Rumor: Halo Infinite Multiplayer Will Be Free-to-Play

Halo Infinite's multiplayer on Xbox Series X, Xbox One, and PC may release separate from the [...]

By Tyler Fischer

Halo Infinite's multiplayer on Xbox Series X, Xbox One, and PC may release separate from the game's campaign. Why? Because 343 Industries and Xbox are reportedly thinking about making it free-to-play and standalone, much like Call of Duty: Warzone is to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, and soon, Call of Duty 2020. This new rumor comes just a day after 343 Industries and Microsoft squashed the previous big rumor making the rounds about the game's multiplayer, which is that it would be delayed and release after the campaign hits this holiday season.

The rumor comes way of Windows Central, which notes that there's currently a "strong possibility" that the multiplayer of the game will be free-to-play. This would be a first for the series. That said, it sounds like the decision may not be final yet. That, or Windows Central isn't 100 percent confident in its source.

Whether this is true or not, who knows. At the moment of publishing, 343 Industries and Microsoft haven't commented on the rumor in any capacity. And this is noteworthy given how quick they were to shut down the rumors that the multiplayer would be delayed.

Further, it wouldn't be very surprising. In fact, developers on the game and Xbox itself have hinted and suggested as much in the past. In a recent interview, Xbox boss Phil Spencer revealed that the "structure of what the game is" has been changed from past entries.

"There's been a ton of learning in the studio around what does it mean to actually have a collection, the kind of totality of the Halo lore and stories and experience inside of one Halo world, one Halo UI, and platform," said Spencer while speaking to Polygon. "As 343 has gone through this journey, they've seen some of the benefits of not requiring that our customers make a decision between 'Do I want to play this one or that one?' I feel like in a way, the games almost compete with each other. You see that with some of the annualized franchises that are out there — which clearly Halo's not annualized — but you see that where you spend a lot of energy actually trying to move the customers who are already playing your game to a new version of your game. I think as gaming has evolved, there's a view of 'Our customers are our customers and we should respect them where they are.' It's similar to our Xbox message, and I think you'll see that in terms of the way Infinite is talked about — even the structure of what the game is itself."

As always, everything here should be taken with a grain of salt. Nothing here is official, and even if the rumor and the speculation attached to it are correct, it's all subject to change.

Halo Infinite is set to release worldwide this holiday via the Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC. For more news, rumors, leaks, and every other type of coverage on the first-person, sci-fi shooter click here or peep the relevant links below:

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