Summary
- The Halo franchise success relied on campaigns, but recent games struggled to match their multiplayer appeal.
- Halo Infinite's campaign leaves loose ends, hinting at the potential for future story development.
- Fans hope the next Halo campaign will build on Halo Infinite's story rather than restart the narrative.
The Halo franchise used to live and die by its campaigns. Though split-screen and LAN multiplayer were available in the first Halo, it was the game's campaign that set it apart from other FPS console shooters, boasting a rich Sci-Fi world, a surprisingly intricate story, and a handful of iconic characters. And while Halo 2's Xbox Live multiplayer became its most defining feature, its campaign was still a vital part of the experience, as was the case for Halo 3, ODST, and Reach.
Developer 343 Industries has tried its best to keep story campaigns at the heart of its modern Halo series, but the execution has left much to be desired. Halo 4, 5, and Halo Infinite have all had lengthy single-player campaigns, but their narrative, characters, and set pieces have often paled in comparison to the action found in each game's multiplayer component. But there's still a chance 343 can make the next Halo campaign the star of the show, it just needs to approach it in the right way.
Halo Needs to Approach Its Next Campaign Carefully
Halo Infinite's Ending Leaves a Lot of Threads Hanging
After arriving at Halo Installation 07 – also referred to as Zeta Halo – the Master Chief and the rest of the crew aboard the UNSC Infinity are ambushed by a sizable fleet of Banished warships. The Infinity is boarded, and after losing a one-on-one melee with the Banished leader Atriox, the Master Chief is thrown out into space. About six months later, the Master Chief is rescued by a UNSC pilot and awoken from stasis. The Master Chief immediately sets his sights on Zeta Halo, which has since been invaded and claimed by the Banished.
The next 10-ish hours of Halo Infinite's campaign see players methodically carve their way through the Banished forces on Zeta Halo, destroying encampments and important facilities, and slaughtering Atriox's top generals. Eventually, players encounter a powerful alien being known as The Harbinger, a member of the Endless, a species that was confined on Zeta Halo by the Forerunners countless years ago. It's revealed that Cortana blew herself up to try to stop Atriox from discovering the Endless. The final moments of Halo Infinite's campaign conclude with the Master Chief killing the Harbinger, though that's far from the end of the story.
In Halo Infinite's post-credits scene, it's revealed that Atriox somehow survived Cortana's explosion and that he's found the containment cells of the Endless. While that's the primary cliffhanger Halo Infinite's campaign ends on, there are plenty of other plot threads that are left hanging at the end of the story, such as Weapon's new name and personal growth, and the Chief's mission to rid Zeta Halo of its Banished occupiers. It would be great to see these plot threads continue in the next Halo campaign.
The Next Halo Can't Abandon Its History Again
Halo 5: Guardians' campaign was almost universally criticized for its poor execution and controversial decision to bring Cortana back from the dead and make her the final villain of the game. Cortana was set up to be the franchise's next big bad, but Halo Infinite removes her from that role almost instantly. While swapping Cortana and her AI army out for Atriox and the Banished was probably for the better – and made Infinite's campaign more accessible for newcomers – it did feel a bit jarring.
Generally speaking, though, fans were fairly positive about Halo Infinite's story and where it ends. It would be a huge mistake for 343 Industries to abandon Infinite's hanging plot threads in the next Halo campaign like it did with Guardians, as to many fans it would feel like an unnecessary restart.
Halo Infinite
-
OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 87 /100 Critics Rec: 94%
- Released
- December 8, 2021
- ESRB
- T for Teen: Blood, Mild Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
- 343 Industries
- Publisher(s)
- Xbox Game Studios
- Engine
- Slipspace
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer
- Cross-Platform Play
- PC, Xbox One & Xbox Series X|S
WHERE TO PLAY
When all hope is lost and humanity’s fate hangs in the balance, the Master Chief is ready to confront the most ruthless foe he’s ever faced. Step inside the armor of humanity’s greatest hero to experience an epic open-world adventure and explore the massive scale of the Halo ring.
With Network Campaign Co-Op and Mission Replay, you can relive your favorite moments, rediscover collectibles and explore the wonders of Zeta Halo on your own or with up to three other fireteam members.
Experience Halo’s celebrated multiplayer reimagined and free-to-play! With over 70 maps in matchmaking, billions of customization configurations, and countless community Forge creations to experience, Halo Infinite is the franchise’s most expansive multiplayer offering to date.
Enjoy an unprecedented variety of gameplay experiences, ranging from fast-paced intense ranked modes to whimsical mayhem in Custom Games, or even co-operative coordination in the wave-based survival mode Firefight: King of the Hill. Assemble your Fireteam and conquer every mode – Halo offers endless opportunities for teamwork, strategy, and unforgettable victories.
- Cross Save
- yes
- Franchise
- Halo
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- yes
- Platform(s)
- PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- Genre(s)
- First-Person Shooter
- How Long To Beat
- 12 Hours
- File Size Xbox Series
- 90 GB (November 2023)
