A developer from Certain Affinity, the support studio for Halo Infinite, has disclosed a 'canceled battle royale mode' for the game on their LinkedIn profile. Mike Clopper, who was in charge of a 'large team of designers' working on this unannounced mode, described it as a potential game-changer for the franchise. Clopper expressed his fondness for the project, stating, 'We loved playing it and working on it was a fantastic experience in spite of its cancellation.' He has since moved to Raven Software as studio design director, joining just this month ahead of the launch of Black Ops 6 on October 25.
Rumors of a battle royale mode for Halo Infinite had circulated for years. The mode was reportedly in development under the codename Project Tatanka before being rebranded to Project Ekhert in 2023 and eventually canceled. According to a report from Rebs Gaming, the mode was tied into the Halo Infinite narrative and was playtested weekly. The game was set on a large map with unique biomes, but it was canceled partly due to a shift in focus towards future Halo projects.
Although Halo Infinite never received an official battle royale mode, it did introduce a battle-royale-like mode called Last Spartan Standing in 2022. With games like Fortnite, Apex Legends, PUBG, Call of Duty: Warzone, and others dominating the battle royale scene, it was only natural for Halo to consider joining the trend. However, Halo franchise writer Jeff Easterling dampened expectations in 2018 by stating, 'The only BR we're interested in is Battle Rifle.' In 2019, Microsoft insider Brad Sams reported that 343 Industries was contemplating adding a battle royale mode to Halo Infinite, though specifics were never revealed.
Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer argued that Halo Infinite never needed a battle royale mode, emphasizing the purity of the Halo arena experience. Halo Infinite launched in 2021 and initially found success, but it did not meet Microsoft's expectations. Recently, Microsoft described Halo Infinite as the 'last remnant' of traditional Halo game development, with significant changes planned for future projects. Xbox boss Matt Booty compared Halo Infinite's launch to a runner stumbling at the finish line.
343 Industries has rebranded to Halo Studios and is now developing multiple new Halo games using Unreal Engine 5. For more details, check out GameSpot's comprehensive overview of the future of Halo.
