Microsoft issued the following statement:

"Just to let everybody know, the Kinect features we're exploring with Halo: Anniversary are optional and won't affect your core gameplay experience. Our mission, from day one, has been to deliver a faithful recreation of the original game, and we remain dedicated to seeing that through to completion."

Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary is a remastered version of the original Halo campaign, created in celebration of the 10th anniversary of the franchise. The Anniversary edition has a bounty of new features, including cooperative play over Xbox Live, a bundle of multiplayer maps reimagined for Xbox Live, new challenges and a new story.

Developed by 343 Industries in collaboration with Saber Interactive and Certain Affinity, Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary immerses you in the landmark campaign and genre-defining multiplayer game that helped revolutionize the first-person shooter genre and sparked one of the most iconic science-fiction universes of all time.

Key Features:

• Stunningly remastered campaign. Relive the award-winning adventure that defined Halo: Combat Evolved as one of the best games of the decade with breathtaking next-gen graphics and audio remastered for the Xbox 360. Engage in epic-scale battles against the backdrop of the eponymous Halo ringworld, and relive nostalgic memories with the ability to toggle Classic mode to play the original version.
• Online campaign co-op. For the first time, experience the story that started it all with a friend on Xbox Live and launch a cooperative assault against the Covenant, whether you live across the street or halfway around the world.
• Classic Halo multiplayer maps reimagined. Wage battle on six detailed remakes of some of the most beloved Halo multiplayer maps of all time, and bring the fight to the Covenant on a stunning and resonant new Firefight map.1 Remastered in the Halo: Reach engine and inspired by maps from Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2, these iconic battlefields reignite the heart-pounding multiplayer action of the original favorites and let you relive epic confrontations like you've never experienced them.Developed in collaboration with Certain Affinity, the new multiplayer maps are included on the Halo: Anniversary game disc, which means players will not need to own the original Halo: Reach game to play. The first of the new revealed remakes is the fan-favorite map Damnation.
• New challenges and enhanced story. Unlock up to 1,000 Achievement points as you clash with online opponents and battle through the campaign, and uncover never-before-revealed backstories told in motion-graphic form that foreshadow new mysteries in the story of Halo 4.