You Can Now Play Halo 5 on PC: Here's How

If you've been crossing your fingers for a Halo 5 PC release, you prayers have been answered — well, partially, at least. Halo 5: Forge is a free Windows 10 app that lets you build your own levels for Microsoft's popular first-person shooter, as well as host up to 16-player matches on any of your custom arenas.

To get Halo 5: Forge, simply follow this link to the Windows 10 Store. The 36GB download is totally free, though you will need to update to Windows 10 Anniversary Edition to get it. This special PC version of Halo 5 is primarily designed to give you access to the game's robust Forge level editor, which lets you create anything from tight deathmatch arenas to Halo-style racing and sports games — now with the convenience of a keyboard and mouse.

MORE: The Best PCs for Gaming

You can share any of your creations online, and all Forge levels will be downloadable across Xbox One and PC. And if you're more interested in blowing up your friends than creating custom maps, you can host your own private matches on your downloaded levels or find other players via a server browser.

Halo 5: Forge also comes optimized for PC, meaning you'll get to enjoy true mouse and keyboard controls and can crank the graphics up to 4K, so long as your system allows for it.

While Halo 5: Forge doesn't have the sprawling campaign mode or robust multiplayer options as the core Halo 5 game on Xbox One, there's still a good amount of content here for zero dollars. And now that virtually all of Microsoft's first-party games are coming to PC via the Play Anywhere initiative, it seems like only a matter of time until we're playing full-on Halo games on Windows 10. Until then, go ahead and give Forge a whirl — we're certainly excited to.

TOPICS

Mike Andronico is Senior Writer at CNNUnderscored. He was formerly Managing Editor at Tom's Guide, where he wrote extensively on gaming, as well as running the show on the news front. When not at work, you can usually catch him playing Street Fighter, devouring Twitch streams and trying to convince people that Hawkeye is the best Avenger.