Game Title: Halo Infinite
Platforms:
PC (Dec 8, 2021)
Xbox One (Dec 8, 2021)
Xbox Series X/S (Dec 8, 2021)
Trailers:
Developer: 343 Industries
Publisher: Xbox Game Studios
Review Aggregator:
OpenCritic - 86 average - 94% recommended - 93 reviews
AltChar - Adnan Kljajić - 8 / 10
Halo Infinite multiplayer is truly a love letter to old school shooters and a proper return to the qualities that originally made the series famous. Whether you are looking for smaller, more organised, matches or all-out warfare with vehicles, you have a lot to enjoy in this game.
Areajugones - Alfonso Cánovas - Spanish - 9.2 / 10
Halo Infinite's compendium is a remarkable one, a game that excels in all areas and that properly shows the hard work that 343 Industries has put in the game. The campaign is cool and the multiplayer is lots of fun, so all in all John 117's first appearance in the next-gen is a fantastic one.
AusGamers - KostaAndreadis - 8 / 10
In the end though it’s hard to fault what 343 Industries has accomplished with Halo Infinite. It’s very much the spiritual successor it purports to be -- with forward thinking design and elements that flow in a way that reminds you of the timeless nature of the fluid, stylish combat of old. The lack of co-op is something you feel, but in terms of cinematic spectacle this is the Master Chief carrying the flag once more for Xbox. Albeit in that new-school form of being able to jump in and, well, play anywhere.
CGMagazine - Khari Taylor - 9.5 / 10
Unencumbered by the baggage of the upcoming story campaign, Halo Infinite Multiplayer is arguably the definitive incarnation of the franchise’s online competitive component and is strong enough to stand on its own despite its F2P leanings.
COGconnected - Garrett Drake - 76 / 100
I’ve shared many gripes I have with Halo Infinite. I’ve shared them meticulously because I love this franchise and want it to continue succeeding. Beyond them all, I absolutely love playing it. The campaign’s open-world gameplay is phenomenal, and I can’t wait to play through it again on legendary, especially with a friend in the future. Despite my disappointment in the narrative, the lead performances are strong, and the presentation is cinematic. I’ve been playing Halo multiplayer with my friends for nearly twenty years. We’ve kept up with the Master Chief Collection over the years, but Infinite is the most addicted we’ve been in a long time. It’s far from perfect, but I can’t wait to see how Halo Infinite evolves over the coming months and years.
Cerealkillerz - Gabriel Bogdan - German - 8.9 / 10
Halo Infinite doesn't offer all of its content at launch but shines already with a solid campaign, new innovative gameplay ideas and an expansive open world that will satisfy fans of the series. A few generic and unimaginative elements tarnish the whole package but besides these small missteps, one of the most innovative games of the series wait here for oldschool Halo Fans as well as newcomers.
Checkpoint Gaming - Omi Koulas - 8 / 10
Master Chief is back and better than ever. Halo Infinite introduces open-world elements that don’t distract from the main story and add value to its replayability and memorable action. Even with the inclusion of the thrilling Grappleshot, the gameplay still maintains its signature feel. Multiplayer may need a lot of finetuning, but it costs nothing to play and provides plenty of frantic fun for a group of friends and solo players. With more features and additions to come, Halo Infinite isn’t slowing down… No. I think we’re just getting started.
Console Creatures - Bobby Pashalidis - Recommended
Despite the odds, Halo Infinite is not only spiritually rebooted, but delivered with love in spades. From its personal & emotional delivery of Master Chief’s story to the mystery & exploration of Zeta Halo, it is not to be missed.
DVS Gaming - Shinobi - 9 / 10
Halo Infinite is a successful launch and made a huge comeback despite the negativity. It is one of the best first-player shooters I have played this year and really built upon what the franchise has to offer. Despite some issues and poor level design I overall am extremely enjoying the game and I can’t wait for the campaign to release.
Destructoid - Chris Carter - 9 / 10
If I had one piece of advice for people on the fence with Halo Infinite, it would be to not worry about the open world and embrace how it’s handled here. I was incredibly worried at first that 343 wouldn’t be able to resist the siren’s song of other major publishers, but the restraint here is appreciated. This is an extremely 2021 Halo, and I think it’s going to win over both lapsed players and diehards.
Digital Trends - Giovanni Colantonio - 4 / 5 stars
Halo Infinite isn't going to reinvent the shooter genre, but it's a fun solo and multiplayer experience that can only get better with time.
EGM - Michael Goroff - 8 / 10
Halo Infinite handles the burden of the franchise's long history gracefully. At times, as with the campaign's story, it can feel like developer 343 Industries is weighed down by Master Chief's Mjolnir armor. But Infinite's bolder design choices, like its open-world environment and Grappleshot, make it feel exciting and new. The multiplayer might play it a little safe to appease longtime fans, but if the worst thing you can say about it is that it feels like old-school Halo, then it's doing something right. It's Halo made for Halo fans, but there's enough novelty to keep it feeling fresh.
Echo Boomer - David Fialho - Portuguese - Unscored
The biggest Halo ever is also the safest, more focused on its cast of characters than the grandiose galactic adventure of it's predecessors.
Enternity.gr - Christos Chatzisavvas - Greek - 9 / 10
Halo Infinite is the Master's triumphant return in every way
Eurogamer - Wesley Yin-Poole - No Recommendation / Blank
This is the main reason why I jumped straight back into Halo Infinite's campaign after I finished it. Somewhere between those map icons is tantalising mystery, and that's what Silent Cartographer was all about, wasn't it? Being on an alien world, not know
Thanks u/mrappbrain for putting this together. We are going to sticky it to the top of the subreddit for now so everyone get see all the reviews gathered.
Can’t we technically play tomorrow if we all “move” to New Zealand?
How often do games drop on a Wednesday? I forgot the 8th is in two days and not tomorrow.
The game is currently sitting at an 87 on Metacritic, which uses a weighted average.
Seems to be highly positive reviews all around, with multiple publications calling it a stellar return to form. Can't wait to try it out in a few days!
Idk if anything is diff than mcc but I'm having a lot of fun past few days on infinite. Feels like halo 2 days from so long ago
Can you help me here? I thought everyone on gamepass could play the beta? So is this a different version releasing? I am so confused this morning. I really need more sleep.
The multiplayer is so addicting. Once the kinks get ironed out with customization and progression, it will be near perfection for me. And now the campaign is sitting at an 87 (compared to 5’s 84)?
Future of Halo is looking super bright. They absolutely nailed the moment-to-moment gunplay. All they have to do is add content/DLC consistently to both MP and the campaign.
Reviews are looking great so far. Seems like a return to classic Halo with many improvements.
can’t wait to play it for myself, as a science fiction fan I love the halo universe
The no co-op at release is pretty ridiculous. Thank god for game pass.
Wow Microsoft Game Studios put out some bangers in thd 2nd half this year. Flight Sim, Psychonauts 2, Age of Empires IV, Forza 5, and Halo.
Edit: Deathloop too thanks /u/ebodur
The fact that Psychonauts 2, Forza, It Takes Two, Back 4 Blood, Halo Infinite all are on Gamepass is incredible, best time to be a gamer.
Just bought deathloop, it's really good! It was 50% off on the black Friday sale, and was a STEAL for how much fun I've had with it.
I mean death loop was pretty much done by the time microsoft acquired bungie so they had nothing to do with making it, its not even on the xbox for now.
87 on Metacritic, another banger on our hands! Yes - some people will be disappointed it isnt 90+ but this is easily going to be 343’s best Halo yet
It's not a 90+ because of the missing co-op and forge.
The game plays amazing man. I can see myself playing Halo for years.
this is easily going to be 343’s best Halo yet
I would hope so
I’m fine with it being not being a 90+. People really only hold Xbox to that weird standard. They’ll say “they don’t have anything that isn’t 90+ average” but they’ll say Ghost of Tsushima and Spiderman are must have games. I’m not saying they aren’t, just pointing out the weird double standard.
Notice the drawbacks are skewed to perception. If you're a Halo fan and into the lore, those people are enjoying the story. Those that aren't very familiar ding on story. Game getting very great reviews. Can't wait
And even that isn’t really a fair comparison. This is the 6th mainline Chief game and like the 9th counting the side games. If you didn’t keep up with what is all happening the past 20 years and expecting to jump in understanding all of this, that’s pretty much on them.
The Chief collection is right there!
Lonely guy loves a computer program too much and shoots aliens/robots/zombies. That's all you NEED to know to play although there is more to it then that.
Count me in the "it feels like Halo 2" camp. As someone who really skipped 5, Infinite has been so much fun. I really can't wait to jump into that campaign.
IGN’s Ryan McCaffrey review was the one that would make it or break it for me (I mean, I would always try Halo Infinite regardless since it’s on gamepass and its Halo). He gave it a 9 out of 10 with some really good insight into what is great, and not so great about the game (mostly the single environment type, and the story in some regards). Overall I’m pretty confident that it will be great to go back to Halo!
I'm looking forward to it too. The story can't be worse then Halo 5 (hopefully 🤞)
Is there a pre-load for the Campaign? Thus far all I have is the ~28GB multiplayer installed. I assume the Campaign is bigger?
I'll come off nightshift and finish my rotation for 4 and a half days on the day Halo Infinite drops.
I am buzzing to just blast it haha.
Pc gammer gives this a 78 but battlefield a 80. So funny to me.
And of course, people on r/Halo are laser focusing on the negatives lol
I don't have time for fight over cosmetics. The MP feels absolutely smooth and shooting feels so good.
Most stuff on r/halo lately is to do with the multiplayer. Barely anything regarding the single player on there
Seems pretty consistent with where I would place it.
From a gameplay perspective, it's a near-perfect shooter. Customization and playlist selection are really the only issues. I just hope the campaign lives up to the hype and is as good as some people have been saying it is.
This is a review thread for the campaign. I agree with you on the multiplayer though
To clarify for those who don't know, this is a tech review. Digital Foundry focuses specifically on graphics and performance, only mentioning gameplay in passing, if at all.
I tried to watch it, but they're always the nit-pickiest reviews out there. "The sparks in CE were better than the sparks when calling in vehicles in Infinite, and that's a disappointment"
Halo 2 felt like a national holiday when it came out. God I think I waited in line for hours just to get a copy.
Lots of /halo trolls are going to be crying themselves to sleep tonight. Universally praised multiplayer, universally praised singleplayer, the suicide hotline will be busy this week.
Not really no. The PC and Xbox average is around 85. That's just slightly higher than Halo 5.
Multiplayer-wise the actual gameplay is seriously 9.5/10. I’d like to see a couple of guns get a buff, and custom playlists added, but other than that can’t think of any other critiques to the gameplay itself.
Some of the other complaints regarding the monetization and progression system are simultaneously valid, yet extremely overblown. There’s definitely room to improve there, and I think 343 will.
The progression is still fairly slow, and challenges feel very grind-y…even after they made changes to the system. The prices in the store are pretty insane, but there’s at least no P2W, it’s all customization that’s being monetized, so I don’t really care.
Hi looking to get a Series X mainly for Halo as used to love it on the 360 years ago. Does it have local multiplayer / split screen though as would be playing it with my wife. Any info would be great!
Many thanks
For the multiplayer yes, for the campagn no, not yet. It'll come in an update next year.
It's sad that the r/halo subreddit of the Halo Infinite review thread has only one award but a lot of the "critical" posts have 50+ awards considering how well received the campaign has generally been. It's important to voice your concerns for any game but the dismissal (and negative comments) on the campaign review thread on that main subreddit is disappointing to see.
The fact that Halo and its magic is back is amazing! Sure, it may not be perfect, but for the most part it’s a success and that’s all that matters. Xbox is back in the game.
I wonder why they never made early access available. I would have happily paid.
Good riddance!!! lol
They really need to fix that. Games should unlock at the exact same time worldwide for everyone.
What has been the general consensus of what are the low points? What are the things stopping it being a 10?
What I got from ShillUps review is that gameplay is 10/10 but the story isn't that great and the environments are all very samey.
Lol, a shame that you are getting downvoted for a genuine and honest question
Seems like you can't replay story missions at all unless you start a whole new save which is a dumb omission since there are collectibles you can miss. Doesn't matter if it's open world because other games take care of this just fine.
https://www.polygon.com/22820921/halo-infinite-story-mission-replayability
Surely all the previous wonky, questionable reviews across the decades of game reviews would've broken any trust you would have
Echo Boomer - David Fialho - Portuguese - Unscored
The biggest Halo ever is also the safest, more focused on its cast of characters than the grandiose galactic adventure of it's predecessors.
This quote amused me, focusing on characters rather than upping the stakes isn’t risky, sure, but I wouldn’t call it “the safest” direction
It’s also the better story direction haha I don’t get this quote… so they rather the characters suck and make a story like Tron: Legacy (note I love Tron Legacy but the characters and story suck. It is definitely a grandiose adventure though.)
Eurogamer are so weird these days. The text of their reviews never lines up with their no recommendation/recommended/essential scoring system.
He jumped straight back into the campaign after finishing it but he can’t recommend the game to anyone?
They’re a really strange bunch of reviewers.
There's an issue they are looking into - It is recommended on the main page but not in the review, which is an error that was raised in the comments there.
It is 'recommended '.
This is because smart delivery games contain the Xbox one version of the game and the series x downloads the enhanced version
That’s a shame, I was considering buying the disc as I’m moving house and won’t have internet for a week. Guess I’ll have to tether to my phone and download it over the next couple of days
fine with me as it prevented leaks...
Maybe there is a time lock or hopefully just first run disc?
Yeah, that grassy landscape will get stale soon. But it at least explains the small download size.
This and the lack of weather is pretty disappointing for an open world game.
Downgraded from what? You mean xbox one version vs Series X, or something like that?
Delaying this game was definitely the right call. If the multiplayer is a window to what’s coming then I think there will be a lot of happy people come the 8th
Not sure if it's already been mentioned (long thread), but the Eurogamer review is actually a 'recommended' and shows as such on their main page. The review itself didn't show this and that is what opencritic picked up - the author is apparently looking into it.
Seems like the campaign story may be underwhelming, but everything else is great
Sounds promising. Halo 4 and 5 were disappointing so maybe this one will be solid. Other than some annoying things, I have enjoyed the multiplayer.
Stupid question, how do I know if campaign is installed? I have the Mp installed
Hopefully those that mention lack of coop will amend their reviews when it does release, and I hope they do a Halo Infinite in 2022 re-review when forge is out too.
IGN has a 20 minute refresher you could always watch to get caught up to speed!
Just had to send my Xbox in for repair due to HDMI issues.. won’t be able to play for a couple weeks now
Hey all, I had the chance to play through Infinite's campaign for review on PC. Here's a spoiler-free review of the same. It's a new channel so any support or feedback is appreciated.
Video link - https://youtu.be/sENrVikUH20
Written review - https://thescreenzone.com/blog/halo-infinite-campaign-review-xbox-game-pass-pc-master-chief-cortana/
EGM gave BF2042 a 10/10. I guess Microsoft didn’t throw them any lobby money for Halo.
Perfection is good to aim for, but impossible to attain. Expecting it from any game, regardless of budget and dev time is unrealistic.
https://ftw.usatoday.com/2021/12/replay-halo-infinite-story-missions
Story missions not replayable = instant remove from my buy list.
??? The trailers and the gameplay have all been fantastic, what are you on about lol
I guess it is unfair for me to expect or hope for the story to be good given that 343 hasn’t ever shown they can put out a good story and it’s hard enough to keep one going for 6 installments even if you aren’t taking over someone else’s franchise.
At least it isn’t the mess Halo 5 was. I’ll probably breeze through and forget about it like I did with 4.
The multiplayer is a smash hit which is great.
Halo 4 is Halo's best story (in a game). Halo 5 is Halo's worst story (in a game). So, at least, 343 have range.
Are these reviews for the whole campaign, or just the first 4 missions? I get that the gameplay is fun and that there's some problems with multiplayer, but the biggest thing I'm curious about is if the entire campaign is good, or if we need to wait a bit longer to hear some non-spoiler reviews for the entire game.
Man 343 just can’t seem to nail it down on the story department which is a shame since Halo under bungie was one of the shooters with an above average story every time
Bungie didn't really care about story, most of CE was written by Microsoft hires. Halo 3 has a really lacklustre story and is a worse trilogy finale for it. Reach was a clusterfuck in terms of the wider canon.
I am endlessly glad Bungie has nothing to do with the Halo story anymore.
Does this game cater to local play? Could I play with 4 controllers?
Can't even think about the campaign with how absolutely broken melee and hit reg is in multi-player
Wow this is getting downvoted to hell, can see the ticker dropping. Are PS5 people that insecure.
I’m happy with the reviews but I can’t help but feel like they should of been better. 2 or 3 metacritic points over halo 5 is good I guess I’m just being a baby
I scheduled my covid booster for the 7th. Sure, I’ll probably feel too sick to go to work anyway, but what a great way to take a day off to game lol.
Man I'm excited for this, wish I had some Mountain Dew Game Fuel to celebrate the game with.
What has been your biggest disappointment this year in games
Mine is Battlefield 2042, had high hopes for it
The fact that the Series X is backwards compatible with all of my older games is great, but what makes it even better is the fact that quite a few of those titles have better framerates, and it makes a world of difference. This weekend, I decided to play Dishonored again after previously playing it on my Xbox One back in 2019. I thought it was pretty good, but didn't feel much urge to retry it. Fast forward to last Friday where I decided to play the game again and the jump from 30 FPS to 60 FPS is such an improvement that it feels like a completely different game and I've been having an absolute blast. It's made me realize that I should really try some of my older games again with FPS boost as it really makes a world of difference. I think I might try Dying Light again soon since that's 60 FPS now
I already have an Xbox Series X (got one at launch), but I recently purchased an Xbox Series S specifically for weekend trips and such.
I couldn’t be more pleased with how it turned out. The console is super small and light, and it fit nicely into my luggage. At the hotel, plugged it in, connected to the wifi and everything was ready to go. And it delivered an experience pretty much indistinguishable from my Xbox Series X. It only has 512 GB storage, but it’s not like I need a million games on hand for a 3-night stay in a hotel room, just the three or four games I am playing that week. Just make sure to do all the updates at home the day before you leave.
That is all.
In the age of live service games, quick resume is a fantastic feature which has come at a very difficult time.
In single player, it works flawlessly. Picking up a game you thought would’ve needed a full start because you played four other games since then is a great surprise.
But live service? Not so much. In two of the console’s flagship games, Gears 5 and Halo Infinite, quick resume falls short. Halo tries to hobble along after using quick resume, but it often struggles to reconnect, usually requiring a restart, and Gears 5 is the same. Both of these games use daily/weekly challenge systems, and starting from quick resume often leaves the player seeing challenges that have already expired, once again needing restarts…
It needs to be a setting that can be toggled. It’s not fun to boot the game and then have to dashboard, taking even longer than a normal start would. Or, these games (especially Microsoft studios ones) should be more compatible and reconnect properly after using quick resume.
Edit: So lots of comments saying ‘just quit’ I know that’s how to get around it! But why wouldn’t you like the option to not have to do that for troublesome games?
Disappointed: Back 4 Blood / Surprised: Halo infinite
Left4Dead 2 was simply glorious and Back 4 Blood felt repetitive. The card attribute system feels gimmicky. Haven’t played a Halo game since Halo 3. Reach wasn’t my cup of tea so I dropped Halo and never played 4 or 5. Infinite feels great to play even though they got rid of my favorite weapon and replaced it with the inferior “bulldog”. Looking forward to seeing infinite’s online evolve and enjoying the campaign.
Luckily I never played or had hopes for 2042 otherwise that would probably be my top disappointment. Like Halo, I’ll probably stop playing battlefield for a decade.
Let me add my favorite game of 2021 is Hell Let Loose. I didn’t nominate it as my “surprised” game because I expected it to be good.
tomorrow a lot of new xbox gamers will enjoy what we seriesx/s owners have been enjoying for a year. enjoy and take it all in...and most of all have a great holidays!
Hi guys! I’m new to this sub and new to Xbox!
I’ve always been a playstation gamer and have owned ps2 to ps5 but yesterday i decided to go out on a whim and buy a Series X as i was dying to play Forza Horizon 5. Can confirm one of the most enjoyable games i’ve played!
Being new to Xbox was wondering if anyone can recommend me anything to play or do!
Thanks in advance!!
Edit : Many thanks guys for all your help and suggestions! What a great community! Much love to all ❤️
It’s on sale right now and I’m thinking of buying it. Has anyone played it?
Has this problem been hitting anyone recently? My games were working perfectly fine just minutes before.