As important as the campaign is in any new Halo game, the multiplayer is what keeps players around for months and years after launch. Halo Infinite’s campaign reveal didn’t go as per launch last year, but recently, we got our first look at the upcoming shooter’s free to play multiplayer component in action, followed by a bunch of new details being revealed by developer 343 Industries in a meaty overview video. Here, we’re going to go over the biggest details you should know about Halo Infinite’s multiplayer.
ARMOUR CUSTOMIZATION
343 Industries are putting quite a bit of emphasis on cosmetic customization in Halo Infinite. According to live design director Ryan Paradis, the game’s going to have “millions of customization combinations.” Specifically where armour is concerned, there’s a wide range of options available, across everything from armour coating to emblems to various effects, while armour can also be customized across different components, including your visor, helmet, shoulders, gloves, and more. Different body types and voices can also be selected, as well as a personal AI, which will have its own unique look and personality that will offer various pointers.
MORE CUSTOMIZATION DETAILS
It’s not just armour that’s going to have a bunch of customization options available. You can also expect different skins for weapons and vehicles. 343 Industries also confirms that a bulk of the customizations in the game can only be unlocked in-game through gameplay. Exactly what the percentage of that is going to be hasn’t yet been detailed, but 343 definitely seems to be promising a whole host of cosmetic customization options and combinations available, so players should hopefully have more than enough to look forward to and work towards.
GRAPPLESHOT
The grappling hook, called the Grappleshot in the game, was revealed in Halo Infinite’s less-than-stellar campaign gameplay reveal last year, but how exactly is that going to function in the multiplayer mode? Well, about how you’d expect. In addition to making you much more mobile and agile across maps, the Grappleshot will also let you grab and pull objects towards you, such as weapons and objects that can be thrown at other players. And yes, unlike in the campaign, the Grappleshot will have limited charges, so you can’t go spamming it.
EQUIPMENT AND ITEMS
The Grappleshot is not the only piece of equipment that’ll be available to you, of course. Other pieces of equipment that have been confirmed so far is the Repulsor, which reflects incoming bullets and projectiles; the Threat Sensor, which acquires targets for you; and the Drop Shield, which, true to its name, drops an energy shield in front of you. And of course, items and equipment dropped by you can also be picked up by other players and used whenever they want. Meanwhile, the Overshield now serves as an inventory item.
WEAPONS
Halo Infinite is obviously also going to have more than a few weapons for you to use. The likes of the battle rifle, plasma pistol, assault rifle, and plasma grenades have all been confirmed, while we can also expect some new and unfamiliar weapons as well. The multiplayer gameplay that was recently shown off, for instance, teased a new plasma canon. Meanwhile, 343 Industries has also sadly confirmed that right now, there are no plans to add dual wielding to the game at launch, though the feature might be added in following release, so let’s keep our fingers crossed for that.
VEHICLES
Vehicles are a crucial element of the Halo multiplayer experience, and so they will be in Halo Infinite as well. The classics are coming back, of course, and vehicle damage has also been confirmed, so attacking vehicles in a more tactical manner rather than just wailing away at it is going to be rewarded. Vehicles and weapon pods will be dropped by Pelicans during matches, while a new Razorback weapon has also been confirmed, which is a Warthog cousin and lets you attaching everything from flags and guns to it. Exactly how many vehicles are going to be in the game remains to be seen, but the details revealed so far are encouraging.
ACADEMY
Halo Infinite is also adding bots, which quite a few players will be very happy about. Bots are reserved to a separate mode, called the Academy. Along with having tutorials and weapon drills to ease newcomers in, the Academy will also let you customize the skill level of bot, so it should offer a much more robust experience. Additionally, the Academy is going to be set in a separate map all of its own. Presumably, 343 Industries is expecting that many new players will be coming into Halo Infinite, especially thanks to its multiplayer’s free-to-play nature, so the Academy should definitely help out.
POST-LAUNCH
343 Industries has previously said that they see Halo Infinite as a platform that they plan to keep building on and adding to for as long as a decade. The multiplayer is obviously going to be the key driver for that kind of live service approach. And though the developers haven’t yet given specific updates on post-launch support, they have said that they’re going to keep tweaking things based on feedback for players, while they’ll also be adding new maps, customization options, modes, and more to the game in new seasons.
NO LOOT BOXES
How a multiplayer game is going to be monetized is often the first thing people think about these days, and especially when that game is free-to-play, the way Halo Infinite’s multiplayer is. Thankfully, it seems like 343 Industries is making good decisions in this area. Halo Infinite isn’t going to have loot boxes or randomized microtransactions of any sort- if you buy something with real money, you know exactly what you’re going to get. Meanwhile, all microtransactions will, of course, be purely cosmetic.
BATTLE PASSES
That Halo Infinite will have battle passes is something that’s been known for for a while now (honestly, what multiplayer game doesn’t have battle passes these days?). 343 Industries are doing things a little differently, however. Each season will bring a new battle pass with multiple tiers to work your way through, of course, but crucially, in Halo Infinite, previous battle passes won’t expire. Battle passes from older seasons will always be available for purchase, and players will be able to choose which battle pass they want to focus on, which means progression promises to be more robust and have more options available.