According to FaZe Clan teammate and famous Twitch streamer Nickmercs Halo Infinite needs a battle royale if it is going to stay relevant and compete against Call of Duty: Warzone. Many players believe that Halo Infinite should include a battle royale mode at launch. However, developer 343 Industries has said that it is not including a battle royale mode in the game.
Ever since Halo Infinite’s reveal, franchise fans have been debating about whether the game would launch with a battle royale. Gamers expected 343 Industries would follow the success of Call of Duty: Warzone and nearly a dozen other popular battle royales on the market. Despite the speculation, the develops shut down the rumors, claiming the game will focus on the traditional aspects of Halo, including a story-driven campaign and multiplayer game modes. Halo Infinite’s free-to-play multiplayer is set to include all of the usual Halo multiplayer modes, as well as Jeff Steitzer’s iconic announcer voice. While most fans are excited to drop into the traditional Halo-style action, some have commented that the developers have missed a major opportunity.
First reported by Dexerto, Nickmercs claimed that Halo Infinite developers are making a big mistake by not incorporating a battle royale mode at launch. “It’s prolly gonna be hot for two weeks,” he explained in a tweet, before saying its popularity is going to drop off. The Call of Duty streamer and FaZe Clan member faced some criticism for his thoughts, but stuck to his guns, claiming that Halo Infinite not having a battle royale “is one of the biggest missed opportunities I’ve seen in the gaming space.”
After pointing out that 343 Industries hasn’t don’t a great job with the Halo franchise thus far, Nickmercs said that the developers should have taken advantage of the battle royale genre’s popularity, like Call of Duty devs did with Warzone. “Look at the success,” he pointed out in a separate tweet. “Understanding your point, lack of resources and what not, I still think it’s well worth the attempt.”
The Halo Infinite debate has gone on for a while, especially with its launch just around the corner. For Halo traditionalists, the game is better off without a battle royale mode bogging down gameplay and taking attention away from the multiplayer game modes. For modern gamers, though, it’s disappointing that the next generation of Halo will be void of the popular battle royale mode, especially since the franchise would put its own unique spin and flavor on it.
Regardless of fan opinions – even if those opinions are coming from a famous Twitch streamer – 343 Industries and Xbox Game Studios have shown no inclination toward changing their minds on the battle royale. As far as the future goes, it’s possible that Halo Infinite could get a battle royale somewhere down the line, but fans will have to jump in at launch without expectations of the future.
