I was young when I first picked up a game controller. My dad had played on the original Xbox and PlayStation2 when I was only two or three. Some of my earliest memories involve me sitting in front of the TV and watching my dad play through “Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic,” “Ratchet and Clank,” and other games from the era. A few years later, I picked up the controller myself and started playing.

Now, almost 20 years later, I’ll still pick up the old controller on a refurbished PlayStation2 that I brought with me from home and put in the discs to some ancient Xbox games into my Xbox One. 

However, few game series have stuck out in my memory like Halo did. “Halo: Combat Evolved” was another one of the games I watched my dad play when I was growing up, and one that I grew up playing as the series grew and changed. Not every recent entry has been fantastic, (looking at you, Halo 5) but the series has always been fun, fresh and nostalgic for me.

While my expectations were pretty high for the newest entry into the series, “Halo Infinite” has blown those expectations out of the water and reached a new height for the series.

Is it perfect? Absolutely not. Is it fun? Without a shadow of a doubt, yes. 

In an era where triple A games have become increasingly formulaic and predictable, with titans like “Call of Duty” somehow disappointing their fans even worse with every passing year, Halo infinite stands out like a beacon of light. 

Infinite’s multiplayer is one of the best, seeming to stand out for its creativity in items and weapons, while making it feel as though every win is earned, and every loss is hard-fought.

“They have a good balance of modes that are staples in shooter games, and some that are smaller and seasonal modes which feel different and add to the variety,” said sophomore Stephen Christian. “The matchmaking is pretty good, there are some expected issues, but 95% of the time the matches are even. I also think the abilities are nice because each one has a use that makes it unique and useful.”

Other players feel that, while good, the multiplayer leaves something to be desired.

“The gameplay feels decently good, but there have been no major changes to the game since the beta,” said senior Luke Crown. “It has potential but balancing and changes are needed before it can really excel.”

The campaign also has been very well received. Most players have enjoyed the story that Microsoft Games has been creating, though you won’t find any spoilers here, and are looking forward to the release of next season.

“Infinite was one of the best single player campaign experiences I’ve had in years,” said Crown. “The mechanics, the degree of challenge but also the ability to still progress was excellently done, the world and abilities were awesome, and the story was decent. Each boss felt unique, and the AI felt very well done. It’s the first game I’ve played where it felt like the trailer made me feel when playing it myself.”

Microsoft has said that they plan to continue building the story of Halo Infinite in Story DLC that will be released for the next ten years. With the game so far being excellent, I am very much looking forward to the future of Halo, and can’t wait to keep playing as time goes on. 

Tags: community, Editorial, game

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