Skip to main content

Long read: The beauty and drama of video games and their clouds

"It's a little bit hard to work out without knowing the altitude of that dragon..."

If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy.

New Halo: The Master Chief Collection update lets you download and install the bits you want

The Library.

A new update heading to Halo: The Master Chief Collection lets you download and install the bits of the game you want.

The Intelligent Install system lets you choose to download the components of the game you want and ditch the rest.

In the case of Xbox One shooter Halo: The Master Chief Collection, you can choose from campaign and multiplayer in each of the bundled games: Halo: Combat Evolved, Halo 2: Anniversary, Halo 3 and Halo 4, as well as the campaign for Halo 3: ODST.

343 Industries' community chief Brian Jarrard shared a work-in-progress image of how this will look in-game on Twitter:

Of note: you can raise and lower the priority of a game when it comes to downloads. You can also see the total installation size and how it'll change depending on your selection.

In a follow-up tweet, Jarrard said Halo: The Master Chief Collection's playlist setup is being changed so it'll operate on a per game, rather than cross-game basis. "If you don't have the correct content to play Halo 3, it'll let you know and prompt you to install it / you won't be able to join matchmaking for Halo 3," he said.

Digital Foundry reported on Microsoft's Intelligent Delivery back in September 2017. The idea is to reduce download times and save hard-drive space. It's pretty cool!