Marcus Lehto, one of the original creators of Halo, has publicly criticized the decision to release Halo: Campaign Evolved without player-versus-player multiplayer. The former Bungie art director described the omission as a clear misstep caused by insufficient oversight and poor planning.
In a post on X, Lehto wrote: "Split screen MP in Campaign Evolved should have been included. There’s little excuse aside from lack of oversight and poor planning that led to this misstep. So sad this wasn’t included." He later clarified that his comments referred specifically to the absence of PvP multiplayer in the remake.
Halo: Campaign Evolved is a full remake of the original 2001 campaign, rebuilt with modern visuals and systems. Halo Studios positioned the project as a way to reintroduce the foundational story and gameplay to new players while giving longtime fans a refreshed version of the classic missions. What it does not include is the competitive multiplayer that many still consider inseparable from the Halo identity.
Lehto’s involvement with the series dates to its earliest days. As art director on the original Halo: Combat Evolved, he helped define the visual language and feel that turned the game into a landmark title. His willingness to criticize a modern remake carries weight precisely because of that history. When one of the people who shaped the first game says a core feature was left out through poor planning, the comment lands differently than general community complaints.
The lack of split-screen and PvP has been one of the most consistent points of discussion since Campaign Evolved was detailed. Halo built much of its early success on local multiplayer, with couch sessions and LAN parties forming a major part of the culture around the original trilogy. Removing that pillar from a remake of the first game struck many players as an odd choice, especially for a project meant to reconnect with the community.
Halo Studios has not indicated that PvP will be added later. The focus remains on the campaign experience, with the multiplayer side of the franchise continuing in other live titles. That separation may make sense from a development and resource perspective, but Lehto’s comments frame it as a failure of priorities rather than a deliberate design decision.
The timing of the criticism also matters. Campaign Evolved has already launched, and the studio has moved into the post-release period. Public notes from a co-creator about fundamental missing features arrive after the window in which they could have influenced the shipping product. They still serve as a pointed assessment of how the project was managed.
Lehto’s broader point is straightforward. A remake of the game that popularized console multiplayer for a generation should have found room for at least some form of local or competitive play. In his view, the fact that it did not points to gaps in oversight during planning and production. The disappointment in his tone reflects how central those modes were to the original experience.
Halo: Campaign Evolved delivers a modernized single-player campaign that many have praised for its technical upgrades and faithful recreation of the classic missions. The absence of PvP does not erase those strengths, but it does leave a noticeable hole for a significant portion of the audience. When one of the people who helped create the original game calls that hole a misstep born of poor planning, it becomes harder to dismiss the criticism as simple nostalgia.
The exchange underscores an ongoing tension in how Halo is being stewarded. Campaign Evolved was meant to celebrate and reintroduce the beginning of the series. In Lehto’s assessment, it did so while leaving out one of the elements that made the beginning matter to so many players in the first place.
Do you agree with his take? Have you played Campaign Evolved yet? What are your thoughts on the game? Let us know what you thought about the article in the comments!