Halo Infinite Multiplayer Review - IGN

First impressions are key, and since six years have passed since Halo 5: Guardians, for a lot of people (like myself) Halo Infinite will be the first Halo multiplayer experience they’ve played at launch – especially since Infinite’s multiplayer is free to play and accessible to everyone with an Xbox or PC. And what a launch it’s been! With its tight 4v4 matches and more chaotic 12v12 Big Team Battle on expertly designed maps, Infinite revives and reinvigorates the glorious sci-fi action that once made Halo king among multiplayer FPS games. Riding high on that thrill, Halo Infinite’s multiplayer has dash-slid into the first-person shooter scene and meleed the competition off the map.

[z2g]

I’m loving it so far

[RaidenBlack]

Everything in the background is surprisingly aligning well to the advantage of Halo Infinite.
CoD Vanguard's MP although polished, brings nothing new and is somewhat uninspiring this year.
CoD Vanguard's Zombies is very lackluster this year. (Touted as the worst CoD Zombies launch)
CoD's Warzone's Caldera map got delayed and the Secrets Of The Pacific Event got disabled due to widespread crashes.
& the highly anticipated BF 2042 is just broken overall with only Portal somewhat holding the whole package in together like duct tape.

[4Sh0w]

Halo Infinite is great so far it doesn't need other games to be bad. Im sure once the dust settles COD & BF will rebound, they both have a huge dedicated audience, that will either play when things are fixed or come back next game.

[Suave_Langosta]

I’ve been burnt out with COD since infinite warfare, I’m glad people enjoy what they like but I don’t see the appeal with it.

Dice needs to fix their devo teams or something. How can BF constantly push out worse games than their previous installments. It all started with hardline, I’ll admit BF1 was enjoyable, but then BFV and 2042, what is going on?

I don’t need a BF3 / BF4 remake or anything like that, I like the differing eras. But man these past two launches have been half baked and plagued with bugs. I know BF4 had a rough launch, but the game was still fun. I’m just not sure what happened to EA/Dice. I know EA is what it is, but I guess BF had stayed it’s welcome? I would love to be sucked back into that game, but I’m not holding my breath.

[TinkerNation]

One of the most positive surprises this year. I think we all had our doubts about this game, but it turned out amazing.

[Sayai jin]

Impressive.

[UnSelf]

Subarashi

[akurtz]

The MTX should bring down the score to atleast 7.

[ColtPSSX]

I mean it’s free to play. You can’t have everything.

[4Sh0w]

What does MTX (cosmetics) have to do with the gameplay?

[senorfartcushion]

It’s not really free. Plenty of people are going to be getting that multiplayer by buying the boxed copy.

Regardless of whether or not the MP is free to download now (beta) and regardless of whether or not it’s on game pass digitally, the game still sells in stores to people who want to buy them without having to subscribe to something.

What’s with the “you don’t get everything” language? Are you a 90 year old selfish man? What’s wrong with you?

Embarrassing, the lack of education in that country, man.

Also @4Sh0w

Games are reviewed as games, not by gameplay.

Again: education. What is going on over there?

[Bladesfist]

If you really value cosmetics that much it's fine for you to bring the score down to whatever you want, I don't care that much though, I just want to play a fun game.

[Eamon]

If we had to pay to own the game, then yes. But it's f2p so while the BP and MTX are terrible, it unrelated to the core gameplay.

[Suave_Langosta]

Ah yes. My fashion choices are much more important to me than the superb gameplay. /s

The mTX is trash I’ll agree, but I haven’t spent a dime besides gladly paying for the BP on a free game. Peoples opinions on the grind are valid, but I haven’t had an issue getting my weeklys done. I’m progressing much better after I learned how to maximize my time spent completing them, it will be touched on as we move past the holidays I’m sure.

With that said, in all honestly it’s a grind I don’t mind because the gameplay is enjoyable. And in the end isn’t that the point?

[Gaming4Life1981]

Cosmetics have nothing to do with gameplay lol. You don't have to buy anything, just play the game and your good.

I hope the campaign is as good as the mp.

[MadLad]

Luckily most people don't get all whiney that a free to play has cosmetics you can buy if you choose to.
I know; I know. Offering one of the most polished multiplayer experiences of recent years to everyone, absolutely free, just isn't enough. We have to make sure there's no money to be made via the game.

Damn, gamers are whiney little things anymore.

[TinkerNation]

Except we know that the people crying and whining here are not even gamers and they don't even play Halo.

[Zulu]

@SenorFartCushion

The only thing you pay for is the single player. The MP is and always will be FREE. Like Warzone is FREE. You don’t even need Xbox live gold to play it. It is completely supported through MTX.

I love it when people spout off about education. Oh the irony.

[TinkerNation]

By that logic no free to play game could ever score above 7

[spicelicka]

MTX are cosmetic only. If you care that much about cosmetics then you're what is wrong with the industry.

[Zulu]

@spicelicka

Very well said

[ECHOINFINITY]

After realizing the split-screen runs buttery smooth on series x I'm now wishing I had one lol. Was a huge fan of Bungie's halo era and this looks very fun. I initially thought split screen only ran at 30fps, didn't realize that was for the series s.

[Tacoboto]

What makes the Series S version even weirder is it was the smoothest 120fps from the first tech preview.

The resolution was sub-1080 but it felt *perfect*. Then TP2 brought it down to 60fps and this Beta introduced the 30fps Quality mode.

[ECHOINFINITY]

Yeah weird. Either way I won't buy a series x just for this so I'll be restricted to messing around with the cloud version via my $2 4 month trial lol

[senorfartcushion]

What are the microtransactions like?

It is weird how they don’t affect reviews. They can’t be good, because it’s 2021. Anybody have any descriptions of them?
Thanks.

[Bladesfist]

They have a section highlighted in blue at the bottom of the review that is solely on the microtransactions

[senorfartcushion]

From a real person lol. I don’t want to go to those kinds of sites to find out. They get games via review codes and are bad at pointing out certain injustices; with MXTs being one of them.

[Tacoboto]

Microtransactions are strictly cosmetic and have zero impact to gameplay so that's why they aren't impacting scores. The 10 maps are fantastic, matchmaking takes literally only seconds, cross-progression with console and Steam, FOV sliders on console, custom games have a treasure trove of customization options. Allll forrr freeee.

$18 gets you 2200 credits, one example. I think $45 5500-5600. $9 = 1000 credits, and every tier higher gets a bonus amount. The 100 unlocks in the battle pass equate out to that $9/1000Cr. Your second unlock is your second Spartan Core/suit.

I hated the Battle Pass until I spent that $18 - it bothered my FOMO enough unlocking things I couldn't use. I have enough credits left over for Season 2's BP and don't care for any of the armors in the store.

Considering the 30 hours I've put into the game already, I'd be one big bitch to play so much just to whine about the Battle Pass. It's 2021, if something is free and you disagree with why it's free, just move along. Surely you have better things to do with your time

[senorfartcushion]

Why are they not impacting scores? Visual design Is a large part of the gaming experience. Life in general, actually. It’s not like there aren’t multi billion dollar fashion industries all over the world. Idiots.

[thesoftware730]

SenorFart,

You have been running around trying to make the game sound bad anyway you can, just give it up buddy, no one is biting. The multiplayer is great, plain and simple, slice and dice all you want but you cant change the fact that its fun to most who enjoys competitive FPS or Halo.

And you keep spouting the nonsense that the game is not free to play, It is indeed free to play..your logic is flawed. You claim it not FTP because it come with the boxed version, the operative work is it 'Comes with it' , bonus, not required, don't need, added in, separate, in no way its required. you are paying $60 for the campaign plain and simple. What about PC? there is no boxed copy, is that free? go to steam, or Xbox app, don't pay a dime and play it. You keep making it seem like people cant comprehend. Its you with the mental handicap in an failed attempt to diss the game in every thread...just stop, your narrative is not gaining any legs. Your username is appropriate, as you are full of hot air.

I do not have a boxed copy right now and playing the multiplayer, and in no way will ever have to buy anything to keep playing, including the boxed copy or the digital.

YOU DO NOT NEED GAMEPASS OR GOLD TO PLAY IT.

[senorfartcushion]

No, you’re simply supposed to inform me and not do the SAME THING AS EVERY OTHER IDIOT by making the situation into a stupid, moron fanboy console war thing for babies.

Console wars are what children do. I’ve every console. I do not need to cry over what consoles I do not own because I have them all. I’m playing Diamond on Switch, Riders Republic on my Series X and Ratchet and Clank on my PlayStation 5. None of that absolutely embarrassing corporate American crap has anything to do with me. Who am I, Joe Biden? I don’t want to be abused by companies, nor do I want them to alpha-male all of my time away from me.

Hence the question.

We all only live once, there’s a new game every day and I am worried about investing the hours into downloading the large files and starting a multiplayer game that will disappoint me. The microtransactions are the thing I’m using the justify this. I’m not an 8 year old, I can make my own opinions, and I respect people who can also do this. Not affecting gameplay doesn’t mean anything to me when the visual design is the thing microtransactions impact.

Are they designed like Fortnite? Ie the type that make kids look upon each and every suit with jealousy, forcing them to ask their dense parents for “bucks” so they can feel like they’re fitting in for the month it takes for the new suits to roll in?

Just because something doesn’t affect gameplay, doesn’t mean the game is not being impacted. You need to learn this. It’s easy stuff,

[4Sh0w]

"No, you’re simply supposed to inform me"

-This statement really sums up your mentality....nobody here is responsible for informing you about anything, in fact adults seek out relevant info BEFORE they make statements about the merits of a situation or product. Instead you sound like a entitled, whiney, self absorbed little kid.

"Console wars are what children do. I’ve every console."

-Age is a number but you are what you act like, you pretend to not care about a silly console war yet the fanboy stinch coming from you is very strong....so strong in fact your immaturity thinks screaming you have every console somehow shields you from sounding exactly like what you're trying to hide from. Again, you are what you act like.

"Who am I, Joe Biden? I don’t want to be abused by companies"
-I'm no Biden fan but wth does that even mean?

"I am worried about investing the hours into downloading the large files and starting a multiplayer game that will disappoint me. The microtransactions are the thing I’m using the justify this"

-What a load of BS, yeah the MT are bad ( if you have no self control) but they are purely cosmetic, you dont need them at all, BUT THERES PLENTY OF FREE CUSTOMIZATION items too....lol, its evident YOU ALREADY KNOW this so why are you worried about investing your time??? Simple decision you can live without the *paid MT's or move along, no ones forcing you to play.

"Just because something doesn’t affect gameplay, doesn’t mean the game is not being impacted."

-The mental gymnastics is causing you brain damage, you are trying so hard to find a reason to make this game bad that you end up just making ridiculous statements over and over again, if it doesn't affect gameplay then it must not matter overall right?

[Petebloodyonion]

I don't recall MT affecting the score of the Last of us multiplayer, GT Sports, Overwatch, MLB the show, Fortnite, etc.
so why suddenly should they factor in the score if they don't affect the gameplay?
Should DLC also affect the score?

Also regarding your question about what they are like, how about simply reading the review to learn about what's included and how it's similar to other games.
But no, I guess you already had your own personal review of the game way before it was released and It's not in line with the majority of reviewers.

[senorfartcushion]

They should have affected those games. Stop bringing other platforms into this, it’s how children talk about games.

Your team dun’ did this with their multiplayer,

Those games can eff themselves too,

[slate91]

I had to log in to respond to you. You over here tap dancing every chance you get and calling people morons and idiots when they disagree with you LOL. What's wrong with you? Go touch grass bro.

[senorfartcushion]

Disagreeing is not answering the original question.

I want people to drop fanboy idiocy and talk about the game as they should:

Like the property is owned by a billion dollar company and has nothing to do with normal people commenting.

[TinkerNation]

At least keep your story consistent. You talk about you playing riders republic, when it has exclusive skins locked behind expensive microtransactions. In a full price game.

[senorfartcushion]

…. and? I own riders republic. I like sports games a lot more than shooters. I’m not the one deciding to play Halo, someone else is in my life. Riders Republic’s microtransactions are terrible, the game can eff itself. But the genre isn’t - at least not to me. Shooters are iffy. My favourite type of shooters just aren’t being made anymore. I think the last one I played was The Last it Us Part 2. I like single player third person shooters. Literally all I’ve been playing this last week are Ratchet and Clank, Riders and Max Payne 3 and that’s only because the latter has recently been made backwards compatible.

Before Ratchet I played Ghost of Tsushima’s dlc. I platinumed that game, but I have stopped playing that by virtue of caring more about shooters than samurai games. If Ghost released now I wouldn’t probably platinum it. I’d be too busy with Ratchet.

There’s no inconsistency with my comments. What I want is for people to drop the fanboy crap and judge the microtransactions from the perspective of a Halo player. Not an Xbox Player, not a fanboy, not an idiot. Not a PlayStation fanboy. Not the other type of idiot. As a Halo player. What have they done to the overall Halo experience.

Nuance on the internet, I know, it’s tough. No fanboy crap, we aren’t children. Talk properly. (Type, rather.)

[Kurt Russell]

The microtransactions are mixed. The battlepass has some good content if you're into the Reach characters, if not I would say there is nothing for you there.

Outside of that there are a bunch of skins you can buy if you're into that kind of thing. They seem to be all tied to E-Sports teams, I guess some people buy them like you would a sports team jersey.. I don't follow it so had no incentive to purchase.

I did pick up the battlepass as a fan of Reach though. Others I play with didn't.
There is also a weekly event going on this week which is a free unlock tree of Samurai style character skins (if that's your jam).

It would be expensive if you were to buy all skins and MTX on the store (but I don't see why anyone would), but if you want to play for free there is a lot of free content which can help you jazz up and make your character look "cool".

The gameplay itself I would say is the most fun I have had in MP in a lot of years. The Halo formula is incredibly well polished and it nails that "just one more game" vibe late at night.

Long and short, if you can't stomach MTX on this free to play game (and it is free, not gamepass "free"... just straight up free with no subscription free)... this is not the game for you. If it doesn't bother you, this is one of the best MP experiences to come out in quite some time and well worth jumping in on whether you want to pay for skins or not.

[senorfartcushion]

Thanks very much. This is the best answer. You listened and engaged like a proper game player. I’ll take it in mind.

I think I’ve wasted more time trudging through comments calling me a fanboy than actually playing any games this week 😂 Life has been busy, I’ve got three games on the go and a job / gf etc, cba waiting hours to download something that may disappoint me due to being bugged with horrible MXTs. I may as well go to Vegas and be tricked into wasting my money there.

[Petebloodyonion]

It's sad to see that you need to call others idiots, children, 90 years old men, etc. when basically the only thing you have done in this thread is trolling with no real intent to contribute to the discussion.
Let's seem you mentioned "I am worried about investing the hours into downloading the large files and starting a multiplayer game that will disappoint me. The microtransactions are the thing I’m using the justify this."
Thus asking reviewers (that spent several hours in the game) to discuss MTS and how they affect the game so you can make a decision about if yes or no you should play this game.

But here's the problem and why you are just trolling. You clearly mentioned that you have yet to read the review because you don't trust the reviewer despite him clearly having a whole section called Microtransactions reactions.

Thus asking some major questions: Did you have any real interest in playing this game?
And if the answer is yes then why are you asking the opinion of the reviewer if you are already dismissing his review before actually reading it?

Now if you think that the reviews are biased then, please just provide some evidence, I asked you if other similar games like Overwatch, Fortnite, Gt Sports, had harsher reviews due to MTS if the answer is no then it's getting reviewed on the basis as the other games.

[senorfartcushion]

Biased in that AAA is basically enough to give a game a good score. Major outlets aren’t really major anymore, more marketing tools. Take Battlefront 2, for instance. It averaged a 6-7 while nearly blowing a hole in the industry. Microtransactions don’t affect the scores of games, at least not really. They will be mentioned, but that’s about it.

I do have interest in playing Halo, but I have a life and little time to dedicate to actually playing games. They must be regimented precisely, or I may as well not bother. That takes feedback and research to actually get going.

It’s taken 5 days to get one decent answer. That says more about the “weird” comment section than it does me. I’ve been called a fanboy for every console up to no. Individualist idiots are too busy thinking of billion dollar companies making plastic boxes as sports team, in order to garner some fake fulfilment - to make themselves feel like they’ve contributed to society, instead of what they are doing:

Helping no one.

[therealmacoy]

I must be the only one that feels this way but… this game is very basic. If you played halo before then you’ve definitely played this one. It’s just an old halo with a new coat of paint and that’s not bad thing but again, it’s just really basic. Destiny, apex, and just about every other shooter is more fun than this game tbh. I hope the campaign is better. This is like playing cs:go but with bullet sponges.

[thesoftware730]

I'm not a fan of any of the games you mentioned, so I do not agree.

We do all have opinions, and it is ok to feel that way, but I would say the same about most games with sequels. You add things, polish things and deliver something that feels overall better than what was done before it, but the fundamental foundation remains intact..so does it feel like Halo? yes, does it feel like a better Halo? yes.. then sequel mission accomplished.

No need to always reinvent the wheel, unless what came before it was lackluster.

[Plagasx]

I really wish they would get rid of the stupid outlines on the players or at least give us an option to disable it.. It's distracting to me. Doesn't feel like Halo with that on imo..