A report from Bloomberg has offered some insight into Halo Infinite’s development, revealing some of the highs and lows developer 343 Industries faced during production. Apparently, 343 had considered moving to the Unreal Engine for months because of difficulties with Faber, the studio’s set of development tools. However, that didn’t end up happening. The most interesting information from the report by far, though, concerns cut content.

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Halo Infinite reportedly had an open world much more akin to Breath of the Wild. Players would have gone through non-linear missions just as they did in Nintendo’s 2017 Legend of Zelda game, exploring an open landmass all the while. It’s an interesting concept for a Halo game, being a drastic departure from series norms, but difficulties arose throughout the development cycle that made that impossible. There were staffing issues, problems with infighting, and issues with Halo Infinite’s development tools.

In the end, two-thirds of Halo Infinite ended up having to be cut, according to the report. The open world was scaled back into what fans have seen in gameplay demos and trailers, and development went into “crisis mode.” All of this happened around the summer of 2019, but the team was still trying to get Halo Infinite out alongside the Xbox Series X. There were lingering doubts about Halo Infinite’s potential, but those doubts were outweighed by the need to get it out alongside the new hardware.

However, in July 2020, the reception to Halo Infinite’s campaign demo changed some minds. Instead of releasing alongside the Xbox Series X, Halo Infinite was given a year-long delay, giving 343 Industries time to polish the project under the leadership of veteran developer Joseph Staten. Staten set out to fix some of Halo Infinite’s issues, which sometimes even meant making small tweaks. For instance, Halo Infinite’s Marines originally wouldn’t join players in their journey, instead lingering around the area they were first found. Being anti-thetical to Halo’s promise, Staten ensured Marines would follow the player.

Of course, other changes were made as well, landing Halo Infinite where it is today. While the development cycle was tumultuous, early Halo Infinite reviews indicate that the delay was well worth it.

Halo Infinite launches today for PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.

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