December Update
In the spirit of the Holiday season, how about some early presents for Halo Infinite?
On the heels of the Winter Update, which launched just last month, we’re tremendously excited to deliver our latest game update for Halo Infinite which brings with it some brand new features and a variety of key improvements to the game experience.
The team has been working hard on addressing player feedback, and so – before we break for the Holidays – we’re bringing you a new (yet familiar) map, free armor cores and coatings, some quality-of-life improvements, and the early release of the Custom Games Browser…
The latest update is available now, for free, on Xbox and PC. So, let’s talk a little bit more about what’s just arrived!
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Visit the Halo Support site to review the official patch notes.
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Custom Game Browser
Since the release of the Forge Beta with the Winter Update, just a month ago, the floodgates have well and truly opened to a barrage of incredible community-created maps and modes. For a look at some of our favorites, be sure to check out our Forge Features blog series!
Of course, in order to unlock the true potential of Forge and make these wonderfully unique experiences (which have long been such a definitive aspect of Halo) more accessible to everyone, we’re excited to announce that we’re debuting the V1 of the Custom Game Browser today – months ahead of our original target!
Previously scheduled to release in Season 3, we fully agree with players who felt that the Custom Game Browser should be a priority – it’s a key support structure for what players create in Forge and a pillar for the community. The team worked incredibly hard to land this feature so much further in advance, but with that comes the caveat that this is a “V1.” It is therefore likely to have some rough edges, but we felt it was more important that we get this in the hands of players sooner rather than later. The CGB will, of course, continue to evolve with support over time.
For more information, including instructions on how the CGB works, please refer to this article on the Halo Support site.
Give us your feedback here and be sure to report any bugs and issues on Halo Support.
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Enter Empyrean
The Pit has come to Halo Infinite!
This beloved map from Halo 3 has been officially rebuilt in Forge by the 343 Industries team and is now reborn as Empyrean.
Empyrean is a reimagining of The Pit, complete with some refreshed aesthetics over its familiar layout, and no expense spared on attention to detail.
For those of you familiar with The Pit (or even its Halo 4 incarnation, Pitfall), you already know the dance. The immediate rush to grab the rocket launcher, the sniper duels atop its two opposing towers, the potential close-quarters perils of the control room – but this time, there are some new notes to be added to this symphony as it comes with the additional layer of Halo Infinite’s gameplay and sandbox features.
How do Halo Infinite’s toys, like its limited-use Equipment, alter some of those dynamics and affect how you traverse the combat dance floor? Maybe the enemy team managed to grab the rockets first, but you went and acquired the Repulsor to protect yourself (and hopefully your teammates as well). We can’t wait to see what new memories are forged in this proving ground!
Empyrean is available now in Matchmaking and Custom Games.
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Complimentary Cosmetics
Over the last year, we’ve received a lot of feedback around Halo Infinite’s armor customization, and we are keenly aware that players – both new and returning – may have missed out on some unique content from over the course of Seasons 1 and 2.
We want to ensure that all players have a suite of customization options open to them from the get-go, and as a result of that feedback we are hoping that this update opens a number of those doors.
- All present Armor Cores are now available to all players. This means that all players now possess the Mark VII, Mark V (B), RAKSHASA, YOROI, and EAGLESTRIKE Armor Cores for free
- All 10 Cadet Coatings have been added to existing Armor Cores. Similar to the above, each Armor Core now has a starting suite of 10 Cadet Coatings – this includes the non-default Cores, and they will also be included with all future Cores
Simply log into Halo Infinite and these Cores 'n' Coatings will be automatically added to your cosmetic inventory.
Visit the Armor Hall today to explore these updated customization options!
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Quality of Life Improvements
As we continue to support Halo Infinite, we have been working to bring various fixes and improvements across the title which are directly aimed at addressing key areas of player feedback.
Here are a few notable callouts that have come with this update…
- Mouse & Keyboard: Improvements have been made to mouse and keyboard input. This includes aiming improvements, enabling red reticle, adding a walk button (which has its own suite of custom options around speed and hold/toggle), and improvements have also been made to the mouse scroll wheel input
- Networking & Desync: Improvements have been made to networking, which should reduce instances of “desync.” Vehicles desycning, melee attacks not registering, and blank shots (due to fake reloads) should all see improvements with this update
- Player reporting: In-game player reporting has been added to the scoreboard (accessed during a match by pressing the Back button) and post-game carnage report. Players can also be muted from the Back button scoreboard
- Sandbox updates: Melee clang logic for the Energy Sword has also been updated—if both players have no shields and melee each other, both players will now trade melees and die in order to prevent the Energy Sword from tearing through teams without tradingCheck out the details in our previous Sandbox blog
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Thank You!
The last thing we want to say to close this update out is thank you!
Thank you to all our players who continue to provide us with feedback that enables us to continue supporting Halo Infinite, forging it into a better experience as we move forwards.
This first year of Halo Infinite has been one of many tough lessons learned, but we are confident that we are turning that corner in 2023 as we look forward to delivering Season 3 and more – more content, more features and options, more weapons, more cosmetics, more updates – on a regular cadence that keeps the Halo hype rolling all year long.
In the meantime, be sure to hop into Halo Infinite to check out the Winter Update. This free content update brought with it Campaign Network Co-Op and Mission Replay alongside some new Achievements, the Forge Beta, a free 30-tier Battle Pass, new maps, a new mode, and we’ve got two free new events as well (Winter Contingency 2 in December and Joint Fire in January).
We’re excited to continue taking these positive steps forward together, and on behalf of the entire 343 Industries team we hope you have a wonderful Holiday season. If you're interested in the press kit, you can grab a copy for yourself from here!
See you in 2023!
