The main Xbox and Bethesda Showcase for the Summer Game Fest has come and gone. There were a decent amount of video games shown off that will be releasing within the next 12 months, including highly anticipated games like Starfield. While it was a pretty big showcase with a good helping of games, there was one title that was notably absent from the conference. Besides a crossover with Microsoft Flight Simulator, Halo Infinite and any Halo related content had no presence during the 90-minute show. Fans of the franchise are still waiting for a bunch of content, including the co-op campaign and Forge mode, but Xbox chose not to show off what is coming to the game, and that is a mistake.
Upon release, Halo Infinite was received pretty well for its new take on the classic Halo campaign and the fun multiplayer. However, the game was heavily criticized for its battle pass rewards and lack of some core features that previous Halo games had. The title is supposed to represent Halo for the foreseeable future, but fans of the franchise are left wondering just what that will look like.The Xbox and Bethesda showcase was where the studio could have eased fan worries and given them something to look forward too, but instead they only got a Pelican in Flight Simulator.
Halo Infinite Fans Want Content
It seems like almost every day players complain about different aspects of Halo Infinite on the game's subreddit and across social media. Gamers have become increasingly unhappy with the battle pass rewards that 343 has released and the restrictions that are in place for customization. They have also become angered by the lack of certain game modes, and the fact that Halo Infinite still has no co-op campaign or forge mode. Things that have become staples of the Halo franchise have seemingly been left out of the game only to be added sometime in the future.
The fan base has also become upset by the cost of the various microtransactions that are present in Halo Infinite. Since the multiplayer is free-to-play, microtransactions are an inevitability, but the cost is too much and the quality is lacking for many players. While the multiplayer and campaign can be a lot of fun, the other elements at play can really bog the entire experience down. Some fans have even begun to play Halo: The Master Chief Collection instead, as that represents the high points of the franchise.
Halo Infinite Needed to be at the Showcase
Halo is one of Xbox's largest franchises and a major part of what made Xbox the brand it is today. To keep a live-service title like Halo Infinite alive, players need content, and the Xbox showcase was where the studio should have shown off that upcoming content. The Halo name is not enough to keep players coming back; the game needs to give them a reason to come back. This can be done through stronger cosmetics, new game modes, the long awaited forge mode, the co-op campaign, or simply more maps. Yet the game had almost no appearance at the showcase, and players have been left to wonder if 343 will deliver on everything they want.
The only Halo content that was announced at the Xbox and Bethesda Showcase was a crossover with Microsoft Flight Simulator that will allow players to fly a Pelican around the planet. While this is a cute little crossover, it does little to appease Halo Infinite players. Leaving the biggest Xbox franchise and current live-service title out of the showcase makes it seem like Xbox has almost nothing in the works. With the lack of content from seasons 1 and 2, not mentioning season 3 of Halo Infinite only makes fans more worried about the future of the game that was said to represent Halo for several years.
Season 3 of Halo Infinite is very much on the horizon, but what exactly it entails has been left a mystery. The showcase had a lot of games and content for Xbox fans to look forward to, but had almost nothing from some of the biggest franchises. Maybe the studio will shed some light on all the missing Halo Infinite content and what the season will bring in the next couple of weeks, but for now, players are left to wonder if their hopes will ever be realized.
Halo Infinite is available now on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.