Today, during the Xbox Anniversary Celebration, Xbox and 343 Industries revealed that the Halo Infinite free-to-play multiplayer is now available to play starting today, three weeks early from Halo Infinite’s release date. Over at Xbox Wire, Xbox said, “as a thank you to the Xbox community for 20 years of support, 343 Industries launched the free-to-play Halo Infinite Multiplayer Beta and Season 1 three weeks early, available starting now for all players on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One and Windows PC. It will also be available via Xbox Cloud Gaming starting later today.” The official launch of the multiplayer also kicks off Season 1. All maps, core modes, Academy features, and Battle Pass is available for all players and progress will be carried over into the full Halo Infinite launch on December 8.
Joseph Staten, Head of Creative, Halo Infinite said “On behalf of the entire Halo Infinite team, and in celebration of Halo’s 20th anniversary, I am very happy to announce that your Spartan journey begins… today! Sincerest thanks to the entire Halo community for your support, passion, and feedback. This day belongs to all of you. Whether you’ve been part of the community from the beginning or are joining with us today, welcome!”
Staten also explains why it is released as a beta. “Why is this release a beta? Our previous Multiplayer Technical Previews went a long way to battle-testing our services and infrastructure. But as we prepare for a significant increase in the number of players jumping into Halo Infinite on launch day, December 8th, we want to ensure all our systems are good-to-go. While you may experience some bumps and bugs during this beta period, it does mark the official start of Halo Infinite Season 1, with all day-one maps and modes enabled as well as the full Season 1 Battle Pass. This means all the Battle Pass and customization items you earn or purchase during the beta will stay with you after December 8th.”
Season 1, “Heroes of Reach” runs through May 2, 2022. The Battle Pass offers free and premium tracks for more than 100 unlockable items. Keeping with the team, players can unlock armor kits for each of the original heroes from Halo: Reach. Completing daily and weekly challenges earns XP which goes toward unlocking free and premium content throughout the Battle Pass. After completing all of the weekly challenges, a special Ultimate reward challenge will unlock and completing this earns a free cosmetic reward each and every week. Weekly challenges reset every Tuesday.
In celebration of 20 years of Halo, 343 is offering free commemorative rewards to everyone who plays this week. Players who log in any time by November 22 will automatically receive Platinum Anniversary Coatings (Armor, AR, and Warthog), I Love Bees Emblems, “Assembled” Emblems, Blue Team Weapon Charm, and the Heart Emblem Set.
Halo Infinite will feature special events at various times throughout the season. Events will include a featured, special playlist and an event-specific Pass with unique rewards. The first event, Fracture: Tenrai begins next week on November 23 and will run for one week. The free event includes the Yoroi (Samurai) armor core and an Event Pass that can be progressed while the event is active. The Fracture: Tenrai event will return multiple times throughout the season. In addition, special Yoroi-specific premium customization offerings will be featured in the store during the event.