Master Chief is finally returning with Halo Infinite.
The game’s debut trailer — revealed at Microsoft’s E3 press conference — showcases nature at work on a new Halo. Master Chief is shown plugging Cortana, or some kind of AI, into the back of his helmet as the final tease.
The trailer begins with a tour of nature, showing a new ecosystem at work on the galaxy-destroying machine. We see various beasts and hieroglyphs around the world and in caves. But the world is not devoid of tech. An underwater mech is shown roaming the oceans. Shortly after, we see a small squad of marines walking through some fields.
In typical Halo fashion, the trailer ends with a shot of Master Chief looking off at a beautiful vista. His helmet hangs at his side, although we don’t see his face.
The trailer is shockingly peaceful for the Halo universe. We may not know much about Halo Infinite yet, but one thing’s for sure: This peaceful Halo is going to get messed up before Master Chief is done.
Halo Infinite will be released on Windows 10 and Xbox One and is being developed by 343 Industries using its new Slipspace Engine.
Update: YouTube Live’s interview with with Aaron Greenberg, games marketing GM for Xbox, added a bit more context to what Halo Infinite will actually be — or rather, what it won’t be:
This is an entirely new chapter in the Halo saga. What we did was an in-engine demonstration. The Slipspace engine is new. 343 has built this purposefully to take Halo in a whole new direction. It’s a story that centers on Master Chief. I think you saw visually some of the capabilities of the engine. We’re excited to share more, but for now: There’s a new Halo coming, it’s Halo Infinite and it features really a focus on Master Chief, which I think will be really received well by the fans.
When Geoff Keighley pushed Greenberg further with a question about the inevitability of Halo 6, Greenberg responded with this: “This is the next Halo game. Think of this as moving from the numbering to let’s do something completely different.”
It sounds like it could be a while before we see the resolution of Halo 5: Guardians’ story from 2015.
Update 2: In a article posted on Halo Waypoint, 343 Industries studio head Chris Lee confirmed that players will be spending much more time with their favorite green Spartan time time around.
“The team also heard feedback loud and clear on the amount of time spent playing as the Master Chief in Halo 5,” he said. “In Halo Infinite, the game will focus on the Master Chief and continue his saga after the events of Halo 5.”
Players can expect to spend more time in Master Chief’s big, metal boots. This is good news for players who miss the original Halo trilogy, but less good news for those that enjoyed the adventures of Locke and company from Halo 5.