Long-time Halo series collaborator Certain Affinity has announced that they will have a “deepening” role in the future development of Halo Infinite, and will be “evolving Halo Infinite in some new and exciting ways.”
We’ve been part of the @Halo franchise for more than 15 years and we’re honored to say we are deepening our relationship with 343 and have been entrusted with further evolving Halo Infinite in some new and exciting ways. Join us on our journey. https://t.co/fApGobYZS3 pic.twitter.com/XSuS7EtLcq
— Certain Affinity (@CertainAffinity) April 12, 2022
This announcement has, obviously, got a fair few Halo fans speculating as to what this evolution might be – the rumours about a battle royale mode are gaining a bit of traction once again, following reports that Certain Affinity are developing a mode dubbed Project Tatanka. Whatever Certain Affinity are working on, fans are happy to see them contributing once again.
Founded by Bungie veterans in 2006, Certain Affinity has assisted or contributed to Halo game development all the way back to the post-launch support for Halo 2. Since then they created another multiplayer map pack for Halo; Reach before helping to co-develop Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary’s multiplayer, Halo 4 Forge mode (alongside maps and multiplayer modes), and remade Halo 2 maps for Halo: The Master Chief Collection with modern graphics. They have already had contributions to Halo Infinite, having worked on the game since late 2019.
With their history – and looking at their multiplayer-led contributions to the Call of Duty franchise and 2016 Doom reboot – it’s practically certain (heh!) that they will be cooking up something multiplayer related. Notably missing from Halo Infinite is the popular Firefight horde mode, while CA could also be contributing to the delayed Forge mode, or cooking up something completely new for the franchise.
After a well received launch, 343 Industries has found it hard going shifting to live service development. It didn’t take long before issues with the game’s monetisation, the length of the battle pass, the repetition of events and other limitations from the game started to aggravate the game’s community. 343 were relatively quick to address some pressing concerns and promise change, but since the start of 2022, meaningful updates about upcoming content have been thin on the ground. The exception being that they announced a delay for the postponed co-op campaign mode – expected for the launch of Season 2, but pushed back further again.
Season 2 will now start on 3rd May 2022, it’s been confirmed, with 343 Industries sharing a neat teaser trailer:
Looking back to the original release, we really enjoyed the game that 343 had managed to construct, In our Halo Infinite review we said:
“Halo Infinite marks a clear moment in 343 Studios’ handling of the series. They finally have a grasp on what makes Master Chief tick, and they bring all of that knowledge to bear in often-spectacular fashion. While some issues nag, it’s clear that Halo Infinite is a brilliant new entry in the series, and one that makes this particular sci-fi FPS relevant once again.”