The most iconic first person shooter series may be Halo. The Halo franchise has been Microsoft’s primary exclusive, garnering critically acclaimed scores for most of the main installments. (The first game, Combat Evolved, has a 97 on Metacritic, making it the 19th highest-rated game of all time on the aggregator site.) A new Halo game titled ‘Halo Infinite’ was announced at this year’s E3. The teaser showcased the game’s engine, ‘Slipspace.’ The teaser has a few things, but most notable of course is the return of Master Chief. Besides the teaser, not much else was unveiled. Fans wondered if it would indeed be the next main installment in the series, or some kind of spin-off. Halo is no stranger to spin-offs - we’ve had games like Halo Wars and Spartan Strike.
Those worried that Infinite would be a spin-off can rest easy: Jeff Easterling of Microsoft’s 343 Industries confirmed that Halo Infinite is the next chapter in the saga, aka, ‘Halo 6.’ Easterling confirmed this in a Mixer broadcast.
Jeff Easterling: “It is Halo 6. You should just consider it Halo 6. Don’t think of it as a weird like prequel kind of thing. It’s the next story. It’s like the next chapter in what is going on.”
Easterling’s statement is basically a continuation of what Chris Lee, head of FPS Game Development at 343 Industries, said back back in June in a blog post: “In Halo Infinite, the game will focus on the Master Chief and continue his saga after the events of Halo 5.” Combining these statements yields one conclusion: Halo Infinite is the next part in the Master Chief saga, a must-play for longtime fans of the series. Lee also stated that a goal is to make the game also inviting to newcomers of the franchise.
Since Halo 5: Guardians in 2015, the franchise has remained relatively out of the spotlight, until now. Not only is the next big game coming, but soon we’ll be seeing a television show based on the series. Microsoft revealed back in June that SHOWTIME had ordered a 10-episode season, scheduled to go into production next year. At SHOWTIME’s panel during the TCA press tour, GameSpot asked if Master Chief would feature in the show. The answer was yes, so fans of the character should have something to look forward to.
Halo Infinite does not have a release date, with Chris Lee having said in the earlier blog post that, “We still have a long way to go until we ship the game…” Based on everything unveiled, the wait should be worth it.
