The first Halo Infinite beta kicked off last week and was due to run until yesterday, August 1. However, developer 343 Industries has decided to extend the Halo Infinite technical preview until later on today – for a special reason, as the team has also unlocked player vs player combat for the first time.
While Halo Infinite’s initial multiplayer beta is a lot of fun, a lot of players were undoubtedly disappointed that the tech preview was limited to Slayer deathmatch against bots alone. It was also due to be limited to the weekend, but in a fit of generosity, the team has decided to extend it in order to give Flighters their first taste of Halo Infinite PvP multiplayer – despite the bugs it may bring.
According to community director Brian Jarrard (a.k.a. ske7ch), the Halo Infinite beta will now run until approximately 9PM PT today / 12 midnight ET / 5AM tomorrow BST. The new PvP mode is the team-based 4v4 Arena Slayer, although the bot-only matches are still available.
Don’t expect it to be a smooth experience, however, as there’s presumably a reason why PvP wasn’t unlocked from the start. Jarrard tells players to expect “some known issues that are likely to impact your experience. But, if you’re cool with it, so are we!” Even the official Halo channel admits that matches may start without a full roster of players, so be warned before venturing in.
Face off against fellow Halo Insiders right now for a limited time – Arena Slayer has been enabled in the #HaloInfinite tech preview!
Reminder: Matches in this playlist may start without a full roster, but players will be added in as soon as possible to ensure a 4v4 experience. pic.twitter.com/T4se1AfRpW
— Halo (@Halo) August 2, 2021
There will be further betas before Halo Infinite’s release, which is currently down for a vague Holiday 2021 – although thanks to Xbox and Krispy Kreme we can probably narrow that down to November.
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