From Console To Paper: Expansion Of The Halo Universe Through Novels

Halo, the sci-fi first person shooter series, was launched in 2001 by Bungie with Halo: Combat Evolved. Since then, a multi-billion dollar franchise has been spawned that includes six full FPS games and a real time strategy game.

The Halo franchise is owned by Microsoft and is now run by 343 Industries. Aside from the vast, rich story lines that span the games, many books were written that further expand on the lore of the Halo universe.

The Fall Of Reach

The first novel of the Halo book series was written in 2001 by Eric Nylund and is intended as a prequel to Combat Evolved. Set in the futuristic Halo universe where light speed travel is common, this book spans the length of decades. 

The Fall Of Reach is mainly concerned with the events leading up to Combat Evolved and detail the emergence of the Spartan projects. The story follows the main protagonist of the Halo franchise, Master Chief. The Fall Of Reach concludes with the discovery of the first halo ring and set up the events for Halo 2.

The Flood

Written by William C. Dietz, The Flood is a novel adaptation of the events of Combat Evolved. The book follows the story line of Combat Evolved and includes some added events that weren’t experienced directly by the main protagonist. Dietz was criticized for writing Master Chief differently than how he was portrayed in the game. Despite the criticism, the book sold well.

First Strike

Eric Nylund returned to write First Strike. This book is intended to fill in the gaps between Combat Evolved and the games sequel, Halo 2. First Strike details the war between the humans and the main antagonist of the series, the religiously fanatic alien race known as the Covenant. 

Master Chief and other Spartan soldiers learn of a Covenant plan to invade earth. The Spartans take over a Covenant ship and destroy one of the Covenant space stations. They then warn others of the Covenant invasion plans, which set the stage for Halo 2.

Image Credits: en.wikipedia.org

Ghosts Of Onyx

Nylund wrote his third Halo novel in 2006, titled Ghosts Of Onyx. This novel debuted on The New York Times bestsellers list and concerns the creation of the SPARTAN-IIIs. It takes place after the events of Halo 2 and is set mostly on the Spartan training world known as Onyx. Ghosts Of Onyx contains main characters who aren’t in the first two games, and the plot is a bit complex.

Contact Harvest

The fifth Halo novel was written by Joseph Staten, a long time Bungie employee. Contact Harvest was released in 2007 and takes place prior to the events of Combat Evolved. The book details the first human contact with the Covenant. 

Contact Harvest sheds light on how the long war between the human race and the Covenant began and dives deeper into the origins of some key characters in the Halo universe. Contact Harvest debuted at #3 on The New York Times best sellers list.

The Cole Protocol

Tobias S. Buckell took over and wrote the sixth Halo novel, published in 2008. The Cole Protocol takes place prior to Combat Evolved and concerns a Spartan group called the Spartan Gray Team. The book also details an uneasy alliance formed between human insurrectionists and Covenant forces.

Other adaptations to the Halo universe were also created, including graphic novels and comics. Bungie, the creators of Halo, consider the books to be official canon of the Halo universe. In addition to that, many gaming websites have mapped out the timelines of the Halo story.

  Steven Daniel

About the Author:

Steven Daniel is a long time gamer and passionate literary critic. You can connect with Steven on Google+ or on Twitter at @stevenXdaniel