Halo: Spartan Assault For Xbox One Lands December 24th

Halo: Spartan Assault for Xbox One will land on December 24th, Microsoft has confirmed, though Xbox 360 owners will have to wait into the new year to get their hands on the much-anticipated game. The title – which slots in-between the plots of Halo 3 and Halo 4 in the in-game universe – will be offered as a digital download for the next-gen console, after having gone on sale for Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 users earlier in 2013, though there'll be some new tweaks to suit the Xbox One.

For the Xbox One, there'll be 1080/60p graphics in addition to a new online multiplayer option. That adds five new missions played from a top-down camera view, for cooperative multiplayer gaming; you'll need an Xbox Live subscription to access it, though, and Microsoft points out that it's not cross-platform compatible between Xbox One and Xbox 360.

Meanwhile, there are also new enemies that have been added in the Xbox version, with the Flood debuting in Spartan Assault, and new weapons – like the original Halo Battle Rifle – and armor to fight them with. The game will be integrated with the Xbox One Achievements system, too, keeping track of your play.

Those who don't want to go online and get collaborative will have thirty single-player missions to run through – five of which are "Operation Hydra" tasks – and there will be over 40 Achievements and Medals to collect.

Another change for the Xbox One is in-game audio, with the 343 Industries team responsible for the game adding 7.1 Surround Sound as well as remastering the SFX for the console. All of the music and voiceover has been rerecorded, too, game executive producer Dan Ayoub says.

Halo: Spartan Assault will be priced at $14.99/£11.99 regularly for new downloads. However, those who have already bought the game on Windows 8 or Windows Phone 8 will get a discount, for $4.99/£3.99. As for the Xbox 360 version, that will land in January 2014.