343 Industries

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Dune’s Oscar-nominated screenwriter is penning Netflix’s Gears Of War film

Netflix’s take on chonky soldiers vs. equally chonky underground aliens is, excuse me, gearing up. Last November, the streaming service announced plans to adapt Gears Of War’s chainsaw-swinging into an animated series and a live-action film. The latter has now tapped a writer. Jon Spaihts is the Oscar-nominated screenwriter behind Dune, Prometheus, and Doctor Strange, and he’s now writing the Gears Of War film, Netflix announced today. Read more

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Halo Infinite’s season 3 ray tracing update is here, and looks kinda underwhelming

As promised last year, Halo Infinite’s season 3 update has arrived with a new ray tracing option for us PC folks. Although it was announced as part of a promo event for AMD’s Radeon RX 7000 GPUs, Infinite’s ray tracing works on any graphics card that can usually handle RT effects; all you need to do is download the update and flick it on in the display settings. Granted, it’s not the most visually sumptuous form of ray tracing I’ve clapped a visor on. Reflections and global illumination are unchanged, as it’s only sun shadows – shadows cast using a…

echoes-within-looks-like-the-biggest-update-to-halo-infinite-since-launch Rock,Paper,Shotgun

Echoes Within looks like the biggest update to Halo Infinite since launch

Halo Infinite has been in an extended slump since its second season began 10-months ago, but 343 Industries are hoping to turn things around when Season 3: Echoes Within starts next week on March 7th. Echoes Within is undeniably the biggest update to Infinite since launch, as it’s adding new maps, weapons and equipment, and expanding the multiplayer’s narrative – which has been a series of perpetual teases so far. Read more

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Halo Infinite Season 3 finally arrives in March with plenty of new maps

The Season was initially meant to launch last year. Halo Infinite Season 3 is finally almost here after having been delayed by several months, with a new trailer here to show off what we can expect. It’s no secret that Halo Infinite has had a rough time ever since it launched. That continues up to now, as the game’s upcoming Season 3, titled Echoes Within, is finally launching March 7, after pushing it back by a few months in September. The roadmap did give us some snapshots of what to expect, but a new trailer finally shows it off in…

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Microsoft and Riot the latest gaming/tech companies to layoff staff – 343, The Coalition, Bethesda all affected

As the wider tech industry downsizes, some games industry giants start following suit. Microsoft and Riot Games are facing substantial layoffs, according to recent reports from various sources. Both companies appear to be following recent trends in the tech industry, which has found itself in turmoil over recent months with downsizing and mass layoffs occurring at various companies across the US. You can watch Todd Howard talk about Starfield here! First reported by CNBC, Microsoft appears to be cutting 10,000 jobs in preparation for slower revenue growth. Last October, it had previously forecast the slowest growth period since 2016, which…

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Halo Infinite’s December update brings back The Pit and adds Custom Game Browser early

Finally, a year later, Halo Infinite actually feels like a Halo game. Swiftly following on from the recent winter update, Halo Infinite has received its December update, which introduces a whole host of features that Halo fans should be raving about right now. Take a look at what the Halo Infinite winter update added here. The winter update’s most notable addition had to be Forge, Halo Infinite’s map creator, but now, the December update provides even more free content to support it. This includes a shiny new Custom Game Browser, which has appeared much earlier than anticipated. “It’s a key…

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Halo Infinite’s winter update is live with campaign co-op, Forge beta, and more

343 Industries has released the winter update for Halo Infinite. This is the largest feature update to the game yet, bringing with it Campaign co-op, Mission Replay, the Forge Beta, and plenty of new, free content. Halo Infinite – Winter Update Trailer Campaign Network co-op supports crossplay across all Xbox devices and PC, and progress and unlocks are shared across all players. This means that no matter what platform you’re playing on, you will bring your campaign completion, collectibles unlocked, Spartan Cores unlocked, etc, and all players will progress together so it’s not just the host who benefits. Alongside Campaign…

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Halo developer reportedly abandoning custom Slipspace Engine for Unreal

If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. This follows the many bumps Halo Infinite has experience since launch. It looks like Halo Infinite developer 343 Industries might be abandoning its custom Slipspace Engine for Unreal Engine. This comes from journalist Jeremy Penter (thanks VGC), who wrote yesterday (October 2), “I can only confirm that many sources are saying this and very clear that it’s already been decided and Halo is for sure switching to Unreal. I feel like it’s time for other switches behind the scenes including…

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Halo Infinite’s co-op campaign won’t have online matchmaking, even after leaving beta

If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. Xbox has advised players to use Halo LFG and Discord to find people to play with. Halo Infinite’s co-op campaign has been eagerly anticipated for a while now, with the beta arriving just last week, but to the dismay of many fans, the new mode will not feature any online matchmaking. This will also persist even after the mode leaves beta, meaning players must recruit friends of their own to play alongside. This campaign update is currently in beta for…

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EA blamed Halo Infinite for Battlefield 2042’s poor performance – but six months later, the tables have turned

Battlefield 2042’s struggles are far from over, but at least it can claim victory over one particular battle. When Battlefield 2042 launched in November last year, it seemed like EA was ready to blame any number of outside factors on the game’s sorry technical state, and its subsequent poor reception. The publisher cited all the usual Covid-related disruptions, even if it seemed like DICE was hit harder than most. But one particular theory posited by EA executives – according to a report from February – was that the surprise launch of Halo Infinite just four days earlier put Battlefield 2042…

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Halo Infinite’s campaign co-op playtest kicks off July 11

The beta will let players finally try out a classic Halo mode. Last month 343 Industries confirmed that a playtest would take place for Halo Infinite’s campaign co-op, and now a date is set in stone. Those that are lucky enough to take part in the playtest will be able to drop in with their friends starting the week of July 11, as announced in a Halo Waypoint blog post. In the blog post, lead software engineer Isaac Bender and lead world designer John Mulkey sat down to talk about the features in the co-op mode. One of the big…

halo-infinite’s-co-op-campaign-will-enter-public-testing-in-july Rock,Paper,Shotgun

Halo Infinite’s co-op campaign will enter public testing in July

Owning Halo Infinite is like having a subscription to a magazine where each issue has part of a model stuck to the front. The first issue brought the game’s multiplayer modes, the second issue brought its singleplayer campaign, the third issue finally fixed its Big Team Battle mode, and the fourth issue – by which time you’ve possibly lost interest – will bring online co-op for its campaign. If you’re one of those still reading this metaphorical magazine, you can get beta access to the co-op mode this July if you sign up to Halo Insider. Read more

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Halo Insiders can playtest Halo Infinite’s campaign co-op in July

If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. Some good news on that front. 343 Industries has announced it will host a playtest for Halo Infinite’s campaign co-op next month. To be made available to Halo Insiders, if you want to participate in the flight, 343 suggests you make sure you either register or make sure your Halo Insider profile is up to date. If the present roadmap is still on course, campaign co-op is slated for release sometime in late August. Campaign co-op was originally slated to…

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Halo Infinite Season 2 started off a bit “bumpy” according to 343 Industries

If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. To make things up to players, the studio is offering up some free XP and Challenge Swaps. 343 Industries has admitted things haven’t gone as smoothly as planned with the launch of Halo Infinite Season 2. One of the things that didn’t go according to plan was the buggy challenges, which should now be fixed. “This week has been bumpy,” said Joseph Staten, head of creative for Halo Infinite. “That definitely wasn’t our goal. We are indeed taking your feedback…

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Halo Infinite Just Can’t Catch A Break

Busted challenges. A dysfunctional battle pass. A bunch of ultimately ineffectual “fixes.” A cacophonous uproar of player feedback, much of which isn’t positive. It may sound like the launch-window era of Halo Infinite, but no: This is Halo Infinite today, six months after its launch, during the first week of its second season.