Halo’s Official Master Chief Redesign Isn’t What We Expected

The Halo franchise might have been through some ups and downs over the years, but the franchise remains one of the most iconic in video game history, and the oft-protagonist Master Chief is a big part of that.

His hulking physical appearance and limited dialog all add to the overall mystique of the character, and returning to the classic games in 2026 is still as satisfying as it ever was, particularly if you work through the story as part of the updated Master Chief Collection.

Now, as part of a promotion between Xbox and Fanta, the character has been given a whole new look, and you’ll be able to use it yourself when Campaign Evolved drops later this year, if you manage to get your hands on it.

No, This Halo Armor Is Not An April Fool’s Joke

Over on the official Coca-Cola website, the company confirmed a major collaboration is on the way, with rewards across several Xbox-owned titles.

“In celebration of the Xbox 25th Anniversary, Fanta is leveling up its delicious product line with a gamified collaboration that features iconic characters from legendary Xbox titles. For the first time ever, the collaboration brings together the irresistible taste of Fanta and the thrill of gaming with unforgettable challenges, delicious Fanta and epic rewards.

“The special edition collection features character takeovers from some of the most iconic Xbox franchises including Call of Duty, Halo, World of Warcraft, Diablo IV and Forza Horizon 6, and introduces a delicious new special edition flavor, Fanta Crimson. These iconic characters have taken over Fanta for one reason: fans everywhere ‘Wanta Fanta’ – and now it’s your turn to take it back through exclusive challenges and digital activations.”

Essentially, what this amounts to is players being able to pick-up special edition cans of Fanta, following which they can scan QR codes to complete challenges and earn in-game items. Amongst those is a gaudy, bright orange suit that Master Chief can wear in the upcoming release of Halo: Campaign Evolved, however offputting that might end up being.

In a post sharing the news on Reddit, many fans felt that this heralded the possibility of other skins being available to get in-game. “Getting different skins for difficulty completion would be so cool. Imagine beating it on Legendary and getting the original 2001 Chief model as a skin like in Mario Odyssey,” one said.

“Since there are skins for Chief, maybe we’ll get unlockable alternate skins through gameplay. A skin with the OG really shiny coating from Combat Evolved would be awesome as a free unlock,” another added.

Halo Officially Returns This Year

Halo: Campaign Evolved is officially set to release this year, marking a long awaited return to the franchise and one that hopefully heralds a new dawn where the next entries in the franchise really deliver on what players want. Though we don’t have a specific release date yet, the most likely option is towards the end of the year, though the developer will want to avoid the behemoth that is GTA VI, if at all possible.