Following heated community backlash, Halo Infinite daily challenge XP now better rewards players for their first multiplayer games each day. Halo Infinite's weekly challenges have received the greatest amount of negative attention since the multiplayer game released early, and developer 343 Industries has indicated Battle Pass and event pass progression is presently being evaluated as a result. For now, it seems the Xbox studio is first taking aim at encouraging players to complete matches.
The multiplayer component Halo Infinite is the first free-to-play experience in the franchise's history, and there have been some stumbling blocks since it launched earlier in November. Dismay was expressed by early adopters when discovering the game's Season 1 Battle Pass and event passes are exclusively tied to XP gained from challenges, as this system departs from most multiplayer games (and even past Halo games) by limiting progression to specific objectives and foregoing more passive, incremental ways to obtain unlocks. This has sparked controversy in the title's online community, and - most recently - a 343 developer signaled Halo Infinite progression fixes are incoming.
343 Industries Community Director John Junyszek announced Halo Infinite XP gain for "Practice Makes Perfection" daily challenges has now been increased for players' first six matches each day. Whereas the match completion challenge previously paid out 50 XP for every game played, the first match of the day now pays out 300 XP, the second and third 200 XP, and the fourth through sixth 100 XP. Upon the seventh game completed, XP gain tapers back off to the previously standard 50 XP. Junyszek explains the change was made to address "slower payouts" at the beginning of user sessions, though no further changes to Halo Infinite Battle Pass progression or weekly challenges were detailed.
Halo Infinite tying progression and cosmetic unlocks to challenges alone has been roundly criticized since the game's multiplayer technical previews were held over the summer, but the issue didn't gain mainstream notice until the multiplayer beta release on November 15. Although otherwise praised for its gameplay and weapon sandbox, negative player feedback has largely focused on or been related to progression and challenges. While requests for playlists to split up Slayer and objective game types have been made by players also wishing for the return of classic Halo modes, those demands were predominantly driven by the difficulty of completing mode-specific challenges. Regardless of reasoning, player feedback claiming Halo Infinite's challenge system to be broken seems to have become common enough to warrant multiple early responses and changes from 343.
Halo Infinite's daily challenge XP gain increase appears to be motivated by a need to keep players engaged and playing at least a few multiplayer matches each day. The Season 1 Battle Pass still has months to go before it ends, so there could be many more Halo Infinite updates and changes based on user input in store.
Halo Infinite multiplayer is available for Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, and PC, and it will fully release on December 8, 2021.
Source: John Junyszek/Twitter