Should You Play Halo Infinite?

 

Now I know this is different from the usual Anime focused post, but I had to take a step to give you my thoughts on this game.

Why?

Because like many of you, I have played Halo for a VERY very long time.

 

Remember, I’m old as shit. I was 10 when the first Halo came out, and about 13-14 when Xbox Live and Halo 2 was Popular.

 

And let me tell you. Those were the BEST gaming days I can remember.

Everyone played Halo.  Because that’s all there was (on xbox live anyway).

 

But it was also great. You made friends.  Played with them a metric shit ton, and everyone had a blast.

 

So how does Halo: Infinite compare?

Whether you’re a returning Halo fan, or brand new to the series, I have great news for you.

 

It’s VERY good and VERY true to the original Halo.  With some updates of course.

 

Gameplay

 

This is the most important part of Halo.  What’s it like? What’s different from other shooters?  Which Halo is it most similar to?

 

Halo at it’s core has always been a shooter focusing on fast  gameplay, but with a longer TTK (time to kill).

In this case its similar to Apex: Legends.  But in Halo, everything centers around the “one headshot”.

 

What I mean by this is that ALL bullets in Halo do equal damage regardless of body point.  This is because the Spartan Armor has a “shield” built in.  Unlike other shooters, bullets do the same damage to the chest as they do to the head. (Other than Sniper Shots).

 

But once that shield breaks you HAVE to hit the head for the kill.  Otherwise, it will take multiple rounds to take someone out, and you’ll probably die first.

 

Halo Infinite is no different.  It follows the same formula.  And I must say, the “speed” of the gameplay is darn near perfect.  Very similar to Halo 2 & 3.

 

Armor Abilities

 

Throughout the years Halo has tried to stay updated with the times by changing the core gameplay with things like armor abilities.

 

Sometimes they’re cool, like Jetpacks and Sprinting.

 

Yes, Sprinting was not always in Halo….

 

But sometimes they were ASS, like “armor Lock”.

 

Maybe people who have played the series can agree that Reach was one of the best multiplayer Halo’s, if it weren’t for the terrible addition of armor Lock.

 

Good news.  It’s gone.

 

And the new armor abilities don’t seem to change the pace of the game at all.  The grappling hook is a very fun and believable addition, and the “drop shields” can now be broken by shooting them, rather than essentially pausing the gameplay while someone hides.

 

All in all, for the OG Halo fans, I don’t think any of the armor abilities will be a turn off for you. 

 

Loadouts

 

If you played Halo 4, you may remember loadouts.  This was 343’s first attempt at the Halo franchise, and almost everyone agrees, they fell extremely short.

 

It is by far considered the worst Halo of the series in terms of multiplayer.

 

It was still pretty fun, but they tried to replicate Call of Duty, and failed miserably. 

 

Why?

Because Halo fans don’t want Call of Duty.  They want Halo.

 

The good news is that Armor Loadouts are GONE.  Hopefully for good.

Instead they went back to the roots of the game. 

 

Everyone starts even with an assault rifle and a pistol.  Or a BR in ranked.

And the game centers around map control of power weapon spawns.

 

Game Modes

 

Right now you can que for 3 different game modes.

 

Quick Play (4v4), Big Team Battle (8v8) and Ranked (4v4).

 

They will very likely add other modes upon full release on December 8^th.  As of now there is no Multi-Team, 2v2’s, Snipers or SWAT.

 

As far as game type goes, they have all the originals as well as a new one.

 

This includes CTF, Slayer, Oddball, Territory Control and one new one for Big Team Battle.

 

The new mode is kind of like CTF, but there are a bunch of batteries ALL over the map.  The two teams fight over picking up the batteries and bringing them back to their base. It’s actually pretty fun.

 

Overall Review

 

All in all Halo:Infinite has done A LOT right by Halo fans.  The gameplay seems like an updated version of the best in the series (2 & 3).

 

At this time there doesn’t seem to be game-breaking mechanics or anything like armor lock or bubble shield that change the pace of the game. 

 

There are slight imbalances (probably need an update to make controller Aim Assist a little less powerful, and the Assault rifle seems A BIT strong).

 

But nothing that seems totally OP.

 

One area where the game falls a bit short is the armor customization. Rather than being able to change individual colors on your armor, you instead get a “color wheel”.

 

The wheel determines both primary and secondary colors for your armor. 

I’m not sure why they did this.  Seems kind of dumb in all honesty.

 

A few updates here and there and minor tweaks to the game will certainly be needed.  But overall Halo: Infinite is definitely worth checking out.  The gameplay is great and a much needed break from the over saturated Battle Royale market.

 

Conclusion?

 

Get Halo infinite.  It’s Free bro.  There’s no reason NOT to try it.