At the Xbox Bethesda Showcase, and in a follow-up video the next morning, we finally got our first in-depth look at the competitive multiplayer side of Halo Infinite. I’ll break things down to give you all the juicy new details that 343 shared.
Old but New
First, and most importantly, was a recommitment to releasing the game in Holiday 2021 and the multiplayer will be free to play on console and PC. It’s sad to not have an exact date yet, but hopefully, we’ll get one soon. The team talked about how they want this to truly feel like Halo’s combat has been evolved. It should be both familiar and something better than it has ever been before. One of the main ways they’re trying to accomplish this is with the return of equipment.
We were shown a few new use items to go along with the previously shown Grappleshot and Drop Wall. First up was the Threat Detector, which put out a pulse to show where enemies are even through walls. The second was a personal deflector shield called the Repulsor which serves two purposes. First, it can knock back enemy attacks and secondly it can be aimed at the ground and used to achieve a much higher than normal jump.
Also new is the Academy, which is a training area that allows you access to bots. For the first time in Halo’s history, you can train in multiplayer with computer-controlled help that you have complete control over. Bots are also available for custom games to help fill in team slots if you don’t have enough people to go around. This is all in service of the game’s main multiplayer modes.
Running Riot
First up is Arena, which returns as a standard 4v4 suite of game types. It focuses on “fair starts and teams working closely to control key areas of a map while utilizing the sandbox in the most impactful manner.” Big Team Battle is back and bigger than ever as it is now a 12v12 mode. The two videos released showcased a wide variety of vehicles and on-foot personnel engaging in frenetic battles throughout a variety of beautiful maps.
Last up they talked about the customization system and MP beta flighting. The customization system is deep, with per armor piece options for models, and coatings to change up the look and colors of your gear, weapons, and even vehicles. A new personal AI will accompany you on the battlefield and you can change their voice and look to best suit yourself. The end of the video had them give us all a friendly reminder that if you want to play the MP beta test flights later this year that you’ll have to sign up at halowaypoint.com.
Killaminjaro
Overall this was an excellent showing that has the Halo community buzzing about finally getting to play this game. As launch gets ever close keep checking here and we’ll get you all the information about things that haven’t been shared yet like Forge, and that elusive release date.
