During Xbox's 20th anniversary celebrations, players were treated to a few surprises. Along with an influx of over 70 backward compatible games, an open beta for the highly-anticipated Halo Infinite was also released, just under a month before its full release date on December 8th.
Halo Infinite has been well-received by fans and critics thus far, largely thanks to the multiplayer, offering a quintessential Halo balance of fun and competition. As one would expect, there is a range of different multiplayer game modes to choose from, with the classic Capture The Flag mode being one of them. For anyone new to Halo or perhaps new to Capture The Flag, here are some beginner tips.
6 Prioritize The Objective
First and foremost, it's important that players prioritize the objective of capturing the opponent's flag and ensuring that their own flag is safe. This may seem obvious, but it is a common mistake many players make that can cost their team dearly, as they're more concerned about personal performance and stats than winning the game.
To put it bluntly, there is no purpose in playing Capture The Flag without prioritizing the objective, as the team will be heavily beaten, and even if the player racks up a lot of kills, the point payout will be minimal.
5 Have A Game Plan
Following on from the previous point, it's important to have a game plan. When playing and communicating with friends, this is simple to conduct, but when playing with non-communitive strangers, it can be very tricky. Although a team of strangers won't be able to implement advanced war tactics by any means, they can still employ simple strategies to give themselves the best chance at victory.
A simple strategy is to have a team of at least two players defending the objective, as one defender can easily be overrun; while at least two players should collectively attack the flag, as just one attacker will find it very difficult to capture the flag, especially if the opposition is organized.
4 Be Conservative When Defending
When defending the flag, there will inevitably be periods of time with nothing to do. Consequently, many beginners will get agitated, either through boredom or because they think they're not helping the team enough, causing them to move out of position or lose concentration.
This can be costly, as Halo Infinite has a death penalty, where players are timed out for a few seconds. A few inactive seconds may not sound too bad, but when the opponents are attacking the flag, it may as well be a few minutes, as the dead player likely won't respawn until it's too late and the opponents are already rushing back to their base. Sure, it can be a thankless task at times, but it's essential to play it safe when defending, as the opponents can come bursting into the base at any second.
3 Don't Rush When Going For The Flag
When a Capture The Flag game is loading, many new players will be dreaming of an epic run to the opponent's flag, besting the opposition, and heroically returning to base with their flag in hand. Realistically, however, this Leeroy Jenkins approach will result in little more than an easy kill for the opponent's defensive unit.
Moreover, as mentioned before, it's very hard to capture an opponent's flag without at least two attackers working collectively, so it will almost always be a wasted effort to constantly rush directly to the flag, drawn to it like a moth to a flame. So, instead of rushing, players should always ensure that they are entering the opposition base with at least one teammate, regardless of whether they're playing with communitive friends or un-communicative strangers.
2 Focus On Controlling The Map
Any time players suffer a heavy defeat in Halo Infinite, regardless of the game mode, their opponents will have almost certainly have achieved one thing: control of the map.
Controlling the map is the best way to achieve victory in Halo Infinite, as it makes the opponent's job considerably tougher and the controlling team's far easier. Controlling the map doesn't have a fixed meaning, though it essentially means that the winning team secured the top weapons, were well organized and positioned in the map's key locations, and acquired the best vehicles.
When a team does these three things, they'll win the game nine times out of ten. So, although capturing the flag is the key objective, focus on controlling the map first, and the flag captures will come naturally.
1 Learn The Layout Of Each Map
Before beginners are able to work effectively in teams that control each and every map, they first need to learn the layout.
Players should make a mental note of the weapon spawns, vehicle spawns, and any pivotal vantage points that need to be controlled. As for Capture The Flag, players should map out a few key defensive positions and every route to the opponent's flag. This isn't just important for getting to the flag, but also so the player knows the quickest routes back to their base for when they do get hold of the opposition flag and need to make a mad dash.
An open beta for Halo Infinite is out now for Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. The game fully releases on December 8th, 2021.