Highlights

  • Both Halo Infinite and the Halo show are making efforts to redeem the franchise's reputation after recent missteps.
  • Halo Infinite is finally improving with new content and features and becoming the complete experience it was expected to be.
  • The Halo Paramount+ show is attempting to course-correct in Season 2 by being more faithful to the source material.

It's no secret that the Halo franchise has seen better days. Debuting as Xbox's flagship system seller all the way back in 2001, Halo entered the gaming industry as one of the greatest Sci-Fi video games of all time, and its legacy somehow only continued to grow as the years went on. Halo 2, Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, and Halo Reach weren't flawless games, but they've gone down in history as some of the greatest Xbox games ever made, and considering the franchise's current state, it's easy to see why so many fans long for a return of those earlier entries.

343 Industries hasn't had the best tenure with the Halo license. Though things started out strong with the imperfect but impressive Halo 4, 343's reputation quickly soured. Halo 5: Guardians delivered potentially the worst campaign in series history, and the rollercoaster only continued with the release of Halo Infinite in 2021. It's been a turbulent time for Halo, but the IP seems like it might finally be getting back on track, though the franchise is in danger of burning out its candle too quickly.

Halo Crossovers
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Every Game Halo Has Crossed Over With Explained

One of the most influential game series of all time, it's only natural that Halo has crossed over with a plethora of other games in the last 23 years.

The Halo Franchise Is Trying to Fix Two Major Aspects at Once

Halo Infinite Is Gradually Getting Better

On its initial November 2021 launch, Halo Infinite was met with some excellent reviews, both from fans and critics. With a focus on smaller maps, tight gunplay, and genuinely useful armor abilities, Halo Infinite felt like the return to the franchise's arena-shooting roots that fans had been asking for. It was far from a perfect landing -- on launch, Halo Infinite had a severe lack of modes and maps -- but 343 Industries' new live-service approach guaranteed that more content would be coming in the near future.

Unfortunately, that new content wouldn't come for quite some time. Though it received its first season alongside its launch, any substantial new content wouldn't arrive in Halo Infinite until May 2022, with the release of the game's second season, titled Lone Wolves. Lasting a whopping six months, Halo Infinite's second season finally added some new game modes and maps, and was the first proper sign that 343 Industries could turn things around.

Now, over two years after launch, Halo Infinite is finally looking like the game it should have always been. Campaign co-op is back, along with both Forge and Firefight. Halo Infinite's multiplayer also now has a wealth of maps and game modes, including all of the usual ones fans would simply expect to be there in a Halo game. For the first time, Halo Infinite feels like a complete Halo experience, but it shouldn't have taken this long to get here, and it shouldn't have required 343 to burn itself out and delay new ideas in the process.

The Halo Paramount+ Show Is Trying to Course-Correct

Halo Infinite isn't the only part of the franchise that's trying to redeem itself right now. Back in March 2022, the first season of the Paramount+ Halo show aired, and fans were quick to air their grievances about the show online. Though it had some compelling action sequences, Halo's first season made some strange, often unnecessary narrative decisions that flew in the face of Halo's pre-established lore.

That reception hasn't stopped Halo from receiving a second season, however. Several episodes in at the time of writing, Halo's second season is undeniably more faithful to the source material than its previous season, though it's still making some bizarre decisions that fans are rightfully confused and upset about. Still, it's clear that Halo Season 2 is trying its best to please fans, and with a few more episodes to go, it's not impossible for this show to win back fans, just like 343 has nearly done with Halo Infinite.