All the Details on Halo Infinite's Winter Update: Multiplayer, Campaign Co-op, Forge Open Beta

Halo Infinite’s Winter Update draws close, with only a few weeks left until the 8th of November when the game will receive its first truly major update since its release last year. 343i has posted a video detailing all everything that’s coming, but we’ve summed it all up for you below:

The Deets

I’d suggest watching the video if you want to see the endless possibilities that are coming with Forge, but if you’re looking for cold, hard facts, we’re prepared this short overview for you to read:

Multiplayer

Two new forge-created maps.
One new mode.
A free, 30-tier battle pass.
Two events.
Match XP.

The maps are called Argyle and Detachment, and are created inside the Forge map editor (meaning they look a little more gray and blocky but that doesn’t make them badly designed!). Detachment brings the first official teleporter in any Halo Infinite multiplayer map.

The new game mode is called Covert One-Flag and is a turn-based Capture the Flag with a twist. One team is attacking (grab flag) while one team is defending (defend flag) – so far, nothing new to the Halo franchise.

The attacking team has unlimited active camouflage, while the defenders are equipped with threat sensors. If you haven’t played Infinite in a while, the sensors are that sticky ball you throw on the ground, or on a wall, that emits a spherical pulse which paints nearby enemies in its range on your HUD.

Finally, match XP is being added. Each match gives you some XP. Winning gives you more XP. Performing well gives you another chunk of XP. You no longer have to do ridiculous daily tasks exclusively in order to progress the battle pass.

Not finally, the battle pass will include a lot of Reach-themed armor pieces, which does make me wonder if these are the pieces that never ended up making it into Infinite’s debut battle pass.

The first event comes in December and is titled ‘Winter Contingency 2’, followed by ‘Joint Fire’ in January.

Campaign

Network co-op is finally making it way into the game, after being promised to debut at launch. Do note that is is network co-op, not split-screen, so it only allows for playing the campaign with friends (up to 4) on separate machines. Split-screen was allegedly cancelled a few months ago, but it may still find its way in the game if 343i plans to keep their promise of supporting the game for the next 10 (now 9) years.

In terms of respawning, contrary to previous Halo games, when you die in Infinite co-op, you’ll respawn with the same weapons you had before.

There will also be new achievements that can be earned in co-op as well as some for replaying missions you couldn’t previously replay, with allegedly new places to explore within!

Forge Open Beta

Halo Infinite Forge’s maximum object count is 7000, a lot more than any previous game’s limit (Halo 5 had 1600). Object scaling is a must-try feature, with small hoses having the ability to be turned into giant pipes. Players will be able to change materials on objects, adding a whole new avenue of customization to custom maps. Also, gargantuan Grunts.

Forge also now has a visual scripting language, similar to how Blueprints work in Unreal Engine, allowing you to basically code some insane game modes without having to hack into the mainframe and all that stuff the community had to do with previous games.

Forge will launch with 6 canvasses (read: big empty spaces for you to create your dream map on), with more planned to be added into the future. There’s even an ocean floor canvas.

Navmesh is also being added, allowing you to make the map usable by bots!

What do you think of Infinite’s upcoming Winter Update? Do you see the game starting to move into the right direction? Let us know in the comments below!