A “Halo Infinite” upgrade that was supposed to fix continuing matchmaking troubles in the game’s Big Team Battle mode is now online, although it only appears to have made “small improvements.”
Since late December, Big Team Battle has been generally unplayable, with many players unable to load into matches. For larger groups, the problem is even greater. Prior to the holidays, developer 343 Industries stated that a remedy for the issue would most likely not arrive until the new year, but it appears that this update isn’t precisely what was required.
Well, damn… today's BTB hotfix does not appear to be the outcome we expected. There are minor improvements, but overall matchmaking issues are still occurring. Thanks to the folks who have been working hard and we're sorry this didn't quite get the job done. Work continues. https://t.co/lKiFibBDtT
— Brian Jarrard (@ske7ch) January 19, 2022
On Twitter, Halo community director Brian Jarrard expressed regret that “this didn’t quite get the job done” and that “work continues” on the problem. Jarrard also mentioned that the team is looking into temporarily removing Big Team Battle-focused challenges until the mode’s matchmaking troubles are rectified.
All players who check in between January 19 and February 16 will earn five double XP boosts and five challenge swaps as recompense for the mode’s problems. Upon starting the game, the items will be immediately put to each player’s inventory. “Minor physics improvements to the Oddball to mitigate exploits” are also included in the update.
This week also marks 343’s first move to improve “Halo Infinite‘s” microtransaction store, with prices for several of the game’s premium cosmetic bundles being reduced. 343 intends to sell more products individually outside of bundles in the future, among other improvements.
Along with the free Cyber Showdown event, “Halo Infinite’s” multiplayer gained a new game mode, Attrition. Completing Attrition-themed challenges allows players to gain free cosmetics such as armor coatings, helmet accessories, and more. The Cyber Showdown event will last two weeks before returning to the game’s samurai-themed Fracture: Tenrai event.
Microsoft is in the midst of acquiring Activision Blizzard for approximately $70 billion in significant Xbox news. The merger will bring Call of Duty and Halo, two of the most popular first-person shooter brands in the world, together under one roof, giving Microsoft access to a wide number of properties.