Halo Infinite is about a month away, and 343 Industries has divulged a lot information about it this past year. In the final run up to launch though, it appears one of Halo Infinite's (likely) many editions has leaked.
November and December are shaping up to be a gauntlet of releases, especially for players on Xbox. Between Forza Horizon 5, Microsoft Flight Simulator: Game of the Year Edition, and Halo Infinite, Xbox has a solid lineup of high-quality titles going into the holiday season. It being the 20th Anniversary of Xbox and Halo, Microsoft announced a special broadcast happening later this month that will reflect on the past 20 years of playing on Xbox. Halo being arguably Xbox's largest franchise, and from the litany of customization options available in the game, it is within reason that the game would receive multiple editions.
According to a new image, one of Halo Infinite's editions may have leaked, it being an "Early Access Digital Bundle." The leak comes from Microsoft and Windows reporter Aggiornamenti Lumia who spotted the listing on the Microsoft Store, and posted their findings to Twitter. Interestingly, the page does not list Halo Infinite in the title, that being simply "Early Access Digital Bundle," with the description saying the same thing, and Halo Infinite Multiplayer being included in the "In this bundle" section. In addition to this, a prior tweet by Lumia indicates that Halo Infinite may be receiving four DLC packs.
Halo Infinite is already taking a pretty unique approach to its launch and in what formats it is available. Like many other big multiplayer franchises, Halo Infinite's multiplayer is free-to-play, with its campaign being separately purchaseable. The campaign (and therefore the full game) is currently pre-orderable from most retailers for full price. As the name suggests then, an "Early Access Digital Bundle" will likely let players start playing the game early, and may include some extra content, though its unclear what game modes would be available and content would be added.
Varied game editions are not a new practice in the slightest, with the most recent numerical Halo title having multiple versions itself. Halo 5: Guardians launched with both Limited Edition and Limited Collector's Edition variants, both of which included a special steelbook, Halo: The Fall of Reach animated series, and some other collectibles. The Limited Collector's Edition—which retailed for $250—featured a commemorative statue of Master Chief and Spartan Locke, accounting for the price jump from the Limited Edition's comparatively meager $100 price tag. If Halo Infinite will have multiple editions, it's interesting that 343 Industries still hasn't revealed them.
Halo Infinite launches December 8 on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.