Despite the divisive reactions to the recent Halo Infinite gameplay reveal, many Halo fans are wondering when they can get their hands on Infinite prior to launch. Beta periods for games like this are nothing new, but what is new is a global pandemic; something that absolutely impacted the studio’s plans for early hands-on time.
The team recently took to the Halo Waypoint blog to talk a little more about a potential beta period. Though this isn’t the first time 343 has addressed this interest, they wanted to reiterate the uncertainty tied to this for transparency.
According to the recent post, “The Xbox Games Showcase was only meant to focus on Halo Infinite’s campaign. However, I can’t blame you all for being curious about the multiplayer experience. As Chris Lee mentioned in his blog which accompanied the demo last week, our original plans for large-scale flighting aren’t where we originally intended in large part due to the challenges of working from home during the COVID-19. At this time we’re honestly not sure what is going to be possible in terms of flighting but we still hope to have an opportunity for broader public hands-on before release. And, as we’ve previously stated, we’ll be relying on flighting and continued feedback and community partnership well beyond launch as we grow and evolve the game together.”
The reasoning is understandable, especially with the team’s earlier remarks that there is still a long road ahead regarding refinement before it launches this holiday season. That being said, it’s easy to forget sometimes the continued impact COVID-19 has on daily routines and what that means in terms of all businesses, not just game studios.
Related: 343 Addresses Halo Infinite Visuals Backlash
In the same blog post, the team also addressed the backlash regarding the demo’s visuals and provided a well-done response that balanced critique and artistic vision. You can learn more about that, and what they are changing, right here with our previous coverage.
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As for the game itself, we still don’t have a release date at this time, though we do know that Halo Infinite is slated for a holiday 2020 launch pending no further delays. Opinions on the reveal and thoughts about the game’s visuals and overall story? Hit us up with all of those views over on Twitter @PrimaGames, we’d love to hear what you think!
