For a game first revealed at E3 2018, fans know surprisingly little about Halo Infinite. The next foray into the sci-fi franchise seems to be something of a soft reboot, overhauling many of the mechanics that fans are familiar with, judging by early Halo Infinite gameplay demos. If there's one element fans know almost nothing about, though, it's how Halo Infinite's customization elements will work.
However, with the changes that have been made to Halo: The Master Chief Collection, fans may be getting a picture of how Halo Infinite will reward players with new customization options. Of course, Halo: MCC's customization has garnered a mixed reception, so it may not earn a great reception if 343 Industries does decide to go that route. Of course, as with all things, there are some pros and cons here.
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Essentially, when players level up in Halo: The Master Chief Collection they earn tokens that can be spent on a tiered list of rewards, with new seasons adding more customization options to the mix. After unlocking all of the items in a tier, players can move up to the next tier, which offers more weapon skins, vehicle skins, and armor options, among other things.
Players are able to move freely between the lists of seasonal items, and most of the lists contain a smattering of items for each of the games contained in The Master Chief Collection. It certainly isn't a perfect system, but it does offer players a lot more freedom in how they're rewarded than other games do, and that freedom goes a long way. Players are able to set goals for themselves through customization options, which drives them to keep going.
Obviously, that drive would be great for Halo Infinite, especially since 343 Industries wants Halo Infinite to be a 10-year game. Plus, it allows 343 Industries to drip-feed new armor options into the game over time, allowing for Spartans that will be visually distinct from one another as time goes on. Even in a multiplayer arena, unique Spartans will go a long way to keep players engaged.
Despite being in the same franchise, it's fair to say that Halo Infinite will have some major differences from Halo: Master Chief Collection. Being a single game instead of a collection, Halo Infinite may have to dish out rewards at a slower pace, simply because the single game is likely going to have fewer customization options at launch.
It's also possible that 343 Industries goes with a traditional style of customization for Halo Infinite, which might win the hearts of longtime fans. Halo: Reach customization is highly regarded by many players, thanks to the bevy of options that it provided and the credit system that players used to unlock new pieces of gear. That may be the best option if 343 Industries is going in an older direction, but it might not support as long of a lifespan for the game.
All told, fans will just need to wait and see what 343 Industries is cooking up for customization. Halo Infinite screenshots have painted a gorgeous picture for the revamped graphics after the lackluster visual presentation in the gameplay reveal, and it's possible that customization will be similarly polished. Any way fans slice it, Halo Infinite marks an exciting new chapter for the franchise, for better or for worse. Hopefully, the character customization is just as exciting.
Halo Infinite is in development for PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.