For a game first revealed at E3 2018, fans know surprisingly little aboutHalo Infinite. The next foray into the sci-fi franchise seems to be something of a soft reboot, overhauling many of the mechanics that fans are familiar with, judging by earlyHalo Infinitegameplay demos. If there’s one element fans know almost nothing about, though, it’s howHalo Infinite’scustomizationelements will work.
However, with the changes that have been made toHalo: The Master Chief Collection,fans may be getting a picture of howHalo Infinitewill reward players with new customization options. Of course,Halo: MCC’s customizationhas garnered a mixed reception, so it may not earn a great reception if 343 Industries does decide to go that route. Of course, as with all things, there are some pros and cons here.
How a Seasonal Structure Could Help Halo Infinite
Essentially, when players level up inHalo: The Master Chief Collectionthey earn tokens that can be spent on a tiered list of rewards, with new seasons adding more customization options to the mix. After unlocking all of the items in a tier, players can move up to the next tier, which offers more weapon skins, vehicle skins, and armor options, among other things.
Players are able to move freely between the lists of seasonal items, and most of the lists contain a smattering of items for each of thegames contained inThe Master Chief Collection.It certainly isn’t a perfect system, but it does offer players a lot more freedom in how they’re rewarded than other games do, and that freedom goes a long way. Players are able to set goals for themselves through customization options, which drives them to keep going.
Obviously, that drive would be great forHalo Infinite,especially since 343 Industries wantsHalo Infiniteto be a 10-year game. Plus, it allows343 Industriesto drip-feed new armor options into the game over time, allowing for Spartans that will be visually distinct from one another as time goes on. Even in a multiplayer arena, unique Spartans will go a long way to keep players engaged.
How Halo Infinite Could Shake Things Up
Despite being in the same franchise, it’s fair to say thatHalo Infinitewill have some major differences fromHalo: Master Chief Collection.Being a single game instead of a collection,Halo Infinitemay have to dish out rewards at a slower pace, simply because the single game is likely going to have fewer customization options at launch.
It’s also possible that 343 Industries goes with a traditional style of customization forHalo Infinite,which might win the hearts of longtime fans.Halo: Reachcustomization is highly regarded by many players, thanks to the bevy of options that it provided and the credit system that players used to unlock new pieces of gear. That may be the best option if 343 Industries is going in an older direction, but it might not support as long of a lifespan for the game.
All told, fans will just need to wait and see what 343 Industries is cooking up for customization.Halo Infinitescreenshotshave painted a gorgeous picture for the revamped graphics after the lackluster visual presentation in the gameplay reveal, and it’s possible that customization will be similarly polished. Any way fans slice it,Halo Infinitemarks an exciting new chapter for the franchise, for better or for worse. Hopefully, the character customization is just as exciting.
Halo Infiniteis in development for PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
