Developer 343 Industries has announced changes to Halo Infinite’s radar, which will be reverted to the way it functioned in past entries based on player feedback. A useful feature that is a staple in every Halo game, the radar (also known as the Combat Sensor) appears on the bottom-left of the screen, revealing the movements of nearby friendly and enemy players.
Initially set to release as a launch title for the Xbox Series X/S, Halo Infinite was delayed shortly after its first gameplay reveal at E3 2019. This was due to strong criticism from fans and critics for its lackluster graphics, which many felt did not exemplify the technical capabilities of a next-generation console. The strong backlash from fans, coupled with development issues due to COVID-19 and other production issues, led 343 Industries to push back Halo Infinite's release date to December 8 to give the studio with more time to deliver a more polished launch experience.
On Halo Waypoint, 343 recently announced that Halo Infinite’s motion tracking will be changed according to . In a detailed post, the studio listed a large number of changes and fixes that will be made to Halo Infinite as a result of player feedback from the technical preview held in early August. During the playtest the motion tracker functioned similarly to Halo 5’s Threat Tracker mechanic, which only detected players on the radar who were running, using Spartan abilities, or shooting. It seemed that the developer was unsure of the change itself, with the multiplayer team stating, “We knew that this implementation was going to feel different, maybe even a little contentious, and that's why we wanted to get feedback on it as soon as possible in the Tech Preview.”
In previous Halo games, crouch-walking was used to remain undetected on an enemy’s radar, however, crouching in Halo Infinite was rendered mostly useless during the technical preview, as players could move at regular speeds without appearing on other players’ Combat Sensors. While some fans were receptive to the initial adjustment, most players were confused by Halo Infinite’s new radar change, leading 343 to revert the game’s motion tracker to detect all movement except for crouch-walking. The feature will be ready for players to test out during Halo Infinite’s next technical test, with the developers urging fans to “keep an eye on it and let us know how it plays.”
For Halo fans old and new, it must be encouraging to see that 343 is actively making adjustments in accordance to’ feedback from the technical preview. The move could also be seen as an attempt by the developer to appease series veterans, in particular, as the recent news that Halo Infinite will launch without co-op or Forge was met with heavy criticism.
Halo Infinite will release on Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, and PC on December 8, 2021.
Source: 343 Industries/Halo Waypoint