Don’t be fooled by all the online coverage when it comes to Halo Infinite’s “open world.” You can very much play it just like we used to: story mission after story mission.
No need to queue up a bunch of side activities in the hopes that you finally “unlock” the next story mission like many an open-world game are ought to do *cough* Ubisoft *cough.*
Yes, you’re encouraged to find all the FOBs, High-Value Targets, Propaganda Towers, etc. and levels are not as cleanly laid out as before — they’re still working on a fix to be able to replay story missions, after all.
But if you’re like me — wanting to make haste through Master Chief’s latest adventure — you can just follow all the mission markers and you’re good to go down the yellow brick road following the exploits of a green man from the future.
Story missions are most definitely in and can be focused on with the urgency you’d think the end of the world would command; not being bogged down by trivial matters like finding multiplayer cosmetics in Mjolnir Armory cases.
Don’t get me wrong. The fact that Halo Infinite finally turned the open world feel of Halo: Combat Evolved into a reality is an admirable feat.
Not to mention having its own awe-inspiring “leaving the vault” moment — Fallout 3 says “Hi” — as you first set eyes upon Zeta Halo’s grandeur and splendor…but honestly? I’m all about the critical path.
And Halo Infinite let’s you ignore most of the open-world activities to get on with finishing the fight now.
Would it make it easier to get all the extra armor pieces and upgrades? Sure. But me and my trusty grapple hook, and unmissable upgrades along the way, make it so it’s not insurmountable to take on any challenge.
As we’ve come to learn, Zeta Halo was originally supposed to be 3X larger so the “infinite” in the title is a little bit of a misnomer since it’s clearly more “finite” than even 343 Industries originally envisioned. The developers themselves knew to get right to the point while still realizing a compact vision of “combat evolved.”
Go forth, follow the yellow mission markers to your heart’s content if you desire. And don’t worry, you’re not going to miss any of the fine vistas, bombastic cut scenes, and — finally! — the inclusion of multiple bosses along the way.
We Got Comms! 