Here’s how Halo Infinite’s always-accessible battle passes will work
Halo Infinite is doing something different when it comes to battle passes when it launches later this year; you'll be able to access them and progress in them whenever you like.
It sounds like a strange conceit, especially since we're used to games like Call of Duty: Warzone and Fortnite leveraging FOMO in order to get you to rush through all 100 levels of any given battle pass in order to force unlocks in-game.
In a deep dive presentation regarding Halo Infinite's free-to-player multiplayer, developer 343 industries dived deeper into the multiplayer facet of the game and talked about how it's going to monetize the project, going forward.
In a change from the norm, Halo Infinite's battle passes won't expire and will remain available for you to pick up and make progress in, even after its attached season expires.
It seems vaguely similar to something we've seen in Halo: The Master Chief Collection – where you can spend currency to unlock different paths to better control the cosmetics you're aiming for – but it sounds slightly more straightforward in Infinite.
As a result, the game will have no loot boxes and no content will be locked behind 'chance drops', either. It also means the title will operate more as a 'game-as-a-service', with post-launch maps, modes, and customization options already in the works for Halo Infinite multiplayer.
"A key component of the new Halo Infinite multiplayer experience is your personal Spartan that’s meant to grow and evolve month after month, season after season," says a post on Halo Waypoint.
"Players will have more options than ever before to customize your Spartan and make it uniquely yours. Each season will feature a new assortment of customization pieces and components that can be earned via gameplay, challenges, events, and purchase.
"We’ve said this before, but it bears saying again - there will be no loot boxes or elements of chance if you decide to purchase an optional customization item. And, of course, all of Halo Infinite’s Spartan customization elements are purely cosmetic and have no impact to gameplay."
Halo Infinite is out this holiday on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. The launch package includes the free-to-play multiplayer, as well as the game’s campaign.
