Where to find map variants for Reach Infection matchmaking?

Recently my group wanted to do some custom games browser games with some of the maps from Reach infection matchmaking - we already have some like Purgatory (from Penance) and Pandemic (from Reflection), but I don’t have the variants for Powerhouse, Condemned, Zealot and Boardwalk. Some searching online turned up nothing - anyone know where I would look for these maps? It’d be a real hassle to try and recreate them in forge.

1 Like

PC players have a folder with all the gametypes and maps used in matchmaking.

C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Halo The Master Chief Collection\haloreach\hopper_game_variants
C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Halo The Master Chief Collection\haloreach\hopper_map_variants

PSA: Don’t remove, add, or edit files in these two “hopper” folders. If Easy Anti-Cheat sees that you’ve messed with them then you’ll get a complimentary kick. Copying them out is 100% fine. The stuff you put in the game_variants and map_variants folders will show up as built-in when you’re selecting maps for custom games. Great way to get around the gametype and map limit restrictions.

For Reach there’s 421 gametypes and 266 map variants. If you open up the .bin and .mvar files in Notepad and turn on Word Wrap then the name and description of the files usually show up near the top. Don’t ever use Notepad to edit any of the files though because once when I tried doing that the game had a fit on the main menu until I removed the crummy edit. Also, other games are sorted like this. Don’t mix up which Halo game a .bin or .mvar file is for. And make sure PC players only mess with these folders when the game is closed (that’s not a hard rule but it will help prevent specific problems I can’t remember right now).

IMO the fastest way to find the ones you’d like would be to do this:

  1. PC player clears their built-in map folder for Reach.
  2. Someone in the lobby has cleared space in their locally saved folder for saving new maps.
  3. PC player puts the Reach matchmaking maps into their built-in folder.
  4. Use forge mode’s “edit every map” gametype to view the Reach maps you’re after.
  5. Save the maps you wanted when you find them.
  6. PC player cleans his folders up to how they were before the project.