Halo 2 campaign order and local co-op guide for original Xbox
See Halo 2’s mission sequence, understand the Chief and Arbiter switches and set up original Xbox split-screen campaign play.
Original 2004 Xbox campaign and local play. Halo 2: Anniversary and The Master Chief Collection change skull activation and add features; their menus, extra skulls and achievements are not the baseline here.
How many campaign levels are there?
Halo 2 lists 15 campaign levels. The Heretic is an opening cinematic and The Armory is a tutorial, leaving 13 full combat missions. That explains why different counts circulate: some lists include every menu entry while others count only the main battles. Use the mission names, rather than a number alone, when matching a walkthrough.
Follow the Chief’s opening and the first switch
After The Armory, the Chief fights through Cairo Station, Outskirts and Metropolis. The story then changes viewpoint for The Arbiter and The Oracle. Delta Halo and Regret return to the Chief. These transitions are fixed parts of the campaign, so completing a mission automatically advances the intended sequence instead of asking you to choose a protagonist.
Track the second half of the campaign
Sacred Icon and Quarantine Zone follow the Arbiter; Gravemind follows the Chief; Uprising returns to the Arbiter; High Charity follows the Chief; and The Great Journey finishes with the Arbiter. Keep separate tactical expectations for the two characters, particularly when using the flashlight or temporary camouflage button during a dangerous retreat.
Set up local campaign co-op
The original Xbox campaign supports two players on one console in split screen. Connect a second controller and start the cooperative campaign from the game’s local menus. Original campaign co-op is not an Xbox Live campaign mode. For a relaxed first run, choose a difficulty both players enjoy before attempting Legendary’s stricter shared checkpoint behaviour.
A second player does not turn the story into a Chief-and-Arbiter team-up. Both players follow the protagonist assigned to the current mission.
Picture details
Game artwork belongs to its respective rights holders.