The fourth multiplayer season of Halo Infinite has arrived, but future seasons will lack the story cutscenes that have previously accompanied each new season, developer 343 Industries has announced.
The change was disclosed on Twitter by the community director, Brian Jarrard. Given that the developer had “refined top priorities and shifted resources internally,” the decision was made to eliminate seasonal narrative cutscenes in lieu of focusing on bringing “highly requested features” and other enhancements to Halo Infinite.
Jarrard writes –
“These trade-offs are never easy to make, and we truly appreciate your support as the team works to make Halo Infinite the best experience possible.”
“While the job is far from over, Season 4 marks another big step forward and we remain committed to this journey with the Halo community.”
Jarrard’s initial tweet left room for interpretation regarding whether the lack of cutscenes would be permanent moving forward, but a 343 spokesperson verified that this is indeed the case. 343 initially billed Halo Infinite’s seasonal storylines as a key component of its overall mission, with the intention to “deeply root your multiplayer character in the larger Halo universe and give them a vital, active role in the Halo story moving forward,” according to a June 2021 blog post of 343 Industries.
It appears that Halo Infinite’s lore enthusiasts may have to wait a while for new content, as the game’s multiplayer narrative is currently in doubt. It was reported earlier this year that no narrative DLC or campaign expansions were in development for Halo Infinite and that the studio was transitioning from its in-house Slipspace Engine to Epic Games’ popular Unreal Engine.
Do you know that the fifth week of Season of the Deep for Destiny 2 has recently delivered a significant cutscene that exposes more about the Final Shape, the Veil, and the Witness than the whole Lightfall campaign? Destiny 2’s lengthy Light and Dark Saga is nearing its conclusion. The Light and Dark saga begins with Destiny 1 and follows the Traveller, Guardians, and the Light:
The studio 343 was rumored to have been hit hard by massive layoffs at parent firm Microsoft earlier this year, which may be what Jarrard is alluding to in his tweet about the studio having “shifted resources internally.” The studio’s leadership has also undergone significant changes in the past year.
In January, Halo Infinite’s creative director, Joseph Staten, departed the studio. Kiki Wolfkill, a longtime Halo producer, also quit 343 around the same time. In April, it was announced that Halo franchise director Frank O’Connor, who had worked continuously on the franchise for two decades, had also left 343. Bonnie Ross, co-founder of the studio, left in September of last year.
Season 4 of Halo Infinite includes the fan-favorite Infection game mode, which was previously absent from the game. In this version of Infection, rather than confronting Flood-infected Spartans, players will be taken over by a malevolent Banished AI. Season 2 and Season 3 cutscenes for Halo Infinite established the lore foundation for the game mode.
In addition, Season 4 will introduce a new career progression system unrelated to the Battle Pass, store enhancements, a new 100-tier battle pass, two new maps, the Quantum Translocator equipment, and more.