Halo is the flagship franchise for Xbox. As one of the earliest releases, most popular franchises, and the main exclusive that separates Xbox from Playstation, the news of a new Halo gets the Xbox community buzzing. However, like so many other major titles that have had their release dates pushed back, the global pandemic threw a wrench into 343 and Microsoft’s plans.
Originally planned to be released alongside the new Xbox Series consoles, Halo Infinite – one of the most anticipated Xbox releases in recent memory – was delayed from its November 10th, 2020 release date. The cause of the delay was unsurprisingly attributed to COVID19 slowing developmental progress. To make matters worse, only a rough estimate of Fall 2021 was given. But even that was uncertain at the time, hinging on the status of the COVID19 pandemic.
As it stands, all signs point to at least another 7 months of waiting for Halo Infinite. In a podcast interview with Halo Infinite actor Verlon Roberts, the actor stated that the game was expected in November of 2021. Whether this is official information that snuck out or just his individual understanding is uncertain, but it’s a promising sign after last week’s tweet from video game reporter Jason Schreier fueled the rumors of another delay until 2022.
However, given the pandemic is just now beginning to slow down as vaccinations are going out, it is entirely possible that the game isn’t polished enough for Fall 2021 or even November of 2021. Given the huge following that the Halo franchise has and the recent disaster of Cyberpunk 2077’s release before it was ready, it isn’t likely that 343 or Microsoft will allow Halo to come out until it’s finished.
So, will Halo Infinite be delayed until 2022? Until there is an official announcement, you’ll have to choose who to believe. Let’s just hope it’s worth the wait – however long that will end up being.
