343 Industries will switch off the Xbox 360 game servers for a number of Halo titles on January 13, 2022, meaning a host of online services will be kaput as of next week.
Modes such as campaign, firefight, and spartan ops will remain accessible alongside custom games, forge mode, and split screen. Other services like matchmaking, fileshare, and challenges will, however, be laid to rest.
The Xbox 360 versions of seven Halo games will be affected in some capacity by the move, including Halo: Reach, Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, Halo 4, Halo Combat Evolved Anniversary, Halo Spartan Assault, and Halo Wars.
343 noted that games in Halo: The Master Chief Collection won’t be affected as they have been rebuilt and remastered to leverage different, modernized services.
The chart below explains how each Xbox 360 title will be impacted by the move, and indicates matchmaking and fileshare have already been stripped from titles including Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, Halo 4, and Halo Reach.
In a brief FAQ, 343 confirmed those players using backwards compatibility to play 360 titles will also be affected as the underlying content relies on legacy online services.
You can find out more information about the impending shut down on the Halo Waypoint website.