343 Industries has revealed a multiplayer map from sometime in late Fall 2021.
It's been a rocky development period for Halo Infinite. The game was set to be a flagship launch title for the Xbox Series X but its gameplay reveal in July drew heavy criticism for its graphical quality. In the face of such overwhelming negativity 343 Industries had little recourse but to push the game back. Since then it's been in development hell, wracked by controversies like overpriced cosmetic DLC and pandering snack food tie-ins. The development team has also been losing major employees, including its lead director, putting the game's future even more in doubt.
A recent update on Fall Guys. The article also treated fans to a first look at one of the game's multiplayer maps. The included screenshots also provide a first look at the game's interior spaces, as opposed to the natural outdoor setting seen in July's ill-fated reveal. The graphics designers took some time to discuss the challenges of creating an indoor space like this as opposed to an open-world outdoor environment; interior spaces like this map tend to offer more linear, controlled environs, while outdoor experiences are of course more open and organic. In the case of the multiplayer map, the team has to work closely with the designers to make sure it functions as a suitable battleground for players.
Showing such gorgeous screenshots of the new multiplayer map is a smart move. The visual quality of the July preview was the primary complaint fans leveled against it, as symbolized by the game's new unofficial mascot, Craig the Brute. Craig's poorly rendered face and vaguely morose expression became the poster child of Halo Infinite's graphical shortcomings, and even Microsoft embraced the numerous jokes and memes he spawned. These new multiplayer screenshots are a very effective way to assure players that Halo Infinite has come a long way from the days of Craig.
Halo Infinite fans have had a long and difficult time waiting for the arrival of what should have been Microsoft's crowning achievement. After several months of uncertainty and doubt, 343 Industries has finally given them something solid to latch onto. Hopefully this sizable information dump is the first of many solid, informative updates that will pave the road to the eventual and final launch of Halo Infinite.
Source: Halo Waypoint
