and once setting everything up, there’s even a share link to “Invite a Friend.”
However, the fun doesn’t stop there, as I stumbled across a post on the r/ANBERNIC subreddit showing Halo: Combat Evolved running on an RG35XXH via KNULLI Gladiator II. The post even shows split-screen co-op working, with the “second player” using a Bluetooth controller, while the first player uses the RG35XXH’s built-in controls.
While that build seems to be specifically for KNULLI, it might not be much longer before Halo becomes playable on every retro handheld. A post on the r/trimui subreddit shows off Halo: CE running on the TrimUI Smart Pro, with the description stating it was made possible from the original Apollo – Halo CE Decomp project. In the comments, /u/ToastedFrog4 says that the code “Should be done soon” when asked about making it available.
The only requirement for all of these ports, except for the version that runs in your browser, is that you will need to “Download an Xbox disc image (.xiso or .iso) of Halo: Combat Evolved.” As is the case with many ports, this is due to the actual game files not being included, and instead, they are extracted when you start the game for the first time.
If you want to take any of these projects for a spin, here’s the list of the ones that I’ve referenced in this article:
