Lone Wolves, gear up for Season 2 of Halo Infinite! Experience fresh content including new maps, modes, themed limited-time events, and an all-new Battle Pass that never expires.
If you haven't seen it yet, you can check out Catalyst & Breaker, two new maps coming in Season 2:
In addition, you can check out the new modes: King of the Hill, Land Grab, and Last Spartan Standing, also coming with Season 2:
Season 2's first in-game event, Interference, also debuts on May 3!
Halo Infinite Update – April 2022
Hello Everyone,
With Season 2 locked and loaded for May 3, we want to share a roadmap of what we’re planning to deliver during Season 2 and for the rest of the year.
More than anything else, we want this roadmap to be accurate and reliable. Some items and dates are certain, and these are clearly listed. Others are marked as “targets” or “goals” and they will become more certain over time. The roadmap’s timeframe will also expand as we announce longer-term initiatives. In other words, this roadmap is an evolving document, and we’ll let you know when we make changes to it.
With all that in mind, here’s the Halo Infinite roadmap for 2022:
Addressing issues negatively impacting player experience
Completing Season 2 and delivering it as promised on May 3
Continuing work on Campaign Co-op, Forge, and Season 3
…With a “priority zero” of team health and getting ourselves into a sustainable development rhythm so that we can deliver great experiences to all of you while maintaining a healthy work/life balance.
We know we need to deliver more content and more features more quickly. Staying true to priority zero means that sometimes we need to slow down in order to stay healthy and move faster later. But we’re also aggressively looking at ways to accelerate.
For example, we want to get the Forge toolset into your hands sooner rather than later so that awesome community maps and modes can more rapidly make their way into the game. To make this happen, we’re targeting a Forge open beta later in Season 2. We’ve successfully had Forge in private flighting with a limited audience for some time, so we’ve decided to forgo a large-scale formal flighting program and go right to open beta. With this approach, we can get the core Forge tools out to everyone quicker while also remaining focused on our core priority of continuing to improve foundational aspects of Halo Infinite. Forge will persist from the open beta onwards, evolving and growing over time.
As we continue to improve and ramp up, please understand that all of us at 343 are fully committed to making Halo Infinite the best Halo experience ever. Indeed, the primary reason that we’re extending Season 2 is to give us time before shipping another Season to fully address “quality of life” improvements based on learnings from Season 1 as well as other data and feedback we’ve collected.
Quality of life (QoL) is shorthand for bug-fixes, new features and/or content to address issues negatively impacting player experience. We’ll be delivering QoL improvements as part of Season releases and as separate updates during Seasons.
Our player-facing term for QoL updates that land during Seasons is “Drop Pods.” And much like their ODST namesakes, these release vehicles are meant to drop in hot, just as soon as they’re ready. Our target is one Drop Pod every month, and you can expect Drop Pods to vary in scope and size. We’ll have more to share about what’s going into Season 2’s Drop Pods as soon as possible after Season 2 launch.
Speaking of which, Season 2 launch is now less than two weeks away, on May 3! If you haven’t already seen the previews for Season 2’s new maps and new modes, please have a look. During these preview videos, you’ll spy some of Season 2’s new armor customization options. And here are a few extra combinations to whet your appetite:
We’ll have a lot more to share about Season 2 including a deep dive into its Battle Pass rewards, events—including brand new “multiplayer narrative events” that place your personal Spartan in the center of an evolving Seasonal storyline—game modes, and much more during a community livestream scheduled for next Wednesday, April 27, at 1:00 PM PST. We’ll also be discussing the roadmap in more detail during this livestream.
In summary: we are committed to delivering more content faster; we will accelerate while prioritizing team health; you can expect QoL improvements during Seasons via Drop Pods—and you can expect more regular roadmap updates as our plans snap into sharper focus.
On behalf of the entire Halo Infinite team, thank you for your passion and patience as we embark on the road ahead. We’re fired up to deliver what’s already on the roadmap as well as to deliver other content and experiences that we’re not ready to reveal just yet… but that we can’t wait for you to play.
Joseph Staten
Head of Creative, Halo Infinite
Fracture: Tenrai Returns for the Final Week
Jump into the action-packed Fiesta event playlist and complete event-specific challenges to unlock exclusive cosmetic rewards to outfit your Samurai-themed Yoroi armor core!
Separate from the Battle Pass, the Event Pass is 100% free and offers players themed, limited time rewards while the event is live. This is the sixth and final week of Fracture: Tenrai, so get ready to finish the fight with your event challenges and complete your Event Pass this week.
Keep an eye out for additional featured Tenrai customization items in the Shop during the event!
SEASON 1 OUTCOMES REPORT – LIVE
Last week we put out our Season 1 Outcomes report, to be transparent about the feedback we’ve received since launch and provide the team’s responses to emerging themes in the community. It covered the input we’ve received on areas such as Accessibility, Audio, Multiplayer, PC, Sandbox, and UXUI in a large post here on Halo Waypoint.
This week, we’re doing another Outcomes report (almost like an Outcomes pt. 2) that’s focused on our Live Team’s responsibilities. In it, we’ll cover feedback on Halo Infinite’s Customization, Shop, Battle Pass, Progression, Challenges, Ultimate Rewards, Events, Theater, Observer Mode, and more.
You will definitely see similarities in key feedback themes from the tech previews that carry over into Season 1. In the months leading up to release, the team was fully focused on launching Halo Infinite with very little room to begin work on the majority of these areas (many of which are quite significant in scope). In some cases, work on these common themes has been happening already while in others, new insights and data gleamed from Season 1 has helped to further refine scope and priority for the team to address moving forward.
To set expectations, please keep in mind that this is not meant to cover all the upcoming work we have planned for Halo Infinite – nor does it have specific timelines for every item. It will, however, cover many of the common feedback areas that you’ve seen raised and discussed online with a focus on what’s landing in Season 2. We’ll have more to share around the specific timing of features and content in the future. As Joseph noted last month, the team is also actively working towards shipping fixes, features, and updates in more agile ways during our seasons.
TL;DR
We recommend reading the full blog below as well as last week’s larger Season 1 Outcomes report to get the full picture, but here’s a quick look at some of the Live Team’s updates that will be coming into effect when Season 2 launches on May 3.
Shop
Bundles will have more consistent value across different offerings
Battle Pass & Progression
Season 2’s free track will have more customization content than Season 1’s
Players can earn 1000 CR in the S2 Premium Battle Pass
Weekly Challenges will see continued improvements
Ultimate Rewards will be higher value cosmetics such as visors, coatings, and stances, and no longer have emblems or backdrops, throughout the course of the season
Theater & Observer
Theater & Observer will have updates to address overall stability, issues caused by viewing multiple films in a row, and problems that arise when observing multiple matches in a row
That’s just a taste of what the team has been working on though. To see what else we have in store for mid-Season 2 and beyond, keep reading over on Halo Waypoint!
Patch Notes – April 5, 2022
Today, April 5, 2022, a new patch has been released for Halo Infinite addressing a variety of technical issues that players have been reporting to us on the Halo Support site. For the full details, please be sure to head over to our Halo Support site at aka.ms/HaloInfiniteUpdate to read the latest notes.
As well, if you encounter any technical issues, you can head to the Halo Support site and submit a ticket relating to any in-game issues that you do encounter.
Season 1 Outcomes Report
Since the launch of Halo Infinite, we’ve been paying close attention to community feedback, addressing what we can in a timely manner, communicating what we’re working on with “Closer Look” blogs, and prioritizing future content and features internally based on that player input.
Similar to what we did with our Outcomes reports during Halo Infinite’s Technical Previews, which shared learnings from each flight, we wanted to be transparent about the feedback we’ve received so far and provide the team’s responses to emerging themes in the community.
You will definitely see similarities in key feedback themes from the tech previews that carry over into Season 1. In the months leading up to release, the team was fully focused on launching Halo Infinite with very little room to begin work on the majority of these areas (many of which are quite significant in scope). In some cases, work on these common themes has been happening already while in others, new insights and data gleamed from Season 1 has helped to further refine scope and priority for the team to address moving forward.
During last year’s pre-release flights, we highlighted both the positively received areas and the key feedback areas. Since this Outcomes report covers almost the entirety of the Halo Infinite’s multiplayer experience, and not the limited scope of a flight, we’ll only be drilling into what’s most important – the feedback]. We gather this feedback and data via surveys sent to Halo Insiders, telemetry on in-game player behavior, and thoughts shared on , Twitter, reddit, YouTube videos, Twitch streams, and more.
To set expectations, please keep in mind that this is not meant to cover all the upcoming work we have planned for Halo Infinite – nor does it have specific timelines for every item. It will, however, cover many of the common feedback areas that you’ve seen raised and discussed online with a focus on what’s landing in Season 2. We’ll have more to share around the specific timing of features and content in the future. As Joseph noted earlier this month, the team is also actively working towards shipping fixes, features, and updates in more agile ways during our seasons.
TL;DR
We recommend reading the full blog below to get all the details and context, but here’s a quick look at some of the updates coming when Season 2 launches on May 3.
This is by no means everything, and you can find additional insights from the team in each of their sections below, but we wanted to list some outcomes we think you’d like to see up front that are already locked and loaded for next month as work continues in numerous other areas.
Audio
Halo Infinite - Fracture: Tenrai Event - Week 5
Fracture: Tenrai returns for its fifth week!
[previewyoutube="N7kz4RKE6OU;full"] Jump back into the Fiesta event playlist from March 29 to April 5 to unlock free and exclusive cosmetic rewards. The time has come to finish the fight in outfitting your Yoroi Spartan armor core!
May your eyes be sharp, and your blade sharper.
Patch Notes - Mar. 14, 2022
Today, March 14, 2022, a new patch has been released for Halo Infinite addressing a variety of technical issues that players have been reporting to us on the Halo Support site. For the full details, please be sure to head over to our Halo Support site at aka.ms/HaloInfiniteUpdate to read the latest notes.
As well, if you encounter any technical issues, you can head to the Halo Support site and submit a ticket relating to any in-game issues that you do encounter.
TACTICAL OPS EVENT
Many of you are well on your way to (or have finished) outfitting your Yoroi samurai core. You’ve been remembering Reach through the Season 1 Battle Pass; you answered the call when Winter Contingency was declared over the holidays and carried your team to victory during the synthwave Cyber Showdown...
But now, the time has come to listen to a man considered so wise that the Spartans named a whole academy after him.
“Get Tactical, Marines!”
The Tactical Ops event has been deployed, which means it’s time to grab your friends and jump into the Tactical Slayer event playlist for two weeks of headshot-tacular goodness! Your mission begins March 8 and concludes March 22 at 10am PT, so let’s get you a quick briefing.
Many of you know the drill by now, but for all you greenhorns out there, listen up! We’re hot droppin’ you into an event where your speed and precision is the key to victory. You’ll be experiencing some classic Tactical Slayer gameplay (BRs, no radar, no shields, no grenades), but we’ve got a few extra surprise mode variants to mix things up a bit.
Tactical Slayer
Tactical Slayer Commandos
Tactical Slayer Sidekicks
Tactical Slayer Stalker Rifles
Tactical Slayer Manglers
In week one, your Tactical Slayer experience will feature the BR, Mangler, and Sidekick variants; in week two, Commando and Stalker Rifles will be added to the playlist lineup.
Of course, it’s not just about the modes, it’s about the glory – the recognition of your grade-A badassery that unlocks unique tactical-themed rewards for this operation. And, boy, do we have a treat for you...
Complete event challenges and unlock up to ten unique cosmetics for your Spartan, including the Mark V ZETA helmet for your Mark VII core. This new take on a beloved classic helmet is not to be missed, and it comes with a variety of other tactical gear – check it out in the image below. Additional event-themed items will be available in the Store.
Now what’re you waiting for, soldier? You know the mission. Get onto the battlefield, keep your eyes downrange, fingers on your triggers, and show the enemy the precise meaning of ‘regret.’
Bip, bap, bam!
Halo Infinite Update – March 2022
Hey Everyone,
I’m here to answer two questions that we know are top of mind for the Halo community: “What is the Halo Infinite team working on right now?” and “When can we expect new content and features?” I’ll start with brief answers, and then get into more detail, including sharing some new info on what’s coming with Season 2.
This is the focus of the Halo Infinite team, in priority order:
1 - Addressing issues negatively impacting the player experience. 2 - Completing Season 2 and delivering it as promised on May 3rd. 3 - Continuing work on Campaign Co-Op, Forge, and Season 3.
We also have a “Priority Zero,” that undergirds everything we do, namely: team health, with an emphasis on getting ourselves into a sustainable development rhythm so that we can deliver great experiences to all of you while keeping a healthy work/life balance.
Priority Zero means that we sometimes need to move slower so that we can move faster later. Frankly, these last few months have been slower than we expected, and we sincerely thank you for your patience as we stay true to the priorities, above.
Now, let’s dive into specifics.
PRIORITY #1: ADDRESSING CRITICAL ISSUES
Since the launch of Halo Infinite, we have been carefully tracking and analyzing all critical issues negatively impacting players’ experience with the game and supporting services. The internal name we have for this process is the “Hotlist.” Every week, we refresh the Hotlist with new insights and review issue prioritization and progress toward fixes. The Hotlist serves as a vital internal planning tool for our monthly development sprints as well as the Hotfixes, Content Updates, and Seasons we deliver to you.
Some of the issues on the Hotlist are gaps in the Halo Infinite experience that we only fully understood close to launch and were unable to address at an acceptable quality bar before ship. An example of this kind of “known” Hotlist issue is “Spartan Career” aka score-based player progression. Examples of “unknown” issues at launch were vulnerabilities in our anti-cheat system and problems with BTB matchmaking that we didn’t realize existed until we launched the game at scale.
Thus far, we have prioritized acute, unknown-before-ship issues that have a widespread negative impact on the shipped experience. Some items have been addressed and cleared from the Hotlist (e.g., BTB matchmaking), some have had partial improvements but need more work (e.g., anti-cheat), and others are in active development but not-yet-released (e.g., Spartan Career, Campaign Co-Op, and Forge). We are working on a public facing version of the Hotlist, similar to what the studio did during the Master Chief Collection updates, so that all of you will have a clear and constant window into the status of Hotlist issues as we work to address them.
In the meantime, the Halo Support website remains your best place for information and help, if you're experiencing issues with the game.
PRIORITY #2: SHIPPING SEASON 2
If you check your Season 1 Battle Pass, you will see that that Season 1 ends on May 2nd, and that’s because Season 2 will launch May 3rd. I’m very excited to announce the official name and theme for Season 2, which is… “Lone Wolves.”
By “theme” we mean a core idea that guides the creation of much, but not all, of a Season’s content. Lone Wolf Spartans are hunters. Trackers. They’re resourceful improvisers, operating deep in enemy territory without resupply or support. They’re fierce, rugged, and prefer to work alone—but they’re still loyal to the Spartan pack. Here’s an early peek at two of these Lone Wolves:
Concept for two of Halo Infinite's "Lone Wolves", coming in Season 2
That’s Spartan Sigrid Eklund on the left, and Spartan Hieu Dinh on the right. You’ll learn more about them (and spend more time with Spartan Commander Laurette Agryna) as you dive into Season 2’s story—a mix of cinematics, story-themed Events, Battle Pass items and more that embody the Lone Wolves theme.
But like I said, not all Season content is directly linked to the theme, and a prime example of this is our free Fracture armor core for Season 2. Here’s a concept of that core, and we can’t wait to show you all the customization options for it—and for the free Lone Wolves armor core.
Concept painting of the new free Fracture armor coming in Season 2
During Season 2, we will also be shipping playlist updates, balance changes, new modes, and maps, specifically, one Arena map named “Catalyst” and one BTB map named “Breaker.” The new modes include "Last Spartan Standing", a free-for-all elimination mode, as well as another new mode named "Land Grab," plus the return of an updated, all-time favorite mode, "King of the Hill."
Concept painting for "Breaker", a new Big Team Battle map coming to Halo Infinite in Season 2
A concept "paint over" of "Catalyst", a new Arena map coming to Halo Infinite in Season 2
We will have a lot more to share about the Season 2 maps, modes, customization options, and narrative content in April, as our marketing and promotional campaign kicks into high gear.
PRIORITY #3: WORK ON CAMPAIGN CO-OP, FORGE, AND SEASON 3
We’re making great progress on Campaign network co-op. And to be clear, this work has been occurring in parallel to Season 2 work, as has our work on Forge.
But the reality is that it’s going to take more time to land a high-quality, full-featured 4-player network co-op experience in the massive, wide-open world of Halo Infinite. We’re also committed to a great 2-player split-screen co-op experience on all Xbox consoles, from the original Xbox One through Xbox One Series X—and the non-linear, wide-open sections of the Campaign present some big challenges for split-screen that have taken us more time to solve.
All this means that we will not be able to ship Campaign network co-op on May 3rd, at the start of Season 2. But we are still aiming to deliver Campaign network co-op later in Season 2, and we will share a release date for that and for split-screen co-op as soon as we can.
We are also making great progress on Forge. Indeed, we are already flighting Forge to a small group of community creators and working closely with them to ensure that all of you have a terrific experience creating, sharing, browsing, and playing Forge content. In the near term, we will continue to privately flight Forge as we develop it while also planning for public flight(s) later this year. We still have the goal of shipping Forge with Season 3.
Speaking of Season 3, while the majority of the team is tackling Hotlist items, shipping Season 2, and working on Campaign co-op and Forge, there are also many folks already hard at work on Season 3. We’ll be sharing additional details and specifics on all of these development efforts at a later date.
Importantly, we’re not just planning to address Hotlist items at the start of Seasons. Similar to Update 1.1.1 that launched a little more than a week ago, we intend to ship fixes, features, and content in more agile ways, during our Seasons.
And speaking of great Seasonal content, our next Season 1 event, “Tactical Ops,” starts next week, so get set for variants on the Tactical Slayer mode along with new, Mark VII core-focused rewards to earn!
On behalf of the entire team, thank you again for your patience and your passion. Please keep the feedback coming, know that we are listening and learning, and that we are working hard to deliver more Halo Infinite content that we hope you love to play.
