It’s been six long years since Halo 5: Guardians, the last core Halo game and a bit of a disappointing one at that. Now, Halo seems poised to reach new heights with the long-awaited Halo Infinite. Originally slated to launch alongside the Xbox Series X and Series S last holiday season, Master Chief’s latest adventure finally arrives on those next-gen consoles, the Xbox One, and Windows 10 PCs on Dec. 8. For PC players, that gives you plenty of time to make sure your specs are up to snuff.
Why the Halo Infinite Hype?
Halo is Microsoft’s most important franchise. The first Xbox launched with the first game, and without that sci-fi first-person shooter’s massive success, Microsoft never would have gotten a foothold in the console market. The franchise has since come to PC, but Halo made the Xbox, and fans hope Halo Infinite will do the same for the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.
Developer 343 Industries may have inherited the series from Bungie, but Halo Infinite looks to be the most ambitious Halo game ever. Wide-open campaign missions harken back to the first game’s exploratory opening moments. Halo Infinite is technically Halo 6, and it promises to wrap up some Cortana story threads lingering since Halo 4 began this second trilogy. But between the vast subtitle and gameplay overhaul, we expect this is just the beginning, not an end.
Meanwhile, Halo diehards (including our own Matt Buzzi) have walked away from recent multiplayer preview betas feeling impressed and optimistic. Halo Infinite may adopt a more Destiny-esque live service model in how it doles out content into the future, but even at launch, there should be plenty to enjoy.
Where Can You Buy Halo Infinite?
You can preorder Halo Infinite for $59.99 from Microsoft’s Xbox store or from Steam. Xbox Game Pass subscribers will immediately gain access to the campaign the day the game launches. The multiplayer component will be free for everyone.
Halo Infinite’s Minimum System Requirements
- OS: Windows 10 RS3 (64-bit)
- CPUCPU: AMD FX-8370 or Intel i5-4440
- Memory: 8GB RAM
- GPUGPU: AMD RX 570 or Nvidia GTX 1050 Ti
- DirectX: Version 12
- Available Storage Space: 50GB
Halo Infinite’s Recommended System Requirements
- OS: Windows 10 19H2 (64-bit)
- CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 3700X or Intel i7-9700k
- Memory: 16GB RAM
- GPU: Radeon RX 5700 XT or Nvidia RTX 2070
- DirectX: Version 12
- Available Storage Space: 50GB
How Can You Play Halo Infinite?
As a shooter releasing on both consoles and PC, Halo Infinite supports both gamepads and mouse-and-keyboard setups. Players on both platforms can compete against each other, but ranked play sets filters so you only find matches against other people using your same control scheme, to keep things fair.
Visit PCMag on Steam
If you liked this Halo Infinite spec breakdown and would like to see more PC gaming coverage, please join the PCMag Steam Curator page. There, you’ll find links to every Steam game we’ve reviewed, as well as in-depth previews of upcoming Steam titles. For more in-depth video game talk, visit PCMag’s Pop-Off YouTube channel.
