Halo Infinite is Having Serious Issues Delivering on Its Live Service Promise

Halo Infinite has been under development since mid-2018, and it will be released at the end of 2021. Due to a year-long postponement from 2020, it took longer than intended, but early multiplayer tests and final campaign footage kept fans interested. In November 2021, Halo Infinite’s free-to-play multiplayer launched, followed by the campaign in December. With a new pricing plan and cross-play for Halo’s popular multiplayer suite, it appeared to be the long-awaited franchise rebirth.

The honeymoon period, however, was brief. The campaign was adequate in its treatment of players, although it felt like a stepping stone to the game’s next major plot arc. Many fans have expressed their dissatisfaction with the fact that Halo’s legendary campaign co-op is still missing.

That, however, pales in comparison to the debate surrounding the game’s multiplayer. Despite the long wait for Halo Infinite’s release, a slew of complaints about the free game arose fast, and 343 Industries has been hesitant to address them. Despite the fact that Halo Infinite was touted as Halo’s first effort at a modern live-service game, the amount of servicing it still requires makes its chances appear bleak.

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For Halo Infinite, the live-service model has failed

One of the greatest issues with live-service approach is that it doesn’t offer anything. Major updates are only released once or twice a month, and themed content seasons continue far longer than in other games. Season 1 is still going strong more than three months after its premiere, while Season 2 isn’t set to start until May.

343 Industries has so far offered traditional playlists as well as a few special events. Improvements to the progression system have also been made, although neither the progression nor the playlists have satisfied players.

With restricted multiplayer modes, personalization, and a criticised experience advancement system, Halo Infinite got off to a bad start. Even the microtransactions that were linked to these systems were made in an unpleasant manner. Fixes have been slow to arrive, but promised features have yet to materialise.

A formal plan was supposed to be released a few months into Season 1, but it never happened. The list of Halo Infinite’s broken promises is growing, and now that campaign co-op is slated for a mid-Season 2 release, it feels like the game was released too soon.

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