After months of rumors and supposed leaks in online forums, Microsoft has now confirmed that Halo Infinite‘s multiplayer is now available and free to play.
Halo Infinite is one of Xbox’s biggest games releasing this year, including Forza Horizon 5. Of course, Halo Infinite‘s campaign is just half of the package. This time around, the multiplayer component is going to be free, allowing players to dive into it regardless of whether or not they buy Halo Infinite. Xbox made every gamer happy today by announcing that Halo Infinite multiplayer is releasing earlier than anticipated.
During Xbox’s 20th Anniversary stream, it announced that Halo Infinite multiplayer will be free to download starting Nov. 15. Conveniently, it marks the 20th anniversary of not just Xbox, but of Halo: Combat Evolved, too. It’s difficult to understand just how married together the two brands are, as the original Halo is responsible for a healthy portion of Xbox’s lasting success.
Releasing Halo Infinite this early is very important, even if it’s just the multiplayer component. It puts Halo Infinite a few days before the official launch of Battlefield 2042, which is available in early access but doesn’t release fully until November 19. So far though, Battlefield 2042 has failed to impress fans, and it comes after Call of Duty: Vanguard, which has been similarly criticized.
Halo Infinite’s multiplayer flights were both well received by fans, and while they were only open for a limited number of fans during tight windows, it was enough to instill a lot of confidence in both 343 Industries and the players themselves. There is the question of how well Halo Infinite‘s servers will handle the flood of fans looking to jump into it as quickly as possible. Regardless, it is an incredible way for Microsoft and Xbox to honor Halo‘s legacy while at the same time doing something for fans. It’s not often that fans get to play a game earlier than anticipated, especially by several weeks.
Here is the release trailer for the multiplayer of Halo Infinite:
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