Inevitable Halo Infinite cheaters are frustrating Xbox console players, and some are blaming crossplay with PC. The latest in the long list of Halo games, Halo Infinite released its free-to-play multiplayer component earlier this month, with a single-player campaign to arrive on December 8. Already the game has garnered record-breaking numbers of players, with Halo Infinite topping Steam charts on its release day on PC. Most online FPS games are plagued by cheaters and hackers, so it only seemed like a matter of time until they struck Halo Infinite.
Normally, cheaters are more common in PC games, meaning console players don’t have to worry about as much about hacking. However, the latest controversy stems from Halo Infinite having crossplay enabled with no means of turning it off. Because of this, console and PC players are almost always playing together. Crossplay between consoles and PC has been a topic of contention in other games, especially FPSes, where the debate over the superiority of mouse and keyboard versus controllers constantly wages. While Halo Infinite‘s crossplay can be toggled to only include certain control schemes, it cannot be limited by platform, meaning there’s no way to ensure PC players (and the hackers among them) won’t end up in an Xbox lobby.
In several discussions on Reddit’s Halo community, players posted video evidence of aimbot hacks in Halo Infinite and called for developer 343 Industries to make crossplay between consoles and PC optional. User KanoxHD shared a video showcasing a player using an aimbot, expressing shock at the appearance of in-game hacks only a week after release. Meanwhile, altburner69 asked 343 to bring back the series’ classic red reticle when aiming at an enemy, a feature presumably removed to make aimbot hacks less effective. Another user, lllXanderlll, advocated for the option to turn Halo Infinite crossplay off and on, allowing console and PC players to optionally play together without forcing crossplay upon everyone. User MisticK93RUS also advocated for this change, arguing that banned accounts or IP addresses won’t solve the issue since the game is free-to-play and cheaters can simply create a new account or mask their IP.
There are already aimbots after less than a week, this is worrying. What do you guys think ? from halo
So now the cats out of the bag. Cheaters are starting to show up already in Infinite even with the Red Reticle removal. So can PC players have it back now 343? We all saw this coming. from halo
Halo Infinite needs to have a crossplay toggle option for all of multiplayer, not just ranked. from halo
We need ability to disable crossplay with PC, seriously. from halo
These issues might sound trivial, but it may be taken seriously by 343. Not many players will see the fun of learning the ins and outs of Halo Infinite’s multiplayer if losing to cheaters becomes too commonplace. This issue can severely limit the legitimacy of a game and its ranking system, in addition to the fact that it’s difficult to collect microtransaction revenue from a playerbase if they stop logging in. Halo Infinite has seen massive success early on, but if cheating and other issues aren’t handled quickly, that could change.
Giving players more options is usually well-received, especially when one option may force one to face unfair odds. Even before the issue of cheating arose publicly in Halo Infinite, there were already reasons to provide an option to turn off crossplay. While it’s toggleable in Ranked Arena, the ability to control input-based matchmaking for controllers and mouse and keyboard setups isn’t available in unranked playlists. Halo Infinite’s anti-cheat was previously promoted as a bulwark between PC cheaters and Xbox players, but its effectiveness has already been called into question.
Halo Infinite multiplayer is available for Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, and PC, and it fully release on December 8, 2021.
Sources: KanoxHD/Reddit, altburner69/Reddit, lllXanderlll/Reddit, MisticK93RUS/Reddit