Developer 343 Industries has announced that Halo Infinite has been delayed into 2021 and will not launch alongside the Xbox Series X this November. The developer has cited the COVID-19 pandemic as one of the main reasons for the delay.
A statement posted over on Twitter from 343 Industries studio head Chris Lee reads, "We have made the difficult decision to shift our release to 2021 to ensure the team has adequate time to deliver a Halo game experience that meets our vision.
"The decision to shift our release is the result of multiple factors that have contributed to development challenges, including the ongoing COVID-related impacts affecting us all this year. I want to acknowledge the hard work from our team at 343 Industries, who have remained committed to making a great game and finding solutions to development challenges. However, it is not sustainable for the well-being of our team or the overall success of the game to ship it this holiday.
“We know this will be disappointing to many of you, and we all share in that sentiment. The passion and support the community has shown over the years has been incredible and inspiring. We wanted nothing more than to play our game with the community this holiday. The extra time will let us finish the critical work necessary to deliver the most ambitious Halo game ever at the quality we know our fans expect.”
Halo Infinite recently came under heavy criticism from fans after gameplay footage was shown for the first time during July’s latest Xbox Games Showcase. The delay means Halo Infinite will not be an Xbox Series X launch title when the console releases later this year.
Microsoft and 343 Industries are making the decision to delay the launch of Halo Infinite to 2021. 343 Industries says the delay is related to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, as employees have shifted to work from home and development of large games has been particularly difficult for many in the industry.
“We have made the difficult decision to shift our release to 2021 to ensure the team has adequate time to deliver a Halo game experience that meets our vision,” says Chris Lee, studio head for Halo Infinite . “The decision to shift our release is the result of multiple factors that have contributed to development challenges, including the ongoing COVID-related impacts affecting us all this year. I want to acknowledge the hard work from our team at 343 Industries, who have remained committed to making a great game and finding solutions to development challenges. However, it is not sustainable for the well-being of our team or the overall success of the game to ship it this holiday.”
It’s a decision that Microsoft’s Xbox chief, Phil Spencer, did warn may happen earlier this year. “I’d say the bigger unknown is probably the game production, just being honest,” said Spencer in May. “Game production is a large scale entertainment activity now, you have hundreds of people coming together, building assets, working through creative.”
Bungie, developer of Destiny 2 , also recently delayed the company’s next big Destiny 2 expansion to November 10th, citing the difficulties of development during the pandemic. Naughty Dog also cited the pandemic for a delay to the launch of The Last of Us Part II earlier this year.
Still, Microsoft did push ahead and demo Halo Infinite during its Xbox Game Studios event just a few weeks ago. At the time, Microsoft and 343 Industries were still publicly committing to launching Halo Infinite alongside the new Xbox Series X console, which is now due to hit store shelves in November.
It’s not clear what changed over the past few weeks to force Microsoft to delay Halo Infinite to 2021. The reception to the game has been mixed, though, with some criticizing the graphics and visuals in the game. 343 Industries responded to the criticisms, admitting that “we do have work to do to address some of these areas and raise the level of fidelity and overall presentation for the final game.”
With no clear Halo Infinite release date in sight, except a 2021 release, 343 Industries will now have plenty of time to avoid the typical game crunch and address fan feedback in the months ahead.
My xbox x is mostly stable but i will need something new soon…my og xboxone was much more stable and too many ppl have said their xbox x’s have died…so i’ll prolly get the series x at launch…and @Lala_Calamari will stop giving me shit about thinking about a PS5
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