Halo Infinite was supposed to be the big launch title for the Xbox Series S|X but needed some extra time in development to be as good as possible, to truly live up to the high expectations of the fans. The Halo franchise is one of Xbox’s biggest and most important franchises out there, creating the perfect return of the Master Chief isn’t something you do overnight. I’ve been waiting on this epic adventure for years and after spending some intense hours on Zeta Halo, I’m finally ready to give you my verdict. Is this the Halo we’ve all been waiting for? Let’s jump in!
Explore Zeta Halo
Our story starts after the events of Halo 5: Guardians, which almost led to Master Chief’s death. The start of Halo Infinite is one filled with sadness and a desire to make things right. This is Halo after the corruption of Cortana, after the broken bond between her and Master Chief. This is Halo in a world overrun by the Banished, fearless creatures that claimed Zeta Halo, one of the last remaining rings, as their new home. Humanity has lost, there’s no longer a place for humans in the galaxy, it seems like all hope is lost. Until Master Chief connects with a mysterious pilot and a new AI partner he calls ‘The Weapon’, an AI that’s created to look a lot like Cortana. Together with the pilot and The Weapon, Chief decides to reclaim Zeta Halo from the claws of the Banished in the hope to find out the truth behind this mysterious ring. Right from the start, you’ll feel the looming aura of defeat and destruction. It’s you against an entire army and now, more than ever before, you truly are humanity’s last hope.
Chief’s first major mission is trying to reclaim Zeta Halo and trying to gain back some control over this crucial ring. A task that won’t be easy as the entire ring is overrun by the Banished, a group of exiled former Covenant followers, last seen in Halo Wars 2. The Banished invaded Zeta Halo and made it their new home. Everywhere you look, you’ll see the Banished. They control the roads you walk on, and the settlements that were once in the hands of the UNSC and your fellow Spartan warriors. Reclaiming the ring starts with those UNSC Forward Operating Bases, or FOBs. By reclaiming these FOBs, you create safe havens in a world filled with death and destruction. Once you regain control over a FOB, you’ll have access to specific weapons, vehicles, and even marines to help you on your quest. It all starts pretty basic and simple but the more you unlock, the more benefits you’ll have during story missions.
Open world light
Reclaiming the FOBs is part of Halo’s new gameplay mechanic which I like to call an open world light. This isn’t an open-world like you know from games such as The Witcher or even Skyrim. You won’t have access to an enormous map where you’ll go from one ques to another, completely free to do whatever you want. Halo Infinite does things a bit differently. It’s perfectly possible to approach the game in a classic way and just go from story mission to story mission, ignoring all side activities. Doing so will still take you up to eight hours on the easiest level of difficulty to complete the story, but will quickly be rather impossible when you’re playing on the Legendary difficulty setting. The open-world light is completely optional but its benefits shouldn’t be ignored.
The more FOBs you’ll unlock, the more parts of the actual map you’ll unlock, and the stronger your arsenal of weapons and vehicles will eventually become. As said before, this is an open-world light, and you’re limited to the area you’re currently in. Zeta Halo is divided into smaller portions of the ring on which you can freely do whatever you want. In order to reach another part of the ring, you’ll need to continue with the story missions. Traveling back and forth between the different areas is easy thanks to the fast-travel system but it’s important to know that this open world isn’t accessible directly from the start. If you want to unlock more and discover more and better gear, you’ll have to fight hard for it.
In true Halo fashion, the open-world missions are done a bit differently than what you would expect. Nobody is crazy enough to give Master Chief a fetch quest so instead of collecting something and bringing it back, Chief continues to push forward all in order to get rid of the Banished who are overrunning the Zeta Halo ring. From all secondary objectives, reclaiming FOBs is your most important one. The more you liberate, the more fast-travel points you have, the more you unlock from the map, and the more Valor you earn. With these Valor points, you can eventually unlock better gear and vehicles like the infamous Scorpion tank. Needless to say, these tools can give you an extra edge in combat, especially in the higher difficulty settings. It’s never mandatory, but it can certainly give you the upper hand in combat.
FOBs are just a small piece of the Zeta Halo puzzle, however. Throughout your adventure, you can attack certain facilities to face off with the Banished and claim some unique weapons or cosmetics to use in the multiplayer. The world of Zeta Halo is filled with hidden objects and collectibles, some returning ones such as audio tapes or special skulls, and new ones such as unique weapons or armor cosmetics. If you want to explore every inch of the ring and want to find every little secret it hides, you’ll have fun for a lot of hours. The more you explore and reclaim, the better and stronger Master Chief becomes. A big part of that are the Spartan Cores, which can upgrade your suit’s abilities. A grappling hook is fun but a grappling hook that stuns your enemies while it’s attached to them is even better. All of that is possible by collecting these Spartan Cores, scattered over the map.
I had a lot of fun exploring Zeta Halo and its countless abilities and fun little secrets, but the true star remained the actual story and its missions. I like the open-world light approach but what I like most about it, is the fact that 343 Industries never forces its players to stick around in the open world longer than they want to. I think they really found the right balance between open exploration and iconic Halo gameplay.
Master Chief without Cortana
Although I like the new open approach and enjoyed exploring what Zeta Halo has to offer, I enjoyed the actual story missions the most as those just breathe classic Halo gameplay. The story itself is clearly aimed at Legacy players who’ve been there next to the Chief since the early beginning. There’s no solid explanation of characters you’ll meet or who your enemies truly are, the game is aimed at the returning Halo player and for me personally, that’s a true blessing. I understand that this won’t be the ideal first Halo experience for newcomers since they are going to miss a lot of background and lore to fully grasp the story. With that out of the way, the story itself is without a doubt the most impactful and most emotional story that ever graced the franchise. I won’t go into spoiler territory here but it’s amazing to see how the character of Master Chief evolved in Halo Infinite.
This is still that unbeatable Spartan, the Demon, the Reclaimer, the Last Hope of Humanity that keeps pushing forward, always with the end game in mind. The war needs to be stopped, and he’s the man to do so. And yet, in Halo Infinite, you’ll see a lot more depth to this character. Underneath that shiny armor hides a broken man. A man who lost everything he once trusted. A man who’s desperately looking for redemption. Looking for a way to convince himself that he did nothing wrong. Looking for a way to forgive himself for his actions and their consequences. It’s not there on the surface, but small things give it away. Pauses in answers, small emotional nods towards a new AI, constant whispers of the past. This is Master Chief without Cortana and from a story perspective, this makes the game so much better and deeper. This deeper emotional layer only gets elevated by the game’s gorgeous graphics and stellar soundtrack, pushing you to feel things you never felt while playing a first-person shooter. The story is simply unmatched and a must-play for the legacy fans.
It’s filled with raw emotion but it’s all underneath the surface of the Spartan Armor. If you look closely, you’ll feel the void in Master Chief, but if you choose to ignore it, you’ll still play one of the best first-person games on the market. The way the guns are balanced out, the dialogues of the Grunts and other enemies while you’re attacking them, the unforgettable boss fights. This is Halo at its best and I stared in awe at the end credits until the final names and logos passed me by. Sure, the story missions are fought in tight and narrow corridors but the impact of it all reaches far beyond this darkness.
Conclusion:
This is Halo how it’s supposed to be. Epic gunfights, vast exploration, and above all, raw and deep emotions. This campaign is unmatched and a must-play.
