Halo has been one of the most popular gaming franchises ever since it was released in 2001. Fans of the title are now lucky enough to live in a time when the Halo gaming franchise is getting its own live-action TV show that will be available for streaming. In that regard, we know for a fact that Halo is set in a futuristic timeline because of the sci-fi elements we can see in the game. However, when is the Halo TV show set?
It is hinted that the Halo TV show is set during the same 26th-century war between humans and the Covenant. There is also a confirmation that it will be set in an alternate timeline. But there are some speculations that its timeline happens right before the events of the games.
The thing about Halo is that the games follow a timeline that is canon and are quite linear in their approach. As such, the thing that the writers were careful about regarding the Halo TV series is their approach to the events so that they won’t end up clashing with the events in the games. And that is why they decided to take the show in a different direction.
When Does The Halo TV Show Take Place?
One of the most popular video game franchises for PC and Xbox gamers has always been Halo, which has been a trademark game for Microsoft ever since the release of the very first Xbox during the start of the 2000s. Halo is certainly one of the most popular titles in the world of video games, and that is why it has fans all over the world.
Fans of this great video game franchise can rejoice because of the fact that Halo will be releasing a live-action show that will be premiering on Paramount+ in March of 2022. This is not something that is new to the video game world, as we have been seeing games getting adapted into TV shows in the past few years. And given the fact that Halo has always been quite popular, it is expected that the Halo show should be received well enough by its fans.
That said, what we know is that the Halo games are set far into a future that none of us can presently reach. And in most cases, the Halo games also follow a set timeline that allows the story to build up from one game to another.
So, in that regard, introducing a TV show to the Halo canon may actually mess up the entire continuity of the Halo timeline in the games. And no fan wants to see the live-action series introducing plenty of changes to the story of the games. As such, when does the Halo TV show take place?
Essentially, the Halo TV show will follow an entirely different timeline that is still canon but may not be directly connected to the events in the game. In a way, we can call this timeline a parallel timeline. The producers of the show call it the Silver Timeline.
Like the games, the Silver Timeline will still be based heavily on the universe that the games and the books have already created. The producers are not trying to create something out of nothing with the introduction of the Silver Timeline because they don’t want to mess with hardcore fans that have been following the Halo franchise for decades already.
However, the thing about the Silver Timeline is that there will be subtle differences between the stories and events that took place in the games and the books so that the series can tell a more profoundly human story that is still very much grounded on the entire Halo franchise. The differences will be quite simple in a way that they won’t introduce things that may not have been introduced to the Halo games or books, as the producers and writers still want to make the series as close to the real Halo as possible.
In a way, the differences between the show and the games and books are actually just differences in how the story branches from one event to another. This will allow the show to explore different character arcs and events that are related to the entire narrative of the show. And the entire outcome of these events will still be quite familiar to Halo fans.
The Halo TV series will still be set in the 26th century and in the middle of the war between Humans and the Covenant. There are also suggestions that the events of the series will take place before the first game, which is Halo: Combat Evolved. However, because we were told that the series would be set in a different timeline, it might take a different course in relation to how it will connect to the general narrative of the entire Halo plot.
We believe that it takes place before the first game because it was during the events of Halo: Combat Evolved that Master Chief discovered the superweapon called Halo, which can wipe out anything within 25,000 light-years. As such, considering that the series might try to explore how Master Chief finds out about this weapon, it may take place before and during the first game.
This theory can be derived from the line in the Halo official trailer. The line says, “Find the Halo, win the war.” This suggests that humans are yet to find the Halo superweapon and that they are in the race against the Covenant to find this weapon.
So, the reason why the producers and writers introduced a different timeline in the series is that they want to have a level of control or freedom over the direction of the story. Using a timeline that is similar to the games will only make it more difficult for them to have full control over the narrative because they will be forced to stick with the story that the games tell.
As such, with this new timeline, they can tell a story that doesn’t clash directly with what the games and the books already tell. Fans won’t end up getting too angry about how the series tells a different but similar story because it has already been confirmed by Steven Spielberg himself that this is an alternate and parallel timeline that isn’t exactly the same as the timeline in the games or the books.
But fans shouldn’t be too worried about the changes that will be introduced in this entirely new timeline because the core elements that make the games and the books so great will still be retained. For one, Master Chief will still be one of the central characters, as he is humanity’s greatest weapon. And as mentioned, the foundations of the Halo franchise will be retained by the series, despite the fact that it might take a different direction.
Where Is Halo TV Show Set?
Because the Halo TV show is set in a futuristic timeline where humans have already begun colonizing different planets all over the galaxy, it can be speculated that the show will be set on a different planet. Nothing has been announced or confirmed regarding the location of the TV show, but we do know that the filming was primarily done in Budapest, Hungary.
We can also speculate that, because there are reasons to believe that this show takes place before the first game, it may also happen on Reach, which is a planet where human scientific and military activity takes place. But some scenes can also take place on Earth. What we can speculate is that the series may take place on different planets because humans have already begun colonizing different worlds by this timeline.
Is Halo TV Show Connected To The Games?
As mentioned, the Halo TV show will introduce a different timeline because the producers and writers don’t want to clash with the story that has already been presented in the books and the games.
However, it was also stated that the Halo series would be primarily based on the lore that has already been introduced in the games and the books. The producers and writers don’t want to introduce a lot of things that haven’t already been introduced in the existing Halo lore. What they did was that they only took the story in a different direction so that they won’t end up clashing with the events of the games and the books.
This is why there might be no exact connection between the Halo TV show and the games, as the series will follow an alternate timeline that has events that differ from the timeline in the games and books. However, there might be some loose connections that will be introduced between the series and the games.
Still, as far as we know right now, the producers themselves have stated that they won’t try to make the show set on the same timeline as the games due to the reasons stated above. As such, the show might not branch into the events of the games, as it might introduce a different flow in the story.
