After a year of silence, this week saw 343 Industries finally showcase the Halo Infinite campaign - and it was worth the wait. While much of the new footage was relatively familiar, with Master Chief exploring a vast open world filled with enemies to kill and outposts to conquer, it did so with a sense of mechanical fluidity and narrative confidence that the previous demo was sorely lacking.
The delay has done the game wonders, and now its single-player offering is shaping up to be something worth getting excited for. However, it’s far from what Halo used to be, but is that really a bad thing? I don't think so. Ever since Bungie abandoned the series to explore greener galactic pastures, hardcore Halo fans have constantly wished for the good ol’ days to return, failing to realise that the shooter had evolved into an experience that would never be the same again regardless of what they might hope for.
You could strive to create a linear campaign with the striking characters and expertly designed set pieces of the original trilogy, but it would risk feeling hollow - it would lack the personality that only Bungie is capable of capturing. That’s exactly what happened with Halo 4 and 5, and now 343 Industries has learned from its mistakes and opted for something infinitely (sorry) more ambitious. Halo Infinite is returning to the wide open spaces of Combat Evolved, encouraging experimental firefights and exploration that hasn’t been in the series proper since the original’s release over two decades ago.
This is the smartest decision Microsoft could have made, harkening back to the beloved classic while moving the series forward with a formula that actively encourages player choice and toying with gunplay and traversal like never before. Ever since it took up the mantle, 343 Industries has been victim to a legacy that was impossible to live up to, so now it has embraced those expectations while taking the property to places it has never been before. Halo Infinite oozes confidence because of this, with recent multiplayer tests proving that the audience adores how it combines all of the series’ tenets with bold and innovative ideas. This isn’t the original trilogy, it’s something new, and that’s exactly what I was hoping for. Yesterday’s campaign overview was a step in the right direction in so many ways.
Sure, it feels like an open world affair on a similar playing field to Horizon Zero Dawn, Far Cry, or Ghost of Tsushima, but of course it was going to feel like that. I like to consider it as Halo’s equivalent to Breath of the Wild. For years, it followed a linear and predictable formula that, while loved by millions, slowly but surely fell victim to its own stagnation. It was the king of the castle for so long that it forgot to push things forward, and thus risked falling into relative obscurity. Now it’s taken time to observe those shortcomings and reinvent itself, even if it means alienating those who have stood by them for all these years. It’s worth the risk, and the overarching reception to Halo Infinite paints a game that will meet expectations upon launch while slowly but surely surpassing them in future updates to come.
I want Halo Infinite to have a moment that matches stepping onto the ring world for the first time in Combat Evolved. I want its setting to feel vast and uncompromising, a sprawling mixture of alien fauna and architecture begging to be discovered with equal amounts of anxiety and curiosity. Whether I decide to mark icons on my map and follow them the old fashioned way or simply go with my instincts as I seek out landmarks with nothing but my eyesight, exploring Halo should be a reward in itself, whether I’m greeted with unexpected cosmetics or a firefight I manage to conquer with the skin of my teeth. Infinite with the dynamic exploration and mechanical flexibility of Breath of the Wild in a shooter format could be truly incredible, even if what I’m wishing for seems too good to be true.
But going back to my original point, I feel Halo Infinite is deliberately trying to distance itself from the original trilogy, with the exception of core characters and thematic elements that are essential to what makes this world so compelling in the first place. The campaign overview made it clear that 343 Industries isn’t abandoning the narrative threads established by The Reclaimer Trilogy - it’s addressing the disappearance of Cortana while tying in a major antagonist from Halo Wars 2. It’s leaning into lore like nobody’s business, knowing that hardcore fans will eagerly follow every single crumb of information while newcomers can delve into a game that leans into soft reboot territory just enough that anyone can jump into Halo Infinite and appreciate what it has to offer. Who knows, it could end up being a load of old rubbish, but the iconic shooter series is broaching into new territory that is long overdue, and I cannot wait to see how the full campaign shapes out later this year. Just please, please be good...