Halo Infinite

Halo alone has always been reason enough to own an Xbox, going back to splitscreen Halo 2 sessions that ran past midnight. Along with Call of Duty, it's one of the two series that defined the Xbox shooter, and Halo Infinite might be my favourite entry so far. Grab a Skewer off a dead Brute. The fight changes instantly. Big Team Battle still delivers the vehicle chaos the series built its name on, and Forge extends the shelf life well past the standard playlists. It's not the cultural force it was at launch, and matchmaking takes a beat longer for some modes, but the shooting hasn't lost a step.

I've been on Xbox since the 360, and there's still an old, slightly irrational part of my brain that files shooters under Xbox and open worlds under PlayStation. Halo is the reason that habit exists in the first place. The campaign opens the ring back up in a semi-open structure that actually works, grappling hook included, and Master Chief finally gets a story with real stakes again after Halo 5 fumbled it. Multiplayer is free, no purchase required, and the core sandbox still feels better in the hand than most shooters released since. It's not the best Halo ever made. It's still unmistakably Halo.

The Xbox has always been my shooter console. Halo is where that started. Playing the original on a friend's Xbox when it felt unlike anything else on the market, the weight of the pistol, the way the AI pushed back. Halo Infinite's free multiplayer is the modern version of that feeling. Arena maps built for controller play, a movement system that rewards positioning over raw reaction speed, Big Team Battle for when you want scale without the chaos of a battle royale. The population has settled but matchmaking is still comfortable. For players who grew up on Halo and want to revisit what made Xbox multiplayer feel distinct, this is the one.

Halo Infinite's multiplayer is free and the gunplay still holds up. The sandbox combat, the sandbox feel of Big Team Battle, the way the grappling hook changes movement, on an Xbox or PC it is still one of the cleanest arena-style experiences available without paying upfront. The honest limitation is that crossplay lives inside the Xbox-PC ecosystem, which means PS5 players cannot join. If your group spans PlayStation and Microsoft hardware, this does not solve your problem. If everyone is on Xbox or PC, it remains a strong pick with no reason to skip it. Population has dipped from launch highs, but matchmaking still finds games in reasonable time.

Halo will always be part of an Xbox multiplayer conversation, and Infinite's free multiplayer is the right current version to point people at. The core gunplay still has that readable, bouncy quality that made the series famous, and Big Team Battle with a full party is one of the better large-scale social shooter experiences on the platform. My honest take is that it sits below the top tier here because the live service momentum has been inconsistent and the player population, while workable, is no longer dominant. Forge and custom games are a genuine bright spot for groups who want to build their own experiences. For everyone else, it is a solid option rather than the essential one it was at launch.

Halo Infinite's multiplayer is a classic arena shooter at heart, pairing clean gunfeel with power weapons, equipment pickups, and readable maps that reward positioning over pure reaction time. Forge is the standout addition—it fuels a constant stream of inventive community modes and has kept the game relevant long after launch buzz faded. Core playlists suit quick solo sessions and coordinated squads equally well. The Steam population is noticeably smaller than the console side, which means off-peak matchmaking can feel thin for ranked play. Ideal for players who want timeless arena pacing with a creation toolkit that keeps things fresh indefinitely.