Debuting at Microsoft's Xbox Series X showcase a few weeks ago, Halo Infinite's first gameplay trailer quickly became something of a heated online discussion point, with fans either slamming the game's graphics or celebrating its new innovations to the series' iconic gameplay. However, it seems YouTuber Hooloope had a vastly different reaction to seeing the first glimpse at the newest iteration in the Halo franchise, offering fans a recreation of the demo's opening moments entirely stylized to look like an N64 game.
The re-imagining features tons of callbacks to some of the N64's most iconic releases, while also showing what Xbox's flagship franchise would look like if released in an entirely different era. For one, the low-res polygonic graphics make for a hilarious representation of Master Chief, his covenant enemies, and Zeta Halo, leaning more towards the look of games like GoldenEye than the stunning vistas associated with the intergalactic action series.
The demo begins at the exact same point as its Xbox Series X counterpart, with John-117 and the still nameless Pilot crashlanding on Zeta Halo. However, the first major difference fans will notice is that the two characters are speaking in the same hilarious gibberish as the central cast of Banjo-Kazooie, marking the first reference to one of the retro console's biggest hitters. The sound effects clearly mimic Nintendo 64 era games as well, with the cannons that eventually take down the Chief's ship leaving cartoonish explosion and impact sound effects.
Yet, things really start to go off the rails when the pair finally land on Zeta Halo. Embarking out onto the alien super-weapon, Master Chief is met with an entire landscape of low-res spaceships, guns, and enemies. While the footage sticks relatively closely to its roots during these first few seconds of gameplay, with the Chief taking on a few grunts while exploring Zeta Halo, eventually it fully embraces its N64 aesthetics. Jumping into a warthog, Master Chief cruises around a corner - knocking down a hapless grunt in his wake - before riding up a nearby pillar and leaping out of his vehicle to collect a Super Mario 64 star to complete the level. The star even comes with a hilarious animation similar to Mario's, with the Chief holding up a peace sign to the camera and saying "lucky me."
Funniest of all, however, is the very ending of the clip, with Master Chief leaping out of a magical portrait, once again in reference to Super Mario 64. Of course, this isn't just your average portrait, as it actually bears the face of Halo Infinite's newest meme: Craig. The nonchalant brute is even referenced in the name of the level, with "Craig's Crash Site" being listed as complete following the Chief collecting his Super Star.
Halo Infinite is due for release this year on Xbox One and Xbox Series X.