Video game development cycles can be quite a mess, often requiring entire teams to pull long hours with little in return. However, it isn’t often that gamers get to hear these stories in any significant capacity, which makes a new report detailingHalo Infinite’sdevelopment all the more interesting. While fans will soon seeHalo Infiniteas a finished product, some more light has been shed on what it took to get here.
A report from Bloomberg has offered some insight into Halo Infinite’s development, revealing some of the highs and lows developer 343 Industries faced during production. Apparently, 343 had considered moving to theUnreal Enginefor months because of difficulties with Faber, the studio’s set of development tools. However, that didn’t end up happening. The most interesting information from the report by far, though, concerns cut content.
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Halo Infinitereportedly had an open world much more akin toBreath of the Wild.Players would have gone through non-linear missions just as they did in Nintendo’s 2017Legend of Zeldagame, exploring an open landmass all the while.It’s aninteresting concept for a Halo game, being a drastic departure from series norms, but difficulties arose throughout the development cycle that made that impossible. There were staffing issues, problems with infighting, and issues withHalo Infinite’s development tools.
In the end, two-thirds ofHalo Infiniteended up having to be cut, according to the report. The open world was scaled back into what fans have seen in gameplay demos and trailers, and development went into “crisis mode.” All of this happened around the summer of 2019, but the team was still trying to getHalo Infiniteout alongside the Xbox Series X. There were lingering doubts aboutHalo Infinite’spotential, but those doubts were outweighed by the need to get it out alongside the new hardware.
However, in July 2020, the reception toHalo Infinite’s campaign demochanged some minds. Instead of releasing alongside the Xbox Series X,Halo Infinitewas given a year-long delay, giving 343 Industries time to polish the project under the leadership of veteran developer Joseph Staten. Staten set out to fix some ofHalo Infinite’s issues, which sometimes even meant making small tweaks. For instance,Halo Infinite’s Marines originally wouldn’t join players in their journey, instead lingering around the area they were first found. Being anti-thetical toHalo’s promise, Staten ensured Marines would follow the player.
Of course, other changes were made as well, landingHalo Infinitewhere it is today. While the development cycle was tumultuous, earlyHalo Infinitereviews indicate that the delay was well worth it.
Halo Infinitelaunches today for PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
