Halo Infinite was something of a controversial game last year. It was announced as a launch title for the Xbox Series X, but as many fans know, it got delayed to 2021. While not confirmed, many speculat that it was in large part due to fans' response to the game's long-awaited reveal. The community wasn't as excited about what they saw as 343 Industries hoped and the studio was facing setbacks due to the ongoing pandemic, so the game got more time in development. Halo hasn't gotten a new entry in its core series since 2015, so many fans are waiting with bated breath. Halo Infinite will be out this year, but not for a while yet.
The goods news is that Halo Infinite is getting more beta test periods this year. 343 Industries did some beta testing last year, but not nearly as much as initially planned. With that in mind, it sounds like progress has been made on the game if there's more betas to be done. It was definitely disappointing for a lot of Halo fans when the arguably the most coveted launch title for the Xbox Series X was delayed. However, the announcement of more Halo Infinite beta tests should be a sign of hope. 343 must like the direction the game is going in if it's looking to get more feedback, so hopefully the game won't need another delay.
Hope for Halo
343 sounds confident in the game if it wants to do more tests. It once had really ambitious schedule for beta testing, but it ended up only letting a small pool of players try Halo Infinite. If it's returning to the kind of large-scale beta tests that it originally wanted to do, 343 must be feeling good about the state of Halo Infinite. That's cause for optimism among fans. Halo Infinite's development has seen a lot of setbacks and struggles, so it's a real statement for 343 Industries to feel ready to let lots of fans see the game again.
Another round of beta testing is also good partially because of one reason for Halo Infinite's delay. 343 pushed the game back until late 2021 in part because fans didn't like the look of the game's state of development, at least presumably. Another round of beta means 343 is interested in how the fans react to to the work its done on Halo, so it may have decided that community feedback is ultimately the best way to know how the game's development is going. If 343 regularly takes fan input into consideration in this way, it'll make Halo Infinite healthier in the long run.
The Inevitable Release
If this year's beta plans proceed as planned, odds are good that Halo Infinite will come out in the second half of 2021 as promised. Recently fans of other games have been disappointed when games got repeated short-term delays, meaning the release date was left in doubt for a long time. 343 opted for a less hopeful but more prudent plan by delaying Halo Infinite for nearly a whole year. The game has already had a lot of extra time in development, and by the time the new beta begins, it'll probably be a very different game from the one that fans saw last summer.
Multiple betas also mean that 343 can double-check its work. The more eyes it gets on the game at its different states of development, the less likely it is that flaws and bugs will get through to launch. Halo is a highly influential FPS franchise and has a huge fan community. Hopes are high for Halo Infinite; fans want it to be a return to form for the franchise that also brings in new ideas that'll revitalize the series. 343 has received some criticism for its handling of the IP, but it seems determined to make sure Halo Infinite lives up to expectations. Halo Infinite's new round of beta tests should go a long way to straightening it out.
Halo Infinite releases fall 2021 for PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.