The 'Halo' multiverse? Why you don't need to play all the games to jump into the new TV series

Between Netflix's The Witcher, Amazon's Wheel of Time, and HBO's upcoming Game of Thrones prequel, there's a lot of pre-existing lore that new viewers — and even some longtime fans — might feel like they have to catch up on. But luckily, that won't be the case when it comes to Paramount+'s Halo TV series, which is due to hit streaming next year. 

According to an interview shared on Twitter by Halopedia, the show will have its own timeline, separate from the games themselves.

"We're referring to this as the Halo Silver Timeline as a way of differentiating it from core canon," explains Kiki Wolfkill, the Head of Transmedia at 343 Industries, the video game development company that works on Halo games. "And both protecting core canon and protecting the television story, and by that I mean being able to give ourselves the chance to evolve both and for both to be what they need to be for their mediums without colliding with each other."

It's a clever decision as it not only keeps both mediums separate, without fans having to worry how decisions in one might impact the other — like the various movies and shows set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe — but it also means anything is possible when it comes to the characters, and that the show doesn't have to remain beholden to the game's lore. 

It's no doubt been one of the many things the production team involved have had to figure out during the show's long journey towards the small screen. While the series had been greenlit all the way back in 2013, when it was announced that Microsoft would be partnering up with Jurassic Park and ET director Stephen Spielberg for the adaptation, it was only in 2019 that the project was able to get off the ground and head into production, though it did face some COVID-19 related setbacks. 

Halo is based on the critically acclaimed first-person-shooter video game franchise created and released by Bungie, Inc. in 2001 for Microsoft's original Xbox. The show, much like the game, is set during the 26th-century, when humans are involved in a major conflict against aliens known as the Covenant. However, not much else is know about the series, as even the recently released trailer kept plot points vague, while still offering fans a glimpse of what the show will look and feel like, and eschewing the video game-esque visuals for something that feels more grounded and realistic, like Disney+'s The Mandalorian or even Amazon's The Expanse, two other science fiction shows building their own sci-fi futures. 

Pablo Schrieber (American Gods) will star as Master Chief, the iconic supersoldier protagonist of the series around whom the whole series is based. The rest of the cast includes Natascha McElhone (Designated Survivor), Bokeem Woodbine (Ghostbusters: Afterlife), Shabana Azmi (The Empire), Bentley Kalu (Red Dwarf), Natasha Culzac (Cursed), and Kate Kennedy (Assassins Creed: Valhalla).

Halo will debut on Paramount+ in 2022.