Update: Halo Infinite's co-op mode has been delayed again.
Overall I enjoyed Halo Infinite, though it did have some issues, especially where multiplayer is concerned. One of the main issues was the lack of choice in what game types you could play, since it was all randomized.
But Halo developer 343 Industries has announced that Halo Infinite’s multiplayer will be getting new playlists, and they should be arriving later today.
Ever since multiplayer launched on September 15, Halo Infinite has been stuck with four multiplayer playlists: Quick Play, Ranked Mode, the 24-player Big Team Battle, and Bot Bootcamp, which pits four players against AI combatants.
While there are multiple game types within those playlists, you don’t get to choose what to play. So if you wanted to play Slayer mode, which is all about killing enemies, you may have to sit through some games of Capture the Flag or Strongholds to get there.
Today that’s changing, with brand new playlists hitting Halo Infinite’s multiplayer mode, including a number of classic Halo games. The big news is that there will be a dedicated Slayer playlist, alongside the more tactical SWAT mode that equips players with Battle Rifles and strips them of their shields.
On top of this the game is set to get a permanent Fiesta playlist, which is a 4 vs 4 Slayer mode that randomizes what weapons and equipment you spawn with, and Free-For-All which ditches the team mechanics and means it’s every Spartan for themselves.
That should offer a bit more variety to play, especially if you prefer killing enemies to objective-based game types.
343i also confirmed that it will be removing the “particularly frustrating mode-specific” challenges from Hall Infinite’s Battle Pass progression, and “reducing some requirements for others” to make the weekly ultimate challenges “less intensive."
That’s another win for gamers, since completing challenges is the only way to level up your Spartan. Being stuck with challenges that require a specific game type to complete, and having the randomized system drop you in every mode but the one you want, is an incredibly irritating problem.
New challenges are also coming, including one involving accumulating player score. 343 claims this will be a “small initial step towards performance based XP” like previous Halo games.
The new update isn’t live just yet, or wasn’t when I checked Halo Infinite for myself, but it should be available later today. So be sure to check for updates before you try loading up multiplayer for yourself.
