Developers 343 Industries has announced a technical preview stream for Halo Infinite scheduled for today, July 28, ahead of the official commencement of the game's first-ever (closed) public playtest. Halo Infinite will continue Master Chief's story and is set for release later this year, although no concrete date has been announced yet.
Initially set to release as a launch title for the Xbox Series X/S, Halo Infinite’s first gameplay reveal to the world during E3 2019 was met with heavy criticism due to its lackluster graphics, which many fans and critics felt did not exemplify the technical capabilities of a launch title for a next-generation console. As a result of the negative reactions and development complications caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Halo Infinite was delayed to give 343 more time to improve upon the game’s visuals, with a re-reveal trailer finally stunning fans at E3 2021.
Announced on Halo's Twitter account, 343 will be providing fans with a first look of what’s in store for the upcoming Halo Infinite multiplayer technical preview via stream. Scheduled to go live today, July 28, at 2 PM PDT/5 PM EDT, it can be watched on both Twitch and YouTube. The post also outlined what can be expected during the sneak peek of the technical preview, which will run from July 29 until August 1, including how those selected for the multiplayer weekend can access the game. Players that have been selected to take part in the multiplayer weekend via the Halo Insider program have already been notified via email, with those that do not want to participate given the option of opting out.
The multiplayer component of Halo Infinite was first revealed during the Xbox E3 2021 showcase in June. Along with that reveal trailer, 343 Industries confirmed that Halo Infinite will be free-to-play, a first for the series. While free-to-play games such as Activision’s Call of Duty: Warzone and Epic Games’ Fortnite often heavily feature microtransactions in the form of battle passes, loot boxes, or player cosmetics, 343 has assured fans that the game will not feature loot boxes and that Halo Infinite's battle passes will never expire.
Lucky Spartans can finally return to the battlefield during Halo Infinite’s first multiplayer technical preview this weekend. For those who may have missed out on the chance, 343’s community director had previously sent out an urgent reminder that not all Halo Insiders had completed the required steps to qualify for Halo Infinite technical preview in time. Hopefully, those who miss out this time will be prioritized should the developer hold another round of testing.
Halo Infinite will be available for Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC in Holiday 2021.
Source: Halo/Twitter, Halo/Twitch, Halo/YouTube