In July, Halo: Campaign Evolved, the remake of a legendary shooter, is coming back. However, the pricing policy is causing fans some frustration.
Game manuals used to be a standard part of physical video games. Who doesn’t remember that unbeatable feeling of opening a brand-new video game case on the drive home from the store and flipping through that manual for the first time?
That has almost completely disappeared nowadays, but some games still come with a manual in digital form. This is also the case with the upcoming remakeHalo: Campaign Evolved, though with a small catch:an additional charge of 20 euros.
Paywall Frustration with Halo: Campaign Evolved
The new, old Halo recentlythe available editionswere unveiled. With the Standard Edition, you get the main game for 60 euros and, as a pre-order, the Foundry Armory Pack.
If you opt for the Premium Edition, which costs 20 euros more, you’ll get early access to the game five days ahead of release, plus some additional content:
- Alpha Halo Armory Pack
- Digital Artbook
- Digital Short Story: Hungry Buzzards
- Digital Manual
It’s not unusual for Premium Editions to include digital content such as artbooks or soundtracks that aren’t a direct part of the game.& nbsp;However, the fact that something like a manual is only sold with the more expensive version is particularly upsetting to many players.
“I never would have thought that in 2026 we’d have to pay an extra $20 to unlock a digital game manual,” writes a user on Reddit, garnering countless upvotes:
Never expect in the year 2026, We will have to pay an extra $20 unlock a digital game manual.
byu/Khriz-134 inpcgaming
In the comments, users express their cynicism.
- WinResponsible9977 writes:”This manual was probably written by Copilot [Microsoft’s AI assistant].”
- Appropriate_Foot242 writes:“The easiest purchase of a Standard Edition ever. The skins are crap too, and why should my Chief look any different from Chief?“
- AMLRoss writes:”Halo: Capitalism Evolved”
- RHINO_Mk_II writes:“We’ll be able to find it online for free as soon as the game is released—I guarantee it.”
We’d like to emphasize once again that the digital manual is, of course, not the only bonus you get for the 20-euro premium. Still, it’s odd that something so basic isn’t made available to everyone. Especially since other games handle it exactly the same way.
Studios like Capcom or CD Projekt Red often provide additional information in the form of manuals outside of the games.
For example, you can find online a comprehensive manual for Monster Hunter: World, completely free of charge. There’s also a -ultimate-edition-game-booklet-out-now“ rel=”noopener” target=”_blank” data-icon=‘external’ data-mrf-link=”https://www.cyberpunk.net/en/news/49789/cyberpunk-2077 -ultimate-edition-game-booklet-out-now”>digital game booklet, which was released alongside the Ultimate Edition and is available as a PDF download.
Halo: Campaign Evolved is a campaign remake of the 2001 game Halo: Combat Evolved. Developed in Unreal Engine 5, it features a complete visual overhaul. Sounds and voice acting have been re-recorded, and the mission system is also said to have been revamped. You can learn more about this in the article linked above.
The remake is set to release on July 28, 2026, for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
