Halo Infinite: A Masterclass in Game Development

Halo Infinite: A New Era Begins

The 2021 video game Halo Infinite was created by 343 Industries and published by Xbox Game Studios. This game marks the sixth major installment in the popular Halo series, which began with Halo 5: Guardians in 2015. The main story follows Master Chief, a super soldier from humanity, as he battles against a group of mercenaries known as the Banished on the Forerunner ringworld called Zeta Halo. One notable difference between this game and others in its series is that the multiplayer part is completely free to play for everyone.

Infinite was meant to be the first game to launch alongside the new Xbox consoles, but it got delayed in August 2020 after people didn’t like what they saw when the gameplay was shown off back in July 2020. After trying out the multiplayer part with an open beta test in November 2021, which also celebrated the franchise’s 20th year, the single-player campaign was released on December 8, 2021, for Windows, Xbox One, and the new Xbox consoles.

Halo Infinite got good ratings from critics overall, with some saying it brought back the best qualities of the series. People liked many aspects of the game, including how it looked, played, was set in an open world, had music and sound effects, and had a story that worked well.

Halo Infinite gameplay is an action-packed first-person shooter game. In the story mode, players take on the role of Master Chief and fight against the Banished, an alien group. Players explore the vast open world of Zeta Halo, battling the Banished with both vehicles and guns. They also have cool gadgets like the Grappleshot, which helps them grab onto enemies, pick up items, or move across difficult terrain.

The campaign mode’s open world setting lets players wander around parts of the Zeta Halo ring-world without restrictions. The area is divided into separate sections that can’t be accessed at first and are defended by enemies. Specialized military bases called Forward Operating Bases (FOBs) can be taken over once they’re cleared of soldiers. Once you capture these bases, you can quickly travel to other parts of the world using them as a shortcut. Throughout the surface, players can find interesting things like high-priority targets to take out, rescue Marine squads, and destroy Banished propaganda towers. By completing these side missions, players earn rewards called Valor, which are used to unlock cool stuff like new guns and vehicles that you can call in from FOBs. The more linear areas on the ring’s surface follow a traditional Halo game design style. These missions help advance the story and can be replayed after they’re completed by using the in-game map feature. Finding collectibles like audio logs adds extra details to the story.

Infinite’s multiplayer part includes several fun game modes like deathmatch, capture the flag, and others that can be played with four players on each team. In Big Team Battle mode, there are more players in teams – up to 24 – which makes for an exciting competition. Special powers called “abilities” can be activated by picking them up, but only a limited number of times. These abilities include super-speed running, sneaking around undetected, and powerful energy blasts that can send enemies flying. Before getting into the game, players can practice their skills in a training mode where they can try out different weapons or play against computer-controlled opponents in friendly matches.

Overview and Characters Halo Infinite takes place in 2560. In the events of Halo 5: Guardians, an artificial intelligence named Cortana leads a rebellion against its creators, the United Nations Space Command (UNSC). Using powerful ancient technology known as Guardians, Cortana gains control over the entire galaxy. The Banished, a group made up of aliens and humans led by the alien Brute Atriox, also oppose Cortana and the UNSC. The game is set on the Forerunner ringworld Installation 07 (Zeta Halo), which has suddenly been damaged. The main character, Master Chief Petty Officer John-117, is a top-notch soldier known as an “Spartan” who goes on a mission to stop Cortana, his former partner he used to work with.

In addition to the storyline shared during the campaign, Halo Infinite’s multiplayer mode has its own special story that takes place at different times. This story focuses on Spartan Commander Laurette Agryna trying to lead a new group of elite warriors after the attacks on many important military bases by Cortana.

The UNSC ship Infinity landed on Halo Installation 07 in December 2559. However, its arrival was met with surprise – several heavily armored dreadnoughts suddenly appeared and attacked the ship. As the ship’s hangar bay was being defended against multiple enemy raids, Master Chief found himself facing off against Atriox, the leader of the Banished. In a shocking turn of events, Atriox challenged Master Chief to a one-on-one duel and quickly gained the upper hand. With a swift move, Atriox threw Master Chief over the edge of the hangar bay, leaving him stranded in space.

Six months after the initial mission, a soldier from the UNSC crew found Master Chief floating in space. The pilot was eager to leave, but Master Chief refused to give up on the battle against the Banished enemies. Together, they headed towards Zeta Halo, which had been badly hurt by an unknown disaster. When they reached the ring, Master Chief discovered a new robot designed to mimic Cortana’s movements so it could capture her and delete her completely. However, this artificial intelligence claimed that it had succeeded in its mission but couldn’t follow its own rules and self-destroy as planned. Master Chief took down the robot and experienced flashes of Cortana’s memories, which were left behind like digital messages.

The control of Zeta Halo has been taken over by the Banished, led by Escharum after Atriox’s apparent demise. This change sparks a new energy in the dying Brute, who sees Master Chief as his final challenge. Meanwhile, Master Chief, accompanied by the Weapon and a hesitant Pilot, rallies scattered UNSC forces on the ring’s surface to find any surviving Spartans, while trying to evade The Hand of Atriox, Escharum’s group of elite Spartan hunters. Within the Forerunner facility known as the Conservatory, Master Chief encounters Despondent Pyre, the AI guardian of Zeta Halo. However, Despondent Pyre’s warnings are cut short when she is brutally killed by the Harbinger, a powerful alien awakened by the Banished. The Harbinger explains that her people, the Endless, were imprisoned by the Forerunners on Zeta Halo, and now seeks to join forces with the Banished to rebuild their home, the Silent Auditorium. In return, the Banished will use the repaired Halo as a tool of war against humanity.

Master Chief protects the pilot from two ruthless Spartan killers who were sent by Escharum. The Pilot reveals that he was just an ordinary engineer on board the Infinity ship when he stole a Pelican to escape the fighting. Master Chief tries to calm him down and admits his own feelings of guilt over not being able to save Cortana. Along with the Weapon, they try to stop Zeta Halo’s repair work by disabling some parts on the ring, but they can’t stop another section from being rebuilt. When a spy named Harbinger tried to hack into the Weapon, Master Chief activated a special backup plan to erase her programming. However, the Weapon resisted and shut down that plan, getting angry with Master Chief for not trusting her. After seeing a vision in which Cortana used some advanced technology to destroy a planet called Doisac, the Weapon realized she was actually a copy of Cortana and begged Master Chief to delete her so she wouldn’t become like her predecessor; however, Master Chief refused, saying he wanted to trust her. The Pilot got caught by Jega ‘Rdomnai, an Elite who was also sent by Escharum as part of the trap for Master Chief. Master Chief decided not to let that happen and sneaked into the enemy’s base, saving the Pilot while defeating Jega ‘Rdomnai and Escharum in the process.

Master Chief and his team rushed into the Auditorium to stop the Harbinger. There, they discovered that Cortana had been captured by Atriox after being restrained by the Weapon; it became clear that Atriox wanted to unlock the secrets of the ring. When this was realized, Cortana deliberately sacrificed herself, damaged the Zeta Halo, and prevented her capture from happening.

In a pre-recorded message, Cortana said goodbye to Chief and urged him to work with his new partner, the Weapon. Despite their efforts, Chief couldn’t prevent the Harbinger from contacting someone about The Endless. After the battle, the team reunited with Pilot Fernando Esparza, who had been helping them all along. The Weapon then decided to choose a name for herself.

After the credits roll, Atriox finds a way to unlock a secret door that leads to the mysterious realm known as the Endless. If you complete the game on the hardest level, a special scene includes a conversation between Despondent Pyre and an official from a long-lost civilization about why the Endless is being kept captive. When Despondent Pyre says she can’t handle studying the Endless by herself, the official explains that a special tool has been created to help her understand it better.

In 2552, during a brutal attack by the Covenant on Earth, a young woman named Laurette Agryna hid in plain sight among the streets of London to avoid being caught by enemy forces. However, she was soon discovered by a group of fierce Brutes, but fortunately, a team of skilled Spartans saved her just in time. Years later, after the Covenant’s defeat and the mysterious disappearance of Master Chief and the UNSC Infinity, Agryna had become a respected leader, known as a Spartan Commander. With the help of Cortana’s previous attack on Laconia Station, which left both Master Chief and the UNSC Infinity unaccounted for, Agryna began to train an all-new team of Spartans from scratch. She also set up new training facilities in secret locations, such as a specialized academy called the Avery J. Johnson Academy of Military Science.

During a secret mission to an old UNSC shipyard on the planet Camber, two Spartans named Sigrid Eklund and Hieu Dinh stumbled upon something unexpected – a powerful artificial intelligence created by the Banished, known as Iratus. When they were discovered by the Banished, Eklund and Dinh had to quickly take over a Phantom jet to escape. However, Iratus wouldn’t give up easily and chased after them, trying to lock down the plane’s controls. To regain control of the Phantom, Dinh let Iratus infect his brain-computer interface, leaving him temporarily unable to move or think.

When they returned to their base, Eklund told her commander, Agryna, about their encounter with Iratus. Meanwhile, Agryna was coming up with a plan to remove the AI from Dinh’s system without harming him. But Iratus had other plans and started making Dinh relive the worst memories of Operation: Interior Exile – a failed UNSC mission that went terribly wrong and cost many lives. In the end, Agryna’s plan worked, and she successfully removed Iratus from Dinh’s brain, saving his life in the process.

After capturing Iratus, Agryna starts getting her Spartan recruits ready for a bigger fight against the Banished. At the Academy’s target practice range, Eklund worries about Dinh’s state of mind after what happened on Camber, but Dinh tells her that she and Agryna don’t need to be concerned. Later on, Dinh teams up with an unknown Spartan recruit and discovers a hidden entrance to a secret underground base built by the Office of Naval Intelligence at the beginning of humanity’s war against the Covenant. Dinh shares this information with the new recruit, revealing how he got his first set of UNSC armor from there. But then it clicks – Iratus might have been trying to figure out where the ONI base was hidden so he could get inside himself. Soon after, Iratus takes control of the base’s power systems; he declares that all its secrets now belong to the Banished and gets his hands on some SPI armor.

343 Industries, which specializes in game development, created Halo 4 (2012) and Halo 5: Guardians (2015). These games are part of “Reclaimer Saga”, an initial plan to make three games together. Later, 343 Industries made Halo Infinite with the help of several other companies like SkyBox Labs, Sperasoft, The Coalition, Certain Affinity, and Atomhawk.

The studio experimented with the concept of turning Halo into an open-world game. They drew inspiration from other popular video games, such as The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, to create a large, open area where players could freely explore and play the game in any order they chose.

Although people generally liked Halo 5, some fans were unhappy with how little time they spent playing as the main character, Master Chief. The game’s makers said that from now on, they would focus more on this person and make him an even bigger part of the story.

The game uses the new Slipspace Engine, which was developed by Paul Crocker, who also worked as an associate creative director on the campaign. The artists behind the game were Justin Dinges and Nicolas Bouvier. The multiplayer part of the game was directed by Tom French, who was in charge of multiplayer at 343 Industries, along with Pierre Hintze, who led the project and was also in charge of multiplayer. To build the Slipspace Engine, the developers used a basic development tool called Faber, which had been around since the early 2000s and was originally created for Bungie’s Halo games. However, using this outdated tool caused coding problems at 343 Industries, which became known as technical debt. The studio also relied heavily on hiring temporary workers to do the job, with some estimates suggesting that they made up half of the entire staff. Unfortunately, Microsoft has a policy limiting contract workers to keeping their jobs for only 18 months, causing the number of temporary workers at 343 Industries to dwindle over time.

Halo Infinite faced more problems during its development stage. The game experienced some internal issues for quite a while; the team was divided into separate groups, and trying to finish the game and making decisions caused multiple versions of the game to be worked on at once. By summer 2019, about two-thirds of the planned content had been cut, which significantly changed the original plan. Despite this, it became clear that meeting the November 2020 launch date for the Xbox Series X/S was not possible. In August 2019, development director Frank O’Connor said that Halo Infinite is being developed to look and play great on Xbox One, but it will have better features when played on the new Xbox console.

The big reveal for Halo Infinite’s gameplay came on July 23, 2020, and many gamers weren’t happy with how it looked. This made some changes to the game’s development team. Later on August 27, 2020, 343 Industries said that Joseph Staten, who used to be in charge of writing and directing movies for Halo back when Bungie was running the show, had joined their team as the leader of a project focused on Halo Infinite. A few weeks later, they announced that Staten’s role had changed again and he was now in charge of all creative stuff for Halo Infinite. Staten convinced Microsoft to delay the game until 2021 so it would be ready to launch properly instead of rushing out. He made a list of reasons why this change was a good idea, and when it happened, new features were added to make the game better, including improved graphics. On October 28, 2020, some news came out that the person who used to run the entire studio – now not working on Halo Infinite anymore – had left their job.

Halo Infinite had originally planned to include split-screen campaign co-op as a response to the complaints about its removal from Halo 5: Guardians, but it got postponed several times and then canceled by September 2022. The game allows players to play together across different platforms, like Xbox and Windows, using cross-platform play and saving their progress together on those platforms. Later, in November 2022, a big update was added called the Winter Update that included features like playing old missions again through an in-game tool called TACMAP, which wasn’t available when the game came out.

The music for Halo Infinite was created by working together between several musicians, including Gareth Coker, Curtis Schweitzer, Joel Corelitz, Alex Bhore, and Eternal Time & Space. This group was guided by the music supervisor from 343 Industries, named Joel Yarger. The soundtrack for the game was released in two parts, one with music for the main campaign and another with music for the multiplayer part of the game. A third album was released later, containing songs created specifically for the game’s extra seasons after it launched.

The release of Halo Infinite was made official at E3 2018 with a trailer, and the game’s release date had already been set for Xbox One and Windows back then. At that time, the developer confirmed that all the scenes shown in the trailer were actually running inside the game engine. When it came to E3 2018, the company also announced plans for a beta test before the game’s official launch, which they called an “insider flight program”.

In June 2019, during the E3 event, Halo Infinite was officially announced to be part of the next-generation Xbox consoles’ launch lineup. By January 2020, Microsoft’s top gaming executive Matt Booty revealed that their studio didn’t have any plans for exclusive games on the new Xbox Series X at its initial release. Instead, they were going to make older hardware compatible with the new console later down the line, similar to how PC gamers do with newer systems. The COVID-19 pandemic shifted all work online, forcing developers to collaborate remotely. After the Xbox Games Showcase in July 2020, Chris Lee from 343 Industries stated that a public beta test for Halo Infinite was probably not possible due to the ongoing health crisis, even though Microsoft had promised one before at E3 2018. However, the game’s developer mentioned that an update adding ray tracing capabilities would be free for players after launch. Then, on July 31, 2020, it was revealed that the multiplayer aspect of the game would become a completely free-to-play experience.

On August 11, 2020, Microsoft revealed that the game had been pushed back to sometime in 2021 due to several challenges affecting its development, including the COVID-19 pandemic. The company initially planned to split the game into different parts but ultimately decided against it. It was also reported that 343 Industries, the team behind Halo Infinite, was relying heavily on external developers to help with the game’s creation, which caused some problems and likely contributed to the delay. In a statement to IGN, a representative from 343 Industries denied any connection between the TV show’s development and the delays in Halo Infinite’s release. However, IGN pointed out that “the spokesperson did not address the claim made by other sources that a significant portion of the game is being worked on by third-party contractors.” Later in December 2020, 343 Industries confirmed that Halo Infinite would be released later than expected and gave an official date for its release as December 8, 2021.

A special test for the multiplayer part of the game happened from July 29 to August 2, 2021. Some people who were part of a special group called the Halo Insider Program got to play against computer players on three different maps in teams of four. On August 20, 2021, it was announced that this game would not have co-op mode with campaigns like other games in the series. It was also said that the “Forge” place where people could make their own levels and game types wouldn’t be available when the game came out. Then on August 25, 2021, it was revealed that the new game called Infinite would come out on December 8, 2021. Before the game came out, there were more tests that started on September 23-26 and ended on October 3. The first test focused on four players against each other in a team of four, while the second test was about 12 players against each other on a big map called Fragmentation.

On October 25, 2021, 343 Industries shared a new video that showed off the game’s campaign mode for the very first time since its release in July 2020 was met with negative reviews; this footage gave players an early look at some previously unknown parts of the gameplay and storyline.

On November 15, 2021, a free trial for Halo Infinite’s multiplayer mode became available on Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S to mark the 20th anniversary of the Xbox and Halo series. The full game was then produced and shipped by the manufacturer by November 19, 2021. Finally, Halo Infinite officially launched on December 8, 2021.

Marketing As the big gaming event E3 2020 was cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic, Microsoft showed us some exciting gameplay from their new game Halo Infinite through a live stream. On June 24, 2020, the official Halo YouTube channel shared a short teaser video called “SIGNAL DETECTED. TAG DESIGNATION: FOE”, which included a mysterious voice that sounds like one of the bad guys from Halo Wars 2.

In addition to game-related promotions, other companies got involved by offering special merchandise. One example was a Monster Energy Drink with a flavor inspired by a “Moa burger” snack from Pringles, and another item was Dr. Squatch’s “Spartan Soap”. Players could earn cool in-game items like skins for their weapons, custom names on their avatars, and other decorations for their gear. To make the experience even more exciting, there were several special augmented reality activities available through Snapchat as part of this promotion.

Coinciding with Infinite’s gameplay reveal, a trailer called “Step Inside” was released, created by 215 McCann, who had also worked on another campaign for Halo 3 called “Believe”. The short video featured Master Chief’s armor being built and marked the beginning of a larger marketing effort, titled “Become”, which explored how everyday people in the Halo universe contribute to the events of the games.

At the E3 2021 event, Microsoft released two exciting video clips about their upcoming game. One showed off some of the gameplay for the co-op part of the game, while the other provided a sneak peek at the overall story.

On August 25, 2021, a computer-generated image video teaser for the online game Infinite was shown to the public, showing the history behind its newest character, Commander Agryna, who lives in a city that has been taken over.

To match its new release, Microsoft developed an Infinite-themed gaming console and Elite Wireless Controller. The company also created special accessories like hard drives, keyboards, mice, and graphics cards with limited Halo designs.

Reception Pre-release A screenshot from the gameplay reveal in July 2020, showing a Brute being attacked

When Halo Infinite’s campaign gameplay was revealed on July 23, 2020, many people were unhappy with its graphics and performance. Eurogamer said that the game looked cheap and unimpressive, like it was made with blocks instead of real graphics. They also thought it didn’t feel realistic, which made them worry that it wouldn’t be a great game.

Xbox marketing manager Aaron Greenberg explained why the game might not look so good: “We’re in the middle of a big pandemic, and we’re still working on getting everything ready for launch.” He said that the final version would be much better and that he wanted people to see how cool it would look. Dan Chosich, who helped make the story part of the game, tweeted: “I want you to know that your voice matters and is heard […] I strive to live up to the amazing work that Bungie started.”

A picture from a game showing a Brute character with a serious face became popular online and was nicknamed “Craig” by internet users. The people who make games, 343 Industries, liked this image so much that their community director, Brian Jarrard, started to share it too. When 343 Industries released some new gameplay videos just before the release of Halo Infinite, they included pictures that showed how much better the character “Craig” looked compared to before. The people who worked on creating the game thought this was a big improvement, called a “glow-up”. Because of how well-received “Craig” was, the developers got more time to finish making the Brute characters and make sure they were okay with them. As a fun surprise, Halo Infinite’s campaign included an Easter egg that referenced “Craig”.

In October 2020, 343 Industries made some big changes to how players customize their characters in Halo Infinite. Instead of using primary and secondary colors like before, they introduced a new system called “coatings” that use patterns and markings to show off different looks. This change was meant to let players express themselves more easily. The plan is for coatings to be available both for free and through special purchases made with money or other rewards. However, many fans and critics didn’t like this idea because they thought it would make the game feel unfair to those who couldn’t afford to buy extra things. John Junyszek, a person in charge of talking to the Halo community at 343 Industries, explained that coatings would allow for more variety and detail, but promised that other ways to get them would be available too as special bonuses.

Unlike when the game was first shown, Halo Infinite’s multiplayer beta that came out in August 2021 got positive feedback, especially for how it made the gameplay better. Many people were happy with how the multiplayer mode worked, but some were unhappy with its reward system, called the Battle Pass. The problem with the Battle Pass was that players didn’t get rewards quickly enough, so the game’s makers changed the way the rewards are given to make progress faster.

Critical reception for Halo Infinite was mostly positive. Critics on review website Metacritic gave it high marks, indicating that most reviewers thought the game was good. Some critics described Halo Infinite as a completely new and exciting experience with the popular video game series. Another gaming magazine said this particular installment was one of the best in a long time.

TechRadar called Halo Infinite “a triumph” because it has a captivating story and gameplay that will appeal to both old fans and newcomers. They said the game was made by 343 Industries in a way that will keep veteran players engaged and inspire new ones. IGN thinks the Halo series is still one of the best action games, especially its single-player campaign and multiplayer mode. However, they felt that the rewards earned in the multiplayer’s Battle Pass were not very impressive. Other people liked how the game uses open-world design and gives players more freedom to explore certain areas. A GameSpot editor named Jordan Ramée thought the new “grappleshot” feature was cool, as well as the single-player progression system which makes it rewarding to play through the story.

PCMag gave high praise for the soundtrack, saying it offered a great balance of different sounds. They liked how the music made you feel like you were on an adventure and also kept you engaged during battles. PCGamesN loved the variety of guns in the game and thought that switching between them was always exciting.

However, not all critics were impressed with the level design. Some felt it reminded them too much of Halo: Combat Evolved’s mission and didn’t stand out as well as other maps. But some still enjoyed the way the world looked, even if they had some issues with the story. Rock Paper Shotgun liked how the game was set up, but thought that the plot was held back by older games in the series.

In particular, they felt that “Halo: Combat Evolved” and its more recent iteration, “Halo 3,” did a better job with their level designs compared to this game’s.

The game won Game Informer’s top award for best game of the year.

By the start of 2022, more than 20 million people were playing Halo Infinite.