Halo Infinite: Will It Exceed Expectations?

In this Slogging post, the team at HackerNoon discuss the upcoming Halo game, Halo Infinite. We talk about what we think of the game and whether we think it is up to scratch. We also discuss what we want from the game when it releases.

This Slogging thread by Jack Boreham, Blake Cram, Limarc Ambalina, Jose Hernandez and Nicolas Ng occurred in slogging's official #gaming channel, and has been edited for readability.

Halo Infinite has seen development troubles. After seeing the recent campaign trailer, do you think it is up to scratch? What do you want from the new game? Here's the trailer

I feel like Halo's story is like the show 24. It was pretty epic at first, but there's only so many times I can buy into Kiefer Sutherland or Master Chief saving the world again. The Halo campaigns main draw for me has more been the fun of playing co-op or the challenge of a legendary solo run. I think the good stories have already been told in the Bungie made Halo games, and I'm not convinced by this trailer 343 is going to finally make a great campaign. It's looking pretty cheesy so far. I'm hoping the grappling hook and open-ish world are fun, but I'm not sure it's going to be enough to make Halo Infinite the huge hit Xbox needs it to be. I haven't cared about a Halo game since Reach, and I don't think this will reel me back in.

Sorry I’ve been a bit out of the loop. Is Halo Infinite a separate story? OR is this a continuation of the main series? I stopped playing campaigns after Halo 3 :rolling_on_the_floor_laughing:

Blake Cram, yeah, I agree the stories haven't been quite there since Halo 3. It's the same old same old. I'm hoping the open world makes Halo fresh. But I do agree. I don't think it will be the hit Xbox wants just simply due to the unreal hype. How about the multiplayer? Did you play the multiplayer and enjoy it? Limarc Ambalina, haha, so yeah, it's the sixth game in the series, following Masterchief as he seeks to find out why Cortana has become the bad guy. Did you enjoy the campaigns? Why did you stop playing?

Jack Boreham, I think the multiplayer will be the Infinite’s saving grace in terms of quality and recouping investment. I fell off the competitive shooter wagon hard ago, but I played Halo’s multiplayer until Halo 4 and enjoyed it. They have a good thing going, and I don't think that part of the game is going to suffer. I'm way past my prime, though, so I'll probably just dip my toes into the multiplayer and see how badly I get destroyed. People have gotten so good at shooters now… 😰 Jack Boreham Limarc Ambalina. I'm curious what you all think. With this game being on GamePass day 1, will that help or hurt it? If that campaign or multiplayer isn't amazing, will enough people buy it? And with so many easy free or cheap GamePass subs, will they get enough people to stick around?

Blake Cram, hahaha, I agree. Same here. I always get my ass beat on halo multiplayer, although it's a lot of fun. I think it will definitely benefit it. The game has seen a tough development cycle and delays; free on games pass means people can look past previous issues and pick up the game. Likewise, even people who don't know much about Halo can play it for free, increasing its player base. Nicolas Ng and Jose Hernandez, you guys are big fans of halo; what do you think?

I was never super into Halo's story or campaign. What drew me to Halo was its multiplayer mode, and I'm happy that Infinite's multiplayer will be free-to-play. It gives new players a chance to play the game, and it gives old players a chance to revisit the franchise.

I love Halo enough to be interested in what's gonna happen. After having read the novel Shadows of Reach, which leads up to this game, and just wondering what the hell is going on with Cortana's AI rebellion, what's going on with the Infinity and what the Banished are doing over on the ring, I'm just excited to see what's going on. I don't care for the multiplayer but, this Campaign is probably a chance to play the Chief in something other point-a-to-b missions and something a little more open-ended.

Plus, the Weapon is adorable, and I want to see more of those interactions.

Jose Hernandez. Loving the contrasts here. So for you, what would say would be a standout feature for multiplayer to blow your mind. Any tips for getting good at it? Nicolas Ng, I prefer the story as well. Any predictions as to why Cortana is acting the way she is? Is there a particular story beat that would make you lose your mind?

Agree with Blake Cram I think in order for it to compete with other games right now, the multiplayer has to be superb. When Halo was king, there honestly weren’t that many options to choose from. Many triple-a studios have multiplayer shooters maintaining millions of users a month: Valorant, COD Warzone, Apex Legends, Fortnite, etc. It’s a different world now, and Halo has to adapt to it.

I couldn't agree more. Limarc Ambalina, will you pick up Halo Infinite? Anything that could draw you back in?

Honestly, for someone my age, it has to be multiplayer. What would draw me back in is friends saying, "let's play Halo instead of Valorant". The games I play are largely based on what is popular amongst my friends. So Halo needs to find a way to compete with the multiplayer games that own the market right now.

That's very true. Halo needs to compete with the head honchos of multiplayer. Jose Hernandez Blake Cram Nicolas Ng Limarc Ambalina if Halo infinite fails to meet expectations or is just a bad game. Do you think 343 studios should be replaced as developers of the Halo games?

I would be very surprised if it is that bad to warrant replacing a studio. If it's “pretty good” and meets sales expectations ( which I have a feeling will work just because of Halo’s draw), I don't see them making a change. With the success of GamePass, I don't think they are necessarily going for home runs like Sony and Nintendo need to with their first-party games. It seems like they want more folks in that Xbox ecosystem. But if they want it to be that home run first-party game, I don't think it’s necessarily the developer. I think you have to reimagine what that world/story is to make it fresh. I'd be way more interested in playing more of an arbiter type story like in Halo 2 or following other characters like in Reach and ODST.

Agreed with Blake. It can’t be forgotten that they’re the ones that started Halo. They know the franchise the best.