Microsoft Shuts Down Halo Online Fan Mod ‘ElDewrito’
In the week since our video tutorial on how to play Halo Online on PC, thousands of players have been enjoying the ElDewrito mod that makes it all possible. However, with the rise in popularity on Twitch and the subreddit, which has over 64,000 subscribers as of writing this article, Microsoft has taken action.
If you are unfamiliar with Halo Online, it was a free-to-play port of Halo 3 released back in 2015 for the Russian market. At the time, only Halo 1 & 2 were ported to PC, so we were excited at the prospect of getting another Halo for the PC, unfortunately it looked like only Russia was going to get it. Naturally, modders set out to get the game ported for everyone who was missing out. Earlier this week, a major revision was released that fixed all kinds of bugs and made it a very playable game.
According to the developers of the mod, 343 Industries (Microsoft) contacted them to discuss the situation, rather than resorting to the usual cease and desist order. In short, they were happy with the work they put into the mod, but were not okay with their assets being unlawfully used in the project. As such, they were shutting down downloads that included Halo Online code, however would not be doing anything against the mod developers.
“While we are humbled and inspired to see the amount of passion poured into this project, the fact remains that it’s built upon Microsoft-owned assets that were never lawfully released or authorized for this purpose. As this project reverberated across the community, our team took a step back to assess the materials and explore possible avenues, while Microsoft, like any company, has a responsibility to protect its IP, code and trademarks. It’s not optional in other words.
BTW, we’re not ‘shutting down the mod’ or going after the Eldewrito crew – we’re enacting action to remove the Halo Online code and packages from places it’s being hosted.”
As of right now, ElDewrito development is being put on hold. The game is still up and running with over 8,000 players online as of a few minutes ago, so don’t expect it to go anywhere. I think if Microsoft is smart, they will put out the Master Chief Collection for PC. Halo 5: Forge has proven they can put out a functioning Halo for Windows, so we’ll see what their next move is.
Source:
https://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/news/eldewrito-community-content
