Halo Infinite to launch without co-op and Forge

Rumours about Halo Infinite not having both single-player and multiplayer at launch started well before Microsoft and 343 Industries decided to delay the game an entire year, so it's no surprise that they've just grown stronger since then. That's why it's good to finally have official word from the developers, even if it'll disappoint many of you. Because 343 just released this month's developer update in video form, and while a large part of it is about what the team learned and will improve from the recent Flight test, something else will probably create more headlines.

Joseph Staten, the head of creative on Halo Infinite, says that the game will launch without the option to play through the campaign cooperatively and without the map creator Forge. The reason for this is quite simple: those two aspects aren't as polished as the developers want yet, and they need to focus on other aspects right now. Co-op will instead launch as part of Season 2, while Forge is set for Season 3 if everything goes according to plan. This means that we'll probably get to co-op the campaign in February or March and Forge in May or June if Halo Infinite launches in November as expected. Considering the fact that we're also told the game is in the polishing phase, I wouldn't be surprised if the got the specific release date in the Gamescom 2021 Xbox Stream on August 24, so tune in for that on Tuesday at 6 PM BST / 7 PM CEST.