Six years, six long years... you've waited, you've wondered, and now the time has come.
Halo Infinite releases today!
Before we dive into the details of this momentous day, let's throw it over to Bonnie Ross and Joseph Staten who have a few words they want to share with our studio and community.
Halo is about Heroism, Wonder, Hope, and Community. As we release Halo Infinite and prepare to step into the heroic boots of Master Chief, I want to reflect on a different kind of hero.
Every game has a story, a journey, and a team that goes on that journey together. Our journey was a bit longer and more circuitous than intended, but the 343 team delivered an exceptional experience that directly reflects their passion for Halo - and I couldn’t be more proud of what they’ve achieved.
With Halo Infinite we ventured into new territories with PC and free-to-play. We had a vision of creating the most expansive, epic sci-fi campaign to date, one that would give players more agency to experience Halo the way they want to. Primary to all those goals was to craft a “spiritual reboot,” in order to pay homage to what is core and essential to Halo while still evolving for a new generation. Thank you to the fans who pushed us, gave constructive feedback, and kept us true to the spirt of Halo throughout this journey.
Thank you to the 343 team who raised concerns, saying we weren’t ready for 2020 and then spent the last year polishing and refining what I think is the best feeling Halo game ever. You are the heroes - you overcame adversity to deliver something truly special in Halo Infinite and what an honor it is to serve alongside you. I can’t wait to see what the heroes of 343 and our community accomplish together as we begin the next era of Halo.
Today, all of us on the Halo Infinite team are overjoyed to welcome you into the expansive and mysterious world of Zeta Halo. If this is your first time stepping into the boots of Spartan-117, Master Chief, let me tell you: you’re in for a treat. If you’ve been with us for previous Halo campaigns, we hope that this one is your favorite adventure yet.
We also recognize that this game is launching at an incredibly tough time. The COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly disrupted families and friendships. It has radically altered the way we work and collaborate as well as how we interact with each other on a fundamental human level. And honestly, some days, it’s been hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
While Halo has always been about combat - about stepping into the armor of a skillful sci-fi super-soldier with a powerful arsenal of weapons, vehicles, and abilities - Halo has also been filled with bright colors and epic vistas, with soaring music and humorous characters. And Halo has always celebrated heroism and hope.
Our sincerest wish is that this Master Chief story uplifts you. That it makes you smile and cheer. That it brings you closer to loved ones through the pure and simple joy of play. More than anything else, we hope Halo Infinite’s campaign makes you feel like a hero, who might be battered and bruised, but who always finds the courage to rise and fight and win.
Because that’s what it means to become Master Chief. And now, once again, his story is your story too.
When all hope is lost and humanity’s fate hangs in the balance, Master Chief is ready to confront the most ruthless foe he’s ever faced. Begin anew and step inside the armor of humanity’s greatest hero to experience an epic adventure and finally explore the scale of the Halo ring itself.
Jump in and play Halo’s most expansive campaign experience today on the Xbox One family of devices, Xbox Series S/X, Windows PC, and Steam!
Many of you have already jumped into the Beta of our Multiplayer experience, which launched last month on November 15th in celebration of Halo’s twentieth anniversary. Today, we look to the future of the franchise as Halo Infinite’s Campaign drops out of slipspace.
Our Campaign Overview previously gave some glimpses at what you’ll be doing when you become the Master Chief, stepping into his Mjolnir-armored boots, and make landfall on the mysterious Zeta Halo to lead the fight against the Banished. Today we’re going to dive a little deeper into some of the key features of the Campaign experience.
Welcome to Zeta Halo
Zeta Halo is the biggest campaign space ever created for a Halo game. Players will be given more choice than ever before to interact with this world, the sandbox, friends and foes (both returning and new), and more. While there is a ‘golden path’ that will lead you down the more traditional narrative road of the Master Chief’s story, the open world is a key part of what enables players to tell their own tales in the game.
Across Zeta Halo, you’ll find Forward Operating Bases (or ‘FOBs’) which you’ll have to reclaim from the occupying Banished forces. Once liberated, FOBs can be used to call in weapons and vehicles as you build up Valor points and establish a foothold across the many islands spanning the sundered area of the ring.
Valor points accrue as you complete various activities in the open world. For example, you might come across a Banished tower where a Grunt Propaganda Officer aims to demoralize the surviving UNSC forces. These towers represent a smaller reward pool as you will come across many of them in your travels, each rewarding Valor points for their destruction (along with evolving dialogue as you get closer to putting that Unggoy out of a job). Larger-scale activities, like Base Assaults, reward more Valor points that will ultimately enable you to call in more powerful weapons and vehicles, as well as stronger Marines.
“Base Assaults?” you ask? Across Zeta Halo, the Banished have set up fortifications that are just begging to be shut down. These industrial spaces are full of scrapped gear from the UNSC’s devastating defeat six months ago and are in the process of being consumed by the Banished’s war machine. Within these Bases are Marine prisoners to free, who will take up arms against their captors and follow you - the symbol of their renewed hope - into battle.
Bases are also one of the (many) places where Audio Logs can be found which tell a series of stories from a variety of perspectives, filling in the bigger picture of what has happened on Zeta Halo regarding both the present conflict and the ancient past.
You’ll also find Spartan Cores, which let you upgrade your Equipment. Yes, indeed, in the campaign you can upgrade your Equipment with new attributes and abilities. For example, the Grappleshot can be augmented with an electrical effect which stuns certain enemies when used on them. As you progress through the core campaign missions you will add the Drop Wall, Thruster, and Threat Sensor to your arsenal, which all have their own unique upgrades. Your energy shields can also be upgraded to become stronger, so keep an eye out for those Spartan Cores! Of course, the most daring Spartans may choose to forego these altogether on a Legendary run. Godspeed.
In the spaces between, you’ll find yourself pulled towards various points of interest. High Value Targets (‘HVTs’) offer uniquely curated ‘boss’ encounters which reward special weapon variants, and players who are eager to learn more about the mysterious backstory of this ring will definitely find themselves rewarded with things they come across in the open world...
Oh, and if you miss anything, you don’t have to worry about starting from scratch in a new playthrough. After the credits have rolled, you will be able to continue exploring the open world.
We don’t want to spoil all the surprises, this is just a taste of what awaits you - a harbinger of things to come - when you begin your great journey on Zeta Halo.
But Wait, There's More...
The sights of Zeta Halo are one thing, but how about the sounds? The iconic image of that great glittering band hanging in space goes hand-in-hand with a monk chant that sets a fire in your heart with the promise of an ancient, epic, mysterious adventure. And, well, you know our motto on that score: we deliver!
You can purchase the Halo Infinite soundtrack today on all major music platforms, separated into its Campaign (Gareth Coker, Curtis Schweitzer, Joel Corelitz) and Multiplayer (Alex Bhore and Eternal Time & Space) suites.
There's no better way to pass the time while Halo Infinite installs than tuning into the Spotify-exclusive podcast drama - Halo Infinite: Memory Agent.
Franchise newcomers and seasoned series veterans alike will find a lot to love in this exploration of who the Master Chief is from a very unique point of view.
A lone secret agent from the Office of Naval Intelligence is sent on a mission to relay critical intel to the Master Chief. There’s just one catch - every seven hours, her memory resets. Now she must make a perilous journey through closely monitored space, desperate to learn whatever she can about her own past as well as that of the Master Chief. Through the help of an AI companion and battlefield reports of others who have encountered the legendary hero, she pieces together just how important her task may be.
PC/Console Experience
Of course, it’s not just the Master Chief’s equipment that’s key to the Halo Infinite experience, but your own as well.
Halo Infinite is available across the entire suite of Xbox consoles, from the original Xbox One all the way up to Xbox Series S/X. For the first time, players can enjoy a fully native experience on PC with stunning 4K graphics and world-class cross-platform play, along with Cross-Save across all supported devices.
Xbox Series X and supported PCs deliver enhanced features, such as providing up to 120FPS, 4K Ultra HD, and significantly reduced load times, ushering in the next generation of gaming with a seamless gameplay experience.
On PC, Halo Infinite supports advanced graphics settings, ultrawide/super ultrawide support, and triple-key binds, to features like dynamic scaling and variable framerates. With the most extensive suite of customization options, Halo Infinite is the best Halo experience on PC to date.
PC Recommended Specs
For the optimal PC experience please ensure your machine at least meets the minimum requirements noted above.
For more insights into the work 343 Industries has done to deliver a native, best-in-class PC experience, check out our PC Overview.
Multiplayer
Halo’s celebrated multiplayer returns, reimagined and free to play! Seasonal updates evolve the experience over time with unique events, new modes and maps, and community-focused content.
The Halo Infinite Multiplayer Beta launched on November 15th last month, Halo’s twentieth anniversary and we have already gained a plethora of valuable feedback from our community that will continue to drive the evolution of the game in the weeks, months, and years to come.
With the full launch comes a bunch of new rewards that players can earn for Multiplayer within the Campaign. Strewn around Zeta Halo are Spartan Armor Lockers which award Multiplayer Cosmetics for your Spartan.
Academy
Are you a newcomer to the Halo series? Have you been out of the loop for the last few years? Head over to the Academy to begin your Spartan journey under the steely gaze of Spartan Commander Agryna, who will guide you through this tutorial on Halo’s gameplay fundamentals.
Meet your personal AI and get to grips with Halo’s controls, movement, and sandbox. Try out a variety of Weapon Drills and test your burgeoning skills against a team of bots. Take control of Training Mode’s settings to curate your Academy experience and get familiar with Halo Infinite’s maps before venturing into the online battlefield!
Whether you’re a high-level pro warming up before hopping into Ranked matchmaking, a first-time player looking to learn the ropes, a lore fan pursuing every detail of what’s going on in the wider Halo universe – the Academy welcomes you all.
You can find Known Issues, installation instructions, new player guides, and everything else Halo Infinite related by visiting aka.ms/HaloInfiniteUpdate.
Be sure to follow @HaloSupport on Twitter for important updates.
If you encounter a bug or issue that isn’t called out on the Known Issues list, please file a support ticket which is hugely helpful for the team to track and investigate.
Your Journey Begins
Lastly, on behalf of all of us at 343 Industries and our partners, we want to say thank you. Thank you to all our players who have come with us on this journey, whether you’ve been with us from the beginning or if Halo Infinite is your first foray into the Halo universe, this is a monumental moment for all of us and we couldn’t be more grateful for your passion and feedback which continues to help us make this the best game experience it can be.
To keep up to date on all Halo news, check out our official social channels (Twitter, Instagram, Facebook) and join the community over on Waypoint and Discord.
The first free event for Halo Infinite, Fracture: Tenrai, begins today!
Featuring the samurai-inspired Yoroi armor core and other themed rewards, the free 30-tier Event Pass is available now alongside a limited time playlist and event-specific challenges. This is the first of six total appearances Fracture: Tenrai will make over the course of Season 1, with its next appearance coming in January 2022.
But before we get into the nitty-gritty of things, we wanted to make sure to answer some of your bigger questions. For those looking for a bit more background on how Fracture events sit in the larger Halo universe, we’ve reached out to our Franchise Team to provide a bit more context.
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Parallel Worlds
One of the things that you might be immediately curious about is how the items seen in the various Fractures relate to the core canon of the Halo universe. Fractures are divergent Halo universes or timelines, but for the most part, they all orbit the same themes. Each particular Fracture can share a variety of elements in common with core canon, but recast in a different light or interpreted in a new way. It was important to maintain key touchstones so that they all remain authentic to Halo, whether the Fracture happened to have dragons or was simply a twisted timeline that saw a markedly different outcome.
The first Fracture for Halo Infinite is called “Tenrai,” where blessed suits of YOROI are forged using ancient karakuri arts from the raw energies of the land—each hand-crafted for eager young samurai of unimpeachable honor to defend their clan and lands from the barbaric Covenant invaders. This is an example of the world-building “seed” used to inspire a particular Fracture theme — a small overview that gives a flavor of what’s possible in this alternate reality, with further details sprinkled throughout the in-game lore strings that accompany various customization items associated with their respective theme.
The Fracture: Tenrai – Fiesta playlist will give players plenty of ways to unleash chaos.
The Tenrai Fracture
Embroiled in bitter clan wars for generations, the warlords of the Tenrai Fracture now stand united against the invading Covenant barbarians. Forced into an alliance against the relentless Covenant and their colossal glass dragons, the 343 clans of the Imperial Court have shared once-secret knowledge to create new armor and weapons forged by mortal hands but blessed with divine force. It is through these new tools of war, unimpeachable honor, and peerless skill that the clans will fight and win against the invaders and reclaim the seven provinces lost to their depredations.
Way of the Samurai
The Fracture: Tenrai Event Pass is 100% free and offers players themed, limited time rewards for playing multiplayer matches and completing event challenges while the event is live. During event weeks it will appear in your season progress menu between the battle pass and challenges. The Fracture: Tenrai Event Pass will be available for one week from Tuesday, November 23 at 10am PST until Monday, November 30 at 10am PT. However, unlike other events , Fracture: Tenrai will appear a total of six times throughout the season, so you’ll have plenty of opportunities to complete all 30 reward tiers of the Event Pass.
Reward tiers are unlocked by completing Event Challenges.
Progressing in the Event Pass & Playlists
Progress on the Event Pass is made by completing Event Challenges which you can find on your challenges page marked with a red banner. Completing an Event Challenge will unlock an event pass tier reward, and by completing each event challenge, you will progress through the event pass. Once you have completed all available Event Challenges in a given week you will have progressed as far as possible until the next Fracture: Tenrai event.
These challenges center around the event playlist Fracture: Tenrai - Fiesta: the chaotic and fun spawn-with-random-weapons Arena experience. You can expect to play on a full suite of Arena maps including Aquarius, Recharge, Streets, and Behemoth to name just a few.
Event Pass Unlocks
As mentioned, the Event Pass is entirely free and rewards player participation in Fracture: Tenrai over the course of multiple recurrences, meaning that your progress on this pass will carry over week-to-week.
On top of the Legendary Yoroi Armor core, players can expect to unlock the following as part of the Event Pass:
Spring Blossom Filter – Legendary Helmet Attachment
Swordsman’s Belt – Legendary Utility for Yoroi Armor Core
A Gift for a Warrior
Players can find this in the Backdrop section of their Spartan ID.
To celebrate the start of this event we are also going to be gifting all players who login the legendary Fracture backdrop which players can equip as part of their Spartan ID. Jump in anytime during this first week of Fracture: Tenrai to receive it.
In addition to the Free Event pass, players can earn additional Samurai-themed items by completing this week’s Ultimate Challenge.
The Halo Infinite shop will also feature limited time, premium Samurai-themed cosmetics.
Additional Flourishes
The Fracture: Event touches and inspires more than just the Event Pass, you will also see its influence across the weekly Ultimate Challenge and in-game store offerings.
Ultimate Reward
Event Challenges will not replace all standard weekly challenges, and you can still progress towards the weekly Ultimate Reward. Willow Tea, an armor coating for the Mark VII armor core, will be the Ultimate Reward for the week of November 23 and is just as lovely (and samurai-inspired) as the items you can find in the Event Pass.
In-Game Shop
While both the Event Pass and weekly challenges offer cosmetics, for those looking for even more options the in-game shop is the place to go. The shopfront will also be themed for Fracture: Tenrai, and you can expect to find additional offerings there throughout the week. Whether these are bundles with unique coatings and accessories, or additional emblems, there will be plenty to consider. The store will receive new batches of content every time Fracture: Tenrai comes back over the course of Season 1.
Just the Beginning
This first week of Fracture: Tenrai will close on Tuesday, November 30 as part of our regular Tuesday rotation, but it will return in early January 2022. So, you will have plenty more chances to get the Yoroi armor core and progress that free Event Pass with incredible samurai-inspired cosmetics.
The ultimate goal of Fractures is to be a springboard for new (and fun!) experiences, both in-game and out. Each one is an experiment in storytelling and art style, which we hope inspires our fans and gets them thinking about their own Halo Fractures!
Events are a key component of the multiplayer experience, and this Fracture is just one part of that larger whole; stay tuned for information on future events and content coming soon to Halo Infinite. And, to keep up to date on all Halo news, check out our official social channels (Twitter, Instagram, Facebook) or join the community over on Waypoint and Discord.
Patch Notes - Nov. 19, 2021
Resolved Issues
An update for the Halo Infinite multiplayer beta was released on November 19th, 2021, at 8 AM PT. The following improvements and fixes were included in this update:
Halo Credits purchased outside of Steam, for example in the Microsoft Store, are now reflected when playing Halo Infinite on Steam
Oddball rounds now have a 5-minute timer in matchmaking
Stability improvements in Big Team Battle matches
Various service-related improvements
Expected download size for the update is 130mb here on Steam.
This update must be installed to continue playing online. For instructions on how to download this update, please refer to How to update Halo Infinite.
Challenge and Progression Changes
The team made several Challenge and progression updates on November 18th, 2021. Players now earn XP by completing matchmade games. The "Play 1 Game" Daily Challenge is worth 50 XP each match. The pool of available Challenges was also updated to better serve players of all skill levels.
XP Boosts were increased to 1 hour. The in-game tooltip may continue to show 30 minutes, but the Boost's timer will start from 60 minutes once activated.
The team also resolved issues with the following Challenges that meant progress was not tracked:
Heat of the Moment
It Bears Repeating
Jorge Would Be Proud
Ultra Tech
Login Reward
All players who sign-in between November 23-30 will receive this week's Ultimate Reward: The Sigil Mark VII Visor.
Welcome to the Halo Infinite MP Beta
On behalf of the entire Halo Infinite team, and in celebration of Halo’s 20th anniversary, I am very happy to announce that your Spartan journey begins… today! Sincerest thanks to the entire Halo community for your support, passion, and feedback. This day belongs to all of you. Whether you’ve been part of the community from the beginning or are joining with us today, welcome! Please read on or jump directly to the Halo Infinite multiplayer beta download link HERE.
Why is this release a beta? Our previous Multiplayer Technical Previews went a long way to battle-testing our services and infrastructure. But as we prepare for a significant increase in the number of players jumping into Halo Infinite on launch day, December 8th, we want to ensure all our systems are good-to-go. While you may experience some bumps and bugs during this beta period, it does mark the official start of Halo Infinite Season 1, with all day-one maps and modes enabled as well as the full Season 1 Battle Pass. This means all the Battle Pass and customization items you earn or purchase during the beta will stay with you after December 8th.
When you start playing the beta, you will notice in the Battle Pass UI that Season 1 will last from now until May 2022, which is a change from our original goal of shipping a new Season every three months. We made the decision to extend Season 1 to give ourselves more time to ensure Season 2 meets our high quality bar and so we can finish development for Season 2 in a healthy and sustainable way for our team.
Importantly, with the Season 1 extension, we aren’t just stretching-out our original Season 1 plan. Indeed, we took this opportunity to add additional events, customization items and other content to Season 1 to make it an even richer experience from start to finish. For example, starting today and through the first week, you can log-in to Halo Infinite to unlock a free collection of 20th anniversary themed cosmetics. Following this free reward period, the start of our Season 1 opening event, “Fracture: Tenrai”, will kick off on November 23. This will be your first of multiple opportunities to earn Season 1’s samurai-themed armor pieces and other customization items.
In January, after all of you have had a chance to play Halo Infinite’s expansive and adventure-filled campaign starting December 8th, and all of us on the Halo Infinite team have had an opportunity to recharge our energy shields over the holidays, we will have more details to share about the Season 1 event calendar as well as our Season 2, campaign co-op, and Forge release plans.
Again, sincere thanks to all of you in the Halo community for joining with us to celebrate this 20th anniversary milestone. We are incredibly excited to have reached this first step on our Halo Infinite adventure, and we can’t wait to share more about where your Spartan journey goes from here.
– Joseph Staten, Head of Creative, Halo Infinite
Begin Your Spartan Journey
Halo Infinite’s free to play multiplayer beta is available on Xbox and PC beginning today! Jump in to experience the next era of Halo multiplayer including the all-new Academy, Arena, Big Team Battle, and the complete Season 1 Battle Pass. Your progress, cosmetics, unlocks, and multiplayer stats will all carry-over when Halo Infinite officially launches on December 8.
New recruits and returning veterans alike will start their journey via the Academy under the watchful eye of Spartan Commander Agryna. After you select your own personal AI and complete a basic tutorial, suit up and take advantage of the Academy to prepare for battle before venturing into matchmaking.
Halo Infinite personal AI in the Academy
Get acquainted with your Spartan’s arsenal via Weapon Drills and square off against Bot targets to hone your skills. Do you have what it takes to achieve a 3-star rating and outscore your friends? Share your results on Twitter and show us what you’ve got!
Training Mode is a great way to get familiar with each of Halo Infinite’s multiplayer maps while putting your weapon and equipment skills to the test in a highly customizable experience with Bots.
Season 1: Heroes of Reach
Halo Infinite’s first season, “Heroes of Reach”, begins today and runs through May 2, 2022. Infinite’s Battle Pass offers free and premium tracks accounting for more than 100 unlockable items. If you purchase a Halo Infinite Premium Battle Pass, it will not expire – so if you jump in later in the season or can’t complete it by May, no worries – you’ll be able to progress on your own terms. Start playing today and begin building your own personal Spartan by unlocking additional armor pieces, weapon charms, visors, coatings, emblems, Armor FX, and more!
Halo Infinite S1 Heroes of Reach battle pass example
And, keeping true to this season’s theme, you’ll be able to unlock armor kits for each of the original heroes from Halo: Reach. Which Noble Team member will you rep online?
Emile armor kit from Halo Infinite S1
Face the Challenge
Complete daily and weekly challenges to earn XP and unlock free and premium content throughout the Battle Pass. Challenge Swaps can be used to replace a challenge and you can apply XP Boosts to temporarily earn double experience points for each challenge you complete.
Once you complete all of your weekly challenges, a special Ultimate Reward challenge will unlock and completing this will earn you a free cosmetic reward each and every week. Weekly challenges will reset every Tuesday so don’t miss out on these special, free rewards! To read more about challenges and overall Spartan progression, check out the September 2021 edition of our Inside Infinite blog series.
Halo Infinite Ultimate Reward visor
Halo Waypoint
Keep track of your challenge progress, manage your Spartan customization, monitor your multiplayer stats and more here on the new Halo Waypoint website and via the mobile app (available on iOS and Android). Learn more about the new Waypoint experience HERE.
Matchmaking Overview
Once you’re ready to heed the call of battle, gear up and jump into matchmaking to test your mettle against players around the world in the 4v4 Arena (Bot, Social, and Ranked) or 12v12 Big Team Battle offerings. If matchmaking isn’t your cup of tea, grab some friends and jump into custom games (online or via local splitscreen) with maps and settings of your choice.
All for One
Halo Infinite is the first title in the series to launch simultaneously on Xbox and PC and features support for cross-generation, cross-platform, and cross-input play. No matter which platform you’re on – or whether you use a controller or mouse and keyboard – there are no barriers to playing together. And, with cross-progression support, you can move between console or PC and seamlessly retain your progression, stats, and more.
First person screenshot from Blueprint multiplayer map
Playlists
As part of Halo Infinite’s multiplayer beta launch today, we’re excited to debut our matchmaking playlist lineup. In this section you can read up on the playlists, their settings, and the map and mode pairings you’ll find within each one.
Our approach to Halo Infinite’s launch playlists was fairly simple – start with a focused offering to ensure healthy matchmaking and be prepared to adjust as needed. It is truly a live game, so we will be monitoring all playlists, including event playlists, to see which ones are performing well and which ones aren’t. Using that data, combined with player feedback, we will be able to identify opportunities to add or remove playlists (or even certain map and mode pairings within a playlist), to ensure a quality experience when playing Halo Infinite matchmaking. Launch is just the beginning – Halo Infinite’s online multiplayer experience will grow and evolve over time!
Without further ado, here are the launch playlists for multiplayer:
Big Team Battle
Featuring 12v12 combat on large maps with a wide array of vehicles, Halo Infinite brings the beloved Big Team Battle experience to new heights.
Capture the Flag on Fragmentation, Highpower, Deadlock
Slayer on Fragmentation, Highpower, Deadlock
Total Control on Fragmentation, Highpower, Deadlock
Stockpile on Fragmentation, Highpower, Deadlock
Image from a multiplayer game picturing a large cannon, turret, and a warthog
Quick Play
Enter the Arena with an MA40 AR & Mk50 Sidekick and play 4v4 matches for fun.
Capture The Flag on Aquarius, Bazaar, Behemoth
One Flag CTF on Launch Site
Oddball on Live Fire, Recharge, Streets
Slayer on Aquarius, Bazaar, Behemoth, Launch Site, Live Fire, Recharge, Streets
Strongholds on Live Fire, Recharge, Streets
Bot Bootcamp
Hone your skills and practice new strategies in 4v4 matches that pit players against Bots.
Capture The Flag on Aquarius, Bazaar, Behemoth
Oddball on Live Fire, Recharge, Streets
Slayer on Aquarius, Bazaar, Behemoth, Live Fire, Recharge, Streets
Strongholds on Live Fire, Recharge, Streets
Event Playlists
Throughout Halo Infinite’s seasons, there will be events that feature special playlists, challenges, and free rewards. In general, an event will be available from one to multiple weeks, offering plenty of time to enjoy the playlist, go after challenges, and unlock its rewards.
Fracture: Tenrai, which will be Halo Infinite’s first event, kicks off next week on November 23. To learn more about it, be sure to read its section further below.
Ranked Arena (Controller | Solo/Duo) (KBM | Solo/Duo) (Cross-input | Up to full parties)
Start with a BR75 (Battle Rifle), Combat Sensor disabled, friendly fire on, grenade hitmarkers disabled, and static item spawns in these competitive 4v4 settings.
Capture The Flag on Aquarius, Bazaar, Behemoth
Oddball on Live Fire, Recharge, Streets
Slayer on Aquarius, Bazaar, Live Fire, Recharge, Streets
Strongholds on Live Fire, Recharge, Streets
Halo Infinite S1 ranked emblems and nameplates
Within Ranked Arena, players may select between Controller Solo/Duo Queue, KBM Solo/Duo Queue, and cross-input with any party size. We believe that the Solo/Duo queue options will provide a home for competitive players who want to face off against opponents with nearly the exact same team composition as them. On the other hand, the cross-input option with no party size limit provides an opportunity for players to see how they stack up against people with different input types or full squads of similar skill.
We’ll share a deeper dive into the inner-workings of Halo Infinite’s ranking system soon. In the meantime, jump in, get your placement matches in, and start climbing that ladder!
On this day 20 years ago, Halo: Combat Evolved launched alongside the original Xbox and forever changed the gaming landscape. To celebrate this historic occasion, and as a special token of gratitude to Halo fans around the world, we’re excited to offer free commemorative rewards to everyone who plays this week. Simply log in any time by November 22 and you’ll automatically receive the following exclusive items in your in your cosmetic inventory:
Platinum Anniversary Coatings (Armor, AR, and Warthog)
I Love Bees Emblems
“Assembled” Emblems
Blue Team Weapon Charm
Heart Emblem Set
Halo 20th Anniversary rewards available in Halo Infinite
Fracture: Tenrai
In addition to the regular matchmaking playlist options noted above, Halo Infinite will feature special events at various times throughout the season. Events will often include a featured, special playlist and an event-specific Pass with unique rewards.
The first event, Fracture: Tenrai, is scheduled to begin on November 23 and will run for one week. This FREE event will include the Yoroi (Samurai) armor core and an Event Pass that can be progressed while the event is active. The Fracture: Tenrai event will return multiple times throughout the season, so you’ll have plenty of opportunities to earn and adorn your armor. Additionally, special Yoroi-specific premium customization offerings will be featured in the store during the event.
We’ll share more details about future Fracture: Tenrai dates and additional Season 1 events once the dust has settled from launch on December 8.
Artistic render of Halo Infinite "Yoroi" armor from Fracture: Tenrai event
Halo Support
With help from Halo Insiders, the team was able to learn a lot and make great strides to overall launch readiness but given the huge increase in scope with today’s beta launch, there could be some bumps on the road to launch on December 8. Please visit the Halo Support site to get more insights and valuable resources. You can find Known Issues, installation instructions, new player guides, and everything else Halo Infinite MP beta related by visiting aka.ms/HaloInfiniteUpdate. And, be sure to follow @HaloSupport on Twitter for important updates.
If you encounter a bug or issue that isn’t called out on the Known Issues list, please file a support ticket which is hugely helpful for the team to track and investigate.
PC Recommended Specs
For the optimal PC experience please ensure your machine at least meets the minimum requirements noted below. For more insights into the work 343 Industries has done to deliver a native, best-in-class PC experience, check out our PC Overview.
Halo Infinite PC hardware specs
Adventure Awaits
Master Chief faces the Banished and seeks to unravel the mysteries of Zeta Halo when the most expansive Halo campaign to date arrives on December 8 for Xbox, Windows PCs, and Steam. Multiplayer fans should take note that over the course of the campaign, you will unlock additional customization items for your personal Spartan.
Sweeping views of Zeta Halo from Halo Infinite Campaign
Thank You!
On behalf of the entire team at 343 Industries and all of our partners around the globe – thank you for your continued support! Your passion for Halo is a constant source of inspiration and we’re eager to start the next leg of our Halo Infinite journey together and continue evolving season after season in partnership with our players.
We’ll see you online, Spartans!
Additional Reading & Resources
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Check out the the Campaign, competitive gameplay, live-action marketing videos, and more on YouTube:
Welcome to our latest installment of Inside Infinite – our monthly blog series devoted to celebrating some of the tremendous work happening to bring Halo Infinite to life. So much has happened since we kicked this off back in December and we’re so grateful to have you with us on this journey. We’ve covered a lot of ground together over the past 9 months digging into Halo Infinite’s development and getting to know some of the talented people across the team. We’re super eager to be in the final stretch now, with our December 8 launch quickly approaching, but there are still stories to be told.
This month we’re excited to welcome members of the UXUI and Character Teams to share insights about their work on Halo Infinite. But, before we jump into that, if you haven’t yet seen the recently released Campaign Overview video, you should stop what you’re doing and give it a watch!
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If this is your first time joining us, be sure to check out our past blogs to learn even more about the work going into our most ambitious Halo game yet:
To kick things off, we’re joined by several folks on the Halo Infinite Character Team to talk about their approach and process to create some of the familiar and brand-new characters seen in the Campaign Overview video. Then, we’ll switch things up and hear from members of the UXUI Team to learn about their broad range of work and contributions to the game. Lastly, to wrap things up, we’ll get another quick rundown of Tales from the Trenches and welcome back Joseph Staten, Head of Creative, for some closing thoughts.
This month we really are pushing the limits of “how much blog is too much blog?” so, get comfy - we’ve got another heaping dose of behind-the-scenes info and beautiful visuals in store, so without further ado, let’s talk characters!
Character Study
Whether it’s our favorite super soldier, a menacing cloaked Elite, supportive Marines, or wise-cracking Grunts, the characters of Halo connect us to the stories, adventures, and gameplay we’ve come to know and love for nearly 20 years. This month we sat down with a few members of the Character Team at 343 Industries to learn more about their work, their approach, and how they are bringing familiar and brand-new characters to life in Halo Infinite’s expansive Campaign.
Master Chief’s Story Continues, December 8, 2021
Halo has always been about heroism, hope, and the Master Chief, Spartan-117. In Halo Infinite, Chief is going head-to-head with the toughest foes he’s ever faced, in the most expansive, awe-inspiring, Halo story ever told. Today, we’re thrilled to give you a fresh look at just some of the action you’ll be able to dive into when Halo Infinite launches on December 8, 2021:
[previewyoutube="tgn8VOv9dc0;full"] Pre-order Halo Infinite today, and be ready to fight Escharum and the mighty Banished forces that have made Zeta Halo their base of operations.
Halo Infinite’s Great Journey on PC
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The Great Journey on PC
Almost two years ago, 343 Industries and Xbox embarked on a journey to bring the entirety of Halo: The Master Chief Collection to Windows PCs and Steam. After 23 months, six game launches, eight seasons of content and countless flights, 343 Industries and Halo have entered a new era of play where PC is at the center of everything we do, alongside console. While we’re still listening and growing, the process of taking Halo: The Master Chief Collection to PC was invaluable in helping us learn what to do (and not to do) to create a game that looks, feels, and plays like a PC shooter should, all the while honoring the legacy of what makes Halo, Halo.
Today, we’re thrilled to share with Halo fans and the PC gaming community at large how we’re taking everything we’ve learned from The Master Chief Collection to make Halo Infinite a truly PC-first experience from day one.
Halo Infinite - PC Overview Video
Watch the PC Overview video below to hear directly from both the PC team and the Sandbox team at 343 Industries to learn more about how we’ve built Halo Infinite to be a great PC experience in-game, out-of-game, and off the screen.
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AMD – The Exclusive PC Partner of Halo Infinite
Engineering Partnership: For over two years, we’ve been working closely with AMD to make Halo Infinite a spectacular experience for PC players. Working with AMD allowed us to make game title optimizations that benefit a vast range of hardware and device endpoints. From ultra-spec gaming powerhouses to older and cost-effective gaming machines as well as our entire family of consoles, something that only partnering with AMD could help us achieve.
AMD is passionate about player-first development choices. They're exceptionally open to working with us to bring new rendering features across all hardware as well as performance improvements for all our players, even if they're not using an AMD-powered device. We’re excited for all Halo Infinite’s players to benefit from AMD’s passion for making player-first development choices
However, in the words of humanity’s most iconic hero; we’re just getting started. AMD understood and believed in our vision to build a Halo experience over time. Launch is just the beginning for Halo Infinite on PC. As such, AMD was willing to pursue a close, long-term partnership with Halo across both engineering and marketing efforts. Looking ahead, we've identified opportunities for additional configuration options, performance tweaks, and memory improvements across both PC as well as console and we’re working together on more optimization solutions that should benefit all platforms. Most excitingly though, we're looking forward to working closely with AMD bring Ray Tracing to Halo Infinite. Ray Tracing is one our top development priorities post-launch and look forward to sharing more soon.
Marketing Partnership & AMD Radeon™ RX 6900 XT Halo Infinite Limited Edition Graphics Card: One of the many great things about partnering with AMD is not just our shared passion for PC gaming, but our shared passion for Halo as well. Like us, AMD understood the significance of Halo Infinite being the first main-line Halo title to launch day-and-date across both Xbox consoles as well as Windows PCs and Steam. To celebrate the next era of Halo on PC, we’re thrilled to unveil the AMD Radeon™ RX 6900 XT Halo Infinite Limited Edition!
Inspired by his Mark VII Mjolnir armor, this custom 6900XT shroud bears several unmistakable features from the Master Chief himself. Including a reflective, iridium gold fan border, the iconic “117” Spartan callsign, as well as a Cortana-blue light to signify the AI slot on the back of the Master Chief’s helmet.
The 6900XT is the perfect GPU to celebrate the release of Halo Infinite on all platforms. The AMD RDNA™ 2 gaming architecture powering our Xbox Series X|S consoles is the same architecture powering the AMD Radeon™ RX 6900 XT Halo Infinite Limited Edition graphics card, for high frame-rate 4K gaming.
From the start, it was vitally important to both AMD and 343 Industries that a card this special ended up in the hands of our players. Rest assured, while the LAMD Radeon™ RX 6900 XT Halo Infinite Limited Edition won’t be going on sale, AMD, Halo and other partners will be offering players multiple opportunities over the coming weeks to get their hands on one. Stay tuned for an announcement later today on your first opportunity to enter and win!
Putting It All Together
Those of us that work on Halo Infinite’s PC presence are seriously passionate about the franchise, the platform and our friends in the PC Gaming community. We’ve come together across multiple disciplines from art, engineering, production, licensing, marketing, and community to ensure every touch point PC players have with our game is crafted with a passion for the platform as our central focus.
In game, we’ve created an experience that supports a wide range of hardware and device endpoints while still supporting all the PC-specific features players have come to expect. From baseline expectations like ultrawide / super ultrawide support (including cinematics), FOV adjustment and framerate customization, to niche enthusiast touches like weapon offset control, triple key-binds and PC LAN support, Halo Infinite was built from the ground-up for PC.
Out-of-game, we’ve partnered closely with services like Discord and Razer Chroma as well as platforms like Steam and Xbox Game Pass to ensure Infinite takes advantage of the most each has to offer for PC players. Including rich presence in Steam and deep integration with Discord, featuring support for in-game Discord server invites. What’s more, all Razer customers will benefit from Halo Infinite’s integration of Razer Chroma, with in-game events triggering unique peripheral lighting to correspond to the event. Whether you’ve just had your shields popped or you’re firing a SPNKR, there’s a Chroma Effect that brings Halo Infinite to life.
Off the screen, we’ve partnered with brands that have decades of experience building hardware that allow players to interact with the experiences they love. Razer, with their Chroma Lighting Engine and world-class peripheral design, were the perfect partners to create an exclusive line of Halo-branded peripherals that players can use to add a Halo touch to their existing rig. What’s more, for players building new machines, AMD was ideal partner to help power players’ Halo Infinite journey through their extremely capable Ryzen and Radeon product lines. Including of course, the AMD Radeon™ RX 6900 XT Halo Infinite Limited Edition.
In short, we at 343 Industries and our partners wanted to ensure that every piece of the PC experience had a Halo-touch to it. After today, we’re hoping you’re just as excited as we are to boot up Halo Infinite on a PC on December 8th.
See you on the battlefield, Spartans!
Halo Infinite Multiplayer Tech Preview: THIS WEEKEND!
We would like to invite you all to join us for some fun in Halo Infinite this weekend!
Who:
You!
What:
Halo Infinite Multiplayer Tech Preview, Weekend 2
Where:
Halo Infinite universe
Why:
Help us stress test our servers, experience the Academy, battle it out in BTB, and more
When:
Thursday, September 30 through Monday, October 4
The build will be made available Thursday evening, Pacific time at which point you can jump in and practice your no-scopes and 4-shots in Weapon Drills and Training Mode.
Remember, this is a work in progress and not indicative of the final experience you will get in December. While your game is installing and you are preparing for battle, you can read over the current Known Issues.
Join us during these specific play session times for Social Arena 4v4 and Big Team Battle:
Friday, October 1:
10am – 2pm PT
5-9pm PT
Saturday, October 2:
10am – 2pm PT
5-9pm PT
Sunday, October 3:
10am – 2pm PT
5-9pm PT
Not A Halo Insider? No Problem!
If you didn't get invited to our first weekend, that's okay. We have sent our Halo Insiders "Steam Buddy Codes" to allow anyone to participate. So, if you know someone who was invited, ask if their Steam Buddy Code is up for grabs. Once you have a code, you will want to redeem it here (be sure you are signed with the Xbox Gamertag you will want to play with!) and then follow the installation instructions you receive via PM.
Don't have any friends with Steam Buddy Codes? Don't worry, you can find plenty here up for grabs! https://steamcommunity.com/app/1240440/discussions/0/2956041222212340000/
[H2]Exclusive Emblem
Completely 10 or more matches in this weekend's Multiplayer Tech Preview and earn yourself the exclusive Sol Testing Grounds Emblem when Halo Infinite releases!
As a reminder, you are free to stream, talk about your experience, and leave us feedback in the threads we pinned in the discussion forums for you. We are looking forward to meeting you on the battlefield!
Multiplayer Technical Preview Overview
Back at the very tail end of July a great many Halo Insiders joined us in our tech preview – the very first public test for Halo Infinite. That weekend brought us laughs, memories, and perhaps most of all, data and feedback from you, our community.
That’s why this weekend and next (September 23-26 and September 30 - October 3) we’re going to be running two more multiplayer tech previews. Our primary focus during this tech preview is to test our backend systems and online services at scale ahead of launch. Our secondary goals will be to receive feedback and find additional bugs around the content in the flight.
Over the next two weekends there will be a fair amount for all of you to dig into, so we wanted to take a chance to collect all the information we could in one place, so that you know what’s going to be included in this preview and when you can get involved.
But, if you’re short on time and only want the top-level details, here’s the most salient points:
The schedule of the Multiplayer Tech Preview
While flight access is open, the Academy experiences will still be fully available to Halo Insiders. So, if you want to warm up for the next play session in the Weapon Drills or Training Mode, you’ll be free to do so.
TECHNICAL PREVIEW GOALS
Halo Infinite’s release date might seem distant, but December will arrive before we know it. Over the course of the next two weekends testing the game’s services at scale will be critical to us, so we’re thankful that so many of you will be able to join in on the action. If you ended up not registering as a Halo Insider in time, don’t worry. There’s still a chance you can make our second weekend.
Next week, we plan on expanding the audience through a few methods – including potentially allowing Halo Insiders to invite a friend – so that we can push the servers to their limit. We'll have more to share about this audience expansion next week. We're excited to host our largest flighting audience to date, and we’re eager to learn as much as we possibly can.
Additionally, as a thank you for helping test our services, players who complete 10 matches during the second weekend (October 1-3) will be granted a special emblem for their Spartans when the game launches this December.
Overall, our goals for these technical preview weekends can be distilled down to the following three areas:
As always, if you want to learn more about our entire flighting process, be sure to check out July 2021’s Inside Infinite. Now, let’s take a closer look at all of the content you’ll be able to play during these technical previews.
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TRAINING MODE
A new addition to the action, and a first for the Halo franchise, will be Training Mode. In Training Mode, you can load into a solo sparring session against Bots on the Arena map of your choice.
To help you focus on what you’d like to improve, you can customize the following options on the fly, mid-match:
Over the course of your training adventures, you’ll be able to choose from all Arena maps available in the build as they arrive. So, when Behemoth is be added to the Preview on Sunday, you’ll be able to dive in.
WEAPON DRILLS
The ‘how’ is often just as, if not more important, than the ‘what.’ For those of you that joined us in the last tech preview, you’re likely familiar with the races for top scores with the S7 Sniper Weapon Drills all over Twitter. We’re extremely excited to see more of you enter the fray and push those scores as high as they can go.
Of course, you can take the time to learn the new weapons at your disposal, so you can come up with ideas of just how you’re going to put them all to use to maximize the number of Spartans you slay in any given round.
This time around, you’ll have access to the following Weapon Drills:
In our last tech preview, you got to go head-to-head with our Bots for the very first time. Unforgiving. Relentless. And steady-handed with a grenade. Over the course of that flight, we received tons of data and feedback alike that’s already helped us make improvements to our Bot behavior – from movement, to combat decisions. That said though, our Bots are still learning, and for now, they have an aversion from jumping in vehicles. We've all seen how good they are on foot already. We want them to be
Inside Infinite – September 2021
Welcome, one and all, to our latest edition of Inside Infinite!
Every month we sit down with the teams hard at work on Halo Infinite to learn more about contributions to the next chapter of Halo, gain insight about their process, and understand their goals on the road to our December 8 launch.
In this edition we’re spending a bit more time with the Multiplayer Team. Last month, we had a chance to chat with them about the ins-and-outs of the very first Halo Infinite Tech Preview, learned about their process when developing the next chapter of multiplayer Halo, and of course - to hear about the design pillars that bring it all together.
Before you carry on, if you find yourself interested in learning more about other disciplines and areas of Halo Infinite be sure to check out our previous editions, which at this point cover a wide variety of topics:
In this edition we’re spending a bit more time with the Multiplayer Team. Last month, we had a chance to chat with them about the ins-and-outs of the very first Halo Infinite Tech Preview, this month we’re preparing for the upcoming Multiplayer Tech Preview – which will make available both the Arena (4v4) and Big Team Battle (12v12), bringing brand new ways for players to dive in and check out the next chapter of multiplayer Halo. To learn more about what’s going to be included and how the devs put it all together, we sat down with the Multiplayer Team to get some of the finer details on what their goals were through development, and what they’re most excited for you to play.
Then, we hang out with the Multiplayer Team for just a bit longer to hear more about the Academy, the experiences it offers, and the goals that the team had for players as they set foot in the classroom for the very first time.
Last but not least, we get a recap on the Challenge and Progression systems in Halo Infinite, to learn more about what the ways you’ll be building up your Spartan when the game launches on December 8. Now, it’s time for the fun stuff.
BTB FOR YOU AND ME
When crafting the next chapter of Halo multiplayer, no stone can go unturned – digital, physical, or otherwise. When we talked to the Multiplayer Team last month, we heard some of their initial thoughts on what they most wanted to accomplish when creating Halo Infinite’s free-to-play multiplayer experience, from the Academy all the way to the Arena.
Now, with Big Team Battle on the menu for the upcoming Multiplayer Tech Preview, we wanted to take another opportunity to sit down with them to learn more about what’s happened since our very first Tech Preview, along with some first sets of intel about what went into creating the next version of Big Team Battle.
A Spartan flees with opposing team's flag in a round of Big Team Battle. [For the above image in full res, click here.]
So, sit back, relax, and enjoy as we sit down to hear more from Multiplayer Associate Creative Director Tom French, Lead Multiplayer Designer Andrew Witts, Senior Multiplayer Designer Fernando Reyes Medina, Senior Multiplayer Designer Patrick Wren, Lead Multiplayer Level Designer Cayle George, Multiplayer Bots Designer Sara Stern, and Senior Multiplayer Designer David Ellis. (If you recognize any of those names, chances are good you remember them from August’s Inside Infinite!)
As we’ve discussed a few times before, Halo Infinite is going to be a live game. When creating the multiplayer experiences for Halo Infinite (maps, modes, Academy, Bots, etc.), how do you prepare for an evolving sandbox?
Tom French: Every map and mode combination is really the sum of its parts all playing together in concert. Some of our systems like our Weapon Racks are purpose built to enable us to inject new toys into Quickplay and BTB maps quickly. Other areas like Ranked require more scrutiny which usually begins with our team taking passes on the level placements and then begins the process of discussion and debate over each one to make sure it’s balanced into the environment. Even after we launch, we’ll continue to learn and see what the community is and isn’t excited about and continue to massage everything we do, refining and refreshing the game over time.
Andrew Witts: The main problem we knew we had to solve was - how do we add new sandbox items to our gameplay experiences without creating friction among the player base? In previous Halo games, if you wanted to play the new content then you had to wait for a specific map to appear in the matchmaking queue or hope that it was not vetoed by other players in the lobby. We wanted to build systems that could receive new sandbox toys and populate across the game vs. just in certain maps. We invested so much into the Item Spawner system that players see with weapon racks, equipment pads, grenade pads, and vehicle pads so that we could push a new weapon, equipment, grenade or vehicle into the entire experience. That’s not to say that we won’t put all changes through their paces. We want to make sure we add new sandbox items in a way that generates positive gameplay experiences for our players.
David Ellis: One of the things I learned from working on post-launch content for Halo 4 and 5 was no matter how much you think you know how the community will react to a feature or mode, it’s always critical to ensure you schedule out time to read and respond to that feedback. We’re already talking about future opportunities to go after with Halo Infinite, but as with any live game the further you travel out on a content calendar the greater the flexibility you want to allow for the studio and the community to find the fun together as Infinite grows.
How often do you work with the Live Team in your process? What parts of the free-to-play multiplayer do you often work on in tandem?
Andrew Witts: We work alongside them all the time. I have a sync with the Live Design Team every Monday where we share what we are up to and the challenges we are facing in creating content for our players... but we also geek out about each other’s ideas for Halo and where we want to go next. On a game like this, it is imperative for Live and MP’s features to mesh well together.
Tom French: It’s important for our teams to be able to work in partnership effectively because our work is directly intertwined together. For us to succeed, we need them to succeed, and vice-versa. This means we’re regularly syncing with them to make sure our features are supporting their progression needs and cosmetics are working in harmony with the combat dance demands of the modes and Sandbox.
When approaching Halo Infinite’s version of Big Team Battle, what were some of your most crucial design pillars?
Andrew Witts: The team created the pillars for Big Team Battle after a long meeting where we invited each MP team member to share their favorite moments from past BTB experiences. After doing that we bucketed all those experiences which ultimately became our design pillars:
• Embrace the Spartan Battle Fantasy – We want players to really feel like they are within a Spartan unit pushing through the battlefield and capturing objectives as a team. That’s why we’ve invested in things like Pelican Drops, Commander mode VO, Weapon Pods falling from the sky to resupply the field and a few more dynamic elements – we wanted it to feel like an active battle inside the Halo universe. Additionally, we wanted maps to feel like they were a part of an iconic battle within the Halo universe.
• Empower Player Types to Thrive – There are many different types of players in the Halo ecosystem. Some players are pilots, others are slayers or objective hunters, but we wanted all of them to work together in this BTB experience. Fernando has a fantastic phrase that sums up this pillar well: Make sure everyone can feel like a hero in any match.
• Unleash the Halo Infinite Sandbox – This pillar kind of speaks for itself. We felt like the “big” in BTB was not just the number of players in the match or the size of the maps but the number of options at players’ disposal. All the toys are available in this space for maximum fun.
When the team set out to design the new Big Team Battle experience for Halo Infinite, how did you approach drawing inspiration from the past vs. injecting something new? Were there specific elements you knew HAD to be there from the past?
Tom French: A lot of the discussion came from taking what we loved of our favorite past BTB experiences, targeting a set of modes that aligned with our goals, and figuring out any new twists that would partner with the gameplay to give us our own stamp on a fan favorite.
Andrew Witts: When starting to develop BTB, we started by having the Multiplayer Team share memorable stories that they have had in past Big Team experiences in Halo. We talked a lot about how those stories made us feel as players. What more did we want from those stories? What more would we want out of the BTB experience that would make those stories even better? These are all the questions we asked each other to come up with the feature list for BTB. So did we didn’t key into specific features as much as we tried to key into experiences that were possible in BTBs of the past.
As you set out to evolve Big Team Battle, what aspects did you specifically see as areas to improve upon and make ‘new’?
Fernando Reyes Medina: We are all really big fans of legacy BTB so we were careful not to mess with what isn’t broken. We wanted a BTB experience that feels classic and modern at the same time. An opportunity I saw to improve Classic BTB was to make sure that the mode rules and balance consider the increased player count and the amazing new maps that level designers made for Halo Infinite. This allowed us to create an exciting pace throughout a BTB match, which, combined with the awesome new toys in our sandbox, makes the perfect stage so players can play out memorable moments with their friends.
Patrick Wren: We took a similar philosophy of how we approached BTB as we did with Arena, but turned it up to 11. There is the core experience of spawning at your base, jumping into vehicles, and going out into the world, but we looked at how we could spice it up. Tanks for example, especially the Scorpion, are extremely powerful vehicles that would tend to dominate matches in previous Halo games. We looked at how we could make them an amazing moment in a match that really punctuates their power.
"FLAG TAKEN. FLAG DROPPED. FLAG TAKEN." [For the above image in full res, click here.]
How did the team arrive at the design for an expanded 12 vs 12 player count?
Andrew Witts: The short answer from me is that we wanted this to feel like a bigger “Big Team” experience and adding 4 players to each team seemed like a natural path to iterate towards. More players means more player interactions which we felt was a net positive to a lot of the strengths of BTB.
Fernando Reyes Medina: The more the merrier! Having said that, we found that 12v12 player count maintains that classic BTB pacing that we all love while increasing the possibility for fun player engagements in all parts of the map. It also contributes towards our first pillar: embracing the Spartan Battle Fantasy. No matter what you are doing in a BTB match you will see awesome moments happening around you.
Patrick Wren: Having worked on Halo 5’s Warzone, it was important to me that we didn’t go smaller than that. There was a lot of learning we could bring forward to create a bigger battlefield for players in BTB. It would feel weird if we lowered our player count back down after that. I wanted to make sure BTB in Halo Infinite started out with a bang and that we scope to make classic Halo modes and new Halo modes better than ever.
What types of new design challenges come with increasing the player count by 50%? And, how did the team attack these challenges?
Andrew Witts: I think one of the biggest challenges has been around game mode pacing. What I mean by pacing is the feeling of escalation or urgency in a match. Ideally you want to start a match with excitement and over time that turns into increased tension so that at match end you feel fulfilled/jubilant as a player when the conclusion is reached, and one team is victorious. Pacing can be a big challenge when you increase the number of players. A lot of the stress of providing good pacing falls on the map and game modes and I think our teams have done a fantastic job working together to crack this puzzle.
When considering Halo Infinite’s maps, what’s the approach from a design standpoint? Are there major tenants you adhere to based on the size or mode being played on the map?
Cayle George: We strive to build exciting levels that offer unique combat experiences within our suite of gameplay spaces. Our aim is to create maps that enable and challenge the variety of play styles within Infinite's multiplayer. While we want each level to offer a different flavor of the game, we simultaneously are looking to retain the core combat experience and sandbox interactions. It’s a tricky balance and one we are constantly pushing to polish. There are so many cool types of equipment and weapons that it’s exciting to find the perfect spaces for them to thrive.
We keep an open mind to variety in our suite of levels. We don’t feel that gameplay spaces are a one-type-fits-all when it relates to size, pacing, modes or engagement types. We have some good starting metrics, sure, but we find that playtesting and feedback usually lead us in directions that do not always fit the mold. For example, while we aim to find the right balance of speed and rotational gameplay in a Strongholds map for example, we have found that balance may be quite different depending on the unique flavor of the gameplay space.
The Banished Shock Rifle will be up for grabs this weekend in Halo Infinite's Multiplayer Tech Preview. [For the above image in full res, click here.]
How does Halo Infinite’s new Equipment factor into BTB?
Andrew Witts: Similar to how Arena is structured, there are equipment spawners all around our BTB maps. The biggest difference in BTB is the amount of equipment charges that you receive per pick up. When you pick up equipment in BTB, you receive up to 5 uses of it. The reason we made this change is because we felt that increasing the frequency of the equipment verbs, players would be able to see more systemic outcomes of the sandbox more often. We felt it tied very well to our “sandbox unleashed” design pillar and our playtests have been validating this design choice.
Grounding Multiplayer, and BTB in particular, more in the fiction of the Halo universe is something we’ve heard the team mention in the past. Why was this a goal for the team?
Andrew Witts: Grounding MP was a goal that stemmed from Tom’s creative pillar of “you are your Spartan in the Halo universe”. The team loved this pillar and we felt that we needed our designs to own up to his direction. We’ve talked in previous Inside Infinite’s about how we wanted MP to be soaked with “Halo feels” when designing our systems, maps, and modes and it is mainly in service to this creative direction. As a team, we felt that if players are building their own Spartan story, then they need to feel like they are inside the Halo universe when playing our multiplayer experiences. We felt that the best way to immerse you in the universe of the franchise was to take some of the most memorable moments and put them front and center in the gameplay loops of MP.
What is it about Big Team Battle in particular that has made it such a longstanding, resonate favorite amongst the Halo community?
Andrew Witts: I think Big Team Battle is such a favorite in the Halo community because it puts the Halo sandbox on display in such an extravagant way. There are always so many toys in play that you can’t help but feel the rush of sniping from your base and then being a gunner on the back of a Warthog a few seconds later. I think the Team vs. Team fantasy of Big Team Battle is important to the experience. Sieging an enemy team’s base with multiple vehicles full of players is such a memorable thing in Halo. I fondly think back to my days of playing H2/H3 and being in the passenger seat of a Warthog as its flying over the middle hill of Coagulation and I'm just playing the Halo theme in my head the whole time with a big smile on my face.
BTB isn’t just more players – it also features some new modes and mechanics. Can you speak a bit about the gameplay experiences within BTB?
Fernando Reyes Medina: We designed Halo Infinite BTB modes from the ground up to encourage teamwork and support different player archetypes. Whether you are an incredible sniper, a skillful warthog driver, or a stealthy flag runner, you can contribute meaningfully to the outcome of any match. Across both classic modes like CTF and Slayer and brand-new modes like Total Control, the BTB experiences should feel fresh and iconic at the same time.
Patrick Wren: We wanted each mode to have a different life to it to help spotlight those different player types. BTB is a place we want as many different players as possible to come in and have a good time. We also wanted each match to feel fresh. That’s why we invested so heavily in systems that changed up each match. In one map we even have some new ways for players to get a cache of power by interacting with the map a whole new way with their Personal AI.
A key exciting element to BTB is the inclusion of iconic vehicles. How does your design approach account for the huge impact vehicles – both ground and air – have in this mode?
Patrick Wren: This is where Halo vehicles shine! We looked at vehicles in BTB in a few different ways. First what is the combo of map and vehicles that are always there. When players spawn into the map, they will always have a place to go hop in a vehicle just like always. We also wanted a way to escalate the experience over time. As Pelicans drop in vehicles, they will at first start dropping in your standard ground vehicles, but as the match goes on, they will start dropping in more powerful vehicles, air vehicles, and eventually tanks. We wanted the more powerful vehicles in the sandbox to really feel special and create a moment in the game that can change the flow depending on what vehicle is brought in.
The venerable Warthog. A trusty friend and a terrifying foe on any battlefield.[For the above image in full res, click here.]
What’s your personal favorite BTB memory from the Halo franchise?
Andrew Witts: If you asked me two years ago, I’d tell you about the rest of that match on Coagulation that I hinted at in the previous question, but I’ve played Halo Infinite’s BTB and most of my favorite stories are from this game. One of those stories involves me driving a chopper through a grav-cannon to splatter two enemies, exiting the vehicle and grapple-jacking an enemy Wasp that is chasing a friendly Razorback that’s escorting our team’s flag carrier back to base to score. It was the best, haha.
Patrick Wren: There is always a moment from a Halo 2 LAN party that comes to mind on Coagulation where I am in the middle of the map on the hill by the cave. There is an enemy Scorpion about to shoot me and a rocket launcher on the ground. I run and hold X to try and pick it up, hoping I can shoot it in time, but in the chaos their teammate in a Banshee tries to splatter me so I highjack instead as the Scorpion shoots and I fly away to safety. With Halo Infinite BTB, there are just so many moments like that and more opportunities. One of my favorites is getting into a full Razorback while playing [REDACTED], driving full speed to the objective as the other team does the same. I had picked up a Repulsor on the way and jumped out to throw the enemy Razorback into disarray as my team used that moment to secure the objective and get out.
Fernando Reyes Medina: It’s funny, I feel exactly like Andrew on this one. I have so many fond memories of playing H3 BTB in LAN parties back in the day, but playtesting Infinite's BTB has created so many new core memories! Probably my favorite one was in one of our last CTF playtests. We were tied 2-2 and there was one minute left in the match. I love being a sneaky flag carrier so I knew it was my time! I snuck into the enemy’s base, got a double kill noob-comboing them (no shame, haha) and nabbed the flag. I had no teammates around so I had to hide with the flag in a little corner, hoping someone would get the hint that I needed a driver. A teammate got the memo and picked me up in a Mongoose, but just as we started the drive back, we got chased down by an enemy’s Wasp. With 5 seconds in the clock, I managed to get the flag capture and win the match for our team! I never felt so cool in my life before!
Tom French: My old favorite BTB memory was more of a development memory at the end of H4 when we would play endless (timeless/scoreless) games all day long while waiting for new bugs to trickle in. I love driving the Warthog and had countless runs trying to jump a squad full of teammates into the front of the enemy bases on Ragnarok to pull the flag and then launch the crew in the hog out of the base for a run back to home. I remember giggling all day long doing that. But like everyone else, Infinite BTB continues to give me amazing “water cooler” moments and playtests are always filled with people yelling and cheering as we play the game. I can’t wait to keep having these kinds of crazy moments with the community in this upcoming flight and when we release!
What else would you like our community to know about Big Team Battle in Halo Infinite?
Andrew Witts: We are super excited for you all to get in and play this experience and give us feedback. We’ve had a blast making BTB what it is today...and we’re just getting started.
Patrick Wren: We worked hard to make sure we made the classic experience shine with improvements from what players expect of a game in 2021. From gameplay experience for how players get Sandbox items, to more flavor of how the world reacts to when a team scores or driving by wildlife that scurries out of the way, this is BTB at its most alive with players laughing and screaming at each other.
Fernando Reyes Medina: When I play BTB, I feel like I am at home because I get to experience everything I love about Halo in a single match. I hope you all feel the same way, and I can’t wait to see all the amazing moments and memories that you will create playing BTB!
Thank you for taking the time to talk through Halo Infinite’s BTB with us! (But, Multiplayer Team, we’re not quite done with you yet.)
During the Tech Preview a great many Halo Insiders got the chance to go hands-on with the game, and the Academy for the very first time. We took the chance to ask our friends on the Multiplayer Team a bit more about the goals for this experience, and the design pillars that pulled it all together.
PENCILS DOWN, MA40’S UP
Halo’s 20-year history spans generations of consoles and players alike. When setting out to create Halo Infinite’s Academy, they Multiplayer Team knew that granting grizzled veterans and freshly enlisted free-to-play Spartans a chance to tool around with their favorite weapons was incredibly important. But, so was doling out some knowledge – be it terminology, tactics, or anything in between.
To learn more about how they accomplished this, and what their goals were, we sat down with a few members of the Multiplayer Team that are responsible for the Academy experience, to find out just what they had in mind for Spartans of all skill levels.
What are the goals and design pillars for Academy?
Tom French: With Infinite’s multiplayer being free, the Academy was born out of the necessity support an evergreen place for new players join the fight and returning players to be able slide back into each season by having ways to warm up with the game and learn the new toys. This became the core driver for the Academy features.
• Give players ways to learn about maps and systems without the fear of being shot in the face by players – Players desires to play a multiplayer experience is often at odds with how good the community becomes at the game. Even dipping one’s virtual toes into matchmaking brings a lot of anxieties to new players trying to get into the game once the game has been released. Academy gives multiple outlets for players to better prepare themselves and even fall back into if they need more practice.
• Provide tools to learn core mechanics and provide pathways to mastery through crafted fun, replayable bite-sized experiences – Learning often comes from repetition on a smaller problem set and this is a game, so learning needs to be fun to compel players to want to learn more. Short burst experience let players try things and try them again to see how they improve themselves in a specific area.
• Give context for the MP Spartan within the greater Halo canon – As we’ve mentioned before, this concept is part of our core pillars for Infinite MP, but the Academy, and more specifically the Tutorial, is where this journey begins. To the initiated, Spartans are cool, but what about new players? The question became, “how do we show everyone how cool Spartans are,” and, in particular the player Spartan, are important in the larger Halo universe as well as Master Chief. On top of that, for fans of Halo it is intended to strengthen their love of their Spartan without interfering with the gameplay they already know and love.
Lumu, a Personal AI in Halo Infinite, is going to have a lot to comment on this weekend. [For the above image in full res, click here.]
When building an Academy experience that met the goals above, how did the team arrive at the three experiences; Tutorial, Weapon Drills, and Training Mode?
Tom French: It’s funny how sometimes real life becomes a good tool to educate the designs of things. When we kicked off Infinite and the Academy, I was coaching my youngest son’s soccer team at the time. This helped my brain organize how you prepare the players for the big match. We discussed how Academy was like a practice session; giving players drills to focus on their individual skills (Weapon Drills), give them tools to safely experiment with their learnings (Training Mode), and chances to work together as a team and scrimmage without the stress of a “real game” (players vs. Bot Arena).
David Ellis: Initially we thought about shipping another drill type in lieu of Weapon Drills, but when we tested the game with players across a greater variety of skill levels, we recognized that just about every player could aim and shoot. So, one player might fully engage just gaining familiarity with aiming and shooting (later moving while aiming and shooting) while players with more experience are more likely to enjoy Weapon Drills on another level by perfecting their runs and sharing high scores online with friends. Ultimately, we decided to prioritize features that were critical for onboarding new players while also providing opportunities for a greater variety of player skills to enjoy.
Since Academy is filled with firsts for the Halo franchise, there must have been some challenges when designing and building it. What was one particularly tough obstacle that the team had to overcome when creating these experiences?
Sara Stern: It took us some time to find the right balance between experiences that promoted learning and experiences that were fun. We had early prototypes that reinforced sandbox mechanics and explained them to players, but felt really flat when you played them. We had other prototypes that leaned so far into “fun” gimmicks that they reinforced gameplay behaviors that would get you in trouble if they carried over into PvP.
David Ellis: Being a “downstream team” from other core foundational teams we’ve had to be agile to make sure Academy content represents the game we’re shipping. The Tutorial itself pulls so many elements together from across the game we regularly keep tabs on items and features as development progresses to ensure we’re aligned with the rest of the game.
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