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New Halo Infinite info revealed in huge Q&A: Day/night cycle, dynamic weather and more

Vasto

Member

Halo Infinite developer 343 Industries has hosted a lengthy Q&A session that reveals wealth of new information on the game’s Zeta Halo environment, including the way the day/night cycle affects the enemies players will encounter.​






  • The game has dynamic weather, with a wind system and a fog system included. There may be storms or snowstorms added in a post-launch update.
  • The Zeta Halo ring is fully 3D rendered, and when the sun passes behind it there may be a short eclipse.
  • Weapons can’t be upgraded, because the team felt it would start to move away from “what Halo was all about”. Some equipment can be upgraded, though.
  • The game’s open world is inspired by the Silent Cartographer mission from the original Halo, in that it gives players the freedom to choose how to approach each mission, with whatever weapons or vehicles they decide to use.
  • New biomes include higher altitudes, swampy wetlands and war-torn areas called the Deadlands.
  • When asked if the open world means players could grab a Banshee and drive to an objective three missions ahead in the story, the reply was “do it”.
  • There will be audio logs giving more background on previous battles that took place.
  • There are no ‘traditional’ cutscenes: it’s all done live in the engine and the camera will pull out from Master Chief’s head to present them. This means the time of day, weapons being held etc. will be accurate.

 

Umbasaborne

Banned
This all sounds great. Strange that storms are coming after launch though considering they were given a full extra year. Dissapointed to hear no hostile wild life, i had a cool idea of potentially fis disturbing a heard of those deer like things and making them trample through a covenant camp
 
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DonJorginho

Banned
Need this to be good, please be good

200.gif
 
S

Sidney Prescott

Unconfirmed Member
Really hoping this is good. I was impressed by the difference in the new screenshots they shared.

I'm hopeful all this game needed was more time in the oven.
 

Haggard

Banned
Whats that supposed to mean
Promises - Hype - Disappointment- Anger - new Promises - Hype.....
The circle repeats endlessly with gamers and they don`t seem to learn.
This is especially dumb with games like this that had to be pulled once already due to sheer management incompetence.....and yet, people are already snorting the new slew of promises. I can count the number of successful 180s in fucked up game development over the last 20 years on one hand and yet here we are.....
 
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Promises - Hype - Disappointment- Anger - new Promises - Hype.....
The circle repeats endlessly with gamers and they don`t seem to learn.
This is especially dumb with games like this that had to be pulled once already due to sheer management incompetence.....and yet, people are already snorting the new slew of promises. I can count the number of successful 180s in fucked up game development over the last 20 years on one hand and yet here we are.....
I think it's time for you to leave this thread my friend, you obviously don't like Halo, have a nice day.
 

Robb

Gold Member
I won't get my hopes up until we see it in action, but it definitely sounds like all of the ideas they're implementing have great potential.
 
Promises - Hype - Disappointment- Anger - new Promises - Hype.....
The circle repeats endlessly with gamers and they don`t seem to learn.
This is especially dumb with games like this that had to be pulled once already due to sheer management incompetence.....and yet, people are already snorting the new slew of promises. I can count the number of successful 180s in fucked up game development over the last 20 years on one hand and yet here we are.....

To a lot of people the original infinite reveal was still good. The gameplay/concept was never the issue. It just needed more polish.
 
Promises - Hype - Disappointment- Anger - new Promises - Hype.....
The circle repeats endlessly with gamers and they don`t seem to learn.
This is especially dumb with games like this that had to be pulled once already due to sheer management incompetence.....and yet, people are already snorting the new slew of promises. I can count the number of successful 180s in fucked up game development over the last 20 years on one hand and yet here we are.....
Not really. The Master Chief Collection is everything I ever hoped it could be. I have no issues with it taking several years longer to get right. I enjoyed Halo 4's campaign a great deal; the multiplayer aspect had some design choices that I felt marred what could have been one of the better halo matchmaking offerings, but I still enjoyed it. Halo 5's campaign was a wreck. We all know it. On the other hand Halo 5's matchmaking was refreshing. This idea that 343 is completely incompetent is kind of annoying. They've made mistakes, but there is no reason to believe they can't put out a good halo game. The main reason people made fun of Infinite was because of it's graphics. It remains to be seen how the rest of the game will turn out. We haven't seen any multiplayer. We still only know bits and pieces of the story. Most importantly though is that Infinite focuses primarily on the master chief, which is how it should be.
 

Kuranghi

Member

Halo Infinite developer 343 Industries has hosted a lengthy Q&A session that reveals wealth of new information on the game’s Zeta Halo environment, including the way the day/night cycle affects the enemies players will encounter.​






  • The game has dynamic weather, with a wind system and a fog system included. There may be storms or snowstorms added in a post-launch update.
  • The Zeta Halo ring is fully 3D rendered, and when the sun passes behind it there may be a short eclipse.
  • Weapons can’t be upgraded, because the team felt it would start to move away from “what Halo was all about”. Some equipment can be upgraded, though.
  • The game’s open world is inspired by the Silent Cartographer mission from the original Halo, in that it gives players the freedom to choose how to approach each mission, with whatever weapons or vehicles they decide to use.
  • New biomes include higher altitudes, swampy wetlands and war-torn areas called the Deadlands.
  • When asked if the open world means players could grab a Banshee and drive to an objective three missions ahead in the story, the reply was “do it”.
  • There will be audio logs giving more background on previous battles that took place.
  • There are no ‘traditional’ cutscenes: it’s all done live in the engine and the camera will pull out from Master Chief’s head to present them. This means the time of day, weapons being held etc. will be accurate.



When I read the first bolded part I thought this could mean its not a full open world and its large open levels that are connected via travel points (I would prefer this, I'm not saying its a negative I don't want a huge, mostly empty, open world) but you can't just land anywhere inbetween them. Then when I saw the 2nd bolded part I feel that confirms it, the answer seems like a confirmation of a huge open world where you can just speed ahead in a vehicle to wherever you want, but they answered in a mealy-mouthed way with "do it", which isn't a confirmation really, when they could just say yes.

On the contrary I do think the cutscene method they are using implies something thats able to be used in many different situations depending on how you complete the mission, ie the location you are in when it ends might be different from another player, so that has good gameplay implications.

I just want to know what the gameplay arena really is so I can get excited about what that might entail, if its true open world then thats a lot different than large set areas, in terms of tactics you'll be able to use.

Sorry if you read this and feel like I'm dehyping you, I don't want to take away from others enthusiasm, I just want more clarity.
 

oldergamer

Member
Promises - Hype - Disappointment- Anger - new Promises - Hype.....
The circle repeats endlessly with gamers and they don`t seem to learn.
This is especially dumb with games like this that had to be pulled once already due to sheer management incompetence.....and yet, people are already snorting the new slew of promises. I can count the number of successful 180s in fucked up game development over the last 20 years on one hand and yet here we are.....

Concern - Complaints - Xbox thread - Anger - Concern - complaints.....
The circle repeats itself endlessly with sony gamers that don't seem to learn.
This is especially dumb with games like this that were still in development or delayed on Xbox.... and yet, people are already snorting the Sony cocaine, and happy about delays on any game for that platform ( Sony fan on sony games: Yay delay it and make it really good. Sony fan on Xbox games: It's delayed because it's bad, shut the developer down!) I can count the number of successful games that were delayed on sony consoles and still single out one or two games on Xbox over the last 20 years on one hand, and yet here is more BS.....

Right back at you bub.
 
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Iced Arcade

Member
Promises - Hype - Disappointment- Anger - new Promises - Hype.....
The circle repeats endlessly with gamers and they don`t seem to learn.
This is especially dumb with games like this that had to be pulled once already due to sheer management incompetence.....and yet, people are already snorting the new slew of promises. I can count the number of successful 180s in fucked up game development over the last 20 years on one hand and yet
Sounds like you are not a halo fan and prefer "gripping cinematic design like LoU or Gow, or the punishing Soulslike/Action genres"
 
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PnCIa

Member
Op, you call more/less wind and more/less fog dynamic weather?

Will there be rain? Because it does not sound like it. The lack of different climate zones is really disappointing overall.
But, from a gameplay perspective, it all sounds pretty great. The video began with a feeling of disappointment for me but then it got better and better.
 
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jaysius

Banned
I'm glad this is coming to gamepass, I never really liked Halo's idea of "difficulty" aka throw bigger sponges in your path. Which is why I enjoyed Halo 5 more, it was more fun than the average Halo game. Also Halo ODST was great for it's semi-open world design, so this one should be great.

If this is just Destiny than they've fucked up.

I'm guessing we won't see any gameplay until they get all the craigs out.
 
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Haggard

Banned
Concern - Complaints - Xbox thread - Anger - Concern - complaints.....
The circle repeats itself endlessly with sony gamers that don't seem to learn.
This is especially dumb with games like this that were still in development or delayed on Xbox.... and yet, people are already snorting the Sony cocaine, and happy about delays on any game for that platform ( Sony fan on sony games: Yay delay it and make it really good. Sony fan on Xbox games: It's delayed because it's bad, shut the developer down!) I can count the number of successful games that were delayed on sony consoles and still single out one or two games on Xbox over the last 20 years on one hand, and yet here is more BS.....

Right back at you bub.
another 12 year old console warrior.
Must suck to be too poor to have more than one plastic budget box.
 
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II_JumPeR_I

Member
Some gameplay clips would make this ask343 videos way more interesting.

But i guess recording short clips from a actual build is impossible for an indie Studio like 343 /s
 

dcmk7

Banned
Concern - Complaints - Xbox thread - Anger - Concern - complaints.....
The circle repeats itself endlessly with sony gamers that don't seem to learn.
This is especially dumb with games like this that were still in development or delayed on Xbox.... and yet, people are already snorting the Sony cocaine, and happy about delays on any game for that platform ( Sony fan on sony games: Yay delay it and make it really good. Sony fan on Xbox games: It's delayed because it's bad, shut the developer down!) I can count the number of successful games that were delayed on sony consoles and still single out one or two games on Xbox over the last 20 years on one hand, and yet here is more BS.....

Right back at you bub.
What on earth...

Why are you soo defensive? There isn't anything in that post to warrant bringing up Sony and attempting to descend this thread into yet another episode of console war bickering.

The whole industry is guilty of over-promising. Think No Man's Sky. It's an industry wide problem.

Some around here are just way too obsessed with Sony and seemingly get triggered at the mere hint of any sort of pessimism in a user's post.

Personally, I would rather they didn't mention the stuff coming post-release. As it does them no favours at all.
 
Nice, glad to hear about more dynamics systems tied to encounters and gameplay. The cutscenes are a nice touch. Hopefully this simulation world ties right into a Destiny style PvE my friends and I can explore, progress and fight in.
 

fatmarco

Member
The lack of variety in biomes is concerning. Halo 3 had jungles, human settlements, grassy alpine Halo, desert halo, snowy halo, flood infested stuff etc. Halo 2 had space stations, covenant cities, forests, beaches, human cities, flood facilities in a gas giant, snowy levels etc. Then Reach had levels set in space etc.

As a side note I get the feeling this will be a game where there'll be recycled content/ radiant missions etc. to pad out the experience, which I'm really worried about. You could already see that in the initial demo where they'd designed enemy structures to be easily placed in any context for cheaply produced missions which is something I don't think was discussed nearly enough amongst all the other outrage (Essentially the world being one big forge map for the developers rather than truly unique environments and assets).

I could be misunderstanding the games concept however.
 
ReWRemehen I read the first bolded part I thought this could mean its not a full open world and its large open levels that are connected via travel points (I would prefer this, I'm not saying its a negative I don't want a huge, mostly empty, open world) but you can't just land anywhere inbetween them. Then when I saw the 2nd bolded part I feel that confirms it, the answer seems like a confirmation of a huge open world where you can just speed ahead in a vehicle to wherever you want, but they answered in a mealy-mouthed way with "do it", which isn't a confirmation really, when they could just say yes.
On the contrary I do think the cutscene method they are using implies something thats able to be used in many different situations depending on how you complete the mission, ie the location you are in when it ends might be different from another player, so that has good gameplay implications.

I just want to know what the gameplay arena really is so I can get excited about what that might entail, if its true open world then thats a lot different than large set areas, in terms of tactics you'll be able to use.

Sorry if you read this and feel like I'm dehyping you, I don't want to take away from others enthusiasm, I just want more clarity.
Remember that even though it's open world it takes place entirely in a halo. That alone means it wont be a traditional open world as the halo has a very distinct shape and therefore edges.

It actually sounds fairly unique and I'm excited about the gameplay possibilities, the idea of an 'open world' that has a very organic forward driving force (the shape of the halo) is quite intriguing. Hopfully it will give the player a much stronger feeling of environmental progression through the nature of the halo.

Not a big fan of the franchise but I am very interested to see what they do with this, it genuinely seems like a unique take on the open world genre which has got very stale and bland (lazy) as of late. Best of luck 343
 

Kuranghi

Member
Remember that even though it's open world it takes place entirely in a halo. That alone means it wont be a traditional open world as the halo has a very distinct shape and therefore edges.

It actually sounds fairly unique and I'm excited about the gameplay possibilities, the idea of an 'open world' that has a very organic forward driving force (the shape of the halo) is quite intriguing. Hopfully it will give the player a much stronger feeling of environmental progression through the nature of the halo.


Not a big fan of the franchise but I am very interested to see what they do with this, it genuinely seems like a unique take on the open world genre which has got very stale and bland (lazy) as of late. Best of luck 343

Totally, I think they will do it like that even if its full open map open world, as you say it makes sense due to the design of the Halo rings.

It would be really cool if there are obvious large areas you can see while flying around but you can find hidden little areas nestled away in between those large areas, that would be amazing.
 
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Naked Lunch

Member
Sounds good to me. Silent Cartographer should be the template for Halo level design.

Interesting we havent seen much on multiplayer yet. Im really hoping they are using the extra time to make lots of in-house multiplayer maps. The past couple Halos (even including Bungie's Reach) relied too much on community made forge maps - which are ugly as hell.
 
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sainraja

Member
What on earth...

Why are you soo defensive? There isn't anything in that post to warrant bringing up Sony and attempting to descend this thread into yet another episode of console war bickering.

The whole industry is guilty of over-promising. Think No Man's Sky. It's an industry wide problem.

Some around here are just way too obsessed with Sony and seemingly get triggered at the mere hint of any sort of pessimism in a user's post.

Personally, I would rather they didn't mention the stuff coming post-release. As it does them no favours at all.
YUP. It's so unfortunate. You can't have a conversation or discuss anything if it tilts even a little bit towards what they don't want to hear.
 
Totally, I think they will do it like that even if its full open map open world, as you say it makes sense due to the design of the Halo rings.

It would be really cool if there are obvious large areas you can see while flying around but you can find hidden little areas nestled away in between those large areas, that would be amazing.
For sure. It's a very interesting space for them to mess around with and as you say its gonna be really cool to see how they deal with points of interest when you can technically see the entire world from wherever you are.

They have a chance to do something really new and modern while keeping things as classic as possible. May be too much but it gives me God of War vibes, the perfect franchise reboot imo.
 

Kuranghi

Member
I remember the first time I realised you could grenade blast the warthog over the walls into the centre of the island, using it to catapult yourself over and into the small arena with the Hunters. Its also the first time I heard the gattling-gun-wielding marine bark: "I hope you brought some butta, you're about to get fried!" and I had such a stupid smile on my face taking down the previously tough enemies with the automatic AI fire from the turret:

 
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Varteras

Gold Member
Cautiously optimistic but I want to see this all in action and how it flows. It sounds like they're trying to check a lot of boxes but I'm hoping they tie it all in together and nail the feel. I don't have a ton of faith in 343 and this game has already went through several changes in leadership. I'm hoping that they've landed on a vision and focus. I really miss being excited about Halo. I want this to be awesome like Halo used to be for me but I also want them to push the franchise forward. It's so hard to change the formula and keep it great but it can be done.
 
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