Halo Infinite had a troubled development phase, there’s no denying that. As you’ll probably remember, the game was supposed to launch alongside Xbox Series S and X in November 2020, but 343 Industries was forced to delay it for a full year.
Eventually, Halo Infinite debuted in late 2021. The delay mostly paid off, as critic reviews were very positive, including Wccftech’s, where Chris Wray gave it an 8 out of 10.
Halo Infinite is, in my opinion, the best game of the series. While still faltering in the narrative, character development, and exposition, it improves earlier titles. Combat is entertaining and engaging, with improvements made across the board, but mention must go to new abilities like the grappling hook. The move to an open world helps the game stand apart, with added freedom to take the fight to your enemies and a vast arsenal of weapons and vehicles to bring into battle. While it slips up on a few occasions, from somebody who has never been part of the Halo fan club, this has given me a glimpse of what could be great things to come.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella even announced during the latest quarterly earnings call that Halo Infinite was the biggest launch in the franchise history with over 20 million players registered to date.
That said, even with the year-long delay, 343 Industries had to drop two staple features of the franchise at launch: co-op and Forge. Head of Creative Joseph Staten had told fans they could expect a roadmap with more info on both modes in January, but that didn’t happen.
Yesterday, he tweeted that the roadmap had been delayed, too.
Hey folks. In November, I said we’d have a Halo Infinite update on our Seasonal roadmap, Co-Op, and Forge in January. We need more time to finalize our plans so what we share is something you can rely on. This work is my top priority, and we’ll have an update as soon as we can.
It is unclear whether this roadmap delay implies a delay in the availability of either mode. 343 Industries originally estimated that co-op would launch alongside Season 2 of Halo Infinite, while Forge was scheduled to be available as part of Season 3.
