For 15 years, the only version of Halo for PC has been Gearbox's wrinkled port; imperfect, but not fundamentally broken.
The Refined project is our attempt to smooth all those wrinkles and provide a port that even die-hard Halo purists will be happy with. Everything that was possible to fix has been addressed. Things that were once considered impossible to restore, have been restored using clever workarounds. Many high-fidelity textures and a high resolution HUD have replaced the original compressed versions.
To all Halo enthusiasts out there, we present to you, the Halo Refined project.
Downloads:
These are just a few examples of the various fixes and improvements. There are far too many tiny changes to cover them all in detail.
Restored AotCR sky fog and high resolution HUD
https://i.redd.it/mp01jomm9ls11.jpg
Cortana transparency and blending fixes
https://i.redd.it/sda3w4kp9ls11.jpg
https://i.redd.it/p301eq5r9ls11.jpg
Restored animated stationary shield shaders
https://i.redd.it/2h0z0fzr9ls11.jpg
https://i.redd.it/709edwps9ls11.jpg
Restored animated jackal shield shaders
https://i.redd.it/6gym2dct9ls11.jpg
https://i.redd.it/ti2ewawt9ls11.jpg
Restored animated dropship tendril shaders
https://i.redd.it/4capymiu9ls11.jpg
Restored AotCR and TB glass and Assault Rifle specularity
https://i.redd.it/kt9hpq0v9ls11.jpg
Restored water ripples
https://i.redd.it/qcigxajv9ls11.jpg
Xbox Keyes formal attire
https://i.redd.it/r8kmp25w9ls11.jpg
Most of our updates and community is currently on our Discord server. Join us there if you are interested in what's being done and how.
https://discord.gg/ksTVytA
Our master-list of issues we've fixed is located here:
FAQ:
Q: How did this project come about?
A: Originally, I was writing a program(Refinery) to decompile Halo map files, and wanted to test it out by trying to port Halo PC to Custom Edition. This port was originally called "Moses's Refined Campaign", and had its own share of bugs(it was more of a test than anything). After the program was finished, I started working on a v2 to fix all outstanding bugs and try to fix others that Gearbox introduced. The project got the attention of several talented people(including the current project head) who could contribute in ways I couldn't. Working together, we eventually branched into "refining" the ui and multi-player maps as well. Thus, the "Refined" project was born.
Q: So who is on the Refined "team"?
A: Well, it's more of a collaborate effort than a team, but I guess "team" works. Think more along the lines of an open source project though. Anyone can pop up, volunteer to do a thing, and hand it off to the project lead to be incorporated into the final release. All contributors to the project(myself excluded) have simply asked if they can help. You can check out the credits here:
Q: Who is in charge of the project?
A: Originally myself, but currently Mortis. Once we hit v1.0.0, I placed management of the project in his very capable hands. I'm moving on to other things.
Q: I found a legacy bug that still isn't fixed! Who do I contact?
A: Legacy bugs won't be fixed. Triple-wide covenant crates still have dirt collision, Plasma shots leave the wrong burn decal on certain materials, and the warthog still crashes in the intro cutscene. Those are all legacy bugs. This aims to be as faithful to the xbox experience as possible.
Q: I found a bug and I don't think it's legacy! Who do I contact?
A: Well, first off please make sure it's not legacy by comparing it to original xbox footage(not MCC or Anniversary, as both are based on Gearbox's Halo PC port). If you're still sure, hop on our Discord chat and post it in the bug tracker. Be as descriptive as possible, and include pictures or video if possible. If you need footage to compare to, we have full play-throughs posted in the tracker. Also, you don't need to notify anyone in particular, as they have notifications set up for the bug tracker channel.
Q: Does this mean there will be other releases?
A: Very likely. Now that pretty much everything is fixed that is possible to fix, future releases will require quite a few changes piled together to warrant recompiling and pushing out 60+ maps. However, we have been discovering more and more tiny things to fix, so these changes are beginning to pile up(at least one was a Refinery bug). Stay tuned.
