Halo Infinite boasts a larger map than any previous game in the franchise and a long list of side quests and optional activities that can keep players busy in the solo or cooperative multiplayer mode (when it launches next year) for many hours beyond the game’s main campaign (which clocks in at a pretty typical Halo length). The new Halo ring features a map that seems ripe for post-launch content and it will be very interesting to see how the title evolves in the year to come.
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As for the core campaign experience, Halo Infinite definitely manages to breathe some fresh life into the franchise with a unique mix of linear missions and plenty of optional side quests to explore in the semi-open-world along the way. Nearly all of the game’s optional quests and objectives can be tackled either in between story missions or after those are all finished. This allows players to power through the main narrative as quickly as they like (probably around eight to ten hours for the average player on Easy or Normal difficulty) or to stretch out the experience and try to get as close to 100% completion before heading into the final story mission. The side missions offer Chief a chance to take back portions of the ring that the Banished control and pave the way for the UNSC to regain ground in a fight they have been losing for months.
Many of the Halo experience hallmarks are still present and have been updated for the new console (and PC) generation. Chief is accompanied through his mission by a new AI (see the spoilery events of Halo 4 and Guardians if the need for a Cortana replacement is confusing) and a human companion to ferry him around the new ring. The story ties heavily into the events of previous Halo games and does manage to answer many of the cliffhangers left open at the end of Guardians, while still offering enough context to make sense to new players.
The story is emotional, personal, and is very likely to end up causing a bit of divisiveness with the fanbase. Specific spoilers will be avoided here, but suffice it to say we found ourselves emotionally invested throughout the tight campaign experience and look forward to replaying it multiple times. After the credits rolled, the game’s worldbuilding also had won us over enough that we immediately jumped back into the Finish the Fight mode to go back and capture remaining FOBs (forward operating bases) and tackle other objectives that were left incomplete during our first run through. The only real frustration with the semi-open-world experience came in the form of navigation around some massive landmarks. The map is pretty large and Chief has access to plenty of vehicles if players successfully capture FOBs throughout the map, but even with those vehicles there are still sometimes frustrating obstacles that hinder access to the next desired location. The grappleshot ability does come in handy here, but even with that technology some obstacles are still far too large to scale.
Throughout the campaign, the ability rotation of grappleshot, thrusters, shield, and radar are a very fun combination of tools to play with. Players need to figure out which ability is most useful for any given encounter and sometimes quickly rotate back and forth between a few different ones as various threats approach later in the game. The only complaint about the system is that toggling between each ability can sometimes feel a bit clunky compared to ability/weapon wheels utilized in many other games. The toggle felt equally clunky on keyboard and mouse.
Although the campaign and semi-open-world experience is where many players may spend the early weeks of gameplay in Halo Infinite, the quality of its multiplayer experience is going to be crucial to the game’s staying power and legacy. Lots of players have already have a chance to experience the multiplayer thanks to the open beta and the already evolving season pass and leveling experience. It’s clear that the Infinite multiplayer experience is going to require some tweaks and adjustments along the way to optimize player incentives and to make cosmetic rewards realistically achievable for players who don’t want to drop a ton of real-world money on the system. There is already a lot of drama in the multiplayer community and it will be very interesting to see how the game continues to evolve based on user feedback on the consmetic and Battle Pass leveling.
That said, outside of season pass debates, the core gameplay does seem to be delivering what Halo fans want. A few crucial game modes were missing at the start of the beta, but those are already on the way. The existing game modes provide the expected fast-paced small and large scale battles that gamers expect from the Halo franchise.
Halo Infinite is inevitably going to see a ton of play thanks to its day one inclusion on Game Pass and the campaign is well-positioned to impress. There are plenty of mechanical, enemy, weapon, and story throwbacks for longtime fans to smirk at and the game is approachable, exciting, and endearing enough to potentially win over a whole new generation of Halo fans.
Halo Infinite releases December 8 for PC and Xbox consoles. Game Rant was provided a PC code for this review and played the game 50% on keyboard and mouse and 50% with an Xbox One controller.
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