Halo Infinite Campaign Preview: Familiar yet surprising, 5 hours in

Splat. The pulse carabiner in gloriole Infinite makes a quiet, satisfying sound when its little blue projectiles collide with an enemy. Halo infinite‘s new, open world is filled with these small, carefully crafted details that feel familiar and strange at the same time. These sights, sounds and secrets fill the whole world Halo infinite‘s more linear campaign that makes for an experience not like any Halo game I’ve played, but somehow evokes feelings that are reminiscent of the previous games.

before Halo infiniteOn the December 8th release date, I played a preview build of the game’s campaign, which includes the first four story missions, as well as access to the open world that surrounds them. I landed on carefully Halo infinite‘s new Zeta Halo ring, unsure how the storied franchise would fit into an open world. What I found was a landscape full of life and action.

Halo infinite begins with Chief, a pilot, and a new AI partner named The Weapon head for Zeta Halo to find out what happened next Halo 5. At least on Zeta Halo, the trio remains in the wake of the destruction: between Cortana and The Banished, a group of exiled former Covenant supporters was most recently in. seen Halo Wars 2

The Chief’s first big goal is to gain some kind of control over Zeta Halo. It mainly does this by taking over FOBs, or UNSC Forward Operating Bases, which were overrun by The Banished when they defeated the UNSC. Reclaiming these spaces means gaining “safe zones” on the Zeta Halo, small areas armed with weapons, tools, vehicles and even UNSC marines. The options offered are initially limited. However, by destroying The Banished’s propaganda and rescuing groups of captured Marines, I have more tools to choose from: simple weapons, modified vehicles, and stronger and more specialized Marines to follow me into battle.

Image: 343 Industries / Xbox Game Studios

Halo infinite‘s world is not completely open from the start. Servings are divided into small “islands”, for lack of a better word: Zeta Halo is basically a space archipelago. Initially, there is no easy way for Chief to traverse the great abysses of space that separate the land – you can see the other sides, but you can’t get to them right away. The storyline missions are also sealed off from each other. There is no need to simply stumble across specific locations to access story missions. Instead, they are specially marked on the map – unlike any other target – and the gun will often push you towards them. Side missions can be free, but story missions are unlocked chronologically. Some of these s tory missions are in parts of the map that are otherwise difficult to access, but story missions “unlock” these areas, so to speak, by dropping Chief over Pelican on the map. Once they are unlocked, I can travel quickly at any time.

Similarly, capturing bases will reveal more of the map, including areas where I can collect some of them Halo infinite‘s new collectibles: Spartan Cores, which enhance armor with skills like the grappling hook; and parts of Mjolnir armor used as cosmetics in. act Halo infinite‘s multiplayer. There are also larger side missions – assassinating high-profile exiled leaders or clearing key exiled bases, to name a few – which sometimes grant unique, bespoke equipment.

These tangential missions are uncharted territory for the franchise, but developer 343 Industries is nailing the Halo feel to these smaller encounters. These aren’t the side missions or fetch quests I expect from an open world game in 2021; I don’t run from quest giver to quest giver to deliver items or news. I fight my way through the powerful and sometimes frightening hierarchy of the exiled armed forces, using every tool available to me to get the job done. It’s the Master Chief doing Master Chief things that are scaled down into Halo-esque moments that break up the open world.

Image: 343 Industries / Xbox Game Studios

This is where the little details – those familiar sights and sounds – make a big difference. It is the satisfying pounding of a carbine striking an enemy. The funny and often ridiculous dialogues of Halo infinite‘s grunt. The small scenes that have been set up in offshoot camps with weapons and hidden noises offer opportunities to tell more about the story miscellaneous People in the world. Halo infinite is mostly about Master Chief and his journey, but that doesn’t mean that everything else is neglected; Some of my favorite gaming moments Halo infinite During this preview, they stumbled upon small exiled outposts while driving around in a car full of eager Marines. I loved navigating our doomed warthog on rocks – and sometimes off cliffs – marines poking me on while I (sometimes) made a perfect landing. Another time I got into shockingly tough battles that weren’t even marked on the map: Where I thought I was just clearing a propaganda tower, I ended up with waves of reinforcements with high-ranking troops.

In the early morning hours Halo infinite which I’ve played for this preview, I’ve noticed that some of the base clearing missions are repeating. As a counterpoint to the more linear, sometimes corridor-heavy story missions, these side quests serve as a refreshing change. Even after previewing four missions, I barely scratched the surface Halo infinite‘s newly unfolded world.

Halo Infinites campaign will be released on December 8th on Windows PC and Xbox Series X, however its multiplayer component is now playable. The game was previewed with an Xbox Series X pre-release download code provided by Microsoft. Vox Media has affiliate partnerships. These do not affect the editorial content, although Vox Media can earn commissions on products purchased through affiliate links. you find more information on Polygon’s ethics policy here.