343 Industries has announced that the next update for Halo Infinite will land on May 10th. It includes Super Fiesta, a Halo 5: Guardians custom mode, which sees players spawning with upgraded equipment and unique weapons from the campaign.
It’s also adding an FPS Counter on Xbox platforms. Though good for measuring performance during a match, Forgers will probably find it the most useful since it lets them know if performance is steady on their maps. Balance changes include the Disruptor becoming more simplified – it no longer deals damage over time, and the distance its chains to players is reduced by half.
However, the Supercombine and rate of fire are being increased to compensate. Spike Grenades are also getting toned down – they’ll now release 16 flechette submunitions, but with lower AoE damage, radius and travel distance. For more details, check out some of the patch notes below.
As for the future, leaks indicate that 15 new Arena maps, two new Forge canvases, new Modes (including the return of Firefight) and much more are on the horizon. Stay tuned for more details in the meantime.
May Update Preview
Sandbox Balance Tuning
There will also be a few updates that should help to keep the sandbox in a good state until Season 4 rolls around.
Disruptor
Overall, we wanted to reduce the complexity of this weapon—which currently Supercombines, deals damage over time (DOT), slows Spartans, chain reacts to other players, etc.—while still ensuring that it could be successful in combat. The Disruptor will have an increased rate of fire and Supercombine damage, but will no longer deal DOT and its chain reaction distance will be halved.
Developer note:
The goal of this change was to reduce the complexity of the weapon’s behavior, focusing the utility on the Supercombine detonation and shock chaining and their ability to damage nearby players. By upping the direct damage from Supercombines and increasing the Rate of Fire (ROF), it leans the Disruptor more towards a combat pistol with a straightforward utility.
Changes:
- Removed Damage Over Time
- Reduced chain distance from 5 World Units (wu) to 2.5 wu
- Increased Supercombine damage from 60 to 70
- Increased ROF from 4.285 to 5 rounds per second
Spike Grenades
We noticed that with its current tuning, Spike Grenades were dealing high damage but not requiring as much precision as a Frag or Plasma Grenade. To address this, we’re bringing the behavior of Halo Infinite’s Spike Grenade more in line with Halo 3’s Spike Grenade by tightening the explosion cone and reducing the damage radius while increasing the number of flechettes.
Developer note:
The goal here was to enhance the directionality of Spikes, requiring tighter precision but better rewarding good placement. With double the flechettes, but a shorter range and tighter cone, they will cause focused, directional damage where placed. Out in the open, away from enemies, they won’t be as effective as frags. Sticking them on walls that are facing nearby enemies will inflict the highest possible damage, being lethal in one shot if a player is directly in front of (or on top of) one.
Changes:
- Increased number of flechette submunitions that are released on detonation from 8 to 16
- Reduced flechette travel distance from 5 World Units (wu) to 3.5wu
- Reduced Area of Effect (AOE) damage radius from 3.2 wu to 2 wu
- Reduced AOE damage amount from 300 damage to 160
- Adjusted flechette bounce behavior to deviate less
Dynamo Grenades
Similar to the Spike Grenade, we wanted to make sure the Dynamo Grenade was being used more deliberately during gameplay. To do this, we’ve reduced the area of effect (AOE), reduced the chain reaction distance, and removed its movement slowdown properties while slightly increasing its damage potential.
Developer note:
The goal with this change is to tighten the area of effect, requiring more thoughtful placement with a higher reward for direct hits. The previous tuning would damage enemies well outside the immediate combat area, feeling overly generous and hard to escape. With higher damage per tick, but a shorter radius, Dynamos create a more potent but contained threat. Use them in corners where enemies have no escape to cause max damage, or to force enemies away from a route.
Changes:
- Reduced shock Area of Effect (AOE) distance from 3.5 wu (World Units) to 2 wu
- Reduced shock chain distance from 5 wu to 2 wu
- Increased shock damage per burst from 18 to 21
- Removed movement stun from shock damage
- Lowered arming time from 0.65 to 0.5 seconds
- Reduced delay between shock damage pulses from 0.3 to 0.25 seconds
- Added one additional shock damage pulse at 2.5 seconds
Shroud Screen
In Ranked Arena, the Shroud Screen will be updated to have 1 charge upon pickup.
Developer note:
The goal of this change was to reduce the total impact Shroud Screen was having for high skilled players without changing the effectiveness of the equipment itself. With this change, players will be required to be more strategic with how they decide to use the Shroud Screen.