343 Industries announced Thursday night that PC testing for Halo: The Master Chief Collection will start "next week." Fittingly enough, the first game in the collection to reach PC testers will be Halo: Reach, the prequel to Halo: Combat Evolved originally released in 2010.
Halo: The Master Chief Collection has taken a winding path to release on PC. The console version of the collection debuted in 2014; the PC version wasn't announced until this March. Halo community director Brian Jarrard said in April that testing for the PC version of the collection might start that month, but later announced that the development team decided to delay any public tests indefinitely.
There's still no guarantee that PC testing will start next week, and even if it does, not everyone will be invited to participate. 343 Industries said in its announcement that testing will be limited to "a small subsection of registered Halo Insiders" because it wants to "ensure [its] delivery pipeline runs smoothly, [its] communications are clear and that participants can properly provide their feedback on the build."
The developer explained:
"Since there are so many pieces and levers that need testing, verification and appropriate approvals, we need to take our time to ensure we're sending out a quality flight to our Halo Insiders. The team has a build which appears to be a strong candidate, but it's still in the middle of going through the test process as I type (and as you read)."
At least there's more information about how development for Halo: The Master Chief Collection on PC is going. Like we said in April, people have waited five years for the collection to make the jump from Xbox to Windows, so having to wait a little longer probably won't be the end of the world. Better to be cautious during the development process to resolve any problems than to apologize for them after release.
Anyone interested in testing Halo: The Master Chief Collection on PC can sign up for the Halo Insider Program via the series website. Discussion about the program--as well as the collection's jump to PC--is hosted on the website's forums. 343 Industries said it plans to share details about the Halo: Reach testing flight with the public so anyone who hasn't been selected to participate can stay informed.
