Halo Infinite is Getting a Third-Person Mode

Key Takeaways

• Halo Infinite will introduce a third-person mode in November, a departure from the series’ traditional first-person gameplay.
• Player interest in Halo Infinite has severely declined since launch, but the upcoming third-person mode has piqued the interest of many.
• Other players feel that the third-person mode muddles Halo Infinite’s identity and makes it look like a Fortnite clone.

343 Industries has announced that a third-person mode is coming to Halo Infinite next month. Branded as a “new way to play,” this third-person mode is a big step not just for Halo Infinite, but for the entire franchise, since first-person gameplay has always been a pillar of the Halo series.

Halo Infinite garnered a healthy amount of popularity when it launched back in December 2021, managing a peak of over 250,000 Steam players and ranking highly among the most played Xbox games. It was even discovered late last year that Halo Infinite had accrued over 30 million unique players, but concurrent player counts told a different story. After its initial popularity wore off, Halo Infinite‘s active player base took a nosedive due to its long list of missing modes and features, such as split-screen co-op, Forge, and more. 343 Industries added a lot of them over time, but they haven’t done much to pump up the numbers.

Now, it seems the studio is implementing more radical methods to get players interested in Halo Infinite again. A recent post from 343’s official Twitter account revealed a third-person mode for Halo Infinite via a minute-long gameplay trailer. Third-person modes for Halo games were previously only achievable by way of mods, so this is a bit of a paradigm shift for the Halo series, which cut its teeth on first-person gameplay and has never featured third-person perspectives aside from the transitions when a player mans a turret or vehicle.

Halo Infinite’s Third-Person Mode Has Some Fans Upset Over the Game’s “Fortnite-ification”

Halo Infinite fans are understandably polarized by the third-person mode, with some expressing excitement about the novel feature and pledging to return to the game when 343 makes it available. Meanwhile, detractors argue that the third-person mode makes Halo Infinite look like Fortnite and isn’t the best use of the studio’s resources. While this argument can be stretched out endlessly, the new mode is at least good news for players who have been requesting a third-person perspective for a long time. 343’s tweet didn’t reveal a lot of details, but did confirm that Halo Infinite‘s third-person mode will debut in November 2024.

Regardless of where one may stand on Halo Infinite‘s upcoming perspective change, it still shows that 343 is willing to venture into uncharted waters for the Halo franchise. With the next mainline Halo game currently in development at 343, it remains to be seen whether the studio plans to experiment with similarly novel ideas for the campaign, or stick to the tried-and-true first-person perspective.